A Real-time Non-contact Localization Method for Faulty Electric Energy Storage Components using Highly Sensitive Magnetometers

With the wide application of electric energy storage component arrays, such as battery arrays, capacitor arrays, inductor arrays, their potential safety risks have gradually drawn the public attention. However, existing technologies cannot meet the needs of non-contact and real-time diagnosis for faulty components inside these massive arrays. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a new method based on the beamforming spatial filtering algorithm to precisely locate the faulty components within the arrays in real-time. The method uses highly sensitive magnetometers to collect the magnetic signals from energy storage component arrays, without damaging or even contacting any component. The experimental results demonstrate the potential of the proposed method in securing energy storage component arrays. Within an imaging area of 80 mm $\times$ 80 mm, the one faulty component out of nine total components can be localized with an accuracy of 0.72 mm for capacitor arrays and 1.60 mm for battery arrays

Palladium-Catalyzed Intramolecular C–H Activation/C–C Bond Formation: A Straightforward Synthesis of Phenanthridines

The palladium-catalyzed intramolecular C–H activation/C–C cross-coupling has been developed for a straightforward and efficient synthesis of phenanthridines. With Pd­(OAc)₂ (4 mol %) as the catalyst, PCy₃ (8 mol %) as the ligand, and Cs₂CO₃ as the base, this protocol was applied to synthesize a small library of phenanthridine derivatives in good yields in THF

Aquaporin3 is a sperm water channel essential for postcopulatory sperm osmoadaptation and migration.

In the journey from the male to female reproductive tract, mammalian sperm experience a natural osmotic decrease (e.g., in mouse, from ~415 mOsm in the cauda epididymis to ~310 mOsm in the uterine cavity). Sperm have evolved to utilize this hypotonic exposure for motility activation, meanwhile efficiently silence the negative impact of hypotonic cell swelling. Previous physiological and pharmacological studies have shown that ion channel-controlled water influx/efflux is actively involved in the process of sperm volume regulation; however, no specific sperm proteins have been found responsible for this rapid osmoadaptation. Here, we report that aquaporin3 (AQP3) is a sperm water channel in mice and humans. Aqp3-deficient sperm show normal motility activation in response to hypotonicity but display increased vulnerability to hypotonic cell swelling, characterized by increased tail bending after entering uterus. The sperm defect is a result of impaired sperm volume regulation and progressive cell swelling in response to physiological hypotonic stress during male-female reproductive tract transition. Time-lapse imaging revealed that the cell volume expansion begins at cytoplasmic droplet, forcing the tail to angulate and form a hairpin-like structure due to mechanical membrane stretch. The tail deformation hampered sperm migration into oviduct, resulting in impaired fertilization and reduced male fertility. These data suggest AQP3 as an essential membrane pathway for sperm regulatory volume decrease (RVD) that balances the "trade-off" between sperm motility and cell swelling upon physiological hypotonicity, thereby optimizing postcopulatory sperm behavior

A Central Amygdala-Substantia Innominata Neural Circuitry Encodes Aversive Reinforcement Signals

Summary: Aversive stimuli can impact motivation and support associative learning as reinforcers. However, the neural circuitry underlying the processing of aversive reinforcers has not been elucidated. Here, we report that a subpopulation of central amygdala (CeA) GABAergic neurons expressing protein kinase C-delta (PKC-δ+) displays robust responses to aversive stimuli during negative reinforcement learning. Importantly, projections from PKC-δ+ neurons of the CeA to the substantia innominata (SI) could bi-directionally modulate negative reinforcement learning. Moreover, consistent with the idea that SI-projecting PKC-δ+ neurons of the CeA encode aversive information, optogenetic activation of this pathway produces conditioned place aversion, a behavior prevented by simultaneous ablating of SI glutamatergic neurons. Taken together, our data define a cell-type-specific neural circuitry modulating associative learning by encoding aversive reinforcement signals. : Cui et al. show that central amygdala PKC-δ+ neurons can modulate negative reinforcement learning by transmitting aversive signals to the substantia innominata. Keywords: central amygdala, negative reinforcement learning, substantia innominate, aversive signal

Precise Cerebral Vascular Atlas in Stereotaxic Coordinates of Whole Mouse Brain

Understanding amazingly complex brain functions and pathologies requires a complete cerebral vascular atlas in stereotaxic coordinates. Making a precise atlas for cerebral arteries and veins has been a century-old objective in neuroscience and neuropathology. Using micro-optical sectioning tomography (MOST) with a modified Nissl staining method, we acquired five mouse brain data sets containing arteries, veins, and microvessels. Based on the brain-wide vascular spatial structures and brain regions indicated by cytoarchitecture in one and the same mouse brain, we reconstructed and annotated the vascular system atlas of both arteries and veins of the whole mouse brain for the first time. The distributing patterns of the vascular system within the brain regions were acquired and our results show that the patterns of individual vessels are different from each other. Reconstruction and statistical analysis of the microvascular network, including derivation of quantitative vascular densities, indicate significant differences mainly in vessels with diameters less than 8 μm and large than 20 μm across different brain regions. Our precise cerebral vascular atlas provides an important resource and approach for quantitative studies of brain functions and diseases