Hybrid Power System Topology and Energy Management Scheme Design for Hydrogen-Powered Aircraft

The electrification of the aviation industry is a major challenge to realizing net-zero in the global energy sector. Fuel cell (FC) hybrid electric aircraft (FCHEV) demonstrate remarkable competitiveness in terms of cruise range and total economy. However, the process of simply hybridizing different power supplies together does not lead to an improvement in the aircraft economy, since a carefully designed power system topology and energy management scheme are also necessary to realize the full benefit of FCHEV. This paper provides a new approach towards the configuration of the optimal power system and proposes a novel energy management scheme for FCHEA. Firstly, four different topologies of aircraft power systems are designed to facilitate flexible power flow control and energy management. Then, an equivalent model of aircraft hydrogen consumption is formulated by analyzing the FC efficiency, FC aging, and BESS aging. Using the newly established model, the performance of aircraft can be quantitatively evaluated in detail to guide FCHEA design. The optimal aircraft energy management is realized by establishing a mathematical optimization model with the reduction of hydrogen consumption and aging costs as objectives. An experimental aircraft, NASA X-57 Maxwell, is used to provide a detailed performance evaluation of different power system topologies and validate the effectiveness of the energy management scheme. The new approach represents a guide for future power system design and energy management of electric aircraft.</p

APOE3, but Not APOE4, Bone Marrow Transplantation Mitigates Behavioral and Pathological Changes in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer Disease

Apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4) genotype is the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer disease and confers a proinflammatory, neurotoxic phenotype to microglia. Here, we tested the hypothesis that bone marrow cell APOE genotype modulates pathological progression in experimental Alzheimer disease. We performed bone marrow transplants (BMT) from green fluorescent protein–expressing human APOE3/3 or APOE4/4 donor mice into lethally irradiated 5-month-old APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mice. Eight months later, APOE4/4 BMT–recipient APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mice had significantly impaired spatial working memory and increased detergent-soluble and plaque Aβ compared with APOE3/3 BMT–recipient APPswe/PS1ΔE9 mice. BMT-derived microglia engraftment was significantly reduced in APOE4/4 recipients, who also had correspondingly less cerebral apoE. Gene expression analysis in cerebral cortex of APOE3/3 BMT recipients showed reduced expression of tumor necrosis factor-α and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (both neurotoxic cytokines) and elevated immunomodulatory IL-10 expression in APOE3/3 recipients compared with those that received APOE4/4 bone marrow. This was not due to detectable APOE-specific differences in expression of microglial major histocompatibility complex class II, C-C chemokine receptor (CCR) type 1, CCR2, CX3C chemokine receptor 1 (CX3CR1), or C5a anaphylatoxin chemotactic receptor (C5aR). Together, these findings suggest that BMT-derived APOE3-expressing cells are superior to those that express APOE4 in their ability to mitigate the behavioral and neuropathological changes in experimental Alzheimer disease

Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 Promotes Rat Stem Leydig Cell Development

Fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) is reported to be expressed in the testis. How FGF1 affects stem Leydig cell development remains unclear. Here, we report the effects of FGF1 on rat stem Leydig cell development in an ethane dimethane sulfonate (EDS)-treated model. FGF1 (100 ng/testis) significantly increased serum testosterone level, increased PCNA-positive Leydig cell percentage and Leydig cell number, but down-regulated the expression of Lhcgr, Star, Cyp11a1, Hsd3b1, Cyp17a1, and Hsd11b1 in Leydig cells per se, after its daily intratesticular injection from post-EDS day 14 for 14 days. Primary culture of the seminiferous tubules showed that FGF1 stimulated EdU incorporation to stem Leydig cells but blocked the differentiation into the Leydig cell lineage, possibly via FGFR1-mediated mechanism. In conclusion, FGF1 promotes stem Leydig cell proliferation but blocks its differentiation

Triphenyltin Chloride Delays Leydig Cell Maturation During Puberty in Rats

Triphenyltin chloride (TPT) is present in a wide range of human foods. TPT could disrupt testis function as a potential endocrine disruptor of Leydig cells. However, the effect of TPT on pubertal Leydig cell development is still unclear. The objective of the current study was to explore whether exposure to TPT affected Leydig cell developmental process and to clarify the underlying mechanisms. Male Sprague-Dawley rats at 35 days of age were randomly divided into four groups and received normal corn oil (control), 0.5, 1, or 2 mg/kg/day TPT for 18 days. Immature Leydig cells isolated from 35-day-old rat testes were treated with TPT (10 and 100 nM) for 24 h in vitro. In vivo exposure to ≥0.5 mg/kg TPT lowered serum testosterone levels and lowered Star mRNA. TPT at 2 mg/kg also lowered Lhcgr, Cyp11a1, Hsd3b1, Hsd17b3 as well as pAKT1/AKT1, pAKT2/AKT2, and pERK1/2/ERK1/2 ratios. In vitro exposure to TPT (100 nM) increased ROS production and induced cell apoptosis rate in rat immature Leydig cells. In conclusion, TPT exposure disrupts Leydig cell development possibly via interfering with the phosphorylation of AKT1, AKT2, and ERK1/2 kinases

CagA-positive Helicobacter pylori may promote and aggravate scrub typhus

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection may alter the host’s resistance to tsutsugamushi disease pathogens through the Th1 immune response, leading to potential synergistic pathogenic effects. A total of 117 scrub typhus cases at Beihai People’s Hospital and affiliated hospitals of Youjiang University for Nationalities and Medical Sciences were studied from January to December 2022, alongside 130 healthy individuals forming the control group. All participants underwent serum H. pylori antibody testing. The prevalence of H. pylori infection was significantly higher among scrub typhus patients (89.7%) compared to healthy individuals (54.6%) (p &lt; 0.05). Moreover, type I H. pylori infection was notably more prevalent in scrub typhus cases (67.5%) compared to healthy individuals (30%) (p &lt; 0.05). Multifactorial analysis demonstrated type I H. pylori infection as an independent risk factor for scrub typhus (adjusted odds ratio: 2.407, 95% confidence interval: 1.249–4.64, p = 0.009). Among scrub typhus patients with multiple organ damage, the prevalence of type I H. pylori infection was significantly higher (50.6%) than type II H. pylori infection (15.4%) (χ2 = 4.735, p = 0.030). These results highlight a higher incidence of H. pylori infection in scrub typhus patients compared to the healthy population. Additionally, type I H. pylori strain emerged as an independent risk factor for scrub typhus development. Moreover, individuals infected with type I H. pylori are more susceptible to multiple organ damage. These findings suggest a potential role of H. pylori carrying the CagA gene in promoting and exacerbating scrub typhus

Enhancement of Low-field Magnetoresistance in Self-Assembled Epitaxial La0.67Ca0.33MnO3:NiO and La0.67Ca0.33MnO3:Co3O4 Composite Films via Polymer-Assisted Deposition

Polymer-assisted deposition method has been used to fabricate self-assembled epitaxial La(0.67)Ca(0.33)MnO(3):NiO and La(0.67)Ca(0.33)MnO(3):Co(3)O(4) films on LaAlO(3) substrates. Compared to pulsed-laser deposition method, polymer-assisted deposition provides a simpler and lower-cost approach to self-assembled composite films with enhanced low-field magnetoresistance effect. After the addition of NiO or Co(3)O(4), triangular NiO and tetrahedral Co(3)O(4) nanoparticles remain on the surface of La(0.67)Ca(0.33)MnO(3) films. This results in a dramatic increase in resistivity of the films from 0.0061 Ω•cm to 0.59 Ω•cm and 1.07 Ω•cm, and a decrease in metal-insulator transition temperature from 270 K to 180 K and 172 K by the addition of 10%-NiO and 10%-Co(3)O(4), respectively. Accordingly, the maximum absolute magnetoresistance value is improved from −44.6% to −59.1% and −52.7% by the addition of 10%-NiO and 10%-Co(3)O(4), respectively. The enhanced low-field magnetoresistance property is ascribed to the introduced insulating phase at the grain boundaries. The magnetism is found to be more suppressed for the La(0.67)Ca(0.33)MnO(3):Co(3)O(4) composite films than the La(0.67)Ca(0.33)MnO(3):NiO films, which can be attributed to the antiferromagnetic properties of the Co(3)O(4) phase. The solution-processed composite films show enhanced low-field magnetoresistance effect which are crucial in practical applications. We expect our polymer-assisted deposited films paving the pathway in the field of hole-doped perovskites with their intrinsic colossal magnetoresistance

Effects of Low-Level Autonomic Stimulation on Prevention of Atrial Fibrillation Induced by Acute Electrical Remodeling

Background. Rapid atrial pacing (RAP) can induce electrical and autonomic remodeling and facilitate atrial fibrillation (AF). Recent reports showed that low-level vagosympathetic nerve stimulation (LLVNS) can suppress AF, as an antiarrhythmic effect. We hypothesized that LLVNS can reverse substrate heterogeneity induced by RAP. Methods and Results. Mongrel dogs were divided into (LLVNS+RAP) and RAP groups. Electrode catheters were sutured to multiple atrial sites, and LLVNS was applied to cervical vagosympathetic trunks with voltage 50% below the threshold slowing sinus rate by ⩽30 msec. RAP induced a significant decrease in effective refractory period (ERP) and increase in the window of vulnerability at all sites, characterized by descending and elevated gradient differences towards the ganglionic plexi (GP) sites, respectively. The ERP dispersion was obviously enlarged by RAP and more significant when the ERP of GP-related sites was considered. Recovery time from AF was also prolonged significantly as a result of RAP. LLVNS could reverse all these changes induced by RAP and recover the heterogeneous substrate to baseline. Conclusions. LLVNS can reverse the electrical and autonomic remodeling and abolish the GP-central gradient differences induced by RAP, and thus it can recover the homogeneous substrate, which may be the underlying mechanism of its antiarrhythmic effect