Demultiplexing-free ultra-compact WDM-compatible multimode optical switch assisted by mode exchanger.

Silicon-based optical switches are integral to on-chip optical interconnects, and mode-division multiplexing (MDM) technology has enabled modes to function as carriers in routing, further boosting optical switches' link capacity. However, traditional multimode optical switches, which typically use Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) structures and mode (de)multiplexers, are complex and occupy significant physical space. In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel demultiplexing-free dual-mode 3 × 3 thermal-optical switch based on micro-rings (MRs) and mode exchangers (MEs).

Ultra-compact and fabrication-tolerant multimode photonic jumpers based on dual Bezier curves.

Compact routing of multimode bus waveguides is of great significance for on-chip mode-division multiplexing (MDM) systems to realize high integration density and flexible layout. In this Letter, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel, to the best of our knowledge, multimode photonic jumper (MPJ) on a standard silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. It enables an ultra-compact connection between two parallel multimode waveguides (MWGs) with an arbitrary displacement.

GmDFB1, an ARM-repeat superfamily protein, regulates floral organ identity through repressing siRNA- and miRNA-mediated gene silencing in soybean.

The development of flowers in soybean (Glycine max) is essential for determining the yield potential of the plant. Gene silencing pathways are involved in modulating flower development, but their full elucidation is still incomplete. Here, we conducted a forward genetic screen and identified an abnormal flower mutant, deformed floral bud1-1 (Gmdfb1-1), in soybean.

2024 multidisciplinary consensus on image-guided lung tumor ablation from the Taiwan Academy of Tumor Ablation.

In this article, the multidisciplinary team of the Taiwan Academy of Tumor Ablation, who have expertise in treating lung cancer, present their perspectives on percutaneous image-guided thermal ablation (IGTA) of lung tumors. The modified Delphi technique was applied to reach a consensus on clinical practice guidelines concerning ablation procedures, including a comprehensive literature review, selection of panelists, creation of a rating form and survey, and arrangement of an in-person meeting where panelists agreed or disagreed on various points. The conclusion was a final rating and written summary of the agreement.

High-performance TM-pass polarizer based on anti-symmetric Bragg gratings.

We present an all-silicon transverse-magnetic-pass (TM-pass) polarizer based on anti-symmetric Bragg gratings. We obtain wide operation bandwidth and high polarization extinction ratio (PER) by maximizing the coupling between the forward TE0 mode and the backward TE1 mode through the reduction of the bridge element width. In the meantime, low insertion loss (IL) is acquired with long tapered structures and the exclusion of the center grating part.

Active polarization controller based on micro-ring resonators.

On-chip polarization handling is of great significance for optical interconnects to overcome polarization sensitivity. In this Letter, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel, to the best of our knowledge, on-chip polarization controller (PC) on a 220 nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. It is the first demonstration of a PC based on micro-ring resonators.

An Admittance Control Method Based on Parameters Fuzzification for Humanoid Steering Wheel Manipulation.

Developing a human bionic manipulator to achieve certain humanoid behavioral skills is a rising problem. Enabling robots to operate the steering wheel to drive the vehicle is a challenging task. To address the problem, this work designs a novel 7-DOF (degree of freedom) humanoid manipulator based on the arm structure of human bionics.

Maize MITOGEN-ACTIVATED PROTEIN KINASE 20 mediates high-temperature-regulated stomatal movement.

High temperature induces stomatal opening; however, uncontrolled stomatal opening is dangerous for plants in response to high temperature. We identified a high-temperature sensitive (hts) mutant from the ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS)-induced maize (Zea mays) mutant library that is linked to a single base change in MITOGEN-ACTIVATED PROTEIN KINASE 20 (ZmMPK20). Our data demonstrated that hts mutants exhibit substantially increased stomatal opening and water loss rate, as well as decreased thermotolerance, compared to wild-type plants under high temperature.

Campaign-style governance of air pollution in China? A comprehensive analysis of the central environmental protection inspection.

Central environmental protection inspection (CEPI) is a major institutional innovation in China's environmental governance, but its effectiveness in improving air quality is still unclear. However, the effectiveness of CEPI is of great significance and can be regarded as an important reference for deepening the reform of environmental governance system in China. This article takes the CEPI as a quasi-natural experiment and uses the regression discontinuity design (RDD) and the difference-in-differences (DID) methods to examine the effectiveness of this policy.

Exploring psychological resilience and demoralisation in prostate cancer survivors.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate psychological resilience and demoralisation and their predictors and mediators in prostate cancer survivors (PCSs).

Methods: A cross-sectional research design was used. PCSs (N = 122; mean time since diagnosis = 54.

Epidemiology and survival outcomes in adenosquamous carcinoma: a population-based study.

Background: The relationship between the location of the primary tumor and survival of adenosquamous carcinoma (ASC) remains poorly understood. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of primary tumor location on the survival outcome of patients with ASC.

Methods: Patients with ASC were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database with ≥ 150 cases per tumor location.

Dual-Arm Robot Trajectory Planning Based on Deep Reinforcement Learning under Complex Environment.

In this article, the trajectory planning of the two manipulators of the dual-arm robot is studied to approach the patient in a complex environment with deep reinforcement learning algorithms. The shape of the human body and bed is complex which may lead to the collision between the human and the robot. Because the sparse reward the robot obtains from the environment may not support the robot to accomplish the task, a neural network is trained to control the manipulators of the robot to prepare to hold the patient up by using a proximal policy optimization algorithm with a continuous reward function.

Atractylodin Suppresses Dendritic Cell Maturation and Ameliorates Collagen-Induced Arthritis in a Mouse Model.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the immunomodulatory effects of atractylodin, a polyethylene alkyne, on the maturation of bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BM-DC) as well as its antirheumatic effect on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in DBA/1 mice. Our results indicate that atractylodin effectively suppressed the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, expression of costimulatory molecules, and p38 MAPK, ERK, and NF-κBp65 signaling pathways in LPS-incubated dendritic cells (DCs). Additionally, the proliferation and cytokine secretion (IFN-γ and IL-17A) of CD8 and CD4 T cells were reduced.

Immunosuppressive Effect of Litsea cubeba L. Essential Oil on Dendritic Cell and Contact Hypersensitivity Responses.

Litsea cubeba L., also named as Makauy, is a traditional herb and has been used as cooking condiment or tea brewing to treat diseases for aborigines. The present study was undertaken to explore the chemical compositions of the fruit essential oil of L.

Genetic alterations of HER genes in chromophobe renal cell carcinoma.

Chromophobe (ch) renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the 3rd most common subtype of RCC and occurs in 5% of all RCCs. Although chRCC generally demonstrates more favorable outcomes compared with other subtypes of RCC, there is a 6-7% probability of tumor progression and metastasis in this disease. The subclassification of a more aggressive subtype of chRCC may be useful for the management of this cancer.

Overexpression of Fibulin-5 Attenuates Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury After Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in Rats.

Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) induces detrimental processes such as oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis. All parts of the neurovascular unit are involved in these pathological processes. Fibulin-5 is a 66-kD glycoprotein secreted by various vascular cells, including vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs), fibroblasts, and endothelial cells.

Systematic review of clinical practice guidelines related to multiple sclerosis.

Background: High quality clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) can provide clinicians with explicit recommendations on how to manage health conditions and bridge the gap between research and clinical practice. Unfortunately, the quality of CPGs for multiple sclerosis (MS) has not been evaluated.

Objective: To evaluate the methodological quality of CPGs on MS using the AGREE II instrument.

Microwave-assisted multicomponent reaction in water leading to highly regioselective formation of benzo[f]azulen-1-ones.

Microwave-assisted three-component reaction has been established for the regioselective synthesis of benzo[f]azulen-1-ones. The reaction was performed in aqueous media under microwave irradiation by using readily available and inexpensive starting materials. A total of 38 examples were examined to show a broad substrate scope and good overall yields (70-89%).

Substrate-controlled chemoselective synthesis and potent cytotoxic activity of novel 5,6,7-triarylpyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-4-one derivatives.

The substrate-controlled chemoselective synthesis of novel 5,6,7-triarylpyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-4-one derivatives has been successfully achieved via microwave-assisted three-component reactions of 2,6-diaminopyrimidin-4(3H)-one, aromatic aldehydes and 1,2-diphenylethanone. This approach has the prominent features of chemoselectivity, diasteroselectivity, atom economy, short reaction time, high yield as well as operational simplicity. Moreover, these novel compounds were subject to the test of in vitro cytotoxicity to carcinoma SW1116 and SGC7901 cells.

Multicomponent synthesis of poly-substituted benzo[a]pyrano[2,3-c]phenazine derivatives under microwave heating.

A new one-pot two-step tandem synthesis of highly functionalized benzo[a]pyrano[2,3-c]phenazine derivatives via microwave-assisted multicomponent reactions of 2-hydroxynaphthalene-1,4-dione, diamines, aldehydes, and malononitrile is reported. The procedures are facile, avoiding time-consuming and costly syntheses, tedious workup, and purifications of precursors, as well as protection/deprotection of functional groups. The method is expected to find application in the combinatorial synthesis of biologically active compounds, since phenazine and chromene motifs have a broad spectrum of biological activities.

Imaging findings of urinary tuberculosis on excretory urography and computerized tomography.

Purpose: We performed a retrospective study to analyze findings on excretory urography (IVP) and computerized tomography (CT) in patients with urinary tuberculosis.

Materials And Methods: In a 16-year period 53 patients with a total of 47 IVP and 33 CT examinations were diagnosed with urinary tuberculosis at our hospital. IVP and CT were reviewed and compared for certain imaging findings, including moth-eaten calices, renal parenchymal masses, an amputated infundibulum, autonephrectomy, thick urinary tract walls, urinary tract calcifications, renal parenchymal cavities, hydrocalycosis, hydronephrosis or hydroureter due to stricture, extra-urinary tubercular manifestations and renal parenchymal scarring.