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Abstract An equivalent analytical model of sloshing in a two-dimensional (2-D) rigid rectangular container equipped with multiple vertical baffles is presented. Firstly, according to the subdomain partition approach, the total liquid domain is partitioned into subdomains with the pure interface and boundary conditions. The separation of variables is utilized to achieve the velocity potential for subdomains. Then, sloshing characteristics are solved according to continuity and free surface conditions. According to the mode orthogonality of sloshing, the governing motion equation for sloshing under horizontal excitation is given by introducing generalized time coordinates. Besides, by producing the same hydrodynamic shear and overturning moment as those from the original container-liquid-baffle system, a mass-spring analytical model of the continuous liquid sloshing is established. The equivalent masses and corresponding locations are presented in the model. The feasibility of the present approach is verified by conducting comparative investigations. Finally, by utilizing normalized equivalent model parameters, the sloshing behaviors of the baffled container are investigated regarding baffle positions and heights as well as the liquid height, respectively.

Pressure sensors based on advanced materials have gained high attention for their potential applications in various fields, including sports training. This study focuses on the development of poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE))/graphene composite films as high-performance pressure sensors. The composite films were fabricated using a casting method, and their morphological, structural, thermal, mechanical, and electrical properties were comprehensively characterized. The incorporation of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) into the P(VDF-TrFE) matrix led to the formation of a percolated conductive network, resulting in enhanced electrical conductivity and pressure sensitivity. The composite film containing 5 wt% GnP exhibited remarkable sensing capabilities, boasting an elevated sensitivity of 0.85 kPa−1, a rapid response time of 50 ms, and exceptional resilience over 1000 loading-unloading cycles. Moreover, the incorporation of GnP substantially augmented the mechanical properties, with a 65 % enhancement in tensile strength and a 92 % surge in Young's modulus when juxtaposed against pristine P(VDF-TrFE) films. The superior property of these P(VDF-TrFE)/graphene composite pressure sensors, along with their excellent mechanical properties, make them promising candidates for sports training applications, enabling the monitoring and analysis of various biomechanical parameters to optimize athletic performance and prevent injuries.

Abstract Background As the global trend of population aging intensifies, the health and well-being of the older population has gradually become a focus of attention for the global community. This study assessed the status of thriving in life among Chinese urban older adults and identified its relationship with attitude toward own aging and quality of life (QoL). It also tested whether attitude toward own aging moderates the association between thriving in life and Qol or between thriving in life and suicidal ideation. Methods Primary data were collected through a cross-sectional survey among urban older adults from three provinces in China. They were invited to complete an anonymous survey using face-to-face interviews from December 2019 to January 2020. Data from 764 older adults were analyzed. Results Approximately 44.39% of participants reported positive responses toward the four domains of thriving in life. Thriving in life and attitude toward own aging had a significant association with QoL. Thriving in life was a protective factor for suicidal ideation for older adults. Moreover, attitude toward own aging moderated the association between thriving in life and QoL and that between thriving in life and suicidal ideation. Conclusions Chinese urban older adults were reportedly thriving in life, which contributed to increased QoL and reduced suicidal ideation. Notably, the study revealed that more positive attitudes towards own aging were associated with higher levels of thriving in life, better QoL, and reduced suicidal ideation. Targeted interventions for older adults should be devised to promote thriving in life and prevent negative attitudes of older people towards their own aging, further raising QoL and reducing suicidal ideation.

Summary: Cartilage maintains the structure and function of joints, with disturbances leading to potential osteoarthritis. N6-methyladenosine (m6A), the most widespread post-transcriptional modification in eukaryotes, plays a crucial role in regulating biological processes. While current research has indicated that m6A affects the progression of osteoarthritis, its function in the development and homeostasis of articular cartilage remains unclear. Here we report that Mettl3 deficiency in chondrocytes leads to mandibular condylar cartilage morphological alterations, early temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis, and diminished adaptive response to abnormal mechanical stimuli. Mechanistically, METTL3 modulates Lats1 mRNA methylation and facilitates its degradation in an m6A-YTHDF2-dependent manner, which subsequently influences the degradation and nuclear translocation of YAP1. Intervention with the Hippo pathway inhibitor XMU-MP-1 alleviates condylar abnormality caused by Mettl3 knockout. Our findings demonstrate the role of METTL3 in cartilage development and homeostasis, offering insights into potential treatment strategies for osteoarthritis.

Functional polysaccharides are characterized by functional and structural biomolecules, which play a dual role, both as nutrient molecules providing energy and as signaling molecules involved in intercellular communications. There are increasing evidences showing that functional polysaccharides possess beneficial effects for treating chronic diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, etc., but its mechanism of action remains imprecision. Additionally, due to the limitations of precision detection methods and the complexity of their structures, the metabolic kinetics behaviours or bioavailability of functional polysaccharides, and the interaction between it entering the systemic circulation and target cells of action have been a conundrum faced by researcher. This review summarized the latest advances in the efficacy of functional polysaccharides in chronic diseases and their structure-activity relationship, absorption and metabolic behaviours, and specific cellular receptors so as to understand the mechanisms of their bioactivities. This review is expected to provide new insights of functional polysaccharides and paves the way for their application.

Abstract Background Houseflies, Musca domestica L., are an ubiquitous pest that can transmit numerous diseases and threaten human health. Increasing insecticide resistance shown by houseflies necessitates the develop new control alternatives. The housefly gut is densely colonized with microorganisms that interact with each other dynamically and benefit the host’s health. However, the impact of multiple symbiotic bacteria on the composition of housefly gut microbiota and the host’s activities remains unclear. Methods We isolated and cultured 12 bacterial species from the intestines of housefly larvae. We also isolated seven bacteriophages to precisely target the regulation of certain bacterial species. Using 16S rRNA high-throughput gene sequencing, we analyzed the bacterial diversity after orally administering bacteria/phage cocktails to houseflies. Results Our results showed that larval growth was promoted, the abundance of beneficial bacteria, such as Klebsiella and Enterobacter, was increased and the abundance of harmful bacteria, such as Providencia, Morganella and Pseudomonas, was decreased in housefly larvae fed with the beneficial bacteria cocktail. However, oral administration of both beneficial and harmful bacterial phage cocktails inhibited larval growth, probably due to the drastic alteration of gut flora. Untargeted metabolomics using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry showed that disturbances in gut microbiota changed the larval metabolite profiles. Feeding experiments revealed that disrupting the intestinal flora suppressed the beneficial bacteria and increased the harmful bacteria, causing changes in the metabolites and inhibiting larval growth. Conclusions Based on our results, bacteria/phage cocktails are effective tools for regulating the intestinal flora of insects and have a high potential as a biological control agent for incorporation into an integrated pest management program. Graphical abstract

Abstract Background To explore the clinical, radiological, and surgical characteristics of anterior perforated substance (APS) gliomas. Methods Twenty patients with APS glioma who were treated with surgery between March 2019 and January 2022 from Tiantan hospital were retrospectively reviewed. The clinical, histological and radiological data were collected. Results Twenty patients, including 7 males (55%) and 13 females (45%), with a mean age at diagnosis of 37.9 years (range, 28–53 years) underwent operative intervention for APS. Headaches and dizziness were the most common preoperative symptoms in the majority patients (14, 70%). Based on radiological features of MRI, the APS was classified into two subtypes, type A and type B. Seven patients (40%) in type A indicated a clear tumor margin, while 13 patients (60%) in type B showed an ill-defined margin. The surgical approach including frontal, temporal, and coronal frontal incisions for type A and type B tumors, respectively. Three patients in type A received total resection, while one patient in type B were total resected. Pathologically, 12 cases (60%, 12/20) were diagnosed as astrocytoma and 8 cases (20%, 8/20) were oligodendroglioma. Meanwhile, 17 cases (85%, 17/20) had MGMT promotor methylation. Conclusion In this study, we performed the first systematic research of patients with APS glioma. Most of patients with APS presented headaches and dizziness symptoms. The APS glioma was further divided into two major radiological subtypes with relevant different surgical approaches. The APS glioma in type A were more likely to receive total resection.

Abstract Background The competing interests of the government, smart senior care technology service providers, and older adults have led to a serious fragmentation of governance in China. This study aims to identify the collaboration mechanisms and evolutionary stabilization strategies for these agents. Methods An evolutionary game model is developed to analyze the strategic decisions made by the government, smart senior care technology service providers, and older adults. A sensitivity analysis is conducted using data from Anhui Province, China, to verify the effects of relevant parameters on the strategy decisions of each agent. Results The results of the simulation and sensitivity analysis indicated that, first, despite changes in the initial willingness values of the tripartite agents, the system eventually converges on 1. Second, the collaboration mechanism of the tripartite agents in the smart senior care system is related to government incentives, penalties, and subsidies, smart senior care service costs, and the additional benefits provided to smart senior care technology service providers. Conclusion The strategy decisions of the government, providers, and older adults interact with each other. To promote collaboration among the tripartite agents and improve governance effectiveness, the government should strengthen the regulations for providers, increase penalties for providers that engage in a breach of trust, provide moderate incentives and subsidies, and control smart senior care service costs.

Abstract Background Musca domestica larvae are common saprophytes in nature, promoting the material—energy cycle in the environment. However, heavy metal pollution in the environment negatively affects their function in material circulation. Our previous research found that some intestinal bacteria play an important role in the development of housefly, but the responses of microbial community to heavy metal stresses in Musca domestica is less studied. Results In this study, CuSO4, CuSO4—Klebsiella pneumoniae mixture and CuSO4—K. pneumoniae phage mixture were added to the larval diet to analyze whether K. pneumoniae can protect housefly larvae against Cu2+ injury. Our results showed that larval development was inhibited when were fed with CuSO4, the bacterial abundance of Providencia in the intestine of larvae increased. However, the inhibition effects of CuSO4 was relieved when K. pneumoniae mixed and added in larval diets, the abundance of Providencia decreased. Electron microscope results revealed that K. pneumoniae showed an obvious adsorption effect on copper ion in vitro. Conclusions Based on the results we assume that K. pneumoniae could adsorb Cu2+, reduce Cu2+ impact on gut community structure. Our study explains the role of K. pneumoniae antagonizing Cu2+, which could be applied as a probiotic to saprophytic bioantagonistic metal contamination.

Abstract Severe sharp angular kyphosis resulting from Pott’s disease typically necessitates surgical intervention. The deployment of three-column osteotomy within the lesion and apical regions has been validated as an effective modality for the amelioration of angular kyphosis. Nonetheless, a propensity for residual kyphosis persists, accompanied by a significant perioperative risk profile. In pursuit of optimizing correctional outcomes and diminishing complication rates, we proposed an innovative surgical approach, utilizing osteotomy in the non-lesioned zones for the rectification of severe angular kyphosis associated with Pott’s disease. This retrospective investigation encompasses 16 subjects who underwent this novel surgical tactic, involving osteotomies in non-lesioned vertebral segments, at our institution from 2016 to 2018. Radiographic measures, encompassing kyphotic angle and sagittal vertical axis (SVA), were documented at baseline and during terminal follow-up. Neurological status was evaluated via the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) grading system. Operative duration, volume of hemorrhage, and perioperative complications were systematically recorded. The cohort included 6 males and 10 females with an average age of 30.7 ± 11.41 years. Follow-up intervals spanned 24 to 42 months. Mean operative time and blood loss were 492 ± 127.3 min and 1791 ± 788.8 ml, respectively. The kyphotic angle improved from 97.6 ± 14.6° to 28.8 ± 18.70°. In cases with lumbar afflictions, vertebral restoration was achieved (L1–L5 and L2–S1). Initial mean SVA of 6.7 ± 3.58 cm was reduced to 3.3 ± 1.57 cm at follow-up. Neurological function enhancement was observed in six patients, while ten maintained baseline status. Complication rates, including wound infection and rod fracture at 12 months, were observed in approximately 11.8% of cases. Our findings suggest that the surgical strategy is both effective and safe for addressing severe angular kyphosis due to Pott’s disease, contingent upon the expertise of the surgical unit.

The Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean is located on the west coast of the African continent and the East coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has classified the operational area into 34 fishing areas. Under the influence of the canary Current (cold current), equatorial countercurrent (warm current), and ocean trade winds, an upwelling fishing ground has been formed in the broad continental shelf area of the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean, which is abundant in fishery resources and is a globally important fishing area. Studies have shown that the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean has been overfished by the European Union and other countries, which damaged the fishery resources and ecosystem in this fishing area. Therefore, analyzing the composition of catches of different countries and regions in this area can objectively evaluate the situation of fishing and utilization of fishery resources in different countries and regions, and provide a strong basis for rational development and scientific management of fishery resources in this fishing area. Using the catch data of the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean provided by FAO from 1950 to 2019, the dominance analysis was used to analyze the composition and contribution of catches and catch species in the Eastern Central Atlantic, as well as in the coastal and non-coastal countries and regions in different decades. Previous works have illustrated that the total catch in the region has been increasing since 1950. The top ten identifiable species of fish in the region during the mentioned period were Sardina pilchardus, Jack and horse mackerels nei, Sardinellas nei, Sardinella aurita, Scomber colias, Ethmalosa fimbriata, Katsuwonus pelamis, Engraulis encrasicolus, Thunnus albacares, and Sardinella maderensis accounting for 63.61% of the total catch in this fishing area. Statistics of catches by age revealed that five species including Sardina pilchardus, Sardinellas nei, Sardinella aurita, Ethmalosa fimbriata, Thunnus albacares ranked in the top ten in each decade, and Sardina pilchardus, and Ethmalosa fimbriata catch increased in each decade, and Sardina pilchardus ranked first in each decade. From 1950 to 2019, the total catch of the top ten coastal countries and regions reached 10974.80×104 t, accounting for 94.95% of the total catch of the coastal countries and regions, representing the catch level of the coastal countries and regions. The sum of the total catches of the top ten non-coastal countries and regions from 1950 to 2019 reached 6440.01×104 t accounting for 80.40% of the total catch of the non-coastal countries and regions in this fishing area, representing the catch level of non-coastal countries and regions. Dominant analysis showed that four species of Sardina pilchardus, Ethmalosa fimbriata, Sardinella aurita, and Scomber colias were dominant in this fishing area. With an average combined contribution of 52.06% in each decade, Morocco, Senegal, Ghana, Cameroon, and Nigeria contributed the maximum to the fishing, among which Morocco and Senegal contributed more than 10% in each decade. The European Union, Russia (Soviet Union), and Japan were the main contributing countries among non-coastal countries and regions with an average total contribution of 82.71% in each decade and the average total contribution of the European Union was ∼60% in each decade. The cumulative catch of the Chinese mainland in this fishing area was merely 55.71×104 t, which was less than 18% of Japan´s contribution. According to this study, the fishery resources in the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean have been overfished or overexploited to varying degrees threatening the survival of major catch species such as Sardina pilchardus, cephalopods. In this fishing area, the European Union, Japan, and other non-coastal countries and regions had captured a sizable catch with high economic value (such as tuna). Therefore, the monitoring and management of overfishing and illegal fishing must be strengthened to accelerate the monitoring and conservation of major catch species such as sardines and cephalopods. Coastal countries and regions should formulate reasonable fishery management measures, reject unreasonable fishery assistance and fishery agreements, scientifically evaluate fishery development systems such as bottom trawling permits, and reduce the damage to demersal marine fish resources and social impacts. Non-coastal countries and regions should keep the intensity of fishing appropriately to help resource assessment and conservation of overfished fishery resources in this fishing area. Coastal countries and regions should strengthen regional cooperation, break the current situation of unbalanced development between regions, and promote the sustainable development of fishery resources in the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean. Based on the dominance analysis, this study comprehensively analyzed the fishery resources in the Eastern Central Atlantic Ocean from the perspective of catch composition and difference in catch size of countries and regions, objectively reflected the importance of different catch species, as well as the contribution and utilization of different fishing countries and regions to the fishery resources, which provided scientific support for the sustainable utilization of fishery resources in this fishing area. It also provided a new opinion for the analysis of the utilization of fishery resources in various fishing areas around the world.

Nairobi Sheep Disease (NSD) is a typical tick-borne syndrome characterized by severe hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, spontaneous abortion, and a high case fatality rate in small ruminants. The pathogenic agent, Nairobi sheep disease virus (NSDV), has also been associated with human infections, indicating its possible zoonotic potential. Prior to this study, NSDV has been detected from ticks collected in Jilin, Hubei, and Liaoning provinces in China. In the present study, a total of 343 ticks (Haemaphysalis longicornis) were collected in Shandong province, China in 2020, and pooled into 16 libraries. Analysis of the meta-transcriptomic sequencing data identified NSDV strains SDWL07, SDWL08, and SDWL16 from three pools. The SDWL07 and SDWL16 strains were detected from unfed ticks, while SDWL08 was detected from cattle-feeding ticks. Phylogenetic analyses showed higher sequence identities between the three strains and other Chinese NSDV strains than those from India and Kenya. Phylogenetic analyses also revealed that they clustered together and fell within the China lineage, suggesting no potential genetic reassortment among them. In summary, this is the first report of the identification of NSDV in Shandong province, highlighting the continually expanding endemic regions of this pathogen. Surveillance of NSDV should be intensified in China, especially in areas where H. longicornis is endemic.

Vermicomposting via housefly larvae can be used to efficiently treat manure and regenerate biofertilizer; however, the uptake of heavy metals could negatively influence the growth and development of larvae. Intestinal bacteria play an important role in the development of houseflies, but their effects on resistance to heavy metal damage in houseflies are still poorly understood. In this study, the life history traits and gut microbiota of housefly larvae were evaluated after exposure to an environment with Cu2+ -Enterobacter hormaechei. The data showed that exposure to 300 μg/mL Cu2+ significantly inhibited larval development and locomotor activity and reduced immune capacity. However, dietary supplementation with a Cu2+ -Enterobacter hormaechei mixture resulted in increased body weight and length, and the immune capacity of the larvae returned to normal levels. The abundances of Providencia and Klebsiella increased when larvae were fed Cu2+ -contaminated diets, while the abundances of Enterobacter and Bacillus increased when larvae were exposed to a Cu2+ -Enterobacter hormaechei mixture-contaminated environment. In vitro scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that Enterobacter hormaechei exhibited obvious adsorption of Cu2+ when cultured in the presence of Cu2+, which reduced the damage caused by Cu2+ to other bacteria in the intestine and protected the larvae from Cu2+ injury. Overall, our results showed that Enterobacter hormaechei can absorb Cu2+ and increase the abundance of beneficial bacteria, thus protecting housefly larvae from damage caused by Cu2+. These results may fill the gaps in our understanding of the interactions between heavy metals and beneficial intestinal bacteria, offering valuable insights into the interplay between housefly larvae and metal contaminants in the environment. This approach could enhance the efficiency of converting manure contaminated with heavy metals to resources using houseflies.

Abstract Background Aedes albopictus is a vector of numerous devastating arboviruses and places heavy burdens on global public health. Chitin is one of the important components of cuticles and targeting chitin metabolism is a promising strategy for preventing mosquito dispersal and mosquito-borne diseases. Increasing evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs) play crucial roles in various physiological processes of insects. Methods A previous analysis suggested that the microRNA miR-989 is potentially involved in chitin metabolism in Ae. albopictus pupae. In the present study, we found that the expression level of miR-989 was significantly overexpressed after injection of agomir. A dual-luciferase assay was used to determine the direct target of miR-989. Survival rate, eclosion rate and malformation rate were statistically analyzed to evaluate the potential effect of miR-989. Hematoxylin–eosin staining and chitin staining were used to evaluate the microstructural changes in the cuticles of Ae. albopictus pupae. Results Overexpression of miR-989 resulted in a significantly reduced survival rate and eclosion rate of pupae and an elevated malformation rate of adults. The results suggested that miR-989 acted as a regulator of chitin metabolism in Ae. albopictus pupae by affecting the transcript levels of the Ae. albopictus genes encoding chitin synthase 1 (AaCHS1) and chitinase 10 (AaCht10). The altered expression levels of the two chitin metabolism-related enzymes (CHS1 and Cht10, respectively) caused the structural changes in cuticles and further affected the pupal-adult transition process of Ae. albopictus. XM_029863591.1 was proven to be the target gene of miR-989 and displayed similar effects on pupae as miR-989. Conclusions The microRNA miR-989 was found to be essential for chitin metabolism in old and new cuticles of Ae. albopictus pupae. The results of the current study suggested that miR-989 could be used as a potential target to control Ae. albopictus. Graphical Abstract

To explore the taste characteristics and potential biological activities of the decapeptides of Stropharia rugosoannulata, two decapeptides (RIEDNLVIIR and SLPIKPRVPF) were selected to predict and validate the taste-presenting properties and ACE inhibitory activity mechanism by using virtual screening, molecular docking, and molecular interactions techniques. The results showed that the two decapeptides of S. rugosoannulata all had salty and umami tastes and ACE-inhibited peptide fragments. RIEDNLVIR had a salty taste, and SLPIKPRVPF had an umami taste. Two decapeptides of S. rugosoannulata could strongly bind to ACE receptors to form hydrogen bonds and electrostatic interactions. The in vitro activity validation results showed that the salty decapeptide RIEDNLVIIR inhibited the ACE well with an IC50 value of 0.012 mg/mL. The molecular interaction thermodynamics and kinetics results showed that the binding between RIEDNLVIR and ACE receptor was the specific binding of enthalpy-driven reaction. The results of virtual screening activity prediction, in vitro activity validation, and molecular docking and molecular interactions for ACE inhibition mechanism analysis were consistent. The study provides a theoretical basis for understanding the taste characteristics and ACE inhibition mechanism of S. rugosoannulata decapeptides and lays a foundation for applying the decapeptides with ACE inhibitory activity in healthy condiments and functional products.

Ultrasonic-assisted extraction of buckwheat bran flavonoids (BBF) was used. The effects of pH, temperature, light condition and metal ions on the stability of flavonoids were determined. The antioxidant activity of flavonoids in vitro was analyzed by DPPH·, iron reductive force, ABTS+·, superoxide anion and other methods. The buckwheat bran flavone-chitosan blend films (BBF-CS) were prepared using BBF and chitosan (CS) as materials. The effects of adding BBF (0, 5, 10, 15, 20 mL) on the thickness, opacity, chroma, solubility and mechanical properties of the blend films were determined. The results showed that BBF was suitable for storing in a weak acid (pH5~7) environment under normal temperature and avoiding the contact of Ca2+, Fe3+and Cu2+. In vitro antioxidant activity assay revealed that BBF had significant scavenging capacity for DPPH, ABTS+ free radicals and superoxide anion, with the maximum scavenging rate of 92.1% and 87.7%, 53.81%, respectively, and the absorbance value of reducing power for iron ion reached 3.54. Compared with CS film, BBF-CS blend films had higher thickness, opacity and yellowness, while L* value, total color difference, water content, solubility, tensile strength and elongation at break was lower. The method is stable and feasible, and can be used to extract BBF with strong antioxidant activity, will provide a basis for the subsequent development of BBF-CS blend films in food active packaging resources.

Abstract Background A shortage of qualified nurses and their low level of educational qualifications hinders the development of global health services. Studies have proven the role of nursing education in addressing these problems. However, no related studies have focused on senior high school students in China. This study aimed to explore senior high school students’ intentions to learn nursing and identify the factors influencing their decision-making processes. Methods An anonymous questionnaire was distributed to 8050 senior high school students, which included questions regarding their demographic characteristics, obtaining nursing specialty information, cognition of the nursing occupation and the impact of the COVID-19 on the nursing profession. Descriptive calculation, the chi-square test and logistic regression were used for the analysis. Results Only 0.73% of the participants had a clear intention to study nursing. Academic performance and family support were significant predictors of students’ intentions to pursue nursing education. Students’ interest in nursing specialties was associated with their choice. There was a positive correlation between cognition of nursing occupation and students’ choice of nursing. Students’ experience of the COVID-19 pandemic also had a positive impact on their nursing career choice. Conclusion This survey to some extent reflects the problem of nurses shortage in China. In addition, these findings may also provide a new perspective for predictors of nursing shortage and potential interventions.

The soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) is an important parameter of unsaturated soil, and almost all the engineering characteristics of unsaturated soil are more or less related to the SWCC. The SWCC contains important information for geotechnical engineering, water engineering, hydrogeology modelling and climate modelling. It is noted that the experimental measurement of SWCC is costly and time consuming, which limits the implementation of principles of unsaturated soil mechanics in practical engineering. The indirect method, which estimates the SWCC from the index properties of soil, can provide the SWCC with the errors which are within tolerance in practical engineering. In addition, the indirect method can determine SWCC very fast and almost with no cost. In this paper, the domestic sandy soils are selected and the index properties of those sands are used to correlate the SWCC fitting parameters. Consequently, mathematical equations are proposed to estimate SWCC from index properties of domestic sands. The proposed models are trained from 44 sets of experimental data and verified with another independent 8 sets of experimental data from published literature. It is observed that the results from the proposed model agree well with the experimental data from literature.

Crowd localization can provide the positions of individuals and the total number of people, which has great application value for security monitoring and public management, meanwhile it meets the challenges of lighting, occlusion and perspective effect. In recent times, Transformer has been applied in crowd localization to overcome these challenges. Yet such kind of methods only consider to integrate the multi-scale information once, which results in incomplete multi-scale information fusion. In this paper, we propose a novel Transformer network named Cross-scale Vision Transformer (CsViT) for crowd localization, which simultaneously fuses multi-scale information during both the encoder and decoder stages and meanwhile building the long-range context dependencies on the combined feature maps. To this end, we design the multi-scale encoder to fuse the feature maps of multiple scales at corresponding positions so as to obtain the combined feature maps, and meanwhile design the multi-scale decoder to integrate the tokens at multiple scales when modeling the long-range context dependencies. Furthermore, we propose Multi-scale SSIM (MsSSIM) loss to adaptively compute head regions and optimize the similarity at multiple scales. Specifically, we set the adaptive windows with different scales for each head and compute the loss values within these windows so as to enhance the accuracy of the predicted distance transform map. We perform comprehensive experiments on five public datasets, and the results obtained validate the effectiveness of our method.

Abstract Tunable radar stealth structures are critical components for future military equipment because of their potential to further enhance the design space and performance. Some previous investigations have utilized simple origami structures as the basic adjusting components but failed to achieve the desired broadband microwave absorbing characteristic. Herein, a novel double‐broadband switchable microwave absorbing grid structure has been developed with the actuators of inflatable Kresling origami structures. Geometric constraints are derived to endow a bistable feature with this origami configuration, and the stable states are switched by adjusting the internal pressure. An ultra‐broadband microwave absorbing structure is proposed with a couple of complementary microwave stealth bands, and optimized by a particle swarm optimization algorithm. The superior electromagnetic performance results from the mode switch activating different absorbing components at corresponding frequencies. A digital adjusting strategy is applied, which effectively achieves a continuously adjusting effect. Further investigations show that the proposed structure possesses superior robustness. In addition, minimal interactions are found between adjacent grid units, and the electromagnetic performance is mainly related to the duty ratio of the units in different states. They have enhanced the microwave absorbing performance of grid structures through a tunable design, a provided a feasible paradigm for other tunable absorbers.

Aspirin is a widely used multi-efficiency pharmaceutical, and its environmental residues are frequently detected. However, limited information is available on its effects on the development of the public health pest and saprophytic insect Musca domestica. In this study, it was demonstrated that aspirin inhibits the larval growth of house flies in a concentration-dependent manner. Microbiome analysis indicated that the composition of larval intestinal bacteria was influenced by aspirin but not greatly. The dominant bacterial genus in the aspirin group was still Klebsiella, as in the control group. Transcriptome sequencing and gene set enrichment analysis showed that retinol metabolism was activated after aspirin treatment. High performance liquid chromatography indicated that the content of retinol in larvae was decreased and that of retinoic acid was increased. The addition of β-carotene, a precursor substance of retinol, in feeding promotes larval development and alleviates the inhibitory effect caused by aspirin. In contrast, retinoic acid delayed the larval development of house flies as well as aspirin. Gene expression analysis after aspirin exposure demonstrated that genes involved in the transformation from retinol to retinoic acid were upregulated. Overall, aspirin exposure impairs larval development by activating retinol metabolism in house flies and can be utilized as an effective pesticide. This work uncovers the mechanism underlying the larval development inhibition induced by aspirin in terms of metabolism and genetics, and provides novel functional exploration of a traditional drug for pest management.

Abstract Purpose The present study aimed to explore the potential components and mechanisms of Rhodiola rosea–Euonymus alatus drug pair (TY) that ameliorate rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods The main active components, core targets, and important pathways of TY against RA were predicted by network pharmacology analysis. The binding activity between the main active components and the core targets was verified by the molecular docking technique. Collagen‐induced arthritis (CIA) rat model and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α‐induced fibroblast‐like synovial cells in human RA (HFLS‐RA) model were established, respectively. The core targets were verified by cell counting kit‐8 assay, hematoxylin eosin, enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay, real‐time polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot analysis, and the therapeutic effect of TY was evaluated. Results A total of 18 possible components and 34 core targets were obtained by network pharmacology, among which inflammatory response, phosphatidylinositide 3‐kinases (PI3K)‐AKT and MAPK pathways were involved in the therapeutic effect of TY on RA. The results of molecular docking showed that kaempferol and quercetin had high binding affinity to interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)9, and TNF‐α. In vivo and in vitro experiments showed that TY dose‐dependently inhibited the proliferation of HFLS‐RA cells induced by TNF‐α, and significantly reduced the paw swelling and arthritis scores in CIA rats. At the same time, TY inhibited the production of inflammatory factors in CIA rat serum and TNF‐α‐induced HFLS‐RA cells. It also decreased the expression of PI3K, phospho‐protein kinase B, MMP1, MMP3, MMP9, and increased the protein and mRNA levels of tissue inhibitors of MMPs (TIMP)1 in synovial tissue. Conclusion TY can inhibit the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and regulate the balance between MMPs and TIMP, thus playing a therapeutic role in RA.

As a first attempt, the incremental differential quadrature element method (IDQEM) is used for the one-dimensional nonlinear transient heat transfer analysis of multilayered thermal protection systems (TPSs) under time-dependent aerodynamic heating. All thermophysical properties are considered to be temperature-dependent (TD). Based on the IDQEM, the multilayered TPS is divided into several spatial sub-domains along the layer interfaces, and the entire heating process is also divided into several temporal sub-domains. For each temporal sub-domain, the governing equations are discretized by the differential quadrature method and then solved by the Newton-Raphson method. The initial condition of each temporal sub-domain is defined by the temperature results at the end of the previous sub-domain. The temperature profile of the TPS during the entire heating process can be obtained by repeating the calculation procedure from the first temporal sub-domain to the last one. Convergence and accuracy of the method are confirmed. Numerical examples are carried out to show the effects of TD thermophysical properties, thermal boundary, and layer thickness on the temperature profile of a three-layer TPS. The results show that the temperature dependency of thermophysical properties is worthy of consideration in predicting the temperature profile of the TPSs.

Hanseniaspora uvarum is a prevalent yeast species in vineyards. However, its application in grape wine fermentation remains limited. This study used culture-dependent and -independent approaches to investigate the dynamics of H. uvarum during the spontaneous fermentation of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. The results revealed that H. uvarum constituted 77.49 % of the non-Saccharomyces yeast population during fermentation. An indigenous strain, QTX-C10, was isolated from the 148 H. uvarum strains using a multistep screening strategy. The 1:1 co-inoculation of QTX-C10 with Saccharomyces cerevisiae proved to be an optimal strategy for mixed fermentation, resulting in a 48.54 %–59.55 % increase in ethyl esters in Cabernet Sauvignon wine and a 96.94 %–110.92 % increase in Chardonnay wine. Furthermore, this approach reduced the acetic acid levels by 12.50 %–17.07 % for Cabernet Sauvignon wine and 10.81 %–17.78 % for Chardonnay wine. Additionally, increased ethyl ester content may enhance the tropical fruit flavor of Cabernet Sauvignon wines.

Abstract Background The structure of gut microbiota is highly complex. Insects have ubiquitous associations with intestinal symbiotic bacteria, which play essential roles. Thus, understanding how changes in the abundance of a single bacterium interfere with bacterial interactions in the insect’s gut is important. Methods Here, we analyzed the effects of Serratia marcescens on the growth and development of housefly larvae using phage technology. We used 16S rRNA gene sequencing technology to explore dynamic diversity and variation in gut bacterial communities and performed plate confrontation assays to study the interaction between S. marcescens and intestinal microorganisms. Furthermore, we performed phenoloxidase activity assay, crawling assay, and trypan blue staining to explore the negative effects of S. marcescens on housefly larvae’s humoral immunity, motility, and intestinal organization. Results The growth and development of housefly larvae were inhibited after feeding on S. marcescens, and their intestinal bacterial composition changed with increasing abundance of Providencia and decreasing abundance of Enterobacter and Klebsiella. Meanwhile, the depletion of S. marcescens by phages promoted the reproduction of beneficial bacteria. Conclusions In our study, using phage as a tool to regulate the abundance of S. marcescens, we highlighted the mechanism by which S. marcescens inhibits the growth and development of housefly larvae and illustrated the importance of intestinal flora for larval development. Furthermore, by studying the dynamic diversity and variation in gut bacterial communities, we improved our understanding of the possible relationship between the gut microbiome and housefly larvae when houseflies are invaded by exogenous pathogenic bacteria. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Background Patients with severe kyphotic deformity (Cobb > 100°) secondary to ankylosing spondylitis (AS) occasionally cannot undergo corrective surgery in the prone position. Osteotomy in the lateral position might provide a possible solution. In this study, we aim to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of staged osteotomy in the lateral position for the treatment of AS-related severe kyphosis with a minimum of 2-year follow-up. Methods In total, 23 patients who underwent staged osteotomy in the lateral position from October 2015 to June 2017 were analyzed. In the first stage of surgery, all but one patient underwent a single-level Ponte osteotomy, which was followed by a pedicle subtraction osteotomy in the second stage. Mean follow-up was 30.8 ± 4.6 months. Global kyphosis (GK), thoracic kyphosis (TK), lumbar lordosis (LL), sagittal vertical axis (SVA), osteotomized vertebra intervertebral angle (OVI), chin-brow vertical angle (CBVA), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score and Scoliosis Research Society-22 Patient Questionnaire (SRS-22) were all compared pre- and postoperation. Results All kyphosis parameters were significantly improved (all P

The design and synthesis of a bifunctional catalyst to tackle environmental pollution caused by 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) and phenolic compounds is meaningful. In this study, a new three-dimensional (3D) polyoxovanadate (POV)-based metal–organic framework, [Co(L)(V4O12)0.5(H2O)]·2H2O (1; L = N,N’-bis(3-methylpyridin-3-yl)-2,6-naphthalenediamide), was synthesized under hydrothermal conditions. 1 was characterized using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis, infrared spectroscopy, and powder X-ray diffraction. Structural analysis shows that the [V4O12]4– clusters and pairs of Co2+ cations are alternately connected to form a one-dimensional inorganic chain, eventually generating a 3D (4,4)-connected framework through the expansion of L, which exhibits a two fold interpenetration array. As a bifunctional catalyst, 1 exhibits satisfactory catalytic properties for the selective oxidation of 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide to the corresponding sulfoxide, with an effective conversion of > 99% and selectivity of 97%. Furthermore, 1 exhibits excellent photocatalytic degradation activity toward phenol, 2-chlorophenol, and m-cresol under visible light. The degradation efficiencies were above 92.6% for 140 min. The photocatalytic reaction kinetics, mechanisms of photodegradation, and recycling capability of phenol were also investigated in detail.

Exploring the green and affordable protection of perishable cherry tomato fruits during storage, herein, the protective efficacy, and its underpinning mechanisms, of a coating of oleaster gum, alone or incorporated with cuminal, on cherry tomatoes stored at ambient temperature was investigated. The composite coating of oleaster gum with 0.1% cuminal reduced the decay, respiration rate, weight loss, and softening of the fruits and decelerated the decreases in their total soluble solid, titratable acidity, and soluble protein levels, and therefore maintained their marketability. Furthermore, it reduced the accumulation of O2·− and H2O2 in the fruits and mitigated cell membrane lipid oxidation and permeabilization, thereby retarding their senescence. Instrumentally, it elevated the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase, and ascorbate peroxidase and the levels of ascorbic acid and glutathione. This potentiation of the fruits’ antioxidant system makes this composite coating a promising approach to keeping the postharvest quality of perishable fruits.

The dynamic behavior of liquid storage tanks is one of the research issues about fluid–structure interaction problems. The analysis errors of the dynamics of multiple adjacent tanks can exist if neglecting soil–tank interaction since tanks are typically supported on flexible soil. In the present paper, the dynamics of a group of baffled cylindrical storage tanks supported on a circular surface foundation and undergoing horizontal excitation are analytically examined. For upper multiple tank–liquid–baffle subsystems, accurate solutions to the velocity potential for liquid sloshing are acquired according to the subdomain partition technique. A theoretical model is utilized to portray the continuous sloshing of each tank. For the soil–foundation subsystem, a lumped-parameter model is used to characterize the impacts of soil on upper-tank structures using Chebyshev complex polynomials that present the fitting results of horizontal, rocking, and coupling impedance functions. Then, a model of the soil–foundation–tank–liquid–baffle system is constructed on the basis of the substructure approach. The present sloshing frequencies, sloshing height, and hydrodynamic shear as well as the moment under rigid/soft soil foundations are compared to the available exact results and the numerical results to prove the validity of the present model. The error of the maximum sloshing height between the present and the numerical solutions is within 5.27%; the solution efficiency of system dynamics from the present model is 40–50 times faster than that from the ADINA model. A detailed parameter analysis of the dynamic characteristics and earthquake responses of the coupling system is presented. The research novelty is that an equivalent analytical model is presented, and it allows for investigating the dynamics of soil-supported multiple cylindrical tanks with a baffle, providing acceptable accuracy and high calculation efficiency.

Under hydrothermal conditions, a Keggin-type polyoxometalate-based metal–organic complex, H4{[Cu4(EDDP)2(H2O)5]1.5(SiW12O40)}∙7.5H2O (CuW-EDDP, H4EDDP = ethylene-diamine-N,N'-dipropionic acid), was synthesized by reacting Na10[A-α-SiW9O34]·18H2O and CuCl2·2H2O in the presence of H4EDDP ligands and characterized by powder and single-crystal X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and thermogravimetry. Interestingly, CuW-EDDP exhibited a three-dimensional structure with (4,6)-connected constructed from [SiW12O40]4− units and tetranuclear Cu complexes [Cu4(EDDP)2(H2O)5]. As an effective heterogeneous catalyst, CuW-EDDP exhibited excellent performance, good reusability, and structural stability in the selective oxidation of methyl phenyl sulfide with high conversion (100%) and selectivity (98%) within 30 min. Furthermore, the catalytic activity of CuW-EDDP in the oxidation of other sulfide derivatives was investigated.

Abstract Osteoarthritis (OA) is an age-related degenerative disease without disease-modifying therapy. The lack of aging-induced osteoarthritis models makes the discovery of therapeutic drugs more challenging. The deficiency of ZMPSTE24 could induce Hutchinson–Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS), a genetic disorder of rapid aging. However, the relationship between HGPS and OA remains unclear. Our results found that the expression of Zmpste24 was decreased in the articular cartilage during the aging process. Zmpste24 knockout mice, Prx1-Cre; Zmpste24 fl/fl mice and Col2-CreERT2; Zmpste24 fl/fl mice displayed OA phenotype. Loss of Zmpste24 in articular cartilage could exacerbate the occurrence and development of osteoarthritis. Transcriptome sequencing revealed that deletion of Zmpste24 or accumulation of progerin affects chondrocyte metabolism, inhibits cell proliferation and promotes cell senescence. Using this animal model, we elucidate the upregulation of H3K27me3 during chondrocyte senescence and discover the molecular mechanism by which lamin A mutant stabilizes EZH2 expression. The construction of aging-induced osteoarthritis models and the elucidation of the signaling pathways and molecular mechanisms of articular chondrocyte senescence would benefit the discovery and development of new drugs for OA.

Notch high cycle fatigue (HCF) properties and microcrack initiation behavior of Ti-55531 alloy with a multilevel lamellar microstructure under various notch radii were systematically investigated. Results indicate that the reduction of notch root radius significantly promotes fatigue microcrack initiation, and then dramatically reduces the HCF life and strength of the alloy. Cyclic deformation of the alloy is mainly controlled by the slipping and deformation twinning in α plates. The primary fatigue crack initiation micro-mechanism is α/β interface cracking induced by slipping and twinning at all notch HCF specimens. Moreover, the volume fraction of twinning would increase with decreasing of the notch root radius. Interestingly, when the notch root radius is the smallest (R = 0.14 mm) and the stress concentration factor is the largest (Kt = 4), in addition to slipping and twinning, basal stacking faults promoting the cracking of α/β interface could be another crucial HCF microcrack initiation mechanism of the alloy. Furthermore, with decreasing of notch root radius and increasing of stress concentration factor, the size of cycle plastic deformation zone at notch root gradually reduces to the size of α colony and even the α plate. Therefore, the order of influential degree of three different levels microstructure on the crack initiation mechanism of notched HCF can be arranged as α plate > α colony > β GB.

Abstract Focused ultrasound ablation surgery (FUAS) is a novel therapy with a wide range of potential applications. However, synergists are crucial to the therapy process due to the ultrasonic energy's attenuation properties. As a result of the complex hypoxic environment in the tumor area and many factors, the existing synergists have limitations such as weak targeting, single imaging mode, and easy tumor recurrence after treatment. Because of the above deficiencies, this study intends to construct bio-targeted oxygen production probes consisting of Bifidobacterium that naturally target the hypoxia region of the tumor and multi-functional oxygen-producing nanoparticles equipped with IR780, perfluorohexane (PFH), CBP (carboplatin), and oxygen. The probes are expected to achieve targeted and synergistic FUAS therapy and dual-mode imaging to mediate tumor diagnosis and treatment. The oxygen and drugs carried in it are accurately released after FUAS stimulation, which is expected to alleviate tumor hypoxia, avoid tumor drug resistance, improve the effect of chemotherapy, and realize FUAS combined with chemotherapy antitumor therapy. This strategy is expected to make up for the deficiencies of existing synergists, improve the effectiveness and safety of treatment, and provide the foundation for future tumor therapy progress. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Background Aedes albopictus is an increasingly serious threat in public health due to it is vector of multiple arboviruses that cause devastating human diseases, as well as its widening distribution in recent years. Insecticide resistance is a serious problem worldwide that limits the efficacy of chemical control strategies against Ae. albopictus. Chitinase genes have been widely recognized as attractive targets for the development of effective and environmentally safe insect management measures. Methods Chitinase genes of Ae. albopictus were identified and characterized on the basis of bioinformatics search of the referenced genome. Gene characterizations and phylogenetic relationships of chitinase genes were investigated, and spatio-temporal expression pattern of each chitinase gene was evaluated using qRT-PCR. RNA interference (RNAi) was used to suppress the expression of AaCht10, and the roles of AaCht10 were verified based on phynotype observations, chitin content analysis and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stain of epidermis and midgut. Results Altogether, 14 chitinase-related genes (12 chitinase genes and 2 IDGFs) encoding 17 proteins were identified. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all these AaChts were classified into seven groups, and most of them were gathered into group IX. Only AaCht5-1, AaCht10 and AaCht18 contained both catalytic and chitin-binding domains. Different AaChts displayed development- and tissue-specific expression profiling. Suppression of the expression of AaCht10 resulted in abnormal molting, increased mortality, decreased chitin content and thinning epicuticle, procuticle and midgut wall of pupa. Conclusions Findings of the present study will aid in determining the biological functions of AaChts and also contribute to using AaChts as potential target for mosquito management. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Gastric cancer (GC) is a common malignant tumor that usually originates from the epithelium of the gastric mucosa. ZNF655 was a suppressor gene of many cancers. However, the mechanism of ZNF655 in GC remains unknown. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to assess the expression of ZNF655, LINC01210, and miR‐124‐3p. Western blotting was used to monitor ZNF655 protein expression. MTT, clone formation, transwell, and flow cytometry were all used to investigate the functions of GC cells. The interactions between ZNF655, LINC01210, and miR‐124‐3p were confirmed using the dual‐luciferase reporter gene assay and the RIP assay. ZNF655 was highly expressed in GC cells. ZNF655 knockdown reduced GC cell viability, proliferation, migration, invasion, and induced apoptosis. The level of miR‐124‐3p was significantly reduced in GC cells. Besides, miR‐124‐3p targeted ZNF655 and inhibited its expression. MiR‐124‐3p mimics inhibited GC cell progression, but ZNF655 overexpression reversed these effects. Moreover, LINC01210 was found to be highly expressed in GC cells and to be able to sponge miR‐124‐3p. Furthermore, inhibiting miR‐124‐3p or increasing ZNF655 could counteract the effects of LINC01210 knockdown on GC cell development. Finally, ZNF655 promoted GC cell progression and was regulated by the LINC01210/miR‐124‐3p axis.

Developing and planting salt-tolerant plants has become a promising way to utilize saline-alkali land resources and ensure food security. Root-associated microbes of salt-tolerant plants have been shown to promote plant growth and alleviate high salt stress, yet very little is known about the salt resistance mechanisms of core microbes in different niches. This study characterized the microbial community structures, assembly processes, and functional profiles in four root-related compartments of two salt-tolerant plants by amplicon and shotgun metagenomic sequencing. The results showed that both plants significantly altered the microbial community structure of saline soils, with greater microbial alpha diversity in the rhizosphere or rhizoplane compared with bulk soils. Stochastic process dominated the microbial assembly processes, and the impact was stronger in Suaeda salsa than in S. glauca, indicating that S. salsa may have stronger resistance abilities to changing soil properties. Keystone species, such as Pseudomonas in the endosphere of S. glauca and Sphingomonas in the endosphere of S. salsa, which may play key roles in helping plants alleviate salt stress, were identified by using microbial co-occurrence network analysis. Furthermore, the microbiomes in the rhizoplane soils had more abundant genes involved in promoting growth of plants and defending against salt stress than those in bulk soils, especially in salt-tolerant S. salsa. Moreover, microbes in the rhizoplane of S. salsa exhibited higher functional diversities, with notable enrichment of genes involved in carbon fixation, dissimilar nitrate reduction to ammonium, and sulfite oxidation. These findings revealed differences and similarities in the microbial community assembly, functional profiles and keystone species closely related to salt alleviation of the two salt-tolerant plants. Overall, our study provides new insights into the ecological functions and varied strategies of rhizosphere microbes in different plants under salt stress and highlights the potential use of keystone microbes for enhancing salt resistance of plants.

Abstract Cross‐modality person re‐identification is a challenging task due to the large visual appearance difference between RGB and infrared images. Existing studies mainly focus on learning local features and ignore the correlation between local features. In this paper, the Integration Graph Attention Network is proposed to learn the completed correlation between local features via the graph structure. To this end, the authors learn the coarse‐fine attention weights to aggregate the local features by considering local detail and global information. Furthermore, the Multi‐Centre Constrained Loss is proposed to optimise the feature similarity by constraining the centres of modality and identity. It simultaneously utilises three kinds of centre constraints, that is intra‐identity centre constraint, modality centre constraint, and inter‐identity centre constraint, in order to reduce the influence of modality information explicitly. The proposed method is evaluated on two standard benchmark datasets, that is SYSU‐MM01 and RegDB, and the results demonstrate that the authors’ method achieves better performance than the state‐of‐the‐art methods, for example, surpassing NFS by 4.8% and 6.0% mAP on the single‐shot setting in All‐search and Indoor‐search modes, respectively.

Abstract Cross‐modality person re‐identification (Re‐ID) aims to retrieve a query identity from red, green, blue (RGB) images or infrared (IR) images. Many approaches have been proposed to reduce the distribution gap between RGB modality and IR modality. However, they ignore the valuable collaborative relationship between RGB modality and IR modality. Hybrid Mutual Learning (HML) for cross‐modality person Re‐ID is proposed, which builds the collaborative relationship by using mutual learning from the aspects of local features and triplet relation. Specifically, HML contains local‐mean mutual learning and triplet mutual learning where they focus on transferring local representational knowledge and structural geometry knowledge so as to reduce the gap between RGB modality and IR modality. Furthermore, Hierarchical Attention Aggregation is proposed to fuse local feature maps and local feature vectors to enrich the information of the classifier input. Extensive experiments on two commonly used data sets, that is, SYSU‐MM01 and RegDB verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Abstract Background The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is one of the most invasive species and a vector of numerous arboviruses. The deleterious effects of long-term and inappropriate use of chemical pesticides have stimulated the exploration of new, environmentally friendly control strategies. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been proven to participate in almost all biological processes of insects. Methods In this study, circular RNAs (circRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) covering five developmental stages [egg, early larvae, late larvae, pupae, adult (female and male)] of A. albopictus were obtained using whole-transcriptome sequencing technology. Combined with long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) from previous research, circRNA/lncRNA‒miRNA‒mitochondrial RNA (mRNA) networks were constructed. Results A total of 1434 circRNAs and 208 miRNAs were identified. More differentially expressed circRNAs (DE circRNAs) and miRNAs (DE miRNAs) were found in the egg versus early larvae comparison group. Functional enrichment analysis demonstrated that most of the circRNA/lncRNA‒miRNA‒mRNA networks were involved in chitin metabolism. Hub genes of each circRNA/lncRNA‒miRNA‒mRNA network were screened out, which can be used as novel targets to disturb the molting process of A. albopictus. Conclusions Regulatory relationships obtained from competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks provide more information to manipulate the metamorphosis process and are helpful for developing effective and sustainable methods to control mosquitoes. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Background This study aimed to develop an integrated model for predicting the occurrence of postoperative seizures in patients with diffuse high-grade gliomas (DHGGs) using clinical and RNA-seq data. Methods Patients with DHGGs, who received prophylactic anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) for three months following surgery, were enrolled into the study. The patients were assigned randomly into training (n = 166) and validation (n = 42) cohorts. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified based on preoperative glioma-related epilepsy (GRE) history. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression analysis was used to construct a predictive gene-signature for the occurrence of postoperative seizures. The final integrated prediction model was generated using the gene-signature and clinical data. Receiver operating characteristic analysis and calibration curve method were used to evaluate the accuracy of the gene-signature and prediction model using the training and validation cohorts. Results A seven-gene signature for predicting the occurrence of postoperative seizures was developed using LASSO logistic regression analysis of 623 DEGs. The gene-signature showed satisfactory predictive capacity in the training cohort [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.842] and validation cohort (AUC = 0.751). The final integrated prediction model included age, temporal lobe involvement, preoperative GRE history, and gene-signature-derived risk score. The AUCs of the integrated prediction model were 0.878 and 0.845 for the training and validation cohorts, respectively. Conclusion We developed an integrated prediction model for the occurrence of postoperative seizures in patients with DHGG using clinical and RNA-Seq data. The findings of this study may contribute to the development of personalized management strategies for patients with DHGGs and improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying GRE in these patients.

Objective Hyaluronic acid (HA) intra‐articular injection after arthroscopic knee surgery has been widely applied but its efficacy and safety remain controversial. The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the efficacy and safety of HA intra‐articular injection after arthroscopic knee surgery, and to compare the efficacy of HA with different molecular weights. Methods We conducted a systematic literature search in PubMed, Embase, Google scholar and the Cochrane library from inception to 16 September 2022 for English‐written articles, in order to identify randomized controlled trials that evaluated the clinical efficacy and/or safety of HA intra‐articular injection after arthroscopic knee surgery. Then we meta‐analyzed the outcomes of patients given intra‐articular HA injections postoperatively and control patients. We also evaluated the influence of HA with different molecular weights. In every calculation, sensitive analysis was performed. The visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and adverse events were selected as the primary outcome measurements, while Lysholm, International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Tegner score were selected as the secondary outcome measurements. Publication bias of every outcome was evaluated using egger test. Results Fifteen studies involving 951 knees were included and 12 of them were used to performed the meta‐analysis. The results showed no significant difference between the HA group and control group according to VAS, whether assessed at less (P = 0.90) or more than 6 months (P = 0.55). Besides, there were no statistical differences between the HA group and control group according to subgroup analysis (Ps = 0.77, 0.91 and 0.81 in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, meniscectomy and overall groups, respectively). Compared to control group, the overall effect of WOMAC score showed no significant differences (P = 0.25), nor did in two subgroups (P = 0.37 and P = 0.22). Outcomes measured by Lysholm (P = 0.13), IKDC (P = 0.86) and Tegner (P = 0.42) scores showed no significant differences, either. The analysis of the risk of adverse events indicated no increase in HA groups (P = 0.06). We found no significant differences between high‐ and low‐molecular‐weight HA at 6 (P = 0.96) or 12 months (P = 0.93) postoperatively. Two studies failed to pass the sensitive analysis and the reasons were discussed detailly and acceptable publication bias was observed. Conclusions Although HA injection after arthroscopic knee surgery is safe, the available evidence does not support its efficacy in pain relief and functional recovery. Therefore, the application of HA injection after arthroscopic knee surgery is not recommended.

Understanding the composition of the bacterial community on the epidermis of wine grapes and in winery environments, as well as the response of grape epidermal bacteria to climatic factors, plays a significant role in ensuring grape health and promoting grape conversion into wine. This study utilized high-throughput sequencing to explore the composition of the bacterial community on the wine grape epidermis and representative wineries of three sub-regions of the Eastern Foothills of Helan Mountain, Ningxia. The results showed that the bacterial diversity and richness in the Yongning (YN) sub-region were the highest, with Qingtongxia (QTX) having the lowest levels of grape epidermal bacteria. The bacterial diversity and richness were the highest in Yinchuan (YC) and the lowest in YN in the winery environment (p < 0.05). The composition of dominant bacteria on the grape epidermis and in winery environments of the three sub-regions was not different at the phylum and genus level, but the levels of these dominant bacteria were different among the sub-regions. There was a correlation between grape epidermal bacteria and climatic factors. Approximately 93% of the bacterial genera on the grape epidermal genera in the three sub-regions are present in the winery environment and contain all the dominant bacterial genera on the epidermis.

The organoleptic profile and quality of wine are affected by the presence of different non-Saccharomyces species and strains. Therefore, the identification and characterization of non-Saccharomyces yeasts are the first step to understand their function, and to develop a better strain selection program for winemaking. This study investigated the biodiversity of non-Saccharomyces yeasts associated with spontaneous fermentation of Cabernet Sauvignon wines from five sub-regions (Shi Zuishan, Yinchuan, Yu Quanying, Qing Tongxia and Hong Sibu) in Ningxia, China. Yeast species were identified by sequencing the 26S rRNA D1/D2 region, and strains at the subspecies level were discriminated using tandem repeat-tRNA (TRtRNA) PCR analysis. A total of 524 yeast colonies were isolated, and 19 non-Saccharomyces yeast species belonging to 10 genera were identified, including Aureobasidium pullulans, Cryptococcus albidus, Cryptococcus sp., C. flavescens, C. terrestris, C. magnus, Cystofilobasidium ferigula, Candida zemplinina, Filobasidium magnum, Filobasidium sp., F. elegans, Hanseniaspora uvarum, Metschnikowia pimensis, M. pulcherrima, Naganishia albida, Pichia kluyveri, P. kudriavzevii, Rhodotorula glutinis and R. graminis. Hanseniaspora uvarum, C. zemplinina, and M. pulcherrima were the three most dominated species, while other non-Saccharomyces species were only present in the early stage of spontaneous fermentations at different levels. Further, for the yeast discrimination at strain level, 34 profiles were obtained by amplification with primer pairs TtRNASC/5CAG, while 40 profiles were obtained with primer pairs TtRNASC/ISSR-MB. This study explored the diversity of non-Saccharomyces species in Ningxia, China, and made an important contribution of genetic resources for further strain development.

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is associated with delayed repair of the injured nerves in elderly patients, resulting in loss of nerve function, chronic pain, muscle atrophy, and permanent disability. Therefore, the mechanism underlying the delayed repair of peripheral nerves in aging patients should be investigated. Schwann cells (SCs) play a crucial role in repairing PNI and regulating various nerve-repair genes after injury. SCs also promote peripheral nerve repair through various modalities, including mediating nerve demyelination, secreting neurotrophic factors, establishing Büngner bands, clearing axon and myelin debris, and promoting axon remyelination. However, aged SCs undergo structural and functional changes, leading to demyelination and dedifferentiation disorders, decreased secretion of neurotrophic factors, impaired clearance of axonal and myelin debris, and reduced capacity for axon remyelination. As a result, aged SCs may result in delayed repair of nerves after injury. This review article aimed to examine the mechanism underlying the diminished neural repair ability of aging SCs.

Abstract The key to designing and fabricating highly efficient mixed protonic–electronic conductors materials (MPECs) is to integrate the mixed conductive active sites into a single structure, to break through the shortcomings of traditional physical blending. Herein, based on the host–guest interaction, an MPEC is consisted of 2D metal–organic layers and hydrogen‐bonded inorganic layers by the assembly methods of layered intercalation. Noticeably, the 2D intercalated materials (≈1.3 nm) exhibit the proton conductivity and electron conductivity, which are 2.02 × 10−5 and 3.84 × 10−4 S cm−1 at 100 °C and 99% relative humidity, much higher than these of pure 2D metal–organic layers (>>1.0 × 10−10 and 2.01×10−8 S cm−1), respectively. Furthermore, combining accurate structural information and theoretical calculations reveals that the inserted hydrogen‐bonded inorganic layers provide the proton source and a networks of hydrogen−bonds leading to efficient proton transport, meanwhile reducing the bandgap of hybrid architecture and increasing the band electron delocalization of the metal–organic layer to greatly elevate the electron transport of intrinsic 2D metal–organic frameworks.

BackgroundCardiac fibrosis is a hallmark of various end-stage cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and a potent contributor to adverse cardiovascular events. During the past decades, extensive publications on this topic have emerged worldwide, while a bibliometric analysis of the current status and research trends is still lacking.MethodsWe retrieved relevant 13,446 articles on cardiac fibrosis published between 1989 and 2022 from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC). Bibliometrix was used for science mapping of the literature, while VOSviewer and CiteSpace were applied to visualize co-authorship, co-citation, co-occurrence, and bibliographic coupling networks.ResultsWe identified four major research trends: (1) pathophysiological mechanisms; (2) treatment strategies; (3) cardiac fibrosis and related CVDs; (4) early diagnostic methods. The most recent and important research themes such as left ventricular dysfunction, transgenic mice, and matrix metalloproteinase were generated by burst analysis of keywords. The reference with the most citations was a contemporary review summarizing the role of cardiac fibroblasts and fibrogenic molecules in promoting fibrogenesis following myocardial injury. The top 3 most influential countries were the United States, China, and Germany, while the most cited institution was Shanghai Jiao Tong University, followed by Nanjing Medical University and Capital Medical University.ConclusionsThe number and impact of global publications on cardiac fibrosis has expanded rapidly over the past 30 years. These results are in favor of paving the way for future research on the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiac fibrosis.

Heavy metal contamination has become a global concern that threatens the lives of animals and insects throughout the food chain. Pseudomonas is a commonly found genus of bacteria that colonizes the intestines of insects and constitutes a necessary part of the insect gut microbiota. This research analyzed the influence of different concentrations of Cu2+ on housefly larval development, gut microbial structure and antioxidant defense system, and investigated the regulatory mechanism of P. aeruginosa Y12 on the gut microbiota when houseflies were exposed to Cu2+. We found that adding Cu2+ to the larval diet inhibited larval growth, while the mixed addition of P. aeruginosa Y12 and Cu2+ to the diet reduced the inhibitory effects of Cu2+ on larval growth. Oral administration of Cu2+ significantly changed the gut community structure and increased larval gut bacterial diversity. In vitro analysis revealed that P. aeruginosa Y12 showed Cu2+ adsorption effects and increased Cu2+ aggregation. The mixed addition of low concentrations of P. aeruginosa Y12 and Cu2+ to the larval diet caused a dynamic shift in the gut microbiota and resulted in a novel gut community structure with an increase in beneficial bacteria and a decrease in pathogenic bacteria. Furthermore, P. aeruginosa Y12 treatment influenced the activity of antioxidant enzymes in housefly larvae, indicating that the addition of P. aeruginosa Y12 to the larval diet could further influence the antioxidant system through P. aeruginosa Y12-Cu2+ interactions. In conclusion, our research revealed that intestinal flora dysbiosis was the essential reason why copper inhibits housefly larval growth. However, proper supplementation with P. aeruginosa Y12 played positive roles in regulating larval gut communities and protecting insects from toxic heavy metals.

Abstract Background Plant-specific BURP domain-containing genes are involved in plant development and stress responses. However, the role of BURP family in jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) has not been investigated. Results In this study, 17 BURP genes belonging to four subfamilies were identified in jujube based on homology analysis, gene structures, and conserved motif confirmation. Gene duplication analysis indicated both tandem duplication and segmental duplication had contributed to ZjBURP expansion. The ZjBURPs were extensively expressed in flowers, young fruits, and jujube leaves. Transcriptomic data and qRT-PCR analysis further revealed that ZjBURPs also significantly influence fruit development, and most genes could be induced by low temperature, salinity, and drought stresses. Notably, several BURP genes significantly altered expression in response to low temperature (ZjPG1) and drought stresses (ZjBNM7, ZjBNM8, and ZjBNM9). Conclusions These results provided insights into the possible roles of ZjBURPs in jujube development and stress response. These findings would help selecting candidate ZjBURP genes for cold- and drought-tolerant jujube breeding.