Magnetorheological finishing of an irregular-shaped small-bore complex component using a small ball-end permanent-magnet polishing head

A novel magnetorheological finishing(MRF)process using a small ball-end permanent-magnet polishing head is proposed,and a four-axes linkage dedicated MRF machine tool is fabricated to achieve the nanofinishing of an irregularψ-shaped small-bore complex component with concave surfaces of a curvature radius less than3 mm.The processing method of the complex component is introduced.Magnetostatic simulation during the entire finishing path is carried out to analyze the material removal characteristics.A typicalψ-shaped small-bore complex component is polished on the developed device,and a fine surface quality is obtained with surface roughness Raof 0.0107μm and surface accuracy of the finished spherical surfaces of 0.3320μm(PV).These findings indicate that the proposed MRF process can perform the nanofinishing of a kind of small-bore complex component with small-curvature-radius concave surfaces.

miR-141-3p Suppresses Expression of Androgen Receptors and Functions as a Tumor Suppressor Gene in Prostate Carcinogenesis

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is a leading cause of tumor mortality in Western societies. In China, the PCa mortality rate is increasing yearly. Androgen receptors (ARs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) play central roles in prostate carcinogenesis and progression. Methods: To characterize the underlying molecular mechanisms, we compared the miRNA profiles of early PCa (G ≤ 7), advanced PCa (G > 7) and non-tumor prostate tissues using deep-sequencing. The target genes of differentially expressed miRNAs were predicted by bioinformatics analysis and confirmed by luciferase reporter assays and Western blot (WB) and quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) analyses. Finally, we performed in vitro functional studies by inducing or inhibiting miR-141-3p expression using an artificial mimic or inhibitor. Results: A computational search implicated the open reading frame (ORF) of AR mRNA as a potential miR-141-3p target site. The qRT-PCR, WB and luciferase reporter assays revealed a reverse regulatory effect of miR-141-3p on AR. Mutation of the potential miR-141-3p binding site in the AR ORF resulted in a loss of responsiveness to the corresponding miRNA. Moreover, miR-141-3p expression levels were unchanged in early PCas, but were obviously increased in advanced PCas. MiR-141-3p overexpression inhibited RWPE-1 cell proliferation, mobility, and prohibited the entry of cells into the G2-S-M phase;miR-141-3p inhibition had the inverse effects. At the same time, we tested miR-141-3p’s functions in PC-3 and VCaP prostate cancer cell lines. Conclusions: Taken together, our results indicate that miR-141-3p targets AR and its downstream signaling pathways, and functions as a tumor suppressor miR in PCa carcinogenesis by suppressing cell growth and mobility, but the effect is not significant in maglinant PCas. MiR-141-3p is implicated as a novel therapeutic target for early PCa.

Simulation and analysis of asteroid force closure anchoring performance based on discrete element method

Asteroid exploration is significant for studying the origin of the solar system,establishing planetary defenses,and alleviating the resource crisis of the Earth.Asteroid anchoring is the basis of in-situ exploration and resource development and utilization.Therefore,the performance of asteroid force-closure anchoring is investigated using the discrete element method.The micro parameters of the simulated materials are calibrated with angle of repose and uniaxial compression experiments,based on which the regional modeling method is adopted to establish the anchoring discrete element model.Asteroid anchoring experiments are conducted on a self-developed microgravity simulation platform to verify the accuracy of the simulation model.The asteroid anchoring simulations are performed to investigate the influence of external force on the anchoring performance.The analysis of anchoring force varying with time and the interaction between the anchor and regolith particles reveals the influence mechanism of external force direction on the anchoring performance.The external force direction affects the critical anchoring force by influencing the failure of the force-closure structure.The comprehensive analysis of simulation results clarifies the variation of the critical anchoring force with the external forces.Finally,a stable anchoring region is established,beneficial for asteroid anchoring device design.

Interference and grinding characteristics in ultra-precision grinding of thin-walled complex structural component using a ball-end grinding wheel

As for ultra-precision grinding of difficult-to-process thin-walled complex components with ball-end grinding wheels,interference is easy to occur.According to screw theory and grinding kinematics,a mathematical model is established to investigate the interference and grinding characteristics of the ball-end wheel.The relationship between grinding wheel inclination angle,C axis rotation angle,grinding position angle and grinding wheel wear are analyzed.As the grinding wheel inclination angle increases,the C axis rotatable range decreases and the grinding position angle increases.The grinding position angle and wheel radius wear show a negative correlation with the C axis rotation angle.Therefore,a trajectory planning criteria for increasing grinding speed as much as possible under the premise of avoiding interference is proposed to design the grinding trajectory.Then grinding point distribution on the ball-end wheel is calculated,and the grinding characteristics,grinding speed and maximum undeformed chip thickness,are investigated.Finally,a complex structural component can be ground without interference,and surface roughness and profile accuracy are improved to 40.2 nm and 0.399 lm,compared with 556 nm and 3.427 lm before ultra-precision grinding.The mathematical model can provide theoretical guidance for the analysis of interference and grinding characteristics in complex components grinding to improve its grinding quality.