Cav3.2 channel regulates cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury:a promising target for intervention

Calcium influx into neurons triggers neuronal death during cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.Various calcium channels are involved in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.Cav3.2 channel is a main subtype of T-type calcium channels.T-type calcium channel blockers,such as pimozide and mibefradil,have been shown to prevent cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury-induced brain injury.However,the role of Cav3.2 channels in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury remains unclear.Here,in vitro and in vivo models of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury were established using middle cerebral artery occlusion in mice and high glucose hypoxia/reoxygenation exposure in primary hippocampal neurons.The results showed that Cav3.2 expression was significantly upregulated in injured hippocampal tissue and primary hippocampal neurons.We further established a Cav3.2 gene-knockout mouse model of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.Cav3.2 knockout markedly reduced infarct volume and brain water content,and alleviated neurological dysfunction after cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.Additionally,Cav3.2 knockout attenuated cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury-induced oxidative stress,inflammatory response,and neuronal apoptosis.In the hippocampus of Cav3.2-knockout mice,calcineurin overexpression offset the beneficial effect of Cav3.2 knockout after cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.These findings suggest that the neuroprotective function of Cav3.2 knockout is mediated by calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T cells 3 signaling.Findings from this study suggest that Cav3.2 could be a promising target for treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Layered manganese phosphorus trisulfides for high-performance lithium-ion batteries and the storage mechanism

Although advanced anode materials for the lithium-ion battery have been investigated for decades,a reliable,high-capacity,and durable material that can enable a fast charge remains elusive.Herein,we report that a metal phosphorous trichalcogenide of MnPS_(3)(manganese phosphorus trisulfide),endowed with a unique and layered van der Waals structure,is highly beneficial for the fast insertion/extraction of alkali metal ions and can facilitate changes in the buffer volume during cycles with robust structural stability.The few-layered MnPS_(3)anodes displayed the desirable specific capacity and excellent rate chargeability owing to their good electronic and ionic conductivities.When assembled as a half-cell lithium-ion battery,a high reversible capacity of 380 mA h g^(−1)was maintained by the MnPS_(3)after 3000 cycles at a high current density of 4 A g^(−1),with a capacity retention of close to or above 100%.In full-cell testing,a reversible capacity of 450 mA h g^(−1)after 200 cycles was maintained as well.The results of in-situ TEM revealed that MnPS_(3)nanoflakes maintained a high structural integrity without exhibiting any pulverization after undergoing large volumetric expansion for the insertion of a large number of lithium ions.Their kinetics of lithium-ion diffusion,stable structure,and high pseudocapacitance contributed to their comprehensive performance,for example,a high specific capacity,rapid charge-discharge,and long cyclability.MnPS_(3)is thus an efficient anode for the next generation of batteries with a fast charge/discharge capability.

Unraveling the reaction reversibility and structure stability of nickel sulfide anodes for lithium ion batteries

The electrochemical performance of lithium-ion batteries,i.e.specific capacity and cyclability,is primarily determined by chemical reversibility and structural stability of the electrodes in cycling.Here we have investigated the fundamental reaction behaviors of nickel sulfide(NixSy)as lithium-ion battery anodes by in-situ TEM.We find that Ni_(3)S_(2)is the electrochemically stable phase,which appears in the first cycle of the NixSyanode.From the second cycle,conversion between Ni_(3)S_(2)and Li_(2)S/Ni is the dominant electrochemical reaction.In lithiation,the NixSynanoparticles evolve into a mixture of Ni nanocrystals embedded in Li_(2)S matrix,which form a porous structure upon full lithiation,and with the recrystallization of the Ni_(3)S_(2)phase in delithiation,a compact and interconnected network is built.Structural stability in cycles is susceptible to particle size and substrate restraint.Carbon substrate can certainly improve the tolerance for size-dependent pulverization of NixSynanoparticles.When NixSynanoparticle exceeds the critical size value,the morphology of the particle is no longer well maintained even under the constraints of the carbon substrate.This work deepens the understanding of electrochemical reaction behavior of conversiontype materials and helps to rational design of high-energy density battery anodes.

Mesoporous poly(ionic liquid)s with dual active sites for highly efficient CO_(2)conversion

Atmospheric CO_(2)concentrations are soaring due to the continued use of fossil fuels in energy production,an anthropogenic activity that is playing a leading role in global warming.Thus,research aimed at the capture and conversion of CO_(2)into value-added products,such as cyclic carbonates,is booming.While CO_(2)is an abundant,cheap,non-toxic,and readily accessible Cl feedstock,its thermodynamic stability necessitates the development of highly efficient catalysts that are able to promote chemical reactions under mild conditions.In this work,a novel mesoporous poly(ionic liquid)with dual active sites was synthesized through a facile method that involves co-polymerization,post-synthetic metalation,and supercritical CO_(2)drying.Due to a high density of nucleophilic and electrophilic sites,the as-prepared poly(ionic liquid),denoted as P2D-4BrBQA-Zn,offers excellent performance in a CO_(2)cycloaddition reaction using epichlorohydrin as the substrate(98.9%conversion and 96.9%selectivity).Moreover the reaction is carried out under mild,solvent-free,and additive-free conditions.Notably,P2D-4BrBQA-Zn also efficiently promotes the conversion of various other epoxide substrates into cyclic carbonates.Overall,the catalyst is found to have excellent substrate compatibility,stability,and recyclability.

Fault Analysis of Wind Power Rolling Bearing Based on EMD Feature Extraction

In a wind turbine,the rolling bearing is the critical component.However,it has a high failure rate.Therefore,the failure analysis and fault diagnosis of wind power rolling bearings are very important to ensure the high reliability and safety of wind power equipment.In this study,the failure form and the corresponding reason for the failure are discussed firstly.Then,the natural frequency and the characteristic frequency are analyzed.The Empirical Mode Decomposition(EMD)algorithm is used to extract the characteristics of the vibration signal of the rolling bearing.Moreover,the eigenmode function is obtained and then filtered by the kurtosis criterion.Consequently,the relationship between the actual fault frequency spectrum and the theoretical fault frequency can be obtained.Then the fault analysis is performed.To enhance the accuracy of fault diagnosis,based on the previous feature extraction and the time-frequency domain feature extraction of the data after EMD decomposition processing,four different classifiers are added to diagnose and classify the fault status of rolling bearings and compare them with four different classifiers.

Generation of super-resolved optical needle and multifocal array using graphene oxide metalenses

Ultrathin flat metalenses have emerged as promising alternatives to conventional diffractive lenses,offering new possibilities for myriads of miniaturization and interfacial applications.Graphene-based materials can achieve both phase and amplitude modulations simultaneously at a single position due to the modification of the complex refractive index and thickness by laser conversion from graphene oxide into graphene like materials.In this work,we develop graphene oxide metalenses to precisely control phase and amplitude modulations and to achieve a holistic and systematic lens design based on a graphene-based material system.We experimentally validate our strategies via demonstrations of two graphene oxide metalenses:one with an ultra-long(~16λ)optical needle,and the other with axial multifocal spots,at the wavelength of 632.8 nm with a 200 nm thin film.Our proposed graphene oxide metalenses unfold unprecedented opportunities for accurately designing graphene-based ultrathin integratable devices for broad applications.

Three-Dimensional Collapse Analysis for a Shallow Cavity in Layered Strata Based on Upper Bound Theorem

Layered rock strata are observed to be common during the excavation of tunnels or cavities,and may significantly affect the deformation and failure characteristics of surrounding rock masses due to various complex forms and mechanical properties.In this paper,we propose a three-dimensional axisymmetric velocity field for roof collapse of shallow cavities in multi rock layers,by considering the influences of roof cross-section shapes,supporting pressure,ground overload,etc.The internal energy dissipation rate and work rates of external forces corresponding to the velocity field are computed by employing the Hoek-Brown strength criterion and its associated flow rule.Further,the equations of the collapse surfaces and the corresponding weight of collapsing rock masses are derived on the basis of upper bound theorem.Furthermore,we validate the proposed method by comparing the results of numerical calculations and existing research findings.The change laws of the collapse range under varying parameters are obtained for the presence of rectangular and spherical cavities.We also find that the three-dimensional mechanism is relatively safer for engineering designing actually,compared with the traditional two-dimensional mechanism.All these conclusions may provide workable guidelines for the support design of shallow cavities in layered rock strata practically.

Is EGFR gene mutation testing necessary in smokers with non-small cell lung cancer?

Objective Previous studies have proven that cumulative smoking dose predicts the prevalence of epidermal growth factor receptor(EGFR) mutations. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between smoking-related factors and EGFR mutation status. Methods Samples were collected from 195 smokers with non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC) who underwent surgical resection and the presence of EGFR mutations(exons 19 and 21) were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR).Results EGFR gene mutations were present in 33(16.9%) patients who were smokers; the patients were divided into three groups according to the smoking index(SI). The incidence of EGFR mutations decreased from 38.9% in mild smokers to 8.1% in severe smokers(P = 0.001). Compared to daily smoking dose(P = 0.547), initial smoking age(P = 0.085) and duration of smoking history had a larger effect on EGFR mutation status(P = 0.002).Conclusion Although there is a decrease in the incidence of mutations with increasing SI, there were still around 17% of smokers with NSCLC that harbored EGFR mutations, so it is necessary to test for EGFR mutation status in smokers with NSCLC.

A Wind Tunnel Investigation of the Shear Stress with A Blowing Sand Cloud

In a blowing sand system,the wind provides the driving forces for the particle movement while the moving particles exert the opposite forces to the wind by extracting its momentum.The wind-sand interaction that can be characterized by shear stress and force exerted on the wind by moving particles results in the modification of wind profiles.Detailed wind pro-files re-adapted to blown sand movement are measured in a wind tunnel for different grain size populations and at differ-ent free-stream wind velocities.The shear stress with a blowing sand cloud and force exerted on the wind by moving par-ticles are calculated from the measured wind velocity profiles.The results suggest that the wind profiles with presence of blowing sand cloud assume convex-upward curves on the u(z)-ln(z) plot compared with the straight lines characterizing the velocity profiles of clean wind,and they can be better fitted by power function than log-linear function.The exponent of the power function ranging from 0.1 to 0.17 tends to increase with an increase in wind velocity but decrease with an increase in particle size.The force per unit volume exerted on the wind by blown sand drift that is calculated based on the empirical power functions for the wind velocity profiles is found to decrease with height.The particle-induced force makes the total shear stress with blowing sand cloud partitioned into air-borne stress that results from the wind velocity gradient and grain-borne stress that results from the upward or downward movement of particles.The air-borne stress in-creases with an increase in height,while the grain-borne stress decreases with an increase in height.The air-borne shear stress at the top of sand cloud layer increases with both wind velocity and grain size,implying that it increases with sand transport rate for a given grain size.The shear stress with a blowing sand cloud is also closely related to the sand transport rate.Both the total shear stress and grain-borne stress on the grain top is directly proportional to the square root of sand transport rate.So,the profound effect of the moving particles on the airflow must be considered in modeling the blown sand movement.With the presence of sand movement,the boundary layer with a blowing sand cloud is no longer a con-stant air shear layer.

A low temperature processable tin oxide interlayer via aminemodification for efficient and stable organic solar cells

The exploitation of proper electron transport layers(ETLs)and interface optimization can play a pivotal role to promote the performance of organic solar cells(OSCs).In this work,low temperature processable tin oxide(SnO_(2))colloidal nanoparticles with ethanolamine(EA)treatment are successfully employed for efficient and stable OSCs with light soaking free.The EA is chemically bonded with SnO_(2),and the ethanolamine treated tin oxide(E-SnO_(2))layer delivers a suitable work function of 4.10 eV and a unique surface texture with suspended polar moieties.The enhanced performance of E-SnO_(2) based OSCs can be attributed to the improved charge transport and electron extraction,which is correlated with the regulated energy level alignment and contact quality of E-SnO_(2)/active layer.As a result,considerable power conversion efficiencies(PCEs)of 10.30%,13.93%and 15.38%for PTB7-Th/PC_(71) BM,PM7/ITC6-4 F and PM6/Y6 based OSCs have been realized with E-SnO_(2) as ETL,respectively.Compared with ZnO based devices,the E-SnO_(2) based OSCs exhibit an improved light aging stability,which can retain 94.3%of their initial PCE of 15.38%after 100 h light aging for E-SnO_(2)/PM6/Y6 based OSCs.This work demonstrates that the enormous potential of E-SnO_(2) to serve as ETL for high-efficiency and stable OSCs.

Analysis of long-term outcomes and application of the tumor regression grading system in the therapeutic assessment of resectable limited-disease small cell lung cancer

Objective The present study attempted to evaluate the value of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in limiteddisease small cell lung cancer(LD-SCLC),and to identify the predictive value of the tumor regression grading(TRG) system in LD-SCLC treatment-response and prognosis.Methods The records of patients with LD-SCLC(p-Stage I–IIIa) who underwent definitive radical resection at Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital between March 1,2000 and March 31,2014 were retrospectively analyzed.We compared the disease-free survival(DFS) and overall survival(OS) rates between Group A patients(patients who underwent surgery combined with pre-and post-operative chemotherapy) and Group B patients(patients who underwent surgery combined with adjuvant chemotherapy only) using the Kaplan-Meier method and the Mantel-Cox test.The specimens of patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy were reassessed according to the TRG system.Results The median DFS for 27 patients was 16.267 months and the median OS was 81.167 months(1-year OS,74.07%;3-year OS,22.22%;5-year OS,14.81%).Thirteen patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy,and their specimens were reassessed by TRG(pathological complete remission,3/13,23.08%).Patients in group A had a longer OS than those in group B(mean,93.782 months versus 42.322 months,P = 0.025),although there was no significant difference in DFS between the two groups(median 20.100 months versus 14.667 months,P = 0.551).Statistical analysis revealed that TRG Grade(G) 0(mean,61.222 months) was associated with better OS than G1-2(mean,31.213 months)(P = 0.311).Conclusion Our study indicated that neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with surgical resection may represent a feasible treatment method for patients with LD-SCLC.The TRG system may be a valuable prediction tool to assess neoadjuvant chemotherapeutic efficacy,especially in patients with G0 disease as determined by TRG;these patients may attain an improved survival benefit with neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Momentum profile of aeolian saltation cloud

The momentum profile of an aeolian saltation cloud is poorly understood. In this paper, height profiles for saltation momentum are reconstructed for three particle-size populations at four wind velocities based on profiles for mean particle velocity and relative particle concentration of saltation cloud obtained using particle image velocimetry in a wind tunnel. The results suggest that the saltation momentum profiles are characterized by peak curves with a maximum at some height above the surface. The height of this maximum increases with increasing wind velocity, but decreases with increasing particle size. It is linearly correlated with average saltation height and is comparable with the results of numerical simulations in a previous study. Our results confirm that Bagnold’s kink is an important feature of wind velocity profiles modified by the presence of saltating particles and that the height of the kink is closely related to the average trajectories of the saltating particles.

3D printed fiber sockets for plug and play micro-optics

Integrating micro-optical components at the end facet of an optical fiber enables compact optics to shape the output beam(e.g.collimating,focusing,and coupling to free space elements or photonic integrated circuits).However,the scalability of this approach is a longstanding challenge as these components must be aligned onto individual fiber facets.In this paper,we propose a socket that enables easy slotting of fibers,self-alignment,and coupling onto micro-optical components.This integrated socket can be detached from the substrate upon fiber insertion to create a stand-alone optical system.Fabrication is done using nanoscale 3D printing via two-photon polymerization lithography onto glass substrates,which allows multiple sockets to be patterned in a single print.We investigated variations in socket design and evaluated the performance of optical elements for telecom wavelengths.We obtained an alignment accuracy of∼3.5μm.These socket designs can be customized for high efficiency chip to fiber coupling and extended to other spectral ranges for free-form optics.

Uncertainty-based Multidisciplinary Design Optimization using An Approximated Second-Order Reliability Analysis Strategy

In uncertainty-based multidisciplinary design optimization(UBMDO),all reliability limitation factors are maintained due to minimize the cost target function.There are many reliability evaluation methods for reliability limitation factors.The second-order reliability method(SORM)is a powerful most possible point(MPP)-based method.It can provide an accurate estimation of the failure probability of a highly nonlinear limit state function despite its large curvature.But the Hessian calculation is necessary in SORM,which results in a heavy computational cost.Recently,an efficient approximated second-order reliability method(ASORM)is proposed.The ASORM uses a quasi-Newton method to close to Hessian without the direct calculation of Hessian.To further improve the UBMDO efficiency,we also introduce the performance measure approach(PMA)and the sequential optimization and reliability assessment(SORA)strategy.To solve the optimization design problem of a turbine blade,the formula of MDO with ASORM under the SORA framework(MDO-ASORM-SORA)is proposed.

Reliability analysis of small failure probability based on subset simulation method

In the engineering.to ensure the quality and safety,it is necessary to carry out reliability analysis on it.When conducting reliability analysis in engineering.a 1arge rumber of small1 failure probability problems will be encountered.For such problems,the traditional Monte Carlo method needs a 1ot of samples,and the calculation efficiency is extremely 1ow,while the subset sinmulation method can efficiently estimate the relLability index of the small failure probability problem with litle samples.Therefore,this paper takes the application of the subset simulation method in the reliability analysis of the small failure probability structure as the object,constructs the reliability analysis method of the single failure mode of the system and applies the method to a mathematical example and a single-story gate.Through the rigid frame example,it can be seen that this method is beneficial to improve the calculation efficiency and accuracy.

Identification and characterization of human hematopoietic mesoderm

The embryonic mesoderm comprises heterogeneous cell subpopulations with distinct lineage biases.It is unclear whether a bias for the human hematopoietic lineage emerges at this early developmental stage.In this study,we integrated single-cell transcriptomic analyses of human mesoderm cells from embryonic stem cells and embryos,enabling us to identify and define the molecular features of human hematopoietic mesoderm(HM)cells biased towards hematopoietic lineages.We discovered that BMP4 plays an essential role in HM specification and can serve as a marker for HM cells.Mechanistically,BMP4 acts as a downstream target of HDAC1,which modulates the expression of BMP4 by deacetylating its enhancer.Inhibition of HDAC significantly enhances HM specification and promotes subsequent hematopoietic cell differentiation.In conclusion,our study identifies human HM cells and describes new mechanisms for human hematopoietic development.

A MOF/poly(thioctic acid)composite for enhanced gold extraction from water matrices

With the fast generation of electronic waste(e-waste)and the increasing depletion of metal resources,“urban mining”that can selectively recover gold from secondary resources has attracted great interest.Construction of materials with high extraction capacity and satisfying selectivity in complex aqueous-based matrices still remains challenging.Here,a novel metal-organic framework/polymer composite(Fe-BTC/poly(thioctic acid),denoted as Fe-BTC/pTA)has been newly synthesized and applied for selective gold recovery in different matrices(river water,seawater,and leaching solution of e-waste).Benefiting from the high specific surface area and suitable pore sizes as well as the rational design of active sites,the composite exhibits high adsorption capacity(920 mg/g),high removal efficiency(>99%),fast kinetics(below 0.1 ppb within 10 min),and good applicability in complex matrices,which are better than those of most reported sulfur-containing adsorbents.Solid-state metallic gold with high purity can be effectively enriched due to the high recyclability and long-term stability of the composite.The material after adsorption can be further applied as a heterogeneous catalyst for water remediation due to the in situ generated gold nanoparticles by the redox reaction between Au(III)ions and the S-containing groups in the composites.

Dense dislocations induced ductile SnTe thermoelectric semiconductor over a wide range of temperatures

Most inorganic thermoelectric semiconductors are intrinsically brittle,restricting the application of ther-moelectric materials.Therefore,developing ductile thermoelectric materials is crucial to thermoelectric technology applications.In this work,single-phase SnTe bulks with dense dislocations were prepared by melting quenching combined with spark plasma sintering.The resulting SnTe thermoelectric materials exhibited a large compressive strain of∼7.5%at room temperature,originating from high-density pre-existing mobile dislocations.The initiation of localized slip bands and preferred slip system were also identified by first-principles simulation.Detail microstructural characterizations reveal that the thermal activated dislocation emission and migration lead to higher compressive strains at intermediate tem-peratures.At 673 K,the deformation mechanism changed from dislocation mediated to grain boundary mediated plasticity,resulting in an ultra-high compressive strain of∼42%.In sum,new insights into the mechanical behavior of SnTe thermoelectric material over a wide range of temperatures were provided.This work offers the dislocation engineering strategy to design ductile thermoelectric materials for flexi-ble electronics and energy systems.

A review of deep learning methods for cross-subject rapid serial visual presentation detection in World Robot Contest 2022

The rapid serial visual presentation(RSVP)paradigm has garnered considerable attention in brain–computer interface(BCI)systems.Studies have focused on using cross-subject electroencephalogram data to train cross-subject RSVP detection models.In this study,we performed a comparative analysis of the top 5 deep learning algorithms used by various teams in the event-related potential competition of the BCI Controlled Robot Contest in World Robot Contest 2022.We evaluated these algorithms on the final data set and compared their performance in cross-subject RSVP detection.The results revealed that deep learning models can achieve excellent results with appropriate training methods when applied to cross-subject detection tasks.We discussed the limitations of existing deep learning algorithms in cross-subject RSVP detection and highlighted potential research directions.

纳米尺度砷化硼的超大拉伸弹性

砷化硼(BAs)是一种具有超高热导率的半导体,未来集成到功能器件会不可避免地承受外部应力,因此对BAs弹性和强度的研究非常紧迫.在这项工作中,我们从BAs单晶中制备了长度为1–3μm,宽度为100–300 nm的BAs纳米桥,并沿着[100],[101]和[111]取向进行了原位单轴拉伸试验.试验结果表明,BAs单晶纳米桥的拉伸弹性具有明显的取向依赖性,其中[100]取向纳米桥的拉伸应变高达9%,相应拉伸强度高达34.8 GPa.另外,我们从理论上探讨了拉伸应变对BAs电子结构和热输运的影响.结果表明,随着应变的增加,BAs的带隙会减小,晶格热导率显著降低.其中,若沿[111]方向发生12%的拉伸应变,BAs将由间接带隙转变为直接带隙半导体;而在相同应变量下,沿[100]方向的拉伸应变对BAs热导率的影响要显著低于[101]和[111]方向.这些发现为BAs的能带调控和热管理提供了重要的启示,如在实际器件中可通过“应变工程”实现BAs电和热的调控.