Simulation of optical and electrical synaptic functions in MoS_(2)/α-In_(2)Se_(3) heterojunction memtransistors

Memtransistors combine memristors and field-effect transistors, which can introduce multi-port control and have significant applications for enriching storage methods. In this paper, multilayer α-In2Se3and MoS2were transferred to the substrate by the mechanical exfoliation method, then a heterojunction MoS_(2)/α-In_(2)Se_(3) memtransistor was prepared. Neural synaptic simulations were performed using electrical and optical pulses as input signals. Through measurements, such as excitatory/inhibitory post-synaptic current(EPSC/IPSC), long-term potentiation/depression(LTP/LTD), and paired-pulse facilitation/depression(PPF/PPD), it can be found that the fabricated device could simulate various functions of neural synapses well, and could work as an electronic synapse in artificial neural networks, proposing a possible solution for neuromorphic storage and computation.

Evaluation of Farmland Drainage Water Quality by Fuzzy–Gray Combination Method

The complex relationships between indicators and water conditions cause fuzzy and gray uncertainties in evaluation of water quality. Compared to conventional single-factor evaluation methods, the combination evaluation method can consider these two uncertainties to produce more objective and reasonable evaluation results. In this paper, we propose a combination evaluation method with two main parts:(1) the use of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation and gray correlation analysis as submodels with which to consider the fuzzy and gray uncertainties and(2) the establishment of a combination model based on minimum bias squares. In addition, using this method, we evaluate the water quality of a ditch in a typical rice–wheat system of Yixing city in the Taihu Lake Basin during three rainfall events. The results show that the ditch water quality is not good and we found the chemical oxygen demand to be the key indicator that affects water quality most significantly. The proposed combination evaluation method is more accurate and practical than single-factor evaluation methods in that it considers the uncertainties of fuzziness and grayness.

A Restricted, Adaptive Threshold Segmentation Approach for Processing High-Speed Image Sequences of the Glottis

In this paper, we propose a restricted, adaptive threshold approach for the segmentation of images of the glottis acquired from high speed video-endoscopy (HSV). The approach involves first, identifying a region of interest (ROI) that encloses the vocal-fold motion extent for each image frame as estimated by the different image sequences. This procedure is then followed by threshold segmentation restricted within the identified ROI for each image frame of the original image sequences, or referred to as sub-image sequences. The threshold value is adapted for each sub-image frame and determined by respective minimum gray-scale value that typically corresponds to a spatial location within the glottis. The proposed approach is practical and highly efficient for segmenting a vast amount of image frames since simple threshold method is adapted. Results obtained from the segmentation of representative clinical image sequences are presented to verify the proposed method.

Phase-separated bienzyme compartmentalization as artificial intracellular membraneless organelles for cell repair

Implanting artificial organelles in living cells is capable of correcting cellular dysfunctionalities for cell repair and biomedical applications. In this work, phase-separated bienzyme-loaded coacervate microdroplets are established as a model of artificial membraneless organelles in endothelial dysfunctional cells for the cascade enzymatic production of nitric oxide(NO) with a purpose of correcting cellular NO deficiency. We prepared the coacervate microdroplets via liquid-liquid phase separation of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes, in which glucose oxidase/horseradish peroxidase-mediated cascade reaction was compartmented. After the coacervate microdroplets were implanted in NO-deficient dysfunctional cells, the compartments maintained a phase-separated liquid droplet structure, which facilitated a significant enhancement of NO production in the dysfunctional cells. The recovery of NO production was further exploited to inhibit clot formation in blood plasma located in the cell suspension. This demonstrated a proof-of-concept design of artificial organelles in dysfunctional cells for cell repair and anticoagulation-related medical applications. Our results demonstrate an approach for the construction of coacervate droplets through phase separation for the generation of artificial membraneless organelles, which can be designed to provide an array of functionalities in living organisms that have the potential to be used in the field of cell engineering and medical therapy.