Investigation of Energy Efficient Power Coupling Steering System for Dual Motors Drive High Speed Tracked Vehicle

This paper presents an energy efficient power coupling steering system for dual motors drive high speed tracked vehicle. The system consists of a new type of center steering motor, two electromagnetic (EM) clutches, two planetary gear couplers, and two propulsion motors. The motor torque and power required by dynamic steering with different steering radiuses for dual motors drive high speed tracked vehicle were investigated. A motor-speed-based control strategy of dynamic steering is designed to achieve vehicle lateral stability enhancement. The model of the proposed control strategy in RecuDyn and Matlab/Simulink is given. The simulation results of dynamic steering with 0.5B and 2B radius show that understeer in small radius steering can be significantly improved

Microbial signatures of neonatal bacterial meningitis from multiple body sites

As a common central nervous system infection in newborns, neonatal bacterial meningitis (NBM) can seriously affect their health and growth. However, although metagenomic approaches are being applied in clinical diagnostic practice, there are some limitations for whole metagenome sequencing and amplicon sequencing in handling low microbial biomass samples. Through a newly developed ultra-sensitive metagenomic sequencing method named 2bRAD-M, we investigated the microbial signatures of central nervous system infections in neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. Particularly, we recruited a total of 23 neonates suspected of having NBM and collected their blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and skin samples for 2bRAD-M sequencing. Then we developed a novel decontamination method (Reads Level Decontamination, RLD) for 2bRAD-M by which we efficiently denoised the sequencing data and found some potential biomarkers that have significantly different relative abundance between 12 patients that were diagnosed as NBM and 11 Non-NBM based on their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) examination results. Specifically, we discovered 11 and 8 potential biomarkers for NBM in blood and CSF separately and further identified 16 and 35 microbial species that highly correlated with the physiological indicators in blood and CSF. Our study not only provide microbiological evidence to aid in the diagnosis of NBM but also demonstrated the application of an ultra-sensitive metagenomic sequencing method in pathogenesis study

Insights into Adaptations to a Near- Obligate Nematode Endoparasitic Lifestyle from the Finished Genome of Drechmeria coniospora

Nematophagous fungi employ three distinct predatory strategies: nematode trapping, parasitism of females and eggs, and endoparasitism. While endoparasites play key roles in controlling nematode populations in nature, their application for integrated pest management is hindered by the limited understanding of their biology. We present a comparative analysis of a high quality finished genome assembly of Drechmeria coniospora, a model endoparasitic nematophagous fungus, integrated with a transcriptomic study. Adaptation of D. coniospora to its almost completely obligate endoparasitic lifestyle led to the simplification of many orthologous gene families involved in the saprophytic trophic mode, while maintaining orthologs of most known fungal pathogen-host interaction proteins, stress response circuits and putative effectors of the small secreted protein type. The need to adhere to and penetrate the host cuticle led to a selective radiation of surface proteins and hydrolytic enzymes. Although the endoparasite has a simplified secondary metabolome, it produces a novel peptaibiotic family that shows antibacterial, antifungal and nematicidal activities. Our analyses emphasize the basic malleability of the D. coniospora genome: loss of genes advantageous for the saprophytic lifestyle; modulation of elements that its cohort species utilize for entomopathogenesis; and expansion of protein families necessary for the nematode endoparasitic lifestyle

Plasmin Plays an Essential Role in Amplification of Psoriasiform Skin Inflammation in Mice

BACKGROUND: Although increased levels of plasminogen activators have been found in psoriatic lesions, the role of plasmin converted from plasminogen by plasminogen activators in pathogenesis of psoriasis has not been investigated. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here we examined the contribution of plasmin to amplification of inflammation in patients with psoriasis. We found that plasminogen was diminished, but that the amount and activity of its converted product plasmin were markedly increased in psoriasis. Moreover, annexin II, a receptor for plasmin was dramatically increased in both dermis and epidermis in psoriasis. Plasmin at sites of inflammation was pro-inflammatory, eliciting production of inflammatory factors, including CC chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20) and interleukin-23 (IL-23), that was mediated by the nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) signaling pathway and that had an essential role in the recruitment and activation of pathogenic C-C chemokine receptor type 6 (CCR6)+ T cells. Moreover, intradermal injection of plasmin or plasmin together with recombinant monocyte/macrophage chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) resulted in induction of psoriasiform skin inflammation around the injection sites with several aspects of human psoriasis in mice. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Plasmin converted from plasminogen by plasminogen activators plays an essential role in amplification of psoriasiform skin inflammation in mice, and targeting plasmin receptor--annexin II--may harbor therapeutic potential for the treatment of human psoriasis

TTK, CDC25A, and ESPL1 as Prognostic Biomarkers for Endometrial Cancer

Objective. Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the most common malignant gynaecological tumours worldwide. This study was aimed at identifying EC prognostic genes and investigating the molecular mechanisms of these genes in EC. Methods. Two mRNA datasets of EC were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). The GEO2R tool and Draw Venn Diagram were used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between normal endometrial tissues and EC tissues. Then, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses were performed using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID). Next, the protein-protein interactions (PPIs) of these DEGs were determined by the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes (STRING) tool and Cytoscape with Molecular Complex Detection (MCODE). Furthermore, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was performed by UALCAN to verify genes associated with significantly poor prognosis. Next, Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) was used to verify the expression levels of these selected genes. Additionally, a reanalysis of the KEGG pathways was performed to understand the potential biological functions of selected genes. Finally, the associations between these genes and clinical features were analysed based on TCGA cancer genomic datasets for EC. Results. In EC tissues, compared with normal endometrial tissues, 147 of 249 DEGs were upregulated and 102 were downregulated. A total of 64 upregulated genes were assembled into a PPI network. Next, 14 genes were found to be both associated with significantly poor prognosis and highly expressed in EC tissues. Reanalysis of the KEGG pathways found that three of these genes were enriched in the cell cycle pathway. TTK, CDC25A, and ESPL1 showed higher expression in cancers with late stage and higher tumour grade. Conclusion. In summary, through integrated bioinformatics approaches, we found three significant prognostic genes of EC, which might be potential therapeutic targets for EC patients

EFFECT OF NANO-TiO₂ ON THE DURABILITY OF ULTRA-HIGH PERFORMANCE CONCRETE WITH AND WITHOUT A FLEXURAL LOAD

In this study, the durability of nano-TiO₂ modified ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) with and without a flexural load was experimentally investigated. Firstly, the mechanical properties of UHPC with various nano-TiO₂ contents were tested, and the results showed that UHPC with 1 wt% nano-TiO₂ exhibited the best mechanical properties. Then, 1wt% nano-TiO2 was added into UHPC to evaluate its effects on dry shrinkage, chloride ingress resistance, freeze-thaw resistance and carbonation resistance of UHPC. The effect of the flexural load on the durability of UHPC was also studied. The dry shrinkage of nano-TiO₂ modified UHPC was reduced compared with the control UHPC. The flexural load accelerated the chloride penetration process in the tensile region of the UHPC specimens, and the addition of nano-TiO₂ mitigated the negative influence of flexural load on the chloride ingress resistance of UHPC. Moreover, the addition of nano-TiO2 particles also improved the freeze-thaw resistance of the flexural loaded UHPC by reducing the mass loss under 800 freeze-thaw cycles. Carbonation was not detected in all UHPC specimens after being exposed to 60% CO₂ for 180 days. Furthermore, the MIP results indicated that the addition of nano-TiO₂ refined the pore structure of the UHPC, which improved the mechanical properties and durability of the UHPC

Simulation of the Flexural Response of Ultrahigh Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete with Lattice Fracture Model

The flexural response of ultrahigh performance fiber-reinforced concrete (UHPFRC) was simulated based on the lattice fracture model. Fiber was modelled as separated beam that was connected to the matrix with interface beams. The simulated results were compared with the experimental results. Deviations occurred at the late stage of the strain-softening period. But both the strain-hardening behavior and multicracking phenomenon were observed in the simulation. The effects of fiber orientation and fiber content were studied with the lattice fracture model. The flexural strength and toughness of UHPFRC improved as the fibers were aligned distributed or the fiber content increased. The proposed model has the potential to help with the materials design of UHPFRC, and the limitations of the model were also discussed in the paper.MicrolabMaterials and Environmen

MoS2 with an intercalation reaction as a long-life anode material for lithium ion batteries

MoS2 with expanded layers was synthesized and characterized as an anode material for lithium ion batteries in an ether-based electrolyte by cutting off the terminal discharge voltage at 1.0 V to prevent a MoS2 conversion reaction. The as-prepared MoS2 achieved 96% capacity retention even after 1400 cycles and showed good performance in a full cell with LiCoO2 as the counter electrode

Construction and realization of information platform for geological disaster monitoring and early warning in Qinghai Province

Under the influence of global changes, the frequency of geological disasters in Qinghai Province, which is located in the northeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, has increased significantly. It is important to build a geological disaster monitoring and early warning information platform in Qinghai Province to reduce the safety of life and property in the area. In this paper, the process of construction and realization of the information platform for geological disaster monitoring and early warning in Qinghai Province is described in terms of equipment deployment, system construction, platform function and operation status. At present, the information platform of geological disaster monitoring and early warning in Qinghai Province has been able to achieve the unified management and dynamic update of disaster information of different sources and batches of geological disasters, and achieve data integration, result visualization, information synthesis and system integration. The information platform of geological disaster monitoring and early warning in Qinghai Province includes 10 modules such as geological disaster investigation and evaluation system, geological disaster monitoring and early warning system, and geological disaster meteorological early warning system. At this stage, all universal monitoring data can be sent to the national geological disaster monitoring data platform synchronously, which can support the work of geological disaster early warning efficiently. The monitoring and early warning information platform can automatically analyze the monitoring data collected in real time and support a variety of early warning models to discriminate; when the monitoring data changes and touches the preset discriminating models, it can automatically send geohazard early warning information. Through the trial run of the system, there have been cases of results monitoring and early warning, and the data is reliable enough to meet the needs of monitoring and early warning