Dietary antioxidant indices (DAI) may be potentially associated with relative telomere length (RTL) of leucocytes. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between DAI and RTL. A cross-sectional study involving 1656 participants was conducted. A generalised linear regression model and a restricted cubic spline model were used to assess the correlation of DAI and its components with RTL. Generalised linear regression analysis revealed that DAI (β = 0·005, P = 0·002) and the intake of its constituents vitamin C (β = 0·043, P = 0·027), vitamin E (β = 0·088, P < 0·001), Se (β = 0·075, P = 0·003), and Zn (β = 0·075, P = 0·023) were significantly and positively correlated with RTL. Sex-stratified analysis showed that DAI (β = 0·006, P = 0·005) and its constituents vitamin E (β = 0·083, P = 0·012), Se (β = 0·093, P = 0·006), and Zn (β = 0·092, P = 0·034) were significantly and positively correlated with RTL among females. Meanwhile, among males, only vitamin E intake (β = 0·089, P = 0·013) was significantly and positively associated with RTL. Restricted cubic spline analysis revealed linear positive associations between DAI and its constituents’ (vitamin E, Se and Zn) intake and RTL in the total population. Sex-stratified analysis revealed a linear positive correlation between DAI and its constituents’ (vitamin E, Se and Zn) intake and RTL in females. Our study found a significant positive correlation between DAI and RTL, with sex differences.

We numerically investigated the global linear instability and bifurcations in electro-thermo-convection (ETC) of a dielectric liquid confined in a two-dimensional (2-D) concentric annulus subjected to a strong unipolar injection. Seven kinds of solutions exist in this ETC system due to the complex bifurcations, i.e. saddle-node, subcritical and supercritical Hopf bifurcations. These bifurcation routes constitute at most four solution branches. Global linear instability analysis and energy analysis were conducted to explain the instability mechanism and transition of different solutions and to predict the local instability regions. The linearized lattice Boltzmann method (LLBM) for global linear instability analysis, first proposed by Pérez et al. (Theor. Comput. Fluid Dyn., vol. 31, 2017, pp. 643–664) to analyse incompressible flows, was extended here to solve the whole set of coupled linear equations, including the linear Navier–Stokes equations, the linear energy equation, Poisson's equation and the linear charge conservation equation. A multiscale analysis was also performed to recover the macroscopic linearized Navier–Stokes equations from the four different discrete lattice Boltzmann equations (LBEs). The LLBM was validated by calculating the linear critical value of 2-D natural convection; it has an error of 1.39% compared with the spectral method. Instability with global travelling wave behaviour is a unique behaviour in the annulus configuration electrothermohydrodynamic system, which may be caused by the baroclinity. Finally, the chaotic behaviour was quantitatively analysed through calculation of the fractal dimension and Lyapunov exponent.

Modal global linear stability analysis of thermal convection is performed with the linearized lattice Boltzmann method (LLBM). The onset of Rayleigh–Bénard convection in rectangular cavities with conducting and adiabatic sidewalls and the instability of two-dimensional (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) natural convection in cavities are studied. The method of linearizing the local equilibrium probability distribution function that was first proposed by Pérez et al. (Theor. Comp. Fluid Dyn., vol. 31, 2017, pp. 643–664) is extended to solve the coupled linear Navier–Stokes equations together with the linear energy equation in this work. A multiscale analysis is also performed to recover the macroscopic linear Navier–Stokes equations from the discrete lattice Boltzmann equations for both the single and multiple relaxation time models. The present LLBM is implemented in the framework of the Palabos library. It is validated by calculating the linear critical value of 2-D natural convection that the LLBM with the multiple relaxation time model has an error less than 1 % compared with the spectral method. The instability mechanism of the flow is explained by kinetic energy transfer analysis. It is shown that the buoyancy mechanism and inertial mechanism tend to stabilize the Hopf bifurcation of the 2-D natural convection at Pr < 0.08 and Pr > 1, respectively. For 3-D natural convection, subcritical bifurcation of the Hopf type is found for low-Prandtl-number fluids (Pr < 0.1).

Extensive magmatism in NE China, eastern Central Asian Orogenic Belt, has produced multi-stage granitic plutons and accompanying W mineralization. The Narenwula complex in the southwestern Great Xing’an Range provides important insights into the petrogenesis, geodynamic processes and relationship with W mineralization. The complex comprises granodiorites, monzogranites and granite porphyry. Mafic microgranular enclaves are common in the granodiorites, and have similar zircon U–Pb ages as their host rocks (258.5–253.9 Ma), whereas the W-bearing granitoids yield emplacement ages of 149.8–148.1 Ma. Permian granodiorites are I-type granites that are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements and light rare earth elements, and depleted in high field strength elements and heavy rare earth elements. Both the mafic microgranular enclaves and granodiorites have nearly identical zircon Hf isotopic compositions. The results suggest that the mafic microgranular enclaves and granodiorites formed by the mixing of mafic and felsic magmas. W-bearing granitoids are highly fractionated A-type granites, enriched in Rb, Th, U and Pb, and depleted in Ba, Sr, P, Ti and Eu. They have higher W concentrations and Rb/Sr ratios, and lower Nb/Ta, Zr/Hf and K/Rb ratios than the W-barren granodiorites. These data and negative ϵHf(t) values (–6.0 to –2.1) suggest that they were derived from the partial melting of ancient lower crust and subsequently underwent extreme fractional crystallization. Based on the regional geology, we propose that the granodiorites were generated in a volcanic arc setting related to the subduction of the Palaeo-Asian Ocean, whereas the W-bearing granitoids and associated deposits formed in a post-orogenic extensional setting controlled by the Mongol–Okhotsk Ocean and Palaeo-Pacific Ocean tectonic regimes.

Two phases of diabase-sill-forming magmatism are recorded within the Badu anticline where magmas were emplaced into upper Palaeozoic carbonates and clastic rocks of the Youjiang fold-and-thrust belt in the SW South China Block, China. Zircons from these diabase units yield weighted mean U–Pb ages of 249.2±2.0 Ma and 187.1±3.3 Ma, and magmatic oxygen fugacity values from ‒20 to ‒6 (average of ‒12, equating to FMQ +5) and ‒20 to ‒10 (average of ‒15, equating to FMQ +2), respectively. These data indicate that the sills were emplaced during Early Triassic and Early Jurassic times. The discovery of c. 250 Ma mafic magmatism in this area was probably related to post-flood-basalt extension associated with the Emeishan mantle plume or rollback of the subducting Palaeo-Tethys slab. The c. 190 Ma diabase sills indicate that the southwestern South China Block records Early Jurassic mafic magmatism and lithospheric extension that was likely associated with a transition from post-collisional to within-plate tectonic regimes. The emplacement of diabase intrusions at depth may have driven hydrothermal systems, enabling the mobilization of elements from sedimentary rocks and causing the formation of a giant epigenetic metallogenic domain. The results indicate that high-oxygen-fugacity materials within basement rocks caused crustal contamination of the magmas, contributing to the wide range of oxygen fugacity conditions recorded by the Au-bearing Badu diabase. In addition, data from inherited xenocrystic zircons within the Badu diabase and detrital zircons from basement rocks suggest that the Neoproterozoic Jiangshao suture extends to the south of the Badu anticline.

A series of CoCrFeNiMox (x = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0, and 1.2) high-entropy alloys were designed to develop a eutectic high-entropy alloy system and to acquire a superfine eutectic structure. The results show that for the CoCrFeNiMox alloys, with the increase of Mo content from 0.2 to 1.2, the microstructures shift from a typical dendrite structure to a hypoeutectic microstructure (x = 0.6), and then to a fully eutectic microstructure (x = 0.8) with a lamellar spacing only 110 nm, and finally culminate in the hypereutectic structure (x = 1.0, x = 1.2). The XRD results show that CoCrFeNiMox alloys have a single FCC phase when x is 0.2 or 0.4. When Mo content is over 0.6, it begins to separate Cr9Mo21Ni20 intermetallic compounds. The hardness of the CoCrFeNiMox alloys is increasing significantly from 172.8 to 763.7 HV with the increase of Mo content. Meanwhile, the fracture strength increased but the ductility decreases. Among these alloys, the CoCrFeNiMo0.6 alloy shows excellent integrated mechanical properties of compressive fracture strength and strain, which are 2051 Mpa and 23%, respectively.

Nanotechnology has been considered as a promising strategy for diagnosis and treatment of various diseases. However, the stability and circulation times of the conventional nano-carriers, such as liposomes and micelles, are still unsatisfied. Perfluorocarbons (PFCs) are biologic inert synthetic materials, which are highly hydrophobic and have a tendency to self-aggregation. Additionally, PFCs themselves can act as 19F magnetic resonance imaging agents and oxygen carriers. Thus, the construction of the fluorinated carriers will not only improve the stability of the carriers, but also endow them with additional functions. Here we review the recent advances of PFC-based nanosystems for diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

To produce pulses with good flat-top quality, pulse-forming lines (PFLs) have been widely used in the field of Tesla-type pulse generators. To shorten the physical length of the PFL, a double-width PFL (DWPFL) is proposed that doubles the output pulse width while maintaining flat-top quality. A repetitively 10 GW Tesla-type long-pulse generator producing pulses with flat-top width of about 110 ns was developed with a coaxial DWPFL to produce high-current electron beams. Electron beams of about 10 GW with flat-top widths of about 110 ns were obtained on a planar vacuum diode load. With this pulse generator and a C-band high-power microwave system, microwaves of ~2.2 GW power and full-width at half-maximum of 101 ns were generated. The experiment demonstrates the feasibility and ideal output waveform quality of the DWPFL.

A coaxial-output rolled strip pulse-forming line (RSPFL) with a dry structure is researched for the purpose of miniaturization and all-solid state of pulse-forming lines (PFL). The coaxial-output RSPFL consists of a coaxial-output electrode (COE) and a rolled strip line (RSL). The COE is characterized by quasi-coaxial structure, making the output pulse propagate along the axial direction with a small output inductance. The RSL is rolled on the COE, whose transmission characteristics are analyzed theoretically. It shows that the RSL can be regarded as a planar strip line when the rolling radius of the strip line is larger than 60 times of the thickness of the insulation dielectric layer of RSL. CST modeling was carried out to simulate the discharging characteristic of the coaxial-output RSPFL. It shows that the coaxial-output RSPFL can deliver a discharging pulse with a rise time <6 ns when the impedance of the RSL matches that of the COE, which confirms the theoretical analysis. A prototype of the coaxial-output RSPFL was developed. A 49-kV discharging pulse on a matched load was achieved when it was charged to 100 kV. The discharging waveform has a pulse width of 32 ns, with a rise time of 6 ns, which is consistent with the simulation waveform. An energy-storage density of 1.9 J/L was realized in the coaxial-output RSPFL. By the method of multi-stage connection in series, a much higher output voltage is convenient to be obtained.

In the theory of spontaneous combustion, identifying the critical value of the Frank-Kamenetskii parameter corresponds to solving a bifurcation point problem. There are two different numerical methods used to solve this problem—the direct and indirect numerical methods. The latter finds the bifurcation point by solving a partial differential equation (PDE) problem. This is a better method to find the bifurcation point for complex geometries. This paper improves the indirect numerical method by combining the grid-domain extension method with the matrix equation computation method. We calculate the critical parameters of the Frank-Kamenetskii equation for some complex geometries using the indirect numerical method. Our results show that both the curve of the outer boundary and the height of the geometries have an effect on the values of the critical Frank-Kamenetskii parameter, however, they have little effect on the critical dimensionless temperature.

Astronomy cloud computing environment is a cyber-Infrastructure for Astronomy Research initiated by Chinese Virtual Observatory (China-VO) under funding support from NDRC (National Development and Reform commission) and CAS (Chinese Academy of Sciences). Based on virtualization technology, astronomy cloud computing environment was designed and implemented by China-VO team. It consists of five distributed nodes across the mainland of China. Astronomer can get compuitng and storage resource in this cloud computing environment. Through this environments, astronomer can easily search and analyze astronomical data collected by different telescopes and data centers , and avoid the large scale dataset transportation.

A method to design the composite insulation structures in pulsed power systems is proposed in this paper. The theoretical bases for this method include the Weibull statistical distribution and the empirical insulation formula. A uniform formula to describe the reliability (R) for different insulation media such as solid, liquid, gas, vacuum, and vacuum surface is derived. The dependence curves of the normalized applied field on R are also obtained. These curves show that the normalized applied field decreases rapidly as R increases but the declining rates corresponding to different insulation media are different. In addition, if R is required to be higher than a given level, the normalized applied field should be smaller than a certain value. In practical design, the common range of the applied fields for different insulation media should be chosen to meet a global reliability requirement. In the end, the proposed method is demonstrated with a specific coaxial high-voltage vacuum insulator.

Approximately 50 % of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) suffer from anaemia, with Fe deficiency being the most common cause. CD52 monoclonal antibody (mAb) targets the cell surface CD52 and is effective in depleting lymphocytes through cytolytic effects in vivo. The aim of the present study was to investigate the therapeutic effect of anti-mouse CD52 mAb on Fe-deficient anaemia in IBD. IL-10 knockout mice (IL-10− / −) of 12 weeks with established colitis were treated with anti-mouse CD52 mAb once per week for 2 weeks. Severity of colitis, blood T lymphocytes, blood Hb, haematocrit, plasma erythropoietin (EPO), serum Fe concentration, transferrin saturation, splenic Fe stores, expression of liver hepcidin mRNA, Western blotting of the phosphorylated form of Smad1/5/8 and total Smad1 were measured at the end of the experiment. IL-10− / − mice treated with CD52 mAb showed a reduction in the percentage of CD4+ and CD4+CD45+ T cells in blood and weight loss typically associated with colonic inflammation, serum levels of EPO, the expression of liver hepcidin mRNA and total Smad1 protein, while they showed an increase in Hb concentrations, haematocrit, levels of serum Fe, transferrin saturation and splenic Fe stores. The present results indicated that anti-CD52 therapy may ameliorate Fe-deficient anaemia by reducing colonic inflammation. These findings may open novel horizons in the treatment of patients with IBD by resetting of immunological homeostasis in the gut by depleting the activated T cells in the gut mucosa.

Compound effects of B and Y additions on the microstructures and properties of a new type of high-strength and high-conductivity (HSHC) Cu–Mg–Te alloys are investigated on the aspects of purification and precipitation. Because of the purification function of B and Y additions, the tensile strength increased superlatively by the amplitude of 21.7% with a similar increase of elongation and the electrical conductivity of 4.2%. By comparison of the calculated decomposition pressures of B2O3 and Y2O3 at different temperatures, it can be concluded that the boron oxide is more stable than the yttrium oxide in the copper liquid, indicating the superior deoxygenization purification of the rare earth yttrium. The dispersive distribution of the Y–B compounds (YB6) was another factor for the improvement of the mechanical properties of the copper alloy. Finally, the copper alloy treated by hot rolling, cold rolling, and annealing processes in sequence exhibits HSHC with the tensile strength of 610.7 MPa and the electrical conductivity of 53.1%IACS.

We investigated adsorption and dissociation of water and HfCl4 on a Ge/Si(100) −(2 × 1) surface with a density-functional theory. The Si–Ge and Ge–Ge homodimers are used to represent the Si1−xGex surface. (i) Water first adsorbs on the bare Ge/Si(100) − (2 × 1) surface and then dissociates into OH and H. The activation energy for adsorption of water on the Ge–Ge homodimer is much higher than that on the Si–Ge heterodimer. (ii) HfCl4 dissociates upon adsorption on the Ge/Si(100) − (2 × 1) surface into HfCl3 and Cl. No net activation barrier exists during the adsorption of HfCl4 on both SiGe surface dimers. The molecular adsorption state is found to be metastable according to the calculation, which implies that the reaction tends to move toward to the product rather than trapping in HfCl4 adsorbed state. The difference in the potential energy surface between reactions on Si–Ge and Ge–Ge dimers is due to different bond strengths.

Chemical bath deposition (CBD) techniques for the growth of CdS polycrystalline thin films are now well developed. However, there usually appear different structures, grain sizes and energy gaps in CdS polycrystalline films by CBD, which implies that the influence of growth process on the structures and properties of CBD CdS thin films must be considered. In this paper, the optical, compositional and structural properties of CBD CdS thin films in the reaction process have been studied by XRD, AFM, XPS and optical transmission spectra measurements. The results can be explained using atomic mechanism and lattice transition in the CdS thin films.