Selenium‐doping induced two antiferromagnetic transitions in thiospinel compounds CuCo₂S_(4‐x)Se_x (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.8)

A series of copper thiospinels compounds, CuCo₂S_(4‐x)Se_x (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8), have been successfully synthesized by solid state reaction and their structure and magnetic properties have been studied. The Rietveld refinements of X‐Ray diffractions indicate that both the lattice constants and the nearest neighbor Cu‐Cu distances increase with increasing selenium doping. A weakly antiferromagnetic transition occurring at about 4 K is observed in CuCo₂S₄. Two antiferromagnetic transitions at about 3.5 K and 6 K are observed in selenium‐doped samples, which suggest that the exchange couplings associated with Cu‐S(Se)‐Cu and Cu‐Se(S)‐Cu, respectively, are responsible for the two antiferromagnetic transitions. Detailed analysis of the experimental results further indicate that the nearest‐neighbor molecular field coefficient is comparable to the next‐neighbor molecular field coefficient. We propose a reasonable model to explain this phenomenon

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among middle-aged and elderly adults in China: current status and temporal trends

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. We aimed to estimate prevalence and distribution of MetS among middle-aged and elderly adults in China. Methods: The present analysis used data from a national study in 2014–2015. We defined MetS by different definitions, and compared results of the present study and previous nationally representative studies to illustrate possible temporal changes in MetS prevalence. Results: The estimated prevalence of MetS was 18.4% by the ATP III criteria, 34.0% by the revised ATP III criteria, and 26.9% by IDF criteria. The prevalence was higher in women, older adults, those with lower education level, and in economically developed regions. Contrasting with previous national studies, adults in urban areas had a lower rate of MetS than those in rural areas (odds ratio 0.94; 95% CI 0.92−0.97). Rural adults had worse deterioration or less improvement in abdominal obesity, overweight, hypertension, and high fasting plasma glucose, than urban adults, which was particularly striking for women. Conclusion: While measures to prevent and control cardiovascular diseases need to be strengthened in China, rapid increasing risk factors among rural residents and women should be prioritized in making public health policy decisions

Data on prevalence of atrial fibrillation and its association with stroke in low-, middle-, and high-income regions of China

Data presented in this article are supplementary material to our research article entitled " Prevalence of Atrial Fibrillation in Different Socioeconomic Regions of China and Its Association with Stroke: Results from a National Stroke Screening Survey" (Wang et al., 2018) [1]. This data article summarizes previous studies of Atrial Fibrillation (AF) prevalence in China, and estimates the association between AF and stroke in different socioeconomic regions of China through a national survey

Data on prevalence of atrial fibrillation and its association with stroke in low-, middle-, and high-income regions of China

Data presented in this article are supplementary material to our research article entitled " Prevalence of Atrial Fibrillation in Different Socioeconomic Regions of China and Its Association with Stroke: Results from a National Stroke Screening Survey" (Wang et al., 2018) [1]. This data article summarizes previous studies of Atrial Fibrillation (AF) prevalence in China, and estimates the association between AF and stroke in different socioeconomic regions of China through a national survey

Pressure-induced superconductivity in topological type II Dirac semimetal NiTe₂

Very recently, NiTe₂ has been reported to be a type II Dirac semimetal with Dirac nodes near the Fermi surface. Furthermore, it is unveiled that NiTe₂ presents the Hall Effect, which is ascribed to orbital magnetoresistance. The physical properties behavior of NiTe₂ under high pressure attracts us. In this paper, we investigate the electrical properties of polycrystalline NiTe₂ by application of pressure ranging from 3.4GPa to 54.45Gpa. Superconductivity emerges at critical pressure 12GPa with a transition temperature of 3.7K, and Tc reaches its maximum, 6.4 K, at the pressure of 52.8GPa. Comparing with the superconductivity in MoP, we purposed the possibility of topological superconductivity in NiTe₂. Two superconductivity transitions are observed with pressure increasing in single crystal

AutoFP: a GUI for highly automated Rietveld refinement using an expert system algorithm based on FullProf

AutoFP, a highly automated software toolkit, has been developed to improve the extent of automation of the widely used Rietveld refinement program FullProf [Rodríguez-Carvajal (1993). Physica B, 192, 55-69]. An expert system algorithm is used as the control layer to simulate the manual process when FullProf is used to perform Rietveld refinement. This enables the program to complete the Rietveld refinement highly automatically. It is shown that the expert system algorithm is a good choice for automating Rietveld refinement. The programming interface is available for advanced users to implement their own acquired experience of refinement or add new Rietveld refinement engines to AutoFP. AutoFP can be also used as an automated Rietveld refinement engine by other programs. AutoFP is an open-source software package developed in Python, and it is user friendly, easy to learn and easy to use

Evidences for pressure-induced two-phase superconductivity and mixed structures of NiTe₂ and NiTe in type-II Dirac semimetal NiTe_(2-x) (x = 0.38 ± 0.09) single crystals

Bulk NiTe₂ is a type-II Dirac semimetal with non-trivial Berry phases associated with the Dirac fermions. Theory suggests that monolayer NiTe₂ is a two-gap superconductor, whereas experimental investigation of bulk NiTe_(1.98) for pressures (P) up to 71.2 GPa do not reveal any superconductivity. Here we report experimental evidences for pressure-induced two-phase superconductivity as well as mixed structures of NiTe₂ and NiTe in Te-deficient NiTe_(2-x) (x = 0.38±0.09) single crystals. Hole-dominant multi-band superconductivity with the P3M1 hexagonal-symmetry structure of NiTe₂ appears at P ≥ 0.5 GPa, whereas electron-dominant single-band superconductivity with the P2/m monoclinic-symmetry structure of NiTe emerges at 14.5 GPa < P < 18.4 GPa. The coexistence of hexagonal and monoclinic structures and two-phase superconductivity is accompanied by a zero Hall coefficient up to ∼ 40 GPa, and the second superconducting phase prevails above 40 GPa, reaching a maximum T_c = 7.8 K and persisting up to 52.8 GPa. Our findings suggest the critical role of Te-vacancies in the occurrence of superconductivity and potentially nontrivial topological properties in NiTe_(2-x)

Syntaxin of plants71 plays essential roles in plant development and stress response via regulating pH homeostasis

SYP71, a plant-specific Qc-SNARE with multiple subcellular localization, is essential for symbiotic nitrogen fixation in nodules in Lotus, and is implicated in plant resistance to pathogenesis in rice, wheat and soybean. Arabidopsis SYP71 is proposed to participate in multiple membrane fusion steps during secretion. To date, the molecular mechanism underlying SYP71 regulation on plant development remains elusive. In this study, we clarified that AtSYP71 is essential for plant development and stress response, using techniques of cell biology, molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, and transcriptomics. AtSYP71-knockout mutant atsyp71-1 was lethal at early development stage due to the failure of root elongation and albinism of the leaves. AtSYP71-knockdown mutants, atsyp71-2 and atsyp71-3, had short roots, delayed early development, and altered stress response. The cell wall structure and components changed significantly in atsyp71-2 due to disrupted cell wall biosynthesis and dynamics. Reactive oxygen species homeostasis and pH homeostasis were also collapsed in atsyp71-2. All these defects were likely resulted from blocked secretion pathway in the mutants. Strikingly, change of pH value significantly affected ROS homeostasis in atsyp71-2, suggesting interconnection between ROS and pH homeostasis. Furthermore, we identified AtSYP71 partners and propose that AtSYP71 forms distinct SNARE complexes to mediate multiple membrane fusion steps in secretory pathway. Our findings suggest that AtSYP71 plays an essential role in plant development and stress response via regulating pH homeostasis through secretory pathway