Elucidating the role of SlXTH5 in tomato fruit softening

Fruit softening in tomato(Solanum lycopersicum)is closely associated with cell wall disassembly,which is brought about through the action of a range of cell wall structure-related enzymes and other proteins such as expansins.Xyloglucan endotransglucosylase/hydrolase(XTH)(EC 2.4.1.207 and/or EC 3.2.1.151)has been proposed to be key player involved in xyloglucan metabolism.SlXTH5 showed the highest expression level among all SlXTHs during tomato ripening.In this study,the role of SlXTH5 involved in tomato softening was investigated in CRISPR-based knockout mutants of SlXTH5.Loss-of-function of SlXTH5 in transgenic tomato lines resulted in slightly firmer fruit pericarp,but significantly decreased their color index compared with azygous wild type(WT)control fruits.Increased paste viscosity was detected in CRISPR mutants,indicating that the activity of SlXTH5 is responsible for maintaining cell wall structural integrity.Immunocytochemistry studies were performed using the monoclonal antibody probe LM25 to examine the localization and distribution of xyloglucan in the pericarp cells of the CRISPR mutant fruits.The data indicated more xyloglucan was retained in the pericarp of CRISPR mutant fruit than in WT control fruit.This study revealed the link between SlXTH5 and xyloglucan metabolism and indicated the potential of manipulating SlXTH5 to regulate fruit softening.

Thirty-year trends of anxiety disorders among adolescents based on the 2019 Global Burden of Disease Study

Background Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric problems,affecting approximately 1 in 12 children and 1 in 4 adolescents.Understanding the incidence,burden and correlated risks of anxiety disorders among children and adolescents can help identify areas of success,stagnation and emerging threats,thereby facilitating effective improvement strategies.Aims To estimate the incidence and burden trends of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents from 1990 to 2019 in 204 countries and compare the incidence and disease burden in different countries.To examine the association between anxiety disorders and social indicators(healthcare access and quality of life).Methods Data were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.The age-standardised incidence rates(ASIRs)and disability-adjusted life years(DALYs)were reported to assess the burden of anxiety disorders,and the estimated annual percentage change was calculated to quantify the temporal trends.Pearson’s correlation was used to investigate country-level risk factors for incidence and DALYs.Results Globally,there were 932 million incident cases of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents,739.29 per 100000 ASIRs and 380.62 million DALYs in 2019.From 1990 to 2019,the estimated annual percentage change of incidence of anxiety disorders decreased by 2.2%.Significant variations were observed in the age-standardised burden rate and the changing trend of anxiety disorders among countries.Portugal reported the highest ASIR of anxiety disorders,while Mexico had the largest increase rate of ASIR.In 2019,Portugal reported the highest number of DALYs(1001.71 million),and India(212.09 million)reported the lowest number of DALYs.The burden of anxiety disorders was positively correlated with the average number of psychiatrists,psychologists and nurses in the mental health sector(per 100000),and quality of life and the correlation coefficients were 0.58,0.67,0.43 and 0.53,respectively.Conclusions The incidence and global burden of anxiety disorders in adolescents have continued to decrease over the past 30 years.However,the incidence and disease burden in developed countries are still increasing steadily.Policymakers should design and implement mental health strategies for adolescents based on their specific developmental status,as well as the cultural and regional characteristics of each country.

Delay Minimization for Intelligent Reflecting Surface Assisted Federated Learning

Federated learning(FL), which allows multiple mobile devices to cooperatively train a machine learning model without sharing their data with the central server, has received widespread attention.However, the process of FL involves frequent communications between the server and mobile devices,which incurs a long latency. Intelligent reflecting surface(IRS) provides a promising technology to address this issue, thanks to its capacity to reconfigure the wireless propagation environment. In this paper, we exploit the advantage of IRS to reduce the latency of FL. Specifically, we formulate a latency minimization problem for the IRS assisted FL system, by optimizing the communication resource allocations including the devices’ transmit-powers, the uploading time, the downloading time, the multi-user decomposition matrix and the phase shift matrix of IRS. To solve this non-convex problem, we propose an efficient algorithm which is based on the Block Coordinate Descent(BCD) and the penalty difference of convex(DC) algorithm to compute the solution. Numerical results are provided to validate the efficiency of our proposed algorithm and demonstrate the benefit of deploying IRS for reducing the latency of FL. In particular, the results show that our algorithm can outperform the baseline of Majorization-Minimization(MM) algorithm with the fixed transmit-power by up to 30%.

Synthesis and mechanism of environmentally friendly high temperature and high salt resistant lubricants

With the exploration and development of deep and ultra-deep oil and gas,high torque and high friction during the drilling of deep and ultra-deep wells become one of the key issues affecting drilling safety and drilling speed.Meanwhile,the high temperature and high salt problem in deep formations is prominent,which poses a major challenge to the lubricity of drilling fluids under high temperature and high salt.This paper reports an organic borate ester SOP as an environmentally friendly drilling fluid lubricant.The performance evaluation results show that when 1%lubricant SOP is added to the fresh water-based mud,the lubrication coefficient decreases from 0.631 to 0.046,and the reduction rate of lubrication coefficient is 92.7%.Under the conditions of 210℃ and 30%NaCl,the reduction rate of lubricating coefficient of the base slurry with 1%SOP was still remain 81.5%.After adding 1%SOP,the wear volume decreased by 94.11%compared with the base slurry.The contact resistance experiment during the friction process shows that SOP can form a thick adsorption film on the friction surface under high temperature and high salt conditions,thus effectively reducing the friction resistance.Molecular dynamics simulation shows that lubricant SOP can be physically adsorbed on the surface of drilling tool and borehole wall through hydrogen bond and van der Waals force.XPS analysis further shows that SOP adsorbs on the friction surface and reacts with metal atoms on the friction surface to form a chemically reactive film.Therefore,under high temperature and high salt conditions,the synergistic effect of physical adsorption film and chemical reaction film effectively reduces the frictional resistance and wear of the friction surface.In addition,SOP is non-toxic and easy to degrade.Therefore,SOP is a highly effective and environmentally friendly lubricant in high temperature and high salt drilling fluid.

Manufacturing of graphene based synaptic devices for optoelectronic applications

Neuromorphic computing systems can perform memory and computing tasks in parallel on artificial synaptic devices through simulating synaptic functions,which is promising for breaking the conventional von Neumann bottlenecks at hardware level.Artificial optoelectronic synapses enable the synergistic coupling between optical and electrical signals in synaptic modulation,which opens up an innovative path for effective neuromorphic systems.With the advantages of high mobility,optical transparency,ultrawideband tunability,and environmental stability,graphene has attracted tremendous interest for electronic and optoelectronic applications.Recent progress highlights the significance of implementing graphene into artificial synaptic devices.Herein,to better understand the potential of graphene-based synaptic devices,the fabrication technologies of graphene are first presented.Then,the roles of graphene in various synaptic devices are demonstrated.Furthermore,their typical optoelectronic applications in neuromorphic systems are reviewed.Finally,outlooks for development of synaptic devices based on graphene are proposed.This review will provide a comprehensive understanding of graphene fabrication technologies and graphene-based synaptic device for optoelectronic applications,also present an outlook for development of graphene-based synaptic device in future neuromorphic systems.

Overexpression of a sugarcane ScCaM gene negatively regulates salinity and drought stress responses in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana

Calmodulin(CaM)proteins play a key role in signal transduction under various stresses.In the present study,the effects of a sugarcane ScCaM gene(NCBI accession number:GQ246454)on drought and salt stress tolerance in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana and Escherichia coli cells were evaluated.The results demonstrated a significant negative role of ScCaM in the drought and salt stress tolerance of transgenic lines of A.thaliana,as indicated by the phenotypes.In addition,the expression of AtP5CS and AtRD29A,two genes tightly related to stress resistance,was significantly lower in the overexpression lines than in the wild type.The growth of E.coli BL21 cells expressing ScCaM showed weaker tolerance under mannitol and NaCl stress.Taken together,this study revealed that the ScCaM gene plays a negative regulatory role in both mannitol and NaCl stresses,and it possibly exerts protective mechanisms common in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes under stress conditions.

22q11.2微重复携带者的产前诊断策略

目的对1例22q11.2微重复征携带者再次妊娠的产前诊断进行回顾性分析,探讨其遗传分析策略。方法对夫妇外周血和胎儿羊水进行染色体核型分析和染色体微阵列技术检测。结果染色体核型分析均未见明显异常,染色体微阵列提示胎儿为22q11.2微重复,遗传自无临床表现的母亲,父方未检出异常。结论对22q11.2微重复家系进行全面分析,才能给予个性化的遗传咨询和生育指导。

CNTs@S composite as cathode for all-solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries with ultralong cycle life

The main challenges in development of traditional liquid lithium-sulfur batteries are the shuttle effect at the cathode caused by the polysulfide and the safety concern at the Li metal anode arose from the dendrite formation.All-solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries have been proposed to solve the shuttle effect and prevent short circuits.However,solid-solid contacts between the electrodes and the electrolyte increase the interface resistance and stress/strain,which could result in the limited electrochemical performances.In this work,the cathode of all-solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries is prepared by depositing sulfur on the surface of the carbon nanotubes(CNTs@S)and further mixing with Li10GeP2S12 electrolyte and acetylene black agents.At 60℃,CNTs@S electrode exhibits superior electrochemical performance,delivering the reversible discharge capacities of 1193.3,959.5,813.1,569.6 and 395.5 mAhg^-1 at the rate of 0.1,0.5,1,2 and 5 C,respectively.Moreover,the CNTs@S is able to demonstrate superior high-rate capability of 660.3 mAhg^-1 and cycling stability of 400 cycles at a high rate of 1.0 C.Such uniform distribution of the CNTs,S and Li10GeP2S12 electrolyte increase the electronic and ionic conductivity between the cathode and the electrolyte hence improves the rate performance and capacity retention.

Application reliability for communication networks and its analysis method

The network reliability is difficult to be evaluated because of the complex relationship among the network components.It can be quite different for different users running different applications on the same network.This paper proposes a new concept and a model of application reliability.Different from the existing models that ignores the effects of applications,the proposed application reliability model considers the effects of different applications on the network performance and different types of network faults and makes the analysis of network components relationship possible.This paper also provides a method to evaluate the application reliability when the data flow satisfies Markov properties.Finally,a case study is presented to illustrate the proposed network reliability model and the analysis method.

Daphnane Diterpenoids from Trigonostemon lii and Inhibition Activities Against HIV‑1

Natural products are the important source for the discovery of more potent anti-HIV agents.In this study,six daphnane diterpenoids including three unreported structures were isolated from Trigonostemon lii,which showed signifcant activities against HIV-1 strains replication in the nanomolar/picomolar range.Meanwhile,these diterpenoids signifcantly inhibited the fusion of H9/HIV-1 IIIB cells with uninfected C8166 cells,with the EC50s from 1.06 to 8.73 ng/mL,and did not show any inhibition activities against HIV-1 reverse transcriptase.Moreover,all of the diterpenoids shows signifcant inhibitions against T20-resistan HIV-1 strains,PNL4-3gp41(36G)V38E,N42S and pNL4-3gp41(36G)V38A,N42T.The results revealed that the six diterpenoids could be a new type of potential lead candidate as an HIV entry inhibitor,particularly for those infected by T20-resistant variants.

Analysis and verification of network profile

The elements of network profile are proposed.Based on the network traffic distribution model,the network profile includes the application request rate,the branch transfer probability,the ratio of application requests,and the probability distribution of the requested objects.Based on the evaluation method of network performance reliability,four simulation cases are constructed in OPNET software,and the results show the four elements of profile have impacts on the network reliability.

Formal Semantics of OWL-S with Rewrite Logic

SOA is built upon and evolving from older concepts of distributed computing and modular programming, OWL-S plays a key role in describing behaviors of web services, which are the essential of the SOA software. Although OWL-S has given semantics to concepts by ontology technology, it gives no semantics to control-flow and data-flow. This paper presents a formal semantics framework for OWL-S sub-set, including its abstraction, syntax, static and dynamic seman-tics by rewrite logic. Details of a consistent transformation from OWL-S SOS of control-flow to corresponding rules and equations, and dataflow semantics including “Precondition”, “Result” and “Binding” etc. are explained. This paper provides a possibility for formal verification and reliability evaluation of software based on SOA.

Multiple Center Research on Relationship Between Screening Quality and Detection of Cervical Cancer—Six Provinces,China,June–December 2021

The coverage and quality of screening are essential for reducing the incidence of cervical precancers and cervical cancer.This multicenter study aimed to investigate the relationship between screening quality and the detection of cervical precancers and cervical cancer.The study was conducted from June to December 2021 in six hospitals across six provinces.The 2,945 participants were non-pregnant women who underwent colposcopy examinations.The average age of participants was 40.9±11.5 years old.Only 6.9%of participants had received human papillomavirus(HPV)vaccination.A total of 92.6%of participants had abnormal cervical screening results.Of the participants,577 had high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions(HSIL)or worse(≥HSIL),with a detection rate of 19.6%.Univariate analysis indicated that a lack of cervical cancer screening history in the past five years,as well as positive cervical screening and abnormal colposcopic impression,were independent associated factors of the≥HSIL detection rate.A multivariable logistic regression showed that positive cervical screening[odds ratio(OR)=1.75,95%confidence interval(CI):1.07–2.86]was a risk factor for detecting≥HSIL.Low-grade,high-grade,and cancer of colposcopic impression were associated with a higher risk for detecting≥HSIL(OR=2.94,95%CI:2.13–4.08;OR=36.64,95%CI:26.07–51.48).It is important to disseminate health knowledge to improve public awareness of cervical cancer prevention and to enhance the capacity building of professional staff to improve the quality of cervical cancer screening.

Spatial resolution and image processing for pinhole camera-based X-ray fluorescence imaging: a simulation study

Spatial resolution and image-processing methods for full-field X-ray fluorescence(FF-XRF)imaging using X-ray pinhole cameras were studied using Geant4simulations with different geometries and algorithms for image reconstruction.The main objectives were:(1)calculating the quantum efficiency curves of specific cameras,(2)studying the relationships between the spatial resolution and the pinhole diameter,magnification,and camera binning value,and(3)comparing image-processing methods for pinhole camera systems.Several results were obtained using a point and plane source as the X-ray fluorescence emitter and an array of 100×100 silicon pixel detectors as the X-ray camera.The quantum efficiency of a back-illuminated deep depletion(BI-DD)structure was above 30%for the XRF energies in the 0.8–9 keV range,with the maximum of 93.7%at 4 keV.The best spatial resolution of the pinhole camera was 24.7μm and 31.3 lp/mm when measured using the profile function of the point source,with the diameter of 20μm,magnification of 3.16,and camera bin of 1.A blind deconvolution algorithm with Gaussian filtering performed better than the Wiener filter and Richardson iterative methods on FF-XRF images,with the signal-to-noise ratio of 7.81 dB and improved signalto-noise ratio of 7.24 dB at the diameter of 120μm,magnification of 1.0,and camera bin of 1.

Estimation of Reliability and Cost Relationship for Architecture-based Software

In this paper, wc propose a new method to estimate the relationship between software reliability and software development cost taking into account the complexity for developing the software system and the size of software intended to develop during the implementation phase of the software development lifc cycle. On the basis of estimated relationship, a set of empirical data has been used to validate the correctness of the proposed model by comparing the result with the other existing models. The outcome of this work shows that the method proposed here is a relatively straightforward one in formulating the relationship between reliability and cost during implementation phase.

First reference genome assembly of the Indochinese silvered langur(Trachypithecus germaini)

DEAR EDITOR,Of the seven genera recognized in Asian colobines,Trachypithecus is the only genus that contains species groups.Compared with the species groups characterized by calcium tolerance(T.francoisi species group),multi-male,multi-female society(T.obscurus species group),and impressive hybridization(T.pileatus species group),the T.cristatus species group is distinguished by its southernmost distribution and silvery appearance.Hence,Trachypithecus is an excellent model for investigating evolutionary radiation and behavioral adaptation in Asian primates.However,comprehensive comparison of species groups remains difficult due to the lack of a reference genome for the T.cristatus species group.

Diffusion-weighted imaging and variable flip angle T1 mapping: a supplement for image-guided biopsy in follow-up analysis of liver fibrosis

Purpose To evaluate the performance of diffusion-weighted imaging(DWI) and variable flip angle(VFA) T1 mapping as a supplement to image-guided biopsy in follow-up analysis of liver fibrosis. Materials and Methods This prospective study was approved by the institution's committee on human research, and written informed consent was provided from the enrolled patients. We investigated five MRI parameters of DWI and VFA T1 mapping, collected from 11 patients who underwent serial ultrasound image-guided biopsy with follow-up MRI within 1.5 years after treatment for liver fibrosis/cirrhosis. For each patient, four consecutive MRI examinations were conducted, including baseline MRI before treatment and three follow-up MRI examinations after treatment at each 0.5-year interval. ADC values at four b values and T1 relaxation times were correlated to pathology-confirmed liver fibrosis stages, which were subsequently divided into two groups, stages F2–3 and F4. The receiver operating characteristic(ROC) analysis and repeated measurement analysis of variance were used for statistical analysis. Results Among these ADC parameters, ADC value(b = 500 s/mm^2) was the most consistent in differentiating between stage F2–3 and F4 liver fibrosis. Repeated measurement analysis showed that the intra-group and inter-group differences were 0.447 and 0.024, respectively. T1 relaxation time could not consistently differentiate between the F2–3 and F4 groups; however, it was repeatable, and the intra-group and inter-group differences were 0.410 and 0.042, respectively. Conclusion MRI-ADC value at a b value of 500 s/mm^2 can be a promising biomarker for differentiating stages F2–3 and F4 liver fibrosis. A combination of this biomarker with repeatable T1 relaxation time may function as a non-invasive tool for follow-up liver fibrosis in patients who reject repeated image-guided biopsy.

Key progresses of MOE key laboratory of macromolecular synthesis and functionalization in 2021

In 2021,The MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization in Zhejiang University had achieved several important results.First,a series of versatile organoboron catalysts were synthesized for ring-opening(co)polymerizations.Second,a catalyst-free polycondensation mechanism was proposed for the production of polyesters with high molecular weights.Third,a co-assembly method that can fabricate films and coatings with controllable structures and properties on various substrates was demonstrated,providing a platform for the construction of novel surface coatings.Forth,facile methods for producing high-productivity poly(propylene carbonate)and semicrystalline polyester have been discovered.And linear non-conjugated polyesters exhibiting yellow-green clusteroluminescence were developed for the first time.Fifth,a supramolecular prodrug nano-assembly strategy has been developed for reactive nitrogen species potentiated chemotherapy.Sixth,a series of tough and stiff supramolecular hydrogels with shape memory properties have been used for information encryption.Seventh,reversible fusion and fission of wet-spun graphene oxide fibers has been successfully achieved.Eighth,three non-conjugated polypeptides were synthesized and the mechanism of clusteroluminescence was studied.Ninth,a series of conducting covalent organic frameworks with high electrical conductivity and carrier mobility have been used as high-performance chemiresistor,electrocatalyst,and organic field-effect transistor.Tenth,the exploration of non-fused electron acceptors,and their photostable mechanism are exemplified for developing high-performance,low-cost and eco-friendly polymer solar cells.Finally,gel-grown long-range ordering bulk-heterojunctions has achieved improved X-ray detector performance.

Research on influencing factors of urban building carbon emissions based on STIRPAT model--taking Suzhou as an example

城市建筑碳排放的影响因素研究对于城市建筑领域减碳,乃至实现城市“双碳”目标具有重要意义。本文运用STIRPAT模型并结合岭回归方法建立了苏州市建筑碳排放影响因素的模型,对城市化率、常住人口数量、人均建筑业和第三产业增加值、人均可支配收入等因素进行分析。分析结果表明,城市化率是苏州建筑碳排放的主要驱动因素,其次是常住人口数量,再次是人均建筑业和第三产业增加值,最后是人均可支配收入。研究结论表明,过去一段时间,工业化和城市化的发展有力地促进了苏州建筑碳排放的增长。未来,在工业化和城市化不断发展和人口持续增长的情况下,苏州市可以通过合理规划城市发展边界,促进城乡建设领域的绿色低碳转型发展,提高居民的低碳意识,倡导居民绿色低碳行为等措施减少建筑领域碳排放。

A laboratory test of the electrification phenomenon in wind-blown sand flux

The measured data in the wind-tunnel tests show that the wind-blown sand particles acquired a negative charge when their diameters are smaller than 250 μm and positive charge when their diameters are larger than 500 μm, which confirms Latham’s assumption that the large particles in wind-blown sand flux acquired positive charge while negative charge developed on small ones. In the meanwhile, the measured data also show that the average charge-to-mass ratio for wind-blown sand particles decreases with the increase of the particle diameter and the wind velocity, and increases with the rise of height. The electric field in wind-blown sand flux is mainly formed by the moving charged sand particles. Its direction is vertical to the Earth’s surface and upward, which is opposite to that of the fair-weather field. The electric field increases with wind velocity and height increasing. These experimental results will lay the foundation for developing the theoretical analysis of the electrification phenomenon in