A light Higgs scalar in the NMSSM confronted with the latest LHC Higgs data

In the Next-to-Minimal Supersymemtric Standard Model (NMSSM), one of the neutral Higgs scalars (CP-even or CP-odd) may be lighter than half of the SM-like Higgs boson. In this case, the SM-like Higgs boson h can decay into such a light scalar pair and consequently the diphoton and ZZ signal rates at the LHC will be suppressed. In this work, we examine the constraints of the latest LHC Higgs data on such a possibility. We perform a comprehensive scan over the parameter space of the NMSSM by considering various experimental constraints and find that the LHC Higgs data can readily constrain the parameter space and the properties of the light scalar, e.g., at 3 $\sigma$ level this light scalar should be highly singlet dominant and the branching ratio of the SM-like Higgs boson decay into the scalar pair should be less than about 30%. Also we investigate the detection of this scalar at various colliders. Through a detailed Monte Carlo simulation we find that under the constraints of the current Higgs data this light scalar can be accessible at the LHC-14 with an integrated luminosity over 300 fb$^{-1}$.Comment: Accepted by JHE

Synthesis and Characterization of Structure-Controlled Micro-/Nanocomposite TiO 2

A series of structure-controlled composite TiO2 fibers combining micro- and nanostructures (hereafter, micro-/nanocomposite) were fabricated using a combination of electrospinning and calcination methods, and their photocatalytic activities were investigated. Smooth microscale fibers were obtained by electrospinning a precursor solution containing tetrabutyl titanate and TiF4. TiO2 nanocrystals formed on the microfibers with the help of HF which was produced from the decomposition of TiF4 in calcination. The size and quantity of TiO2 nanocrystals can be controlled by tuning the mass ratio of TiF4 in the sol-gel precursor solutions and the calcination time. The obtained micro-/nanocomposite TiO2 fibers were found to exhibit enhanced photocatalytic properties when compared with the bare microfibers. These micro-/nanocomposite structures exhibit the advantages of both the nanocrystals and microfibers, which will lead to new developments in photocatalysis

Targeted p53 on Small-Molecules-Induced Ferroptosis in Cancers

Ferroptosis is a type of programmed cell death characterized by the accumulation of lipid reactive oxygen species (L-ROS) driven by the oxidative degeneration of lipids in an iron-dependent manner. The mechanism by which lipid oxidative degradation drives ROS-ferroptosis involves metabolic dysfunctions that result in impaired intracellular metabolic processes and ROS production. Recent studies have found that p53 acts as a positive regulator of ferroptosis by promoting ROS production. p53 directly regulates the metabolic versatility of cells by favoring mitochondrial respiration, leading to ROS-mediated ferroptosis. In mild stress, p53 protects cell survival via eliminating ROS; additionally, in human colorectal cancer, p53 antagonizes ferroptosis by formation of the DPP4–p53 complex. In short, the mechanisms of p53-mediated ROS production underlying cellular response are poorly understood. In the context of recent research results, the indistinct roles of p53 on ROS-mediated ferroptosis are scrutinized to understand the mechanism underlying p53-mediated tumor suppression

Cell Treatment for Stroke in Type Two Diabetic Rats Improves Vascular Permeability Measured by MRI

Treatment of stroke with bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) significantly enhances brain remodeling and improves neurological function in non-diabetic stroke rats. Diabetes is a major risk factor for stroke and induces neurovascular changes which may impact stroke therapy. Thus, it is necessary to test our hypothesis that the treatment of stroke with BMSC has therapeutic efficacy in the most common form of diabetes, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). T2DM was induced in adult male Wistar rats by administration of a high fat diet in combination with a single intraperitoneal injection (35mg/kg) of streptozotocin. These rats were then subjected to 2h of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo). T2DM rats received BMSC (5x106, n = 8) or an equal volume of phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (n = 8) via tail-vein injection at 3 days after MCAo. MRI was performed one day and then weekly for 5 weeks post MCAo for all rats. Compared with vehicle treated control T2DM rats, BMSC treatment of stroke in T2DM rats significantly (

Phthalate metabolites and sex steroid hormones in relation to obesity in US adults: NHANES 2013-2016

BackgroundObesity and metabolic syndrome pose significant health challenges in the United States (US), with connections to disruptions in sex hormone regulation. The increasing prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome might be associated with exposure to phthalates (PAEs). Further exploration of the impact of PAEs on obesity is crucial, particularly from a sex hormone perspective.MethodsA total of 7780 adult participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2013 to 2016 were included in the study. Principal component analysis (PCA) coupled with multinomial logistic regression was employed to elucidate the association between urinary PAEs metabolite concentrations and the likelihood of obesity. Weighted quartiles sum (WQS) regression was utilized to consolidate the impact of mixed PAEs exposure on sex hormone levels (total testosterone (TT), estradiol and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG)). We also delved into machine learning models to accurately discern obesity status and identify the key variables contributing most to these models.ResultsPrincipal Component 1 (PC1), characterized by mono(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (MECPP), mono(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP), and mono(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) as major contributors, exhibited a negative association with obesity. Conversely, PC2, with monocarboxyononyl phthalate (MCNP), monocarboxyoctyl phthalate (MCOP), and mono(3-carboxypropyl) phthalate (MCPP) as major contributors, showed a positive association with obesity. Mixed exposure to PAEs was associated with decreased TT levels and increased estradiol and SHBG. During the exploration of the interrelations among obesity, sex hormones, and PAEs, models based on Random Forest (RF) and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) algorithms demonstrated the best classification efficacy. In both models, sex hormones exhibited the highest variable importance, and certain phthalate metabolites made significant contributions to the model’s performance.ConclusionsIndividuals with obesity exhibit lower levels of TT and SHBG, accompanied by elevated estradiol levels. Exposure to PAEs disrupts sex hormone levels, contributing to an increased risk of obesity in US adults. In the exploration of the interrelationships among these three factors, the RF and XGBoost algorithm models demonstrated superior performance, with sex hormones displaying higher variable importance

Single cell atlas for 11 non-model mammals, reptiles and birds.

The availability of viral entry factors is a prerequisite for the cross-species transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Large-scale single-cell screening of animal cells could reveal the expression patterns of viral entry genes in different hosts. However, such exploration for SARS-CoV-2 remains limited. Here, we perform single-nucleus RNA sequencing for 11 non-model species, including pets (cat, dog, hamster, and lizard), livestock (goat and rabbit), poultry (duck and pigeon), and wildlife (pangolin, tiger, and deer), and investigated the co-expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2. Furthermore, cross-species analysis of the lung cell atlas of the studied mammals, reptiles, and birds reveals core developmental programs, critical connectomes, and conserved regulatory circuits among these evolutionarily distant species. Overall, our work provides a compendium of gene expression profiles for non-model animals, which could be employed to identify potential SARS-CoV-2 target cells and putative zoonotic reservoirs

Space advanced technology demonstration satellite

The Space Advanced Technology demonstration satellite (SATech-01), a mission for low-cost space science and new technology experiments, organized by Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), was successfully launched into a Sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of similar to 500 km on July 27, 2022, from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre. Serving as an experimental platform for space science exploration and the demonstration of advanced common technologies in orbit, SATech-01 is equipped with 16 experimental payloads, including the solar upper transition region imager (SUTRI), the lobster eye imager for astronomy (LEIA), the high energy burst searcher (HEBS), and a High Precision Magnetic Field Measurement System based on a CPT Magnetometer (CPT). It also incorporates an imager with freeform optics, an integrated thermal imaging sensor, and a multi-functional integrated imager, etc. This paper provides an overview of SATech-01, including a technical description of the satellite and its scientific payloads, along with their on-orbit performance

Visualization of Antimicrobial-Induced Bacterial Membrane Disruption with a Bicolor AIEgen

Gram-negative bacteria are difficult to kill due to their complex cell envelope, including the outer membrane (OM) and cytoplasmic membrane (CM). To monitor the membranolytic action of antimicrobials on Gram-negative bacteria would facilitate the development of effective antimicrobials. In this paper, an aggregation-induced emission luminogen (AIEgen) with microenvironment-sensitive properties was employed to indicate the interaction of antimicrobials with the OM and CM of Gram-negative bacteria. The damaged extent of OM and CM caused by antimicrobials with the change of dosage and incubation time can be visually captured based on the variation of two emission colors of IQ-Cm responding to OM-defective (green) and CM-disruptive bacteria (orange). Meanwhile, the activity assessment of antimicrobials can be easily realized within 1~2 h based on the distinct response of IQ-Cm to live and dead E. coli, which is much faster than the agar plate culture. This probe may shed light on the understanding of the interaction between the membrane-active antimicrobials and cell envelope of Gram-negative bacteria and contribute to the future development of antimicrobials

Hierarchical Prototypes Polynomial Softmax Loss Function for Visual Classification

A well-designed loss function can effectively improve the characterization ability of network features without increasing the amount of calculation in the model inference stage, and has become the focus of attention in recent research. Given that the existing lightweight network adds a loss to the last layer, which severely attenuates the gradient during the backpropagation process, we propose a hierarchical polynomial kernel prototype loss function in this study. In this function, the addition of a polynomial kernel loss function to multiple stages of the deep neural network effectively enhances the efficiency of gradient return, and only adds multi-layer prototype loss functions in the training stage without increasing the calculation of the inference stage. In addition, the good non-linear expression ability of the polynomial kernel improves the characteristic expression performance of the network. Verification on multiple public datasets shows that the lightweight network trained with the proposed hierarchical polynomial kernel loss function has a higher accuracy than other loss functions