Occurrence of dark septate endophytes in Phragmites australis in the Baiyang Lake and their resistance to Cd stress

Heavy metal pollution poses a serious hazard to human health,and microbial remediation of heavy metals in soil has been widely studied.A group of ascomycetes classified as dark septate endophytes(DSEs)colonize plant roots and benefit host plants under abiotic stress conditions.In this study,Phragmites australis,a common remediation plant in the Baiyang Lake in North China,was investigated.Soils and roots of P.australis were collected in typical heavy metal-contaminated sites,and the species diversity and community structure of DSEs in P.australis roots were studied.In addition,DSE strains were isolated,cultured,and tested for their tolerance to Cd stress.The results showed that DSEs occurred extensively in P.australis roots,forming typical dark septate hyphae,with a total colonization rate of 19.7%–83.1%.Morphological and internal transcribed spacer sequencing analyses were used to identify 10 species within 9 genera of DSE fungi.Among these fungi,6 strains with considerable resistance to Cd stress were identified.The biomasses of Poaceascoma helicoides,Alternaria doliconidium,and Acrocalymma vagum strains increased as the Cd levels increased.These results can not only help to understand plant-DSE interactions in wetland environments,but also provide a theoretical basis for making full use of DSE fungi to alleviate heavy metal contamination in soil.

Plant-microbial interactions inspired the discovery of novel sesquiterpenoid dimeric skeletons of hidden natural products from Hibiscus tiliaceus

Hidden natural products are representative of defensive strategies produced in vivo in diseased plants,a process that is induced by the plant immune system.The first transcriptome library of uninfected and pathogen infected Hibiscus tiliaceus stems was constructed by transcriptome sequencing technology,genes related to cadinene-type sesquiterpenoid biosynthesis were screened and combined with ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-QTOF-MS)analysis data,which indicated pathological tissue had potential to produce novel carbon skeletons of cadinane sesquiterpenoid dimers.Successfully,two cadinane-derived sesquiterpenoid dimers with unprecedented carbon skeletons,hibisceusanols A(1)and B(2)were isolated for the first time from the stems of H.tiliaceus induced by plant-microbial interactions.Their structures and absolute configurations were unambiguously established by spectroscopy,advanced chemistry development(ACD)and electronic circular dichroism(ECD)methods.Compounds 1 and 2 exhibited significant antitumor activity in vitro with half maximal inhibitory concentration(IC_(5)0)values of 2.3–7.2μmol/L.The anticancer effect was generated via the induction of Hep G2 cell apoptosis by inhibiting the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K)pathway.

Optimization for epitaxial fabrication of infinite-layer nickelate superconductors

The discovery of nickelates superconductor creates exciting opportunities to unconventional superconductivity. However, its synthesis is challenging and only a few groups worldwide can obtain samples with zero-resistance. This problem becomes the major barrier for this field. From plume dynamics perspective, we found the synthesis of superconducting nickelates is a complex process and the challenge is twofold, i.e., how to stabilize an ideal infinite-layer structure Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2), and then how to make Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2) superconducting? The competition between perovskite Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(3) and Ruddlesden−Popper defect phase is crucial for obtaining infinite-layer structure. Due to inequivalent angular distributions of condensate during laser ablation, the laser energy density is critical to obtain phase-pure Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(3). However, for obtaining superconductivity, both laser energy density and substrate temperature are very important. We also demonstrate the superconducting Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2) epitaxial film is very stable in ambient conditions up to 512 days. Our results provide important insights for fabrication of superconducting infinite-layer nickelates towards future device applications.

SoK:Privacy-preserving smart contract

The privacy concern in smart contract applications continues to grow,leading to the proposal of various schemes aimed at developing comprehensive and universally applicable privacy-preserving smart contract(PPSC)schemes.However,the existing research in this area is fragmented and lacks a comprehensive system overview.This paper aims to bridge the existing research gap on PPSC schemes by systematizing previous studies in this field.The primary focus is on two categories:PPSC schemes based on cryptographic tools like zero-knowledge proofs,as well as schemes based on trusted execution environments.In doing so,we aim to provide a condensed summary of the different approaches taken in constructing PPSC schemes.Additionally,we also offer a comparative analysis of these approaches,highlighting the similarities and differences between them.Furthermore,we shed light on the challenges that developers face when designing and implementing PPSC schemes.Finally,we delve into potential future directions for improving and advancing these schemes,discussing possible avenues for further research and development.

SoK:Decentralized storage network

Decentralized Storage Networks(DSNs)represent a paradigm shift in data storage methodology,distributing and housing data across multiple network nodes rather than relying on a centralized server or data center architecture.The fundamental objective of DSNs is to enhance security,reinforce reliability,and mitigate censorship risks by eliminating a single point of failure.Leveraging blockchain technology for functions such as access control,ownership validation,and transaction facilitation,DSN initiatives aim to provide users with a robust and secure alternative to traditional centralized storage solutions.This paper conducts a comprehensive analysis of the developmental trajectory of DSNs,focusing on key components such as Proof of Storage protocols,consensus algorithms,and incentive mechanisms.Additionally,the study explores recent optimization tactics,encountered challenges,and potential avenues for future research,thereby offering insights into the ongoing evolution and advancement within the DSN domain.

A trustless architecture of blockchain-enabled metaverse

Metaverse has rekindled human beings’desire to further break space-time barriers by fusing the virtual and real worlds.However,security and privacy threats hinder us from building a utopia.A metaverse em-braces various techniques,while at the same time inheriting their pitfalls and thus exposing large attack surfaces.Blockchain,proposed in 2008,was regarded as a key building block of metaverses.it enables transparent and trusted computing environments using tamper-resistant decentralized ledgers.Currently,blockchain supports Decentralized Finance(DeFi)and Non-fungible Tokens(NFT)for metaverses.How-ever,the power of a blockchain has not been sufficiently exploited.In this article,we propose a novel trustless architecture of blockchain-enabled metaverse,aiming to provide efficient resource integration and allocation by consolidating hardware and software components.To realize our design objectives,we provide an On-Demand Trusted Computing Environment(OTCE)technique based on local trust evalua-tion.Specifically,the architecture adopts a hypergraph to represent a metaverse,in which each hyper-edge links a group of users with certain relationship.Then the trust level of each user group can be evaluated based on graph analytics techniques.Based on the trust value,each group can determine its security plan on demand,free from interference by irrelevant nodes.Besides,OTCEs enable large-scale and flexible application environments(sandboxes)while preserving a strong security guarantee.

损失规避报童型零售商的信息获取、订货量与定价决策

随着互联网经济的快速发展和信息科技的进步,企业能够获得更多的需求信息以降低需求不确定性所造成的损失。考虑一个损失规避的报童型零售商,其利润参考点与自身的决策相关,本文研究了零售商的信息获取水平、订货及定价联合决策。在分析了价格固定的情形后,对于价格影响需求的情形,本文给出了用蒙特卡洛模拟来求得最优信息获取水平的方法,并通过数值实验探讨了参数变化的影响。研究发现,只有当乐观程度较高时,零售商才会获取需求信息。当零售商乐观程度较高时,损失规避程度的增加导致较高的信息获取水平,而价格和订货量关于损失规避程度呈现出分段递减的特性。随着零售商乐观程度的增加,信息获取水平增加,而销售价格分段递减,订货量的变化趋势则与参数取值有关。当乐观程度较高时,零售商的信息获取水平、销售价和订货量均随着单位信息获取成本的增加而降低。

COMPARISONS OF LOW CARBON POLICIES IN SUPPLY CHAIN COORDINATION

This paper investigates the influence of low-carbon policies on channel coordination for a two-echelon supply chain consisting of one supplier and one retailer. Four different models are considered： the basic model, the carbon emission model, the carbon emission trading model and the carbon tax model. We find that the government policy on all carbon emission models is not universal among the firms as well as the customers. The carbon emission trading policy is always better than the carbon emission policy and the carbon tax policy when the allocated carbon emission quotas are greater than the carbon emissions. The carbon emission trading policy is proved to be an effective mechanism which can motivate the supply chain to reduce carbon emissions. Under certain conditions, the supply chain prefers the carbon emission trading policy with higher carbon price to other policies. In the framework of Stackelberg game with the supplier as the leader, for each carbon policy, the paper presents coordination mechanism with the all-unit wholesale quantity discount contract （AWQD）. We analyze and compare the influence of low-carbon policies on channel coordination for the foul＂ low-carbon policies. Numerical experiments are conducted to examine our findings.

OPTIMAL DECISIONS WHEN BALANCING EXPECTED PROFIT AND CONDITIONAL VALUE-AT-RISK IN NEWSVENDOR MODELS

This paper investigates a risk-averse inventory model by balancing the expected profit and conditional value-at-risk （CVaR） in a newsvendor model setting. We find out that： i） The optimal order quantity is increasing in the shortage cost for both the CVaR only criterion and the tradeoff objective, ii） For the case of zero shortage cost, the optimal order quantity to the CVaR criterion or tradeoff objective is increasing in the selling price, respectively. However, it may not be monotonic in the selling price when incorporating a substantial shortage cost. Moreover, it may be larger or less than the risk-neutral solution, iii） Under the tradeoff objective function, although the optimal order quantity for the model without shortage cost is increasing in the weight put on the expected profit, this property may not be true in general for the model with a substantial shortage cost. Some numerical examples are conducted to verify our results and observations.

Distributed Consensus for Blockchains in Internet-of-Things Networks

In recent years,due to the wide implementation of mobile agents,the Internet-of-Things(IoT) networks have been applied in several real-life scenarios,servicing applications in the areas of public safety,proximity-based services,and fog computing.Meanwhile,when more complex tasks are processed in IoT networks,demands on identity authentication,certifiable traceability,and privacy protection for services in IoT networks increase.Building a blockchain system in IoT networks can greatly satisfy such demands.However,the blockchain building in IoT brings about new challenges compared with that in the traditional full-blown Internet with reliable transmissions,especially in terms of achieving consensus on each block in complex wireless environments,which directly motivates our work.In this study,we fully considered the challenges of achieving a consensus in a blockchain system in IoT networks,including the negative impacts caused by contention and interference in wireless channel,and the lack of reliable transmissions and prior network organizations.By proposing a distributed consensus algorithm for blockchains on multi-hop IoT networks,we showed that it is possible to directly reach a consensus for blockchains in IoT networks,without relying on any additional network layers or protocols to provide reliable and ordered communications.In our theoretical analysis,we showed that our consensus algorithm is asymptotically optimal on time complexity and is energy saving.The extensive simulation results also validate our conclusions in the theoretical analysis.

Stability of superconducting Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2) thin films

The discovery of superconducting states in the nickelate thin film with infinite-layer structure has paved a new way for studying unconventional superconductivity.So far,research in this field is still very limited due to difficulties in sample preparation.Here we report the successful preparation of the superconducting state of Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2)thin film(T_(c)=8.0-11.1 K)and study the stability of such films in the ambient environment,water,and under electrochemical conditions.Our work demonstrates that the superconducting state of Nd_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)NiO_(2)is remarkably stable,which can last for at least 47-day continuous exposure to air at 20°C and 35%relative humidity.We also show that the superconductivity disappears after being immersed in de-ionized water at room temperature for 5 h.Surprisingly,it can also survive under ionic liquid gating conditions with an applied voltage of about 4 V,which is even more stable than conventional perovskite complex oxides.

AN OPTIMAL DYNAMIC ADVERTISING MODEL WITH INVERSE INVENTORY SENSITIVE DEMAND EFFECT FOR DETERIORATING ITEMS

This paper proposes a dynamic advertising model for deteriorating items, and the demand is influenced by goodwill and inventory level. The goodwill affected by advertising effort has a positive effect on demand while the inventory level has a negative effect on demand, which is named as inverse inventory sensitive demand effect. We assume that the deteriorating rate could be influenced by the inventory level and we determine the deteriorating rate formulation based on this assumption. The optimal advertising effort and inventory level are obtained by solving the optimization problem based on Pontryagin＇s maximum principle. Furthermore, numerical studies are provided and some managerial insights are presented.

STOCHASTIC COMPARISONS IN A PRICE-QUANTITY SETTING FIRM WITH UNCERTAIN DEMAND AND EMERGENCY PROCUREMENT

We consider a newsvendor problem with price-dependent demand, in either additive or multiplicative format. The newsvendor has two modes of purchasing： regular ordering at the beginning of the selling season and emergency ordering （if the realized demand exceeds the initial order quantity） at the end of the selling season. By stochastic comparisons, we systematically investigate the effects of demand magnitude and demand randomness on pricing and ordering quantity decisions as well as expected profit of the newsvendor, under both usual stochastic order （first order stochastic dominance） and convex order （less variable）. Our key findings include： （i） in contrary to the case where price is exogenous, a stochastically larger demand shock may even lead to a lower order quantity; （ii） a stochastically larger demand shock leads to a higher price for the additive demand case, but may lead to a lower price for the multiplicative demand case; （iii） a stochastically larger demand shock leads to a higher expected profit for both demand models; （iv） in general, a less variable demand leads to a higher expected profit for both demand models; and furthermore, a less variable demand shock has no effect on price for the additive demand model, but leads to a higher price for the multiplicative demand model. The implications of all these findings for pricing and order quantity are discussed in detail.

Coordination of a Socially Responsible Supply Chain with Cause Marketing Campaigns

This paper explores the coordination problem of a socially responsible supply chain,in which the supplier contributes corporate social responsibility by donating a specific amount of money to a cause marketing and the retailer cares for consumer surplus in addition to its own profit.We consider two donation formats:absolute amount donation and percentage of profit donation.For each donation format,the optimal solutions for the centralized and decentralized decisions are derived,and the effects of system parameters on the optimal decisions and other outcome variables are investigated.Moreover,a two-part tariff contract and a quantity discount plus cost sharing contract are proposed to coordinate the socially responsible supply chain.This study may provide theoretical support and operational procedures for supply chain managers to integrate corporate social responsibility into business routines.

Implementation of Abstract MAC Layer Under Jamming

In the past decades,with the widespread implementation of wireless networks,such as the Internet of Things,an enormous demand for designing relative algorithms for various realistic scenarios has arisen.However,with the widening of scales and deepening of network layers,it has become increasingly challenging to design such algorithms when the issues of message dissemination at high levels and the contention management at the physical layer are considered.Accordingly,the abstract medium access control(absMAC)layer,which was proposed in2009,is designed to solve this problem.Specifically,the absMAC layer consists of two basic operations for network agents:the acknowledgement operation to broadcast messages to all neighbors and the progress operation to receive messages from neighbors.The absMAC layer divides the wireless algorithm design into two independent and manageable components,i.e.,to implement the absMAC layer over a physical network and to solve higher-level problems based on the acknowledgement and progress operations provided by the absMAC layer,which makes the algorithm design easier and simpler.In this study,we consider the implementation of the absMAC layer under jamming.An efficient algorithm is proposed to implement the absMAC layer,attached with rigorous theoretical analyses and extensive simulation results.Based on the implemented absMAC layer,many high-level algorithms in non-jamming cases can be executed in a jamming network.

Potential variability of trans-lysozyme gene rice under ecological conditions of Yunnan Province, China

Using trans-lysozyme gene rice line D2-1-2 and its restorer Zhonghua No.9 as test materials,we studied their agronomic characters and grain qualities under two ecological conditions of Yunnan Province.The results show that there were no significant differences in the agronomic characters between D2-1-2 and Zhonghua No.9,but the seed setting rate and plant height of D2-1-2 were significantly lower,while the protein,amino acid and mineral element(Ca,Fe and Zn in particular)contents in its crude grain were higher than those of Zhonghua No.9.It is suggested that there could be some potential genetic variances in the transgenic plant and the possibly induced environmental risk should be evaluated in multi-plots for several years.