Empire, Exoticism, and Heterotopia: The Interior of a Chinese Shop

This essay tries to interpret a 17th-century Dutch painting, the Interior of a Chinese Shop from a postcolonial perspective. It argues that the picture is a reflection of the desire and anxiety of the Dutch empire to collect oriental luxuries under the context of mercantilism. It is a heterogeneous space that consists of exotic objects from different geographical zones and timelines, which corresponds to Foucault’s concept of “heterotopia.” The fantasy shown from the painting exposes real spaces and reveals the complexity between Self and Other, leading to a place that is beyond the dualist structure

Progress on the impact of lipid metabolism reprogramming on resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors in nonsmall cell lung cancer

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the main type of lung cancer, accounting for 85% to 90% of cases. The use of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) has greatly improved the prognosis of NSCLC patients. However, with prolonged drug use, the inevitable occurrence of acquired resistance leads to disease recurrence, progression, and even patient's death. Metabolic reprogramming is one of the hallmarks of malignant tumors and refers to metabolic changes in tumor cells to meet energy needs. In various cancers, lipid synthesis, distribution, and catabolism of tumor cells are altered to adapt to the lack of nutrients and oxygen in the tumor microenvironment. This paper focuses on how lipid metabolism reprogramming in NSCLC leads to resistance to EGFR-TKIs and how modulation of lipid metabolism increases the sensitivity of NSCLC to EGFR-TKIs. It summarizes and consolidates existing research progress to provide a reference for basic research and clinical treatment of EGFR-TKIs resistance in NSCLC

Reliability evaluation of a multi-state system with dependent components and imprecise parameters: A structural reliability treatment

Reliability evaluation of a multi-state system (MSS) with dependent components makes much practical sense because the independent identical assumption (i.i.d.) assumption between different components is sometimes impractical in the context of real engineering cases. The task becomes more challenging if imprecision gets involved due to the pervasive uncertainty. The loss of monotony resulting from the introduction of imprecise parameters makes many analytical reliability methods not applied. To address this challenge, in this paper, we develop a survival signature-based reliability framework for an MSS taking into account both dependence and uncertainty. In our framework, the survival function is derived through some unique structural reliability treatments. Vine copula and imprecise probability are integrated and embedded within the framework to address the case that dependence and imprecision simultaneously appear. Implementation-wise, two numerical simulation algorithms are developed to address some complicated cases in which the analytical solution is not available. For demonstration and validation, both the numerical case and application examples are presented. The results show the superiority of the proposed method and its potential in real engineering use

Using Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking to Explore the Mechanism of Shan Ci Gu (Cremastra appendiculata) Against Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Background: In recent years, the incidence and mortality rates of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have increased significantly. Shan Ci Gu is commonly used as an anticancer drug in traditional Chinese medicine; however, its specific mechanism against NSCLC has not yet been elucidated. Here, the mechanism was clarified through network pharmacology and molecular docking.Methods: The Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database was searched for the active ingredients of Shan Ci Gu, and the relevant targets in the Swiss Target Prediction database were obtained according to the structure of the active ingredients. GeneCards were searched for NSCLC-related disease targets. We obtained the cross-target using VENNY to obtain the core targets. The core targets were imported into the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins database, and Cytoscape software was used to operate a mesh chart. R software was used to analyze the Gene Ontology biological processes (BPs) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment. The core targets and active compounds were molecularly docked through Auto-Dock Vina software to predict the detailed molecular mechanism of Shan Ci Gu for NSCLC treatment. We did a simple survival analysis with hub gene to assess the prognosis of NSCLC patients.Results: Three compounds were screened to obtain 143 target genes and 1,226 targets related to NSCLC, of which 56 genes were related to NSCLC treatment. Shan Ci Gu treatment for NSCLC involved many BPs and acted on main targets including epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), ESR1, and SRC through signaling pathways including the endocrine resistance, EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance, and ErbB signaling pathways. Shan Ci Gu might be beneficial for treating NSCLC by inhibiting cell proliferation and migration. Molecular docking revealed that the active compounds β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and 2-methoxy-9,10-dihydrophenanthrene-4,5-diol had good affinity with the core target genes (EGFR, SRC, and ESR1). Core targets included EGFR, SRC, ESR1, ERBB2, MTOR, MCL1, matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2), MMP9, KDR, and JAK2. Key KEGG pathways included endocrine resistance, EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance, ErbB signaling, PI3K-Akt signaling, and Rap1 signaling pathways. These core targets and pathways have an inhibitory effect on the proliferation of NSCLC cells.Conclusion: Shan Ci Gu can treat NSCLC through a multi-target, multi-pathway molecular mechanism and effectively improve NSCLC prognosis. This study could serve as a reference for further mechanistic research on wider application of Shan Ci Gu for NSCLC treatment

ELECTROCATALYSTS AND POLYMER ELECTROLYTES FOR ANION EXCHANGE MEMBRANE FUEL CELLS

171 pagesThe development of fuel cells is indispensable to enable the hydrogen society. Anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) have triggered great interest over the past few years. In this dissertation, electrocatalysis in alkaline media and polymer electrolytes for AEMFCs have been explored from fundamental aspects to practical applications. For the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media, electrochemically dealloyed Pd-M (M = Ni, Mn) nanoparticle catalysts were developed to enhance electrocatalytic activity. The electrochemical dealloying process was demonstrated to be effective in selectively leaching out the less noble metal and metal oxides on the surface. The higher atomic concentration of electrochemically active Pd exposed on the surface of the nanoparticles was found to be the reason for the enhanced ORR activity in alkaline media. These findings provide insights for the rational design of the composition and structure of electrocatalysts with enhanced electrocatalytic activity, based on post-synthesis modification methods. From a fundamental perspective, to explain and predict the electrocatalytic activity of heterogenous reactions, the energy of intermediates is usually used as an activity descriptor. However, this was recently called into questions. We developed a novel method, based on fast scan rate cyclic voltammetry, to directly measure the kinetics of the electro-adsorption processes. The Had adsorption reaction, the elementary step of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), on Pt(111) in acid was found to be >100x faster than in alkaline media, although the Had binding energy was the same. Together, with cation effects and isotope effects found in alkaline media, we demonstrated that the slow kinetics of the HER at high pH are not due to an unfavorable Had binding energy but to the high barrier of interfacial water reorganization. Polymer electrolytes in AEMFCs, namely anion exchange membranes and ionomers, play important roles in the transport of anions and water molecules. In situ characterization of these materials in their electrochemical environment is critical for understanding the anion transport mechanism and improving the design of them. The anion exchange and water dynamics in a perspective phosphonium-based AEM during the methanol oxidation process were studied with the electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM). The results provide insights of the anion exchange process in the membranes during the reaction and emphasize the importance of characterizing the membranes in a hydrated electrochemical environment. The influence of ion exchange capacity (IEC) on the solubility, the ionomer viscoelasticity in water and the transport of charged and uncharged species, of a promising polyethylene piperidinium methyl (PEPM) ionomer were also investigated. The design of ionomers and membranes, with suitable IEC for their different functions in AEMFCs from the aspect of solubility, mechanical properties and mass transport, can be guided via this work.2023-09-1

Effects of HALSs and Nano-ZnO Worked as UV Stabilizers of Polypropylene

This work reports the outdoor weathering performance of ultraviolet (UV)-stabilized polypropylene (PP) products (using PP resins from Encore Wire). Different hindered amine light stabilizers (HALSs) and nano-ZnO were used to stabilize PP-film-based formulations that were exposed under UV light for 6 weeks simulating for in harsh outdoor weather of Dallas, Texas, USA in 2016. Characterization of the exposed PP film products was done in terms of mechanical and friction spectroscopic properties. The PP film formulations were divided into 15 categories based on the type of HALS and nano-ZnO incorporated. This was done to derive meaningful comparison of the various film formulations. Following exposure under UV light, the lifetimes of certain formulations were determined. On the basis of the mechanical and friction properties, it was determined that generally, the HALS or nano-ZnO stabilized PP film give better properties and if those two kinds of UV stabilizers can work together