Relative posture-based kinematic calibration of a 6-RSS parallel robot by optical coordinate measurement machine

In this article, a relative posture-based algorithm is proposed to solve the kinematic calibration problem of a 6-RSS parallel robot using the optical coordinate measurement machine system. In the research, the relative posture of robot is estimated using the detected pose with respect to the sensor frame through several reflectors which are fixed on the robot end-effector. Based on the relative posture, a calibration algorithm is proposed to determine the optimal error parameters of the robot kinematic model and external parameters introduced by the optical sensor. This method considers both the position and orientation variations and does not need the accurate location information of the detection sensor. The simulation results validate the superiority of the algorithm by comparing with the classic implicit calibration method. And the experimental results demonstrate that the proposal relative posture-based algorithm using optical coordinate measurement machine is an implementable and effective method for the parallel robot calibration

Blocking Nuclear Factor-Kappa B Protects against Diet-Induced Hepatic Steatosis and Insulin Resistance in Mice

Inflammation critically contributes to the development of various metabolic diseases. However, the effects of inhibiting inflammatory signaling on hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance, as well as the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. In the current study, male C57BL/6J mice were fed a chow diet or high-fat diet (HFD) for 8 weeks. HFD-fed mice were respectively treated with p65 siRNA, non-silence control siRNA or vehicle every 4th day for the last 4 weeks. Vehicle-treated (HF) and non-silence siRNA-treated (HFNS) mice displayed overt inflammation, hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance compared with chow-diet-fed (NC) mice. Upon treatment with NF-κB p65 siRNA, HFD-fed (HFPS) mice were protected from hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance. Furthermore, Atg7 and Beclin1 expressions and p-AMPK were increased while p-mTOR was decreased in livers of HFPS mice in relative to HF and HFNS mice. These results suggest a crosslink between NF-κB signaling pathway and liver AMPK/mTOR/autophagy axis in the context of hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance

‘ZhongPan 101’ and ‘ZhongPan 102’: Two Flat Peach Cultivars From China

Flat peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. platycarpa] is a variant of ordinary peach with a unique flat shape. It is well known for its shape and delicious fruits (Miao et al. 2022). Although flat peach has a long history of cultivation in China, until the beginning of the 20th century, flat peach was only distributed as a minor variety in the main peach-producing areas of China. In terms of flat peach cultivars, only 46 of the 709 peach cultivars listed in Peach Genetic Resource in China (Wang et al. 2012) are flat peach cultivars, and most of them are flat landraces. Several problems have been noted previously in flat peach cultivars, including poor closure of the blossom end (blossom-end scarring in mild cases and cracking in severe cases), cracked stone in some cultivars (loss of commercial value in severe cases), nonsymmetrical fruit shape, small flesh, and low yield (Wang 2021). Many of the shortcomings of flat peach cultivars are intrinsic problems of the cultivars, which are difficult to improve through cultivation measures. This is the key factor limiting the large-scale promotion of flat peach cultivation in China. For many years, peach breeders in China have been devoted to the genetic improvement of flat peach, and some improved flat peach cultivars have been released, for instance, ‘Pocket Zaoban’ (Jiang et al. 2007) and ‘124 Pantao’ (Ma et al. 2003). However, problems persist in these cultivars, including small fruits, soft flesh, and blossom-end cracks. Only a few flat peach cultivars have good overall performance. In recent years, the Zhengzhou Fruit Research Institute (ZFRI), Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), identified genetic sources of flat peach with slow or nonmelting flesh, a well-closed blossom end, and little or no cracking. They were hybridized with high-quality peach and nectarine cultivars or selections. After multiple generations of improvement, breakthroughs were made in early flat peach breeding, and a series of flat peach cultivars with excellent comprehensive traits have been produced. These cultivars are favored by fruit farmers in the main peach-producing areas in China. Hence, the main problems in flat peach cultivation are expected to be solved, which will help expand the cultivation area of flat peach. ‘ZhongPan 101’ and ‘ZhongPan 102’ are two yellow-flesh flat peach cultivars 45 released from the ZFRI, CAAS. These two cultivars produce large, well-shaped, high-quality fruits with a completely closed stylar end and high yield. Three years of evaluation has confirmed that the peach trees of the two cultivars are stable. ‘ZhongPan 101’ and ‘ZhongPan 102’ were well adapted to climate of the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River; have performed well in Henan, Jiangsu, and Anhui Provinces; and are suggested for trial wherever ‘ZhongYouPan 9’ is grown

Orbital time scale records of Asian eolian dust from the Sea of Japan since the early Pliocene

A high-resolution potassium content record of sediments from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site U1422 drilled in the northern Sea of Japan was employed to yield an astronomical timescale for this similar to 205 m thick sedimentary archive. The K content was quantified using the natural gamma radiation (NGR) data routinely measured on DV JOIDES Resolution. The U1422 K (wt.%) series shows an increasing trend with time, which parallels the growth of North Hemisphere ice sheets since similar to 4 Ma, as revealed by the global benthic foraminifer's oxygen isotope stack (LR04). We propose that K content variations reflect changes in the relative contributions of Asian eolian dust and volcanic weathering products, in response to changes in global ice volume. Using the shipboard age model, constrained by palaeomagnetism and nanofossils datums, we tuned the U1422 K content variations to the LRO4 stack. Our tuned age model for site U1422 goes back to 3.9 Ma. The studied record indicates that Asian dust generation is enhanced during periods of global cooling. The synchronous variations between the U1422 K record and the LRO4 stack also suggest that global cooling played a dominant role in promoting the central Asian aridification since similar to 3.9 Ma, while the uplift of Tibetan Plateau plays a secondary role, considering many disagreements still exists between the timing and amplitude of the Qinghai-Tibetan uplift and the evolution of central Asian aridity since the early Pliocene. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

The effects of periconceptional risk factor exposure and micronutrient supplementation on birth defects in Shaanxi Province in Western China.

OBJECTIVES: 1) To understand the current prevalence and main types of birth defects, 2) assess the periconceptional exposure of factors associated with birth defects in Shaanxi Province, and 3) provide scientific evidence for local governments to formulate services for the primary prevention of birth defects. METHODS: We sampled 16,541 households from 128 townships in 16 counties/districts in Shaanxi province using a multi-stage random sampling method. Among them, 10,544 women who had live born or stillborn infants with gestational age ≥ 28 weeks between 2008 and 2009 were interviewed using a structured questionnaire designed to collect information about periconceptional risk factor exposure, health care service utilization, and micronutrient supplements. Logistic regression was performed to assess the risk factors associated with birth defects and adjustments were made for imbalanced social-demographic characteristics between case and control groups. RESULTS: The prevalence of congenital birth defect in Shaanxi province was 14.3/1000 births. The environment risk factors associated with birth defects include unhealthy lifestyle (Alcohol, odds ratio (OR): 3.60, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.64-7.91; Smoking, OR: 1.32, 95% CI: 0.99-1.75; Drink strong tea, OR: 1.81, 95% CI: 1.27-2.59), exposure to heavy pollution (OR: 1.53, 95% CI: 1.01-2.30), maternal diseases (OR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.35-2.33), drug use (OR: 2.11, 95% CI: 1.51-2.95), maternal chemical pesticide exposure (OR: 2.30, 95% CI: 1.16-4.57), and adverse pregnancy history (OR: 10.10, 95% CI: 7.55-13.53). Periconceptional folic acid or multiple micronutrients including folic acid supplementation, was associated with a reduced rate of birth defects (OR: 0.54, 95% CI: 0.29-0.998). CONCLUSIONS: Health care service utilization, unhealthy lifestyle factors, and environment risk factors seem to be associated with birth defects in Shaanxi province. Governmental agencies should focus on effective primary preventative methods, such as the delivery of periconceptional health education for minimizing potential risk factor exposures, periconceptional folic acid or micronutrient supplementation, environment monitoring, and assessment of factories with high levels of pollution

Dipeptidyl-Peptidase 4 Inhibitor Sitagliptin Ameliorates Hepatic Insulin Resistance by Modulating Inflammation and Autophagy in ob/ob Mice

Obesity and type 2 diabetes are the most common metabolic diseases globally. They are associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, autophagy, and insulin resistance. Sitagliptin, a dipeptidyl-peptidase 4 inhibitor, has been reported to show multiple biological activities beyond the antidiabetic property. This study was aimed at investigating the effect of sitagliptin on hepatic steatosis, insulin resistance, inflammation, and autophagy and exploring the underlying molecular mechanism. In the current study, ob/ob mice, a mouse model of genetic obesity and diabetes, were administered via gavage with sitagliptin 50 mg/kg daily for 4 weeks. Changes in glycolipid metabolism, inflammatory responses, and autophagy in the liver were evaluated. Body weight gain, lipid metabolic disorder, and hepatic steatosis as well as systemic and hepatic insulin sensitivity in ob/ob mice were significantly attenuated after sitagliptin treatment. Furthermore, sitagliptin decreased inflammatory responses by regulating macrophage M1/M2 polarization and inhibiting the activities of NF-κB and JNK. Moreover, sitagliptin increased the levels of phosphorylation of AMPK and decreased those of mTOR. This study indicates that sitagliptin significantly ameliorates the development of hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance in ob/ob mice by inhibiting inflammatory responses and activating autophagy via AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway

Response of dune mobility and pedogenesis to fluctuations in monsoon precipitation and human activity in the Hulunbuir dune field, northeastern China, since the last deglaciation

The Hulunbuir dune field is located at the northern margin of the temperate monsoon zone in East Asia, and changes in dune activity and pedogenesis in the dune field are highly sensitive to the advance and retreat of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) and to human activity. Thus, the stratigraphic sequences of paleosol and aeolian sand of the dune field have great potential for reconstructing the history of dune activity and pedogenesis and their response to past fluctuations in monsoon precipitation and the intensity of human activity. However, our knowledge of the evolution of the landscape and paleoclimate of the dune field is limited. Here, we present the results of analyses of quartz optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), grain size and magnetic susceptibility (MS) from 13 representative sections in the Hulunbuir dune field. The grain-size analysis indicates that the sand layers are composed of typical aeolian sand, and the MS variations of the aeolian sand and sandy paleosol sequences mainly reflect changes in the intensity of pedogenesis. We combine our new OSL dating results with previously published OSL ages to refine the chronology of sand dune development. An OSL age hiatus in both aeolian sand and paleosol during the 5-7 ka indicates that aeolian deposition in Hulunbuir ceased almost completely during this period, which corresponds to the peak in EASM strength. Thus, our study provides new evidence for a delayed response of the EASM maximum to peak insolation forcing (11-10 ka) in the mid-latitude monsoon margin. In addition, we speculate that peaks in probability density (PD) from 1.2-0.7 ka and from 0.25-0 ka of aeolian sand accumulation correspond to population increases and the development of cultivation and animal husbandry in the Hulunbuir dune field