Insights into the starch and proteins molecular structure changes of foxtail millet sourdough: Effect of fermentation from grains of cereal to pre-meal.

This study investigated the effects of foxtail millet sourdough fermentation time (0, 8, 16, and 24 h) on the protein structural properties, thermomechanical, fermentation, dynamic rheological, starch granules crystalline regions molecular mobility, and starch microstructural characteristics. The fermentation led to a significant increase in the concentration of free amino acids from protein hydrolysis. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) revealed changes in protein secondary structure and the presence of functional groups of different bioactive compounds. The result of thermomechanical properties showed a significant increase in the stability (0.70-0.79 min) and anti-retrogradation ability (2.29-3.14 Nm) of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) sourdough compared to the control dough, showing a wider processing applicability with radar profiler index. In contrast, sourdoughs with lower tan δ values had higher elasticity and strength. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the surface of the starch appeared from smooth to uneven with patchy shapes and cavities, which declined the crystallinity from 34.00 % to 21.57 %, 23.64 %, 25.09 %, and 26.34 % respectively. Fermentation changed the To, Tp, Tc, and ΔH of the starch. The results of the study will have great potential for application in the whole grain sourdough industry.

Engineering Heterostructured Fe-Co-P Arrays for Robust Sodium Storage.

Transition metal phosphides attract extensive concerns thanks to their high theoretical capacity in sodium ion batteries (SIBs). Nevertheless, the substantial volume fluctuation of metal phosphides during cycling leads to severe capacity decay, which largely hinders their large-scale deployment. In this regard, heterostructured Fe-Co-P (FeP/Co2P) arrays are firstly constructed in this work for SIBs. The novel self-supported construction without insulated binders favors fast charge migration and Na+ ion diffusion. In addition, the special heterostructure with abundant heterointerfaces could considerably mitigate the volume change during (de)sodiation and provide increased active sites for Na+ ions. Density functional theoretical (DFT) calculations confirm the built-in electric field in the heterointerfaces, which greatly hastens charge transfer and Na+ ion transportation, thereafter bringing about enhanced electrochemical performance. Most importantly, the FeP/Co2P heterostructure discloses higher electrical conductivity than that of bare FeP and Co2P based on the theoretical calculations. As anticipated, the heterostructured Fe-Co-P arrays demonstrate superior performance to that of Fe-P or Co-P anode, delivering high reversible capacities of 634 mAh g-1 at 0.2 A g-1 and 239 mAh g-1 at 1 A g-1 after 300 cycles.

Sulfur-bridged bonds enabled structure modulation and space confinement of MnS for superior sodium-ion capacitors.

Manganese sulfide (MnS) is a promising converion-type anode for sodium storage, owing to the virtues of high theoretical capacity, coupled with it crustal abundance and cost-effectiveness. Nevertheless, MnS suffers from inadequate electronic conductivity, sluggish Na+ reaction kinetics and considerable volume variation during discharge/charge process, thereby impeding its rate capability and capacity retention. Herein, a novel lamellar heterostructured composite of Fe-doped MnS nanoparticles/positively charged reduced graphene oxide (Fe-MnS/PG) was synthesized to overcome these issues. The Fe-doping can accelerate the ion/electron transfer, endowing fast electrochemical kinetics of MnS. Meanwhile, the graphene space confinement with strong MnSC bond interactions can facilite the interfacial electron transfer, hamper volume expansion and aggregation of MnS nanoparticles, stabilizing the structural integrity, thus improving the Na+ storage reversibility and cyclic stability. Combining the synergistic effect of Fe-doping and space confinement with strong MnSC bond interactions, the as-produced Fe-MnS/PG anode presents a remarkable capacity of 567 mAh/g at 0.1 A/g and outstanding rate performance (192 mAh/g at 10 A/g). Meanwhile, the as-assembled sodium-ion capacitor (SIC) can yield a high energy density of 119 Wh kg-1 and a maximum power density of 17500 W kg-1, with capacity retention of 77 % at 1 A/g after 5000 cycles. This work offers a promising strategy to develop MnS-based practical SICs with high energy and long lifespan, and paves the way for fabricating advanced anode materials.

PTEN hinders the formation of scars by regulating the levels of proteins in the extracellular matrix and promoting the apoptosis of dermal fibroblasts through Bcl-xL.

Hypertrophic scar (HS) is a dermatological condition characterized by an excessive accumulation of proteins in the extracellular matrix (ECM) and an elevated cell count. The development of HS is thought to be linked to the disruption of dermal fibroblast proliferation and apoptosis. The processes of cell proliferation and apoptosis are notably influenced by PTEN. However, the precise mechanisms by which PTEN regulates hypertrophic scar fibroblasts (HSFs) and its overall role in scar formation are still not fully understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of PTEN on hypertrophic scars(HS) and its function in the regulation of scar formation, with the aim of identifying a pivotal molecular target for scar treatment. Our results demonstrate that the overexpression of PTEN (AdPTEN) significantly suppressed the expression of type I collagen (Col I), type III collagen (Col III), and alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) in HSFs. Furthermore, it was observed that the introduction of AdPTEN resulted in the suppression of Bcl-xL expression, which consequently led to an increase in the apoptosis of HSFs. Similarly, in the inhibition of collagens expression and subsequent increase in HSF apoptosis were also observed upon silencing Bcl-xL (sibcl-xL). Additionally, the in vitro model demonstrated that both AdPTEN and sibcl-xL were effective in reducing the contraction of FPCL. The findings of our study provide validation for the role of PTEN in inhibiting the development of hypertrophic scars (HS) by modulating the expression of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins and promoting apoptosis in hypertrophic scar fibroblasts (HSFs) via Bcl-xL. These results indicate that PTEN and Bcl-xL may hold promise as potential molecular targets for therapeutic interventions aimed at managing hypertrophic scars.

3-D Point Cloud Attribute Compression With -Laplacian Embedding Graph Dictionary Learning.

3-D point clouds facilitate 3-D visual applications with detailed information of objects and scenes but bring about enormous challenges to design efficient compression technologies. The irregular signal statistics and high-order geometric structures of 3-D point clouds cannot be fully exploited by existing sparse representation and deep learning based point cloud attribute compression schemes and graph dictionary learning paradigms. In this paper, we propose a novel p-Laplacian embedding graph dictionary learning framework that jointly exploits the varying signal statistics and high-order geometric structures for 3-D point cloud attribute compression. The proposed framework formulates a nonconvex minimization constrained by p-Laplacian embedding regularization to learn a graph dictionary varying smoothly along the high-order geometric structures. An efficient alternating optimization paradigm is developed by harnessing ADMM to solve the nonconvex minimization. To our best knowledge, this paper proposes the first graph dictionary learning framework for point cloud compression. Furthermore, we devise an efficient layered compression scheme that integrates the proposed framework to exploit the correlations of 3-D point clouds in a structured fashion. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed framework is superior to state-of-the-art transform-based methods in M-term approximation and point cloud attribute compression and outperforms recent MPEG G-PCC reference software.

The effect of heat moisture treatment times on physicochemical and digestibility properties of adzuki bean, pea, and white kidney bean flours and starches.

The effects of heat moisture treatment (HMT) times on the physicochemical properties of three bean flours and their starch were analyzed. The colors of L*, b* and ΔE values increased significantly with time. The adzuki bean and pea flours showed better WAI and SP, and better gelation of starch at 2 h. The rheological properties of mixed HMT dough (3:7) exhibited the typical solid-like weak gel behavior. HMT had a significantly decreased on the pasting viscosity of bean flour starch with treated time. HMT caused the starch granules damage, but did not radically change the crystal type. FTIR results showed more proteins attached to the surface of starch granules, and the short-range molecular order decreased the DO at 2 h. In vitro digestibility inferred that RDS converted into SDS and RS. These results indicated that HMT significantly affected the digestibility and physicochemical properties of bean flours.

Extracellular vesicles from 3D cultured dermal papilla cells improve wound healing via Krüppel-like factor 4/vascular endothelial growth factor A -driven angiogenesis.

Background: Non-healing wounds are an intractable problem of major clinical relevance. Evidence has shown that dermal papilla cells (DPCs) may regulate the wound-healing process by secreting extracellular vesicles (EVs). However, low isolation efficiency and restricted cell viability hinder the applications of DPC-EVs in wound healing. In this study, we aimed to develop novel 3D-DPC spheroids (tdDPCs) based on self-feeder 3D culture and to evaluate the roles of tdDPC-EVs in stimulating angiogenesis and skin wound healing. Methods: To address the current limitations of DPC-EVs, we previously developed a self-feeder 3D culture method to construct tdDPCs. DPCs and tdDPCs were identified using immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry. Subsequently, we extracted EVs from the cells and compared the effects of DPC-EVs and tdDPC-EVs on human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in vitro using immunofluorescence staining, a scratch-wound assay and a Transwell assay. We simultaneously established a murine model of full-thickness skin injury and evaluated the effects of DPC-EVs and tdDPC-EVs on wound-healing efficiency in vivo using laser Doppler, as well as hematoxylin and eosin, Masson, CD31 and α-SMA staining. To elucidate the underlying mechanism, we conducted RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of tdDPC-EV- and phosphate-buffered saline-treated HUVECs. To validate the RNA-seq data, we constructed knockdown and overexpression vectors of Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4). Western blotting, a scratch-wound assay, a Transwell assay and a tubule-formation test were performed to detect the protein expression, cell migration and lumen-formation ability of KLF4 and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) in HUVECs incubated with tdDPC-EVs after KLF4 knockdown or overexpression. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assays were conducted to verify the activation effect of KLF4 on VEGFA. Results: We successfully cultured tdDPCs and extracted EVs from DPCs and tdDPCs. The tdDPC-EVs significantly promoted the proliferation, lumen formation and migration of HUVECs. Unlike DPC-EVs, tdDPC-EVs exhibited significant advantages in terms of promoting angiogenesis, accelerating wound healing and enhancing wound-healing efficiency both in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics analysis and further functional experiments verified that the tdDPC-EV-regulated KLF4/VEGFA axis is pivotal in accelerating wound healing. Conclusions: 3D cultivation can be utilized as an innovative optimization strategy to effectively develop DPC-derived EVs for the treatment of skin wounds. tdDPC-EVs significantly enhance wound healing via KLF4/VEGFA-driven angiogenesis.

The Value of Ultrasonic Elastography in Detecting Placental Stiffness for the Diagnosis of Preeclampsia: A Meta-Analysis.

This meta-analysis evaluated the diagnostic value of ultrasonic elastography in detecting placental stiffness in the diagnosis of preeclampsia (PE). A systematic search was conducted in the EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Scopus database, and PubMed databases to identify studies published before June 2023 using ultrasonic elastography to diagnose PE. The sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratio of ultrasonic elastography for diagnosing PE were calculated, and a summary receiver operating characteristic curve model was constructed. The degree of heterogeneity was estimated using the I2 statistic, and a meta-regression analysis was performed to explore its sources. A protocol was determined previously (PROSPERO: CRD42023443646). We included 1188 participants from 11 studies, including 190 patients with PE and 998 patients without PE as controls. Overall sensitivity and specificity of ultrasonic elastography in detecting placental stiffness for the diagnosis of PE were 89% (95% CI: 85-93) and 74% (95% CI: 51-89), respectively. The I2 values for sensitivity and specificity were 59% (95% CI: 29-89) and 96% (95% CI: 95-98), respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.90 (95% CI: 0.87-0.92). The meta-regression analysis showed no significant heterogeneity. Ultrasonic elastography exhibits good diagnostic accuracy for detecting placental stiffness and can serve as a non-invasive tool for differentially diagnosing PE.

A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial of duloxetine hydrochloride enteric-coated tablets in the treatment of refractory chronic cough.

INTRODUCTION: Refractory cough, a chronic cough with an unclear diagnosis or poor treatment response. The symptoms are often stubborn and persistent, causing serious complications and lowering the patient's quality of life. Cough hypersensitivity syndrome (CHS) is proposed as a potential cause, and reducing sensory nerve hyperresponsiveness is suggested as an effective treatment. However, current drugs have low efficacy and benefit rates and numerous side effects. This trail proposes using duloxetine, a selective 5-HT and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, as a potential treatment for refractory cough, which has shown promise in treating pain and depression. Duloxetine may inhibit pain conduction and oxidative stress in peripheral nerves by inhibiting the activity of TRPV1 channels, which play an important role in the peripheral afferent pathway of refractory cough. Meanwhile, the antidepressant effects of duloxetine may also play a role in the treatment of refractory cough. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This is a single-center, prospective, randomized, double-blind, and controlled trial. A total of 98 individuals will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to duloxetine group and placebo control group (starting with 20 mg QD, increasing 20 mg daily until 20 mg TID). After a screening period, the second stage runs from baseline to the 42nd (last) day of treatment, with follow-up visits on the 3rd, 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th, 35th, 42nd and 49th days. The main end-stage observation indicators include objective cough frequency, cough visual analog scale (VAS), cough symptom score, Leicester Cough Questionnaire (LCQ), and cough evaluation test (CET); the secondary end-stage observation indicators include capsaicin cough sensitivity, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Major Depression Inventory (MDI), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale (GAD-7), Life Events Scale (LES-32), induced sputum supernatant. The safety measures will be AEs/SAEs, vital signs, liver and kidney function, fecal occult blood test. DISCUSSION: This study is the first randomized, double-blind, and controlled clinical trial investigating the use of duloxetine in the treatment of refractory coughs. The study aims to provide a high-quality basis for evaluating the efficacy and safety of duloxetine for this condition. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Our study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trials Register ( www.chictr.org.cn/ ) (ChiCTR2000037429) in 28/08/2020.

Dynamic Hydrogels with Viscoelasticity and Tunable Stiffness for the Regulation of Cell Behavior and Fate.

The extracellular matrix (ECM) of natural cells typically exhibits dynamic mechanical properties (viscoelasticity and dynamic stiffness). The viscoelasticity and dynamic stiffness of the ECM play a crucial role in biological processes, such as tissue growth, development, physiology, and disease. Hydrogels with viscoelasticity and dynamic stiffness have recently been used to investigate the regulation of cell behavior and fate. This article first emphasizes the importance of tissue viscoelasticity and dynamic stiffness and provides an overview of characterization techniques at both macro- and microscale. Then, the viscoelastic hydrogels (crosslinked via ion bonding, hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and supramolecular interactions) and dynamic stiffness hydrogels (softening, stiffening, and reversible stiffness) with different crosslinking strategies are summarized, along with the significant impact of viscoelasticity and dynamic stiffness on cell spreading, proliferation, migration, and differentiation in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures. Finally, the emerging trends in the development of dynamic mechanical hydrogels are discussed.

A bimetallic metal-organic framework derived MnS/CoS@C heterostructure with enhanced sodium-ion storage.

Manganese sulfide (MnS) has gained significant attention as a high capacity and durable anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to its high theoretical capacity and decent redox reversibility. However, sluggish Na+ diffusion and significant volume variation during charge/discharge cycles limited its rate capability and cycling stability. Here, a new MnS/CoS heterojunction embedded in S-doped carbon (MnS/CoS@C) is designed through sulfurization of a bimetallic metal-organic framework (MOF). The synergistic effect of heterojunction design and carbon framework encapsulation integrates several benefits, including facilitating ion/electron transport, alleviating volume variation, and preventing the agglomeration of metal sulfide nanoparticles. Therefore, the MnS/CoS@C composite manifests remarkable rate capability (526.1 mA h g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 and 273.7 mA h g-1 at 10 A g-1) and stable long-term cycle life (214.8 mA h g-1 after 1000 cycles at 5 A g-1). Meanwhile, the sodium storage mechanism is examined using in situ electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), ex situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and ex situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Coupled with a carbon nanosheet cathode, a prototype sodium-ion capacitor (SIC) has been fabricated. The SIC can achieve a high energy density of 120.7 W h kg-1 and a maximum power density of 12 250 W kg-1, demonstrating the high application potential of the composite for sodium-ion based energy storage systems.

Chitosan-based hemostatic sponges as new generation hemostatic materials for uncontrolled bleeding emergency: Modification, composition, and applications.

The choice of hemostatic technique is a curial concern for surgery and as first-aid treatment in combat. To treat uncontrolled bleeding in complex wound environments, chitosan-based hemostatic sponges have attracted significant attention in recent years because of the excellent biocompatibility, degradability, hemostasis and antibacterial properties of chitosan and their unique sponge-like morphology for high fluid absorption rate and priority aggregation of blood cells/platelets to achieve rapid hemostasis. In this review, we provide a historical perspective on the use of chitosan hemostatic sponges as the new generation of hemostatic materials for uncontrolled bleeding emergencies in complex wounds. We summarize the modification of chitosan, review the current status of preparation protocols of chitosan sponges based on various composite systems, and highlight the recent achievements on the detailed breakdown of the existing chitosan sponges to present the relationship between their composition, physical properties, and hemostatic capacity. Finally, the future opportunities and challenges of chitosan hemostatic sponges are also proposed.

miR-125b-5p in adipose derived stem cells exosome alleviates pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells ferroptosis via Keap1/Nrf2/GPX4 in sepsis lung injury.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is a fatal disease with a high rate of morbidity and mortality, during which acute lung injury is the earliest and most serious complication. Injury of pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (PMVECs) induced by excessive inflammation plays an important role in sepsis acute lung injury. This study is meant to explore the protective effect and mechanism of ADSCs exosomes on excessive inflammation PMVECs injury. RESULTS: We successfully isolated ADSCs exosomes, the characteristic of which were confirmed. ADSCs exosomes reduced excessive inflammatory response induced ROS accumulation and cell injury in PMVECs. Besides, ADSCs exosomes inhibited excessive inflammatory response induced ferroptosis while upregulated expression of GPX4 in PMVECs. And further GPX4 inhibition experiments revealed that ADSCs exosomes alleviated inflammatory response induced ferroptosis via upregulating GPX4. Meanwhile, ADSCs exosomes could increase the expression and nucleus translocation of Nrf2, while decrease the expression of Keap1. miRNA analysis and further inhibition experiments verified that specific delivery of miR-125b-5p by ADSCs exosomes inhibited Keap1 and alleviated ferroptosis. In CLP induced sepsis model, ADSCs exosomes could relieve the lung tissue injury and reduced the death rate. Besides, ADSCs exosomes alleviated oxidative stress injury and ferroptosis of lung tissue, while remarkably increase expression of Nrf2 and GPX4. CONCLUSION: Collectively, we illustrated a novel potentially therapeutic mechanism that miR-125b-5p in ADSCs exosomes could alleviate the inflammation induced PMVECs ferroptosis in sepsis induced acute lung injury via regulating Keap1/Nrf2/GPX4 expression, hence improve the acute lung injury in sepsis.

A large-format streak tube for compressed ultrafast photography.

Streak cameras are powerful imaging instruments for studying ultrafast dynamics with the temporal resolution ranging from picosecond to attosecond. However, the confined detection area limits the information capacity of streak cameras, preventing them from fulfilling their potential in lidar, compressed ultrafast photography, etc. Here, we designed and manufactured a large-format streak tube with a large-size round-aperture gate, a spherical cathode, and a spherical screen, leading to an expanded detection area and a high spatial resolution. The simulation results show that the physical temporal resolution of the streak tube is better than 45 ps and the spatial resolutions are higher than 14 lp/mm in the whole area of 24 × 28 mm2 on the cathode. The experiments demonstrate the streak tube's application potential in weak light imaging benefiting from the imaging magnification of 0.79, a photocathode radiance sensitivity of 37 mA/W, a radiant emitting gain of 11.6 at the wavelength of 500 nm, and a dynamic range higher than 512:1. Most importantly, in the photocathode area of Φ35 mm, the static spatial resolutions at the center and the edge along the slit (R = 16 mm) reach 32 and 28 lp/mm, respectively, and are higher than 10 lp/mm in the whole area of 24 × 28 mm2 on the cathode, allowing for a considerable capacity for spatial information.

Creating a re-expanded prefabricated island flap constructed with an anastomosed vascular pedicle for burned ear reconstruction: a case report.

Background: The combined use of various flap techniques has rapidly improved the reconstruction quality of auricle defects that are complicated by a scarcity of periauricular skin after severe burns. Nevertheless, there is still no preferable method when the optimal alternative skin to cover the auricular framework is unavailable and the periauricular vascular network is devastated. Case Description: Copious scars were observed in the periauricular region, neck, forearm, and supraclavicular region of a 19-year-old man. He had been burned by high-voltage electricity and exhibited a right auricular defect. We innovatively created a prefabricated expanded island flap constructed with an anastomosed vascular pedicle buried in the anterior thoracic chest, followed by flap transfer, tissue re-expansion, and sculpted autologous costal cartilage implantation. The remnant ear was successfully reconstructed in a three-stage surgical procedure. Conclusions: All the flaps survived well without any complications. The reconstructed right ear had a natural shape and a clear structure without apparent displacement and deformation during follow-up. The patient was satisfied with the final appearance, and his neck mobility markedly improved. Advantages and disadvantages were discussed. This procedure explored a novel solution to construct an auricular framework covering for patients who do not have high-quality donor skin and lack anastomotic vessels in the recipient area.

Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm based on Cauchy-Gaussian mutation and improved search strategy.

The traditional Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm (GWO) has received widespread attention due to features of strong convergence performance, few parameters, and easy implementation. However, in actual optimization projects, there are problems of slow convergence speed and easy to fall into local optimal solution. The paper proposed a Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm based on Cauchy-Gaussian mutation and improved search strategy (CG-GWO) in response to the above problems. The Cauchy-Gaussian mutation operator is introduced to increase the population diversity of the leader wolves and improve the global search ability of the algorithm. This work retains outstanding grey wolf individuals through the greedy selection mechanism to ensure the convergence speed of the algorithm. An improved search strategy was proposed to expand the optimization space of the algorithm and improve the convergence accuracy. Experiments are performed with 16 benchmark functions covering unimodal functions, multimodal functions, and fixed-dimension multimodal functions to verify the effectiveness of the algorithm. Experimental results show that compared with four classic optimization algorithms, particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO), whale optimization algorithm (WOA), sparrow optimization algorithm (SSA), and farmland fertility algorithm (FFA), the CG-GWO algorithm shows better convergence accuracy, convergence speed, and global search ability. The proposed algorithm shows the same better performance compared with a series of improved algorithms such as the improved grey wolf algorithm (IGWO), modified Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm (mGWO), and the Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm inspired by enhanced leadership (GLF-GWO).

Development of a large-field streak tube for underwater imaging lidar.

Streak tube imaging lidar (STIL) can obtain 4-D images of a target, and its performance is mainly determined by the streak tube sensor. To obtain a large field of view, we developed a streak tube with a photocathode length as large as 35.3 mm, which is larger than the commonly used ST-HDR (30 mm). At the same time, the temporal resolution and dynamic spatial resolution are 60 ps and 12 lp/mm, which are very suitable to obtain accurate target coordinates for 4-D imaging. In addition, the streak tube has a high detection sensitivity of 46 mA/W at 500 nm and, hence, prospects in remote imaging. To test the performance of the streak tube, an underwater STIL experiment was conducted. Echo signal processing was performed by means of a bandpass filter and a matched filter, and then the peak detection algorithm was used to reconstruct the image. The results indicate that a spatial resolution better than 9 mm is achieved in the limpid water with a depth of 20 m, and a range accuracy of 1 cm is achieved in the turbid water with a depth of 10 m. Such a performance suggests that the large-field streak tube is of great potential for underwater target imaging and other remote imaging applications.

Bistatic Doppler wind lidar study for wind field measurement over complex terrain.

Atmospheric wind measurement over complex terrain is of great significance. Due to the limitation of the retrieval method, a single wind lidar cannot be applied to detect the horizontally inhomogeneous wind field. Therefore, a bistatic Doppler wind lidar system is studied for meeting the requirement of wind detection over complex terrain. By analyzing the uncertainty of a synthetic wind field, the isosceles triangle is proven to be the optimal layout of the bistatic lidar system. By using the data set of Nanjing sounding data from 2015 and two typical wind field models, the detection accuracy of the bistatic lidar system is estimated. The experimental results show that the bistatic wind lidar can detect the wind field over complex terrain accurately, the wind errors are less than 1 m/s below 4 km, and the relative errors are less than 5%.

Nutritional Components of Millet Porridge Cooked by Different Electric Cookers Based on Principal Component and Cluster Analyses.

(1) Background: In order to study the effects of different electric cookers on the nutritional components of millet porridge, five different electric cookers (No. 1-5) were selected to cook millet porridge, then sensory and nutritional components in millet porridge, millet soup, and millet grains were analyzed; (2) Methods: Using principal component and cluster analysis, a variety of nutritional components were comprehensively compared; (3) Results: The results showed that among the different cooked samples, the content of amylose and reducing sugars was the highest in the samples cooked by electric cooker No. 3. The electric cooker No. 4 samples had the highest sensory evaluation score, crude fat, and protein content. The contents of ash, fatty acids, bound amino acids, and minerals were the highest in the electric cooker No. 5 samples. The sensory evaluation score and content of crude fat, ash, reducing sugars, direct starch, and Cu were higher in millet grains than in millet soup or porridge. The content of fatty acids, protein, amino acid, Zn, Fe, Mg, Mn, and Ca was highest in millet soup. Different electric cookers produced millet porridge with varying nutritional levels; (4) Conclusions: This study provides a reference for the further development of new electric cookers.

Metabolic characterization of amniotic fluid of fetuses with isolated choroid plexus cyst.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the amino acid (AA)-related metabolic characteristics of amniotic fluid (AF) obtained by ultrasound-guided amniocentesis from fetuses with isolated choroid plexus cysts of the central nervous system. METHODS: Ultrasound-guided amniocentesis was performed on 17 fetuses with isolated choroid plexus cysts (ICPCs) and 17 normal fetuses. The AF samples from normal pregnancies were matched with the case samples in a 1:1 ratio based upon gestational age. The AF samples from the 34 fetuses were analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Then, the peak areas of the metabolites were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and univariate statistical analysis. RESULTS: This study ultimately identified 31 AAs. Seven differentially abundant AAs were screened out, including citrulline, ethanolamine, aspartic acid, valine, 5-hydroxylysine, proline, and isoleucine (p-value<0.05). A total of 4 metabolic pathways were significantly altered in the ICPC group: valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis; valine, leucine and isoleucine degradation; pantothenate and coenzyme A (CoA) biosynthesis; and arginine biosynthesis. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that fetuses with ICPC have disrupted levels of citrulline, ethanolamine, aspartic acid, valine, 5-hydroxylysine, proline, and isoleucine, which may ultimately affect fetal glucose and lipid metabolism.