Extreme propensity scores arise in observational studies when treated and control units have very different characteristics. This is commonly referred to as limited overlap. In this paper, we propose a formal statistical test that helps assess the degree of limited overlap. Rejecting the null hypothesis in our test indicates either no or very mild degree of limited overlap and hence reassures that standard treatment effect estimators will be well behaved. One distinguishing feature of our test is that it only requires the use of a few extreme propensity scores, which is in stark contrast to other methods that require consistent estimates of some tail index. Without the need to extrapolate using observations far away from the tail, our procedure is expected to exhibit excellent size properties, a result that is also borne out in our simulation study.

During the Neolithic and Bronze Age, goods and ideas moved between Central Asia and the Chinese Central Plain via north-western China. While the crops, animals and technologies exchanged are well documented, the local and social bases of these interactions are poorly known. Here, the authors use petrographic analysis of ceramic sherds from Gansu Province, China, to document the local production of pottery vessels and their circulation between sites. Individual vessel forms are associated with multiple paste recipes indicating the production of similar products by different communities of practice. It is argued the circulation of these vessels forged inter-community relationships. In aggregate, these local networks underpinned longer-distance exchange between Central and East Asia.

Blood oxygen is an essential component for numerous biological processes of mammalian animals. Milk production of ruminants largely relies on the supply of nutrients, such as glucose, amino acids and fatty acids. To define the regulatory role of blood oxygen availability in regard to milk production, seventy-five healthy Guanzhong dairy goats with similar body weight, days in milk and parities were selected. For each animal, milk yield was recorded and milk sample was collected to determine compositions. Milk vein blood was collected to determine parameters including blood gas, physio-biochemistry and haematology. Another blood sample was prepared for transcriptome and RT-qPCR. Results showed that both pressure of oxygen (pO2) in the milk vein (positively) and numbers of neutrophils in mammary vein (negatively) were associated with milk yield of the animals. To learn the role of pO2 in blood cell functionality, twelve animals (six with higher yield (H-group) and six with lower yield (L-group)) from seventy-five goats were selected. Compared with animals in L-group, goats in H-group were higher in pO2 but lower in pCO2, lactate, lactate dehydrogenase activity and neutrophil abundance in milk vein, compared with L-group. The blood transcriptome analysis suggested that compared with L-group, animals in H-group were depressed in functionality including neutrophil activation and metabolic pathways including glycolysis, NF-κB and HIF-1. Our result revealed that lower milk production could be associated with neutrophil activation responding to low pO2 in the mammary vein. In the meantime, we highlighted the potential importance of blood oxygen as a milk yield regulator.

Ketosis is a metabolic disease of dairy cows often characterized by high concentrations of ketone bodies and fatty acids, but low milk protein and milk production. The Janus kinase 2 (JAK2)-signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5) and the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathways are central for the regulation of milk protein synthesis. The effect of high levels of fatty acids on these pathways and β-casein synthesis are unknown in dairy cows with clinical ketosis. Mammary gland tissue and blood samples were collected from healthy (n = 15) and clinically-ketotic (n = 15) cows. In addition, bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMEC) were treated with fatty acids, methionine (Met) or prolactin (PRL), respectively. In vivo, the serum concentration of fatty acids was greater (P > 0.05) and the percentage of milk protein (P > 0.05) was lower in cows with clinical ketosis. The JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways were inhibited and the abundance of β-casein was lower in mammary tissue of cows with clinical ketosis (P > 0.05). In vitro, high levels of fatty acids inhibited the JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways (P > 0.05) and further decreased the β-casein synthesis (P > 0.05) in BMEC. Methionine or PRL treatment, as positive regulators, activated the JAK2-STAT5 and mTOR signaling pathways to increase the β-casein synthesis. Importantly, the high concentration of fatty acids attenuated the positive effect of Met or PRL on mTOR, JAK2-STAT5 pathways and the abundance of β-casein (P > 0.05). Overall, these data indicate that the high concentrations of fatty acids that reach the mammary cells during clinical ketosis inhibit mTOR and JAK2-STAT5 signaling pathways, and further suppress β-casein synthesis.

The personalization of products and services has become an inevitable trend in the manufacturing and service industry, but it is very difficult to identify users' personalized requirements accurately. This paper solves this problem by constructing an identifying model for personalized requirement based on user profiling. Firstly, the framework of the proposed model and the process of identifying the user's personalized requirements with this model are introduced, and then an experimental scheme for obtaining users' profiling data is designed. On this basis, an experiment is performed by investigating users' requirements for the computer to obtain the data, and the data are used for the analysis based on the proposed model. The analysis result shows that the model can reveal the difference among heterogeneous users well, find out the implicit requirements of users, and identify the gap between existing products and users' personalized requirements, which provides support to the subsequent improvement of product design.

Developing low-cost and high-performance hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalysts is essential for the development of hydrogen energy. While transition metal sulfides are reported as promising HER electrocatalysts, their performance still requires further improvement for practical application. In this work, we report a strategy to construct NiSx@MoS2 heterostructures with a well-defined interface structure by growing NiSx nanoclusters on MoS2 nanosheets through atomic layer deposition (ALD). NiSx@MoS2 heterostructures exhibit strongly enhanced HER activity with lower overpotential and faster reaction dynamic compared to MoS2 and NiSx single phases. The enhanced performance is attributed to improved adsorption of the reaction intermediates and the facilitated charge transfer process near the MoS2/NiSx interfaces. Besides high activity, NiSx@MoS2 heterostructures also exhibit high stability in alkaline media. The methodology and knowledge in this work can guide the rational design of high-performance electrocatalysts through hetero-interface engineering.

Subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) can increase the level of inflammation and induce rumenitis in dairy cows. Berberine (BBR) is the major active component of Rhizoma Coptidis, which is a type of Chinese anti-inflammatory drug for gastrointestinal diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of BBR on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated rumen epithelial cells (REC) and the underlying molecular mechanisms. REC were cultured and stimulated with LPS in the presence or absence of different concentrations of BBR. The results showed that cell viability was not affected by BBR. Moreover, BBR markedly decreased the concentrations and mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1β, and interleukin-6 in the LPS-treated REC in a dose-dependent manner. Importantly, Western blotting analysis showed that BBR significantly suppressed the protein expression of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and myeloid differentiation primary response protein (MyD88) and the phosphorylation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), inhibitory kappa B (IκBα), p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in LPS-treated REC. Furthermore, the results of immunocytofluorescence showed that BBR significantly inhibited the nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 induced by LPS treatment. In conclusion, the protective effects of BBR on LPS-induced inflammatory responses in REC may be due to its ability to suppress the TLR4-mediated NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways. These findings suggest that BBR can be used as an anti-inflammatory drug to treat inflammation induced by SARA.

The Yuanjiacun banded iron formation (BIF) is hosted in lower Proterozoic metamorphic strata, and its structures are dominated by bands or streaks. Based on their differences in mineral compositions, the iron ores can be subdivided into haematite quartzite, magnetite quartzite, stilpnomelane magnetite quartzite and stilpnomelane haematite quartzite. The geochemical characteristics of the surrounding rocks show that the protoliths consisted of argillaceous and arenaceous sedimentary rocks. The predominant provenance was a high-maturity felsic sedimentary terrane. The absence of syn-depositional igneous rocks and the tectonic setting discrimination diagrams indicate that the Yuanjiacun BIF formed in a passive continental margin setting. Negligible terrigenous materials were involved in the precipitation of the Yuanjiacun BIF. The precipitation of the Yuanjiacun BIF was predominantly controlled by the mixing of seawater and hydrothermal fluids. Its metallogenic material originated from the leaching of mafic oceanic crust by hydrothermal fluids. The observed Ce anomaly deficiency and heavy Fe isotope enrichment indicate that the Yuanjiacun BIF formed in an anoxic marine environment. In a redox-stratified palaeo-ocean, the Yuanjiacun BIF formed in reducing seawater below the oxidation–reduction transition zone. The Si and O isotope compositions of quartz suggest that the formation of the Yuanjiacun BIF was closely related to submarine hydrothermal activity. The Si and Fe erupted from the seafloor and precipitated by supersaturation and biological oxidation under anoxic conditions, respectively.

Dairy cows with ketosis display severe oxidative stress as well as high blood concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB). Cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) plays an important role in the induction of oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to investigate CYP2E1 expression and activity in the liver of clinically ketotic cows (in vivo) and the effects of NEFA and BHB on CYP2E1 expression and activity in hepatocytes (in vitro). Dairy cows with clinical ketosis exhibited a low blood concentration of glucose but high concentrations of NEFA and BHB. Hepatic mRNA, protein expression, and activity of CYP2E1 were significantly higher in cows with clinical ketosis than in control cows. In vitro, both NEFA and BHB treatment markedly up-regulated the mRNA and protein expressions as well as activity of CYP2E1 in cow hepatocytes. Taken together, these results indicate that high levels of NEFA and BHB significantly up-regulate the expression and activity of hepatic CYP2E1, and may be influential in the induction of oxidative stress in cows with clinical ketosis.

Ti/Al/Mg/Al/Ti laminates were fabricated by hot rolling at 450 °C with various rolling reductions, and the relationship between the mechanical properties and microstructures was investigated in detail. Both Al–Mg and Ti–Al interfaces are well bonded without pore, crack, and intermetallics. Mg layer of 50% rolling reduction has the most dynamic recrystallized (DRXed) grains around the deformation bands, and tensile twins appear in Mg layer when the rolling reduction increases to 60%. Large numbers of twins are formed to absorb the further strain as reduction increases. Ti layer shows equiaxed grains, which are not sensitive to thickness strain. Mg layers of laminates with various rolling reductions all exhibit typical (0002) basal texture. Fifty-percent rolling reduction has the largest ultimate tensile strength of 337.8 MPa, which is mainly owing to grain refinement caused by the extensive DRX. The differences of elongation among the three samples with different rolling reductions are small.

Dairy cows with type II ketosis display hepatic fat accumulation and hyperinsulinemia, but the underlying mechanism is not completely clear. This study aimed to clarify the regulation of lipid metabolism by insulin in cow hepatocytes. In vitro, cow hepatocytes were treated with 0, 1, 10, or 100 nm insulin in the presence or absence of AICAR (an AMP-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPKα) activator). The results showed that insulin decreased AMPKα phosphorylation. This inactivation of AMPKα increased the gene and protein expression levels of carbohydrate responsive element-binding protein (ChREBP) and sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), which downregulated the expression of lipogenic genes, thereby decreasing lipid biosynthesis. Furthermore, AMPKα inactivation decreased the gene and protein expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPARα), which upregulated the expression of lipid oxidation genes, thereby increasing lipid oxidation. In addition, insulin decreased the very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) assembly. Consequently, triglyceride content was significantly increased in insulin treated hepatocytes. Activation of AMPKα induced by AICAR could reverse the effect of insulin on PPARα, SREBP-1c, and ChREBP, thereby decreasing triglyceride content. These results indicate that insulin inhibits the AMPKα signaling pathway to increase lipid synthesis and decrease lipid oxidation and VLDL assembly in cow hepatocytes, thereby inducing TG accumulation. This mechanism could partly explain the causal relationship between hepatic fat accumulation and hyperinsulinemia in dairy cows with type II ketosis.

We report a new pulsed chemical vapor deposition (PCVD) process to deposit nickel (Ni) and nickel carbide (Ni3C x ) thin films, using bis(1,4-di-tert-butyl-1,3-diazabutadienyl)nickel(II) precursor and either H2 gas or H2 plasma as the coreactant, at a temperature from 140 to 250 °C. All the PCVD films are fairly pure with low levels of N and O impurities. The films deposited with H2 gas at ≤200 °C are faced centered cubic-phase Ni metal films with low C content; but at ≥220 °C, another phase of rhombohedral Ni3C is formed and the C content increases. However, when H2 plasma is used, the films are always in rhombohedral Ni3C phase for the entire temperature range.

Dairy cows with fatty liver or ketosis exhibit hyperketonemia, oxidative stress, and a low rate of very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) assembly, and there may be a potential link among these characteristics. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of acetoacetic acid (AcAc) on the assembly of VLDL in cow hepatocytes. Cultured cow hepatocytes were treated with different concentrations of AcAc with or without N-acetylcysteine (NAC, an antioxidant). AcAc treatment decreased the mRNA expression and activities of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and significantly increased malondialdehyde (MDA) content, indicative of oxidative stress. Furthermore, AcAc treatment significantly down-regulated the mRNA expression of apolipoprotein B100 (ApoB100), apolipoprotein E (ApoE), and low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR), which thus decreased VLDL assembly and increased triglyceride (TG) accumulation in these bovine hepatocytes. Importantly, NAC relieved AcAc-induced oxidative stress and increased VLDL assembly. In summary, these results suggest that AcAc-induced oxidative stress affects the assembly of VLDL, which increases TG accumulation in bovine hepatocytes.

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) of vanadium oxide (VOx ) thin films, using tetrakis(dimethylamino)vanadium as the vanadium precursor, is comprehensively reported in this work. The vanadium precursor is highly volatile and can be used at room temperature for deposition. Either H2O or O3 can be used as the coreactant for depositing VOx at 50–200 °C. However, partial precursor decomposition is suggested for the deposition temperature higher than 160 °C. The as-deposited VOx films are pure, smooth, and amorphous, and can be crystallized into monoclinic VO2 phase by postdeposition annealing under N2 ambient. The minimum annealing temperature for film to crystallize is found, by in situ high-temperature X-ray diffraction experiments, at around 550–600 °C. In situ quartz crystal microbalance experiments are performed to further analyze the surface reaction mechanism involved in this ALD process.

The differential quadrature method (DQM) has been successfully used in a variety of fields. Similar to the conventional point discrete methods such as the collocation method and finite difference method, however, the DQM has some difficulty in dealing with singular functions like the Dirac-delta function. In this paper, two modifications are introduced to overcome the difficulty encountered in solving differential equations with Dirac-delta functions by using the DQM. The moving point load is work-equivalent to loads applied at all grid points and the governing equation is numerically integrated before it is discretized in terms of the differential quadrature. With these modifications, static behavior and forced vibration of beams under a stationary or a moving point load are successfully analyzed by directly using the DQM. It is demonstrated that the modified DQM can yield very accurate solutions. The compactness and computational efficiency of the DQM are retained in solving the partial differential equations with a time dependent Dirac-delta function.

Elevated levels of blood interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor–α (TNF–α) increase insulin resistance and result in inflammation. It is not clear whether elevated blood level of acetoacetate (ACAC) and decreased blood level of glucose, which are the predominant characteristics of clinical biochemistry in ketotic dairy cows, increase proinflammatory cytokines and subsequent inflammation. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that ACAC and glucose activate the NF-κB signalling pathway to regulate cytokines expression in bovine hepatocytes. Bovine hepatocytes were cultured with ACAC (0–4·8 mm) and glucose (0–5·55 mm) with or without NF-κB inhibitor PDTC for 24 h. The secretion and mRNA levels of cytokines were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The NF-κB signalling pathway activation was evaluated by western blotting. Results showed that the secretion and expression of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α increased in an ACAC dose-dependent manner. Additionally, there was an increase in the secretion and mRNA expression of these three cytokines in glucose treatment group, which increased significantly when the glucose concentrations exceed 3·33 mm. Furthermore, both ACAC and glucose upregulated NF-κB p65 protein expression and IκBα phosphorylation levels. However, these effects were reduced by PDTC. These results demonstrate that elevated levels of ACAC and glucose increase the synthesis and expression of proinflammatory factors by activating NF-κB signalling pathway in hepatocytes, which may contribute to inflammation injury in ketotic dairy cows.

FF-GDMS and MIC-ICP-MS methods were developed for the determination of mg/kg- and μg/kg-level B, Mg, Al, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Zr, Mo, Sb, W and Pb in nuclear-grade graphite. Consistent results have been achieved in determining trace elements like B, Ti, Cr, Mn, Zr, Sb and Pb by both methods, which vary mostly less than ±30%, and are in line with the manufacturer reference values. On Mg, Al, Fe, Co, Zn, Mo and W, FF-GDMS analyses also show good agreement with the manufacturer's data. Continuing efforts in identifying source of interference, which has limited the MIC-ICP-MS analysis of these elements, is currently underway.