Enhancing lead-free photovoltaic performance:Minimizing buried surface voids in tin perovskite films through weakly polar solvent pre-treatment strategy

Buried interfacial voids have always been a notorious phenomenon observed in the fabrication of lead perovskite films. The existence of interfacial voids at the buried interface will capture the carrier, suppress carrier transport efficiencies, and affect the stability of photovoltaic devices. However, the impact of these buried interfacial voids on tin perovskites, a promising avenue for advancing lead-free photovoltaics, has been largely overlooked. Here, we utilize an innovative weakly polar solvent pretreatment strategy(WPSPS) to mitigate buried interfacial voids of tin perovskites. Our investigation reveals the presence of numerous voids in tin perovskites during annealing, attributed to trapped dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO) used in film formation. The WPSPS method facilitates accelerated DMSO evaporation, effectively reducing residual DMSO. Interestingly, the WPSPS shifts the energy level of PEDOT:PSS downward, making it more aligned with the perovskite. This alignment enhances the efficiency of charge carrier transport. As the result, tin perovskite film quality is significantly improved,achieving a maximum power conversion efficiency approaching 12% with only an 8.3% efficiency loss after 1700 h of stability tests, which compares well with the state-of-the-art stability of tin-based perovskite solar cells.

Single-cell and spatial omics:exploring hypothalamic heterogeneity

Elucidating the complex dynamic cellular organization in the hypothalamus is critical for understanding its role in coordinating fundamental body functions. Over the past decade, single-cell and spatial omics technologies have significantly evolved, overcoming initial technical challenges in capturing and analyzing individual cells. These high-throughput omics technologies now offer a remarkable opportunity to comprehend the complex spatiotemporal patterns of transcriptional diversity and cell-type characteristics across the entire hypothalamus. Current single-cell and single-nucleus RNA sequencing methods comprehensively quantify gene expression by exploring distinct phenotypes across various subregions of the hypothalamus. However, single-cell/single-nucleus RNA sequencing requires isolating the cell/nuclei from the tissue, potentially resulting in the loss of spatial information concerning neuronal networks. Spatial transcriptomics methods, by bypassing the cell dissociation, can elucidate the intricate spatial organization of neural networks through their imaging and sequencing technologies. In this review, we highlight the applicative value of single-cell and spatial transcriptomics in exploring the complex molecular-genetic diversity of hypothalamic cell types, driven by recent high-throughput achievements.

Spatial transcriptomics combined with single-nucleus RNA sequencing reveals glial cell heterogeneity in the human spinal cord

Glial cells play crucial roles in regulating physiological and pathological functions,including sensation,the response to infection and acute injury,and chronic neurodegenerative disorders.Glial cells include astrocytes,microglia,and oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system,and satellite glial cells and Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system.Despite the greater understanding of glial cell types and functional heterogeneity achieved through single-cell and single-nucleus RNA sequencing in animal models,few studies have investigated the transcriptomic profiles of glial cells in the human spinal cord.Here,we used high-throughput single-nucleus RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics to map the cellular and molecular heterogeneity of astrocytes,microglia,and oligodendrocytes in the human spinal cord.To explore the conservation and divergence across species,we compared these findings with those from mice.In the human spinal cord,astrocytes,microglia,and oligodendrocytes were each divided into six distinct transcriptomic subclusters.In the mouse spinal cord,astrocytes,microglia,and oligodendrocytes were divided into five,four,and five distinct transcriptomic subclusters,respectively.The comparative results revealed substantial heterogeneity in all glial cell types between humans and mice.Additionally,we detected sex differences in gene expression in human spinal cord glial cells.Specifically,in all astrocyte subtypes,the levels of NEAT1 and CHI3L1 were higher in males than in females,whereas the levels of CST3 were lower in males than in females.In all microglial subtypes,all differentially expressed genes were located on the sex chromosomes.In addition to sex-specific gene differences,the levels of MT-ND4,MT2A,MT-ATP6,MT-CO3,MT-ND2,MT-ND3,and MT-CO_(2) in all spinal cord oligodendrocyte subtypes were higher in females than in males.Collectively,the present dataset extensively characterizes glial cell heterogeneity and offers a valuable resource for exploring the cellular basis of spinal cordrelated illnesses,including chronic pain,amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,and multiple sclerosis.

High corrosion resistance of electroless Ni-P with chromium-free conversion pre-treatments on AZ91D magnesium alloy

Phosphate-manganese, tannic acid and vanadium conversion coatings were proposed as an effective pre-treatment layer between electroless Ni-P coating and AZ91D magnesium alloy substrate to replace the traditional chromate plus HF pre-treatment. The electrochemical results show that the chrome-free coatings plus electroless Ni-P coating on the magnesium alloy has the lowest corrosion current density and most positive corrosion potential compared with chromate plus electroless Ni-P coating on the magnesium alloy. These proposed pre-treatment layers on the substrate reduce the corrosion of magnesium during plating process, and reduce the potential difference between the matrix and the second phase. Thus, an electroless Ni-P coating with fine crystalline and dense structure was obtained, with preferential phosphorus content, low porosity, good corrosion-resistance and strengthened adhesion than the chromate plus electroless Ni-P.

Comparison of pre-treatment and post-treatment use of selenium in retinal ischemia reperfusion injury

AIM: To investigate the effects of selenium in rat retinal ischemia reperfusion(IR) model and compare pretreatment and post-treatment use.METHODS: Selenium pre-treatment group(n =8) was treated with intraperitoneal(i.p.) selenium 0.5 mg/kg for7 d and terminated 24 h after the IR injury. Selenium posttreatment group( n = 8) was treated with i. p. selenium0.5 mg/kg for 7d after the IR injury with termination at the end of the 7d period. Sham group(n =8) received i.p.saline injections identical to the selenium volume for 7d with termination 24 h after the IR injury. Control group(n =8) received no intervention. Main outcome measures were retina superoxide dismutase(SOD), glutathione(GSH),total antioxidant status(TAS), malondialdehyde(MDA),DNA fragmentation levels, and immunohistological apoptosis evaluation.RESULTS: Compared to the Sham group, selenium pre-treatment had a statistical difference in all parameters except SOD. Post-treatment selenium also resulted in statistical differences in all parameters except the MDA levels. When comparing selenium groups, the pre-treatment selenium group had a statistically higher success in reduction of markers of cell damage such as MDA and DNA fragmentation. In contrast, the post-selenium treatment group had resulted in statisticallyhigher levels of GSH. Histologically both selenium groups succeeded to limit retinal thickening and apoptosis. Pre-treatment use was statistically more successful in decreasing apoptosis in ganglion cell layer compared to post-treatment use.CONCLUSION: Selenium was successful in retinal protection in IR injuries. Pre-treatment efficacy was superior in terms of prevention of tissue damage and apoptosis.

Effect of Cross-flow Velocity on the Critical Flux of Ceramic Membrane Filtration as a Pre-treatment for Seawater Desalination

Pre-treatment, which supplies a stable, high-quality feed for reverse osmosis （RO） membranes, is a criti- cal step for successful operation in a seawater reverse osmosis plant. In this study, ceramic membrane systems were employed as pre-treatment for seawater desalination. A laboratory experiment was performed to investigate the effect of the cross-flow velocity on the critical flux and consequently to optimize the permeate flux. Then a pilot test was performed to investigate the long-term performance. The result shows that there is no significant effect of the cross-flow velocity on the critical flux when the cross-flow velocity varies in laminar flow region only or in turbulent flow region only, but the effect is distinct when the cross-flow velocity varies in the transition region. The membrane fouling is slight at the permeate flux of 150 L·m^-2·h^-1 and the system is stable, producing a high-quality feed （the turbidity and silt density index are less than 0.1 NTU and 3.0, respectively） for RO to run for 2922.4 h without chemical cleaning. Thus the ceramic membranes are suitable to filtrate seawater as the pre-treatment for RO.

Effect of microwave pre-treatment on physical quality,bioactive compounds,safety risk factor,and storage stability of peanut butter

Microwave,as a new heat treatment technology,has the characteristics of uniform and fast heating speed.It is an energy-saving technology known for improving oilseed product quality.Its efficiency mainly depends on the roasting power and time.However,the production of high-quality peanut butter using short-time roasting con-ditions are limited.Herein,we determined an appropriate microwave roasting power and time for peanuts and evaluated its impacts on the quality of peanut butter.Different roasting powers(400 W,800 W and 1200 W)and times(4,4.5,5,and 5.5 min)were preliminarily tested.Among them,800 W at 5 min was the most suitable.The roasting efficiency was further evaluated using color,sensory,bioactive compounds,storage stability,and safety risk factors of peanut butter produced from four peanut cultivars(Silihong,Baisha-1016,Yuanza-9102,and Yuhua-9414).The pre-treated butter obtained from three cultivars(Silihong,Yuanza-9102,and Yuhua-9414)with moisture content between 5%and 7.2%had a similar sensory score(6-7)as the commercial on a 9-point hedonic scale compare to the other.The color of the pre-treated peanut butter varies statistically with the commercial but remained in the recommended range of Hunter L*values of 51-52,respectively,for high initial moisture peanut cultivars.The total polyphenol(35.20-31.59±0.59μmol GAE/g)and tocopherol(19.05±0.35 mg/100 g)content in the butter obtained from three cultivars(Yuahua-9102,Yuhua,and Baisha-1016)and Silihong respectively,were significantly(P<0.05)higher than those in the commercial butter.The induction times of all pre-treated butter(19.80±0.99-7.84±0.07 h)were significantly(P<0.05)longer during storage at accelerated temperature than commercial samples.In addition,no benzo[a]pyrene was found in the pre-treated samples.Collectively,the microwave pretreated peanut butter was superior to the commercial one.These findings provided data support and a reference basis to promote microwave use for peanut butter production.

Effects of thrombopoietin pre-treatment on peri-liver transplantation thrombocytopenia in a mouse model of cirrhosis with hypersplenism

BACKGROUND During cirrhosis,the liver is impaired and unable to synthesize and clear thrombopoietin properly.At the same time,the spleen assumes the function of hemofiltration and storage due to liver dysfunction,resulting in hypersplenism and excessive removal of platelets in the spleen,further reducing platelet count.When liver function is decompensated in cirrhotic patients,the decrease of thrombopoietin(TPO)synthesis is the main reason for the decrease of new platelet production.This change of TPO leads to thrombocytopenia and bleeding tendency in cirrhotic patients with hypersplenism.AIM To investigate the clinical efficacy of recombinant human TPO(rhTPO)in the treatment of perioperative thrombocytopenia during liver transplantation in cirrhotic mice with hypersplenism.METHODS C57BL/6J mice and TPO receptor-deficient mice were used to establish models of cirrhosis with hypersplenism.Subsequently,these mice underwent orthotopic liver transplantation(OLT).The mice in the experimental group were given rhTPO treatment for 3 consecutive days before surgery and 5 consecutive days after surgery,while the mice in the control group received the same dose of saline at the same frequency.Differences in liver function and platelet counts were determined between the experimental and control groups.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to assess the expression of TPO and TPO receptor(c-Mpl)in the blood.RESULTS Preoperative administration of rhTPO significantly improved peri-OLT thrombocytopenia in mice with cirrhosis and hypersplenism.Blocking the expression of TPO receptors exacerbated peri-OLT thrombocytopenia.The concentration of TPO decreased while the concentration of c-Mpl increased in compensation in the mouse model of cirrhosis with hypersplenism.TPO pre-treatment significantly increased the postoperative TPO concentration in mice,which in turn led to a decrease in the c-Mpl concentration.TPO pre-treatment also significantly enhanced the Janus kinase(Jak)/signal transducers and activators of transcription pathway protein expressions in bone marrow stem cells of the C57BL/6J mice.Moreover,the administration of TPO,both before and after surgery,regulated the levels of biochemical indicators,such as alanine aminotransferase,alkaline phosphatase,and aspartate aminotransferase in the C57BL/6J mice.CONCLUSION Pre-treatment with TPO not only exhibited therapeutic effects on perioperative thrombocytopenia in the mice with cirrhosis and hypersplenism,who underwent liver transplantation but also significantly enhanced the perioperative liver function.

Artificial neural network approach for rheological characteristics of coal-water slurry using microwave pre-treatment

Detailed experimental investigations were carried out for microwave pre-treatment of high ash Indian coal at high power level(900 W) in microwave oven. The microwave exposure times were fixed at60 s and 120 s. A rheology characteristic for microwave pre-treatment of coal-water slurry(CWS) was performed in an online Bohlin viscometer. The non-Newtonian character of the slurry follows the rheological model of Ostwald de Waele. The values of n and k vary from 0.31 to 0.64 and 0.19 to 0.81 Pa·sn,respectively. This paper presents an artificial neural network(ANN) model to predict the effects of operational parameters on apparent viscosity of CWS. A 4-2-1 topology with Levenberg-Marquardt training algorithm(trainlm) was selected as the controlled ANN. Mean squared error(MSE) of 0.002 and coefficient of multiple determinations(R^2) of 0.99 were obtained for the outperforming model. The promising values of correlation coefficient further confirm the robustness and satisfactory performance of the proposed ANN model.

Tree-ring δ^(15)N of Qinghai spruce in the central Qilian Mountains of China:Is pre-treatment of wood samples necessary?

A knowledge of the tree-ring stable nitrogen isotope ratio(δ^(15)N)can deepen our understanding of forest ecosystem dynamics by indicating the long-term availability,cycling and sources of nitrogen(N).However,the radial mobility of N blurs the interannual variations in the long-term N records.Previous studies of the chemical extraction of tree rings before analysis had produced inconsistent results and it is still unclear whether it is necessary to pre-treat wood samples from specific tree species to remove soluble N compounds before determining theδ^(15)N values.We compared the effects of pre-treatment with organic solvents and hot ultrapure water on the N concentration andδ^(15)N of tree rings from endemic Qinghai spruce(Picea crassifolia)growing in the interior of the central Qilian Mountains,China,during the last 60 a.We assessed the effects of different preparation protocols on the removal of the labile N compounds and investigated the need to pre-treat wood samples before determining theδ^(15)N values of tree rings.Increasing trends of the tree-ring N concentration were consistently observed in both the extracted and unextracted wood samples.The total N removed by extraction with organic solvents was about 17.60%,with a significantly higher amount in the sapwood section(P<0.01).Theδ^(15)N values of tree rings decreased consistently from 1960 to 2019 in both the extracted and unextracted wood samples.Extraction with organic solvents increased theδ^(15)N values markedly by about 5.2‰and reduced the variations in theδ^(15)N series.However,extraction with hot ultrapure water had little effect,with only a slight decrease in theδ^(15)N values of about 0.5‰.Our results showed that the radial pattern in the inter-ring movement of N in Qinghai spruce was not minimized by extraction with either organic solvents or hot ultrapure water.It is unnecessary to conduct hot ultrapure water extraction for the wood samples from Qinghai spruce because of its negligible effect on the removal of the labile N.Theδ^(15)N variation trend of tree rings in the unextracted wood samples was not influenced by the heartwood-sapwood transition zone.We suggest that theδ^(15)N values of the unextracted wood samples of the climate-sensitive Qinghai spruce could be used to explore the ecophysiological dynamics while focusing on the long-term variations.

Spatial analysis of the osteoarthritis microenvironment: techniques, insights, and applications

Osteoarthritis(OA)is a debilitating degenerative disease affecting multiple joint tissues,including cartilage,bone,synovium,and adipose tissues.OA presents diverse clinical phenotypes and distinct molecular endotypes,including inflammatory,metabolic,mechanical,genetic,and synovial variants.Consequently,innovative technologies are needed to support the development of effective diagnostic and precision therapeutic approaches.Traditional analysis of bulk OA tissue extracts has limitations due to technical constraints,causing challenges in the differentiation between various physiological and pathological phenotypes in joint tissues.This issue has led to standardization difficulties and hindered the success of clinical trials.Gaining insights into the spatial variations of the cellular and molecular structures in OA tissues,encompassing DNA,RNA,metabolites,and proteins,as well as their chemical properties,elemental composition,and mechanical attributes,can contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the disease subtypes.Spatially resolved biology enables biologists to investigate cells within the context of their tissue microenvironment,providing a more holistic view of cellular function.Recent advances in innovative spatial biology techniques now allow intact tissue sections to be examined using various-omics lenses,such as genomics,transcriptomics,proteomics,and metabolomics,with spatial data.This fusion of approaches provides researchers with critical insights into the molecular composition and functions of the cells and tissues at precise spatial coordinates.Furthermore,advanced imaging techniques,including high-resolution microscopy,hyperspectral imaging,and mass spectrometry imaging,enable the visualization and analysis of the spatial distribution of biomolecules,cells,and tissues.Linking these molecular imaging outputs to conventional tissue histology can facilitate a more comprehensive characterization of disease phenotypes.This review summarizes the recent advancements in the molecular imaging modalities and methodologies for in-depth spatial analysis.It explores their applications,challenges,and potential opportunities in the field of OA.Additionally,this review provides a perspective on the potential research directions for these contemporary approaches that can meet the requirements of clinical diagnoses and the establishment of therapeutic targets for OA.

Spatial distribution of shallow landslides caused by Typhoon Lekima in 2019 in Zhejiang Province, China

In recent years, the coastal region of Southeast China has witnessed a significant increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme rainfall events associated with landfalling typhoons. The hilly and mountainous terrain of this area, combined with rapid rainfall accumulation, has led to a surge in flash floods and severe geological hazards. On August 10, 2019, Typhoon Lekima made landfall in Zhejiang Province, China, and its torrential rainfall triggered extensive landslides, resulting in substantial damage and economic losses. Utilizing high-resolution satellite images, we compiled a landslide inventory of the affected area, which comprises a total of 2,774 rainfallinduced landslides over an area of 2965 km2. The majority of these landslides were small to mediumsized and exhibited elongated, clustered patterns. Some landslides displayed characteristics of high-level initiation, obstructing or partially blocking rivers, leading to the formation of debris dams. We used the inventory to analyze the distribution pattern of the landslides and their relationship with topographical, geological, and hydrological factors. The results showed that landslide abundance was closely related to elevation, slope angle, faults, and road density. The landslides were predominantly located in hilly and low mountainous areas, with elevations ranging from 150 to 300 m, slopes of 20 to 30 degrees, and a NE-SE aspect. Notably, we observed the highest Landslide Number Density(LND) and Landslide Area Percentage(LAP) in the rhyolite region. Landslides were concentrated within approximately 4 km on either side of fault zones, with their size and frequency negatively correlated with distances to faults, roads, and river systems. Furthermore, under the influence of typhoons, regions with denser vegetation cover exhibited higher landslide density, reaching maximum values in shrubland areas. In areas experiencing significantly increased concentrated rainfall, landslide density also showed a corresponding rise. In terms of spatial distribution, the rainfall-triggered landslides primarily occurred in the northeastern part of the study area, particularly in regions characterized by complex topography such as Shanzao Village in Yantan Town, Xixia Township, and Shangzhang Township. The research findings offer crucial data on the rainfallinduced landslides triggered by Typhoon Lekima, shedding light on their spatial distribution patterns. These findings provide valuable references for mitigating risks and planning reconstruction in typhoon-affected area.

Pre-treatment to Enhance Biogas Yield from Pulp and Paper Mill Sludge

The purpose of this work was to study the potential to enhance biogas production from pulp and paper mill sludge by the use of thermal pre-treatment in combination with chemical pre-treatment. Biogas from waste is a renewable fuel with very low emissions during combustion. To further reduce the use of fossil fuels, more biogas substrates are necessary. Pulp and paper mill sludge is a large untapped reservoir of potential biogas. Pulp and paper mill sludge was collected from a mill that produces both pulp and paper and has a modified waste activated sludge system as part of its wastewater treatment. Pre-treatments were chosen heat （70 ~C or 140℃） combined with either acid （pH 2 or pH 4） or base （pH 9 or pH 11, obtained with Ca（OH）2 or NaOH）. Biogas potential was tested by anaerobic digestion batch assays under mesophilic conditions. All pre-treatments were tested in six replicates. Biogas volume was measured with a gas-tight syringe and methane concentration was measured with a gas chromatograph. The methane yield from sludge subjected to thermal pre-treatment at 70℃ did not differ from the untreated sludge, but thermal pre-treatment at 140℃ had a positive effect. Within the 70℃ thermal pre-treatment group, the pH 2 acid was the most successful chemical pre-treatment, and Ca（OH）2 pH 9 had the least effect with no measurable improvement in methane yield. For the 140 ℃ thermal pre-treatment group, acid and NaOH impacted methane production negatively, while the Ca（OH）2-treated sludge did not differ from sludge with no chemical pre-treatment. In conclusion, thermal pre-treatment at 70℃ showed no effect, whereas, pre-treatment at 140℃ improved methane yield with 170%, and for this sludge additional, chemical pre-treatments are unnecessary.

Time series prediction of reservoir bank landslide failure probability considering the spatial variability of soil properties

Historically,landslides have been the primary type of geological disaster worldwide.Generally,the stability of reservoir banks is primarily affected by rainfall and reservoir water level fluctuations.Moreover,the stability of reservoir banks changes with the long-term dynamics of external disastercausing factors.Thus,assessing the time-varying reliability of reservoir landslides remains a challenge.In this paper,a machine learning(ML)based approach is proposed to analyze the long-term reliability of reservoir bank landslides in spatially variable soils through time series prediction.This study systematically investigated the prediction performances of three ML algorithms,i.e.multilayer perceptron(MLP),convolutional neural network(CNN),and long short-term memory(LSTM).Additionally,the effects of the data quantity and data ratio on the predictive power of deep learning models are considered.The results show that all three ML models can accurately depict the changes in the time-varying failure probability of reservoir landslides.The CNN model outperforms both the MLP and LSTM models in predicting the failure probability.Furthermore,selecting the right data ratio can improve the prediction accuracy of the failure probability obtained by ML models.

FPGA-based position reconstruction method for neutron beam flux spatial distribution measurement in BNCT

A new measurement method for the spatial distribution of neutron beam flux in boron neutron capture therapy(BNCT)is being developed based on the two-dimensional Micromegas detector.To address the issue of long processing times in traditional offline position reconstruction methods,this paper proposes a field programmable gate array based online position reconstruction method utilizing the micro-time projection chamber principle.This method encapsulates key technical aspects:a self-adaptive serial link technique built upon the dynamical adjustment of the delay chain length,fast sorting,a coordinate-matching technique based on the mapping between signal timestamps and random access memory(RAM)addresses,and a precise start point-merging technique utilizing a circular combined RAM.The performance test of the selfadaptive serial link shows that the bit error rate of the link is better than 10-12 at a confidence level of 99%,ensuring reliable data transmission.The experiment utilizing the readout electronics and Micromegas detector shows a spatial resolution of approximately 1.4 mm,surpassing the current method’s resolution level of 5 mm.The beam experiment confirms that the readout electronics system can obtain the flux spatial distribution of neutron beams online,thus validating the feasibility of the position reconstruction method.The online position reconstruction method avoids traditional methods,such as bubble sorting and traversal searching,simplifies the design of the logic firmware,and reduces the time complexity from O(n2)to O(n).This study contributes to the advancement in measuring neutron beam flux for BNCT.

Characterization and spatial analysis of coseismic landslides triggered by the Luding Ms 6.8 earthquake in the Xianshuihe fault zone, Southwest China

On September 5, 2022, a magnitude Ms 6.8 earthquake occurred along the Moxi fault in the southern part of the Xianshuihe fault zone located in the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau,resulting in severe damage and substantial economic loss. In this study, we established a coseismic landslide database triggered by Luding Ms 6.8 earthquake, which includes 4794 landslides with a total area of 46.79 km^(2). The coseismic landslides primarily consisted of medium and small-sized landslides, characterized by shallow surface sliding. Some exhibited characteristics of high-position initiation resulted in the obstruction or partial obstruction of rivers, leading to the formation of dammed lakes. Our research found that the coseismic landslides were predominantly observed on slopes ranging from 30° to 50°, occurring at between 1000 m and 2500 m, with slope aspects varying from 90° to 180°. Landslides were also highly developed in granitic bodies that had experienced structural fracturing and strong-tomoderate weathering. Coseismic landslides concentrated within a 6 km range on both sides of the Xianshuihe and Daduhe fault zones. The area and number of coseismic landslides exhibited a negative correlation with the distance to fault lines, road networks, and river systems, as they were influenced by fault activity, road excavation, and river erosion. The coseismic landslides were mainly distributed in the southeastern region of the epicenter, exhibiting relatively concentrated patterns within the IX-degree zones such as Moxi Town, Wandong River basin, Detuo Town to Wanggangping Township. Our research findings provide important data on the coseismic landslides triggered by the Luding Ms 6.8 earthquake and reveal the spatial distribution patterns of these landslides. These findings can serve as important references for risk mitigation, reconstruction planning, and regional earthquake disaster research in the earthquake-affected area.

Estimation-free spatial-domain image reconstruction of structured illumination microscopy

Structured illumination microscopy(SIM)achieves super-resolution(SR)by modulating the high-frequency information of the sample into the passband of the optical system and subsequent image reconstruction.The traditional Wiener-filtering-based reconstruction algorithm operates in the Fourier domain,it requires prior knowledge of the sinusoidal illumination patterns which makes the time-consuming procedure of parameter estimation to raw datasets necessary,besides,the parameter estimation is sensitive to noise or aberration-induced pattern distortion which leads to reconstruction artifacts.Here,we propose a spatial-domain image reconstruction method that does not require parameter estimation but calculates patterns from raw datasets,and a reconstructed image can be obtained just by calculating the spatial covariance of differential calculated patterns and differential filtered datasets(the notch filtering operation is performed to the raw datasets for attenuating and compensating the optical transfer function(OTF)).Experiments on reconstructing raw datasets including nonbiological,biological,and simulated samples demonstrate that our method has SR capability,high reconstruction speed,and high robustness to aberration and noise.

Spatially resolved metabolomics visualizes heterogeneous distribution of metabolites in lung tissue and the anti-pulmonary fibrosis effect of Prismatomeris connate extract

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a chronic progressive end-stage lung disease. However, the mechanisms underlying the progression of this disease remain elusive. Presently, clinically employed drugs are scarce for the treatment of PF. Hence, there is an urgent need for developing novel drugs to address such diseases. Our study found for the first time that a natural source of Prismatomeris connata Y. Z. Ruan (Huang Gen, HG) ethyl acetate extract (HG-2) had a significant anti-PF effect by inhibiting the expression of the transforming growth factor beta 1/suppressor of mothers against decapentaplegic (TGF-β1/Smad) pathway. Network pharmacological analysis suggested that HG-2 had effects on tyrosine kinase phosphorylation, cellular response to reactive oxygen species, and extracellular matrix (ECM) disassembly. Moreover, mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) was used to visualize the heterogeneous distribution of endogenous metabolites in lung tissue and reveal the anti-PF metabolic mechanism of HG-2, which was related to arginine biosynthesis and alanine, asparate and glutamate metabolism, the downregulation of arachidonic acid metabolism, and the upregulation of glycerophospholipid metabolism. In conclusion, we elaborated on the relationship between metabolite distribution and the progression of PF, constructed the regulatory metabolic network of HG-2, and discovered the multi-target therapeutic effect of HG-2, which might be conducive to the development of new drugs for PF.

Design of Protograph LDPC-Coded MIMO-VLC Systems with Generalized Spatial Modulation

This paper investigates the bit-interleaved coded generalized spatial modulation(BICGSM) with iterative decoding(BICGSM-ID) for multiple-input multiple-output(MIMO) visible light communications(VLC). In the BICGSM-ID scheme, the information bits conveyed by the signal-domain(SiD) symbols and the spatial-domain(SpD) light emitting diode(LED)-index patterns are coded by a protograph low-density parity-check(P-LDPC) code. Specifically, we propose a signal-domain symbol expanding and re-allocating(SSER) method for constructing a type of novel generalized spatial modulation(GSM) constellations, referred to as SSERGSM constellations, so as to boost the performance of the BICGSM-ID MIMO-VLC systems.Moreover, by applying a modified PEXIT(MPEXIT) algorithm, we further design a family of rate-compatible P-LDPC codes, referred to as enhanced accumulate-repeat-accumulate(EARA) codes,which possess both excellent decoding thresholds and linear-minimum-distance-growth property. Both analysis and simulation results illustrate that the proposed SSERGSM constellations and P-LDPC codes can remarkably improve the convergence and decoding performance of MIMO-VLC systems. Therefore, the proposed P-LDPC-coded SSERGSM-mapped BICGSMID configuration is envisioned as a promising transmission solution to satisfy the high-throughput requirement of MIMO-VLC applications.

Spatial Variation in CO_(2) Concentration Improves the Simulated Surface Air Temperature Increase in the Northern Hemisphere

The increasing concentration of atmospheric CO_(2) since the Industrial Revolution has affected surface air temperature.However,the impact of the spatial distribution of atmospheric CO_(2) concentration on surface air temperature biases remains highly unclear.By incorporating the spatial distribution of satellite-derived atmospheric CO_(2) concentration in the Beijing Normal University Earth System Model,this study investigated the increase in surface air temperature since the Industrial Revolution in the Northern Hemisphere(NH) under historical conditions from 1976-2005.In comparison with the increase in surface temperature simulated using a uniform distribution of CO_(2),simulation with a nonuniform distribution of CO_(2)produced better agreement with the Climatic Research Unit(CRU) data in the NH under the historical condition relative to the baseline over the period 1901-30.Hemispheric June-July-August(JJA) surface air temperature increased by 1.28℃ ±0.29℃ in simulations with a uniform distribution of CO_(2),by 1.00℃±0.24℃ in simulations with a non-uniform distribution of CO_(2),and by 0.24℃ in the CRU data.The decrease in downward shortwave radiation in the non-uniform CO_(2) simulation was primarily attributable to reduced warming in Eurasia,combined with feedbacks resulting from increased leaf area index(LAI) and latent heat fluxes.These effects were more pronounced in the non-uniform CO_(2)simulation compared to the uniform CO_(2) simulation.Results indicate that consideration of the spatial distribution of CO_(2)concentration can reduce the overestimated increase in surface air temperature simulated by Earth system models.