One hundred and thirteen mid-lactation cows fed same diets and supplemented with 20 g/d rumen-protected methionine (RPM) for 8 weeks were used to investigate the individual responses of dairy cows to RPM in terms of lactation performance, amino acids (AA) metabolism, and milk metabolites. Among the cows, 10 cows exhibited positive responses (PR) and 10 cows showed limited responses (LR) in energy-corrected milk yield to RPM were used for further analysis. The lactation performance changed from gradual decline to steady increase in PR cows, while kept downward trend in LR cows following RPM supplementation. In PR cows, the AA metabolism was notably enhanced after RPM supplementation, evidenced by increased mammary blood flow (69.4%, P = 0.05), mammary uptake and clearance rate and uptake-to-output ratio (U:O) of essential AA. The improved AA metabolism could be attributed to the enrichment of pyrimidine (P = 0.06) and pyruvate (P = 0.07) metabolism pathways, which may have stimulated mammary cell proliferation and enhanced AA uptake. Additionally, the upregulation of milk biotin (fold change > 2, variable importance projection > 1), known to support milk yield, likely contributed to the PR observed in PR cows. Conversely, in LR cows, RPM supplementation did not improve AA metabolism, decrease was observed in mammary uptake, mammary clearance rate, and U:O of cysteine, potentially due to cysteine being irreversibly converted from methionine. Moreover, the enrichment of central carbon metabolism in cancer pathway (P = 0.06), which also utilize methionine, along with the lysine degradation pathway (P = 0.04), suggests that methionine in the mammary glands may have been diverted toward non-lactational metabolic processes, resulting in absence of PR in LR cows. Our results indicate that the responses to RPM in dairy cows are individualized, with variation in lactation performance likely driven by differential AA metabolism.

This study assessed the efficacy of ThinPrep cytologic test and human papillomavirus (HPV) co-test in cervical cancer screening during pregnancy. A cohort of 8,712 pregnant women from Ren Ji Hospital participated in the study. Among them, 601 (6.90%) tested positive for high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) and 38 (0.44%) exhibited abnormal cytology results (ASCUS+). Following positive HR-HPV findings, 423 patients underwent colposcopy, and 114 individuals suspected of having high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion and cervical cancer (HSIL+) underwent cervical biopsy. Histological examination revealed 60 cases of normal pathology (52.63%), 35 cases of low‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (30.70%), 17 cases of HSIL (14.91%), and 2 cases of cervical cancer (1.75%). The incidence of HSIL+ in HPV 16/18 group was significantly higher than that in non-HPV16/18 group (10.53% vs. 6.14%, P < 0.05). Subsequent evaluation of the clinical performance of cytology alone, primary HPV screening, and co-testing for HSIL+ detection revealed that the HSIL+ detection rate was lowest with cytology alone. These findings suggest that HPV testing, either alone or combined with cytology, presents an efficient screening strategy for pregnant women, underscoring the potential for improved sensitivity in cervical cancer screening during pregnancy. The significantly higher incidence of HSIL+ in the HPV16/18 group emphasizes the importance of genotype-specific considerations.

In this paper, a single-layer band-stop frequency selective surface (FSS) by combination of Mike Kastle unit and square ring unit is proposed to achieve wide angular stable shielding. Owing to the rotational symmetry of the structure, the designed FSS is insensitive to polarization. By the combination design, the wide angular stability can be achieved as the incident angle increases from 0° to 85°, with only a maximum frequency deviation of 0.012 GHz. Meanwhile, the mechanism of the proposed FSS is investigated by the parametric analysis of equivalent circuit model. The prototype was manufactured and measured to verify the design and simulation analysis, and the measurement results were in good agreement with the simulation results.

Accurately predicting neurosyphilis prior to a lumbar puncture (LP) is critical for the prompt management of neurosyphilis. However, a valid and reliable model for this purpose is still lacking. This study aimed to develop a nomogram for the accurate identification of neurosyphilis in patients with syphilis. The training cohort included 9,504 syphilis patients who underwent initial neurosyphilis evaluation between 2009 and 2020, while the validation cohort comprised 526 patients whose data were prospectively collected from January 2021 to September 2021. Neurosyphilis was observed in 35.8% (3,400/9,504) of the training cohort and 37.6% (198/526) of the validation cohort. The nomogram incorporated factors such as age, male gender, neurological and psychiatric symptoms, serum RPR, a mucous plaque of the larynx and nose, a history of other STD infections, and co-diabetes. The model exhibited good performance with concordance indexes of 0.84 (95% CI, 0.83–0.85) and 0.82 (95% CI, 0.78–0.86) in the training and validation cohorts, respectively, along with well-fitted calibration curves. This study developed a precise nomogram to predict neurosyphilis risk in syphilis patients, with potential implications for early detection prior to an LP.

The laboratory generation and diagnosis of uniform near-critical-density (NCD) plasmas play critical roles in various studies and applications, such as fusion science, high energy density physics, astrophysics as well as relativistic electron beam generation. Here we successfully generated the quasistatic NCD plasma sample by heating a low-density tri-cellulose acetate (TCA) foam with the high-power-laser-driven hohlraum radiation. The temperature of the hohlraum is determined to be 20 eV by analyzing the spectra obtained with the transmission grating spectrometer. The single-order diffraction grating was employed to eliminate the high-order disturbance. The temperature of the heated foam is determined to be T = 16.8 ± 1.1 eV by analyzing the high-resolution spectra obtained with a flat-field grating spectrometer. The electron density of the heated foam is about $N_e=4.0\pm 0.3\times {10}^{20}{\text{cm}}^{-3}$ under the reasonable assumption of constant mass density.

In order to establish a compact all-optical Thomson scattering source, experimental studies were conducted on the 45 TW Ti: sapphire laser facility. By including a steel wafer, mixed gas, and plasma mirror into a double-exit jet, several mechanisms, such as shock-assisted ionization injection, ionization injection, and driving laser reflection, were integrated into one source. So, the source of complexity was remarkably reduced. Electron bunches with central energy fluctuating from 90 to 160 MeV can be produced. Plasma mirrors were used to reflect the driving laser. The scattering of the reflected laser on the electron bunches led to the generation of X-ray photons. Through comparing the X-ray spots under different experimental conditions, it is confirmed that the X-ray photons are generated by Thomson scattering. For further application, the energy spectra and source size of the Thomson scattering source were measured. The unfolded spectrum contains a large amount of low-energy photons besides a peak near 67 keV. Through importing the electron energy spectrum into the Monte Carlo simulation code, the different contributions of the photons with small and large emitting angles can be used to explain the origin of the unfolded spectrum. The maximum photon energy extended to about 500 keV. The total photon production was 107/pulse. The FWHM source size was about 12 μm.

The silkworm Bombyx mori (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) is a lepidopteran model insect of great economic importance. The parasitoid Exorista sorbillans (Diptera, Tachinidae) is the major pest of B. mori and also a promising candidate for biological control. However, the molecular interactions between hosts and dipteran parasitoids have only partially been studied. Gene expression analysis by reverse-transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is indispensable to characterise their interactions. Accurate normalisation of RT-qPCR-based gene expression requires the use of reference genes that are constantly expressed irrespective of experimental conditions. In this study, the expression stability of 13 traditionally used reference genes was estimated by five statistical algorithms (ΔCt, geNorm, Normfinder, BestKeeper, and RefFinder) to determine the best reference genes for gene expression studies in different tissues of B. mori under E. sorbillans parasitism. Specifically, TATA-box-binding protein was the best reference gene in epidermis and testis, while elongation factor 1α was the most stable gene in prothoracic gland and midgut. Elongation factor 1γ, ribosomal protein L3, actin A1, ribosomal protein L40, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4A were the most suitable genes in head, silk gland, fat body, haemolymph, Malpighian tubule and ovary, respectively. Our study offers a set of suitable reference genes for gene expression normalisation in B. mori under the parasitic stress of E. sorbillans, which will benefit the in-depth exploration of host-dipteran parasitoid interactions, and also provide insights for further improvements of B. mori resistance against parasitoids and biocontrol efficacy of dipteran parasitoids.

The velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) coupled with a streaked optical pyrometer (SOP) system is used as a diagnostic tool in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments involving equations of state and shock timing. To validate the process of adiabatically compressing the fuel shell through precise tuning of shocks in experimental campaigns for the double-cone ignition (DCI) scheme of ICF, a compact line-imaging VISAR with an SOP system is designed and implemented at the Shenguang-II upgrade laser facility. The temporal and spatial resolutions of the system are better than 30 ps and 7 μm, respectively. An illumination lens is used to adjust the lighting spot size matching with the target size. A polarization beam splitter and λ/4 waveplate are used to increase the transmission efficiency of our system. The VISAR and SOP work at 660 and 450 nm, respectively, to differentiate the signals from the scattered lights of the drive lasers. The VISAR can measure the shock velocity. At the same time, the SOP system can give the shock timing and relative strength. This system has been used in different DCI campaigns, where the generation and propagation processes of multi-shock are carefully diagnosed.

The large-aperture pulse compression grating (PCG) is a critical component in generating an ultra-high-intensity, ultra-short-pulse laser; however, the size of the PCG manufactured by transmission holographic exposure is limited to large-scale high-quality materials. The reflective method is a potential way for solving the size limitation, but there is still no successful precedent due to the lack of scientific specifications and advanced processing technology of exposure mirrors. In this paper, an analytical model is developed to clarify the specifications of components, and advanced processing technology is adopted to control the spatial frequency errors. Hereafter, we have successfully fabricated a multilayer dielectric grating of 200 mm × 150 mm by using an off-axis reflective exposure system with Φ300 mm. This demonstration proves that PCGs can be manufactured by using the reflection holographic exposure method and shows the potential for manufacturing the meter-level gratings used in 100 petawatt class high-power lasers.

To solve the constant contact force control problem between the end tool of a 5 degrees of freedom hybrid optical mirror processing robot and a workpiece, an adaptive impedance control method for the pneumatic servo-polishing system of the robot is designed. Firstly, the pneumatic servo-polishing control system at the end of the robot is set up. Secondly, the impedance control method for contact force is investigated based on the mathematical model of the pneumatic servo-polishing control system. Additionally, the causes of steady-state error of impedance control are analyzed theoretically, and the calculation method for steady-state error of impedance control is deduced. Finally, an indirect adaptive impedance controller based on Lyapunov Stability Principle is developed to estimate the environmental stiffness and position online, so as to reduce steady-state error and realize the tracking of polishing contact force. The simulation and experimental results suggest that the adaptive impedance control method not only recognizes that the contact force of the robot is relatively constant during the polishing process but also has high control accuracy for the force, fast-tracking response for the abrupt force, and considerable adaptability to the variable environmental stiffness.

In this paper, we apply standard zooarchaeological methods and novel osteological approaches to analyse faunal remains from five Middle–Late Holocene sites in the southern Tibetan Plateau (STP). Framed by direct radiocarbon dates on taxonomically classified bioarchaeological remains and compared with published palaeoclimate data, our findings revealed a three-stage process of agro-pastoral development in the STP ca. 5.5 to 1.0 ka. In the first phase, habitation was restricted to the lower southeastern part of the plateau and human subsistence essentially based on foraging and low-level pig–millet farming. With the onset of colder and drier climatic conditions ca. 3.8 ka, the study area witnessed a growing human presence at higher elevations in its central and western parts, together with a shift towards bovid husbandry and barley cultivation, that is, agricultural practices that originated in west Asia; these were likely introduced to the STP following the eastern margin of the TP and/or arrived by sub-Himalayan transfer. Climate and ecological degradation might have contributed to the decline of local game in favour of cold-and-dry-tolerant pastoral livestock and crops. Our work shows that Middle–Late Holocene climate change, ecological change, human subsistence shifts, and prehistoric cultural transmissions are intimately connected.

An experimental investigation of the stereocamera's systematic error is carried out to optimize three-dimensional (3-D) dust observation on the HL-2A tokamak. It is found that a larger 3-D region occupied by all calibration points is able to reduce the 3-D reconstruction systematic error of the stereocamera. In addition, the 3-D reconstruction is the most accurate around the region where the calibration points are located. Based on these experimental results, the design of the stereocamera on the HL-2A tokamak is presented, and a set of practical procedures to optimize the 3-D reconstruction accuracy of the stereocamera are proposed.

High-resolution X-ray flash radiography of Ti characteristic lines with a multilayer Kirkpatrick–Baez microscope was developed on the Shenguang-II (SG-II) Update laser facility. The microscope uses an optimized multilayer design of Co/C and W/C stacks to obtain a high reflection efficiency of the Ti characteristic lines while meeting the precise alignment requirement at the Cu Kα line. The alignment method based on dual simulated balls was proposed herein, which simultaneously realizes an accurate indication of the center field of view and the backlighter position. The optical design, multilayer coatings, and alignment method of the microscope and the experimental result of Ti flash radiography of the Au-coned CH shell target on the SG-II Update are described.

Hypertension represents one of the most common pre-existing conditions and comorbidities in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. To explore whether hypertension serves as a risk factor for disease severity, a multi-centre, retrospective study was conducted in COVID-19 patients. A total of 498 consecutively hospitalised patients with lab-confirmed COVID-19 in China were enrolled in this cohort. Using logistic regression, we assessed the association between hypertension and the likelihood of severe illness with adjustment for confounders. We observed that more than 16% of the enrolled patients exhibited pre-existing hypertension on admission. More severe COVID-19 cases occurred in individuals with hypertension than those without hypertension (21% vs. 10%, P = 0.007). Hypertension associated with the increased risk of severe illness, which was not modified by other demographic factors, such as age, sex, hospital geological location and blood pressure levels on admission. More attention and treatment should be offered to patients with underlying hypertension, who usually are older, have more comorbidities and more susceptible to cardiac complications.

In this paper, the generation of relativistic electron mirrors (REMs) and the reflection of an ultra-short laser off this mirrors are discussed, applying two-dimensional particle-in-cell (2D-PIC) simulations. REMs with ultra-high acceleration and expanding velocity can be produced from a solid nanofoil illuminated normally by an ultra-intense femtosecond laser pulse with a sharp rising edge. Chirped attosecond pulse can be produced through the reflection of a counter-propagating probe laser off the accelerating REM. In the electron moving frame, the plasma frequency of the REM keeps decreasing due to its rapidly expanding. The laser frequency, on the contrary, keeps increasing due to the acceleration of REM and the relativistic Doppler shift from the lab frame to the electron moving frame. Within an ultra-short time interval, the two frequencies will be equal in the electron moving frame, which leads the resonance between laser and REM. The reflected radiation near this interval and the corresponding spectra will be amplified due to the resonance. Through adjusting the arriving time of the probe laser, certain part of the reflected field could be selectively amplified or depressed, leading to the selectively adjusting of the corresponding spectra.

The dependence of fishbone cycle on energetic particle intensity has been investigated in EAST low-magnetic-shear plasmas. It is observed that the fishbone mode growth rate, saturation amplitude as well as fishbone cycle frequency clearly increase with increasing neutral beam injection (NBI) power. Moreover, enhanced electron density and temperature perturbations as well as energetic particle loss were observed with greater injected NBI power. Simulation results using M3D-K code show that as the NBI power increases, the resonant frequency and the energy of the resonant particles become higher, and the saturation amplitude of the mode also changes, due to the non-perturbative energetic particle contribution. The relationship between the calculated energetic particle pressure ratio and fishbone cycle frequency is obtained as ${f_{\textrm{FC}}} = 2.2{(1000{\beta _{\textrm{ep,calc}}} - 0.1)^{5.9 \pm 0.5}}$. Results consistent with the experimental observations have been achieved based on a predator–prey model.

The present study aimed to investigate the association of early-life exposure to famine with abdominal fat accumulation and function and further evaluate the influence of first-degree family history of diabetes and physical activity on this association. The present work analysed parts of the REACTION study. A total of 3033 women were enrolled. Central obesity was defined as waist circumferences (W) ≥ 85 cm. Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) was used to evaluate visceral adipose distribution and function. Partial correlation analysis showed BMI, W, glycated Hb and CVAI were associated with early-life exposure to famine (both P < 0·05). Logistic regression showed that the risks of overall overweight/obesity and central obesity in fetal, early-childhood, mid-childhood and late-childhood exposed subgroups were increased significantly (all P < 0·05). Compared with the non-exposed group, the BMI, W and CVAI of fetal, early- to late-childhood exposed subgroups were significantly increased both in those with or without first-degree family history of diabetes and in those classified as physically active or inactive, respectively (all P < 0·05). The associations of BMI, W and CVAI with early-life exposure to famine were independent of their associations with first-degree family history of diabetes (all P < 0·01) or physical activity status (all P < 0·001). Early-life exposure to famine contributed to abdominal fat accumulation and dysfunction, which was independent of the influence of genetic background and exercise habits. Physical activity could serve as a supplementary intervention for women with high risk of central obesity.

Southern China is affected by multi-stage tectonic activities, with strong fold deformation, complex fault systems and poor shale gas preservation conditions. Here, we used shale samples from the lower Silurian Longmaxi shale in the complex tectonic area of Southern China, to study the relationship between differential structural deformation, and pore structure and adsorption capacity. According to the deformation mechanism of the shale, it is further divided into brittle-slip rheological deformation (BD) and ductile-slip rheological deformation (DD). The results show that all micro-fractures can be observed under scanning electron microscopy in deformed shale samples, but in shale samples with different types of rheological deformation, the micro-fractures have large differences in scale, fracture length and lateral connectivity. The micro-fractures developed in DD shales are small in scale and short in fracture length, but have strong local connectivity. In contrast, brittle minerals are more developed in BD shales, and interlayer shearing has formed micro-fractures with large fracture length and good lateral connectivity, which is beneficial for later fracturing. In these two types of deformed shales, pores in organic matter are rare, and sporadic organic pores have small pore size and poor connectivity. The total pore volume (1.8–2.4 × 10−2 cm3 g–1) of BD shale samples is higher than that of DD shale samples (0.8–1.6 × 10−2 cm3 g–1). There is a positive correlation between total pore volume and quartz content. In addition, the specific surface area (12–18 m2 g–1) of DD shale samples is larger than that of BD shale samples (6–12 m2 g–1).

The mitigation of CMAS (calcium–magnesium–aluminum–silicon oxide) infiltration is a major requirement for the stability of thermal barrier coatings. In this study, yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ)–Al2O3–SiC, YSZ–Al2O3–Ta2O5, and YSZ–Al2O3–Nb2O5 self-healing composites produced by uniaxially pressing powders were investigated as an alternative to YSZ. CMAS infiltration in these materials was tested at 1250 °C for 10 h. Comparing the depth of CMAS infiltration using scanning electron microscope (SEM) in tandem with electron-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), all self-healing materials were found to perform better than the reference materials. While standard YSZ shows massive CMAS infiltration, SEM micrographs and EDS maps revealed a 33-fold improvement in CMAS resistance for the YSZ–Al2O3–Nb2O5 system, which exhibited the best performance among the selected self-repairing materials. X-ray diffraction and high-resolution SEM micrographs taken 10 μm below the surface revealed that CMAS only infiltrated pores in the topmost region of the samples. Both YSZ–Al2O3–Ta2O5 and YSZ–Al2O3–Nb2O5 systems showed no signs of chemical reaction with CMAS.