Time alignment quantum illumination based on single real-time coincidence counting.

We propose and demonstrate an improved quantum illumination protocol based on the time correlation of twin photons, for the high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of target detection and signal reconstruction in the strong noise environment. The Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) interferometer is applied after the spontaneous parametric down-conversion (SPDC) process to construct a probing twin-beam in which the photon times are precisely aligned between the beams. At the radar receiver, we put forward a single real-time coincidence counting (SRCC) method on a series of time slices to reconstruct the probe signals of pulse radar and calculate the SNR advantages against the conventional pulse radar, as well as the quantum illumination (QI) protocol. Our main achievements in this research are the realization of real-time detection of quantum information while acquiring a higher SNR than QI and classical illumination (CI) protocols, as well as its demonstration of strong robustness to noise and losses, which also proposes what we believe to be a novel way for quantum target detection.

Uniform zinc-ion deposition regulated by thin sulfonated poly(ether ketone) layer for Stabilizing Zn anodes.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) have been getting lots of attention in the field of large scale energy storage owing to their low cost, large capacity and excellent safety. However, Zn anodes have serious dendritic growth and corrosion hydrogen evolution issues, which hinder their further application. Herein, a simple drop-coating technique was used to build a thin sulfate poly(ether ketone) (SPEEK) solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) on the surface of the Zn anode to address these issues. The sulfonated group (-SO3-） in SPEEK can provide rich coordination sites for Zn2+, controlling the uniform deposition of Zn2+. Therefore, the polymer SEI can block electrolytes and homogenize the Zn2+flux, resulting that the modified Zn (SPEEK@Zn) anode could effectively limit the formation of dendrites and side reactions. At a current density of 0.5 mA cm-2, SPEEK@Zn electrodes can maintain an ultra-long plating/stripping cycle life of 1000 h. Full batteries based on SPEEK@Zn have more superior cycle stability than the bare ones. This approach offers a straightforward and scalable remedy for high-performance Zn anode batteries.

Chemolithotrophic Biological Nitrogen Fixation Fueled by Antimonite Oxidation May Be Widespread in Sb-Contaminated Habitats.

Nitrogen (N) deficiency in mining-contaminated habitats usually hinders plant growth and thus hampers tailing revegetation. Biological N fixation (BNF) is an essential biogeochemical process that contributes to the initial accumulation of N in oligotrophic mining-contaminated regions. Previous studies reported that chemolithotrophic rather than heterotrophic diazotrophs frequently dominated in the mining-contaminated regions. Chemolithotrophic diazotrophs may utilize elements abundant in such habitats (e.g., sulfur (S), arsenic (As), and antimony (Sb)) as electron donors to fix N2. BNF fueled by the oxidation of S and As has been detected in previous studies. However, BNF fueled by Sb(III) oxidation (Sb-dependent BNF) has never been reported. The current study observed the presence of Sb-dependent BNF in slurries inoculated from Sb-contaminated habitats across the South China Sb belt, suggesting that Sb-dependent BNF may be widespread in this region. DNA-stable isotope probing identified bacteria associated with Rhodocyclaceae and Rhizobiaceae as putative microorganisms responsible for Sb-dependent BNF. Furthermore, metagenomic-binning demonstrated that Rhodocyclaceae and Rhizobiaceae contained essential genes involved in Sb(III) oxidation, N2 fixation, and carbon fixation, suggesting their genetic potential for Sb-dependent BNF. In addition, meta-analysis indicated that these bacteria are widespread among Sb-contaminated habitats with different niche preferences: Rhodocyclaceae was enriched in river sediments and tailings, while Rhizobiaceae was enriched only in soils. This study may broaden our fundamental understanding of N fixation in Sb-mining regions.

Joint effects of depressive status and body mass index on the risk of incident hypertension in aging population: evidence from a nationwide population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The impact of depressive status (DS) on hypertension incidence is still controversial and has not been studied in Chinese middle-aged and elderly population. This study aimed to explore the relationship between DS and incident hypertension and analyze the joint effects of DS and body mass index (BMI) on hypertension incidence. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), a nationwide population-based study. In 2013, DS was identified using scores from the 10-item Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-10) among eligible respondents from CHARLS, and hypertension occurrence was observed until 2018. The multiple Cox models were employed to calculate the associations between DS and hypertension incidence. In addition, we also computed the multiplicative interaction (MI) between DS and BMI of incident hypertension and assessed their additive interaction (AI) through relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI), attributable proportion (AP) or synthetic index (S). Positive AI was indicated by RERI > 0, AP > 0 or S > 1. RESULTS: Over the 5-year follow-up, depressive symptoms increased the risk of hypertension incidence by 19% (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.19, 95% confidence interval (CI): (1.01, 1.41)), while depression was associated with a 24% increased risk (HR = 1.24; 95% CI: (1.03, 1.50)). Significant MIs between DS and overweight or obesity were observed and almost all of AI indexes showed positive joint effects on incident hypertension, of which the depression-obesity combination had the largest joint effect (RERI = 4.47, 95%CI: (0.28, 8.66); AP = 0.67, 95%CI: (0.50, 0.85); S = 4.86,95%CI: (2.66, 8.86)). CONCLUSION: DS could lead to hypertension and this impact was amplified when coexisting with higher BMI. It highlighted a need for precise interventions targeting weight management and depression treatment in the aging population to prevent hypertension.

Secular trends in the incidence of major depressive disorder and dysthymia in China from 1990 to 2019.

BACKGROUND: Depression is increasingly recognized as a worldwide serious, public health concern. A better understanding of depression is important for advancing its management and learning the difference between major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia. Our aim is to conduct a concurrent analysis of the trends of both MDD and dysthymia in China. METHODS: The data on depression from 1990 to 2019 were collected from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD 2019). To determine the average annual percent changes (AAPC) and relative risks (RRs), joinpoint regression and the age-period-cohort models were employed, respectively. RESULTS: The incidence number of MDD and dysthymia continuously increased in China from 1990 to 2019, however, the age-standardized rates (ASR) had a decreasing trend in both men and women. The results from joinpoint regression showed that a declining trend was presented in young people (< 50 years) but an increased trend in the elderly (≥ 50 years) both in men and women, during 1990-2019. Age is the most influential factor for MDD and dysthymia. Age RRs for MDD incidence had an overall increasing trend with age. Period RR in MDD presented a U-shaped pattern, while Cohort RRs presented an inverted U-shaped pattern. On the other hand, RRs in dysthymia for period and cohort effects had no statistical significance, only the age effect presented an inverted U-shaped pattern. CONCLUSIONS: The disparities in trends observed between MDD and dysthymia during the period of 1990-2019 indicated the significance of distinguishing between these two disorders. The age, period and cohort effects all had a greater impact on MDD than on dysthymia, and age effects presented different influential patterns in these two. To alleviate the burden of depressive disorders in China, proactive measures need to be implemented, with particular attention to the elderly population.

Influencing factors of death in patients with MDR-TB based on Bayesian Cox regression model. / 基于贝叶斯Coxå›žå½’æ¨¡åž‹åˆ†æžè€å¤šè¯è‚ºç»“æ ¸æ‚£è€ æ­»äº¡çš„å½±å“å› ç´ .

OBJECTIVES: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has a high mortality and is always one of the major challenges in global TB prevention and control. Analyzing the factors that may impact the adverse outcomes of MDR-TB patients is helpful for improving the systematic management and optimizing the treatment strategies for MDR-TB patients. For follow-up data, the Cox proportional hazards regression model is an important multifactor analysis method. However, the method has significant limitations in its application, such as the fact that it is difficult to deal with the impacts of small sample sizes and other practical issues on the model. Therefore, Bayesian and conventional Cox regression models were both used in this study to analyze the influencing factors of death in MDR-TB patients during the anti-TB therapy, and compare the differences between these 2 methods in their application. METHODS: Data were obtained from 388 MDR-TB patients treated at Lanzhou Pulmonary Hospital from November 1, 2017 to March 31, 2021. Survival analysis was employed to analyze the death of MDR-TB patients during the therapy and its influencing factors. Conventional and Bayesian Cox regression models were established to estimate the hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for the factors affecting the death of MDR-TB patients. The reliability of parameter estimation in these 2 models was assessed by comparing the parameter standard deviation and 95% CI of each variable. The smaller parameter standard deviation and narrower 95% CI range indicated the more reliable parameter estimation. RESULTS: The median survival time (1st quartile, 3rd quartile) of the 388 MDR-TB patients included in the study was 10.18 (4.26, 18.13) months, with the longest survival time of 31.90 months. Among these patients, a total of 12 individuals died of MDR-TB and the mortality was 3.1%. The median survival time (1st quartile, 3rd quartile) for the deceased patients was 4.78(2.63, 6.93) months. The majority of deceased patients, accounting for 50%, experienced death within the first 5 months of anti-TB therapy, with the last mortality case occurring within the 13th month of therapy. The results of the conventional Cox regression model showed that the risk of death in MDR-TB patients with comorbidities was approximately 6.96 times higher than that of patients without complications (HR=6.96, 95% CI 2.00 to 24.24, P=0.002) and patients who received regular follow-up had a decrease in the risk of death by approximately 81% compared to those who did not receive regular follow-up (HR=0.19, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.77, P=0.020). In the results of Bayesian Cox regression model, the iterative history plot and Blue/Green/Red (BGR) plot for each parameter showed the good model convergence, and parameter estimation indicated that the risk of death in patients with a positive first sputum culture was lower than that of patients with a negative first sputum culture (HR=0.33, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.87). Additionally, compared to patients without complications, those with comorbidities had an approximately 6.80-fold increase in the risk of death (HR=7.80, 95% CI 1.90 to 21.91). Patients who received regular follow-up had a 90% reduction in the risk of death compared to those who did not receive regular follow-up (HR=0.10, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.30). The comparison between these 2 models showed that the parameter standard deviations and corresponding 95% CI ranges of other variables in the Bayesian Cox model were significantly smaller than those in the conventional model, except for parameter standard deviations of receiving regular follow-up (Bayesian model was 0.77; conventional model was 0.72) and pulmonary cavities (Bayesian model was 0.73; conventional model was 0.73). CONCLUSIONS: The first year of anti-TB therapy is a high-risk period for mortality in MDR-TB patients. Complications are the main risk factors of death in MDR-TB patients, while patients who received regular follow-up and had positive first sputum culture presented a lower risk of death. For data with a small sample size and low incidence of outcome, the Bayesian Cox regression model provides more reliable parameter estimation than the conventional Cox model.

Observation of Non-Abelian Thouless Pump.

Thouless pump provides robust ways to realize quantized transport of waves and particles, and it casts the static 2D quantum Hall effect onto 1D dynamic systems where one of the momentum dimensions is replaced by the evolution time or path parameter. In the past few decades, various types of Abelian Thouless pump have been achieved theoretically and experimentally. However, the study of non-Abelian Thouless pump is scarce, which tells us that the order of two evolution loops with the same base point cannot be changed, and there has been no experimental observation of non-Abelian Thouless pump. Here we report the observation of a non-Abelian Thouless pump in coupled acoustic waveguide array. The non-Abelian property originates from the noncommutative combination of two different ℤ_{3} pump cycles that traverse across multiple band degeneracies in the parameter space in a three-band system. Moreover, we can pump a specific initial state to any state on any lattice site by applying these two ℤ_{3} pump cycles multiple times in a well-designed sequence. Our study paves the way for exploring and utilizing non-Abelian dynamical effects in classical wave systems and may offer different recipes for quantum walking, quantum optics, and quantum computation.

Identification of LAT/ZAP70 characterized immune subtypes of prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: While immunotherapy has shown potent efficacy in clinical practices, patient selection to receive checkpoint blockade is still challenging in prostate cancer (PCa). LAT and ZAP70 functions in lymphocyte activation and plays a critical role in T cell receptor (TCR) signal transduction. However, PCa genomic and clinical data regarding the role of LAT and ZAP70 are limited. We aim to identify and characterize LAT/ZAP70 defined subtypes of PCa. METHODS: We elaborated the TCGA PCa data and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) RNA-seq data bioinformatic analysis and systematically elucidated the role of intra-tumoral expressed LAT and ZAP70 in the progression-free survival and immunotherapeutic-related signals. LAT/ZAP70-associated immune infiltration was evaluated using bioinformatic tools. Immunohistochemical staining of serial sections was used to confirm the expression and distribution of LAT, ZAP70 and androgen receptor (AR) in PCa tissues. RESULTS: Specifically, LAT and ZAP70 revealed increased expressions in PCa when compared to normal tissues and positively associated with intra-tumoral immune cells infiltration. LAT/ZAP70 defined immune-high early-stage PCa revealed higher TP53 mutation frequency and poor prognosis. Transcriptome analysis indicated immune-related signals and CTLA4 expression were highly enhanced in immune-high PCa parallel with higher protein level of MYC and lower AR expression. In mCRPC, LAT/ZAP70 defined immune-high patients also revealed upregulated immune related signals, higher CTLA4 expression and DNA repair deficiency. CONCLUSION: LAT/ZAP70 defined immune-high PCa linked to immune infiltration and predicts poor prognosis. Immune-high PCa may receive effective response from immune checkpoint inhibitor parallel with systemic treatment.

Immobile Iron-Rich Particles Promote Arsenic Retention and Regulate Arsenic Biotransformation in Treatment Wetlands.

Remediation of arsenic (As)-contaminated wastewater by treatment wetlands (TWs) remains a technological challenge due to the low As adsorption capacity of wetland substrates and the release of adsorbed As to pore water. This study investigated the feasibility of using immobile iron-rich particles (IIRP) to promote As retention and to regulate As biotransformation in TWs. Iron-rich particles prepared were immobilized in the interspace of a gravel substrate. TWs with IIRP amendment (IIRP-TWs) achieved a stable As removal efficiency of 63 ± 4% over 300 days, while no As removal or release was observed in TWs without IIRP after 180 days of continuous operation. IIRP amendment provided additional adsorption sites and increased the stability of adsorbed As due to the strong binding affinity between As and Fe oxides. Microbially mediated As(III) oxidation was intensified by iron-rich particles in the anaerobic bottom layer of IIRP-TWs. Myxococcus and Fimbriimonadaceae were identified as As(III) oxidizers. Further, metagenomic binning suggested that these two bacterial taxa may have the capability for anaerobic As(III) oxidation. Overall, this study demonstrated that abiotic and biotic effects of IIRP contribute to As retention in TWs and provided insights into the role of IIRP for the remediation of As contamination.

Synergistically mitigating nitric oxide emission by co-applications of biochar and nitrification inhibitor in a tropical agricultural soil.

Agricultural soils are the hotspots of nitric oxide (NO) emissions, which are related to atmospheric pollution and greenhouse effect. Biochar application has been recommended as an important countermeasure, however, its mitigation efficiency is limited as biochar, under certain conditions, can stimulate soil nitrification. Therefore, biochar co-applied with nitrification inhibitor could optimize the mitigation potential of biochar. Herein, a laboratory-scale experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of co-application of biochar and nitrification inhibitor on NO emission, nitrogen cycling function and bacterial community in a tropical vegetable soil. Results showed that a single application of biochar or nitrification inhibitor significantly decreased NO emissions, and this mitigation effectiveness was amplified by their co-applications. Soil NO2--N intensity, along with abundances of AOB-amoA and nirK were significantly and positively correlated with cumulative NO emissions. The stimulated activity of ammonia monooxygenase and growths of AOB and total comammox Nitrospira by biochar were weakened by nitrification inhibitor, implying decreased nitrification-driven NO production. The nitric oxide reductase activity and related qnorB abundance in nitrification inhibitor-added soils were increased by biochar, indicating promoted NO consumption during denitrification. The nirK abundance and NO2--N intensity were decreased more by co-applications of biochar or nitrification inhibitor. Moreover, both biochar and nitrification inhibitor changed bacterial ß-diversity, and their co-application synergistically enriched Armatimonadetes and Verrucomicrobia abundances and decreased WPS-2 abundance. This study highlights that co-applications of biochar and nitrification inhibitor can make their respective advantages complementary to each other, thereby achieving a larger mitigation of NO emissions from agricultural soils in tropical regions.

Nonlinear Imaging of Nanoscale Topological Corner States.

Topological states of light represent counterintuitive optical modes localized at boundaries of finite-size optical structures that originate from the properties of the bulk. Being defined by bulk properties, such boundary states are insensitive to certain types of perturbations, thus naturally enhancing robustness of photonic circuitries. Conventionally, the N-dimensional bulk modes correspond to (N - 1)-dimensional boundary states. The higher-order bulk-boundary correspondence relates N-dimensional bulk to boundary states with dimensionality reduced by more than 1. A special interest lies in miniaturization of such higher-order topological states to the nanoscale. Here, we realize nanoscale topological corner states in metasurfaces with C6-symmetric honeycomb lattices. We directly observe nanoscale topology-empowered edge and corner localizations of light and enhancement of light-matter interactions via a nonlinear imaging technique. Control of light at the nanoscale empowered by topology may facilitate miniaturization and on-chip integration of classical and quantum photonic devices.

Floquet topological photonic crystals with temporally modulated media.

We show that Floquet topological insulating states can exist in two-dimensional photonic crystals made of time-variant optical materials. By arranging the modulating phases, it facilitates effective gauge fields that give rise to topological effects. The band structures demonstrate the existence of topologically non-trivial bandgaps, thereby leading to back-scattering immune unidirectional edge states owing to bulk-edge correspondence. With these first-principle numerical results, we then verify the topological order for every Floquet band via Wilson loop approach. In the final paragraph, the possible experimental implementation for Floquet topological photonics is also discussed.

Moiré Fringe Induced Gauge Field in Photonics.

We realize moiré fringe induced gauge field in a double-layer photonic honeycomb metacrystal with mismatched lattice constants. Benefitting from the generated strong effective gauge field, we report direct measurement of the band diagrams of both Landau level flat bands and intermagnetic-domain edge states. Importantly, we observe the correlation between the momentum and orbital position of the Landau modes, serving as an evidence of the noncommuteness between orthogonal components of the momentum. Without complicated time driving mechanics and careful site-by-site engineering, moiré superlattices could emerge as a powerful means to generate effective gauge fields for photonics benefiting from its simplicity and reconfigurability, which can be applied to nonlinearity enhancement and lasing applications at optical frequencies.

Vortical Reflection and Spiraling Fermi Arcs with Weyl Metamaterials.

Scatterings and transport in Weyl semimetals have caught growing attention in condensed matter physics, with observables including chiral zero modes and the associated magnetoresistance and chiral magnetic effects. Measurement of electrical conductance is usually performed in these studies, which, however, cannot resolve the momentum of electrons, preventing direct observation of the phase singularities in scattering matrix associated with Weyl point. Here we experimentally demonstrate a helical phase distribution in the angle (momentum) resolved scattering matrix of electromagnetic waves in a photonic Weyl metamaterial. It further leads to spiraling Fermi arcs in an air gap sandwiched between a Weyl metamaterial and a metal plate. Benefiting from the alignment-free feature of angular vortical reflection, our findings establish a new platform in manipulating optical angular momenta with photonic Weyl systems.

Spontaneous Emission and Resonant Scattering in Transition from Type I to Type II Photonic Weyl Systems.

Spontaneous emission and scattering behavior of an emitter or a resonant scatterer strongly depend on the density of states of the surrounding medium. It has been shown that the resonant scattering cross section (RSC) may diverge at the Weyl frequency of a type I Weyl system due to the diminishing density of states. Here we study the spontaneous emission (SE) and RSC in a photonic metacrystal across the critical transition between type I and type II Weyl systems. Theoretical results show that the SE rate of an emitter in a type I Weyl system diminishes to zero at the Weyl frequency. When the system is tuned towards the transition point between type I and type II Weyl point, the dip in the SE spectrum at the Weyl frequency becomes infinitely sharp. The dip vanishes at the critical transition, and transforms into a peak when the system changes into a type II Weyl system. We further show that the resonant scattering cross section also exhibits dramatically different spectral features across the transition. Our study demonstrates the ability to tune SE and RSC through altering the dispersion of the Weyl medium between type I and type II, which provides a fundamentally new route in manipulating light-matter interactions.

The impact of "Child Care" intervention in rural Primary Health Care Program on prevalence of diarrhea among children less than 36 months of age in rural western China.

BACKGROUND: It was unclear how and to what extent the "Child Care" intervention (CCI) in rural Primary Health Care Program affected the prevalence of childhood diarrhea in rural western China. METHODS: The available data of 10,829 and 10,682 households was collected from shared 34 counties of 9 provinces of western China in 2001 and 2005 respectively. A log-binomial regression model was used to predict the effect of CCI on prevalence of childhood diarrhea. RESULTS: In 2001, the prevalence rate of diarrhea among children less than 36 months of age was 17.01% in intervention group and 17.72% in control group, and in 2005 this crude rate declined to 4.85% in the former and 6.84% in the latter. Log-binomial regression analysis showed that CCI decreased the overall prevalence of childhood diarrhea by 27% (adjusted relative prevalence ratio (rPR) = 0.73 95% CI 0.59, 0.89). The stratification regression by social-economic status (SES) of the households showed that this effect varied with SES of the households. In the medium or rich households, this intervention was effective significantly (the medium: adjusted rPR = 0.63,95%CI 0.41,0.95; the rich: adjusted rPR = 0.72,95%CI 0.54,0.97), but in poor households it seemed to be less effective (adjusted rPR = 0.86,95%CI 0.55,1.36). CONCLUSION: In rural Primary Health Care Program, CCI was effective in improving childhood diarrhea but this effect was inequitable among SES of the households. So, attention should be paid to the inequality when CCI was adopted to reduce childhood diarrhea in rural China.

Disorder-Induced Topological State Transition in Photonic Metamaterials.

The topological state transition has been widely studied based on the quantized topological band invariant such as the Chern number for the system without intense randomness that may break the band structures. We numerically demonstrate the disorder-induced state transition in the photonic topological systems for the first time. Instead of applying the ill-defined topological band invariant in a disordered system, we utilize an empirical parameter to unambiguously illustrate the state transition of the topological metamaterials. Before the state transition, we observe a robust surface state with well-confined electromagnetic waves propagating unidirectionally, immune to the disorder from permittivity fluctuation up to 60% of the original value. During the transition, a hybrid state composed of a quasiunidirectional surface mode and intensively localized hot spots is established, a result of the competition between the topological protection and Anderson localization.

Three Dimensional Photonic Dirac Points in Metamaterials.

Topological semimetals, representing a new topological phase that lacks a full band gap in bulk states and exhibiting nontrivial topological orders, recently have been extended to photonic systems, predominantly in photonic crystals and to a lesser extent metamaterials. Photonic crystal realizations of Dirac degeneracies are protected by various space symmetries, where Bloch modes span the spin and orbital subspaces. Here, we theoretically show that Dirac points can also be realized in effective media through the intrinsic degrees of freedom in electromagnetism under electromagnetic duality. A pair of spin-polarized Fermi-arc-like surface states is observed at the interface between air and the Dirac metamaterials. Furthermore, eigenreflection fields show the decoupling process from a Dirac point to two Weyl points. We also find the topological correlation between a Dirac point and vortex or vector beams in classical photonics. The experimental feasibility of our scheme is demonstrated by designing a realistic metamaterial structure. The theoretical proposal of the photonic Dirac point lays the foundation for unveiling the connection between intrinsic physics and global topology in electromagnetism.

Maternal Prenatal Nutrition and Birth Outcomes on Malnutrition among 7- to 10-Year-Old Children: A 10-Year Follow-Up.

OBJECTIVES: To identify postnatal predictors of malnutrition among 7- to 10-year-old children and to assess the long-term effects of antenatal micronutrient supplementation on malnutrition. STUDY DESIGN: A follow-up study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of 7- to 10-year-olds (1747 children) whose mothers participated in a cluster-randomized double-blind controlled trial from 2002 to 2006. RESULTS: The rate of malnourished 7- to 10-year-olds was 11.1%. A mixed-effects logistic regression model adjusted for the cluster-sampling design indicated that mothers with low prepregnant midupper arm circumference had boys with an increased risk of thinness (aOR 2.05, 95% CI 1.11, 3.79) and girls who were more likely to be underweight (aOR 2.01, 95% CI 1.05, 3.85). Antenatal micronutrient supplementation was not significantly associated with malnutrition. Low birth weight was significantly associated with increased odds of malnutrition among boys (aOR 4.34, 95% CI 1.82, 10.39) and girls (aOR 7.50, 95% CI 3.48, 16.13). Being small for gestational age significantly increased the odds of malnutrition among boys (aOR 1.75, 95% CI 1.01, 3.04) and girls (aOR 4.20, 95% CI 2.39, 7.39). In addition, household wealth, parental height, being picky eater, and illness frequency also predicted malnutrition. CONCLUSIONS: Both maternal prenatal nutrition and adverse birth outcomes are strong predictors of malnutrition among early school-aged children. Currently, available evidence is insufficient to support long-term effects of antenatal micronutrient supplementation on children's nutrition. TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.isrctn.com: ISRCTN08850194.

Line Degeneracy and Strong Spin-Orbit Coupling of Light with Bulk Bianisotropic Metamaterials.

Propagation of light in a medium is dictated by equifrequency surfaces (EFSs), which play a similar role as Fermi surfaces for electrons in crystals. Engineering the equifrequency surface of light through structuring a photonic medium enables superior control over light propagation that goes beyond natural materials. In this Letter, we show that a bulk metamaterial with a suitably designed bianisotropy can exhibit line degeneracy in its EFSs that consist of two ellipsoids of opposite helicity states intersecting with each other. Very interestingly, light propagating along the direction of the line degeneracy experiences strong spin-dependent photon deflection, or optical spin Hall effect, which may lead to applications in optical signal processing and spin-optical manipulations. We provide a realistic metamaterial design to show that the required bianisotropy can be readily obtained.