2-3 High-spin Level Structure of the Neutron-rich Nucleus 91Y

The high-spin states of near-spherical nuclei can be constructed by coupling the angular momentums of openshell nucleons. The maximum-spin state of valence space is made by aligning the angular momentums of all valenceFig. 1 The revised level scheme of 91Y deduced from thepresent work.nucleons. Beyond that, the higher-spin states can begenerated by breaking the shell closures. Many studieshave been made about such excitation process of nucleiaround the quasi-doubly magic nucleus[1??4].

Deep brain implantable microelectrode arrays for detection and functional localization of the subthalamic nucleus in rats with Parkinson’s disease

The subthalamic nucleus(STN)is considered the best target for deep brain stimulation treatments of Parkinson’s disease(PD).It is difficult to localize the STN due to its small size and deep location.Multichannel microelectrode arrays(MEAs)can rapidly and precisely locate the STN,which is important for precise stimulation.In this paper,16-channel MEAs modified with multiwalled carbon nanotube/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate)(MWCNT/PEDOT:PSS)nanocomposites were designed and fabricated,and the accurate and rapid identification of the STN in PD rats was performed using detection sites distributed at different brain depths.These results showed that nuclei in 6-hydroxydopamine hydrobromide(6-OHDA)-lesioned brains discharged more intensely than those in unlesioned brains.In addition,the MEA simultaneously acquired neural signals from both the STN and the upper or lower boundary nuclei of the STN.Moreover,higher values of spike firing rate,spike amplitude,local field potential(LFP)power,and beta oscillations were detected in the STN of the 6-OHDA-lesioned brain,and may therefore be biomarkers of STN localization.Compared with the STNs of unlesioned brains,the power spectral density of spikes and LFPs synchronously decreased in the delta band and increased in the beta band of 6-OHDA-lesioned brains.This may be a cause of sleep and motor disorders associated with PD.Overall,this work describes a new cellular-level localization and detection method and provides a tool for future studies of deep brain nuclei.

Opportunities for production and property research of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126 at HIAF

The study of nuclide production and its properties in the N=126 neutron-rich region is prevalent in nuclear physics and astrophysics research.The upcoming High-energy FRagment Separator(HFRS)at the High-Intensity heavy-ion Accelerator Facility(HIAF),an in-flight separator at relativistic energies,is characterized by high beam intensity,large ion-optical acceptance,high magnetic rigidity,and high momentum resolution power.This provides an opportunity to study the production and properties of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126.In this paper,an experimental scheme is proposed to produce neutron-rich nuclei around N=126 and simultaneously measure their mass and lifetime based on the HFRS separator;the feasibility of this scheme is evaluated through simulations.The results show that under the high-resolution optical mode,many new neutron-rich nuclei approaching the r-process abundance peak around A=195 can be produced for the first time,and many nuclei with unknown masses and lifetimes can be produced with high statistics.Using the time-of-flight corrected by the measured dispersive position and energy loss information,the cocktails produced from 208 Pb fragmentation can be unambiguously identified.Moreover,the masses of some neutron-rich nuclei near N=126 can be measured with high precision using the time-of-flight magnetic rigidity technique.This indicates that the HIAF-HFRS facility has the potential for the production and property research of neutron-rich nuclei around N=126,which is of great significance for expanding the chart of nuclides,developing nuclear theories,and understanding the origin of heavy elements in the universe.

Nucleus++:a new tool bridging AME and NuBAsE for advancing nuclear data analysis

The newly developed software,Nucleus++,is an advanced tool for displaying basic nuclear physics properties from NubAsE and integrating comprehensive mass information for each nuclide from Atomic Mass Evaluation.Additionally,it allows users to compare experimental nuclear masses with predictions from different mass models.Building on the success and learning experiences of its predecessor,Nucleus,this enhanced tool introduces improved functionality and compatibility.With its user-friendly interface,Nucleus++was designed as a valuable tool for scholars and practitioners in the field of nuclear science.This article offers an in-depth description of Nucleus++,highlighting its main features and anticipated impacts on nuclear science research.

Single nucleus/cell RNA-seq of the chicken hypothalamicpituitaryovarian axis offers new insights into the molecular regulatory mechanisms of ovarian development

The hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian(HPO)axis represents a central neuroendocrine network essential for reproductive function.Despite its critical role,the intrinsic heterogeneity within the HPO axis across vertebrates and the complex intercellular interactions remain poorly defined.This study provides the first comprehensive,unbiased,cell type-specific molecular profiling of all three components of the HPO axis in adult Lohmann layers and Liangshan Yanying chickens.Within the hypothalamus,pituitary,and ovary,seven,12,and 13 distinct cell types were identified,respectively.Results indicated that the pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide(PACAP),follicle-stimulating hormone(FSH),and prolactin(PRL)signaling pathways may modulate the synthesis and secretion of gonadotropin-releasing hormone(GnRH),FSH,and luteinizing hormone(LH)within the hypothalamus and pituitary.In the ovary,interactions between granulosa cells and oocytes involved the KIT,CD99,LIFR,FN1,and ANGPTL signaling pathways,which collectively regulate follicular maturation.The SEMA4 signaling pathway emerged as a critical mediator across all three tissues of the HPO axis.Additionally,gene expression analysis revealed that relaxin 3(RLN3),gastrin-releasing peptide(GRP),and cocaine-and amphetamine regulated transcripts(CART,also known as CARTPT)may function as novel endocrine hormones,influencing the HPO axis through autocrine,paracrine,and endocrine pathways.Comparative analyses between Lohmann layers and Liangshan Yanying chickens demonstrated higher expression levels of GRP,RLN3,CARTPT,LHCGR,FSHR,and GRPR in the ovaries of Lohmann layers,potentially contributing to their superior reproductive performance.In conclusion,this study provides a detailed molecular characterization of the HPO axis,offering novel insights into the regulatory mechanisms underlying reproductive biology.

Electroacupuncture Alleviates Memory Deficits in APP/PS1 Mice by Targeting Serotonergic Neurons in Dorsal Raphe Nucleus

Objective Alzheimer’s disease(AD)has become a significant global concern,but effective drugs able to slow down AD progression is still lacked.Electroacupuncture(EA)has been demonstrated to ameliorate cognitive impairment in individuals with AD.However,the underlying mechanisms remains poorly understood.This study aimed at examining the neuroprotective properties of EA and its potential mechanism of action against AD.Methods APP/PS1 transgenic mice were employed to evaluate the protective effects of EA on Shenshu(BL 23)and Baihui(GV 20).Chemogenetic manipulation was used to activate or inhibit serotonergic neurons within the dorsal raphe nucleus(DRN).Learning and memory abilities were assessed by the novel object recognition and Morris water maze tests.Golgi staining,western blot,and immunostaining were utilized to determine EA-induced neuroprotection.Results EA at Shenshu(BL 23)and Baihui(GV 20)effectively ameliorated learning and memory impairments in APP/PS1 mice.EA attenuated dendritic spine loss,increased the expression levels of PSD95,synaptophysin,and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in hippocampus.Activation of serotonergic neurons within the DRN can ameliorate cognitive deficits in AD by activating glutamatergic neurons mediated by 5-HT1B.Chemogenetic inhibition of serotonergic neurons in the DRN reversed the effects of EA on synaptic plasticity and memory.Conclusion EA can alleviate cognitive dysfunction in APP/PS1 mice by activating serotonergic neurons in the DRN.Further study is necessary to better understand how the serotonergic neurons-related neural circuits involves in EA-induced memory improvement in AD.

Neutrons in the classically forbidden region in neutron-rich nucleus^(68)Ca

Neutrons tunneling to the classically forbidden(CF)region in the neutron-rich nucleus^(68)Ca are investigated in the Skyrme Hartree-Fock(HF)and Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov(HFB)models.The definition of the CF region is examined in the HF model by using different single-particle potentials for the bound states.In the HFB model,the weakly bound and continuum states could also contribute to the neutrons in the CF region due to the pairing correlation.Their asymptotic wave functions are carefully calculated by the Green's function method.

β-decay study of neutron-rich nucleus ^(34)Al

The ＂island of inversion＂ has been known for over a quar- ter century, since Warburton et al. [1] proposed that nuclei with intruder ground states would constitute a 3x3 square with Z=10-12, N=20-22 in 1990. Uncovering the underlying inversion mechanism and exploring the scope of the island have attracted significant theoretical and experimental efforts in the following years. Now it is well known that the reduction of N=20 shell gap, which is likely caused by the strong nucleon-nucleon tensor interaction [2-5], allows the intrusion of neutron orbits from the pf shell into the sd shell and results in the inversion of the 2p-2h intruder and 0p-0h normal con- figurations of the nuclear ground states in this region. Mean- while, the original border of the ＂island of inversion＂ has been extended greatly [6-14].

The low-lying rotational bands of the neutron-rich nucleus ^(172)Tm

The microscopic mechanism of four experimentally observed bands in 172Tm is investigated using the particle-number conserving method of the cranked shell model with monopole and quadrupole paring interactions.The experimental results,including the moments of inertia and angular momentum alignments of four bands in 172Tm are reproduced well by the particle-number conserving calculations.The ω variation of the occupation probability of each cranked orbital and the contribution to moment of inertia from each cranked orbital are analyzed.Other unobserved low-lying bands of 2-quansiparticles in 172Tm are predicted.

Production of neutron-rich actinide isotopes in isobaric collisions via multinucleon transfer reactions

We systematically calculated the multinucleon transfer reactions of ^(208)Os,^(208)Pt,^(208)Hg,^(208)Pb,^(208)Po,^(208)Rn,^(208)Ra,and ^(132,136) Xe when bombarded on ^(232) Th and ^(248) Cm at Coulomb barrier energies within the dinuclear system model.These results are in good agreement with the available experimental data.The influence of Coulomb and shell effects on actinide production in these reactions has been rigorously studied.We calculated and analyzed the potential energy surface (PES) and total kinetic energy (TKE) mass distributions for the reactions involving ^(208)Hg,^(208)Pb,and ^(208) Po with ^(248) Cm and ^(232)Th.The PES and TKE spectra shed light on the fragment formation mechanisms in multinucleon transfer reactions,with clear indications of isospin and shell effects.The production cross sections for multinucleon transfer products show a strong dependence on isobar projectiles with a mass number A=208.Isobar projectiles with high N/Z ratios are advantageous for generating neutron-rich target-like fragments.Conversely,products induced by isobar projectiles with larger charge numbers tend to shift toward proton-rich regions.The intertwining of the Coulomb potential and shell effect is evident in the production cross sections of actinide isotopes.Drawing from reactions induced by radioactive projectiles,we anticipate the discovery of several new actinide isotopes near the nuclear drip lines,extending our reach into the superheavy nuclei domain.

Continuum Skyrme Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov theory with Green’s function method for neutron-rich Ca,Ni,Zr,and Sn isotopes

The possible exotic nuclear properties in the neutron-rich Ca,Ni,Zr,and Sn isotopes are examined with the continuum Skyrme Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov theory in the framework of the Green’s function method.The pairing correlation,the couplings with the continuum,and the blocking effects for the unpaired nucleon in odd-A nuclei are properly treated.The Skyrme interaction SLy4 is adopted for the ph channel and the density-dependentinteraction is adopted for the pp chan-nel,which well reproduce the experimental two-neutron separation energies S_(2n)and one-neutron separation energies Sn.It is found that the criterion S_(n)>0 predicts a neutron drip line with neutron numbers much smaller than those for S_(2n)>0.Owing to the unpaired odd neutron,the neutron pairing energies−E_(pair)in odd-A nuclei are much lower than those in the neighbor-ing even-even nuclei.By investigating the single-particle structures,the possible halo structures in the neutron-rich Ca,Ni,and Sn isotopes are predicted,where sharp increases in the root-mean-square(rms)radii with significant deviations from the traditional rA^(1∕3)rule and diffuse spatial density distributions are observed.Analyzing the contributions of various partial waves to the total neutron densityρlj(r)∕ρ(r)reveals that the orbitals located around the Fermi surface-particularly those with small angular momenta-significantly affect the extended nuclear density and large rms radii.The number of neutrons Nλ(N_(0))occupying above the Fermi surfacen(continuum threshold)is discussed,whose evolution as a function of the mass number A in each isotope is consistent with that of the pairing energy,supporting the key role of the pairing correlation in halo phenomena.

High-K isomer and the rotational properties in the odd-Z neutron-rich nucleus 163Eu

The newly observed isomer and ground-state band in the odd-Z neutron-rich rare-earth nucleus 163 Eu are investigated by using the cranked shell model(CSM), with pairing treated by the particle-number conserving(PNC)method. This is the first time detailed theoretical investigations are performed of the observed 964(1) keV isomer and ground-state rotational band in 163 Eu. The experimental data are reproduced very well by the theoretical results. The configuration of the 964(1) keV isomer is assigned as the three-particle state 13^-/2(v7^+/2 [633]■v1^-/2[521]■π5^+/2[413]).More low-lying multi-particle states are predicted in 163 Eu. Due to its significant effect on the nuclear mean field, the high-order ε6 deformation plays an important role in the energy and configuration assignment of the multi-particle states. Compared to its neighboring even-even nuclei 162 Sm and 164 Gd,there is a 10%15% increase of J(1) of the oneparticle ground-state band in 163 Eu. This is explained by the pairing reduction due to the blocking of the nucleon on the proton π5+/2 [413] orbital in 163 Eu.

Sex modulates the outcome of subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation in patients with Parkinson's disease

There are many documented sex differences in the clinical course,symptom expression profile,and treatment response of Parkinson’s disease,creating additional challenges for patient management.Although subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation is an established therapy for Parkinson’s disease,the effects of sex on treatment outcome are still unclear.The aim of this retrospective observational study,was to examine sex differences in motor symptoms,nonmotor symptoms,and quality of life after subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation.Outcome measures were evaluated at 1 and 12 months post-operation in 90 patients with Parkinson’s disease undergoing subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation aged 63.00±8.01 years(55 men and 35 women).Outcomes of clinical evaluations were compared between sexes via a Student’s t-test and within sex via a paired-sample t-test,and generalized linear models were established to identify factors associated with treatment efficacy and intensity for each sex.We found that subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation could improve motor symptoms in men but not women in the on-medication condition at 1 and 12 months post-operation.Restless legs syndrome was alleviated to a greater extent in men than in women.Women demonstrated poorer quality of life at baseline and achieved less improvement of quality of life than men after subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation.Furthermore,Hoehn-Yahr stage was positively correlated with the treatment response in men,while levodopa equivalent dose at 12 months post-operation was negatively correlated with motor improvement in women.In conclusion,women received less benefit from subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation than men in terms of motor symptoms,non-motor symptoms,and quality of life.We found sex-specific factors,i.e.,Hoehn-Yahr stage and levodopa equivalent dose,that were related to motor improvements.These findings may help to guide subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation patient selection,prognosis,and stimulation programming for optimal therapeutic efficacy in Parkinson’s disease.

Quercetin ameliorates oxidative stress-induced senescence in rat nucleus pulposus-derived mesenchymal stem cells via the miR-34a-5p/SIRT1 axis

BACKGROUND Intervertebral disc degeneration(IDD)is a main contributor to low back pain.Oxidative stress,which is highly associated with the progression of IDD,increases senescence of nucleus pulposus-derived mesenchymal stem cells(NPMSCs)and weakens the differentiation ability of NPMSCs in degenerated intervertebral discs(IVDs).Quercetin(Que)has been demonstrated to reduce oxidative stress in diverse degenerative diseases.AIM To investigate the role of Que in oxidative stress-induced NPMSC damage and to elucidate the underlying mechanism.METHODS In vitro,NPMSCs were isolated from rat tails.Senescence-associatedβ-galactosidase(SA-β-Gal)staining,cell cycle,reactive oxygen species(ROS),realtime quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR),immunofluorescence,and western blot analyses were used to evaluated the protective effects of Que.Meanwhile the relationship between miR-34a-5p and Sirtuins 1(SIRT1)was evaluated by dual-luciferase reporter assay.To explore whether Que modulates tert-butyl hydroperoxide(TBHP)-induced senescence of NPMSCs via the miR-34a-5p/SIRT1 pathway,we used adenovirus vectors to overexpress and downregulate the expression of miR-34a-5p and used SIRT1 siRNA to knockdown SIRT1 expression.In vivo,a puncture-induced rat IDD model was constructed,and X rays and histological analysis were used to assess whether Que could alleviate IDD in vivo.RESULTS We found that TBHP can cause NPMSCs senescence changes,such as reduced cell proliferation ability,increased SA-β-Gal activity,cell cycle arrest,the accumulation of ROS,and increased expression of senescence-related proteins.While abovementioned senescence indicators were significantly alleviated by Que treatment.Que decreased the expression levels of senescence-related proteins(p16,p21,and p53)and senescence-associated secreted phenotype(SASP),including IL-1β,IL-6,and MMP-13,and it increased the expression of SIRT1.In addition,the protective effects of Que on cell senescence were partially reversed by miR-34a-5p overexpression and SIRT1 knockdown.In vivo,X-ray,and histological analyses indicated that Que alleviated IDD in a punctureinduced rat model.CONCLUSION In summary,the present study provides evidence that Que reduces oxidative stress-induced senescence of NPMSCs via the miR-34a/SIRT1 signaling pathway,suggesting that Que may be a potential agent for the treatment of IDD.

Automated apoptosis identification in fluorescence imaging of nucleus based on histogram of oriented gradients of high-frequency wavelet coefficients

The automatic and accurate identification of apoptosis facilitates large-scale cell analysis.Most identification approaches using nucleus fluorescence imaging are based on specific morphological parameters.However,these parameters cannot completely describe nuclear morphology,thus limiting the identification accuracy of models.This paper proposes a new feature extraction method to improve the performance of the model for apoptosis identification.The proposed method uses a histogram of oriented gradient(HOG)of high-frequency wavelet coefficients to extract internal and edge texture information.The HOG vectors are classified using support vector machine.The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed feature extraction method well performs apoptosis identification,attaining 95:7% accuracy with low cost in terms of time.We confirmed that our method has potential applications to cell biology research.

Magnetic resonance imaging assessment of the lateral geniculate nucleus volume and height in patients with glaucoma:a Meta-analysis

AIM:To evaluate the lateral geniculate nucleus(LGN)volume and height using magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)in glaucoma patients.METHODS:Literatures retrieval was carried out through Pub Med,Web of Science,Embase,and Cochrane Library.Studies that compared the volume and height of LGN in glaucoma patients with that in control subjects were included.The volume and height of LGN were extracted from the included studies.The Review Manager 5.4.1 software was used for the Meta-analysis.RESULTS:This Meta-analysis included 10 crosssectional studies,including the eyes of 223 glaucoma patients and 185 healthy controls.Compared with the control subjects,the volume and height of LGN in glaucoma patients measured by MRI were significantly reduced{-29.13 mm3,95%[confidence interval(CI):-44.82 to-13.43,P=0.0003;-0.61 mm,95%CI:-0.78 to-0.44,P<0.00001,respectively]}.Subgroup analysis demonstrated that the differences of LGN volume and height between glaucoma patients and control subjects in the older group were smaller than that in the younger group,and LGN volume decreased with the increase of glaucoma severity.CONCLUSION:The results demonstrate that the volume and height of LGN are decreased in glaucoma patients,and LGN volume can be considered a parameter of glaucoma severity.

Acute isolated vertigo with vertical up-beating nystagmus: A rare case of nucleus intercalatus of Staderini ischemia

The role of intercalatus nucleus of Staderini(INS),the most caudal of the perihypoglossal nuclei,is much debated.Last research seems to suggest that this nucleus plays a role as a vertical eyes movements integrator.The few clinical reports present in the literature that describe isolated lesions of the INS have described patients presenting in acute with up-beating vertical spontaneous nystagmus.Isolated acute lesion of INS is,in fact,much rare,and,without other neurological signs,is exceptional.We present a case of acute isolated vertigo with no other neurological signs or symptoms,due to INS ischemia provoked by vertebral artery stenosis.The patient presented with spontaneous vertical up-beating nystagmus that showed at videonystagmographic recording,a clear exponential decay of angular slow-phase velocity,that is considered a typical sign of neural integrator impairment.This case seems to represent a further confirm that INS is part,as a vertical-to-position neural integrator,of the neural circuit controlling the vertical eyes movements.

Bayesian Inference of Nucleus Resonance and Neutron Skin

In this proceeding,some highlight results on the constraints of the nuclear matter equation of state(EOS)from the data of nucleus resonance and neutron-skin thickness using the Bayesian approach based on the Skyrme-Hartree-Fock model and its extension have been presented.Typically,the anti-correlation and positive correlations between the slope parameter and the value of the symmetry energy at the saturation density under the constraint of the neutron-skin thickness and the isovector giant dipole resonance have been discussed respectively.It’s shown that the Bayesian analysis can help to find a compromise for the“PREXII puzzle”and the“soft Tin puzzle”.The possible modifications on the constraints of lower-order EOS parameters as well as the relevant correlation when higher-order EOS parameters are incorporated as independent variables have been further illustrated.For a given model and parameter space,the Bayesian approach serves as a good analysis tool suitable for multi-messengers versus multi-variables,and is helpful for constraining quantitatively the model parameters as well as their correlations.

Nucleus Pulposus Cells from Calcified Discs Promote the Degradation of the Extracellular Matrix through Upregulation of the GATA3 Expression

Objective Disc calcification is strongly associated with disc degeneration;however,the underlying mechanisms driving its pathogenesis are poorly understood.This study aimed to provide a gene expression profile of nucleus pulposus cells(NPCs)from calcified discs,and clarify the potential mechanism in disc degeneration.Methods Primary NPCs were isolated from calcified and control discs(CAL-NPC and CON-NPC),respectively.The proliferation and extracellular matrix(ECM)metabolism capacities of the cells were evaluated using MTT and Western blotting,respectively.RNA sequencing was used to identify differentially expressed genes(DEGs)in the CAL-NPCs.The biological functions of the DEGs were analyzed using the Gene Ontology(GO)and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)databases.The transcription factor database and Cytoscape software were used to construct the transcription factor-DEGs regulatory network.The role of the verified transcription factor in NPC proliferation and ECM metabolism was also investigated.Results The CAL-NPCs exhibited a lower proliferation rate and higher ECM degradation capacity than the CON-NPCs.In total,375 DEGs were identified in the CAL-NPCs.The GO and KEGG analyses showed that the DEGs were primarily involved in the regulation of ribonuclease activity and NF-kappa B and p53 signaling pathways.GATA-binding protein 3(GATA3)with the highest verified levels was selected for further studies.Overexpression of GATA3 in the CON-NPCs significantly inhibited their proliferation and promoted their ECM degradation function,while the knockdown of GATA3 in the CAL-NPCs resulted in the opposite phenotypes.Conclusion This study provided a comprehensive gene expression profile of the NPCs from the calcified discs and supported that GATA3 could be a potential target for reversing calcification-associated disc degeneration.

Effect of CSH Crystal Nucleus on Steam-Free Cured Fly Ash Precast Concrete Components

The measures of steam curing and early-strengthening agents to promote the precast components to reach the target strength quickly can bring different degrees of damage to the concrete.Based on this,the new nanomaterial CSH-the hydration product of cement effectively solves these measures’disadvantages,such as excessive energy consumption,thermal stress damage,and the introduction of external ions.In this paper,the effect of CSH on the early strength of precast fly ash concrete components was investigated in terms of setting time,workability,and mechanical properties and analyzed at the microscopic level using hydration temperature,XRD,and SEM.The results showed that under the same workability,CSH could significantly reduce the amount of admixture,shorten the final setting time,almost not affect the initial setting time,and accelerate the hydration of cement.At the optimum dose of 5%,the mechanical properties of the specimens were improved by more than 98%within 12 h of hydration,resulting in an earlier release time of 12 h and no risk of strength inversion later.The results of this paper give theoretical support to the behavior of precast components under steam-free curing.