A suite of Jurassic–Cretaceous migmatites was newly identified in the Liaodong Peninsula of the eastern North China Craton (NCC). Anatexis is commonly associated with crustal thickening. However, the newly identified migmatites were formed during strong lithospheric thinning accompanied by voluminous magmatism and intense deformation. Field investigations show that the migmatites are spatially associated with low-angle detachment faults. Numerous leucosomes occur either as isolated lenses or thin layers (dykes), parallel to or cross-cutting the foliation. Peritectic minerals such as titanite and sillimanite are distributed mainly along the boundaries of reactant minerals or are accumulated along the foliation. Most zircons show distinct core–rim structures, and the rims have low Th/U ratios (0.01–0.24). Zircon U–Pb dating results indicate that the protoliths of the migmatites were either the Late Triassic (224–221 Ma) diorites or metasedimentary rocks deposited sometime after c. 1857 Ma. The zircon overgrowth rims record crystallization ages of 173–161 Ma and 125 Ma, which represent the formation time of leucosomes. These ages are consistent with those reported magmatic events in the Liaodong Peninsula and surrounding areas. The leucosomes indicate a strong anatectic event during the Jurassic–Cretaceous period. Partial melting occurred through the breakdown of muscovite and biotite with the presence of water-rich fluid under a thermal anomaly regime. The possible mechanism that caused the 173–161 Ma and 125 Ma anatectic events was intimately related to the regional crustal extension during the lithospheric thinning of the NCC. Meanwhile, the newly generated melts further weakened the rigidity of the crust and enhanced the extension.

Salmonella is a leading cause of foodborne outbreaks in Taiwan. On 27 April 2018, a salmonellosis outbreak among customers of a restaurant was reported to the Taiwan CDC. We investigated the outbreak to identify infection sources and prevent further transmission. We interviewed ill customers and their dining companions. We conducted a case-control study to identify foods associated with the illness. Case-patients were those who had diarrhoea within 72 h after eating at the restaurant during 16–27 April 2018. Specimens, food samples and environmental samples were collected and tested for enteric pathogens. Salmonella isolates were analysed with pulse-field gel electrophoresis and whole-genome sequencing. We inspected the restaurant sanitation and reviewed kitchen surveillance camera recordings. We identified 47 case-patients, including one decedent. Compared with 44 controls, case-patients were more likely to have had a French toast sandwich (OR: 102.4; 95% CI: 18.7–952.3). Salmonella Enteritidis isolates from 16 case-patients shared an indistinguishable genotype. Camera recordings revealed eggshell contamination, long holding time at room temperature and use of leftovers during implicated food preparation. Recommendations for restaurant egg-containing food preparation are to use pasteurised egg products and ensure a high enough cooking temperature and long enough cooking time to prevent Salmonella contamination.

A novel radio frequency identification tag antenna is composed of a resonant open-slot exciter and a dipole-type ground radiator. For a conjugate match to the Alien Higgs-4 chip impedance of 8−j149 Ω at 925 MHz, a quarter wavelength open-slot resonator embedded at the center of the dipole-type ground plane (130 × 18 mm2) was investigated and fabricated. Simple size adjustments and various loaded inductor of the open-slot resonator allow for easy control of the tag antenna resistance and inductive reactance, from which the chip impedance requirement can be easily obtained. The read range of the prototype antenna attached on a foam in the free space can reach more than 9 m, which has been tested for a radio frequency identification reader with 4.0-W of effective isotropic radiated power. Measurement data are in good agreement with simulation results.

Fluorescent nanodiamonds (FNDs) with a size in the range of 10 – 100 nm have been produced by ion irradiation and annealing, and isolated by differential centrifugation. Single particle spectroscopic characterization with confocal fluorescence microscopy and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy indicates that they are photostable and useful as an alternative to far-red fluorescent proteins for bioimaging applications. We demonstrate the application by performing in vivo imaging of bare and bioconjugated FND particles (100 nm in diameter) in C. elegans and zebrafishes and exploring the interactions between this novel nanomaterial and the model organisms. Our results indicate that FNDs can be delivered to the embryos of both organisms by microinjection and eventually into the hatched larvae in the next generation. No deleterious effects have been observed for the carbon-based nanoparticles in vivo. The high fluorescence brightness, excellent photostability, and nontoxic nature of the nanomaterial have allowed long-term imaging and tracking of embryogenesis in the organisms.

The product and direct role of the rssC gene of Serratia marcescens is unknown. For unraveling the role of the rssC gene, atomic force microscopy has been used to identify the surfaces of intact S. marcescens wild-type CH-1 cells and rssC mutant CH-1ΔC cells. The detailed surface topographies were directly visualized, and quantitative measurements of the physical properties of the membrane structures were provided. CH-1 and CH-1ΔC cells were observed before and after treatment with lysozyme, and their topography-related parameters, e.g., a valley-to-peak distance, mean height, surface roughness, and surface root-mean-square values, were defined and compared. The data obtained suggest that the cellular surface topography of mutant CH-1ΔC becomes rougher and more precipitous than that of wild-type CH-1 cells. Moreover, it was found that, compared with native wild-type CH-1, the cellular surface topography of lysozyme-treated CH-1 was not changed profoundly. The product of the rssC gene is thus predicted to be mainly responsible for fatty-acid biosynthesis of the S. marcescens outer membrane. This study represents the first direct observation of the structural changes in membranes of bacterial mutant cells and offers a new prospect for predicting gene expression in bacterial cells.

The defect structure of the GaN film grown on sapphire by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (PAMBE) technique was found to be dependent on the AlN buffer layer growth temperature. This buffer growth temperature controlled the defect density in GaN film but had shown contrary effects on the density of screw threading dislocation (TD) and edge TD. The density of screw TD was high on lower temperature buffer but low on the higher temperature buffer. Meanwhile the density of edge TD had shown the opposite. Further examinations have suggested that the defect structure was closely related to the stress in the GaN film, which can be controlled by the growth temperature of the AlN buffer. Using the 525°C AlN buffer, optimum quality GaN film with relatively low screw and edge TDs were achieved.