n-3 PUFA, including ALA, EPA and DHA, are widely found in plant oils and marine organisms. These fatty acids demonstrate significant biological effects, and their adequate intake is essential for maintaining health. However, modern diets often lack sufficient n-3 PUFA, especially among populations that consume little fish or seafood, leading to a growing interest in n-3 PUFA supplementation in nutrition and health research. In recent decades, the role of n-3 PUFA in preventing and treating various diseases has gained increasing attention, particularly in cardiovascular, neurological, ophthalmic, allergic, hepatic and oncological fields. In orthopaedics, n-3 PUFA exert beneficial effects through several mechanisms, including modulation of inflammatory responses, enhancement of cartilage repair and regulation of bone metabolism. These effects demonstrate potential for the treatment of conditions such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, osteoporosis, fractures, sarcopenia and spinal degenerative diseases. This review summarises the clinical applications of n-3 PUFA, with a focus on their research progress in the field of orthopaedics, and explores their potential in the treatment of orthopaedic diseases.

A high-fat diet (HFD) increases susceptibility to Escherichia coli colonization in the intestine and raises the risk of intestinal diseases. Lactobacillus reuteri, a commensal bacterium, plays a crucial role in regulating intestinal function and maintaining immune homeostasis. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of L. reuteri on gut barrier function and systemic inflammation in HFD-fed mice challenged with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7, and to further elucidate the potential protective mechanisms involved. The results show that supplementation of L. reuteri ZJ617 mitigates intestinal barrier impairment, inflammatory cell infiltration and systemic inflammation induced by E. coli O157:H7. The potential mechanisms of L. reuteri ZJ617 deal with it involving in forming biofilm, producing functional amino acids and various secondary metabolites. Our works provided comprehensively analysis of potential properties of L. reuteri ZJ617 and indicated that L. reuteri ZJ617 is a promising probiotic to prevent E. coli O157:H7 infection.

Our earth is immersed in the near-earth space plasma environment, which plays a vital role in protecting our planet against the solar-wind impact and influencing space activities. It is significant to investigate the physical processes dominating the environment, for deepening our scientific understanding of it and improving the ability to forecast the space weather. As a crucial part of the National Major Scientific and Technological Infrastructure–Space Environment Simulation Research Infrastructure (SESRI) in Harbin, the Space Plasma Environment Research Facility (SPERF) builds a system to replicate the near-earth space plasma environment in the laboratory. The system aims to simulate the three-dimensional (3-D) structure and processes of the terrestrial magnetosphere for the first time in the world, providing a unique platform to reveal the physics of the 3-D asymmetric magnetic reconnection relevant to the earth's magnetopause, wave–particle interaction in the earth's radiation belt, particles’ dynamics during the geomagnetic storm, etc. The paper will present the engineering design and construction of the near-earth space plasma simulation system of the SPERF, with a focus on the critical technologies that have been resolved to achieve the scientific goals. Meanwhile, the possible physical issues that can be studied based on the apparatus are sketched briefly. The earth-based system is of great value in understanding the space plasma environment and supporting space exploration.

A low-energy proton accelerator named pulsed synchronous linear accelerator (PSLA) is proposed and developed at the Institute of Fluid Physics, which is driven by unipolar-pulsed high voltages. Pulsed-accelerating electric fields and low-energy ion beams are precisely synchronized on temporal and spatial positions for continuous acceleration. The operating mode and the features of the PSLA are introduced. At present, the feasibility of a low-energy proton PSLA has been verified in principle. An average accelerating gradient up to 3 MV/m for protons is achieved.

To accelerate high-intensity heavy-ion beams to high energy in the booster ring (BRing) at the High-Intensity Heavy-Ion Accelerator Facility (HIAF) project, we take the typical reference particle 238U35+, which can be accelerated from an injection energy of 17 MeV/u to the maximal extraction energy of 830 MeV/u, as an example to study the basic processes of longitudinal beam dynamics, including beam capture, acceleration, and bunch merging. The voltage amplitude, the synchronous phase, and the frequency program of the RF system during the operational cycle were given, and the beam properties such as bunch length, momentum spread, longitudinal beam emittance, and beam loss were derived, firstly. Then, the beam properties under different voltage amplitude and synchronous phase errors were also studied, and the results were compared with the cases without any errors. Next, the beam properties with the injection energy fluctuation were also studied. The tolerances of the RF errors and injection energy fluctuation were dictated based on the CISP simulations. Finally, the effect of space charge at the low injection energy with different beam intensities on longitudinal emittance and beam loss was evaluated.

The flow-induced snap-through dynamics of a buckled flexible filament was explored using the penalty immersed boundary method. The effects of the filament length, bending rigidity and Reynolds number on the mode transition were systematically examined. Three different modes were observed when the aforementioned parameters were varied: an equilibrium mode, a streamwise oscillation mode and a snap-through oscillation mode. Two mode transitions occurred when the bending rigidity was lowered and the length and Reynolds number were increased: a direct transition from the equilibrium mode to the snap-through oscillation mode and the successive appearance of the three modes. An increase in transverse fluid force induced the snap-through oscillation mode. A vortex-induced vibration and a self-excited vibration occurred in the streamwise oscillation mode and the snap-through oscillation mode, respectively. A wake pattern of 2S appeared in the streamwise oscillation mode, and a pattern of 2S + 2P appeared in the snap-through oscillation mode. A hysteresis was observed near the critical Reynolds number. The hysteresis loop increased in magnitude with increasing bending rigidity. The greater energy harvesting was achieved by the larger deflection and the higher strain energy. We found that most of the strain energy was concentrated in the last half of the filament.

In this paper, we mainly prove the following conjectures of Z.-W. Sun (J. Number Theory 133 (2013), 2914–2928): let $p>2$ be a prime. If $p=x^2+3y^2$ with $x,y\in \mathbb {Z}$ and $x\equiv 1\ ({\rm {mod}}\ 3)$, then

\[ x\equiv\frac14\sum_{k=0}^{p-1}(3k+4)\frac{f_k}{2^k}\equiv\frac12\sum_{k=0}^{p-1}(3k+2)\frac{f_k}{({-}4)^k}\ ({\rm{mod}}\ p^2), \]

$p\equiv 1\pmod 3$

\[ \sum_{k=0}^{p-1}\frac{f_k}{2^k}\equiv\sum_{k=0}^{p-1}\frac{f_k}{({-}4)^k}\ ({\rm{mod}}\ p^3), \]

$f_n=\sum _{k=0}^n\binom {n}k^3$

$n$

Germplasm innovation can provide materials for breeding sugarcane cultivars. Saccharum officinarum is the main source of high-sugar and high-yield genes in sugarcane breeding. ‘Nobilization’ is the theoretical basis for exploiting S. officinarum, and S. officinarum authenticity directly affects sugarcane nobility breeding efficiency. Herein, the authenticity of 22 SLC-series S. officinarum clones imported from Sri Lanka and preserved in the China National Germplasm Repository of Sugarcane (NGRS) was explored by four-primer amplification-arrested mutation PCR (ARMS PCR) and somatic chromosome number counting. The amplified bands from SLC 08 120 and SLC 08 131 were the same with those from S. officinarum clone Badila, i.e. a common band of 428 bp and a S. officinarum-specific band of 278 bp, hence they were tentatively assigned as S. officinarum clones. The other 20 SLC clones had both 278 bp (S. officinarum-specific) and 203 bp (S. spontaneum-specific) bands, which are hybrid characteristics. In addition, the chromosome numbers of SLC 08 120 and SLC 08 131 are both 80, belong to typical S. officinarum. While the chromosome numbers of the other 20 materials are ranging from 101 to 129, consistent with hybrids of S. officinarum and S. spontaneum. This molecular cytological characterization indicates that among the 22 introduced SLC-series clones, only two, SLC 08 120 and SLC 08 131, were S. officinarum. Future agronomic trait and resistance analyses could facilitate their use as crossing parents in sugarcane breeding.

There is still controversy about optimal dietary iodine intake as the Universal Salt Iodization policy enforcement in China. A modified iodine balance study was thus conducted to explore the suitable iodine intake in Chinese adult males using the iodine overflow hypothesis. In this study, thirty-eight apparently healthy males (19·1 (sd 0·6) years) were recruited and provided with designed diets. After the 14-d iodine depletion, daily iodine intake gradually increased in the 30-d iodine supplementation, consisting of six stages and each of 5 d. All foods and excreta (urine, faeces) were collected to examine daily iodine intake, iodine excretion and the changes of iodine increment in relation to those values at stage 1. The dose–response associations of iodine intake increment with excretion increment were fitted by the mixed effects models, as well as with retention increment. Daily iodine intake and excretion were 16·3 and 54·3 μg/d at stage 1, and iodine intake increment increased from 11·2 μg/d at stage 2 to 118·0 μg/d at stage 6, while excretion increment elevated from 21·5 to 95·0 μg/d. A zero iodine balance was dynamically achieved as 48·0 μg/d of iodine intake. The estimated average requirement and recommended nutrient intake were severally 48·0 and 67·2 μg/d, which could be corresponded to a daily iodine intake of 0·74 and 1·04 μg/kg per d. The results of our study indicate that roughly half of current iodine intakes recommendation could be enough in Chinese adult males, which would be beneficial for the revision of dietary reference intakes.

We study a distributionally robust reinsurance problem with the risk measure being an expectile and under expected value premium principle. The mean and variance of the ground-up loss are known, but the loss distribution is otherwise unspecified. A minimax problem is formulated with its inner problem being a maximization problem over all distributions with known mean and variance. We show that the inner problem is equivalent to maximizing the problem over three-point distributions, reducing the infinite-dimensional optimization problem to a finite-dimensional optimization problem. The finite-dimensional optimization problem can be solved numerically. Numerical examples are given to study the impacts of the parameters involved.

The northern Alxa region is located in the central segment of the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt. Many controversies and deficiencies still exist regarding the magma source characteristics, petrogenesis and tectonic regimes during the late Palaeozoic – early Mesozoic period within this region. This study presents whole-rock compositions and zircon U–Pb and Lu–Hf isotopic data for three early Mesozoic I- and A-type granitic plutons occurring in the northern Alxa region. The Haerchaoenji and Chahanhada I-type granitoids yielded zircon 206Pb–238U ages of 245 ± 5 Ma and 245 ± 2 Ma, respectively. The variable positive zircon ϵHf(t) values between +1.8 and +11.8, with young TDM ages of 425–837 Ma, indicate that these I-type granitoids were mainly derived from juvenile crustal materials. The Wulantaolegai pluton has a zircon 206Pb–238U age of 237 ± 2 Ma and is classified as having high-K calc-alkaline A-type affinity. Furthermore, the positive zircon ϵHf(t) values of the Wulantaolegai granite range from +3.3 to +8.7 with young TDM ages of 545–778 Ma, suggesting the involvement of a juvenile crustal source as well. Furthermore, the major-element compositions of the Chahanhada and Wulantaolegai granites suggest the input of metasedimentary components. Geochemically, the Haerchaoenji and Chahanhada I-type granitoids show an arc affinity, while the Wulantaolegai granite exhibits a post-collisional affinity. However, with regional data, we suggest that the Haerchaoenji and Chahanhada I-type granitoids were also emplaced in a post-collisional setting, and the arc affinity was probably inherited from recycled subduction-related materials. These lines of evidence obtained in this study enable us to argue that the Palaeo-Asian Ocean in the central segment of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt closed before Middle Triassic time.

This work elucidated the performance and mechanisms of Pb2+ adsorption by kaolinite, montmorillonite, goethite and ferrihydrite using batch experiments. The contributions of various adsorption mechanisms were quantified using a stepwise extraction method. Several characterizations (scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, point of zero charge analysis and X-ray fluorescence) were utilized to analyse the physicochemical properties and the potential adsorption mechanisms. The results indicated that the adsorption processes of montmorillonite and goethite approached equilibrium within 20 min, while 60 min were required for the adsorption processes of kaolinite and ferrihydrite. The adsorption processes of Pb2+ by the four minerals best fit the pseudo-second order model. The adsorption capacities of the four minerals for Pb2+ followed the order: montmorillonite > goethite > ferrihydrite > kaolinite, and the maximum adsorption capacities were 69.20, 46.95, 34.32 and 18.62 mg g–1, respectively. The stepwise extraction test showed that the adsorption mechanism of Pb2+ was dominated by ion exchange for montmorillonite, precipitation and complexation for goethite and complexation for kaolinite and ferrihydrite.

In the treatment of infertile patients with non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) caused by the deletion of the azoospermia factor c region (AZFc) on the Y chromosome, synchronous and asynchronous surgical strategies are discussed. Clinical data from NOA patients with the AZFc deletion who underwent micro-TESE were analyzed retrospectively. The sperm retrieval rate (SRR) and sperm utilization rate of synchronous and asynchronous operation groups were followed up and compared. The fertilization rate, high-quality embryo rate, clinical pregnancy rate, abortion rate, and cumulative live birth rate of ICSI in patients with successful sperm retrieval were compared between the two groups. The two groups had sperm utilization rates of 98.9% (93/94) and 50.0% (14/28), respectively. The asynchronous group’s sperm consumption rates were much lower than those of the synchronous operation group. Fertilization rate, high-quality embryo rate, clinical pregnancy rate of fresh transfer cycle, abortion rate, and cumulative live birth rate of patients in the synchronous operation group with fresh sperm, and the asynchronous operation group with thawed sperm, respectively, were 30.6% vs 33.8%, 33.8% vs 40.7%, 40.0% vs 12.5%, 30.4% vs 7.1%. Between the two groups, there was no significant difference. This suggests that individuals with NOA caused by the AZFc deletion have a high possibility of successfully acquiring sperm using micro-TESE and ICSI to conceive their own offspring. Synchronous micro-TESE is recommended to improve sperm utilization rate and the cumulative live birth rate.

The sequential occurrence of three layers of smooth muscle layers (SML) in human embryos and fetus is not known. Here, we investigated the process of gut SML development in human embryos and fetuses and compared the morphology of SML in fetuses and neonates. The H&E, Masson trichrome staining, and Immunohistochemistry were conducted on 6–12 gestation week human embryos and fetuses and on normal neonatal intestine. We showed that no lumen was seen in 6–7th gestation week embryonic gut, neither gut wall nor SML was developed in this period. In 8–9th gestation week embryonic and fetal gut, primitive inner circular SML (IC-SML) was identified in a narrow and discontinuous gut lumen with some vacuoles. In 10th gestation week fetal gut, the outer longitudinal SML (OL-SML) in gut wall was clearly identifiable, both the inner and outer SML expressed α-SMA. In 11–12th gestation week fetal gut, in addition to the IC-SML and OL-SML, the muscularis mucosae started to develop as revealed by α-SMA immune-reactivity beneath the developing mucosal epithelial layer. Comparing with the gut of fetuses of 11–12th week of gestation, the muscularis mucosae, IC-SML, and OL-SML of neonatal intestine displayed different morphology, including branching into glands of lamina propria in mucosa and increased thickness. In conclusions, in the human developing gut between week-8 to week-12 of gestation, the IC-SML develops and forms at week-8, followed by the formation of OL-SML at week-10, and the muscularis mucosae develops and forms last at week-12.

The hydrodynamic mechanism of drag reduction by a flexible hairy coating was explored using the penalty immersed boundary method. A two-dimensional flexible hairy coating is constituted by multiple flexible filaments. A simulation of a cylinder without a hairy coating at a Reynolds number of 100 was also performed for comparison. The results of the simulations show good agreement with the experimental data by Niu & Hu (Phys. Fluids, vol. 23, 2011, 101701), where maximum drag reduction of 22% was attained at a particular length, bending rigidity, coating density and coating angle of the hairy coating. The hydrodynamic mechanism of drag reduction was characterized in terms of the wake pattern, shape deformation and kinetic energy of the hairy coating. The effect of a non-uniform bending rigidity of the hairy coating on drag reduction was explored. A stable streamline shape of the hairy coating was found to delay the vortex formation and stabilize the recirculation zone, resulting in decreased form drag. Active flapping of the hairy coating with enhanced vortex shedding is adverse to drag reduction. A hairy coating with a stiff base and flexible trailing edge is beneficial to maintaining a stable shape.