A scheme for generating high-flux angularly uniform proton beams with high laser-to-proton energy conversion efficiency is proposed. Three laser beams are focused on a microwire array attached to a solid-density hemispheric target. The laser-driven hot electrons from the front of the microwire hemisphere generate a hot-electron sheath in the hollow behind it, so that the protons on its back are accelerated by target normal sheath acceleration. The accelerated protons are of high flux, as well as angularly and energetically uniform. The scheme should be useful for applications involving warm dense matter, such as isochoric heating and modification of materials, as well as for proton therapy and inertial confinement fusion.

Organo-montmorillonite (OMnt) has wide applications in paints, clay-polymer nanocomposites, biomaterials, etc. In most cases, the dispersibility and swellability of OMnt dictate the performance of OMnt in the target products. Previous studies have revealed that the properties can be improved when multiple organic species are co-introduced into the interlayer space of montmorillonite (Mnt). In the present study, single surfactant erucylamide (EA), dual-surfactants cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) and octadecyltrimethyl ammonium chloride (OTAC), and ternary-surfactants EA, CTAB, and OTAC were co-introduced into Mnt by solution intercalation. The resulting OMnts were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetry-differential thermogravimetry (TG-DTG), water contact-angle tests, scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), laser particle-size analysis, and swelling indices. Mnt co-modified by ternary CTAB, OTAC, and EA led to a large d001 value (4.20 nm), surface hydrophobicity with a contact angle of 95.6°, swellability (50 mL/g) with small average particle sizes (2.1−2.8 μm) in xylene, and >99% of the OMnt particles were kept as <5 μm in deionized water. The formation of EA-modified-Mnt was proposed according to hydrophobic affinity, hydrogen bonding, and van der Waals forces. The nanoplatelets of the CTA+, OTA+, and EA co-modified OMnts in xylene were assembled into a house-of-cards structure by face-to-edge and edge-to-edge associations. The electrostatic attractions, electrostatic and steric repulsions, and hydrophobic interactions were responsible for the good dispersibility of OMnt in xylene. The ternary surfactant co-modified OMnt with high dispersion and swellability will make OMnt better suited for real-world applications.

The provenance of clays in shaley intervals across the Permian-Triassic boundary (PTB) in the Xiakou section was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the results suggest that the layers have three different provenances. The layer P267-b has a loose texture with an oriented arrangement of detrital clay particles, consisting mainly of illite and minor chlorite with irregular outlines or ragged edges. The dehydroxylation reaction of the clays in this layer is characterized by an intense overlapping endothermic effect at ∼600°C, produced by mixed-layer illite-smectite (I-S) consisting of a mixture of cis-vacant (cv)and trans-vacant (tv) octahedral sheets derived from weathering of detrital illite. Layer P259-b shows a more condensed texture with a dark color, and is composed mainly of I-S and minor illite and chlorite. Evidence for alteration of detrital materials to clay mineral aggregates was observed under SEM. Similar to layer P267-b, an intense dehydroxylation reaction occurs at ∼600°C, indicating clays consisting of a mixture of tv and cv sheets and, therefore, that the sediments were derived from a mixture of terrigenous and volcanic sources, combining the texture and the clay-mineral composition of those sediments. However, the undisturbed lamination and relatively small grain size in this bed indicate a low-energy depositional environment. The clay-mineral compositions of the other layers are mainly of I-S with minor amounts of illite and chlorite. Their endothermic dehydroxylation reaction, however, occurs mainly at ∼660°C, indicating that cv sheets are dominant in the clays, and thus, are derived from smectites of volcanic origin. Observations by SEM show that clay minerals grow at the expense of detrital materials, confirming the diagenetic alteration of volcanic ashes in marine sediments. Illite and chlorite are the detrital clay minerals in the clay layers across the PTB in the Xiakou section. The presence of detrital illite and chlorite in the sediments means that an arid climate prevailed in the region during the end-Permian and early Triassic period.

Objectives: Laboratory-acquired infection (LAI) of SARS-CoV is well known, but MERS-CoV or SARS-CoV-2 LAI has not yet been reported. Beginning last November, COVID-19 cases increased among laboratory staff at our 2,700-bed tertiary-care hospital. A 7-day home-quarantine policy for healthcare workers when household members were confirmed with SARS-COV-2 was lifted February 28. We investigated LAI and its risk factors. Methods: From March 21 to 25, all confirmed cases of COVID-19 among 176 laboratory staff were surveyed with questionnaire to collect the following data: symptom onset and period, SARS-CoV-2 PCR–positive sample date, age, sex, infection in household members, close contact with COVID-19 confirmed staff, work type, work unit, possibility of LAI and LAI risk factors. Results: In total, 54 laboratory staff (30.1%) were confirmed with SARS-CoV-2 infection; first 1 person on November 28 and 1 person on November 30, 2021, then 13 in February 2022 and 39 later in 2022. Overall, 22 cases had previously infected household members, and 9 cases suspected that they had had hospital contact with an infected patients through phlebotomy or bedside tests. In total, 25 cases of possible LAI mainly occurred in clusters of 3, 6, or 7 people through person-to-person transmission of a coworker who had an infected family member. The remaining 9 cases, including 1 sample receptionist, 2 urine analysis technicians, and 6 SARS-CoV-2 PCR test staff, may have been infected through an infected sample. However, person-to-person transmission was still possible because most shared a changing room and lounge in the same work unit. Conclusions: The most important cause of LAI is person-to-person transmission between coworkers; therefore, home quarantine is an effective measure to prevent LAI when a household member is infected wish SARS-CoV-2. Handling of infected specimens may be the second most common cause of LAI.

The subduction model of the Neo-Tethys during the Early Cretaceous has always been a controversial topic, and the scarcity of Early Cretaceous magmatic rocks in the southern part of the Gangdese batholith is the main cause of this debate. To address this issue, this article presents new zircon U–Pb chronology, zircon Hf isotope, whole-rock geochemistry and Sr–Nd isotope data for the Early Cretaceous quartz diorite dykes with adakite affinity in Liuqiong, Gongga. Zircon U–Pb dating of three samples yielded ages of c. 141–137 Ma, indicating that the Liuqiong quartz diorite was emplaced in the Early Cretaceous. The whole-rock geochemical analysis shows that the Liuqiong quartz diorite is enriched in large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs) and light rare-earth elements (LREEs) and is depleted in high-field-strength elements (HFSEs), which are related to slab subduction. Additionally, the Liuqiong quartz diorite has high SiO2, Al2O3 and Sr contents, high Sr/Y ratios and low heavy rare-earth element (HREE) and Y contents, which are compatible with typical adakite signatures. The initial 87Sr/86Sr values of the Liuqiong adakite range from 0.705617 to 0.705853, and the whole-rock ϵNd(t) values vary between +5.78 and +6.24. The zircon ϵHf(t) values vary from +11.5 to +16.4. Our results show that the Liuqiong adakite magma was derived from partial melting of the Neo-Tethyan oceanic plate (mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) + sediment + fluid), with some degree of subsequent peridotite interaction within the overlying mantle wedge. Combining regional data, we favour the interpretation that the Neo-Tethyan oceanic crust was subducted at a low angle beneath the Gangdese during the Early Cretaceous.

Recently, the nature of viscoelastic drag-reducing turbulence (DRT), especially the maximum drag reduction (MDR) state, has become a focus of controversy. It has long been regarded as polymer-modulated inertial turbulence (IT), but is challenged by the newly proposed concept of elasto-inertial turbulence (EIT). This study is to repicture DRT in parallel plane channels by introducing dynamics of EIT through statistical, structural and budget analysis for a series of flow regimes from the onset of drag reduction to EIT. Some underlying mechanistic links between DRT and EIT are revealed. Energy conversion between velocity fluctuations and polymers as well as pressure redistribution effects are of particular concern, based on which a new energy self-sustaining process (SSP) of DRT is repictured. The numerical results indicate that at low Reynolds number ($Re$), weak IT flow is replaced by a laminar regime before the barrier of EIT dynamics is established with the increase of elasticity, whereas, at moderate $Re$, EIT-related SSP can get involved and survive from being relaminarized. This further explains the reason why relaminarization phenomenon is observed for low $Re$ while the flow directly enters MDR and EIT at moderate $Re$. Moreover, with the proposed energy picture, the newly discovered phenomenon that streamwise velocity fluctuations lag behind those in the wall-normal direction can be well explained. The repictured SSP certainly justifies the conjecture that IT nature is gradually replaced by that of EIT in DRT with the increase of elasticity.

What determines public support for trade liberalization? Scholars of international political economy have generally focused on the effects of openness on employment via individuals’ skill level, sector, or occupation. Recent developments in trade economics suggest that the characteristics of individual citizens’ employing firms may also shape their attitudes on trade policy. In this paper, using under-explored survey data combining trade opinion with measures of employer productivity (from the 2008 Japanese General Social Survey), we present evidence that employees of more productive, more globalized firms are much more supportive of trade openness than employees of less productive, domestically oriented firms, even when accounting for skill level and sectoral and occupational characteristics. Moreover, we find evidence that the effects of these characteristics described in the literature are conditioned by globalized firm employment. Last, we find that the effect of globalized firm employment is conditioned by employees’ relative position within their firms. Those who are more likely to benefit directly from firm success—such as permanent employees and managers—hold the most pro-trade preferences. These findings suggest that economic interests affect individual policy preferences in more nuanced ways than previously recognized.

The dynamics of entry and exit are examined across different categories of farms depending on the timing of entry and/or exit through a detailed panel data set on Canadian agriculture. The decomposition highlights the differences in the groups of farms and provides information affecting entry and exit beyond what can be inferred from net exit numbers. While aggregate values show a gradual fall in farm numbers over time and suggest a sector in decline, the decomposition reveals that approximately one-third of farms in each census are new entrants but only half of these will be in operation by the time of the next census. The results of the analysis suggest that many of the factors that increase the probability of entry also increase the probability of exit; smaller operations, producing vegetable/horticulture goods, located in more densely populated regions, are more likely to enter the sector but also to leave farming. Multigeneration involvement and a possible succession plan also contribute to the longevity of the farm operation after it has been launched. The results also highlight the decline of the mid-size operations and the growing importance of large farms in the overall share of production.

Environmental hypoxia exposure causes fertility problems in human and animals. Compelling evidence suggests that chronic hypoxia impairs spermatogenesis and reduces sperm motility. However, it is unclear whether paternal hypoxic exposure affects fertilization and early embryo development. In the present study, we exposed male mice to high altitude (3200 m above sea level) for 7 or 60 days to evaluate the effects of hypoxia on sperm quality, zygotic DNA methylation and blastocyst formation. Compared with age-matched controls, hypoxia-treated males exhibited reduced fertility after mating with normoxic females as a result of defects in sperm motility and function. Results of in vitro fertilization (IVF) experiments revealed that 60 days’ exposure significantly reduced cleavage and blastocyst rates by 30% and 70%, respectively. Immunohistochemical staining of pronuclear formation indicated that the pronuclear formation process was disturbed and expression of imprinted genes was reduced in early embryos after paternal hypoxia. Overall, the findings of this study suggested that exposing male mice to hypoxia impaired sperm function and affected key events during early embryo development in mammals.

Shifts in the maternal gut microbiota have been implicated in the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Understanding the interaction between gut microbiota and host glucose metabolism will provide a new target of prediction and treatment. In this nested case-control study, we aimed to investigate the causal effects of gut microbiota from GDM patients on the glucose metabolism of germ-free (GF) mice. Stool and peripheral blood samples, as well as clinical information, were collected from 45 GDM patients and 45 healthy controls (matched by age and prepregnancy body mass index (BMI)) in the first and second trimester. Gut microbiota profiles were explored by next-generation sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, and inflammatory factors in peripheral blood were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Fecal samples from GDM and non-GDM donors were transferred to GF mice. The gut microbiota of women with GDM showed reduced richness, specifically decreased Bacteroides and Akkermansia, as well as increased Faecalibacterium. The relative abundance of Akkermansia was negatively associated with blood glucose levels, and the relative abundance of Faecalibacterium was positively related to inflammatory factor concentrations. The transfer of fecal microbiota from GDM and non-GDM donors to GF mice resulted in different gut microbiota colonization patterns, and hyperglycemia was induced in mice that received GDM donor microbiota. These results suggested that the shifting pattern of gut microbiota in GDM patients contributed to disease pathogenesis.

Findings for the roles of dairy products, Ca and vitamin D on ovarian cancer risk remain controversial. We aimed to assess these associations by using an updated meta-analysis. Five electronic databases (e.g. PubMed and Embase) were searched from inception to 24 December 2019. Pooled relative risks (RR) with 95 % CI were calculated. A total of twenty-nine case–control or cohort studies were included. For comparisons of the highest v. lowest intakes, higher whole milk intake was associated with increased ovarian cancer risk (RR 1·35; 95 % CI 1·15, 1·59), whereas decreased risks were observed for higher intakes of low-fat milk (RR 0·84; 95 % CI 0·73, 0·96), dietary Ca (RR 0·71; 95 % CI 0·60, 0·84) and dietary vitamin D (RR 0·80; 95 % CI 0·67, 0·95). Additionally, for every 100 g/d increment, increased ovarian cancer risks were found for total dairy products (RR 1·03; 95 % CI 1·01, 1·04) and for whole milk (RR 1·07; 95 % CI 1·03, 1·11); however, decreased risks were found for 100 g/d increased intakes of low-fat milk (RR 0·95; 95 % CI 0·91, 0·99), cheese (RR 0·87; 95 % CI 0·76, 0·98), dietary Ca (RR 0·96; 95 % CI 0·95, 0·98), total Ca (RR 0·98; 95 % CI 0·97, 0·99), dietary vitamin D (RR 0·92; 95 % CI 0·87, 0·97) and increased levels of circulating vitamin D (RR 0·84; 95 % CI 0·72, 0·97). These results show that whole milk intake might contribute to a higher ovarian cancer risk, whereas low-fat milk, dietary Ca and dietary vitamin D might reduce the risk.

A new fast-growing mycobacterium, designated strain QGD101T, was isolated from the sputum of an 84-year-old man suspected of tuberculosis in Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, Hubei, China. This strain was a gram-staining-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming and catalase-positive bacterium, which was further identified as the NTM by PNB and TCH tests. The moxifloxacin and levofloxacin exhibited strong suppressing function against QGD101T with MIC values of 0.06 and 0.125 µg/ml after drug susceptibility testing of six main antimicrobial agents on mycobacteria. Based on the sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, rpoB, hsp65 and 16S-23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer, the strain QGD101T could not be identified to a species level. Mycobacterium moriokaense ATCC43059T that shared the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (98%) with strain QGD101T was actually different in genomes average nucleotide identity (78.74%). In addition, the major cellular fatty acids of QGD101T were determined as C18:1ω9c, C16:0 and C18:2ω6c. The DNA G + C content was 64.9% measured by high performance liquid chromatography. Therefore, the phenotypic and genotypic characterisation of this strain led us to the conclusion that it represents a novel species of mycobacteria, for which the name Mycobacterium hubeiense sp. nov. (type strain QGD101T = CCTCCAA 2017003T = KCTC39927T) was proposed. Thus, the results of this study are very significant for the clinical diagnosis of tuberculosis and future personalised medicine.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a main pathogen causing community-acquired pneumonia in children and young adults. Since the emergence of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae in the early 2000s in Japan, it has been increasingly reported worldwide as a growing problem in treatment for children. With increasing macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae and limited data regarding its characterization and molecular analysis, we investigated the dominant M. pneumoniae strains during the recent outbreak in South Korea, and evaluated if there was an association between a specific type and macrolide resistance. Between October 2014 and December 2016 in South Korea, 249 respiratory specimens obtained from patients with confirmed M. pneumoniae pneumonia were genotyped the P1 adhesin gene, and the mutations associated with resistance (A2063G and A2064G) were tested by sequencing the targeted domain V regions of the 23S ribosomal RNA gene. Results revealed that M. pneumoniae type 1 were predominant, which was strongly associated with macrolide-resistance during the whole study period. This is the first study assessing whether M. pneumoniae subtype is related to macrolide resistance during the outbreak of M. pneumoniae.

Knowledge has always been a strategic resource for firms; however, there is a lack of research regarding how a firm's knowledge management (KM) contributes to its capability catching-up and adaptation in emerging economies. This article focuses on the knowledge capability building of Chinese private firms that were set up in the 1990s and pays particular attention to how firms with limited resources and knowledge went on to achieve remarkable success. This paper presents its analysis through a multi-level co-evolutionary lens and a case study on the Li-Ning Company. The case study depicts the macro coevolution between the changing business environment and the firm's strategic choices, as well as the micro coevolution of the organizational strategy and the KM orientations, processes, and infrastructures within the firm. The research sheds light on the dynamic capability building trajectory for the firms in emerging economies.

The basaltic pillow lavas in the Liuyuan region of NW China, considered to be part of an ophiolitic suite, have been central to the models on tectonic setting, evolution and timing of the final closure of the Palaeo-Asian Ocean. New field evidence on the sedimentary units associated with the basalts reveals comparable sequences in the northern and southern flanks of the Liuyuan Volcanic Belt with coarse to fine sediments from periphery to the centre. The dacites and rhyolites formed coevally with the pillow basalts. The pillow basalts are interlayered with lacustrine sandstone, claystone and clayey lake deposits. Detrital zircons from these sediments yield zircon U–Pb ages of 291–285 Ma. Andesites, dacites and rhyolites from the basaltic sequence yield U–Pb ages of 280–277 Ma, similar to the 282–280 Ma ages of gabbros that intrude the pillow lavas. All these rocks cover the 460–440 Ma granite and greenschist basement and have been intruded by gabbros of c. 272 Ma age, with subsequent (230–227 Ma) north–south contractional thrusting and folding. The data from our study are incompatible with the existing models that consider the basalts as part of an ophiolitic suite. Along the northern continental margin of China from west to east, the Tarim, Dunhuang-Alxa and North China cratonic areas all show evidence for regional extension through rifting during early–middle Permian time. These rift features and basaltic eruptions occurred coevally with the assembly of various microcontinental blocks against the Siberian craton at c. 300–250 Ma, synchronous with amalgamation of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) on the northern side of the Liuyuan Rift. These events were also broadly synchronous with formation of the global supercontinent Pangea.

The number of experiments on-board Lomonosov spacecraft are preparing now at SINP MSU inco-operation with other organisations. The main idea of Lomonosov mission is to studyextreme astrophysical phenomena, such as cosmic gamma-ray bursts and ultra-high energycosmic rays. These phenomena connect with processes occurred in very distant astrophysicalobjects of the Early Universe and give us information about first stages of Universeevolution. Thus, the Lomonosov mission scientific equipment includes several instrumentsfor gamma-ray burst observation in optics, ultra-violet, X-rays and gamma-rays and thewide aperture telescope for ultra-high energy particle study by detection of ionisationlight along its tracks in the atmosphere. The main parameters and a brief description ofthese instruments are presented.