Zeolite Thin Film-coated Long Period Fiber Grating Sensor for Measuring Trace Chemical

This paper reports the development of a new zeolite thin film-coated long period fiber grating (LPFG) sensor for direct measurement of trace organic vapors. The sensor was fabricated by growing pure silica MFI-type zeolite thin film on the optical fiber grating by in situ hydrothermal crystallization. The sensor measures chemical vapor concentration by monitoring the molecular adsorption-induced shift of LPFG resonant wavelength in near infrared (IR) region. Upon loading analyte molecules, the zeolite\u27s refractive index changes in the close vicinity of the fiber index where the LPFG has a large response to achieve high sensitivity

Comparison Between Flat and Round Peaches, Genomic Evidences of Heterozygosity Events

Bud sports occur in many plant species, including fruit trees. Although they are correlated with genetic variance in somatic cells, the mechanisms responsible for bud sports are mostly unknown. In this study, a peach bud sport whose fruit shape was transformed to round from flat was identified by next generation sequencing (NGS), and we provide evidence that a long loss of heterozygosity (LOH) event may be responsible for this alteration in fruit shape. Moreover, compared to the reference genome, we identified 237,476 high quality single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the wild-type and bud sport genomes. Using this SNP set, a long LOH event was identified at the distal end of scaffold Pp06 of the bud sport genome. Haplotypes from 155 additional peach accessions were phased, suggesting that the homozygous distal end of scaffold Pp06 of the bud sport was likely derived from only one haplotype of the wild-type flat peach. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 127 peach accessions was conducted to associate a SNP found at 26,924,482 bp of scaffold Pp06 to differences in fruit shape. All accessions with round-shaped fruit were found to have an A/A genotype, while those with A/T, or T/T genotypes had flat-shaped fruits. Finally, we also found that 236 peach accessions and 141 Prunus species with round-type fruit were found to have an A/A genotype at this SNP, while 22 flat peach accessions had an A/T genotype. Taken together, our results suggest that genes flanking this A/T polymorphism, and haplotyped carrying the T allele may determine flat fruit shape in this population. Furthermore, the LOH event resulting in the loss of the haplotype carrying the T allele may therefore be responsible for fruit shape alteration in wild-type flat peach

Serum MicroRNA Expression Profile Distinguishes Enterovirus 71 and Coxsackievirus 16 Infections in Patients with Hand-Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Altered circulating microRNA (miRNA) profiles have been noted in patients with microbial infections. We compared host serum miRNA levels in patients with hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) caused by enterovirus 71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus 16 (CVA16) as well as in other microbial infections and in healthy individuals. Among 664 different miRNAs analyzed using a miRNA array, 102 were up-regulated and 26 were down-regulated in sera of patients with enteroviral infections. Expression levels of ten candidate miRNAs were further evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR assays. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis revealed that six miRNAs (miR-148a, miR-143, miR-324-3p, miR-628-3p, miR-140-5p, and miR-362-3p) were able to discriminate patients with enterovirus infections from healthy controls with area under curve (AUC) values ranged from 0.828 to 0.934. The combined six miRNA using multiple logistic regression analysis provided not only a sensitivity of 97.1% and a specificity of 92.7% but also a unique profile that differentiated enterovirial infections from other microbial infections. Expression levels of five miRNAs (miR-148a, miR-143, miR-324-3p, miR-545, and miR-140-5p) were significantly increased in patients with CVA16 versus those with EV71 (p<0.05). Combination of miR-545, miR-324-3p, and miR-143 possessed a moderate ability to discrimination between CVA16 and EV71 with an AUC value of 0.761. These data indicate that sera from patients with different subtypes of enteroviral infection express unique miRNA profiles. Serum miRNA expression profiles may provide supplemental biomarkers for diagnosing and subtyping enteroviral HFMD infections

An Integrated Wireless Wearable Sensor System for Posture Recognition and Indoor Localization

In order to provide better monitoring for the elderly or patients, we developed an integrated wireless wearable sensor system that can realize posture recognition and indoor localization in real time. Five designed sensor nodes which are respectively fixed on lower limbs and a standard Kalman filter are used to acquire basic attitude data. After the attitude angles of five body segments (two thighs, two shanks and the waist) are obtained, the pitch angles of the left thigh and waist are used to realize posture recognition. Based on all these attitude angles of body segments, we can also calculate the coordinates of six lower limb joints (two hip joints, two knee joints and two ankle joints). Then, a novel relative localization algorithm based on step length is proposed to realize the indoor localization of the user. Several sparsely distributed active Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags are used to correct the accumulative error in the relative localization algorithm and a set-membership filter is applied to realize the data fusion. The experimental results verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms

Influence of personality traits on mental health and mediating role of work-family support among front-line power grid workers

BackgroundFront-line power grid workers are required to face a variety of occupational hazards (such as aerial work), which make them susceptible to psychological problems and further reduce their performance efficiency and safety level. ObjectiveTo investigate the mental health status of front-line power grid workers and explore the influence of personality traits on mental health and the potential mediating role of work-family support between them. MethodsThis study was designed as a cross-sectional study. From January to June 2019, a cluster random sampling method was used to select two of the 20 power supply stations owned by a Guangdong power company. A total of 485 front-line power grid workers were included in the study. Sociodemographic characteristics were investigated, and NEO Five-Factor Inventory, Work-Family Support Scale, and Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) were used in the survey. Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to analyze the correlations between measured variables. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the relationships of personality traits, work-family support, and mental health, and Bootstrap analysis was used to test the mediating effect of work-family support on the relationship of personality traits and mental health. ResultsThe M (P25, P75) of total SCL-90 score was 134.00 (110.00, 167.00）, and 139 (28.66%) front-line power grid workers showed positive mental health symptoms. The correlation analysis indicated that among the front-line power grid workers, neuroticism score was negatively correlated with work-family support total score (rs=−0.356, P0.05), openness score was negatively correlated with the scores of all the other sub-dimensions of SCL-90 (rs=−0.091-−0.147, P0.05). The direct effect of agreeableness on work-family support was not statistically significant (P>0.05), while the direct effect on mental health symptoms was −0.180 (P<0.001). ConclusionThe front-line power grid workers show a high score of SCL-90. Workers with higher neuroticism are more vulnerable to mental health symptoms. Work-family support fully mediates the effects of extraversion and openness on mental health symptoms, and partially mediates the effects of neuroticism on mental health symptoms, while does not mediate the effects of agreeableness on mental health symptoms. Sufficient work-family support may improve mental health status

Nanocrystalline Cu-doped Zirconia Film-coated Long-period Fiber Grating for CO Monitoring at High Temperature

Dense nanocrystalline copper-doped zirconia (CDZ, Cu:Zr=16:84) thin film was coated on the surface of a 125 µm-diameter long-period fiber grating (LPFG) by a facile synthesis route involving polymeric precursor coating and subsequent thermal treatments. The CDZ film had a uniform thickness of ~100 nm and grain size of 20 to 35 nm after a brief annealing step at 700°C for 1 hour. This CDZ thin film coated LPFG (CDZ-LPFG) was evaluated at a high temperature of 550°C for its change of resonant wavelength (R) in response to the variation of carbon monoxide (CO) concentration in nitrogen (N2). The R was found to shift toward longer wavelength when increasing the CO concentration. The CDZ-LPFG sensor response was found to be reproducible and reversible at low level CO concentrations (\u3c1,000 ppm) but became irreversible when the CO concentration was high (e.g. at 10,000 ppm). The high temperature stability of the CDZ material in CO-containing atmospheres was studied to understand the limit of CO measurement range

High-resolution photofragment translational spectroscopy for the UV photodissociation of C2H5I

The photodissociation of ethyl iodide at 279.71, 281.73, 304.02 and 304.67 nm has been studied on our new mini-photofragment translational spectrometer with a total flight path of only 5 cm. Some vibrational peaks are firstly resolved in the TOF spectra of I*(P-2(1/2)) and I(P-2(3/2)) channels. These vibrational peaks are assigned to the excitation states (v(2) = 0, 1, 2,---) of the umbrella mode (v(2), 540 cm(-1)) of the photofragment CA, and the distribution of the vibrational states is obtained. The dissociation energy has been determined to be D-0(C-I)=2.314 +/- 0.03 eV. The energy partitioning of the available energy (E-avl=E-T+E-int = E-T+E-V,E-R) calculated from our experimental data E-int /E-avl = 22.1% at 281.73 nm, 22.4% at 304.02 nm for the I* channel, and E-int /E-avl = 25.2% at 279.71 nm, 25.9% at 304.67 nm for the I channel, seem to be more reliable

Near-Infrared Fluorescent 4,4-Difluoro-4-Bora-3A,4A-Diaza-S-Indacene Probes For One- And Two-Photon Fluorescence Bioimaging

Two new two-photon absorbing near-infrared (NIR) emitting 4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (BODIPY) derivatives, DDC and SDC, were designed for one- and two-photon fluorescence microscopy imaging. Linear and nonlinear photophysical properties, including UV/Vis absorption, fluorescence, excitation anisotropy, photostability, and two-photon absorption cross sections, of the dyes were investigated to assess the potential of using the new probes as bioimaging agents. Cell viability and colocalization studies of DDC with Lysotracker Red, in COS 7 and HCT 116 cells demonstrated not only low toxicity but also selective targeting of lysosomes. SDC was encapsulated in silica-based nanoparticles for in vitro and ex vivo fluorescence bioimaging. The nanoparticles were modified with an RGD peptide to target αVβ3 integrin. The nanoprobe exhibited good biocompatibility and highly selective uptake in αVβ3 integrin-overexpressing cancers

Zeolite Thin Film-coated Long Period Fiber Grating Sensor for Measuring Trace Organic Vapors

A zeolite thin film-coated long period fiber grating (LPFG) sensor was developed and tested for direct measurement of trace organic vapors with straightforward operation. The sensor was fabricated by growing pure silica MFI-type zeolite (i.e. silicalite) thin film on the optical fiber grating by in situ hydrothermal crystallization. The sensor measures chemical vapor concentration by monitoring the molecular adsorption-induced shift of LPFG resonant wavelength (λR) in near infrared (IR) region. Upon loading analyte molecules, the zeolite\u27s refractive index changes in the close vicinity of the fiber index where the λR responds with extremely high sensitivity. Because the silicalite is hydrophobic and preferentially adsorbs organic molecules, the zeolite-LPFG sensor is capable of quantifying organic vapor concentrations in lower ppm or ppb ranges without sample pre-concentration and rigorous control of operating conditions. The sensor had a much faster response speed for isopropanol than for toluene as the former has a smaller molecular kinetic size and greater diffusivity in the zeolite pores than the latter