Haemonchus contortus is a parasitic nematode that causes significant economic losses in ruminant livestock worldwide. In this study, we assessed the global genetic diversity and population structure of H. contortus using mitochondrial COX1 and ribosomal ITS2 sequences retrieved from the NCBI GenBank database. In total, 324 haplotypes of the COX1 and 72 haplotypes of the ITS2 were identified. The haplotype diversity values were all higher than 0.5, and the nucleotide diversity values were higher than 0.005. The Tajima’s D value for COX1 (−1.65634) was higher than that for ITS2 (−2.60400). Fu’s Fs, Fu and Li’s D (FLD), and Fu and Li’s F (FLF) values also showed high negative values, indicating a high probability of future population growth. In addition, the high fixation index (FST) value suggests significant genetic differentiation among populations. The haplotype networks of H. contortus populations based on COX1 sequences revealed clear geographic clustering, whereas ITS2 sequences showed more haplotype admixture across regions. The results of phylogenetic analyses were consistent with the haplotype networks. These findings highlighted that H. contortus populations exhibit significant genetic variation and are undergoing rapid population expansion, with clear genetic differences across geographic regions. This study established critical baseline data for future molecular epidemiology studies, which could guide region-specific parasite surveillance and targeted control strategies, thus helping to mitigate the risk of cross-border parasite transmission and drug resistance.

The hypersonic vehicle surfaces are subjected to intense thermal loads during atmospheric re-entry. Such conditions induce material ablation and structural deformation, potentially causing changes to aerodynamic configuration that critically endanger mission integrity. In this paper, a mathematical model of thermochemical non-equilibrium magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) at low magnetic Reynolds number is introduced to investigate the effects of MHD on the flow field. Variation of the magnetic pole angle (θ), the flow field profiles are quantitatively analysed, including gas component distributions and aerodynamic heating characteristics. Results indicate that the heat flux at the stagnation point initially decreases and then increases with θ increasing, reaching a minimum at θ = 60°. A portion of the heat flux from the blunt position is transferred to the shoulder (α between 30° and 60°). Notably, the shock standoff distance also shows a non-monotonic trend with θ increasing, peaking at θ = 30°, mirroring the effect of θ on the stagnation point heat flux. As θ increases, the component of the Lorentz force along the X-direction gradually increases, with its peak position corresponding to the shock standoff distance. The electrons and nitrogen atoms are primarily concentrated at the blunt nose, while nitric oxide and oxygen atoms are predominantly distributed along the vehicle wall. The dissociation region of the gas is influenced by the shock standoff distance, which increases as the shock standoff distance increases. At θ = 30°, the concentration of oxygen atoms, nitrogen atoms, nitric oxide molecules and electrons on the stagnation point line reaches its maximum. The present study provides a theoretical foundation for the application of MHD thermal protection methods on hypersonic vehicles.

Lactoferrin (LF), a sialylated iron-binding glycoprotein consisting of multiple sialic acid (Sia) residues attached to N-linked glycan chains, and studies have shown that both the iron and Sia are crucial for early neurodevelopment and cognition.(1) However, there is limited knowledge of the impacts of the iron saturation and sialylation in LF molecule on the early neurodevelopment and cognition. Objectives of the study were to explore the impacts and mechanisms of iron saturation and sialylation in LF molecule on early neurodevelopment and cognition. Maternal dietary intervention with native bovine LF (Native-LF), iron-free bovine LF (Apo-LF), or Sia-free bovine LF (Desia-LF) at a dose of 0.60 g/kg body weight per day was administered throughout the lactation period. Offspring pups were assessed for anxiety, learning, and memory through behavioral tests before being euthanized on postnatal day 63. Brain hippocampal tissue was then analyzed for polysialic acid (polySia), a marker of neurodevelopment and neuroplasticity.(1) The study protocol was approved by the Xiamen University Animal Ethics Committee (AE1640102). Our results showed that Apo-LF pups exhibited a 1.32-fold increase in total distance travelled in the arena compared to both Native-LF and Desia-LF groups, with the overall difference among the groups being statistically significant in the open field test (p = 0.008). Additionally, the frequency of central area entries in the Apo-LF group was 2.00-fold higher than in Desia-LF pups (p = 0.038) and 1.3-fold higher than in Native-LF pups, with a significant overall difference (p = 0.042). No significant differences in total distance travelled or central area entries were observed between Native-LF and Desia-LF groups (p > 0.05). These results suggest that Apo-LF pups demonstrated better anti-anxiety behaviors than both Native-LF and Desia-LF pups. In the Morris water maze test, Apo-LF pups spent significantly more time in the target quadrant compared to both Desia-LF (p = 0.019) and Native-LF pups (p = 0.0009), indicating enhanced short-term memory. Additionally, Apo-LF pups exhibited greater polySia-NCAM expression (1.2.95 ± 0.048) in the hippocampus, a marker associated with neuroplasticity and neurogenesis compared to both Native-LF and Desia-LF pups. We conclude that maternal supplementation with different types of lactoferrin during lactation supports improved learning and memory in offspring through distinct mechanisms, with sialylation playing a crucial role in neurocognitive development.

This paper presents an improved signal-processing method based on the Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT), which is applied to the fault feature extraction of the aerospace generator rotating rectifier (AGRR). Initially, the excitation current of the alternating-current (AC) exciter is utilised as measurable information for data collection. Subsequently, the HHT is processed with variational mode decomposition (VMD), followed by the improvement of the variational Hilbert-Huang transform (VHHT) using particle swarm optimisation (PSO) to determine the modal decomposition number and the secondary penalty factor. Finally, the proposed PSO-VHHT method is compared with several other signal processing-based feature extraction methods through both simulated and practical experiment data, and an analysis of the diagnostic performance of these methods is also conducted.

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) formations for bearing-only passive detection are increasingly important in modern military confrontations, and the array of the formation is one of the decisive factors affecting the detection accuracy of the system. How to plan the optimal geometric array in bearing-only detection is a complex nondeterministic polynomial problem, and this paper proposed the distributed stochastic subgradient projection algorithm (DSSPA) with layered constraints to solve this challenge. Firstly, based on the constraints of safe flight altitude and fixed baseline, the UAV formation is layered, and the system model for bearing-only cooperative localisation is constructed and analysed. Then, the calculation formula for geometric dilution of precision (GDOP) in the observation plane is provided, this nonlinear objective function is appropriately simplified to obtain its quadratic form, ensuring that it can be adapted and used efficiently in the system model. Finally, the proposed distributed stochastic subgradient projection algorithm (DSSPA) combines the idea of stochastic gradient descent with the projection method. By performing a projection operation on each feasible solution, it ensures that the updated parameters can satisfy the constraints while efficiently solving the convex optimisation problem of array planning. In addition to theoretical proof, this paper also conducts three simulation experiments of different scales, validating the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed method for bearing-only detection array planning in UAV formations. This research provides essential guidance and technical reference for the deployment of UAV formations and path planning of detection platforms.

This paper proposes a cooperative midcourse guidance law with target changing and topology switching for multiple interceptors intercepting targets in the case of target loss and communication topology switching. Firstly, a three-dimensional guidance model is established and a cooperative trajectory shaping guidance law is given. Secondly, the average position consistency protocol of virtual interception points is designed for communication topology switching, and the convergence of the average position of virtual interception points under communication topology switching is proved by Lyapunov stability theory. Then, in the case of the target changing, the target handover law and the handover phase guidance law are designed to ensure the acceleration smoothing, at last, the whole cooperative midcourse guidance law is given based on the combination of the above guidance laws. Finally, numerical simulation results show the effectiveness and the superiority of the proposed cooperative midcourse guidance law.

During the investigation of parasitic pathogens of Mytilus coruscus, infection of a Perkinsus-like protozoan parasite was detected by alternative Ray's Fluid Thioglycolate Medium (ARFTM). The diameter of hypnospores or prezoosporangia was 8–27 (15.6 ± 4.0, n = 111) μm. The prevalence of the Perkinsus-like species in M. coruscus was 25 and 12.5% using ARFTM and PCR, respectively. The ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 fragments amplified by PCR assay had 100% homology to that of P. beihaiensis, suggesting that the protozoan parasite was P. beihaisensis and M. coruscus was its new host in East China Sea (ECS). Histological analysis showed the presence of trophozoites of P. beihaiensis in gill, mantle and visceral mass, and the schizonts only found in visceral mass. Perkinsus beihaiensis infection led to inflammatory reaction of hemocyte and the destruction of digestive tubules in visceral mass, which had negative effect on health of the farmed M. coruscus and it deserves more attention.

This study applies a comprehensive bioecological perspective to address a significant gap in the childhood adversity literature by employing latent profile analysis to examine the impact of diverse combinations of early childhood adversities and protective factors on adolescent psychosocial and behavioral outcomes. Drawing from the United Kingdom’s Millennium Cohort Study (N = 19,444), we identified eight unique profiles of early childhood adversity and protective factors. These profiles provide a nuanced understanding of adversity combinations and allow for differentiation between groups with similar profiles. Latent profile membership was a significant predictor of all adolescent outcome variables, indicating that profiles differed significantly from one another on psychosocial and behavioral outcomes (Wald values ranged from 10.10–623.22; p < .001). Some findings support the cumulative risk model, indicating that exposure to multiple early adversities increases the likelihood of adverse outcomes. However, we also found that specific adversities, such as parental psychopathology, parental alcohol use, and neighborhood deprivation, uniquely impact adolescent outcomes. This study highlights the necessity for tailored interventions and policies to support children with distinct early life experiences, emphasizing the importance of addressing both cumulative and specific adversities at multiple levels to prevent psychosocial and behavioral problems in adolescence.

Cryogenic electron tomography (cryoET) is capable of determining in situ biological structures of molecular complexes at near-atomic resolution by averaging half a million subtomograms. While abundant complexes/particles are often clustered in arrays, precisely locating and seamlessly averaging such particles across many tomograms present major challenges. Here, we developed TomoNet, a software package with a modern graphical user interface to carry out the entire pipeline of cryoET and subtomogram averaging to achieve high resolution. TomoNet features built-in automatic particle picking and three-dimensional (3D) classification functions and integrates commonly used packages to streamline high-resolution subtomogram averaging for structures in 1D, 2D, or 3D arrays. Automatic particle picking is accomplished in two complementary ways: one based on template matching and the other using deep learning. TomoNet’s hierarchical file organization and visual display facilitate efficient data management as required for large cryoET datasets. Applications of TomoNet to three types of datasets demonstrate its capability of efficient and accurate particle picking on flexible and imperfect lattices to obtain high-resolution 3D biological structures: virus-like particles, bacterial surface layers within cellular lamellae, and membranes decorated with nuclear egress protein complexes. These results demonstrate TomoNet’s potential for broad applications to various cryoET projects targeting high-resolution in situ structures.

The status of the genera Euparagonimus Chen, 1963 and Pagumogonimus Chen, 1963 relative to Paragonimus Braun, 1899 was investigated using DNA sequences from the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (CO1) gene (partial) and the nuclear ribosomal DNA second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2). In the phylogenetic trees constructed, the genus Pagumogonimus is clearly not monophyletic and therefore not a natural taxon. Indeed, the type species of Pagumogonimus,P. skrjabini from China, is very closely related to Paragonimus miyazakii from Japan. The status of Euparagonimus is less obvious. Euparagonimus cenocopiosus lies distant from other lungflukes included in the analysis. It can be placed as sister to Paragonimus in some analyses and falls within the genus in others. A recently published morphological study placed E. cenocopiosus within the genus Paragonimus and probably this is where it should remain.

Samples of Na-saturated, Upton montmorillonite were prepared with different contents of water (H2O or D2O) by: (1) adsorption of water from the vapor phase at a specific value of p/p°, the relative humidity, (2) adsorption of water from the vapor phase at p/p° = 1.0 followed by desorption of the water into the vapor phase at a specific p/p° < 1.0, and (3) adsorption of water from the liquid phase followed by desorption of the water into the vapor phase at a specific p/p° < 1.0. Water adsorbed initially from the vapor phase was called V-adsorbed water, and water adsorbed initially from the liquid phase was called L-adsorbed water. The water contents of these samples were determined by gravimetric analysis, the c-axis spacings by X-ray powder diffraction, the O-D stretching frequencies by IR spectroscopy, and the heats of immersion by differential microcalorimetry. No difference was found between V-adsorbed and L-adsorbed water; however, if the final water content was established by adsorption, the system was in a different state than if the final water content was established by desorption. In particular, hysteresis was observed in the following properties: the relative humidity of the adsorbed water, the O-D stretching frequency in this water, and the degree of order in the stacking of the clay layers. The only property that did not exhibit hysteresis was the heat of immersion. Apparently, hysteresis occurred because the orderliness of the system was not reversible, and, thus, any property that depended on orderliness was hysteretic.

The reactivity of basal surfaces, steps and edges of muscovite was studied by imaging surface precipitates of PbCl2 using atomic force microscopy (AFM). We reacted PbCl2 solution with freshly cleaved muscovite surfaces and found that PbCl2 precipitates were formed on the basal surfaces, steps and edges. It was observed that PbCl2 precipitated preferentially along the steps compared to the basal surfaces and that PbCl2 precipitates at multiple-layer edges were needle-shaped and oriented in different directions. One of the muscovite samples we cleaved had muscovite fragments sitting on the freshly cleaved surfaces. These fragments resulted from previously formed cracks. Thus, we were able to compare the reactivity of the weathered surfaces with that of freshly cleaved surfaces. It was found that PbCl2 was not precipitated along the edges of previously cracked muscovite fragments. These results clearly demonstrated that the edges of freshly cleaved muscovite are the most reactive surface sites, whereas the edges of weathered muscovite are not as reactive. We believe that the surface reactivity of the edges of freshly cleaved muscovite is likely due to terminal or Al-OH1/2− groups on these crystalline surfaces, which favor adsorption of Pb2+ ions and the subsequent nucleation and precipitation reactions. We also investigated the effect of drying rate on the morphology of the surface precipitates. Fast drying resulted in a nearly complete covered surface with a leaflike morphology, whereas slow drying resulted in more isolated surface clusters.

Transient electromagnetic field plays very important roles in the evolution of high-energy-density matter or laser plasma. Now, a new design is proposed in this paper to diagnose the transient magnetic field, using relativistic electron bunch as a probe based on high-energy electron radiography. And based on this scheme, the continuous distribution of magnetic strength field can be snapshotted. For 1 mm thick quadrupole magnet model measured by 50 MeV probe electron beams, the simulation result indicates that this diagnosis has spatial resolution better than 4 microns and high measurement accuracy for strong magnetic strength and high magnetic gradient field no matter whether the magnetic interaction is focusing or defocusing for the range from -510 T∗ μm to 510 T∗ μm.

The prevalence of workaholism has negative consequences on human health. Lack of sleep, a well-known problem among adults in modern society, is often attributed to overwork as a result of workaholism. Yet there is a lack of empirical research examining how and when workaholism will lead to sleep problems. To answer this question and to examine the longitudinal effect of workaholism on sleep in China, we investigate the mediating role of perceived evening responsibilities of work and the moderating effect of work autonomy. Two hundred and five Chinese working adults (58.0% female) voluntarily completed the online questionnaires at Time 1 (T1) and Time 2 (T2; 1-month later). Results showed that workaholism at T1 had a significant and positive correlation with sleep problem at T2. Further analysis suggested that perceived evening responsibilities of work fully mediated the relationship between workaholism and sleep problem. Work autonomy was shown to buffer the positive effect of workaholism on perceived evening responsibilities of work and attenuate the indirect effect of workaholism on sleep problem. While workers should be made aware of the negative impact of workaholism on sleep, organizations should also consider interventions to enhance employees’ autonomy and control of their work.

A multi-agent deep reinforcement learning (DRL)-based model is presented in this study to reconstruct flow fields from noisy data. A combination of reinforcement learning with pixel-wise rewards, physical constraints represented by the momentum equation and the pressure Poisson equation, and the known boundary conditions is used to build a physics-constrained deep reinforcement learning (PCDRL) model that can be trained without the target training data. In the PCDRL model, each agent corresponds to a point in the flow field and learns an optimal strategy for choosing pre-defined actions. The proposed model is efficient considering the visualisation of the action map and the interpretation of the model operation. The performance of the model is tested by using direct numerical simulation-based synthetic noisy data and experimental data obtained by particle image velocimetry. Qualitative and quantitative results show that the model can reconstruct the flow fields and reproduce the statistics and the spectral content with commendable accuracy. Furthermore, the dominant coherent structures of the flow fields can be recovered by the flow fields obtained from the model when they are analysed using proper orthogonal decomposition and dynamic mode decomposition. This study demonstrates that the combination of DRL-based models and the known physics of the flow fields can potentially help solve complex flow reconstruction problems, which can result in a remarkable reduction in the experimental and computational costs.

Competition among the two-plasmon decay (TPD) of backscattered light of stimulated Raman scattering (SRS), filamentation of the electron-plasma wave (EPW) and forward side SRS is investigated by two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Our previous work [K. Q. Pan et al., Nucl. Fusion 58, 096035 (2018)] showed that in a plasma with the density near 1/10 of the critical density, the backscattered light would excite the TPD, which results in suppression of the backward SRS. However, this work further shows that when the laser intensity is so high ($>{10}^{16}$ W/cm2) that the backward SRS cannot be totally suppressed, filamentation of the EPW and forward side SRS will be excited. Then the TPD of the backscattered light only occurs in the early stage and is suppressed in the latter stage. Electron distribution functions further show that trapped-particle-modulation instability should be responsible for filamentation of the EPW. This research can promote the understanding of hot-electron generation and SRS saturation in inertial confinement fusion experiments.

Machine vision has been extensively researched in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) recently. However, the ability of Sense and Avoid (SAA) largely limited by environmental visibility, which brings hazards to flight safety in low illumination or nighttime conditions. In order to solve this critical problem, an approach of image enhancement is proposed in this paper to improve image qualities in low illumination conditions. Considering the complementarity of visible and infrared images, a visible and infrared image fusion method based on convolutional sparse representation (CSR) is a promising solution to improve the SAA ability of UAVs. Firstly, the source image is decomposed into a texture layer and structure layer since infrared images are good at characterising structural information, and visible images have richer texture information. Both the structure and the texture layers are transformed into the sparse convolutional domain through the CSR mechanism, and then CSR coefficient mapping are fused via activity level assessment. Finally, the image is synthesised through the reconstruction results of the fusion texture and structure layers. In the experimental simulation section, a series of visible and infrared registered images including aerial targets are adopted to evaluate the proposed algorithm. Experimental results demonstrates that the proposed method increases image qualities in low illumination conditions effectively and can enhance the object details, which has better performance than traditional methods.