Research Progress on Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-Associated Protein (Cas)-Isothermal Amplification in the Detection of Foodborne Pathogens

Food safety incidents caused by foodborne pathogens have attracted widespread attention. In order to ensure food safety, it is essential to adopt effective detection means. The emerging clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated proteins (Cas) system, consisting of CRISPR and Cas, is an acquired immune system widely found in bacteria and archaea, which efficiently and specifically recognizes and cleave exogenous nucleic acids and is more efficient than conventional techniques for detecting pathogenic bacteria. Based on a review of recent progress in research on CRISPR/Cas biosensing system coupled with isothermal amplification technology, this paper summarizes the classification and principle of CRISPR/Cas and recent progress in the application of CRISPR/Cas coupled with isothermal amplification in foodborne pathogen detection, and discusses the prospects and challenges for CRISPR/Cas coupled with isothermal amplification in the real-time detection of foodborne pathogens. We expect that this review will provide a reference for the further development of CRISPR/Cas biosensing system

Structures and properties of uranium– niobium intermetallic compounds under high pressure: A first principles stud

Metallic uranium-based alloys, with d-transition metals such as Nb, Mo, and Zr, are promising candidates for actinide fuel. For this purpose, their behaviors under changing physical stimuli need to be understood. Here, we systematically investigate U–Nb intermetallic compounds and predict new compound formations under different pressures using the first-principles swarm-intelligence structure searching method. Two new compounds (U1Nb6 and U2Nb1) were identified to be thermodynamically stable at ambient and high pressures. U1Nb6 has a triclinic symmetry that is stable in the pressure range of 0–200 GPa, while U2Nb1 has a hexagonal closely packed structure at low pressure and transforms to a simple hexagonal lattice at 20 GPa. Other compounds, particularly U-rich ones (U3Nb1, U4Nb1, U5Nb1, and U6Nb1), are found metastable at ambient and high pressures, and all have orthorhombic structures. The structural, vibrational, electronic, and mechanical properties of predicted U-rich compounds were thoroughly studied using density-functional theory. The results of phonon spectra and elastic constant show that the predicted new structures are dynamically and mechanically stable in the corresponding pressure range. Also, these newly identified U-rich compounds exhibit strong composition dependence, and the pressure-induced enhancements of structural stability and mechanical performances are evident. These findings shall enrich the understanding of U-based alloys and serve as meaningful predictions for experimental research in the future

Analytical potential curves of some hydride molecules using algebraic and energy-consistent method

Based on the algebraic method (AM) and the energy consistent method (ECM), an AM-ECM protocol for analytical potential energy curves of stable diatomic electronic states is proposed as functions of the internuclear distance. Applications of the AM-ECM to the 6 hydride electronic states of HF-X1Σ+, DF-X1Σ+, D35Cl-X1Σ+, 6LiH-X1Σ+, 7LiH-X1Σ+, and 7LiD-X1Σ+ show that the AM-ECM potentials are in excellent agreement with the experimental RKR data and the full AM-RKR data, and that the AM-ECM can obtain reliable analytical potential energies in the molecular asymptotic and dissociation region for these molecular electronic states

Mapping Cropland Abandonment in the Cloudy Hilly Regions Surrounding the Southwest Basin of China

Cropland is a vital resource intricately connected to food security. Currently, the issue of cropland abandonment poses a serious threat to food production and supply, presenting a significant challenge to rural economies and the stability of the food supply chain. The hilly and cloudy regions of southwest China are particularly affected by cropland abandonment, presenting significant challenges in accurately mapping the distribution of abandoned cropland due to fragmentation and heavy cloud pollution. Therefore, this study focuses on Mingshan County, located in Ya’an City, Sichuan Province, China, as the study area. Utilizing Google Earth Engine (GEE) and a random forest algorithm, a method integrating multi-source data from Landsat 8, Sentinel-2, and Sentinel-1 is proposed to extract abandoned cropland spanning from 2018 to 2022. This study analyzes spatial and temporal characteristics, employing the Geodetector with optimal parameters to explore the underlying mechanisms. The findings reveal the following: (1) The method achieves an overall accuracy of land use classification surpassing 88.67%, with a Kappa coefficient exceeding 0.87. Specifically, the accuracy for identifying abandoned cropland reaches 87.00%. (2) From 2018 to 2022, the abandonment rate in Mingshan County fluctuated between 4.58% and 5.77%, averaging 5.03%. The lowest abandonment rate occurred in 2019–2020, while the highest was observed in 2020–2021. (3) Cropland abandonment is influenced by both natural and social factors. Elevation and slope are the main driving factors, alongside factors such as distance to road, town, and residential settlement that all significantly contribute to abandonment trends. These five factors exhibit positive correlation with the abandonment rate, with distance to the river showing relatively weaker explanatory power

Analytical potential energy functions for some interhalogen diatomic electronic states

The studies of vibrational energies and analytical potential energy functions (APEFs) have been carried out for four interhalogen diatomic electronic states B(3Π0 +) and A(3Π1) of ClF, A′(3Π2u) of Cl2, and the ground state \hbox{$X^{1}\Sigma _{g}^{+}$} of Br2 by using an improved variational algebraic energy-consistent method (VAECM(4)). The full vibrational energies, the vibrational spectroscopic constants, the force constants fn, and the expansion coefficients an of the ECM (energy-consistent method) potential are tabulated. The VAECM(4) APEF with adjustable variational parameter λ for each electronic state is determined, and is shown to be in excellent agreement with available experimental data and has no any artificial barrier in all the calculation ranges that may appear in some other analytical potentials

Experimental Study on Infrared Temperature Characteristics and Failure Modes of Marble with Prefabricated Holes under Uniaxial Compression

In rock engineering, it is of great significance to study the failure mechanical behavior of rocks with holes. Using a combination of experiment and infrared detection, the strength, deformation, and infrared temperature evolution behavior of marble with elliptical holes under uniaxial compression were studied. The test results showed that as the vertical axis b of the ellipse increased, the peak intensity first decreased and then increased, and the minimum value appeared when the horizontal axis was equal to the vertical axis. The detection results of the infrared thermal imager showed that the maximum temperature, minimum temperature, and average temperature of the observation area in the loading stage showed a downward trend, and the range of change was between 0.02 °C and 1 °C. It was mainly due to the accumulation of energy in the loading process of the rock sample that caused the surface temperature of the specimen to decrease. In the brittle failure stage, macroscopic cracks appeared on the surface of the rock sample, which caused the energy accumulated inside to dissipate, thereby increasing the maximum temperature and average temperature of the rock sample. The average temperature increase was about 0.05 °C to about 0.19 °C. The evolution of infrared temperature was consistent with the mechanical characteristics of rock sample failure, indicating that infrared thermal imaging technology can provide effective monitoring for the study of rock mechanics. The research in this paper provides new ideas for further research on the basic characteristics of rock failure under uniaxial compression

Preparation and Properties of Conductive Foamed Silicone Rubber

The conductive foamed silicone rubber was prepared by Polymethylvinylsiloxane (PMVS) mixed with acetylene black, fumed silica, and AC foaming agent (azodicarbonamide). Influences of fillers on the microstructure, electrical conductivity and mechanical property were discussed. The results showed that the pore structure was affected by acetylene black. Acetylene black delayed the vulcanization speed of silicone rubbers, leading to bigger pores. Higher content of acetylene black decreased the mechanical properties and the electrical resistivity of rubbers. Fumed silica increased the mechanical properties and limited the aggregation of gas. Higher content of fumed silica led to small and obturator pores generated. Higher content of fumed silica increase the mechanical properties and the electrical resistivity of rubbers. AC foaming agents generated more gas, leading to bigger and irregular pores which affected the mechanical properties negatively, meanwhile AC foaming agents increased the conductivity of rubbers

Experimental Study on Infrared Temperature Characteristics and Failure Modes of Marble with Prefabricated Holes under Uniaxial Compression

In rock engineering, it is of great significance to study the failure mechanical behavior of rocks with holes. Using a combination of experiment and infrared detection, the strength, deformation, and infrared temperature evolution behavior of marble with elliptical holes under uniaxial compression were studied. The test results showed that as the vertical axis b of the ellipse increased, the peak intensity first decreased and then increased, and the minimum value appeared when the horizontal axis was equal to the vertical axis. The detection results of the infrared thermal imager showed that the maximum temperature, minimum temperature, and average temperature of the observation area in the loading stage showed a downward trend, and the range of change was between 0.02 °C and 1 °C. It was mainly due to the accumulation of energy in the loading process of the rock sample that caused the surface temperature of the specimen to decrease. In the brittle failure stage, macroscopic cracks appeared on the surface of the rock sample, which caused the energy accumulated inside to dissipate, thereby increasing the maximum temperature and average temperature of the rock sample. The average temperature increase was about 0.05 °C to about 0.19 °C. The evolution of infrared temperature was consistent with the mechanical characteristics of rock sample failure, indicating that infrared thermal imaging technology can provide effective monitoring for the study of rock mechanics. The research in this paper provides new ideas for further research on the basic characteristics of rock failure under uniaxial compression

Benefits and trade-offs of replacing synthetic fertilizers by animal manures in crop production in China: A meta-analysis

Recycling of livestock manure to agricultural land may reduce the use of synthetic fertilizer and thereby enhance the sustainability of food production. However, the effects of substitution of fertilizer by manure on crop yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), and emissions of ammonia (NH3), nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) as function of soil and manure properties, experimental duration and application strategies have not been quantified systematically and convincingly yet. Here, we present a meta-analysis of these effects using results of 143 published studies in China. Results indicate that the partial substitution of synthetic fertilizers by manure significantly increased the yield by 6.6% and 3.3% for upland crop and paddy rice, respectively, but full substitution significantly decreased yields (by 9.6% and 4.1%). The response of crop yields to manure substitution varied with soil pH and experimental durations, with relatively large positive responses in acidic soils and long-term experiments. NUE increased significantly at a moderate ratio (3 emissions were significantly lower with full substitution (62%–77%), but not with partial substitution. Emissions of CH4 from paddy rice significantly increased with substitution ratio (SR), and varied by application rates and manure types, but N2O emissions decreased. The SR did not significantly influence N2O emissions from upland soils, and a relative scarcity of data on certain manure characteristic was found to hamper identification of the mechanisms. We derived overall mean N2O emission factors (EF) of 0.56% and 0.17%, as well as NH3 EFs of 11.1% and 6.5% for the manure N applied to upland and paddy soils, respectively. Our study shows that partial substitution of fertilizer by manure can increase crop yields, and decrease emissions of NH3 and N2O, but depending on site-specific conditions. Manure addition to paddy rice soils is recommended only if abatement strategies for CH4 emissions are also implemented.</p