In this work, a wideband filtering antenna based on substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) cavities is proposed. The SIW cavities with zigzag topology excite multiple modes to increase the potential filtering bandwidth. The radiation slot etched on the cavity merges the resonant modes into a single frequency band, thereby enabling directional broadband radiation. Moreover, two supplementary slots are introduced to facilitate wideband impedance matching without increasing the overall size. Furthermore, both the cavities and the slots work together to create three radiation nulls, improving the filtering performance. The proposed SIW slot filtering antenna achieves good frequency selectivity and meets the increasing demand for wideband and integration of multifunctional devices. To validate the design, a prototype antenna was fabricated and tested. The measured results show that the prototype has an operating bandwidth of 10.1% at the center frequency of 11.16 GHz. The peak gain within the passband is 6.19 dBi, and the out-of-band radiation rejection level is better than 20 dB.

Food insecurity (FIS) is a critical public health issue, particularly among older adults. This study investigates the association between FIS with diet quality and anthropometric indices in the US older adults. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using NHANES data from 2017 to 2020, involving 2592 participants aged ≥ 60 years. FIS was assessed using the USDA Household Food Security Survey Module. Diet quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2020 and adherence to Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) score. Anthropometric measures were calculated following standardised protocols. Multivariable logistic regression models, adjusted for demographic, socio-economic and behavioural factors examined the association between FIS and the higher quartile and tertile of anthropometric and diet quality indices, respectively. Of the participants, 27·4 % experienced FIS. FIS participants were younger and had lower education and income levels compared with FS individuals (P < 0·05). In the adjusted model, FIS was associated with lower adherence to both the Mediterranean Diet (OR: 0·48, 95 % CI: 0·31, 0·67) and HEI-2020 (OR: 0·61, 95 % CI: 0·37, 0·84), indicating poorer diet quality in older adults. In adjusted analyses, FIS was significantly associated with higher A Body Shape Index quartiles (Q3: OR: 1·44, 95 % CI: 1·06, 1·95; Q4: OR: 1·46, 95 % CI: 1·07, 2·01), the waist-to-hip ratio (Q4: OR: 1·44, 95 % CI: 1·01, 2·06) and the Conicity index (Q4: OR: 1·36, 95 % CI: 1·02, 1·81). FIS in older adults is associated with unfavourable diet quality and body composition patterns, particularly central obesity measures. Addressing FIS may mitigate health risks related to obesity and its complications.

While the category shift of deverbal prepositions has been well documented in grammaticalization studies, its accompanying process of subjectification remains underexplored. Adopting a constructionist perspective, this article addresses the gap by analyzing data from the Corpus of Historical American English. We present a multivariate analysis of the deverbal preposition considering to examine the role that subjectification has played along the way to it becoming a preposition over the past 200 years. Specifically, we investigate whether the two grammatical variants, participial and prepositional considering, can be anchored in context, focusing on a set of subjectivity indicators and their gradual changes over time. The findings are twofold. First, the two variants can be distinguished by six contextual features, namely subject animacy, subject person, contextual polarity, presence of degree modifiers, presence of modal auxiliaries and genre. Second, over time, there is an increasing correlation between the prepositional variant and levels within contextual features that indicate greater evaluative subjectivity. Previous scholarship has debated whether subjectification is independent of grammaticalization. This study contributes to this discourse by illustrating how various facets of subjectification may interact and manifest to varying degrees within the process of grammatical change.

This study aimed to demonstrate the utilization value of 1PN embryos. The 1PN zygotes collected from December 2021 to September 2022 were included in this study. The embryo development, the pronuclear characteristics, and the genetic constitutions were investigated. The overall blastocyst formation and good-quality blastocyst rates in 1PN zygotes were 22.94 and 16.24%, significantly lower than those of 2PN zygotes (63.25 and 50.23%, respectively, P = 0.000). The pronuclear characteristics were found to be correlated with the developmental potential. When comparing 1PN zygotes that developed into blastocysts to those that arrested, the former exhibited a significantly larger area (749.49 ± 142.77 vs. 634.00 ± 119.05, P = 0.000), a longer diameter of pronuclear (29.81 ± 3.08 vs. 27.30 ± 3.00, P = 0.000), and a greater number of nucleolar precursor body (NPB) (11.56 ± 3.84 vs. 7.19 ± 2.73, P = 0.000). Among the tested embryos, the diploidy euploidy rate was significantly higher in blastocysts in comparison with the arrested embryos (66.67 vs. 11.76%, P = 0.000), which was also significantly higher in IVF-1PN blastocysts than in ICSI-1PN blastocysts (75.44 vs. 25.00%, P = 0.001). However, the pronuclear characteristics were not found to be linked to the chromosomal ploidy once they formed blastocysts.

In summary, while the developmental potential of 1PN zygotes is reduced, our study shows that, in addition to the reported pronuclear area and diameter, the number of NPB is also associated with their developmental potential. The 1PN blastocysts exhibit a high diploidy euploidy rate, are recommend to be clinically used post genetic testing, especially for patients who do not have other 2PN embryos available.

The delay-shift of the pre-pulse may mislead the determination of its origination and cause problems for the temporal contrast improvement of high-peak-power lasers, especially when the corresponding post-pulse is beyond the time window of the measurement device. In this work, an empirical formula is proposed to predict the delay-shift of pre-pulses for the first time. The empirical formula shows that the delay-shift is proportional to the square of the post-pulse’s initial delay, and also the ratio of the third-order dispersion to the group delay dispersion’s square, which intuitively reveals the main cause for the delay-shift and may provide a convenient routing for identifying the real sources of pre-pulses in both chirped-pulse amplification (CPA) and optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA) systems. The empirical formula agrees well with the experimental results both in the CPA and the OPCPA systems. Besides, a numerical simulation is also carried out to further verify the empirical formula.

This study aimed to explore the combined association between the dietary antioxidant quality score (DAQS) and leisure-time physical activity on sleep patterns in cancer survivors. Data of cancer survivors were extracted from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys database in 2007–2014 in this cross-sectional study. Weighted multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate OR and 95 % CI for the association of DAQS and leisure-time physical activity on sleep patterns. The combined association was also assessed in subgroups of participants based on age and use of painkillers and antidepressants. Among the eligible participants, 1133 had unhealthy sleep patterns. After adjusting for covariates, compared with low DAQS level combined with leisure-time physical activity level < 600 MET·min/week, high DAQS level combined with leisure-time physical activity ≥ 600 MET·min/week was associated with lower odds of unhealthy sleep patterns (OR = 0·41, 95 % CI: 0·23, 0·72). Additionally, the association of high DAQS level combined with high leisure-time physical activity with low odds of unhealthy sleep patterns was also significant in < 65 years old (OR = 0·30, 95 % CI: 0·13, 0·70), non-painkiller (OR = 0·39, 95 % CI: 0·22, 0·71), non-antidepressant (OR = 0·49, 95 % CI: 0·26, 0·91) and antidepressant (OR = 0·11, 95 % CI: 0·02, 0·50) subgroups. DAQS and leisure-time physical activity had a combined association on sleep patterns in cancer survivors. However, the causal associations of dietary nutrient intake and physical activity with sleep patterns in cancer survivors need further clarification.

Panonychus citri is one of the most destructive pests in citrus orchards, exhibiting varying degrees of tolerance to numerous insecticides, such as spirodiclofen. To effectively manage pests, this study explores the response of P. citri to spirodiclofen stress from the perspectives of life history, enzymatic parameters, and reproduction. The effects of two concentrations (LC30 and LC50) of spirodiclofen on the biological parameters of P. citri were evaluated by the life table method. The results showed that the development duration, fecundity, oviposition days, and lifespan were shortened, though the pre-oviposition period of two treatments was prolonged in comparison with the control. A significant decrease was recorded in the net reproductive rate (R0) and the mean generation time (T) for the two treatments. Nevertheless, the intrinsic rate of increase (r) and the rate of increase (λ) were not significantly affected in the LC30 treatment, whereas they declined in the LC50 treatment. The enzyme activity assay resulted in higher activities of catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and carboxylesterase (CarE), among the treatments than the control. In contrast, the treatments recorded lower cytochromeP450 (CYP450) and Glutathione S-transferase (GST) activities than the control. Furthermore, the study detected that relative mRNA expression of Vitellogenin (Vg) and Vitellogenin receptor (VgR) for two treatments were lower than the control. In summary, two concentrations of spirodiclofen inhibited progeny growth and fecundity of P. citri. Additionally, the results of this study may support further research on tolerance of P. citri in response to spirodiclofen stress.

The absorption and distribution of radiocarbon-labeled urea at the ultratrace level were investigated with a 14C-AMS biotracer method. The radiopharmaceutical concentrations in the plasma, heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, stomach, brain, bladder, muscle, testis, and fat of rats after oral administration of 14C urea at ultratrace doses were determined by AMS, and the concentration-time curves in plasma and tissues and pharmacokinetic distribution data were obtained. This study provides an analytical method for the pharmacokinetic parameters and tissue distribution of exogenous urea in rats at ultratrace doses and explores the feasibility of evaluation and long-term tracking of ultratrace doses of drugs with AMS.

In mammals, the skin acts as a barrier to prevent harmful environmental stimuli from entering the circulation. CYP450s are involved in drug biotransformation, exogenous and endogenous substrate metabolism, and maintaining the normal physiological function of the skin, as well as facilitating homeostasis of the internal environment. The expression pattern of CYP450s in the skin is tissue-specific and thus differs from the liver and other organs. The development of skin topical medications, and knowledge of the toxicity and side effects of these medications require a detailed understanding of the expression and function of skin-specific CYP450s. Thus, we summarized the expression of CYP450s in the skin, their function in endogenous metabolic physiology, aberrant CYP450 expression in skin diseases and the influence of environmental variables and medications. This information will serve as a crucial foundation for future studies on the skin, as well as for the design and development of new drugs for skin diseases including topical medications.

Increasing evidence shows that maternal hyperglycemia inhibits cardiomyocyte (CM) proliferation and promotes cell apoptosis during fetal heart development, which leads to cardiac dysplasia. Accumulating evidence suggests that the overexpression of miR-21 in CMs has a protective role in cardiac function. Therefore, we investigated whether miR-21 can rescue CM injury caused by high glucose. First, we performed biological function analysis of miR-21-5p overexpression in H9c2 cells treated with high glucose. We found that the proliferation of H9c2 cells treated with high glucose decreased significantly and was rescued after overexpression of miR-21-5p. CCK-8 and EdU incorporation assays were performed to assess cell proliferation. The cell proliferation of the miR-21-5p mimic transfection group was improved compared with that of the NC mimic group (*p < 0.05, miR-21-5p mimics vs. NC mimics) when the proliferation of H9c2 cells was reduced by high glucose (****p < 0.0001, high glucose (HG) vs. normal glucose (NG)). Then, we verified the targeted and negative regulation of miR-21-5p on Rhob using a dual-luciferase activity assay and RT-qPCR, respectively. We further demonstrated that miR-21-5p regulates Rhob to rescue the inhibition of CM proliferation induced by high glucose. The CCK-8 results showed that the cell proliferation of the siRNA-Rhob group was higher than that of the NC mimic group (***p < 0.001) and that of the cotransfection group with Up-Rhob plasmids and miR-21-5p mimics was lower than that of the miR-21-5p mimic group (*p < 0.05). Conclusion: Overexpression of miR-21-5p rescues the inhibition of high glucose-induced CM proliferation through regulation of Rhob.

We investigate the spatial distribution and dynamics of the vortices in rotating Rayleigh–Bénard convection in a reduced Rayleigh number range $1.3\le Ra/Ra_{c}\le 83.1$. Under slow rotations ($Ra\approx 80\,Ra_{c}$), the vortices are distributed randomly, which is manifested by the size distribution of the Voronoi cells of the vortex centres being a standard $\varGamma$ distribution. The vortices exhibit Brownian-type horizontal motion in the parameter range $Ra\gtrsim 10\,Ra_{c}$. The probability density functions of the vortex displacements are, however, non-Gaussian at short time scales. At modest rotating rates ($4\,Ra_{c}\le Ra\lesssim 10\,Ra_{c}$), the centrifugal force leads to radial vortex motions, i.e. warm cyclones (cold anticyclones) moving towards (outwards from) the rotation axis. The horizontal scale of the vortices decreases with decreasing $Ra/Ra_c$, and the size distribution of their Voronoi cells deviates from the $\varGamma$ distribution. In the rapidly rotating regime ($1.6\,Ra_{c}\le Ra\le 4\,Ra_{c}$), the vortices are densely distributed. The hydrodynamic interaction of neighbouring vortices results in the formation of vortex clusters. Within clusters, cyclones exhibit inverse-centrifugal motion as they submit to the outward motion of the strong anticyclones, and the radial velocity of the anticyclones is enhanced. The radial mobility of isolated vortices, scaled by their vorticity strength, is shown to be a simple power function of the Froude number. For all flow regimes studied, we show that the number of vortices with a lifespan greater than $t$ decreases exponentially as $\exp ({-t/{\tau }})$ for large time, where $\tau$ represents the characteristic lifetime of long-lived vortices.

The discharged capillary plasma channel has been extensively studied as a high-gradient particle acceleration and transmission medium. A novel measurement method of plasma channel density profiles has been employed, where the role of plasma channels guiding the advantages of lasers has shown strong appeal. Here, we have studied the high-order transverse plasma density profile distribution using a channel-guided laser, and made detailed measurements of its evolution under various parameters. The paraxial wave equation in a plasma channel with high-order density profile components is analyzed, and the approximate propagation process based on the Gaussian profile laser is obtained on this basis, which agrees well with the simulation under phase conditions. In the experiments, by measuring the integrated transverse laser intensities at the outlet of the channels, the radial quartic density profiles of the plasma channels have been obtained. By precisely synchronizing the detection laser pulses and the plasma channels at various moments, the reconstructed density profile shows an evolution from the radial quartic profile to the quasi-parabolic profile, and the high-order component is indicated as an exponential decline tendency over time. Factors affecting the evolution rate were investigated by varying the incentive source and capillary parameters. It can be found that the discharge voltages and currents are positive factors quickening the evolution, while the electron-ion heating, capillary radii and pressures are negative ones. One plausible explanation is that quartic profile contributions may be linked to plasma heating. This work helps one to understand the mechanisms of the formation, the evolutions of the guiding channel electron-density profiles and their dependences on the external controllable parameters. It provides support and reflection for physical research on discharged capillary plasma and optimizing plasma channels in various applications.

The relationship between erythrocyte membrane n-3 PUFA and breast cancer risk is controversial. We aimed to examine the associations of erythrocyte membrane n-3 PUFA with odds of breast cancer among Chinese women by using a relatively large sample size. A case–control study was conducted including 853 newly diagnosed, histologically confirmed breast cancer cases and 892 frequency-matched controls (5-year interval). Erythrocyte membrane n-3 PUFA were measured by GC. Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline were used to quantify the association between erythrocyte membrane n-3 PUFA and odds of breast cancer. Erythrocyte membrane α-linolenic acid (ALA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and total n-3 PUFA were inversely and non-linearly associated with odds of breast cancer. The OR values (95 % CI), comparing the highest with the lowest quartile (Q), were 0·57 (0·43, 0·76), 0·43 (0·32, 0·58) and 0·36 (0·27, 0·49) for ALA, DPA and total n-3 PUFA, respectively. Erythrocyte membrane EPA and DHA were linearly and inversely associated with odds of breast cancer ((EPA: ORQ4 v. Q1 (95 % CI) = 0·59 (0·45, 0·79); DHA: ORQ4 v. Q1 (95 % CI) = 0·50 (0·37, 0·67)). The inverse associations were observed between ALA and odds of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, and between DHA and oestrogen receptor+ breast cancer. This study showed that erythrocyte membrane total and individual n-3 PUFA were inversely associated with odds of breast cancer. Other factors, such as menopause and hormone receptor status, may warrant further investigation when examining the association between n-3 PUFA and odds of breast cancer.

For linear differential systems, the Sacker–Sell spectrum (dichotomy spectrum) and the contractible set are the same. However, we claim that this is not true for the linear difference equations. A counterexample is given. For the convenience of research, we study the relations between the dichotomy spectrum and the contractible set under the framework on time scales. In fact, by a counterexample, we show that the contractible set could be different from dichotomy spectrum on time scales established by Siegmund [J. Comput. Appl. Math., 2002]. Furthermore, we find that there is no bijection between them. In particular, for the linear difference equations, the contractible set is not equal to the dichotomy spectrum. To counter this mismatch, we propose a new notion called generalized contractible set and we prove that the generalized contractible set is exactly the dichotomy spectrum. Our approach is based on roughness theory and Perron's transformation. In this paper, a new method for roughness theory on time scales is provided. Moreover, we provide a time-scaled version of the Perron's transformation. However, the standard argument is invalid for Perron's transformation. Thus, some novel techniques should be employed to deal with this problem. Finally, an example is given to verify the theoretical results.

Hydrothermal alteration records fluid–rock interactions and can therefore be used to constrain element migrations during mineralization. Although hydrothermal alteration is widely developed in hydrothermal vein-type uranium deposits in South China, consideration of elemental mass changes during alteration has not been examined. The Egongtang uranium deposit in the central Nanling Range is mainly hosted by the Qingzhangshan granite in South China, and was strongly altered by K-feldspar, quartz, chlorite, illite, haematite, pyrite and carbonates. The alteration section can be divided into five horizontal zones: fresh granite (Zone V), a distal alkaline alteration zone (Zone IV), a chlorite-rich zone (Zone III), a close-to-ore sericite/illite alteration zone (Zone II) and a central mineralization zone with strong haematitization (Zone I). Whole-rock geochemistry of the altered samples indicates that from Zone IV to Zone I, the content of SiO2 and U increases significantly. The mass gains of SiO2, MgO and Fe2O3 were proportional to the concentration of U. The content of trace elements (such as Ba, K, La, Ce, Pr, Sr, P, Eu, etc.) gradually decreases from Zone V to Zone I. The rare earth elements manifest a decrease in light rare earth elements and a slight increase in heavy rare earth elements accordingly from Zone V to Zone I. This study shows that the ore materials of the Egongtang deposit were mainly derived from the Qingzhangshan granites. In the early alkali alterations, large amounts of U were partitioned into the fluids. In the ore-forming stage, ores precipitated accompanied by acid metasomatism such as chloritization, haematitization and carbonation.

The study was to evaluate the reproducibility and validity of the FFQ for residents of northeast China. A total of 131 participants completed two FFQ (FFQ1 and FFQ2) within a 3-month period, 125 participants completed 8-d weighed diet records (WDR) and 112 participants completed blood biomarker testing. Reproducibility was measured by comparing nutrient and food intake between FFQ1 and FFQ2. The validity of the FFQ was assessed by WDR and the triad method. The Spearman correlation coefficients (SCC) and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) for reproducibility ranged from 0·41 to 0·69 (median = 0·53) and from 0·18 to 0·68 (median = 0·53) for energy and nutrients and from 0·37 to 0·73 (median = 0·59) and from 0·33 to 0·86 (median = 0·60) for food groups, respectively. The classifications of same or adjacent quartiles ranged from 73·64 to 93·80 % for both FFQ. The crude SCC between the FFQ and WDR ranged from 0·27 to 0·55 (median = 0·46) for the energy and nutrients and from 0·26 to 0·70 (median = 0·52) for food groups, and classifications of the same or adjacent quartiles ranged from 65·32 to 86·29 %. The triad method indicated that validation coefficients for the FFQ were above 0·3 for most nutrients, which indicated a moderate or high level of validity. The FFQ that was developed for residents of northeast China for the Northeast Cohort Study of China is reliable and valid for assessing the intake of most foods and nutrients.