Milk fat synthesis is tightly regulated by hormones and growth factors. Leptin is a versatile peptide hormone that exerts pleiotropic effects on metabolic pathways. In this study, we evaluated the expression and function of leptin and its long form receptor OB-Rb in dairy cow mammary tissues from different physiological stages and in cultured mammary epithelial cells. The results showed that the expression of leptin and OB-Rb were significantly higher in the mammary tissues of lactating cows as compared with dry cows, suggesting that they are related to milk component synthesis. In cultured dairy cow mammary epithelial cells, leptin treatment significantly increased OB-Rb expression and intracellular triacylglycerol content. Transcriptome analysis identified the difference in gene expression between leptin treated cells and control cells, and 317 differentially expressed genes were identified. Gene ontology and pathway mapping showed that lipid metabolism-related gene expression increased and signal transduction pathway-related genes were the most significantly enriched. Mechanistic studies showed that leptin stimulation enhanced sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 expression via activating the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) signaling pathway, which in turn up-regulated the expression of genes related to milk fat synthesis. Moreover, we found that fatty acid synthesis precursors, acetate and β-hydroxybutyrate, could positively regulate the expression of leptin and OB-Rb in bovine mammary epithelial cells, thereby potentially increasing milk fat synthesis. Our study provided novel evidence in the regulation of leptin on milk fat production in mammary glands of dairy cows, as well as experimental basis for artificial regulation of milk fat

Based on a 4f system, a 0° reflector and a single laser diode side-pump amplifier, a new amplifier is designed to compensate the spherical aberration of the amplified laser generated by a single laser diode side-pump amplifier and enhance the power of the amplified laser. Furthermore, the role of the 4f system in the passive spherical aberration compensation and its effect on the amplified laser are discussed in detail. The results indicate that the amplification efficiency is enhanced by incorporating a 4f system in a double-pass amplifier and placing a 0° reflector only at the focal point of the single-pass amplified laser. This method also effectively uses the heat from the gain medium (neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet) of the amplifier to compensate the spherical aberration of the amplified laser.

The high-power narrow-linewidth fiber laser has become the most widely used high-power laser source nowadays. Further breakthroughs of the output power depend on comprehensive optimization of stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS), stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) and transverse mode instability (TMI). In this work, we aim to further surpass the power record of all-fiberized and narrow-linewidth fiber amplifiers with near-diffraction-limited (NDL) beam quality. SBS is suppressed by white-noise-signal modulation of a single-frequency seed. In particular, the refractive index of the large-mode-area active fiber in the main amplifier is controlled and fabricated, which could simultaneously increase the effective mode field area of the fundamental mode and the loss coefficient of higher-order modes for balancing SRS and TMI. Subsequent experimental measurements demonstrate a 7.03 kW narrow-linewidth fiber laser with a signal-to-noise ratio of 31.4 dB and beam quality factors of Mx2 = 1.26, My2 = 1.25. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest reported power with NDL beam quality based on a directly laser-diode-pumped and all-fiberized format, especially with narrow-linewidth spectral emission.

Accidents are a prevalent feature of working in the maritime industry. While studies have shown to what extent accidents and fatalities have occurred, the current research has generally been limited to commercial shipping. There is nearly no academic research focusing on the safety issues in the superyacht industry. This paper analyses the importance of promoting safety culture in the superyacht industry, the role of maritime legislation in maintaining safety and the role of Port State Control in ensuring all legislation is implemented. It aims to provide a critical examination of safety culture in the superyacht industry and evaluate the appropriateness for further measures to ensure safe working practices. It found out that while some superyachts do maintain an effective safety system, there remains almost 50% of the investigated fleet that do not promote the desired safety culture. It becomes evident that complacency and poor education contribute to the reduced and limited safety culture. The lack of education and awareness is demonstrated when the study shows individuals believing they maintain good safety practices but still admitting to taking various life-threatening risks.

In this paper, we have experimentally demonstrated a high-power and high-brightness narrow-linewidth fiber amplifier seeded by an optimized fiber oscillator. In order to improve the temporal stability, the fiber oscillator consists of a composite fiber Bragg grating-based cavity with an external feedback structure. By optimizing the forward and backward pumping ratio, the nonlinear effects and stimulated Raman scattering-induced mode distortion of the fiber amplifier are suppressed comprehensively, accompanied with the simultaneous improvement of beam quality and output power. The laser brightness is enhanced further by raising the threshold of transverse mode instability by approximately 1.0 kW by coiling the gain fiber with a novel curvature shape. Finally, a 6 kW narrow-linewidth laser is achieved with beam quality (M2) of approximately 1.4. The laser brightness doubled compared to the results before optimization. To the best of our knowledge, it is the highest brightness narrow-linewidth fiber laser based on a one-stage master oscillator power amplification structure.

Two-dimensional oblique detonation wave (ODW) propagations in partially prevaporized n-heptane sprays are numerically simulated with a skeletal chemical mechanism. The influences of the droplet diameter and total equivalence on oblique detonation are considered. The initiation length is found to increase first and then decrease with increasing initial droplet diameter, and the effect of droplet size is maximized when the initial droplet diameter is approximately $10\ \mathrm {\mu } {\rm m}$. As the initial droplet diameter varies, unsteady and steady ODWs are observed. In the cases of unsteady ODWs, temperature gradients and non-uniform distributions of the reactant mixture due to droplet evaporation lead to formation of unsteady detonation propagation, therefore leading to fluctuations in the initiation length. The fluctuations in initiation length decrease as the pre-evaporation gas equivalence ratio increases for the unsteady cases. The results further suggest that the relationship between the evaporation layer thickness along the streamline and the corresponding theoretical initiation length can be used to identify an unsteady or steady ODW in cases with large droplets that evaporate behind an oblique shock wave or ODW under the effects of different initial droplet diameters.

Heavy-duty hexapod robots are well-suited for physical transportation, disaster relief, and resource exploration. The immense locomotion capabilities conferred by the six appendages of these systems enable traversal over unstructured and challenging terrain. However, tipping can be a serious concern when moving with a tripod gait in these challenging environments, which may cause irreversible consequences such as compromised movement control and potential damage. In this paper, we focus on heavy-duty hexapod robot sideline tipping judgment and recovery during tripod gait motion, and a novel sideline tipping judgment and recovery method is proposed by adjusting an optimal swinging leg to the stance state. Considering the locomotion environments, motion mode, and tipping analysis, the robot’s stability margin is quantified, and the tipping event is evaluated by the Force Angle Stability Measure (FASM). The recovery method is initiated upon detecting that the robot is tipping, which involves the selection of an adjustment leg and the determination of an optimal foothold. Since the FASM is based on the foot force and robot center of gravity (CoG), the stability margin quantification expression is reformulated to the constraint form of quadratic programming (QP). Furthermore, a foot force distribution method, integrating stability margin considerations into the QP model, has been devised to ensure post-adjustment stability of the landing leg. Experiments on tipping judgment and recovery demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approaches on tipping judgment and recovery.

Loess is a large-scale deposit which is easy to mine and widely distributed on the epipedon. The clay fraction of loess, also known as ‘loessial clay’, is a very important component of loess which affects its properties and performance. From a ‘materials’ perspective, the clay fraction of loess has been ignored. Recently, loess particles have attracted interest because of their potential applications. The focus in the current review is on the methods of modifying loess particles and their application as functional materials. The major components of loess particles are clays, calcite, and quartz, with the clays including kaolinite, illite, montmorillonite, and chlorite. Loess has a range of particle sizes, types, and dispersibilities. The particles agglomerate readily, mainly because cementation occurs readily in the clay fraction. Loess particles can be modified and their properties can be improved by compaction, separation, purification, acidification, calcination, surfactant modification, geopolymerization, and polymer modification. Loess-based functional materials have been used as sorbents, eco-friendly superabsorbents, soil and water conservation materials, humidity-regulating materials, and building materials. Separated and purified loess particles can adsorb metal ions and harmful elements directly. Surfactant-modified loess particles can remove organic compounds effectively. After modification with polymers, loess particles exhibit greater capacity for the removal of environmental pollutants such as harmful metal ions and dyes. As a superabsorbent, modified loess shows excellent thermal stability and swelling behavior. Calcined loess could be utilized as an energy-saving building material with good humidity-regulating performance, and geological polymerization has further expanded the scope of applications of loess in architecture. In summary, loess-based functional materials, which are inexpensive and ecologically friendly, deserve more attention and further development.

Monoidal t-norm based logic $\mathbf {MTL}$ is the weakest t-norm based residuated fuzzy logic, which is a $[0,1]$-valued propositional logical system having a t-norm and its residuum as truth function for conjunction and implication. Monadic fuzzy predicate logic $\mathbf {mMTL\forall }$ that consists of the formulas with unary predicates and just one object variable, is the monadic fragment of fuzzy predicate logic $\mathbf {MTL\forall }$, which is indeed the predicate version of monoidal t-norm based logic $\mathbf {MTL}$. The main aim of this paper is to give an algebraic proof of the completeness theorem for monadic fuzzy predicate logic $\mathbf {mMTL\forall }$ and some of its axiomatic extensions. Firstly, we survey the axiomatic system of monadic algebras for t-norm based residuated fuzzy logic and amend some of them, thus showing that the relationships for these monadic algebras completely inherit those for corresponding algebras. Subsequently, using the equivalence between monadic fuzzy predicate logic $\mathbf {mMTL\forall }$ and S5-like fuzzy modal logic $\mathbf {S5(MTL)}$, we prove that the variety of monadic MTL-algebras is actually the equivalent algebraic semantics of the logic $\mathbf {mMTL\forall }$, giving an algebraic proof of the completeness theorem for this logic via functional monadic MTL-algebras. Finally, we further obtain the completeness theorem of some axiomatic extensions for the logic $\mathbf {mMTL\forall }$, and thus give a major application, namely, proving the strong completeness theorem for monadic fuzzy predicate logic based on involutive monoidal t-norm logic $\mathbf {mIMTL\forall }$ via functional representation of finitely subdirectly irreducible monadic IMTL-algebras.

Achieving the high-precision control of cable-driven parallel robots (CDPRs) is complex because of their structural properties. In this paper, a quintessential redundant CDPR is designed as the research subject, and a continuous switching sliding mode controller based on workspace vision is implemented to enhance the accuracy and stability of trajectory tracking. In addition, a virtual prototype of the CDPR with uncertainties is created in the simulation analysis software ADAMS, and co-simulation is performed with the control system designed in Simulink to validate the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy. Furthermore, a CDPR platform is established for trajectory tracking experiments using the visual-based position feedback method. The trajectory tracking performance with the three control schemes is then evaluated. The experimental results show that the continuous switching sliding mode control algorithm can significantly decrease trajectory tracking errors and exhibit superior trajectory tracking performance compared to the other control strategies.

In this work, an all-fiberized and narrow-linewidth fiber amplifier with record output power and near-diffraction-limited beam quality is presented. Up to 6.12 kW fiber laser with the conversion efficiency of approximately 78.8% is achieved through the fiber amplifier based on a conventional step-index active fiber. At the maximum output power, the 3 dB spectral linewidth is approximately 0.86 nm and the beam quality factor is Mx2 = 1.43, My2 = 1.36. We have also measured and compared the output properties of the fiber amplifier employing different pumping schemes. Notably, the practical power limit of the fiber amplifier could be estimated through the maximum output powers of the fiber amplifier employing unidirectional pumping schemes. Overall, this work could provide a good reference for the optimal design and potential exploration of high-power narrow-linewidth fiber laser systems.

In this paper, an all-fiberized and narrow-linewidth 5 kW power-level fiber amplifier is presented. The laser is achieved based on the master oscillator power amplification configuration, in which the phase-modulated single-frequency laser is applied as the seed laser and a bidirectional pumping configuration is applied in the power amplifier. The stimulated Brillouin scattering, stimulated Raman scattering, and transverse mode instability effects are all effectively suppressed in the experiment. Consequently, the output power is scaled up to 4.92 kW with a slope efficiency of as high as approximately 80%. The 3-dB spectral width is about 0.59 nm, and the beam quality is measured to be M2∼1.22 at maximum output power. Furthermore, we have also conducted a detailed spectral analysis on the spectral width of the signal laser, which reveals that the spectral wing broadening phenomenon could lead to the obvious decrease of the spectral purity at certain output power. Overall, this work could provide a reference for obtaining and optimizing high-power narrow-linewidth fiber lasers.

Montmorillonite (Mnt), a clay mineral with a nanolayered structure, was combined with an Fe-based metal–organic framework (MOF; MIL-53(Fe)) using an in situ growth technique that yielded a novel eco-friendly clay-based adsorbent (MIL-53(Fe)@Mnt). The adsorbent was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis and N2 gas adsorption. The MIL-53(Fe) particles grew on the surface of the nanolayered Mnt and the MIL-53(Fe) particle size became smaller. The adsorption performance of MIL-53(Fe)@Mnt was investigated by removing methylene blue (MB), and optimization experiments were carried out to study the effects of contact time, pH, initial dye concentration and adsorbent mass on the adsorption processes. The MIL-53(Fe)@Mnt exhibited excellent adsorption capacity for MB, namely 313.7 mg g−1, which was 3.02 times and 3.54 times greater than that of pure Mnt and MIL-53(Fe), respectively. Adsorption was fitted with the Langmuir isotherm model and followed a pseudo-second order kinetic model. The MIL-53(Fe)@Mnt obtained is a low-cost and eco-friendly adsorbing material and might be a candidate for removing dyes during water treatment.

Wedge-induced oblique detonation waves (ODWs) have been studied widely, but their interactions with complicated geometries have not been fully addressed. In this study, we investigate ODW interaction with a deflected upper corner due to confinement change upstream of the ODW. Numerical simulations are conducted using the reactive Euler equations with a two-step induction–reaction kinetic model. Two ODWs without the upper wall deflection are first simulated to resolve the basic structures with inflow Mach numbers $M_0 = 6$ and 7. Thereafter, we introduce a deflected upper confinement, resulting in a new wave configuration. This wave is characterized by a post-turning, triangular recirculation zone coupled with a gaseous wedge connecting the deflection point and ODW surface. A parametric study is performed to analyse the effects of the deflection location, deflection angle and activation energy of the heat release reaction. The results reveal that the wave configuration is due to the evolution of ODW decoupling in an expanded supersonic flow. We further study the surface stability and structural unsteadiness arising for $M_0 = 6$. Upstream-travelling transverse waves are observed for the first time, and effects of different parameters on the surface instability are analysed via fast Fourier transforms. Two destabilizing mechanisms of ODW structures are proposed, one from the post-surface thermal choking and the other from the enhanced surface instability.

We construct a high-order conditional distance covariance, which generalizes the notation of conditional distance covariance. The joint conditional distance covariance is defined as a linear combination of conditional distance covariances, which can capture the joint relation of many random vectors given one vector. Furthermore, we develop a new method of conditional independence test based on the joint conditional distance covariance. Simulation results indicate that the proposed method is very effective. We also apply our method to analyze the relationships of PM2.5 in five Chinese cities: Beijing, Tianjin, Jinan, Tangshan and Qinhuangdao by the Gaussian graphical model.

The X-ray emissions in the interaction of 3–6 MeV Xe23+ ions into thick solid In target are measured. The projectile-to-target and target Lα/Lβ X-ray production intensity ratios are observed to strongly depend on the projectile energy. The dependence deviates from Coulomb ionization predictions, which implies the important roles of coupling between subshells and the activation of 4fσ rotational couplings for projectile energy larger than 5 MeV.

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in detecting disease-related rare variants in sequencing studies. Numerous studies have shown that common variants can only explain a small proportion of the phenotypic variance for complex diseases. More and more evidence suggests that some of this missing heritability can be explained by rare variants. Considering the importance of rare variants, researchers have proposed a considerable number of methods for identifying the rare variants associated with complex diseases. Extensive research has been carried out on testing the association between rare variants and dichotomous, continuous or ordinal traits. So far, however, there has been little discussion about the case in which both genotypes and phenotypes are ordinal variables. This paper introduces a method based on the γ-statistic, called OV-RV, for examining disease-related rare variants when both genotypes and phenotypes are ordinal. At present, little is known about the asymptotic distribution of the γ-statistic when conducting association analyses for rare variants. One advantage of OV-RV is that it provides a robust estimation of the distribution of the γ-statistic by employing the permutation approach proposed by Fisher. We also perform extensive simulations to investigate the numerical performance of OV-RV under various model settings. The simulation results reveal that OV-RV is valid and efficient; namely, it controls the type I error approximately at the pre-specified significance level and achieves greater power at the same significance level. We also apply OV-RV for rare variant association studies of diastolic blood pressure.