Defogging computational ghost imaging via eliminating photon number fluctuation and a cycle generative adversarial network

Imaging through fluctuating scattering media such as fog is of challenge since it seriously degrades the image quality.We investigate how the image quality of computational ghost imaging is reduced by fluctuating fog and how to obtain a high-quality defogging ghost image. We show theoretically and experimentally that the photon number fluctuations introduced by fluctuating fog is the reason for ghost image degradation. An algorithm is proposed to process the signals collected by the computational ghost imaging device to eliminate photon number fluctuations of different measurement events. Thus, a high-quality defogging ghost image is reconstructed even though fog is evenly distributed on the optical path. A nearly 100% defogging ghost image is obtained by further using a cycle generative adversarial network to process the reconstructed defogging image.

Plasma nitrogen fixation system with dual-loop enhancement for improved energy efficiency and its efficacy for lettuce cultivation

Plasma nitrogen fixation(PNF)has been emerging as a promising technology for greenhouse gasfree and renewable energy-based agriculture.Yet,most PNF studies seldom address practical application-specific issues.In this work,we present the development of a compact and automatic PNF system for on-site agricultural applications.The system utilized a gliding-arc discharge as the plasma source and employed a dual-loop design to generate NO_(x)from air and water under atmospheric conditions.Experimental results showed that the system with a dualloop design performs well in terms of energy costs and production rates.Optimal operational parameters for the system were determined through experimentation,resulting in an energy cost of 13.9 MJ mol^(-1)and an energy efficiency of 16 g kWh^(-1)for NO_(3)^(-)production,respectively.Moreover,the concentration of exhausted NO_(x)was below the emission standards.Soilless lettuce cultivation experiments demonstrated that NO_(x)^(-)produced by the PNF system could serve as liquid nitrate nitrogen fertilizer.Overall,our work demonstrates the potential of the developed PNF system for on-site application in the production of green-leaf vegetables.

Molecular characterization of α-gliadin genes from common wheat cultivar Zhengmai 004 and their role in quality and celiac disease

A total of 43 unique clones(Z4A-1 to Z4A-43 with GenBank accession numbers of HM120221, HM120222, JX828270, JN831402 to JN831406, and KC715889 to KC715923, respectively) were amplified and cloned from common wheat cultivar Zhengmai 004 using a PCR-based strategy. They included 22 full-ORF α-gliadin genes and 21 pseudogenes containing at least one in-frame stop codon. Comparative analysis of the deduced amino acid sequences showed that all the isolated genes displayed the typical structural features of α-gliadin genes and that the putative proteins of Z4A-7, Z4A-14, Z4A-17 and Z4A-20 had an extra cysteine residue in the unique domain II, while Z4A-15 lacked the second conserved cysteine residue in the unique domain I. The two fusion proteins of Z4A-15 and Z4A-20 were successfully detected by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting, although the protein level was relatively low. Based on the occurrence of the four major epitopes, as well as the lengths of the two glutamine repeats, 8, 6, and 8 genes were assigned to the Gli-2 loci on the respective chromosomes 6A, 6B, and 6D and a total of respectively 16, 0 and 23 immunogenic peptides were identified. In addition, 4 of the 5 genes with odd numbers of cysteine residues were assigned to chromosome 6D, suggesting that common wheat cultivar Zhengmai 004 has the potential to induce celiac disease(CD) and that the D genome exerts the most influence on gluten quality, but is the most deleterious for CD patients. By phylogenetic analysis, 11 exceptional α-gliadins with few or no immunogenic peptides from Triticum monococcum and Aegilops tauschii were detected, a finding that further supports the prospect of CD prevention. Finally, secondary structure prediction showed that most(98.48%) of the α-gliadins invariably contained five conserved α-helices(H1 to H5) in the two glutamine repeats and unique domains and 67.68% of the α-gliadins also contained a β-strand(S) in the C-terminal unique domains. An absent α-helix H2, 1–2 extra α-helices, or an additional β-strand(SE) also probably occurred in some cases. Of the 22 cloned genes in this work, 10 putative proteins contained 1–2 extra α-helices in addition to the five conserved α-helices or the additional β-strand. The observation that most of the α-helices and β-strands were present in the two unique domains and that an extra α-helix also probably occurred in the two glutamine repeats in some desirable genes strongly suggested that these two uniquedomains are the most important regions for the function of α-gliadins, although the glutamine repeats would also contribute in some cases.

Arabidopsis NF-YCs Mediate the Light-Controlled Hypocotyl Elongation via Modulating Histone Acetylation

Light is a crucial environmental signal that promotes photomorphogenesis, the developmental process with a series of light-dependent alterations for plants to adapt various external challenges. Chromatin modification has been proposed to be involved in such light-mediated growth, but the underlying mecha- nism is still elusive. In this study, we identified four Arabidopsis thaliana Nuclear Factor-YC homologs, NF- YCl, NF-YC3, NF-YC4, and NF-YC9 （NF-YCs）, which function redundantly as repressors of light-controlled hypocotyl elongation via histone deacetylation. Obvious etiolation phenotypes are observed in NF-YCs loss-of-function mutant seedlings grown under light conditions, including significant elongated hypocotyls and fewer opened cotyledons. We found that NF-YCs interact with histone deacetylase HDA15 in the light, co-target the promoters of a set of hypocotyl elongation-related genes, and modulate the levels of histone H4 acetylation on the associated chromatins, thus repressing gene expression. In contrast, NF-YC-HDA15 complex is dismissed from the target genes in the dark, resulting in increased level of H4 acetylation and consequent etiolated growth. Further analyses revealed that transcriptional repression activity of NF-YCs on the light-controlled hypocotyl elongation partially depends on the deacetylation activity of HDA15, and loss of HDA15 function could rescue the short-hypocotyl phenotype of NF-YCs overexpression plants. Taken together, our results indicate that NF-YCl, NF-YC3, NF-YC4, and NF-YC9 function as tran- scriptional co-repressors by interacting with HDA15 to inhibit hypocotyl elongation in photomorphogen- esis during the early seedling stage. Our findings highlight that NF-YCs can modulate plant development in response to environmental cues via epigenetic regulation.

旋流器结构对主吸收塔内流动特性的影响

高含硫天然气净化主吸收塔需要定期堆焊修复腐蚀部位,修复前后各需采用内燃法整体热处理技术进行消氢、消应处理。旋流器布置对空气分布及热处理过程中火焰调控具有重要影响,本工作分别对双级旋流器、单级旋流器Ⅰ和Ⅱ在吸收塔内的流动特性进行了模拟。结果表明,双级旋流器上方未产生明显回流区且速度分布均匀,内外两侧旋流叶片上方均产生较大的切向速度,空气入口速度为9.8 m/s的工况下产生的最大切向速度为8.33 m/s,其次为单级旋流器Ⅱ的4.5 m/s和单级旋流器Ⅰ的3.12 m/s。双级旋流器对应的塔内压降变化最小,证明其可有效产生低阻旋流场,且对应的塔底流线占比随气体质量流量变化可保持平稳,约为14%,与塔底壁面占塔体总表面积的百分比一致,能保证足够的气体介质回流塔底,促进气体对流。双级旋流器对应的90%塔内停留时间随气体质量流量增大而线性增长。总体上,双级旋流器的旋流效果优于其他两种旋流器,本研究可为内燃法整体热处理工艺旋流装置的优化设计提供参考。

DELLA and EDS1 Form a Feedback Regulatory Module to Fine-Tune Plant Growth-Defense Tradeoff in Arabidopsis

Plants maintain a dynamic balance between growth and defense,and optimize allocation of resources for survival under constant pathogen infections.However,the underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms,especially in response to biotrophic bacterial infection,remain elusive.Here,we demonstrate that DELLA proteins and EDS1,an essential resistance regulator,form a central module modulating plant growth-defense tradeoffs via direct interaction.When infected by Pst DC3000,EDS1 rapidly promotes salicylic acid(SA)biosynthesis and resistance-related gene expression to prime defense response,while pathogen infection stabilizes DELLA proteins RGA and RGL3 to restrict growth in a partially EDS1-dependent manner,which facilitates plants to develop resistance to pathogens.However,the increasingly accumulated DELLAs interact with EDS1 to suppress SA overproduction and excessive resistance response.Taken together,our findings reveal a DELLA-EDS1-mediated feedback regulatory loop by which plants maintain the subtle balance between growth and defense to avoid excessive growth or defense in response to constant biotrophic pathogen attack.

Numerical simulation of water-slag elbow erosion-inhibiting by regulating the slag injection position with a novel preceding rotating sheet structure

The elbow erosion seriously jeopardizes the safe and stable operation of water–slag discharge pipeline of the coal gasification system.This work simulated water–slag elbow characteristics with various slag injection positions by simulating five simplified and representative erosion categories,including A-type horizontal-vertical elbow with an upstream flow,B-type horizontal-vertical elbow with a downstream flow,C-type vertical-horizontal elbow with an upstream flow,D-type vertical-horizontal elbow with a downstream flow and E-type horizontal-horizontal elbow.Compared with the C/D-type elbow,where particles were injected uniformly,the A-type elbow and E-type elbow were found to increase erosion rate,while the B-type elbow decreases erosion rate.An interesting discovery is that the elbow erosion rate is relatively low for small particles when particles are injected from the middle and bottom positions of the inlet section of the elbow.Based on the observation,a novel preceding rotating sheet structure was developed to regulate the particle injection position.It shows an excellent anti-erosion performance by reducing the maximum erosion rate of particles with diameters of 50,100,and 200μm by 23%,35%,and 43%,respectively.