ReSolveD: Shorter Signatures from Regular Syndrome Decoding and VOLE-in-the-Head

We present ReSolveD, a new candidate post-quantum signature scheme under the regular syndrome decoding (RSD) assumption for random linear codes, which is a well-established variant of the well-known syndrome decoding (SD) assumption. Our signature scheme is obtained by designing a new zero-knowledge proof for proving knowledge of a solution to the RSD problem in the recent VOLE-in-the-head framework using a sketching scheme to verify that a vector has weight exactly one. We achieve a signature size of 3.99 KB with a signing time of 27.3 ms and a verification time of 23.1 ms on a single core of a standard desktop for a 128-bit security level. Compared to the state-of-the-art code-based signature schemes, our signature scheme achieves $1.5\times \sim 2\times$ improvement in terms of the common signature size + public-key size metric, while keeping the computational efficiency competitive

Open source board based acoustofluidic transwells for reversible disruption of the blood–brain barrier for therapeutic delivery

Background: Blood–brain barrier (BBB) is a crucial but dynamic structure that functions as a gatekeeper for the central nervous system (CNS). Managing sufficient substances across the BBB is a major challenge, especially in the development of therapeutics for CNS disorders. Methods: To achieve an efficient, fast and safe strategy for BBB opening, an acoustofluidic transwell (AFT) was developed for reversible disruption of the BBB. The proposed AFT was consisted of a transwell insert where the BBB model was established, and a surface acoustic wave (SAW) transducer realized using open-source electronics based on printed circuit board techniques. Results: In the AFT device, the SAW produced acousto-mechanical stimulations to the BBB model resulting in decreased transendothelial electrical resistance in a dose dependent manner, indicating the disruption of the BBB. Moreover, SAW stimulation enhanced transendothelial permeability to sodium fluorescein and FITC-dextran with various molecular weight in the AFT device. Further study indicated BBB opening was mainly attributed to the apparent stretching of intercellular spaces. An in vivo study using a zebrafish model demonstrated SAW exposure promoted penetration of sodium fluorescein to the CNS. Conclusions: In summary, AFT effectively disrupts the BBB under the SAW stimulation, which is promising as a new drug delivery methodology for neurodegenerative diseases. Graphical Abstract

Attenuating effect of Polygala tenuifolia Willd. seed oil on progression of MAFLD

Introduction: Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a common chronic metabolic disease that seriously threatens human health. The pharmacological activity of unsaturated fatty acid-rich vegetable oil interventions in the treatment of MAFLD has been demonstrated. This study evaluated the pharmacological activity of Polygala tenuifolia Willd, which contains high levels of 2-acetyl-1,3-diacyl-sn-glycerols (sn-2-acTAGs).Methods: In this study, a mouse model was established by feeding a high-fat diet (HFD, 31% lard oil diet), and the treatment group was fed a P. tenuifolia seed oil (PWSO) treatment diet (17% lard oil and 14% PWSO diet). The pharmacological activity and mechanism of PWSO were investigated by total cho-lesterol (TC) measurement, triglyceride (TG) measurement and histopathological observation, and the sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1 (SREBP1), SREBP2 and NF-κB signaling pathways were evaluated by immunofluorescence and Western blot analyses.Results: PWSO attenuated the increases in plasma TC and TG levels. Furthermore, PWSO reduced the hepatic levels of TC and TG, ameliorating hepatic lipid accumulation. PWSO treatment effectively improves the level of hepatitic inflammation, such as reducing IL-6 levels and TNF-α level.Discussion: PWSO treatment inactivated SREBP1 and SREBP2, which are involved in lipogenesis, to attenuate hepatic lipid accumulation and mitigate the inflammatory response induced via the NF-κB signaling pathway. This study demonstrated that PWSO can be used as a relatively potent dietary supplement to inhibit the occurrence and development of MAFLD

Effects of Differential Subgrade Settlement on Slab Track Deformation Based on a DEM-FDM Coupled Approach

Slab track structures become deformed under the effects of differential subgrade settlement. According to the properties of the China Railway Track System (CRTS) II slab track on a subgrade, a three-dimensional (3D) coupled model based on both the discrete element method (DEM) and finite difference method (FDM) was developed. The slab track and subgrade were simulated using the FDM and DEM, respectively. The coupled model was verified. The deformation of the slab track and contact forces of gravel grains in the surface layer of the subgrade were studied under differential subgrade settlement. The effects of settlement wavelength, settlement amplitude, and other types of settlements were also discussed. The results demonstrate that the settlement amplitude and settlement wavelength of the subgrade have significant effects on track deformation. The deformation amplitude of the slab track increases nonlinearly with an increasing settlement amplitude of the subgrade. Increases in the settlement wavelength and amplitude of the subgrade significantly increase the maximum value of the contact force of the gravel grains in the subgrade. The maximum contact force of gravel grains near the boundaries of the settlement section can reach two to three times that of the unsettled condition, which makes it easy to accelerate the plastic settlement of the subgrade

Long-term performance of pile-supported ballastless track-bed at various water levels

In recent years, the constructions of pile-supported ballastless track-bed have been developed rapidly in China. It appears important to assess the accumulative settlement of this kind of track-bed after years of operation, especially under unfavorable conditions, such as the rising of water level. In this study, a full-scale physical model simulating the pile-supported ballastless track-bed was established. The soil arching effect was previously developed in this model by draining out water in the water bags among the pile caps. The effects of water level and loading cycle on the accumulative settlement of this model were investigated following four testing procedures: water level rising, cyclic loading at high water level, water level lowering, and cyclic loading at low water level. The results indicated that the total accumulative settlement of the track-bed increased rapidly in the beginning of loading and tended to stabilize as the loading cycle increased at high water level, whereas the value varied slightly when loading at low water level. The distribution of the accumulative settlement inside the subgrade at the end of loading with high water level and at the end of this test both presented parabolic shaped variation trends, with the peak point occurring above the water bag and lower values developing above the pile cap. At the high water level, a modified model was applied to estimate the accumulative settlement of the unsaturated zone above the water level (height of soil arch), and the fitting parameters in this model were precalibrated using the testing data. The estimated results revealed that the deformation of the unsaturated zone above the water level accounted for a minor portion of that of the whole tack-bed. By contrast, the zone below the water level is the dominant factor to influence the accumulative settlement of the whole track-bed. From a practical point of view, a well-performing drainage system should be set up to avoid the rising of water level

HY1C/D-CZI <i>Noctiluca scintillans</i> Bloom Recognition Network Based on Hybrid Convolution and Self-Attention

Accurate Noctiluca scintillans bloom (NSB) recognition from space is of great significance for marine ecological monitoring and underwater target detection. However, most existing NSB recognition models require expert visual interpretation or manual adjustment of model thresholds, which limits model application in operational NSB monitoring. To address these problems, we developed a Noctiluca scintillans Bloom Recognition Network (NSBRNet) incorporating an Inception Conv Block (ICB) and a Swin Attention Block (SAB) based on the latest deep learning technology, where ICB uses convolution to extract channel and local detail features, and SAB uses self-attention to extract global spatial features. The model was applied to Coastal Zone Imager (CZI) data onboard Chinese ocean color satellites (HY1C/D). The results show that NSBRNet can automatically identify NSB using CZI data. Compared with other common semantic segmentation models, NSBRNet showed better performance with a precision of 92.22%, recall of 88.20%, F1-score of 90.10%, and IOU of 82.18%

Combined toxic effects of polyethylene microplastics and lambda-cyhalothrin on gut of zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Microplastics (MPs), which are prevalent and increasingly accumulating in aquatic environments. Other pollutants coexist with MPs in the water, such as pesticides, and may be carried or transferred to aquatic organisms, posing unpredictable ecological risks. This study sought to assess the adsorption of lambda-cyhalothrin (LCT) by virgin and aged polyethylene MPs (VPE and APE, respectively), and to examine their influence on LCT's toxicity in zebrafish, specifically regarding acute toxicity, oxidative stress, gut microbiota and immunity. The adsorption results showed that VPE and APE could adsorb LCT, with adsorption capacities of 34.4 mg∙g−1 and 39.0 mg∙g−1, respectively. Compared with LCT exposure alone, VPE and APE increased the acute toxicity of LCT to zebrafish. Additionally, exposure to LCT and PE-MPs alone can induce oxidative stress in the zebrafish gut, while combined exposure can exacerbate the oxidative stress response and intensify intestinal lipid peroxidation. Moreover, exposure to LCT or PE-MPs alone promotes inflammation, and combined exposure leads to downregulation of the myd88-nf-κb related gene expression, thus impacting intestinal immunity. Furthermore, exposure to APE increased LCT toxicity to zebrafish more than VPE. Meanwhile, exposure to PE-MPs and LCT alone or in combination has the potential to affect gut microbiota function and alter the abundance and diversity of the zebrafish gut flora. Collectively, the presence of PE-MPs may affect the toxicity of pesticides in zebrafish. The findings emphasize the importance of studying the interaction between MPs and pesticides in the aquatic environment

Permanent eformation of track-bed materials at various inclusion contents under large number of loading cycles

International audienceIn the French conventional railway substructure, the interpenetration of ballast grains and subgrade fine soils that occurred over years of operation has created a new layer, namely, an interlayer. The in situ investigation on this interlayer showed that the content of ballast grains decreases over depth, with the lower part characterized by a matrix of fines with inclusions of coarse grains. In this study, the permanent deformation of a material simulating the lower part of interlayer soil was investigated at six different volumetric inclusion contents fv (volumetric ratio of the inclusion grains to the total sample) by performing cyclic triaxial tests. The results indicate that at a given cycle, the permanent deformation decreases with the increase of fv, and the evolution of permanent deformation is strongly influenced by the loading history. To further investigate the effect of inclusion content, a method that allows eliminating the influence of loading history and estimating the end-stage permanent deformations at different stress levels was applied. Quadratic polynomial and bilinear fitting methods were used to fit the variations of the estimated end-stage permanent deformations with fv, showing a proper similarity between the two methods at high loading amplitudes (higher than 15 kPa). Furthermore, the testing results revealed the existence of a characteristic volumetric inclusion content fv-cha by bilinear fitting method, separating two zones with different inclusion effects. This observation is strongly supported by the X-ray microcomputed tomography (μCT) scans performed on the as-compacted samples. When fv ranges from 0 to 20% (smaller than fv-cha), the fines constitute the skeleton of the sample, and the permanent deformation decreases rapidly with the increase of fv. By contrast, when fv increases up to 35–45% (larger than fv-cha), the inclusions dominate the skeleton of the sample, leading to a slight decrease of permanent deformation with fv