Adsorption tuning of polarity and magnetism in AgCr2S4 monolayer

As a recent successfully exfoliated non van der Waals layered material, AgCrS2 has received a lot of attentions. Motivated by its structure related magnetic and ferroelectric behavior, a theoretical study on its exfoliated monolayer AgCr2S4 has been carried out in the present work. Based on density functional theory, the ground state and magnetic order of monolayer AgCr2S4 have been determined. The centrosymmetry emerges upon two-dimensional confinement and thus eliminates the bulk polarity. Moreover, two-dimensional ferromagnetism appears in the CrS2 layer of AgCr2S4 and can persist up to room temperature. The surface adsorption has also been taken into consideration, which shows a nonmonotonic effect on the ionic conductivity through ion displacement of the interlayer Ag, but has little impact on the layered magnetic structure.Comment: 9 oages, 5 figures, 2 table

Gene Expression Profiling of Skeletal Muscle of Nursing Piglets

To gain insight into the regulation mechanism associated with the rapid gain in skeletal muscle during neonatal period, gene expression profiles of skeletal muscle of nursing pigs was investigated using Affymetrix Porcine GeneChip. A total of 1094 transcripts were detected as differential expression over time course tested (p<0.01, q<0.05). With combinative use of partitioning around medoid and hierarchical clustering, three clusters of transcripts with distinct temporal expression were defined. Gene functional categories and pathways, particularly involved in cell signaling, cell cycle, cell adhesion, ECM-receptor interaction, glycolysis, protein synthesis and degradation, and intracellular transport, were identified. Moreover, we showed 49 of the differentially expressed genes within published QTL regions or with marked deletion effects. Our study demonstrates previously uncharacterized changes in transcription accompanying early postnatal growth of skeletal muscle of pigs. It has highlighted potential cascades and important candidates for further investigation on controlling of postnatal muscle growth

Comparison of Proteome Differences between Whole Milk and Skim Milk Based on High-throughput Quantitative Proteomics

Protein is an important nutrient in bovine milk, however, it is not clear about the effect of defatting on the protein content of bovine milk. In this paper, quantitative proteomics labeled with TMT (tandem mass tags) was used to analyze the proteome in whole milk and skim milk to investigate the effect of skimming on milk proteins. A total of 1352 proteins were identified in whole milk and skim milk, and 199 differentially expressed proteins were screened. Compared with whole milk, 67 proteins were up-regulated and 132 proteins were down-regulated after defatting. Among the major active proteins in bovine milk, κ-casein decreased in relative content after defatting, while β-lactoglobulin and lactoferrin increased in relative content after defatting. α-lactalbumin, αs1-casein, αs2-casein, β-casein, bovine serum protein and lactoperoxidase did not differ significantly in relative content. The relative levels of butyrophilin and lactadherin in milk fat globule membrane proteins decreased after defatting. Skimming also had effects on cytoskeleton, metabolism-related proteins in milk, changing the quality and nutritional value of the milk. The analysis of protein in whole and skim milk clarified the effect of skimming on bovine milk protein, which could provide a reference for the development of infant dairy products and the purchase of milk with different fat content by consumers

Recent Progress in Ohmic/Schottky-Contacted ZnO Nanowire Sensors

We review the recent progress of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowire sensors with ohmic-contacted and Schottky-contacted configurations and the enhancement of the performances of Schottky-contacted ZnO NW sensors (SCZNSs) by the piezotronic effect. Comparing with the traditional ohmic-contacted ZnO NW sensors (OCZNSs), the SCZNSs have higher sensitivities and faster responses controlled by the barrier height at the metal-semiconductor (M-S) interface. The piezotronic effect was applied to tune the Schottky barrier height (SBH) with the strain-induced piezoelectric polarization charges at the interface of the M-S contact. The piezotronic effect can thus improve the detection limitation, sensitivity, and response time of the SCZNSs in different applications, such as UV detection, gas and bio/chemical sensing. These piezotronic-enhanced SCZNSs may find potential applications in human-machine interfacing and flexible electronics skin technologies

A multi-country test of brief reappraisal interventions on emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased negative emotions and decreased positive emotions globally. Left unchecked, these emotional changes might have a wide array of adverse impacts. To reduce negative emotions and increase positive emotions, we tested the effectiveness of reappraisal, an emotion-regulation strategy that modifies how one thinks about a situation. Participants from 87 countries and regions (n = 21,644) were randomly assigned to one of two brief reappraisal interventions (reconstrual or repurposing) or one of two control conditions (active or passive). Results revealed that both reappraisal interventions (vesus both control conditions) consistently reduced negative emotions and increased positive emotions across different measures. Reconstrual and repurposing interventions had similar effects. Importantly, planned exploratory analyses indicated that reappraisal interventions did not reduce intentions to practice preventive health behaviours. The findings demonstrate the viability of creating scalable, low-cost interventions for use around the world

Characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of Peltoboykinia tellimoides (Saxifragaceae)

Peltoboykinia tellimoides, which is distributed in Japan and China, is the type species of Peltoboykinia. In this study, we sequenced and assembled the complete chloroplast (cp) genome of P. tellimoides and reconstructed the phylogeny of Saxifragaceae based on the whole cp genome sequences. The cp genome of P. tellimoides was 156,274 bp in length, comprising a pair of inverted repeat regions (25,099 bp) separated by a large single copy region (88,109 bp) and a small single copy region (17,967 bp). The genome encoded 112 unique genes consisting of 78 different protein-coding genes, 30 transfer RNA and four ribosomal RNA genes, with 16 duplicated genes in the inverted repeats. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that P. tellimoides together with three Chrysosplenium species formed a high support clade, which was sister to Micranthes melanocentra