A Renormalizable Supersymmetric SU(5) Model

In the Supersymmetric SU(5) Model of Unification with the Missing Partner Mechanism, we present a renormalizable model using the Georgi-Jarlsog mechanism to describe the fermion masses and mixing. At the meantime the proton decay rates are also suppressed to satisfy the experimental data

Performance simulation of the transportation process risk of bauxite carriers based on the Markov Chain and Cloud model

China imports a large quantity of bauxite each year. Bauxite in fine particles with high moisture has a high risk of liquefaction during the maritime transportation process, which is harmful to the stability and safety of the carrier. To ensure safe shipping, it is necessary to pay attention to the effects of the operation of cargo, the ship’s maneuvering and the ocean environment during the whole transportation process. The simulation of the process risk helps to develop measures to intervene with the cargo behavior to keep the risk to an acceptable level. This study examined the transportation process of a bauxite carrier using the Markov Chain method at different stages of loading, unberthing, departure and sea navigation. Based on the risk transfer matrix of the operational status at different stages of transportation, a cloud simulation model was developed to analyze the transportation process risk of a ship carrying bulk bauxite. Results: the research revealed that the risk evolution rule of the solid bulk cargoes with potential liquefaction during the transportation process, especially bauxite. The risk alteration during the prophase of the transportation process conforms to the rule of the “spoon curve”. Conclusions: a simulation model of the process risk based on the Markov Chain Cloud is suitable for the simulation analysis of the transportation risk of the bulk bauxite carrier. The outcomes of this study may contribute to better safety management to prevent the occurrence of ship capsizing

Does regional loss of bone density explain low trauma distal forearm fractures in men (The Mr F study)?

Summary The pathogenesis of low trauma wrist fractures in men is not fully understood. This study found that these men have lower bone mineral density at the forearm itself, as well as the hip and spine, and has shown that forearm bone mineral density is the best predictor of wrist fracture. Introduction Men with distal forearm fractures have reduced bone density at the lumbar spine and hip sites, an increased risk of osteoporosis and a higher incidence of further fractures. The aim of this case-control study was to investigate whether or not there is a regional loss of bone mineral density (BMD) at the forearm between men with and without distal forearm fractures. Methods Sixty-one men with low trauma distal forearm fracture and 59 age-matched bone healthy control subjects were recruited. All subjects underwent a DXA scan of forearm, hip and spine, biochemical investigations, health questionnaires, SF-36v2 and Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX). The non-fractured arm was investigated in subjects with fracture and both forearms in control subjects. Results BMD was significantly lower at the ultradistal forearm in men with fracture compared to control subjects, in both the dominant (mean (SD) 0.386 g/cm2 (0.049) versus 0.436 g/cm2 (0.054), p < 0.001) and non-dominant arm (mean (SD) 0.387 g/cm2 (0.060) versus 0.432 g/cm2 (0.061), p = 0.001). Fracture subjects also had a significantly lower BMD at hip and spine sites compared with control subjects. Logistic regression analysis showed that the best predictor of forearm fracture was ultradistal forearm BMD (OR = 0.871 (0.805–0.943), p = 0.001), with the likelihood of fracture decreasing by 12.9% for every 0.01 g/cm2 increase in ultradistal forearm BMD. Conclusions Men with low trauma distal forearm fracture have significantly lower regional BMD at the ultradistal forearm, which contributes to an increased forearm fracture risk. They also have generalised reduction in BMD, so that low trauma forearm fractures in men should be considered as indicator fractures for osteoporosis

Enhanced photocatalytic and antibacterial ability of Cu-doped anatase TiO2 thin films: theory and experiment.

Multifunctional thin films which can display both photocatalytic and antibacterial activity are of great interest industrially. Here, for the first time, we have used aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) to deposit highly photoactive thin films of Cu-doped anatase TiO2 on glass substrates. The films displayed much enhanced photocatalytic activity relative to pure anatase, and showed excellent antibacterial (vs S.Aureus and E.Coli) ability. Using a combination of transient absorption spectroscopy (TAS), photoluminescence (PL) measurements and hybrid density functional theory calculations, we have gained nanoscopic insights into the improved properties of the Cu-doped TiO2 films. Our analysis has highlighted that the interactions between substitutional and interstitial Cu in the anatase lattice can explain the extended exciton lifetimes observed in the doped samples, and the enhanced UV/visible light photoactivities observed

Trying to treat the untreatable: experimental approaches to clear rabies virus infection from the CNS.

Rabies virus causes an invariably fatal encephalitis following the onset of clinical disease. Despite the availability of safe and effective vaccines, the clinical stages of rabies encephalitis remain untreatable, with few survivors being documented. A principal obstacle to the treatment of rabies is the neurotropic nature of the virus, with the blood-brain barrier size exclusion limit rendering the delivery of antiviral drugs and molecules to the central nervous system inherently problematic. This review focuses on efforts to try and overcome barriers to molecule delivery to treat clinical rabies and overviews current progress in the development of experimental live rabies virus vaccines that may have future applications in the treatment of clinical rabies, including the attenuation of rabies virus vectors through either the duplication or mutation of existing genes or the incorporation of non-viral elements within the genome. Rabies post-infection treatment (PIT) remains the holy grail of rabies research

Highly Stretchable Conductive Covalent Coacervate Gels for Electronic Skin.

Highly stretchable electrically conductive hydrogels have been extensively researched in recent years, especially for applications in strain and pressure sensing, electronic skin, and implantable bioelectronic devices. Herein, we present a new cross-linked complex coacervate approach to prepare conductive hydrogels that are both highly stretchable and compressive. The gels involve a complex coacervate between carboxylated nanogels and branched poly(ethylene imine), whereby the latter is covalently cross-linked by poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDGE). Inclusion of graphene nanoplatelets (Gnp) provides electrical conductivity as well as tensile and compressive strain-sensing capability to the hydrogels. We demonstrate that judicious selection of the molecular weight of the PEGDGE cross-linker enables the mechanical properties of these hydrogels to be tuned. Indeed, the gels prepared with a PEGDGE molecular weight of 6000 g/mol defy the general rule that toughness decreases as strength increases. The conductive hydrogels achieve a compressive strength of 25 MPa and a stretchability of up to 1500%. These new gels are both adhesive and conformal. They provide a self-healable electronic circuit, respond rapidly to human motion, and can act as strain-dependent sensors while exhibiting low cytotoxicity. Our new approach to conductive gel preparation is efficient, involves only preformed components, and is scalable

Highly Stretchable Conductive Covalent Coacervate Gels for Electronic Skin

Highly stretchable electrically conductive hydrogels have been extensively researched in recent years, especially for applications in strain and pressure sensing, electronic skin, and implantable bioelectronic devices. Herein, we present a new cross-linked complex coacervate approach to prepare conductive hydrogels that are both highly stretchable and compressive. The gels involve a complex coacervate between carboxylated nanogels and branched poly(ethylene imine), whereby the latter is covalently cross-linked by poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDGE). Inclusion of graphene nanoplatelets (Gnp) provides electrical conductivity as well as tensile and compressive strain-sensing capability to the hydrogels. We demonstrate that judicious selection of the molecular weight of the PEGDGE cross-linker enables the mechanical properties of these hydrogels to be tuned. Indeed, the gels prepared with a PEGDGE molecular weight of 6000 g/mol defy the general rule that toughness decreases as strength increases. The conductive hydrogels achieve a compressive strength of 25 MPa and a stretchability of up to 1500%. These new gels are both adhesive and conformal. They provide a self-healable electronic circuit, respond rapidly to human motion, and can act as strain-dependent sensors while exhibiting low cytotoxicity. Our new approach to conductive gel preparation is efficient, involves only preformed components, and is scalable

Ergodic properties of quasi-Markovian generalized Langevin equations with configuration dependent noise and non-conservative force

We discuss the ergodic properties of quasi-Markovian stochastic differential equations, providing general conditions that ensure existence and uniqueness of a smooth invariant distribution and exponential convergence of the evolution operator in suitably weighted $L^{\infty}$ spaces, which implies the validity of central limit theorem for the respective solution processes. The main new result is an ergodicity condition for the generalized Langevin equation with configuration-dependent noise and (non-)conservative force

Atomic-scale combination of germanium-zinc nanofibers for structural and electrochemical evolution

Alloys are recently receiving considerable attention in the community of rechargeable batteries as possible alternatives to carbonaceous negative electrodes; however, challenges remain for the practical utilization of these materials. Herein, we report the synthesis of germanium-zinc alloy nanofibers through electrospinning and a subsequent calcination step. Evidenced by in situ transmission electron microscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy characterizations, this one-dimensional design possesses unique structures. Both germanium and zinc atoms are homogenously distributed allowing for outstanding electronic conductivity and high available capacity for lithium storage. The as-prepared materials present high rate capability (capacity of similar to 50% at 20 C compared to that at 0.2 C-rate) and cycle retention (73% at 3.0 C-rate) with a retaining capacity of 546 mAh g(-1) even after 1000 cycles. When assembled in a full cell, high energy density can be maintained during 400 cycles, which indicates that the current material has the potential to be used in a large-scale energy storage system

Export of functional Streptomyces coelicolor alditol oxidase to the periplasm or cell surface of Escherichia coli and its application in whole-cell biocatalysis

Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) alditol oxidase (AldO) is a soluble monomeric flavoprotein in which the flavin cofactor is covalently linked to the polypeptide chain. AldO displays high reactivity towards different polyols such as xylitol and sorbitol. These characteristics make AldO industrially relevant, but full biotechnological exploitation of this enzyme is at present restricted by laborious and costly purification steps. To eliminate the need for enzyme purification, this study describes a whole-cell AldO biocatalyst system. To this end, we have directed AldO to the periplasm or cell surface of Escherichia coli. For periplasmic export, AldO was fused to endogenous E. coli signal sequences known to direct their passenger proteins into the SecB, signal recognition particle (SRP), or Twin-arginine translocation (Tat) pathway. In addition, AldO was fused to an ice nucleation protein (INP)-based anchoring motif for surface display. The results show that Tat-exported AldO and INP-surface-displayed AldO are active. The Tat-based system was successfully employed in converting xylitol by whole cells, whereas the use of the INP-based system was most likely restricted by lipopolysaccharide LPS in wild-type cells. It is anticipated that these whole-cell systems will be a valuable tool for further biological and industrial exploitation of AldO and other cofactor-containing enzymes.