Reversible Giant Barocaloric Effect with Broad Working Temperature Range in an Amorphous Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer.

The barocaloric effect of a solid material is an intense research topic due to its potential application in solid-state refrigeration. Among the proposed candidates, elastic polymers are distinctive because their barocaloric responses are independent from a pressure-induced phase transition which makes it possible to realize a broad working temperature range in principle. However, the barocaloric performance of most elastic polymers diminishes significantly as temperature decreases.

Interaction of reed litter and biochar presences on performances of constructed wetlands.

Constructed wetlands (CWs) are frequently used for effective biological treatment of nitrogen-rich wastewater with external carbon source addition; however, these approaches often neglect the interaction between plant litter and biochar in biochar-amended CW environments. To address this, we conducted a comprehensive study to assess the impacts of single or combined addition of common reed litter and reed biochar (pyrolyzed at 300 and 500 °C) on nitrogen removal, greenhouse gas emission, dissolved organic matter (DOM) dynamics, and microbial activity. The results showed that combined addition of reed litter and biochar to CWs significantly improved nitrate and total nitrogen removal compared with biochar addition alone.

The water-retaining functional slow-release fertilizer modified by carboxymethyl chitosan.

To solve the problem of shortage of agricultural water resources and low utilization rate of fertilizer, a slow-release fertilizer based on chitosan modified water retention function was developed. Solution polymerization and semi-interpenetrating network technology were used to load urea aldehyde into carboxymethyl chitosan superabsorbent resin network. This technology realizes the simultaneous slow release of nutrients and water by using modified chitosan, which has important implications for the application of chitosan in agriculture to regulate the soil water and fertilizer conditions.

Applications of optical property measurement for quality evaluation of agri-food products: a review.

Spectroscopic techniques coupled with chemometric approaches have been widely used for quality evaluation of agricultural and food (agri-food) products due to the nondestructive, simple, fast, and easy characters. However, these techniques face the issues or challenges of relatively weak robustness, generalizability, and applicability in modeling and prediction because they measure the aggregate amount of light interaction with tissues, resulting in the combined effect of absorption and scattering of photons. Optical property measurement could separate absorption from scattering, providing new insights into more reliable prediction performance in quality evaluation, which is attracting increasing attention.

Biochar amendment reassembles microbial community in a long-term phosphorus fertilization paddy soil.

This study investigates the effect of biochar amendment on microbial community structure and soil nutrient status in paddy soil that has been fertilized for an extended period of time, shedding light on sustainable agricultural practices. A 90-day incubation period revealed that biochar amendment, as opposed to long-term fertilization, significantly influenced the physicochemical properties and microbial composition of the soil. The microcosm experiment conducted using six treatments analyzed soil samples from a long-term rice ecosystem.

MANF inhibits Sjögren's syndrome salivary gland epithelial cell apoptosis and antigen expression of Ro52/SSA through endoplasmic reticulum stress/autophagy pathway.

Background: Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a typical autoimmune disease characterized by lymphocyte infiltration accompanied by the production of Ro52/SSA and La/SSB autoantibodies against whole body ribonucleoprotein particles. The release of type I IFN can induce endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) in submandibular gland cells. ERS not only produces a large number of Ro52/SSA antigens and changes their location, but also down-regulates autophagy and increases apoptosis.

Substituent-Controllable Cascade Regioselective Annulation of -Enaminones with -Sulfonyl Triazoles for Modular Access to Imidazoles and Pyrroles.

A controllable synthesis of trisubstituted imidazoles and pyrroles has been developed through rhodium(II)-catalyzed regioselective annulation of -sulfonyl-1,2,3-trizaoles with -enaminones. The imidazole ring was formed through a 1,1-insertion of the N-H bond to α-imino rhodium carbene, followed by a subsequent intramolecular 1,4-conjugate addition. This occurred when the -carbon atom of the amino group was bearing a methyl group.

Network interpenetrating slow-release nitrogen fertilizer based on carrageenan and urea: A new low-cost water and fertilizer regulation carrier.

Modern agriculture presents new requirements of low cost, high water retention and degradability for superabsorbent and slow-release fertilizers. In this study, carrageenan (CG), acrylic acid (AA), N, N '-methylene diacrylamide (MBA), urea and ammonium persulfate (APS) were used as raw materials. A kind of high water absorption, water retention, nitrogen slow release and biodegradable carrageenan superabsorbent (CG-SA) was prepared by grafting copolymerization.

Analysis of Light Penetration Depth in Apple Tissues by Depth-Resolved Spatial-Frequency Domain Imaging.

Spatial-frequency domain imaging (SFDI) has been developed as an emerging modality for detecting early-stage bruises of fruits, such as apples, due to its unique advantage of a depth-resolved imaging feature. This paper presents theoretical and experimental analyses to determine the light penetration depth in apple tissues under spatially modulated illumination. Simulation and practical experiments were then carried out to explore the maximum light penetration depths in 'Golden Delicious' apples.

Effects of the fungicide trifloxystrobin on the structure and function of soil bacterial community.

Trifloxystrobin has been widely applied to prevent fungal diseases because of its high efficiency and desirable safety characteristics. In the present study, the effects of trifloxystrobin on soil microorganisms were integrally investigated. The results showed that trifloxystrobin inhibited urease activity, promoted dehydrogenase activity.

Characterization of the responses of soil micro-organisms to azoxystrobin and the residue dynamics of azoxystrobin in wheat-corn rotation fields over two years.

Azoxystrobin, a high-efficiency and broad-spectrum strobilurin fungicide, has been widely used in global agricultural production. However, the effects of azoxystrobin on soil micro-organisms have scarcely been studied, and relevant experiments are usually conducted under laboratory conditions using active ingredient. Therefore, the effects of azoxystrobin on soil micro-organisms when applied to actual farmland are unknown.

Numerical Simulation of Failure Behavior of Brittle Heterogeneous Rock under Uniaxial Compression Test.

Rocks have formed heterogeneous characteristics after experiencing complex natural geological processes. Studying the heterogeneity of rocks is significant for rock mechanics. In this study, a linear parallel bond model with Weibull distribution in two-dimensional particle flow code (PFC2D) is adopted to study the mechanical characteristics and brittle failure mode of granite rock specimens with different heterogeneity.

Polyhalogenated carbazoles (PHCZs) induce cardiotoxicity and behavioral changes in zebrafish at early developmental stages.

Polyhalogenated carbazoles (PHCZs) are widely present in the environment, and their health risks are of increasing concern. Available studies primarily confirm their dioxin-like toxicity mechanism based on biomarkers, such as aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and CYP1A1, while few studies have investigated their actual toxic effects at the level of individual organisms. In the present study, the developmental toxicity of two typical PHCZs with a high detection rate and high concentration in the environment (3,6-dichlorocarbazol (3,6-DCCZ) and 3,6-dibromocarbazole (3,6-DBCZ)) was investigated based on a fish embryo acute toxicity test (FET, zebrafish) and transcriptomics analysis.

Effects of particle size distribution of potato starch granules on rheological properties of model dough underwent multiple freezing-thawing cycles.

In order to elucidate the mechanism underlying the effect of different-sizes potato starch on dough during freeze-thaw treatment, the rheological properties, moisture distribution, secondary structure, and relative crystallinity of dough were investigated. The results showed that the storage modulus (G'), loss modulus (G″), and complex modulus (|G*|) of dough increased as a result of the freeze-thaw treatment, and the effect was more obvious as the starch granular sizes increased. The higher β -sheet and T contents reflected the higher viscoelasticity and freeze-thaw sensitivity, which may be related to the higher degree expansion of amylose.

Effects of applying different carbon substrates on nutrient removal and greenhouse gas emissions by constructed wetlands treating carbon-depleted hydroponic wastewater.

The addition of external carbon sources is crucial for effective biological treatment of nutrient-rich but carbon-depleted hydroponic wastewater using constructed wetlands. In this study, we examined the effects of applying three types of carbon substrates, namely sucrose, hydroponic kale residues, and common reed litter, on the nutrient removal efficiency and greenhouse gas emission rate of vertical flow constructed wetlands. The addition of sucrose and common reed litter was shown to perform equally well in enhancing the removal of total nitrogen (84.

Metal loadings in estuarine bivalve and gastropod shellfish in response to socioeconomic development in watershed.

Metal contamination in estuary was monitored globally using shellfish while estuarine metal loadings were influenced by socioeconomic development in watershed, i.e., a watershed-estuary chain effect.

MPZ gene variant site in Chinese patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

Background: Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) is a hereditary monogenic peripheral nerve disease. Variants in the gene encoding myelin protein zero (MPZ) lead to CMT, and different variants have different clinical phenotypes. A variant site, namely, c.

Legacy organochlorines in estuarine sediment in relation to socioeconomic pattern in multi-coastal watersheds.

Estuarine sediment quality is highly associated with anthropogenic activities in watersheds. This study attempts to couple socioeconomic patterns with estuarine sediment quality via legacy organochlorines in 14 Chinese coastal watersheds. Sedimentary concentrations of HCHs, DDTs, and PCBs showed a significant spatiality in estuary, up to 48.

Value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound combined with percutaneous ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration in the diagnosis of solid pancreatic lesions.

Background: Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) can detect lesions hidden in inflammatory regions and find necrosis or areas of severe fibrosis within the lesion. This retrospective study aimed to compare the diagnostic accuracy of solid pancreatic lesions using percutaneous ultrasound (US)-guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA) with or without CEUS assessment.

Methods: Clinical, imaging, and pathologic data of 181 patients from January 2014 to December 2018 in Pecking Union Medical College Hospital, with solid pancreatic masses who underwent percutaneous US-FNA and ThinPrep cytologic test were retrospectively evaluated.

Deficiency of β-arrestin2 alleviates apoptosis through GRP78-ATF6-CHOP signaling pathway in primary Sjögren's syndrome.

The etiology of primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) remains unknown, and there is no ideal drug for the specific treatment of pSS. β-arrestin2 is a key protein that mediates desensitization and internalization of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and it participates in inflammatory and immune responses that have been found to mediate apoptosis in autoimmune disease. In this study, we established an experimental Sjögren's syndrome (ESS) mouse model to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of β-arrestin2 in pSS.

Correlation Between Enhancement Patterns on Transabdominal Ultrasound and Survival for Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

Objective: Investigate the CEUS enhancement patterns of PDAC and analyse correlations between the CEUS enhancement pattern and both the degree of tumour tissue differentiation and overall survival (OS).

Methods: The study included 56 patients with locally advanced PDAC, performed conventional ultrasound and CEUS, and analysed characteristics of the CEUS enhancement patterns. In addition, clinical data, such as serum level of CA19-9, TNM stage were collected, and patients' survival times were followed up.

Ag(I) Pyridine-Amidoxime Complex as the Catalysis Activity Domain for the Rapid Hydrolysis of Organothiophosphate-Based Nerve Agents: Mechanistic Evaluation and Application.

Two novel Ag(I) complexes containing synergistic pyridine and amidoxime ligands (Ag-DPAAO and Ag-PAAO) were first designed as complex monomers. Taking advantage of the molecular imprinting technique and solvothermal method, molecular imprinted porous cross-linked polymers (MIPCPs) were developed as a robust platform for the first time to incorporate Ag-PAAO into a polymer material as a recyclable catalyst. Advantageously, the observed pseudo first-order rate constant () of MIPCP-Ag-PAAO-20% for ethyl-parathion () hydrolysis is about 1.

Rheological behaviors and physicochemical changes of doughs reconstituted from potato starch with different sizes and gluten.

The effects of different sizes of potato starch on the rheological and physiochemical properties of model doughs were investigated. Compared with those of model dough prepared from original starch, the strengths of model doughs prepared from fractionated starch were higher, which indicates that fractionated starch can positively influence the properties of doughs. Additionally, the model dough prepared using large size starch granules had higher storage modulus (G'), loss modulus (G''), and composite modulus (|G*|) values compared to those of other types of dough; it also had the highest elasticity, viscosity, and strength.