Robust Point Cloud Registration for Aircraft Engine Pipeline Systems.

Aircraft engine systems are composed of numerous pipelines. It is crucial to regularly inspect these pipelines to detect any damages or failures that could potentially lead to serious accidents. The inspection process typically involves capturing complete 3D point clouds of the pipelines using 3D scanning techniques from multiple viewpoints. To obtain a complete and accurate representation of the aircraft pipeline system, it is necessary to register and align the individual point clouds acquired from different views. However, the structures of aircraft pipelines often appear similar from different viewpoints, and the scanning process is prone to occlusions, resulting in incomplete point cloud data. The occlusions pose a challenge for existing registration methods, as they can lead to missing or wrong correspondences. To this end, we present a novel registration framework specifically designed for aircraft pipeline scenes. The proposed framework consists of two main steps. First, we extract the point feature structure of the pipeline axis by leveraging the cylindrical characteristics observed between adjacent blocks. Then, we design a new 3D descriptor called PL-PPFs (Point Line-Point Pair Features), which combines information from both the pipeline features and the engine assembly line features within the aircraft pipeline point cloud. By incorporating these relevant features, our descriptor enables accurate identification of the structure of the engine's piping system. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach on aircraft engine pipeline point cloud data.

Structural and functional insights into the helicase protein E5 of Mpox virus.

Mpox virus (MPXV) can cause mpox in humans. Due to its quick and wide spread in the past two years, mpox has turned into a significant public health concern. Helicase E5 is a multi-domain protein; its primer synthesis and DNA unwinding activity are required for genome uncoating and DNA replication of MPXV. However, the in vitro DNA unwinding activity has never been demonstrated. Here, we report the structural and biochemical studies of MPXV E5, showing that the full-length protein adopts an auto-inhibited conformation. Truncation of the N-terminus can recover the in vitro unwinding activity of E5 towards the forked DNA. Further structural analysis reveals that MPXV E5 shares a conserved mechanism in DNA unwinding and primer synthesis with the homologous proteins. These findings not only advance our understanding on the function of MPXV E5, but also provide a solid basis for the development of anti-poxvirus drugs.

Neural-network based high-speed volumetric dynamic optical coherence tomography.

We demonstrate deep-learning neural network (NN)-based dynamic optical coherence tomography (DOCT), which generates high-quality logarithmic-intensity-variance (LIV) DOCT images from only four OCT frames. The NN model is trained for tumor spheroid samples using a customized loss function: the weighted mean absolute error. This loss function enables highly accurate LIV image generation. The fidelity of the generated LIV images to the ground truth LIV images generated using 32 OCT frames is examined via subjective image observation and statistical analysis of image-based metrics. Fast volumetric DOCT imaging with an acquisition time of 6.55 s/volume is demonstrated using this NN-based method.

The MdHSC70-MdWRKY75 module mediates basal apple thermotolerance by regulating the expression of heat shock factor genes.

Heat stress severely restricts the growth and fruit development of apple (Malus domestica). Little is known about the involvement of WRKY proteins in the heat tolerance mechanism in apple. In this study, we found that the apple transcription factor MdWRKY75 responds to heat and positively regulates basal thermotolerance. Apple plants that overexpressed MdWRKY75 were more tolerant to heat stress, while silencing MdWRKY75 caused the opposite phenotype. RNA-seq and reverse transcription quantitative PCR showed that heat shock transcription factor genes (MdHsfs) could be the potential targets of MdWRKY75. Electrophoretic mobility shift, yeast one-hybrid, ß-glucuronidase, and dual-luciferase assays showed that MdWRKY75 can bind to the promoters of MdHsf4, MdHsfB2a, and MdHsfA1d and activate their expression. Apple plants that overexpressed MdHsf4, MdHsfB2a, and MdHsfA1d exhibited heat tolerance and rescued the heat sensitive phenotype of MdWRKY75-Ri3. In addition, apple heat shock cognate 70 (MdHSC70) interacts with MdWRKY75, as shown by yeast two-hybrid, split luciferase, bimolecular fluorescence complementation, and pull-down assays. MdHSC70 acts as a negative regulator of the heat stress response. Apple plants that overexpressed MdHSC70 were sensitive to heat, while virus-induced gene silencing of MdHSC70 enhanced heat tolerance. Additional research showed that MdHSC70 exhibits heat sensitivity by interacting with MdWRKY75 and inhibiting MdHsfs expression. In summary, we proposed a mechanism for the response of apple to heat that is mediated by the 'MdHSC70/MdWRKY75-MdHsfs' molecular module, which enhances our understanding of apple thermotolerance regulated by WRKY transcription factors.

The Role of Momentum Partitioning in Covariance Ion Imaging Analysis.

We present results from a covariance ion imaging study, which employs extensive filtering, on the relationship between fragment momenta to gain deeper insight into photofragmentation dynamics. A new data analysis approach is introduced that considers the momentum partitioning between the fragments of the breakup of a molecular polycation to disentangle concurrent fragmentation channels, which yield the same ion species. We exploit this approach to examine the momentum exchange relationship between the products, which provides direct insight into the dynamics of molecular fragmentation. We apply these techniques to extensively characterize the dissociation of 1-iodopropane and 2-iodopropane dications prepared by site-selective ionization of the iodine atom using extreme ultraviolet intense femtosecond laser pulses with a photon energy of 95 eV. Our assignments are supported by classical simulations, using parameters largely obtained directly from the experimental data.

Analysis of the synergistic benefits of typical technologies for pollution reduction and carbon reduction in the iron and steel industry in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

With its high energy consumption and pollutant emissions, the iron and steel industry is a significant source of air pollution and carbon emissions in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region. To improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a series of policies involving ultra-low emission, synergistic reduction of pollution, and carbon application have been implemented in the region. This study has assessed air pollutant and CO2 emission patterns in the iron and steel industry of the region by employing co-control effects coordinate system, marginal abatement cost curve, and numerical modeling, along with the synergistic benefits of typical technologies. The results have demonstrated that: (1) the intensive production activities pertinent to iron and steel enterprises has contributed greatly to the emission in Tangshan and Handan, where the sintering process is the main source of SO2, NOx, PM2.5, and CO, accounting for 64.86%, 55.15%, 29.98%, and 46.43% of the total emissions, respectively. (2) Among the typical pollution control and reduction measures, industrial restructuring and adjustment of the energy-resource structure have led to the greatest effects on emission reduction. Technologies exhibiting great potential in emission reduction and high-cost efficiency such as Blast Furnace Top Gas Recovery Turbine Unit (TRT) need to be promoted. (3) In Tangshan city with the highest level of steel production, the iron and steel production activities contributed to the concentration of 30.51% of PM2.5, 50.67% of SO2, and 42.54% of NO2 during the non-heating period. During the heating period, pollutants pertinent to the combustion of fossil energy for heating have increased, while iron and steel induced emissions have decreased to 23.7%, 34.32%, and 29.13%, respectively. By 2030, it is speculated that the contribution of the iron and steel industry to air quality will be significantly decreased as result of successful implementation of ultra-low emission policies and typical synergistic reduction technologies.

Learning mapping by curve iteration estimation For real-time underwater image enhancement.

The degradation and attenuation of light in underwater images impose constraints on underwater vision tasks. However, the complexity and the low real-time performance of most current image enhancement algorithms make them challenging in practical applications. To address the above issues, we propose a new lightweight framework for underwater image enhancement. We adopt the curve estimation to learn the mapping between images rather than end-to-end networks, which greatly reduces the requirement for computing resources. Firstly, a designed iterative curve with parameters is used to simulate the mapping from the raw to the enhanced image. Then, the parameters of this curve are learned with a parameter estimation network called CieNet and a set of loss functions. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed method is superior to existing algorithms in terms of evaluating indexes and visual perception quality. Furthermore, our highly lightweight network enables it to be easily integrated into small devices, making it highly applicable. The extremely short running-time of our method facilitates real-time underwater image enhancement.

Cardiac commitment driven by MyoD expression in pericardial stem cells.

Cellular therapy holds immense promise to remuscularize the damaged myocardium but is practically hindered by limited allogeneic sources of cardiac-committed cells that engraft stably in the recipient heart after transplantation. Here, we demonstrate that the pericardial tissue harbors myogenic stem cells (pSCs) that are activated in response to inflammatory signaling after myocardial infarction (MI). The pSCs derived from the MI rats (MI-pSCs) show in vivo and in vitro cardiac commitment characterized by cardiac-specific Tnnt2 expression and formation of rhythmic contraction in culture. Bulk RNA-seq analysis reveals significant upregulation of a panel of genes related to cardiac/myogenic differentiation, paracrine factors, and extracellular matrix in the activated pSCs compared to the control pSCs (Sham-pSCs). Notably, we define MyoD as a key factor that governs the process of cardiac commitment, as siRNA-mediated MyoD gene silencing results in a significant reduction of myogenic potential. Injection of the cardiac-committed cells into the infarcted rat heart leads to long-term survival and stable engraftment in the recipient myocardium. Therefore, these findings point to pericardial myogenic progenitors as an attractive candidate for cardiac cell-based therapy to remuscularize the damaged myocardium.

Compact single-shot soft X-ray photon spectrometer for free-electron laser diagnostics.

The photon spectrum from free-electron laser (FEL) light sources offers valuable information in time-resolved experiments and machine optimization in the spectral and temporal domains. We have developed a compact single-shot photon spectrometer to diagnose soft X-ray spectra. The spectrometer consists of an array of off-axis Fresnel zone plates (FZP) that act as transmission-imaging gratings, a Ce:YAG scintillator, and a microscope objective to image the scintillation target onto a two-dimensional imaging detector. This spectrometer operates in segmented energy ranges which covers tens of electronvolts for each absorption edge associated with several atomic constituents: carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and neon. The spectrometer's performance is demonstrated at a repetition rate of 120 Hz, but our detection scheme can be easily extended to 200 kHz spectral collection by employing a fast complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) line-scan camera to detect the light from the scintillator. This compact photon spectrometer provides an opportunity for monitoring the spectrum downstream of an endstation in a limited space environment with sub-electronvolt energy resolution.

UIEOGP: an underwater image enhancement method based on optical geometric properties.

Due to the inconsistent absorption and scattering effects of different wavelengths of light, underwater images often suffer from color casts, blurred details, and low visibility. To address this image degradation problem, we propose a robust and efficient underwater image enhancement method named UIEOGP. It can be divided into the following three steps. First, according to the light attenuation effect presented by Lambert Beer's law, combined with the variance change after attenuation, we estimate the depth of field in the underwater image. Then, we propose a local-based color correction algorithm to address the color cast issue in underwater images, employing the statistical distribution law. Finally, drawing inspiration from the law of light propagation, we propose detail enhancement algorithms, each based on the geometric properties of circles and ellipses, respectively. The enhanced images produced by our method feature vibrant colors, improved contrast, and sharper detail. Extensive experiments show that our method outperforms current state-of-the-art methods. In further experiments, we found that our method is beneficial for downstream tasks of underwater image processing, such as the detection of keypoints and edges in underwater images.

Cryo-EM structure of human O-GlcNAcylation enzyme pair OGT-OGA complex.

O-GlcNAcylation is a conserved post-translational modification that attaches N-acetyl glucosamine (GlcNAc) to myriad cellular proteins. In response to nutritional and hormonal signals, O-GlcNAcylation regulates diverse cellular processes by modulating the stability, structure, and function of target proteins. Dysregulation of O-GlcNAcylation has been implicated in the pathogenesis of cancer, diabetes, and neurodegeneration. A single pair of enzymes, the O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) and O-GlcNAcase (OGA), catalyzes the addition and removal of O-GlcNAc on over 3,000 proteins in the human proteome. However, how OGT selects its native substrates and maintains the homeostatic control of O-GlcNAcylation of so many substrates against OGA is not fully understood. Here, we present the cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of human OGT and the OGT-OGA complex. Our studies reveal that OGT forms a functionally important scissor-shaped dimer. Within the OGT-OGA complex structure, a long flexible OGA segment occupies the extended substrate-binding groove of OGT and positions a serine for O-GlcNAcylation, thus preventing OGT from modifying other substrates. Conversely, OGT disrupts the functional dimerization of OGA and occludes its active site, resulting in the blocking of access by other substrates. This mutual inhibition between OGT and OGA may limit the futile O-GlcNAcylation cycles and help to maintain O-GlcNAc homeostasis.

CO2 emission accounting and emission reduction analysis of the steel production process based on the material-energy-carbon correlation effect.

This paper develops a process-level carbon emission calculation model for iron and steel enterprises through the carbon emission mechanism of the whole production process. The relationship between material, energy and carbon flows is considered and combined. The carbon emissions of enterprises are divided into industrial emissions and combustion emissions, and the indirect emissions of purchased intermediate products and electricity purchased from the grid are also considered. Carbon emission targets and corresponding emission reduction strategies are formulated at the enterprise and process levels. For example, consider an iron and steel enterprise. The different types of carbon emissions are accounted for, with their reduction potential analysed based on the carbon material flow analysis method. The results show that the carbon emission of this enterprise is 1930.87 kgCO2/t (CS), and the combustion emission caused by energy flow is the main contributor to the enterprise's carbon emission, accounting for 57.02% of the total emission. The carbon emission during iron-making accounts for 69.06% of the entire process and is critical in any carbon emission reduction of the enterprise. Among them, process emissions from the blast furnace process account for 81.79% of industrial emissions of the whole process, which is 356.51 kgCO2/t (CS), and is the main challenge of low carbon transformation in this extensive process. This study highlights that increasing the integrated steel-making scrap ratio and electric furnace steel production can break through the existing emission reduction limits. A 65.02% carbon emission reduction can be achieved, and using green electricity can reduce emissions by 24.15%. Reasonably determining the amount of purchased coke and paying attention to the high-value recycling of byproduct gas resources in the plant are essential to achieve low-carbon economic development of steel.

Microwave target location method based on the diamond NV color center.

We propose a method for microwave target source localization based on the diamond nitrogen vacancy color center. We use coherent population oscillation effect and modulation and demodulation techniques to achieve the detection of microwave intensity of microwave target sources, with a minimum detection intensity of 0.59 µW. Positioning of the microwave source was achieved within 50×100c m 2 distance from the system 1 m away using the cubic spline interpolation algorithm and minimum mean squared error. The maximum positioning error was 3.5 cm. This method provides a new, to the best of our knowledge, idea for the passive localization of microwave targets.

Investigations on diverse dynamics of soliton triplets in mode-locked fiber lasers.

Optical soliton molecules exhibiting behaviors analogous to matter molecules have been the hotspot in the dissipative system for decades. Based on the dispersion Fourier transformation technique, the real-time spectral interferometry has become the popular method to reveal the internal dynamics of soliton molecules. The rising degrees of freedom in pace with the increased constitutes of soliton molecules yield more intriguing sights into the internal motions. Yet the soliton molecules with three or more pulses are rarely investigated owing to the exponentially growing complexity. Here, we present both experimental and theoretical studies on the soliton molecules containing three solitons. Different assemblies of the constitutes are categorized as different types of soliton triplet akin to the geometric isomer, including equally-spaced triplet and unequally-spaced triplet. Typical soliton triplets with different dynamics including regular internal motions, hybrid phase dynamics and complex dynamics involving separation evolution are experimentally analyzed and theoretically simulated. Specifically, the energy difference which remains elusive in experiments are uncovered through the simulation of diverse triplets with plentiful dynamics. Moreover, the multi-dimensional interaction space is proposed to visualize the internal motions in connection with the energy exchange, which play significant roles in the interplays among the solitons. Both the experimental and numerical simulations on the isomeric soliton triplets would release a larger number of degrees of freedom and motivate the potentially artificial configuration of soliton molecules for various ultrafast applications, such as all-optical buffering and multiple encoding for telecommunications.

Microwave Passive Direction-Finding Method Based on NV Color Center in Diamond.

In this study, we established a passive direction-finding scheme based on microwave power measurement: Microwave intensity was detected using microwave-frequency proportion integration differentiation control and coherent population oscillation effect converting the change in microwave resonance peak intensity into a shift of the microwave frequency spectrum, for which the minimum microwave intensity resolution was -20 dBm. The direction angle of the microwave source was calculated using the weighted global least squares method of microwave field distribution. This lay in the 12~26 dBm microwave emission intensity range, and the measurement position was in the range of (-15°~15°). The average angle error of the angle measurement was 0.24°, and the maximum angle error was 0.48°. In this study, we established a microwave passive direction-finding scheme based on quantum precision sensing, which measures the microwave frequency, intensity, and angle in a small space and has a simple system structure, small equipment size, and low system power consumption. In this study, we provide a basis for the future application of quantum sensors in microwave direction measurements.

Blood typing and transfusion therapy in a patient with A2 subtype acute myeloid leukemia M2: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is one of the most common types of leukemia in adults. However, AML is relatively rare in the population overall, accounting for only about 1 percent of all cancers. Treatment for AML can be very effective for some patients, yet it leaves others with serious and even life-threatening side effects. Chemotherapy is still the primary treatment for most AML, but over time, leukemia cells become resistant to chemotherapy drugs. In addition, stem cell transplantation, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy are currently available. At the same time, with the progression of the disease, the patient may have corresponding complications, such as coagulation dysfunction, anemia, granulocytopenia, and repeated infection, so transfusion supportive therapy will be involved in the overall treatment regime. To date, few articles have reported on blood transfusion treatment options for patients with ABO subtypes AML-M2. Blood transfusion therapy is an important supportive treatment for AML-M2, and accurate determination of patients' blood type is one of the most important steps in the treatment process. In this study, we explored blood typing and supportive treatment strategies for a patient with A2 subtype AML-M2 to provide the basis for treatment for all patients. CASE SUMMARY: In order to determine the blood type of the patient, serological and molecular biological methods were used for reference tests, and the genetic background was studied to determine the patient's final blood type and select the appropriate blood products for infusion treatment. According to the results obtained by serological and molecular biological methods, the blood type of the patient was A2 subtype; the genotype was A02/001; the irregular antibody screening was negative, and anti-A1 was found in the plasma. According to the overall treatment plan, active anti-infection, elevated cells, component blood transfusion support, and other rescue and supportive treatments were given, and the patient successfully passed the stage of myelosuppression after chemotherapy. Re-examination of bone marrow smears showed that AL was in complete remission of bone marrow signs, and minimal residual leukemia lesions suggested no cells with obvious abnormal immunophenotype (residual leukemia cells < 10-4). CONCLUSION: The infusion of patients with A2 subtype AML-M2 with A irradiated platelets and O washing red blood cells can meet the needs of clinical treatment.

Phase-tailored assembly and encoding of dissipative soliton molecules.

Self-assembly of particle-like dissipative solitons, in the presence of mutual interactions, emphasizes the vibrant concept of soliton molecules in varieties of laser resonators. Controllable manipulation of the molecular patterns, held by the degrees of freedom of internal motions, still remains challenging to explore more efficient and subtle tailoring approaches for the increasing demands. Here, we report a new phase-tailored quaternary encoding format based on the controllable internal assembly of dissipative soliton molecules. Artificial manipulation of the energy exchange of soliton-molecular elements stimulates the deterministic harnessing of the assemblies of internal dynamics. Self-assembled soliton molecules are tailored into four phase-defined regimes, thus constituting the phase-tailored quaternary encoding format. Such phase-tailored streams are endowed with great robustness and are resistant to significant timing jitter. All these results experimentally demonstrate the programmable phase tailoring and exemplify the application of the phase-tailored quaternary encoding, prospectively promoting high-capacity all-optical storage.

MdERF114 enhances the resistance of apple roots to Fusarium solani by regulating the transcription of MdPRX63.

As the main fungal etiologic agent of apple (Malus domestica) replant disease (ARD), Fusarium solani seriously damages apple roots. Ethylene response factors (ERFs) play an important role in plant resistance to biotic stress. Here, we show that MdERF114 is expressed during F. solani infections and positively regulates the resistance of apple roots to F. solani. Yeast one-hybrid, dual-luciferase, electrophoretic mobility shift assays and determinations of lignin content indicated that MdERF114 directly binds the GCC-box of the MdPEROXIDASE63 (MdPRX63) promoter and activates its expression, resulting in lignin deposition in apple roots and increased resistance to F. solani. We identified a WRKY family transcription factor, MdWRKY75, that binds to the W-box of the MdERF114 promoter. Overexpression of MdWRKY75 enhanced resistance of apple roots to F. solani. MdMYB8 interacted with MdERF114 to enhance resistance to F. solani by promoting the binding of MdERF114 to the MdPRX63 promoter. In summary, our findings reveal that the MdWRKY75-MdERF114-MdMYB8-MdPRX63 module is required for apple resistance to F. solani and the application of this mechanism by Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated root transformation provides a promising strategy to prevent ARD.

Identify potential driver genes for PAX-FOXO1 fusion-negative rhabdomyosarcoma through frequent gene co-expression network mining.

Background: Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a soft tissue sarcoma usually originated from skeletal muscle. Currently, RMS classification based on PAX-FOXO1 fusion is widely adopted. However, compared to relatively clear understanding of the tumorigenesis in the fusion-positive RMS, little is known for that in fusion-negative RMS (FN-RMS). Methods: We explored the molecular mechanisms and the driver genes of FN-RMS through frequent gene co-expression network mining (fGCN), differential copy number (CN) and differential expression analyses on multiple RMS transcriptomic datasets. Results: We obtained 50 fGCN modules, among which five are differentially expressed between different fusion status. A closer look showed 23% of Module 2 genes are concentrated on several cytobands of chromosome 8. Upstream regulators such as MYC, YAP1, TWIST1 were identified for the fGCN modules. Using in a separate dataset we confirmed that, comparing to FP-RMS, 59 Module 2 genes show consistent CN amplification and mRNA overexpression, among which 28 are on the identified chr8 cytobands. Such CN amplification and nearby MYC (also resides on one of the above cytobands) and other upstream regulators (YAP1, TWIST1) may work together to drive FN-RMS tumorigenesis and progression. Up to 43.1% downstream targets of Yap1 and 45.8% of the targets of Myc are differentially expressed in FN-RMS vs. normal comparisons, which also confirmed the driving force of these regulators. Discussion: We discovered that copy number amplification of specific cytobands on chr8 and the upstream regulators MYC, YAP1 and TWIST1 work together to affect the downstream gene co-expression and promote FN-RMS tumorigenesis and progression. Our findings provide new insights for FN-RMS tumorigenesis and offer promising targets for precision therapy. Experimental investigation about the functions of identified potential drivers in FN-RMS are in progress.

Effect of Internet Use to Obtain News on Rural Residents' Satisfaction with the Social Environment: Evidence from China.

The deterioration of satisfaction with the social environment in rural areas recently has become a major issue in the rural governance of China. This study examined if using the Internet to obtain news would affect rural residents' satisfaction with their social environment. It used data from the China Family Panel Studies to determine the influencing factors of rural residents' satisfaction with their social environment in the Internet era. The research found that: (1) The Internet has become the main medium for rural residents to obtain news, which affects rural residents' satisfaction with the social environment. Specifically, as the number of days rural residents use the Internet to obtain weekly news increased, their satisfaction with China's social environment worsened. Internet use also affected satisfaction with the social environment more than traditional media, such as TV. (2) The influencing factors of rural residents' social environment satisfaction were heterogeneous among groups with different characteristics, with the phenomenon of the "digital divide" emerging. Women, middle-aged and older adults, and illiterate/semi-illiterate people used the Internet to obtain news less frequently. Based on the above research conclusions, governments should focus on and be vigilant against false public opinions disseminated online as well as improve the digital literacy of vulnerable rural groups.