Multiple omics datasets reveal significant physical and physiological dormancy in alfalfa hard seeds identified by multispectral imaging analysis

Physical dormancy(PY) commonly present in the seeds of higher plants is believed to be responsible for the germination failure by impermeable seed coat in hard seeds of legume species, instead of physiological dormancy(PD). In this study, a non-destructive approach involving multispectral imaging was used to successfully identify hard seeds from non-hard seeds in Medicago sativa, with accuracy as high as96.8%–99.0%. We further adopted multiple-omics strategies to investigate the differences of physiology,metabolomics, methylomics, and transcriptomics in alfalfa hard seeds, with non-hard seeds as control.The hard seeds showed dramatically increased antioxidants and 125 metabolites of significant differences in non-targeted metabolomics analysis, which are enriched in the biosynthesis pathways of flavonoids, lipids and hormones, especially with significantly higher ABA, a hormone known to induce dormancy. In our transcriptomics results, the enrichment pathway of “response to abscisic acid” of differential expressed genes(DEG) supported the key role of ABA in metabolomics results. The methylome analysis identified 54,899, 46,216 and 54,452 differential methylation regions for contexts of CpG, CHG and CHH, and 344 DEGs might be regulated by hypermethylation and hypomethylation of promoter and exon regions, including four ABA-and JA-responsive genes. Among 8% hard seeds in seed lots,24.5% still did not germinate after scarifying seed coat, and were named as non-PY hard seeds.Compared to hard seeds, significantly higher contents of ABA/IAA and ABA/JA were identified in nonPY hard seeds, which indicated the potential presence of PD. In summary, the significantly changed metabolites, gene expressions, and methylations all suggested involvement of ABA responses in hard seeds, and germination failure of alfalfa hard seeds was caused by combinational dormancy(PY + PD),rather than PY alone.

Gel-state polybenzimidazole proton exchange membranes with flexible alkyl sulfonic acid side chains for a wider operating temperature range(25–240 ℃)

High-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells(HT-PEMFC) possess distinct technical advantages of high output power, simplified water/heat management, increased tolerance to fuel impurities and diverse fuel sources, within the temperature range of 120–200 ℃. However, for practical automobile applications, it was crucial to broaden their low-temperature operating window and enable cold start-up capability. Herein, gel-state phosphoric acid(PA) doped sulfonated polybenzimidazole(PBI) proton exchange membranes(PEMs) were designed and synthesized via PPA sol-gel process and in-situ sultone ring-opening reactions with various proton transport pathways based on absorbed PA, flexible alkyl chain connected sulfonic acid groups and imidazole sites. The effects of flexible alkyl sulfonic acid side chain length and content on PA doping level, proton conductivity, and membrane stability under different temperature and relative humidity(RH) were thoroughly investigated. The prepared gel-state membranes contained a self-assembled lamellar and porous structure that facilitated the absorption of a large amount of PA with rapid proton transporting mechanisms. At room temperature, the optimized membrane exhibited a proton conductivity of 0.069 S cm^(-1), which was further increased to 0.162 and 0.358 S cm^(-1)at 80 and 200 ℃, respectively, without additional humidification. The most significant contribution of this work was demonstrating the feasibility of gel-state sulfonated PBI membranes in expanding HT-PEMFC application opportunities over a wider operating range of 25 to 240 ℃.

Computing Streamfunction and Velocity Potential in a Limited Domain of Arbitrary Shape.Part I:Theory and Integral Formulae

The non-uniqueness of solution and compatibility between the coupled boundary conditions in computing velocity potential and streamfunction from horizontal velocity in a limited domain of arbitrary shape are revisited theoretically with rigorous mathematic treatments.Classic integral formulas and their variants are used to formulate solutions for the coupled problems.In the absence of data holes,the total solution is the sum of two integral solutions.One is the internally induced solution produced purely and uniquely by the domain internal divergence and vorticity,and its two components（velocity potential and streamfunction） can be constructed by applying Green＇s function for Poisson equation in unbounded domain to the divergence and vorticity inside the domain.The other is the externally induced solution produced purely but non-uniquely by the domain external divergence and vorticity,and the non-uniqueness is caused by the harmonic nature of the solution and the unknown divergence and vorticity distributions outside the domain.By setting either the velocity potential（or streamfunction） component to zero,the other component of the externally induced solution can be expressed by the imaginary（or real） part of the Cauchy integral constructed using the coupled boundary conditions and solvability conditions that exclude the internally induced solution.The streamfunction（or velocity potential） for the externally induced solution can also be expressed by the boundary integral of a double-layer（or singlelayer） density function.In the presence of data holes,the total solution includes a data-hole-induced solution in addition to the above internally and externally induced solutions.

Kinetic Modeling of Plasma Methane Conversion Using Gliding Arc

Plasma methane (CH_4) conversion in gliding arc discharge was examined. Theresult data of experiments regarding the performance of gliding arc discharge were presented in thispaper. A simulation which is consisted some chemical kinetic mechanisms has been provided toanalyze and describe the plasma process. The effect of total gas flow rate and input frequencyrefers to power consumption have been studied to evaluate the performance of gliding arc plasmasystem and the reaction mechanism of decomposition. Experiment results indicated that the maximumconversion of CH_4 reached 50% at the total gas flow rate of 1 L/min. The plasma reaction wasoccurred at the atmospheric pressure and the main products were C (solid), hydrogen, and acetylene(C_2H_2). The plasma reaction of methane conversion was exothermic reaction which increased theproduct stream temperature around 30-50℃.

Key technologies for the novel distributed numerical control integrated system

A novel distributed numerical control (DNC) integrated system based on plug-in software technology is proposed. It connects new or old numerical control (NC) machine tools which have inhomogeneous numerical control systems with CAD/CAM system by CANbus network. A DNC computer is able to control 15 sets of NC machine tools reliably at the same time. The novel DNC system increases the efficiency of machine tools and improve the production management level by realizing non-paper production, agile manufacturing, networked manufacturing and so on in the near future. Key technologies to construct the novel DNC integrated system include the integration of inhomogeneous numerical control systems, NC program restart, and algorithm for communication competition. Such system has demonstrated successful applications in some corporations that have acquired good economic benefits and social effects.

Substance P enhances the proliferation of rat anteriorpituitary cells in vitro

The undecapeptide substance P(SP) was shown to be intimately involved in both the structural and functional aspects of the anterior pituitary. Yet, in addition to its influences on hormonal secretion, SP may well possess more actions in this master gland. The present study was ftherefore aimed to investigate the effect of SP on the proliferation of rat anterior pituitary cells in primary culture. It was found that SP could dose-dependently increase the ineorporation of tritiated thymidine (3H-TdR)into cultured anterior pituitary cells. Other mammalian tachykinins such as neurokinin A and neurokinin B had similar effect but to varying degrees. The equipotent analogue of SP, Norleucine(11) -SP(Nle(11)-SP), also acted likewise, with its action antagonizable by spantide, a SP receptor blocker. To further characterize the nature of cells responsive to the challenge of SP, immunocytochemical staining against S-100 protein and some adenohypophyseal hormones was performed alone or plus autoradiography The results showed that the percentage of S-100 proteinimmunoreactive cells was apparently elevated by the addtion of Nle(11)-SP for 48 h, which indicates a preferential proliferation of folliculo-stellate cells under the regime. This was confirmed by increases in immunocytochemical or autoradiographical labelling indices of anterior pituitary cells treated similarly. Taken togethbr, these results reveal that the trophic action of SP observed previously in other tissues is also present at least in cultured rat anterior pituitary cells, with responding cells being predominantly folliculo-stellate cells as typified by S-100 proteinimmunoreactivity. Therefore, an intra-pituitary trophic action of SP in vivo could be anticipated.

A IP_N×IP_N Spectral Element Projection Method for the Unsteady Incompressible Navier-Stokes Equations

In this paper,we present a IP_N×IP_N spectral element method and a detailed comparison with existing methods for the unsteady incompressible Navier-Stokes equa- tions.The main purpose of this work consists of:(i) detailed comparison and discussion of some recent developments of the temporal discretizations in the frame of spectral el- ement approaches in space;(ii) construction of a stable IP_N×IP_N method together with a IP_N→IP_(N-2) post-filtering.The link of different methods will be clarified.The key feature of our method lies in that only one grid is needed for both velocity and pressure variables,which differs from most well-known solvers for the Navier-Stokes equations. Although not yet proven by rigorous theoretical analysis,the stability and accuracy of this one-grid spectral method are demonstrated by a series of numerical experiments.

Drug-Induced Hypothyroidism during Anti-Tuberculosis Treatment of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis: Notes from the Field

We followed 188 euthyroidic persons undergoing treatment for multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in the state of Karnataka, India to determine the incidence of hypothyroidism during anti-tuberculosis treatment. Overall, among MDR-TB patients with valid thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) values, about 23% developed hypothyroidism (TSH value ≥10 mIU/ml) during anti-tuberculosis treatment;the majority (74%) occurring after 3 months of treatment. Among 133 patients who received a regimen that contained ethionamide, 42 (32%) developed hypothyroidism. Among 17 patients that received a regimen that contained para-aminosalicylate sodium, 6 (35%) developed hypothyroidism. Among 9 HIV positive patients on antiretroviral treatment, 4 (44%) developed hypothyroidism. These results differ from previously reported 4% incidence of hypothyroidism amongst patients who passively reported thyroidal symptoms during treatment, suggesting routine serologic monitoring of TSH throughout the course of treatment for MDR-TB is warranted.

Growth inhibitory effect of 4-phenyl butyric acid on human gastric cancer cells is associated with cell cycle arrest

AIM: To investigate the growth effects of 4-phenyl butyric acid (PBA) on human gastric carcinoma cells and their mechanisms. METHODS: Moderately-differentiated human gastric carcinoma SGC-7901 and lowly-differentiated MGC-803 cells were treated with 5, 10, 20, 40, and 60 μmol/L PBA for 1-4 d. Cell proliferation was detected using the MTT colorimetric assay. Cell cycle distributions were examined using flow cytometry.RESULTS: The proliferation of gastric carcinoma cells was inhibited by PBA in a doseand time-dependent fashion. Flow cytometry showed that SGC-7901 cells treated with low concentrations of PBA were arrested at the G0/G1 phase, whereas cells treated with high concentrations of PBA were arrested at the G2/M phase. Although MGC-803 cells treated with low concentrations of PBA were also arrested at the G0/G1 phase, cells treated with high concentrations of PBA were arrested at the S phase. CONCLUSION: The growth inhibitory effect of PBA on gastric cancer cells is associated with alteration of the cell cycle. For moderately-differentiated gastric cancer cells, the cell cycle was arrested at the G0/G1 and G2/M phases. For lowly-differentiated gastric cancer cells, the cell cycle was arrested at the G0/G1 and S phases.

Influences of vacancy defects on thermal conductivities of Ge thin films

The effects of vacancy defects on the thermal conductivity of Ge thin films were investigated by employing molecular dynamics （MD） simula- tions and theoretical analysis based on the Boltzmann equation. Both the MD and theoretical results show that the lattice thermal conductivity dramatically decreases with the increasing of vacancy concentration at 400 and 500 K. In addition, the dependence of vacancy concentration on the thermal conductivity of Ge thin films becomes less sensitive as the temperature increases. Theoretical results also confirm that the major part of the lattice thermal conductivity reduction is associated with the point-defect scattering and phonon-phonon scattering processes.

INFLUENCES OF EDGING ROLL SHAPE ON THE PLASTIC STRAIN DISTRIBUTION OF SLAB DURING MULTI-PASS V-H ROLLING PROCESS

Multi-pass slab vertical-horizontal （V-H） rolling process with variable edging roll shape have been simulated with explicit dynamic finite element method and updating geometric method. The distributions of plastic strain contour in slab daring rolling process with different edging roll and under different rolling stage have been obtained. The results show that there exist two thin strain assembling zones in slab when the flat edging roll is used, and there just exist one strain assembling zone in slab when the edging roll with groove is used. And compared the deformation equality between flat edging roll and edging roll with groove, the lateris better than the former, which supplies the theory prove to the slab deformation distribution during V-H rolling process and is helpful for predicting the slab texture.

Simulating the operation action of an asynchronized turbogenerator under loss of excitation

The control strategy for asynchronized turbogenerators (ASTGs) was studied by using two-axis equations. Simulation of the process of an asynchronized turbogenerator with faults of d or q axis or d and q axes in the excitation system was carried out with the simulating models including the model of the reverse thyristors in the excitation system established by Saber software. The simulation results show that at the loss of excitation at both windings or one winding of the rotor, the ASTGs can be automatically driven into an asynchronous or single axis excitation operation mode without a power unit tripping, and the characteristics for ASTGs with faults in the excitation system appear in good order.

A linear rotary magnetorheological damper for vehicles

A new type of linear rotary magnetorheological damper (MRD) is proposed, which consists of a cylinder-type MRD and a screw mechanism to transform a linear motion into revolving motion. It is found that the structure parameters of MRD have complex relationship with the force of the damper, especially the lead angle, width and radius of the inner rotor. The analyses and simulation calculation of the static magnetic field give some usable data, and experiments of the damping component indicate that the proposed methods is feasible for developing linear rotary MRD.

Effects of cryogenic cold air jet cutting on chip break in metal machining

The half-dry cutting employs cryogenic compressed air cooled down to (10 to 40) and a micro-dosage of lubricating oil, called cryogenic cold air jet cutting was studied. On the basis of a comparative experiment on dry and cryogenic cold air jet cuttings carried out for grade 45 steel, the effects of cryogenic cold air jet on the breaking of chips were discussed. The experimental results reveal that in the valid ranges of pressure and temperature, the cryogenic cold air jet widens the chip breaking areas effectively. When the cutting depth is not greater than 1 mm, the influence of chip breaking is much more significant. But different injecting angle of cold air has different influence on the chip-break. From the experiment, the optimized jet injecting angle, temperature effecting range and pressure working range of cold air are obtained. These results can offer a foundation for industrial manufacturing.

Nonlinear model predictive control with guaranteed stability based on pseudolinear neural networks

A nonlinear model predictive control problem based on pseudo-linear neural network (PNN) is discussed, in which the second order on-line optimization method is adopted. The recursive computation of Jacobian matrix is investigated. The stability of the closed loop model predictive control system is analyzed based on Lyapunov theory to obtain the sufficient condition for the asymptotical stability of the neural predictive control system. A simulation was carried out for an exothermic first-order reaction in a continuous stirred tank reactor.It is demonstrated that the proposed control strategy is applicable to some of nonlinear systems.

Improvement of one-cycle controller by use of proportional integral differential controller

The main advantage of one-cycle control is its ability to reject input disturbance in one-cycle. Despite this great ability, it can not provide good responses in following commands and rejecting load disturbance. This study explores the way to overcome these problems by using another controller. Although the idea of using output feedback has been used in previous works, by considering a simple model for one-cycle controller, the design of the controller has become simpler in this work. In the proposed method, difficult mathematical modeling is avoided. Based on decupling of effects of feedback and input voltage disturbance, a simple model for one-cycle controller has been given. Therefore, by employing a conventional averaging method and the model of one-cycle controller, design of proportional integral differential controller has become straightforward.

Enhanced straw fermentation process based on microbial electrolysis cell coupled anaerobic digestion

The low quality and yield of methane severely hinder the industrial application of straw biogas fermentation, and no effective solution has been found so far. In this study, a novel method was developed when a microbial electrolysis cell(MEC) was coupled with normal anaerobic fermentation to enhance methane yield and purity. The fermentation process achieved a methane purity of more than 85%, which is considerably higher than that of previously published reports. With microbial stimulation and an electric current, the degradation of fibers has been greatly enhanced. The MEC system substantially improved the yield and purity of biogas, bringing a new path to the synthesis of methane by carbon dioxide and hydrogen ions in solution under electron irradiation. Electrochemical index analysis showed extra methane synthesis, due to the external circuit electron transfer. The results of the gas chromatography and solid degradation rate showed that the carbon source of extra methane was CO_(2) produced during normal fermentation and additional volatile solid degradation. These results show that the MEC considerably enhanced the quality and yield of methane in the straw fermentation process, providing insights into normal anaerobic fermentation.

When Does Drug Resistant TB Strike HIV/TB Patients?—A South India Experience

Background: India is a high TB (tuberculosis) burden country. The advent of HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus) and DR-TB (drug resistant TB) has worsened the ongoing TB control efforts. A study was conducted to (a) to determine the duration for developing drug resistant TB after diagnosis of HIV (b) to ascertain the patients status after one year of DR-TB treatment in Karnataka, India. Methods: It is a retrospective cross-sectional study involving review of records and reports at ART (Anti-retroviral treatment) centres and DR-TB centres in Karnataka during the period 2013-2014. Results: The median time from being known as HIV positive to being diagnosed as DR-TB was 1168 days (IQR: 571 - 1955). At the end of 14 months, nearly 39% of patients had died and 49% of patients were on treatment. Conclusion: The National Health programmes should prioritize monitoring of the HIV/TB patients and develop appropriate novel strategies for community involvement.

Passivity and Passification of Uncertain Fuzzy Systems with Impulse

The passivity and feedback passification problems of fuzzy systems with parameter uncertainties and impulse are first presented in this paper. Based on the parallel distributed compensation （PDC） technique, some passivity and passification conditions are proposed in terms of linear matrix inequalities （LMIs）. Numerical examples are given to show the correctness and effectiveness of our theoretical results.

Human Rights Education from the Perspective of the Holistic Development of the Children

Human rights education for primary and secondary school students is of great significance to their holistic development.At present,human rights education is actively carried out in China’s primary and secondary schools.Such human rights education includes classroom teaching based on the Ethics and the Rule of Law series of textbooks as well as developing hu man rights culture in campuses and educating students in human rights practices.Human rights education in primary and secondary schools has achieved certain results,but is as yet inade quate.In order to further improve human rights education for children,we should integrate hu man rights education with traditional Chinese culture,make better use of information technology and modem concepts of education and build a comprehensive and deep-seated human rights educa tion system.