The large number of patients with ankle injuries and the high incidence make ankle rehabilitation an urgent health problem. However, there is a certain degree of difference between the motion of most ankle rehabilitation robots and the actual axis of the human ankle. To achieve more precise ankle joint rehabilitation training, this paper proposes a novel 3-PUU/R parallel ankle rehabilitation mechanism that integrates with the human ankle joint axis. Moreover, it provides comprehensive ankle joint motion necessary for effective rehabilitation. The mechanism has four degrees of freedom (DOFs), enabling plantarflexion/dorsiflexion, eversion/inversion, internal rotation/external rotation, and dorsal extension of the ankle joint. First, based on the DOFs of the human ankle joint and the variation pattern of the joint axes, a 3-PUU/R parallel ankle joint rehabilitation mechanism is designed. Based on the screw theory, the inverse kinematics inverse, complete Jacobian matrix, singular characteristics, and workspace analysis of the mechanism are conducted. Subsequently, the motion performance of the mechanism is analyzed based on the motion/force transmission indices and the constraint indices. Then, the performance of the mechanism is optimized according to human physiological characteristics, with the motion/force transmission ratio and workspace range as optimization objectives. Finally, a physical prototype of the proposed robot was developed, and experimental tests were performed to evaluate the above performance of the proposed robot. This study provides a good prospect for improving the comfort and safety of ankle joint rehabilitation from the perspective of human-machine axis matching.

During the investigation of parasitic pathogens of Mytilus coruscus, infection of a Perkinsus-like protozoan parasite was detected by alternative Ray's Fluid Thioglycolate Medium (ARFTM). The diameter of hypnospores or prezoosporangia was 8–27 (15.6 ± 4.0, n = 111) μm. The prevalence of the Perkinsus-like species in M. coruscus was 25 and 12.5% using ARFTM and PCR, respectively. The ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 fragments amplified by PCR assay had 100% homology to that of P. beihaiensis, suggesting that the protozoan parasite was P. beihaisensis and M. coruscus was its new host in East China Sea (ECS). Histological analysis showed the presence of trophozoites of P. beihaiensis in gill, mantle and visceral mass, and the schizonts only found in visceral mass. Perkinsus beihaiensis infection led to inflammatory reaction of hemocyte and the destruction of digestive tubules in visceral mass, which had negative effect on health of the farmed M. coruscus and it deserves more attention.

In response to the complex and challenging task of long-distance inspection of small-diameter and variable-diameter mine holes, this paper presents a design for an adaptive small-sized mine hole robot. First, focusing on the environment of small-diameter mine holes, the paper analyzes the robot’s functions and overall structural framework. A two-wheeled wall-pressing robot with good mobility, arranged in a straight line, is designed. Furthermore, an adaptive variable-diameter method is devised, which involves constructing an adaptive variable-diameter model and proposing a control method based on position and force estimators, enabling the robot to perceive external forces. Lastly, to verify the feasibility of the structural design and adaptive variable-diameter method, performance tests and analyses are conducted on the robot’s mobility and adaptive variable-diameter capabilities. Experimental results demonstrate that the robot can move within small-diameter mine holes at any inclination angle, with a maximum horizontal crawling speed of 3.96 m/min. By employing the adaptive variable-diameter method, the robot can smoothly navigate convex platform obstacles and slope obstacles in mine holes with diameters ranging from 70 mm to 100 mm, achieving the function of adaptive variable-diameter within 2 s. Thus, it can meet the requirements of moving inside mine holes under complex conditions such as steep slopes and small and variable diameters.

The material removal rate (MRR) serves as a crucial indicator in the chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process of semiconductor wafers. Currently, the mainstream method to ascertain the MRR through offline measurements proves time inefficient and struggles to represent process variability accurately. An efficient MRR prediction model based on stacking ensemble learning that integrates models with disparate architectures was proposed in this study. First, the processing signals collected during wafer polishing, as available in the PHM2016 dataset, were analyzed and preprocessed to extract statistical and neighbor domain features. Subsequently, Pearson correlation coefficient analysis (PCCA) and principal component analysis (PCA) were employed to fuse the extracted features. Ultimately, random forest (RF), light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM), and backpropagation neural network (BPNN) with hyperparameters optimized by the Bayesian Optimization Algorithm were integrated to establish an MRR prediction model based on stacking ensemble learning. The developed model was verified on the PHM2016 benchmark test set, and a Mean Square Error (MSE) of 7.72 and a coefficient of determination (R2) of 95.82% were achieved. This indicates that the stacking ensemble learning based model, integrated with base models of disparate architectures, offers considerable potential for real-time MRR prediction in the CMP process of semiconductor wafers.

The fault-tolerant control issue of aircraft engines with actuator dynamics and faults is investigated in this paper. By proposing a novel intelligent sliding mode fault-tolerant control (ISMFTC) method, which combines an adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) sliding surface with Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO) for controller parameter optimisation, the goal is to achieve quality steady-state and dynamic performance in aircraft engines while maintaining strong fault-tolerance properties. Firstly, by considering not only actuator dynamics but also actuator faults, an uncertain nonlinear cascaded model of aircraft engines is developed according to characteristic of aircraft engines and their actuators. Secondly, an ADP-based sliding surface is proposed for considered aircraft engine uncertain nonlinear cascaded system. It can obtain a certain sense of optimised performance, and could be solved by ADP strategy off-line as well. Thirdly, fault-tolerant controller is obtained on the basis of sliding mode theory and adaptive fault estimation law, namely, ADP-based ISMFTC controller. Meanwhile, GWO is integrated into the investigation of ADP-based ISMFTC controller, optimised designable control parameters are obtained subsequently. Besides, robustness analysis is elaborated according to Lyapunov theory, fault estimation error is bounded and states of closed-loop system are uniformly ultimately bounded. Simulation on a twin-shaft turbofan aircraft engine, indicates the effect of proposed ADP-based ISMFTC method.

To investigate the associations between dietary patterns and biological ageing, identify the most recommended dietary pattern for ageing and explore the potential mediating role of gut microbiota in less-developed ethnic minority regions (LEMRs). This prospective cohort study included 8288 participants aged 30–79 years from the China Multi-Ethnic Cohort study. Anthropometric measurements and clinical biomarkers were utilised to construct biological age based on Klemera and Doubal’s method (KDM-BA) and KDM-BA acceleration (KDM-AA). Dietary information was obtained through the baseline FFQ. Six dietary patterns were constructed: plant-based diet index, healthful plant-based diet index, unhealthful plant-based diet index, healthy diet score, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH), and alternative Mediterranean diets. Follow-up adjusted for baseline analysis assessed the associations between dietary patterns and KDM-AA. Additionally, quantile G-computation identified significant beneficial and harmful food groups. In the subsample of 764 participants, we used causal mediation model to explore the mediating role of gut microbiota in these associations. The results showed that all dietary patterns were associated with KDM-AA, with DASH exhibiting the strongest negative association (β = −0·91, 95 % CI (–1·19, −0·63)). The component analyses revealed that beneficial food groups primarily included tea and soy products, whereas harmful groups mainly comprised salt and processed vegetables. In mediation analysis, the Synergistetes and Pyramidobacter possibly mediated the negative associations between plant-based diets and KDM-AA (5·61–9·19 %). Overall, healthy dietary patterns, especially DASH, are negatively associated with biological ageing in LEMRs, indicating that Synergistetes and Pyramidobacter may be potential mediators. Developing appropriate strategies may promote healthy ageing in LEMRs.

Depression is highly prevalent in haemodialysis patients, and diet might play an important role. Therefore, we conducted this cross-sectional study to determine the association between dietary fatty acids (FA) consumption and the prevalence of depression in maintenance haemodialysis (MHD) patients. Dietary intake was assessed using a validated FFQ between December 2021 and January 2022. The daily intake of dietary FA was categorised into three groups, and the lowest tertile was used as the reference category. Depression was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline (RCS) models were applied to assess the relationship between dietary FA intake and the prevalence of depression. As a result, after adjustment for potential confounders, a higher intake of total FA [odds ratio (OR)T3 vs. T1 = 1·59, 95 % confidence interval (CI) = 1·04, 2·46] and saturated fatty acids (SFA) (ORT3 vs. T1 = 1·83, 95 % CI = 1·19, 2·84) was associated with a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms. Significant positive linear trends were also observed (P < 0·05) except for SFA intake. Similarly, the prevalence of depression in MHD patients increased by 20% (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.01–1.43) for each standard deviation increment in SFA intake. RCS analysis indicated an inverse U-shaped correlation between SFA and depression (Pnonlinear > 0·05). Additionally, the sensitivity analysis produced similar results. Furthermore, no statistically significant association was observed in the subgroup analysis with significant interaction. In conclusion, higher total dietary FA and SFA were positively associated with depressive symptoms among MHD patients. These findings inform future research exploring potential mechanism underlying the association between dietary FA and depressive symptoms in MHD patients.

The influence of outer large-scale motions (LSMs) on near-wall structures in compressible turbulent channel flows is investigated. To separate the compressibility effects, velocity fluctuations are decomposed into solenoidal and dilatational components using the Helmholtz decomposition method. Solenoidal velocity fluctuations manifest as near-wall streaks and outer large-scale structures. The spanwise drifting of near-wall solenoidal streaks is found to be driven by the outer LSMs, while LSMs have a trivial influence on the spanwise density of solenoidal streaks, consistent with the outer LSM impacts found in incompressible flows (Zhou et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 940, 2022, p. A23). Dilatational motions are characterized by the near-wall small-scale travelling-wave packets and the large-scale parts in the outer region. The streamwise advection velocity of the near-wall structures remains at $16 \sim 18u_{\tau }$, hardly influenced by Mach numbers, Reynolds numbers and wall temperatures. The spanwise drifting of near-wall dilatational structures, quantified by the particle image velocimetry method, follows a mechanism distinct from solenoidal streaks. This drifting velocity is notably larger than those of the solenoidal streaks, and the influence of outer LSMs is not the primary trigger for this drifting.

Studies on obesity and risk factors from a life-course perspective among residents in the Tibet Plateau with recent economic growth and increasing obesity are important and urgently needed. The birth cohort in this area provides a unique opportunity to examine the association between maternal dietary practice and neonatal obesity. The study aims to detect the prevalence of obesity among neonates, associated with maternal diet and other factors, supporting life-course strategies for obesity control. A cohort of pregnant women was enrolled in Tibet Plateau and followed till childbirth. Dietary practice during pregnancy was assessed using the Chinese FFQ – Tibet Plateau version, food items and other variables were associated with the risk for obesity of neonates followed by logistic regression, classification and regression trees (CART) and random forest. Of the total 1226 mother–neonate pairs, 40·5 % were Tibetan and 5·4 % of neonates with obesity. Consuming fruits as a protective factor for obesity of neonates with OR (95 % CI) = 0·61 (0·43, 0·87) from logistic regression; as well as OR = 0·20 (0·12, 0·35) for consuming fruits (≥ weekly) from CART. Removing fruit consumption to avoid overshadowing effects of other factors, the following were influential from CART: maternal education (more than middle school, OR = 0·22 (0·13, 0·37)) and consumption of Tibetan food (daily, OR = 3·44 (2·08, 5·69). Obesity among neonates is prevalent in the study population. Promoting healthy diets during pregnancy and strengthening maternal education should be part of the life-course strategies for obesity control.

Understanding the yield attributes of rice crops grown at super high-yielding sites is useful for identifying how to achieve super high yield in rice. In this study, field experiments were conducted in 2021 and 2022 to compare grain yield and yield attributes of ten high-yielding hybrid rice varieties between Xingyi (a super high-yielding site) and Hengyang (a site with typical yields). Results showed that Xingyi produced an average grain yield of 13.4 t ha−1 in 2021 and 14.0 t ha−1 in 2022, which were, respectively, 20% and 44% higher than those at Hengyang. Higher panicles per m2 and higher grain weight were responsible for the higher grain yield at Xingyi compared to Hengyang. The higher values of panicles per m2 and grain weight at Xingyi compared to Hengyang were due to greater source capacity resulting from improved pre-heading biomass production. This study suggests that simultaneously increasing panicle number and grain weight through improving pre-heading biomass production is a potential way to achieve super high yield in rice.

The widespread use of finite-element analysis (FEA) in industry has led to a large accumulation of cases. Leveraging past FEA cases can improve accuracy and efficiency in analyzing new complex tasks. However, current engineering case retrieval methods struggle to measure semantic similarity between FEA cases. Therefore, this article proposed a method for measuring the similarity of FEA cases based on ontology semantic trees. FEA tasks are used as indexes for FEA cases, and an FEA case ontology is constructed. By using named entity recognition technology, pivotal entities are extracted from FEA tasks, enabling the instantiation of the FEA case ontology and the creation of a structured representation for FEA cases. Then, a multitree algorithm is used to calculate the semantic similarity of FEA cases. Finally, the correctness of this method was confirmed through an FEA case retrieval experiment on a pressure vessel. The experimental results clearly showed that the approach outlined in this article aligns more closely with expert ratings, providing strong validation for its effectiveness.

Environmental exposures are known to be associated with pathogen transmission and immune impairment, but the association of exposures with aetiology and severity of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) are unclear. A retrospective observational study was conducted at nine hospitals in eight provinces in China from 2014 to 2019. CAP patients were recruited according to inclusion criteria, and respiratory samples were screened for 33 respiratory pathogens using molecular test methods. Sociodemographic, environmental and clinical factors were used to analyze the association with pathogen detection and disease severity by logistic regression models combined with distributed lag nonlinear models. A total of 3323 CAP patients were included, with 709 (21.3%) having severe illness. 2064 (62.1%) patients were positive for at least one pathogen. More severe patients were found in positive group. After adjusting for confounders, particulate matter (PM) 2.5 and 8-h ozone (O3-8h) were significant association at specific lag periods with detection of influenza viruses and Klebsiella pneumoniae respectively. PM10 and carbon monoxide (CO) showed cumulative effect with severe CAP. Pollutants exposures, especially PM, O3-8h, and CO should be considered in pathogen detection and severity of CAP to improve the clinical aetiological and disease severity diagnosis.

Seed dormancy is an important trait associated with pre-sprouting and malting quality in barley. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have been used to detect quantitative trait loci (QTLs) underlying complex traits in major crops. In the present study, we collected 295 barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) accessions from Australia, Europe, Canada and China. A total of 25,179 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)/diversity arrays technology sequence markers were used for population structure, linkage disequilibrium and GWAS analysis. Candidate genes within QTL regions were investigated, and their expression levels were analysed using RNAseq data. Five QTLs for seed dormancy were identified. One QTL was mapped on chromosome 1H, and one QTL was mapped on chromosome 4H, while three QTLs were located on chromosome 5H. This is the first report of a QTL on the short arm of chromosome 5H in barley. Molecular markers linked to the QTL can be used for marker-assisted selection in barley breeding programmes.

Mythimna separata (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is an omnivorous pest that poses a great threat to food security. Insect antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small peptides that are important effector molecules of innate immunity. Here, we investigated the role of the AMP cecropin B in the growth, development, and immunity of M. separata. The gene encoding M. separata cecropin B (MscecropinB) was cloned. The expression of MscecropinB was determined in different developmental stages and tissues of M. separata. It was highest in the prepupal stage, followed by the pupal stage. Among larval stages, the highest expression was observed in the fourth instar. Tissue expression analysis of fourth instar larvae showed that MscecropinB was highly expressed in the fat body and haemolymph. An increase in population density led to upregulation of MscecropinB expression. MscecropinB expression was also upregulated by the infection of third and fourth instar M. separata with Beauveria bassiana or Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). RNA interference (RNAi) targeting MscecropinB inhibited the emergence rate and fecundity of M. separata, and resulted in an increased sensitivity to B. bassiana and Bt. The mortality of M. separata larvae was significantly higher in pathogen plus RNAi-treated M. separata than in controls treated with pathogens only. Our findings indicate that MscecropinB functions in the eclosion and fecundity of M. separata and plays an important role in resistance to infection by B. bassiana and Bt.