Metagenomic comparison of intestinal microbiota between normal and liver fibrotic rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

Liver fibrosis is an important pathological process in chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. Recent studies have found a close association between intestinal microbiota and the development of liver fibrosis. To determine whether there are differences in the intestinal microbiota between rhesus macaques with liver fibrosis (MG) and normal rhesus macaques (MN), fecal samples were collected from 8 male MG and 12 male MN.

A personalized prediction model for urinary tract infections in type 2 diabetes mellitus using machine learning.

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are at higher risk for urinary tract infections (UTIs), which greatly impacts their quality of life. Developing a risk prediction model to identify high-risk patients for UTIs in those with T2DM and assisting clinical decision-making can help reduce the incidence of UTIs in T2DM patients. To construct the predictive model, potential relevant variables were first selected from the reference literature, and then data was extracted from the Hospital Information System (HIS) of the Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences and Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital for analysis.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: ferroptosis related mechanisms and potential drugs.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is considered a "multisystem" disease that simultaneously suffers from metabolic diseases and hepatic steatosis. Some may develop into liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma. Given the close connection between metabolic diseases and fatty liver, it is urgent to identify drugs that can control metabolic diseases and fatty liver as a whole and delay disease progression.

Predicting three-month fasting blood glucose and glycated hemoglobin changes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus based on multiple machine learning algorithms.

Fasting blood glucose (FBG) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) are key indicators reflecting blood glucose control in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. The purpose of this study is to establish a predictive model for blood glucose changes in T2DM patients after 3 months of treatment, achieving personalized treatment.A retrospective study was conducted on type 2 diabetes mellitus real-world medical data from 4 cities in Sichuan Province, China from January 2015 to December 2020.

Universal nanosecond range pulse contrast measurement for a kJ-class petawatt laser.

A single-shot measuring apparatus with optical limiting for temporal pulse contrast of kJ-class petawatt lasers in the nanosecond range is proposed. A temporal linear filter comprising an electro-optical switch, a polarizer, a temporal nonlinear filter composed of cascaded SHG crystals, and a dichromatic mirror are, respectively, used as an optical limiting apparatus for contrast measurement of nanosecond and picosecond pulses to improve dynamic range and temporal resolution. The apparatus has been applied to pulse contrast measurements at the SG-II petawatt facility, achieving a high dynamic range of 10 and a fast time resolution of 107 ps in the 350 ns range.

Experimental study on measuring pulse duration in the far field for high-energy petawatt lasers.

We study the feasibility of measuring pulse duration in the far field in high-energy petawatt lasers using single-shot autocorrelation. This single-shot autocorrelation technique makes use of parametric upconversion in media with randomly oriented ferroelectric domains, which supports transverse second-harmonic generation with two counter-propagating fundamental beams. We show that this technique possesses a large time window, capable of measuring pulses with temporal duration ranging from a sub-picosecond to tens of picoseconds.

Demonstration of laser-produced neutron diagnostic by radiative capture gamma-rays.

We report a new scenario of the time-of-flight technique in which fast neutrons and delayed gamma-ray signals were both recorded in a millisecond time window in harsh environments induced by high-intensity lasers. The delayed gamma signals, arriving far later than the original fast neutron and often being ignored previously, were identified to be the results of radiative captures of thermalized neutrons. The linear correlation between the gamma photon number and the fast neutron yield shows that these delayed gamma events can be employed for neutron diagnosis.

Laboratory Study on Disconnection Events in Comets.

When comets interacting with solar wind, straight and narrow plasma tails will be often formed. The most remarkable phenomenon of the plasma tails is the disconnection event, in which a plasma tail is uprooted from the comet's head and moves away from the comet. In this paper, the interaction process between a comet and solar wind is simulated by using a laser-driven plasma cloud to hit a cylinder obstacle.

Formation and evolution of a pair of collisionless shocks in counter-streaming flows.

A pair of collisionless shocks that propagate in the opposite directions are firstly observed in the interactions of laser-produced counter-streaming flows. The flows are generated by irradiating a pair of opposing copper foils with eight laser beams at the Shenguang-II (SG-II) laser facility. The experimental results indicate that the excited shocks are collisionless and electrostatic, in good agreement with the theoretical model of electrostatic shock.

Temporal characterization of petawatt class laser at Shen Guang II facility.

Temporal characterization is important to diagnose and measure a petawatt (PW) class laser. We obtained the V curve of the pulse width versus the grating position using pulse width measurement with a mirror image configuration. The temporal range for pulse width was 18 ps with a resolution of 0.

Noncritically phase-matched fourth-harmonic generation of Nd:glass lasers and design of final optics assembly.

The noncritically phase-matched (NCPM) fourth-harmonic generation (FHG) with partially deuterated dihydrogen phosphate (KD*P) crystal at an Nd:glass laser radiation wavelength of 1053.1 nm has been confirmed. NCPM FHG has been achieved in 70% and 65% deuterated KD*P crystal at the temperature of 17.

Studies on design of 351 nm focal plane diagnostic system prototype and focusing characteristic of SGII-upgraded facility at half achievable energy performance.

In order to obtain the intensity distribution of a 351 nm focal spot and smoothing by spectral dispersion (SSD) focal plane profile of a SGII-upgraded facility, a type of off-axis imaging system with three spherical mirrors, suitable for a finite distance source point to be imaged near the diffraction limit has been designed. The quality factor of the image system is 1.6 times of the diffraction limit tested by a 1053 nm point source.

Accuracy of single-shot autocorrelation measurements of petawatt laser pulses.

At the Shen Guang II (SGII) Petawatt Laser Facility, measurements of large-energy, single-shot laser pulses sometimes feature asymmetric autocorrelation signals, causing uncertainty in the measurement of compressed pulses. This study presents a method for defining and describing the asymmetry of autocorrelation signals. We discuss two sources of asymmetry: the nonuniform distribution of the near field excited by a beam, and the rotation of autocorrelator arms from the cylinder lens.

Phase control requirements of high intensity laser beam combining.

Aiming at getting the general requirements of the beam combine for ignition scale laser facilities, the analytical expressions including the factors affecting the combine results are derived. The physical meanings of every part are illustrated. Based on these expressions, the effects of the factors, including the beam configuration, piston error, and tip/tilt error, are studied analytically and numerically.

Fractional Fourier transform of flat-topped multi-Gaussian beams.

The fractional Fourier transform (FRFT) of the flat-topped multi-Gaussian beam (FMGB) is investigated based on the three kinds of FRFT optical systems: Lohmann I, Lohmann II, and quadratic graded-index systems. The analytical expressions for the FRFT of the FMGB are derived based on the propagation of the FMGB through the three systems. By introducing a hard-edge aperture function, the analytical expressions for the FRFT of the FMGB carried out by the apertured FRFT optical systems are presented.

Propagation of flat-topped multi-Gaussian beams through an apertured ABCD optical system.

The generalized analytical expression for the propagation of flat-topped multi-Gaussian beams through a misaligned apertured ABCD optical system is derived. Using this analytical expression, the propagation characteristics of flat-topped multi-Gaussian beams through a spatial filter are investigated. The analytical formula of the electric field distribution in the focal plane is also derived for revealing the effects of the misalignment parameters clearly.

Propagation of flat-topped multi-Gaussian beams through a double-lens system with apertures.

A general model for different apertures and flat-topped laser beams based on the multi-Gaussian function is developed. The general analytical expression for the propagation of a flat-topped beam through a general double-lens system with apertures is derived using the above model. Then, the propagation characteristics of the flat-topped beam through a spatial filter are investigated by using a simplified analytical expression.

Characteristics of beam alignment in a high power four-pass laser amplifier.

Beam alignment is used to control the pointing, rotation, and position of a beam automatically. We give an overview of the beam alignment system for a four-pass amplifier system. The coupling relationships between dependent quantities and deviations thereof for parameters of key optical elements are analyzed using matrix optics techniques.