Carbon Dioxide Capture by Niobium Polyoxometalate Fragmentation.

High oxidation state metal cations in the form of oxides, oxoanions, or oxoperoxoanions have diverse roles in carbon dioxide removal (direct air capture and point source). Features include providing basic oxygens for chemisorption reactions, direct binding of carbonate, and catalyzing low-temperature CO2 release to regenerate capture media. Moreover, metal oxides and aqueous metal-oxo species are stable in harsh, point-source conditions. Here, we demonstrate aqueous niobium polyoxometalate (POM) carbon capture ability, specifically [Nb6O19]8-, Nb6. Upon exposure of aqueous Nb6 to CO2, Nb6 fragments and binds chemisorbed carbonate, evidenced by crystallization of Nb-carbonate POMs including [Nb22O53(CO3)16]28-and [Nb10O25(CO3)6]12-. While Rb/Cs+ counter cations yield crystal structures to understand the chemisorption processes, K+ counter cations enable higher capture efficiency (based on CO3/Nb ratio), determined by CHN analysis and thermogravimetry-mass spectrometry of the isolated solids. Sum frequency generation spectroscopy also showed higher carbon capture efficiency of the K-Nb6 solutions at the air-water interface, while small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) provided insights into the role of the alkalis in influencing these processes. Tetramethylammonium counter cations, like K+, demonstrate high efficiency of carbonate chemisorption at the interface, but SAXS and Raman of the bulk showed a predominance of a Nb24-POM (HxNb24O72, x ∼ 9) that does not bind carbonate. Control experiments show that carbonate detected at the interface is Nb-bound, and the Nb-carbonate species are stabilized by alkalis, demonstrating their supporting role in aqueous Nb-POM CO2 chemisorption. Of fundamental importance, this study presents rare examples of directing POM speciation with a gas, instead of liquid phase acid or base.

Implementing vanadium peroxides as direct air carbon capture materials.

Direct air capture (DAC) removal of anthropogenic CO2 from the atmosphere is imperative to slow the catastrophic effects of global climate change. Numerous materials are being investigated, including various alkaline inorganic metal oxides that form carbonates via DAC. Here we explore metastable early d0 transition metal peroxide molecules that undergo stabilization via multiple routes, including DAC. Specifically here, we describe via experiment and computation the mechanistic conversion of A3V(O2)4 (tetraperoxovanadate, A = K, Rb, Cs) to first a monocarbonate VO(O2)2(CO3)3-, and ultimately HKCO3 plus KVO4. Single crystal X-ray structures of rubidium and cesium tetraperoxovanadate are reported here for the first time, likely prior-challenged by instability. Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), 51V solid state NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance), tandem thermogravimetry-mass spectrometry (TGA-MS) along with calculations (DFT, density functional theory) all converge on mechanisms of CO2 capture and release that involve the vanadium centre, despite the end product of a 300 days study being bicarbonate and metavanadate. Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) Spectroscopy along with a wet chemical assay and computational studies evidence the presense of ∼5% adventitous superoxide, likely formed by peroxide reduction of vanadium, which also stabilizes via the reaction with CO2. The alkalis have a profound effect on the stability of the peroxovanadate compounds, stability trending K > Rb > Cs. While this translates to more rapid CO2 capture with heavier alkalis, it does not necessarily lead to capture of more CO2. All compounds capture approximately two equivalents CO2 per vanadium centre. We cannot yet explain the reactivity trend of the alkali peroxovanadates, because any change in speciation of the alkalis from reactions to product is not quantifiable. This study sets the stage for understanding and implementing transition metal peroxide species, including peroxide-functionalized metal oxides, for DAC.

Cerium Nanophases from Cerium Ammonium Nitrate.

Ceria nanomaterials with facile CeIII/IV redox behavior are used in sensing, catalytic, and therapeutic applications, where inclusion of CeIII has been correlated with reactivity. Understanding assembly pathways of CeO2 nanoparticles (NC-CeO2) in water has been challenged by "blind" synthesis, including rapid assembly/precipitation promoted by heat or strong base. Here, we identify a layered phase denoted Ce-I with a proposed formula CeIV(OH)3(NO3)·xH2O (x ≈ 2.5), obtained by adding electrolytes to aqueous cerium ammonium nitrate (CAN) to force precipitation. Ce-I represents intermediate hydrolysis species between dissolved CAN and NC-CeO2, where CAN is a commonly used CeIV compound that exhibits unusual aqueous and organic solubility. Ce-I features Ce-(OH)2-Ce units, representing the first step of hydrolysis toward NC-CeO2 formation, challenging prior assertions about CeIV hydrolysis. Structure/composition of poorly crystalline Ce-I was corroborated by a pair distribution function, Ce-L3 XAS (X-ray absorption spectroscopy), compositional analysis, and 17O nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Formation of Ce-I and its transformation to NC-CeO2 is documented in solution by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and in the solid-state by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and powder X-ray diffraction. Morphologies identified by TEM support form factor models for SAXS analysis, evidencing the incipient assembly of Ce-I. Finally, two morphologies of NC-CeO2 are identified. Sequentially, spherical NC-CeO2 particles coexist with Ce-I, and asymmetric NC-CeO2 with up to 35% CeIII forms at the expense of Ce-I, suggesting direct replacement.

Bismuth Coordination Polymers with Fluorinated Linkers: Aqueous Stability, Bivolatility, and Adsorptive Behavior.

Bismuth metal-organic frameworks and coordination polymers (CP) are challenging to synthesize, given the poor solubility of bismuth precursors and asymmetric and labile ligation of Bi3+ due to its intrinsic lone pair. Here, we synthesize and structurally characterize three Bi3+-CPs, exploiting a tetrafluoroterephtalate (F4BDC) linker to determine the effect of high acidity on these synthesis and coordination challenges. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction characterization showed that pi-pi stacking of linkers directs framework arrangement and generally deters open porosity in the three structures, respectively featuring Bi chains (Bi chain -F 4 BDC), Bi dimers (Bi 2 -F 4 BDC) linked into chains, and Bi tetramers (Bi 4 -F 4 BDC). Powder X-ray diffraction and microscopic imaging show the high purity and stability of these compounds in water. Naphthalenedisulfonate (NDS) was used as a mineralizer in the synthesis of (Bi chain -F 4 BDC) and (Bi 4 -F 4 BDC), and studies of its role in assembly pathways yielded two additional structures featuring mixed NDS and F4BDC, respectively, linking monomer and octamer Bi nodes, and confirmed that F4BDC is the preferred (less labile) linker. Methylene blue (MB) adsorption studies show differing efficacies of the three Bi-F4BDC phases, attributed to surface characteristics of the preferential growth facets, while generally most effective adsorption is attributed to the hydrophobicity of fluorinated ligands. Finally, thermogravimetric analysis of all three Bi-F4BDC phases indicates simultaneous ligand degradation and in situ formation of volatile Bi compounds, which could be exploited in the chemical vapor deposition of Bi-containing thin films.

The effectiveness of eight-years phosphorus reducing inputs on double cropping paddy: Insights into productivity and soil-plant phosphorus trade-off.

Abundant evidence has demonstrated the feasibility of reducing phosphorus (P) input to face diminishing phosphate rock resources and deteriorating environmental quality in double-cropping paddy. However, the sustainability of reduced P input in the context of maintaining productivity and P efficient utilization is not yet clear. Herein, an 8-year (2013-2021) field-based database was built to explore the effects of reduced P input on rice productivity and the soil-plant P trade-off in double-cropping paddy. In the early and late rice seasons, compared with conventional P fertilization (early rice, 90 kg hm-2; late rice, 60 kg hm-2), the average yield of reduced 10 % P treatment increased by 4.3 % and 2.1 %, respectively; reduced 10-30 % P treatments increased average P use efficiency by 17.1-18.4 % and 14.0-17.2 %, decreased average total P runoff loss by 14.9-33.2 % and 20.8-36.4 %, and decreased average total P leaching loss by 18.5-49.0 % and 24.0-46.1 %, respectively. Compared with conventional fertilization, reduced P fertilizer input by 10 % significantly increased the content of the soil labile-P fraction while reducing that of the soil stable-P fraction. Soil ligand-P and exchangeable-P content decreased with the gradient reduction of P fertilizer input (10-30 %). The main predictors of the change in rice yield and plant P uptake were soil ligand-P and exchangeable-P content, respectively. The dominant predictor of both the P runoff loss and the P activation coefficient was the inorganic P content extracted by NaHCO3. These findings suggest that reduced P input by 10 % could maintain rice productivity and P use efficiency in the double-cropping paddy, and the transformations between soil P components and increases in P bioavailability may be the key drivers maintaining rice productivity and P utilization under the context of reduced P loading.

A digital twin auxiliary approach based on adaptive sparse attention network for diesel engine fault diagnosis.

Condition monitoring and fault diagnosis of diesel engines are of great significance for safety production and maintenance cost control. The digital twin method based on data-driven and physical model fusion has attracted more and more attention. However, the existing methods lack deeper integration and optimization facing complex physical systems. Most of the algorithms based on deep learning transform the data into the substitution of the physical model. The lack of interpretability of the deep learning diagnosis model limits its practical application. The attention mechanism is gradually developed to access interpretability. In this study, a digital twin auxiliary approach based on adaptive sparse attention network for diesel engine fault diagnosis is proposed with considering its signal characteristics of strong angle domain correlation and transient non-stationary, in which a new soft threshold filter is designed to draw more attention to multi decentralized local fault information dynamically in real time. Based on this attention mechanism, the distribution of fault information in the original signal can be better visualized to help explain the fault mechanism. The valve failure experiment on a diesel engine test rig is conducted, of which the results show that the proposed adaptive sparse attention mechanism model has better training efficiency and clearer interpretability on the premise of maintaining performance.

Narrative Scientific Data Visualization in an Immersive Environment.

MOTIVATION: Narrative visualization for scientific data explorations can help users better understand the domain knowledge, because narrative visualizations often present a sequence of facts and observations linked together by a unifying theme or argument. Narrative visualization in immersive environments can provide users with an intuitive experience to interactively explore the scientific data, because immersive environments provide a brand new strategy for interactive scientific data visualization and exploration. However, it is challenging to develop narrative scientific visualization in immersive environments. In this paper, we propose an immersive narrative visualization tool to create and customize scientific data explorations for ordinary users with little knowledge about programming on scientific visualization, They are allowed to define POIs (point of interests) conveniently by the handler of an immersive device. RESULTS: Automatic exploration animations with narrative annotations can be generated by the gradual transitions between consecutive POI pairs. Besides, interactive slicing can be also controlled by device handler. Evaluations including user study and case study are designed and conducted to show the usability and effectiveness of the proposed tool. AVAILABILITY: Related information can be accessed at: https://dabigtou.github.io/richenliu/.

Multi-Factor Operating Condition Recognition Using 1D Convolutional Long Short-Term Network.

: For a diesel engine, operating conditions have extreme importance in fault detection and diagnosis. Limited to various special circumstances, the multi-factor operating conditions of a diesel engine are difficult to measure, and the demand of automatic condition recognition based on vibration signals is urgent. In this paper, multi-factor operating condition recognition using a one-dimensional (1D) convolutional long short-term network (1D-CLSTM) is proposed. Firstly, a deep neural network framework is proposed based on a 1D convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-Term network (LSTM). According to the characteristics of vibration signals of a diesel engine, batch normalization is introduced to regulate the input of each convolutional layer by fixing the mean value and variance. Subsequently, adaptive dropout is proposed to improve the model sparsity and prevent overfitting in model training. Moreover, the vibration signals measured under 12 operating conditions were used to verify the performance of the trained 1D-CLSTM classifier. Lastly, the vibration signals measured from another kind of diesel engine were applied to verify the generalizability of the proposed approach. Experimental results show that the proposed method is an effective approach for multi-factor operating condition recognition. In addition, the adaptive dropout can achieve better training performance than the constant dropout ratio. Compared with some state-of-the-art methods, the trained 1D-CLSTM classifier can predict new data with higher generalization accuracy.

A New Fault Diagnosis Method for a Diesel Engine Based on an Optimized Vibration Mel Frequency under Multiple Operation Conditions.

The diesel engine has been a significant component of large-scale mechanical systems for the intelligent manufacturing industry. Because of its complex structure and poor working environment, it has trouble effectively acquiring the representative fault features. Further, fault diagnosis of the diesel engine faces great challenges. This paper presents a new fault diagnosis method for the detection of diesel engine faults under multiple operation conditions instead of conventional methods confined to a single condition. First, an adaptive correlation threshold process is designed as a preprocessing unit to enhance data quality by weakening non-impact region characteristics. Next, a feature extraction method for sound signals based on the Mel frequency cepstrum (MFC) is improved and introduced into the machinery fault diagnosis. Then, the combination of the improved feature and vibrational mode decomposition (VMD) is proposed to incorporate VMD into an effective adaptive decomposition of non-stationary signals to combine it with an excellent feature representation of the vibration signal. Finally, the vector quantization algorithm is adopted to reduce the feature dimensions and generate codebook model bases, which trains the K-Nearest Neighbor classifiers. Five comparative methods were carried out, and the experimental results show that the proposed method offers a good effect of the common valve clearance fault of diesel engines under different conditions.

Association Between Serum Uric Acid Levels and Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.

Objective: The objective of the present study was to meta-analyze relevant literature to gain a comprehensive understanding of the potential relationship between serum uric acid levels and risk of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). Methods: The databases of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and SinoMed were systematically searched for observational case-control studies of the association between BPPV and serum uric acid levels published up to October 2018. Data from eligible studies were meta-analyzed using Stata 12.0. Results: A total of 12 studies were included in the analysis. There was a strong tendency for serum uric acid levels to be associated with risk of BPPV among studies conducted in China (OR 0.69, 95%CI 0.01-1.40, p = 0.053), but not among studies outside China (OR 1.07, 95%CI 1.08-3.22, p = 0.33). Across all studies, serum uric acid level was significantly higher among individuals with BPPV than among controls (OR 0.78, 95%CI 0.15-1.41, p = 0.015), yet it did not independently predict risk of the disorder (OR 1.003, 95%CI 0.995-1.012, p = 0.471). Conclusion: The available evidence suggests that BPPV is associated with elevated levels of serum uric acid, but these levels may not be an independent risk factor of BPPV.

A Variational Stacked Autoencoder with Harmony Search Optimizer for Valve Train Fault Diagnosis of Diesel Engine.

Diesel engine fault diagnosis is vital due to enhanced reliability and economic efficiency requirements. The extracted features in traditional fault diagnosis are constructed manually, which is very cumbersome because of the requirement for lots of expertise. To handle this issue, this paper proposed a variational stacked autoencoder (VSAE) to adaptively extract features from angular domain signals. As an unsupervised algorithm, VSAE can extract high-level features with the help of multiple encoding layers. Layer-wise pre-training and fine-tuning are introduced to get a better network initialization value. Moreover, the dropout technique and the batch normalization technique are carried out to prevent over-fitting and implement fast convergence. Finally, the harmony search optimizer (HSO) algorithm is introduced to get an appropriate hyper-parameter setting in the VSAE model, as well as make adaptive adjustment of the network structure. In order to verify the proposed method, the valve train fault data is collected on the diesel engine test rig under twelve operating conditions. The results indicate that the proposed scheme can effectively diagnose different degrees of intake valve fault, exhaust valve fault, and coupling fault under various operating conditions. Furthermore, the classification accuracy improved from 94.10% to 98.85%VSAE compared with stacked autoencoder (SAE) and some other traditional fault diagnosis algorithms.

Global analysis of H3K4me3/H3K27me3 in Brachypodium distachyon reveals VRN3 as critical epigenetic regulation point in vernalization and provides insights into epigenetic memory.

Vernalization, the requirement of plants for long-term exposure to low environmental temperature for flowering, is an epigenetic phenomenon. Histone modification regulation has been revealed in vernalization, but is limited to key genes. Now, we know that VRN1 is epigenetically critical for monocots. Genome-wide analysis is still unavailable, however. We performed chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing for H3K4me3/H3K27me3 in Brachypodium distachyon to obtain a global view of histone modifications in vernalization on a genome-wide scale and for different pathways/genes. Our data showed that H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 play distinct roles in vernalization. Unlike H3K4me3, H3K27me3 exhibited regional regulation, showed main regulation targets in vernalization and contributed to epigenetic memory. For genes in four flowering regulation pathways, only FT2 (functional ortholog of VRN3 in B. distachyon) and VRN1 showed coordinated changes in H3K4me3/H3K27me3. The epigenetic response at VRN3 was weaker under short-day than under long-day conditions. VRN3 was revealed as an epigenetic regulation point integrating vernalization and day length signals. We globally identified genes maintaining vernalization-induced epigenetic changes. Most of these genes showed dose-dependent vernalization responses, revealing a quantitative 'recording system' for vernalization. Our studies shed light on the epigenetic role of VRN3 and H3K4me3/H3K27me3 in vernalization and reveal genes underlying epigenetic memory, laying the foundation for further study.

Fault Diagnosis of Internal Combustion Engine Valve Clearance Using the Impact Commencement Detection Method.

Internal combustion engines (ICEs) are widely used in many important fields. The valve train clearance of an ICE usually exceeds the normal value due to wear or faulty adjustment. This work aims at diagnosing the valve clearance fault based on the vibration signals measured on the engine cylinder heads. The non-stationarity of the ICE operating condition makes it difficult to obtain the nominal baseline, which is always an awkward problem for fault diagnosis. This paper overcomes the problem by inspecting the timing of valve closing impacts, of which the referenced baseline can be obtained by referencing design parameters rather than extraction during healthy conditions. To accurately detect the timing of valve closing impact from vibration signals, we carry out a new method to detect and extract the commencement of the impacts. The results of experiments conducted on a twelve-cylinder ICE test rig show that the approach is capable of extracting the commencement of valve closing impact accurately and using only one feature can give a superior monitoring of valve clearance. With the help of this technique, the valve clearance fault becomes detectable even without the comparison to the baseline, and the changing trend of the clearance could be trackable.

Design and Development of Novel 4-(4-(1H-Tetrazol-5-yl)-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-6-morpholino-N-(4-nitrophenyl)-1,3,5-triazin-2-amine as Cardiotonic Agent via Inhibition of PDE3.

The classical phosphodiesterase 3A (PDE3A) inhibitors provide relaxation of the vasculature system via increasing the cellular level of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and proved to be useful in the management of congestive heart failure. Consequently, the present paper deals with the development of novel pyrazole derivatives tethered with substituted 1,3,5-triazine derivatives in search for novel PDE3 inhibitors. The synthesis of designed inhibitors was realized in a multi-step reaction and the structures were ascertained with the help of various spectroscopic techniques. Subsequently, these analogs were tested for their inhibitory activities against PDE3 enzymes, where they exhibited considerable inhibition, revealing 9g as the most promising inhibitor of the class. In a docking study, the morpholine fragment of compound 9g was efficiently engulfed in the small pocket of the active site lined by Gly940 and Pro941. The substituted aromatic ring of the core scaffold was found to be positioned deep in the cavity bordered by Tyr829, Asn830, Leu850, Glu851, and Thr893. Moreover, it considerably improved the contractility of cardiac muscles without altering the heart beat frequency in experimental subjects.

A global profiling of uncapped mRNAs under cold stress reveals specific decay patterns and endonucleolytic cleavages in Brachypodium distachyon.

BACKGROUND: mRNA degradation is a critical factor in determining mRNA abundance and enables rapid adjustment of gene expression in response to environmental stress. The involvement of processing bodies in stress response suggests a role for decapping-mediated mRNA degradation. However, little is known about the role of mRNA degradation under stressful environmental conditions. RESULTS: Here, we perform a global study of uncapped mRNAs, via parallel analysis of RNA ends (PARE), under cold stress in Brachypodium distachyon. Enrichment analysis indicates that degradation products detected by PARE are mainly generated by the decapping pathway. Endonucleolytic cleavages are detected, uncovering another way of modulating gene expression. PARE and RNA-Seq analyses identify four types of mRNA decay patterns. Type II genes, for which light-harvesting processes are over-represented in gene ontology analyses, show unchanged transcript abundance and altered uncapped transcript abundance. Uncapping-mediated transcript stability of light harvesting-related genes changes significantly in response to cold stress, which may allow rapid adjustments in photosynthetic activity in response to cold stress. Transcript abundance and uncapped transcript abundance for type III genes changes in opposite directions in response to cold stress, indicating that uncapping-mediated mRNA degradation plays a role in regulating gene expression. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first global analysis of mRNA degradation under environmental stress conditions in Brachypodium distachyon. We uncover specific degradation and endonucleolytic cleavage patterns under cold stress, which will deepen our understanding of mRNA degradation under stressful environmental conditions, as well as the cold stress response mechanism in monocots.

The cyclophilin CYP20-2 modulates the conformation of BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT1, which binds the promoter of FLOWERING LOCUS D to regulate flowering in Arabidopsis.

Brassinosteroids (BRs) regulate many physiological processes during plant development, including flowering. However, little is known about the components of BR signaling that mediate flowering. Here, we report that BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT1 (BZR1), the conformation of which is altered by a cyclophilin (CYP20-2), binds cis-elements in the FLOWERING LOCUS D (FLD) promoter to regulate flowering. Both bzr1-1D and fld-4 showed delayed flowering. Electrophoretic mobility shift assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation revealed that BZR1 bound to a putative BR response cis-element and suppressed the expression of FLD. Overexpression of FLD partially rescued the late flowering of pBZR1:mBZR1(Pro234-Leu)-CFP (mx3). Yeast two-hybrid and pull-down assays demonstrated that BZR1 interacts with CYP20-2. Arabidopsis thaliana CYP20-2 had greater peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase activity than did wheat (Triticum aestivum) CYP20-2. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed conformation changes in BZR1, dependent on interaction with CYP20-2. Due to differences in activity and substrate preference between CYP20-2 proteins from wheat and Arabidopsis, At-CYP20-2-overexpressing lines showed earlier flowering, whereas Ta CYP20-2 lines flowered later. Immunoblot and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed that histone H3 trimethyl Lys4 and H3 acetylation levels were negatively correlated with the transcription of FLD (a putative histone demethylase) in various lines. Therefore, a conformational change of BZR1 mediated by CYP20-2 causes altered flowering through modulation of FLD expression.

Transcriptome-wide analysis of vernalization reveals conserved and species-specific mechanisms in Brachypodium.

Several temperate cereals need vernalization to promote flowering. Little, however, is known about the vernalization-memory-related genes, and almost no comparative analysis has been performed. Here, RNA-Seq was used for transcriptome analysis in non-vernalized, vernalized and post-vernalized Brachypodium distachyon (L.) Beauv. seedlings. In total, the expression of 1,665 genes showed significant changes (fold change ≥4) in response to vernalization. Among them, 674 putative vernalization-memory-related genes with a constant response to vernalization were significantly enriched in transcriptional regulation and monooxygenase-mediated biological processes. Comparative analysis of vernalization-memory-related genes with barley demonstrated that the oxidative-stress response was the most conserved pathway between these two plant species. Moreover, Brachypodium preferred to regulate transcription and protein phosphorylation processes, while vernalization-memory-related genes, whose products are cytoplasmic membrane-bound-vesicle-located proteins, were preferred to be regulated in barley. Correlation analysis of the vernalization-related genes with barley revealed that the vernalization mechanism was conserved between these two plant species. In summary, vernalization, including its memory mechanism, is conserved between Brachypodium and barley, although several species-specific features also exist. The data reported here will provide primary resources for subsequent functional research in vernalization.

The interaction between OsMADS57 and OsTB1 modulates rice tillering via DWARF14.

Rice tillering is a multigenic trait that influences grain yield, but its regulation molecular module is poorly understood. Here we report that OsMADS57 interacts with OsTB1 (TEOSINTE BRANCHED1) and targets D14 (Dwarf14) to control the outgrowth of axillary buds in rice. An activation-tagged mutant osmads57-1 and OsMADS57-overexpression lines showed increased tillers, whereas OsMADS57 antisense lines had fewer tillers. OsMIR444a-overexpressing lines exhibited suppressed OsMADS57 expression and tillering. Furthermore, osmads57-1 was insensitive to strigolactone treatment to inhibit axillary bud outgrowth, and OsMADS57's function in tillering was dependent on D14. D14 expression was downregulated in osmads57-1, but upregulated in antisense and OsMIR444a-overexpressing lines. OsMADS57 bound to the CArG motif [C(A/T)TTAAAAAG] in the promoter and directly suppressed D14 expression. Interaction of OsMADS57 with OsTB1 reduced OsMADS57 inhibition of D14 transcription. Therefore, OsMIR444a-regulated OsMADS57, together with OsTB1, target D14 to control tillering. This regulation mechanism could have important application in rice molecular breeding programs focused on high grain yield.