Emerging low-density polyethylene/paraffin wax/aluminum composite as a form-stable phase change thermal interface material

Thermal interface materials(TIMs) play a vital role in the thermal management of electronic devices and can significantly reduce thermal contact resistance(TCR). The TCR between the solid–liquid contact surface is much smaller than that of the solid–solid contact surface, but conventional solid–liquid phase change materials are likely to cause serious leakage. Therefore, this work has prepared a new formstable phase change thermal interface material. Through the melt blending of paraffin wax(PW) and low-density polyethylene(LDPE), the stability is improved and it has an excellent coating effect on PW. The addition of aluminum(Al) powder improves the low thermal conductivity of PW/LDPE, and the addition of 15wt% Al powder improves the thermal conductivity of the internal structure of the matrix by 67%. In addition, the influence of the addition of Al powder on the internal structure, thermal properties, and phase change behavior of the PW/LDPE matrix was systematically studied. The results confirmed that the addition of Al powder improved the thermal conductivity of the material without a significant impact on other properties, and the thermal conductivity increased with the increase of Al addition. Therefore, morphologically stable PW/LDPE/Al is an important development direction for TIMs.

Genetic mapping of folate QTLs using a segregated population in maizeFA

As essential B vitamin for humans, folates accumulation in edible parts of crops, such as maize kernels, Is of great importance for human health. But its breeding is always limited by the prohibitive cost of folate profiling. The molecular breeding is a more executable and efficient way for folate fortification, but is limited by the molecular knowledge of folate regulation. Here we report the genetic mapping of folate quantitative trait loci (QTLs) using a segregated population crossed by two maize lines, one high in folate (GEMS31) and the other low in folate (DAN3130). Two folate QTLs on chromosome 5 were obtained by the combination of F2 whole-exome sequencing and F3 kernel-folate profiling. These two QTLs had been confirmed by bulk segregant analysis using F6 pooled DNA and F7 kernel-folate profiling, and were overlapped with QTLs identified by another segregated population. These two QTLs contributed 41.6% of phenotypic variation of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate, the most abundant storage form among folate derivatives in dry maize grains, in the GEMS31×DAN3130 population. Their fine mapping and functional analysis will reveal details of folate metabolism, and provide a basis for marker-assisted breeding aimed at the enrichment of folates in maize kernels.

Integration of high-throughput phenotyping,GWAS,and predictive models reveals the genetic architecture of plant height in maize

Plant height(PH)is an essential trait in maize(Zea mays)that is tightly associated with planting density,biomass,lodging resistance,and grain yield in the field.Dissecting the dynamics of maize plant architecture will be beneficial for ideotype-based maize breeding and prediction,as the genetic basis controlling PH in maize remains largely unknown.In this study,we developed an automated high-throughput phenotyping platform(HTP)to systematically and noninvasively quantify 77 image-based traits(i-traits)and 20 field traits(f-traits)for 228 maize inbred lines across all developmental stages.Time-resolved i-traits with novel digital phenotypes and complex correlations with agronomic traits were characterized to reveal the dynamics of maize growth.An i-trait-based genome-wide association study identified 4945 traitassociated SNPs,2603 genetic loci,and 1974 corresponding candidate genes.We found that rapid growth of maize plants occurs mainly at two developmental stages,stage 2(S2)to S3 and S5 to S6,accounting for the final PH indicators.By integrating the PH-association network with the transcriptome profiles of specific internodes,we revealed 13 hub genes that may play vital roles during rapid growth.The candidate genes and novel i-traits identified at multiple growth stages may be used as potential indicators for final PH in maize.One candidate gene,ZmVATE,was functionally validated and shown to regulate PH-related traits in maize using genetic mutation.Furthermore,machine learning was used to build predictive models for final PH based on i-traits,and their performancewas assessed across developmental stages.Moderate,strong,and very strong correlations between predictions and experimental datasets were achieved from the early S4(tenth-leaf)stage.Colletively,our study provides a valuable tool for dissecting the spatiotemporal formation of specific internodes and the genetic architecture of PH,as well as resources and predictive models that are useful for molecular design breeding and predicting maize varieties with ideal plant architectures.

High VHL Expression Reverses Warburg Phenotype and Enhances Immunogenicity in Kidney Tumor Cells

Clear cell renal cell carcinoma(ccRCC)is a frequently occurring renal cancer.The Von Hippel-Lindau disease tumor suppressor VHL,a known tumor suppressor gene,is frequently mutated in about 50%of patients with ccRCC.However,it is unclear whether VHL influences the progression of ccRCC tumors expressing wild-type VHL.In the present study,we found that higher expression of VHL was correlated with the better disease-free survival(DFS)in ccRCC patients using The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)datasets.We revealed that VHL overexpression in ccRCC cells inhibited epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT),sterol regulatory elementbinding protein 1(SREBP1)-regulated triglyceride synthesis,and cell proliferation.Proteomic analysis provided us a global view that VHL regulated four biological processes,including metabolism,immune regulation,apoptosis,and cell movement.Importantly,we found that VHL overexpression led to up-regulated expression of proteins associated with antigen processing and interferonresponsive proteins,thus rendering ccRCC cells more sensitive to interferon treatment.We defined an interferon-responsive signature(IRS)composed of ten interferon-responsive proteins,whose m RNA expression levels were positively correlated with DFS in ccRCC patients.Taken together,our results propose that the subset of ccRCC patients with high VHL expression benefit from immunotherapy.