Dyslipidemia is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation and immune dysfunction, but the immunological effects of dietary phytosterols in humans remain unclear. We conducted a secondary analysis of an outcome-assessor-blinded, randomized controlled feeding trial to evaluate the effects of a high-phytosterol (HPS) diet, using phytosterol-enriched corn–wheat germ blended oil, compared with a low-phytosterol (LPS) diet using peanut oil, on systemic inflammatory markers, humoral immune markers and peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets in Chinese adults with dyslipidemia. After a 2-week run-in period, 104 participants were randomized to the HPS group (n=52) or the LPS group (n=52) for 12 weeks. In intention-to-treat analyses, the HPS group had a higher CD4+/CD8+ ratio at 12 weeks than the LPS group (adjusted mean difference: 0.561; 95 % CI: 0.060, 1.063; P = 0.03) and a lower CD8+ T-cell count (adjusted mean difference: -116.315 cells/μL; 95 % CI: -215.781,-16.849; P = 0.02). No significant between-group differences were observed for systemic inflammatory markers, humoral immune markers or most other lymphocyte subset outcomes. In per-protocol analyses, the difference in CD4+/CD8+ ratio remained significant, whereas the reduction in CD8+ T-cell count was attenuated. These exploratory findings suggest that a 12-week phytosterol-enriched corn–wheat germ blended oil intervention may be associated with changes in T-cell subset balance in adults with dyslipidemia, although the results should be interpreted cautiously given the exploratory nature of this secondary analysis.

The dynamics of non-spherical particles in wall-bounded flows plays a fundamental role in numerous natural and industrial processes, such as pollen dispersion, fibre suspensions and biomedical flows. Predictive simulations of such systems often employ an Euler–Lagrange approach, for which the accuracy hinges on the drag model used. Although reliable correlations exist for particles in unbounded flow or in direct contact with a wall, the intermediate regime of finite wall distance has received little attention, despite its prevalence in practical applications. For prolate spheroids – a common non-spherical particle shape – the drag force in this regime results from a complex interplay among the particle Reynolds number, the wall-normal distance and the particle’s three-dimensional orientation. In this work, we develop a drag model for prolate spheroids (aspect ratio $\lambda = 2$) that incorporates these coupled effects through a hierarchical framework based on three reference orientations and wall correction factors. The formulation recovers the exact unbounded Stokes behaviour and establishes near-wall asymptotic limits. Validation against direct numerical simulations across the parameter space considered yields a mean relative error below 2 %. Within its validated range, the proposed model accurately captures orientation-dependent wall effects for drag predictions, and is applicable in Euler–Lagrange simulations of non-spherical particles in wall-bounded flows.

Multidimensional metabolic dysregulation is implicated in hypertension development, but the utility of comprehensive metabolic vulnerability indices for assessing hypertension risk associations remains unclear. This prospective cohort study analysed 150 591 participants from the United Kingdom Biobank. The metabolic vulnerability index and its components – inflammation vulnerability index (IVX) and metabolic malnutrition index (MMX) – were calculated from six metabolites (GlycA, small HDL particles, leucine, valine, isoleucine and citrate) measured by NMR spectroscopy. Cox proportional hazards models assessed associations with incident hypertension, adjusting for demographic, lifestyle and clinical factors. Restricted cubic spline analyses examined dose–response relationships, and subgroup analyses explored effect modifications by polygenic risk score, BMI and C-reactive protein levels. During follow-up, 32 198 participants developed hypertension. After comprehensive adjustment, IVX and metabolic vulnerability index (MVX) showed significant positive associations with hypertension risk (highest v. lowest quartile: hazard ratio (HR) = 1·25 (95 % CI: 1·20, 1·31) and HR = 1·19 (95 % CI: 1·15, 1·24), respectively, P < 0·001). Each standard deviation increase in IVX and MVX was associated with 9 % and 7 % higher hypertension risk, respectively. Conversely, MMX demonstrated a slight protective effect (HR = 0·96 (95 % CI: 0·92, 0·99), P = 0·016) and exhibited a U-shaped relationship with hypertension risk. Notably, associations between IVX/MVX and hypertension were significantly stronger in non-obese individuals (BMI < 30) compared with obese participants (BMI ≥ 30) (P-interaction < 0·001 and P = 0·007, respectively). Results remained robust in sensitivity analyses excluding extreme values and early hypertension cases. Metabolic vulnerability, particularly its inflammatory component, is independently associated with hypertension risk beyond traditional risk factors. These findings highlight the potential utility of comprehensive metabolomic profiling for early identification of individuals at elevated hypertension risk.

This paper presents a novel UHF RFID tag antenna with metal-mount capability, broadband characteristics, and frequency controllability. To achieve anti-metal performance, we explore a vertical loop structure as the main radiator, with slots for frequency adjustment and layout flexibility. The antenna operates based on a hybrid magnetic–electric mode interaction mechanism, in which the vertical loop provides a magnetic-dipole-dominated radiation mode. Furthermore, asymmetric resonant dipole patches are loaded on both sides of the center feed line to introduce an auxiliary electric mode and broaden the operating bandwidth. This structural-level mode and coupling engineering enables independent control of the center frequency while maintaining wideband impedance matching. The proposed antenna has a compact size of $0.1951\lambda \times0.128\lambda \times0.0051 \lambda$, with the main radiation lobe concentrated within 60$^{\circ}$ from the zenith. By mounting on a $100\times100\times2\,\mathrm{mm}^{3}$ copper plate, it achieves a maximum read range of 7.32 m, which demonstrates the good adaptability for UHF RFID tagging on metal surfaces.

Accurate prediction of the hydrodynamic coefficients of non-spherical particles in wall-confined flows is crucial for understanding particle–fluid interactions and reliable modelling of particle motion. Under strong wall confinement, the hydrodynamic coefficients exhibit a highly nonlinear dependence on the Reynolds number, wall distance and particle orientation – posing significant modelling challenges. In this study, we propose a multi-stage physics-informed machine-learning (MSPIML) framework for modelling the drag, lift and pitching torque coefficients of a wall-bounded prolate spheroid over the explored parameter space. In the first stage, a physics-informed mixture-of-experts (PIMoE) model predicts the drag coefficient by intelligently blending empirical correlations with a data-driven statistical expert. The resulting high-fidelity drag coefficient is then injected as an auxiliary input to a second-stage model, either a deep neural network (DNN) or an additional MoE, that predicts lift and pitching torque coefficients, thereby leveraging the strong physical coupling among the three coefficients. Trained on a comprehensive dataset of 720 direct numerical simulations covering wide ranges of Reynolds number, wall distance and particle orientation, the optimal PIMoE–DNN and PIMoE–MoE configurations achieve relative errors below 2.2 % for drag, 11.4 % for lift and 7.0 % for pitching torque while maintaining excellent generalisation across the entire parameter space. Moreover, the Shapley additive explanations analysis confirms that the MSPIML framework correctly captures the physical dependencies: dominant influence of Reynolds number and strong pitching torque dependence on the drag coefficient. The MSPIML framework provides an interpretable and efficient approach to the prediction of hydrodynamic coefficients and offers substantial potential for dynamic modelling of non-spherical particles in multiphase flows.

Flow around a submerged cylinder near a free surface reveals that adjusting the Froude number and gap ratio influences the underwater jet pattern, vortex shedding frequency and free-surface deformation. The jet typically separates near the trough, leading to vorticity concentration and breaking waves that dissipate wave energy. Antarctic orcas collaborate to generate deep depression waves, breaking ice and washing seals from floes. Orcas raise their heads and tap their tails downward when approaching ice, which may benefit strong wave generation. We investigate the wave-generating hydrodynamics using a towing tank and particle image velocimetry. A scaled model with an elliptical body and wedge-shaped tail was tested under Froude number similarity. Experiments covered towing speeds of $0.3- 0.7\,\textrm{ms}^{-1}$, combining different body ($10^\circ$/$0^\circ$/$-10^\circ$) and tail angles ($30^\circ$/$0^\circ$/$-30^\circ$), at chord-based Reynolds numbers of $17\,030- 40\,506$. Four wake regimes are identified: small-scale vortex emergence triggered by capillary waves; extensive wave breaking due to flow separation at the trough; smooth depression wave caused by jet reattachment and downward advection of wake vortices; and large-scale vortex impingement generated by wake vortex perturbations. Under the pitched posture, the jet attaches successively to the solid surface and the trough via the Coandâ effect, suppressing flow separation, creating the most pronounced wave. The strong jet maintained a low-potential-energy state of the wave and led to large ice floes flipping and fracturing through the bending effect, while smaller ice floes were overwashed. This study suggests a novel flow-control strategy for objects near the free surface through jet attachment.

It is of great importance for fields such as implosion dynamics and fusion research to understand the dynamics of ejecta transport in converging gases. In this paper, the evolution of particulate flow within a cylindrically imploding system is investigated experimentally and numerically. The ejecta particles are emitted from the inner surface of a roughened Sn liner into vacuum, He and Ar gases. Dynamic images of liner implosion and ejecta transport are obtained with X-ray radiographs and multi-frame optical schlieren images. The transport of ejecta particles is simulated with a four-way coupled multiphase flow model, including modelling of gas–particle coupling and inter-particle collisions. Results reveal that the ejecta transport in shock-induced converging gases differs significantly from that in planar systems, primarily due to features such as interaction with the rebounding gas shock wave and continuous compression by the imploding liner. After being generated from the inner surface, the ejecta width undergoes an ‘expansion–compression’ variation. According to mechanisms governing ejecta–gas coupling, three distinct stages of ejecta evolution are identified: (i) post-shock transport dominated by drag and particle breakup; (ii) shock-particle interaction leading to quick reduction in particle size and rapid deceleration of the ejecta front; and (iii) dense ejecta compression governed by inter-particle collisions. Leveraging particle motion and size predictions at the ejecta front, combined with the self-similar converging shock solution, a theoretical model is established to estimate the three-stage evolution of ejecta width in a cylindrically converging system.

A novel fixed-time cooperative guidance law is developed to enable multiple flight vehicles to simultaneously intercept various target motions with desired impact angle, including stationary, constant-velocity moving and manoeuvring targets, with a unified guidance structure that requires no mode switching or target motion classification. First, a fixed-time distributed cooperative guidance law is developed using the theory of multi-intelligence cooperative control, which is formulated along the line of sight (LOS) direction. This approach ensures that the impact time is regulated, enabling multiple flight vehicles to intercept the target simultaneously within a fixed time. In the second phase, employing a sliding manifold and a fixed-time reaching law, the normal acceleration of each flight vehicle is designed to ensure that the LOS angle converges to its target value within a fixed duration. Unknown components of the target’s acceleration are estimated via fixed-time observers and incorporated into the guidance commands, enhancing precision and robustness in the guidance process. In conclusion, the proposed approach proves the effectiveness and superiority through numerical simulations, including various target motions, switching communication topology, robustness against uncertainties based on Monte Carlo experiment and comparative studies.

The paper presents a detailed study on the transonic buffeting phenomenon and related active control problems via a novel nonlinear aeroservoelastic model of reduced-order. An important feature of the study is the reconstruction of the unsteady aerodynamics in transonic buffeting flows via a modified nonlinear state-space identification scheme. Based on the aerodynamic model reduction, the paper gives a nonlinear aeroservoelastic model of reduced-order by coupling the structural dynamics of a wing section with a control surface. To demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the above model and the control design for transonic buffeting, the study deals with detailed numerical simulations of a wing section of an NACA0012 aerofoil system with a control surface. The case studies cover the dynamic behaviours of such an aerofoil system, including flutter, limit-cycle oscillations, nodal-shaped oscillations and open/closed-loop aeroservoelastic buffeting oscillations. The numerical results demonstrate that the novel nonlinear reduced-order modeling approach provides an efficient way to synthesise the active buffeting control system. Based on the nonlinear aeroservoelastic model of reduced-order, the control gains of the buffeting controller can be efficiently determined and the unstable buffeting behaviours can also be controlled effectively.

Maternal Hb and fetal growth change dynamically throughout pregnancy. We examined the associations of time-specific Hb levels and Hb trajectories with fetal biometrics and adverse birth outcomes. This prospective study included 6844 pregnant women (mean age 26·6 (sd 3·7) years) from the Tongji-Huaxi-Shuangliu Birth Cohort. Hb levels were measured at four periods: early (6–12 gestational weeks), middle (13–27), middle-late (28–32) and late pregnancy (33–37). Fetal biometrics were assessed by ultrasound from middle to late pregnancy. Birth outcomes were obtained from medical records, including small for gestational age (SGA), low birth weight (LBW) and preterm birth. Three Hb trajectories were identified: consistent decline (Trajectory 1), consistently low (Trajectory 2) and increase from middle-late pregnancy (Trajectory 3). Compared with Trajectory 1, Trajectory 3 was associated with lower estimated fetal weight (β, −0·54; 95 % CI −0·99, −0·09) and abdominal circumference (β, −0·21; 95 % CI −0·40, −0·01) in late pregnancy and higher umbilical artery resistance index across pregnancy (β, 0·65; 95 % CI 0·31, 1·00). Trajectory 3 was also associated with higher risk of LBW (OR, 1·57; 95 % CI 1·09, 2·26). In middle-late pregnancy, higher Hb (≥ 130 g/l) was associated with higher risks of LBW (OR, 2·26; 95 % CI 1·08, 4·25) and preterm birth (OR, 2·03; 95 % CI 1·12, 3·44) compared with the reference (110–129 g/l). Elevated maternal Hb from middle-late pregnancy onwards may be associated with lower fetal weight and increased risk of LBW. Dynamic monitoring of maternal Hb may facilitate targeted nutritional management in pregnant women.

The classification of the species in the genus Actias Leach, 1815 (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) is challenging because many species have a highly similar morphology, while differences in database classification standards also provoke identification problems. To help resolve these issues, we conducted an integrative analysis of 741 cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) barcode sequences available by combining phylogenetic reconstruction, population genetic (Fst) metrics, and biogeographic data. This approach delineated 44 molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) and established a genus-specific, empirical genetic distance threshold of 2.05% from a baseline of 29 morphologically validated MOTUs. These 29 MOTUs/morphospecies were then utilized to assess the interspecific genetic distance gap of this genus and further used as the species-level genetic distance to delimit the remaining morphospecies. Applying this multi-evidence framework allowed us to propose a significant re-evaluation of species boundaries, including several taxonomic reclassifications, and to generate the molecular inventory for Actias. Our study illustrates the power of an integrated molecular approach to resolve complex taxonomic issues and provides a robust, data-driven foundation for future research on Actias.

The two-dimensional to three-dimensional wake transition of a circular cylinder in a sinusoidal oscillatory flow arises from the Honji instability at a critical Keulegan–Carpenter number (denoted $\textit{KC}_{cr}$) with a corresponding critical spanwise wavelength (denoted $\lambda _{cr}$) for a given Stokes number (denoted $\beta$) larger than approximately 50. However, significant discrepancies in the $\textit{KC}_{cr}$ and $\lambda _{cr}$ values exist among the theoretical predictions by Hall (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 146, 1984, pp. 347–367), empirical formulae by Sarpkaya (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 457, 2002, pp. 157–180) and other experimental and numerical results in the literature. These long-standing discrepancies are addressed in this study, and new equations for $\textit{KC}_{cr}$ and $\lambda _{cr}$ are proposed for $\beta = 55$–$10^{6}$. The present $\textit{KC}_{cr}$ and $\lambda _{cr}$ values agree well with the Floquet analysis results of Elston et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 550, 2006, pp. 359–389) for $\beta \sim 50$–$100$, and asymptotically converge to theoretical predictions by Hall (1984) as $\beta \to \infty$, but deviate significantly from the empirical formulae by Sarpkaya (2002). The underlying physical mechanisms for these deviations are elucidated. In addition, we reproduce the quasi-coherent structure (QCS) numerically for the first time, and demonstrate that the QCS observed by Sarpkaya (2002), where transient Honji vortices become pronounced near peak flow velocities but diminish during deceleration, is physically induced by ambient disturbances inevitably contained in physical experiments, such that $\textit{KC}_{cr}$ given by Sarpkaya (2002) is specific to the level of disturbance in his experimental setting and is somewhat arbitrary.

Recently, Alfvénic ion temperature gradient (AITG) modes have been observed in the core plasma on the HL-2A tokamak. Only when electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) and neutral beam injection are simultaneously injected into the deuterium plasma do the AITG modes become unstable. The instability is electromagnetic and localised in the core plasma with an internal transport barrier. Dynamic evolution of AITG modes is greatly affected by the off-axis ECRH. Theoretical analysis suggests that there is a strong dependence of the AITG modes on $\eta _i\simeq \boldsymbol{\nabla }\ln T_i/\boldsymbol{\nabla }\ln n_i$, where $n_i$ is the ion density. It is also found that ECRH can enhances AITG modes by causing a drop of electron density and an increase of $\tau =T_e/T_i$; here $T_e$ and $T_i$ are the electron and ion temperatures, respectively. Besides, high-power ECRH may also change the safety factor or magnetic shear and then contribute to the mitigation of AITG modes. The new findings can not only enrich scientific knowledge for pressure gradient-driven instability, but also be beneficial to active control of core-localised electromagnetic modes in future fusion devices.

In this paper, a sliding mode guidance law for impact angle control without violating a seeker’s field-of-view limits is proposed against targets with various motions and unknown acceleration, including stationary, constant-velocity moving and manoeuvring targets. To develop the guidance law, the kinematic conditions for engagement geometry are defined, and the sliding mode control is applied to satisfy the homing constraint and impact angle control. Then, the relation between look angle, the desired line-of-sight angle and desired impact angle is established to guarantee the target in the field of the missile’s view. The stability of the proposed approach is analysed using Lyapunov theory. Furthermore, the look angle is examined to verify the field-of-view constraint, and a capturability analysis is conducted. To evaluate the performance of the proposed law, numerical simulations demonstrate that the proposed approach achieves satisfactory miss distance and impact angle error while adhering to the field-of-view limit.