The silkworm Bombyx mori (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) is a lepidopteran model insect of great economic importance. The parasitoid Exorista sorbillans (Diptera, Tachinidae) is the major pest of B. mori and also a promising candidate for biological control. However, the molecular interactions between hosts and dipteran parasitoids have only partially been studied. Gene expression analysis by reverse-transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is indispensable to characterise their interactions. Accurate normalisation of RT-qPCR-based gene expression requires the use of reference genes that are constantly expressed irrespective of experimental conditions. In this study, the expression stability of 13 traditionally used reference genes was estimated by five statistical algorithms (ΔCt, geNorm, Normfinder, BestKeeper, and RefFinder) to determine the best reference genes for gene expression studies in different tissues of B. mori under E. sorbillans parasitism. Specifically, TATA-box-binding protein was the best reference gene in epidermis and testis, while elongation factor 1α was the most stable gene in prothoracic gland and midgut. Elongation factor 1γ, ribosomal protein L3, actin A1, ribosomal protein L40, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4A were the most suitable genes in head, silk gland, fat body, haemolymph, Malpighian tubule and ovary, respectively. Our study offers a set of suitable reference genes for gene expression normalisation in B. mori under the parasitic stress of E. sorbillans, which will benefit the in-depth exploration of host-dipteran parasitoid interactions, and also provide insights for further improvements of B. mori resistance against parasitoids and biocontrol efficacy of dipteran parasitoids.

Vitrification has been widely used for oocyte cryopreservation, but there is still a need for optimization to improve clinical outcomes. In this study, we compared the routine droplet merge protocol with modified multi-gradient equilibration vitrification for cryopreservation of mouse oocytes at metaphase II. Subsequently, the oocytes were thawed and subjected to intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Oocyte survival and spindle status were evaluated by morphology and immunofluorescence staining. Moreover, the fertilization rates and blastocyst development were examined in vitro. The results showed that multi-gradient equilibration vitrification outperformed droplet merge vitrification in terms of oocyte survival, spindle morphology, blastocyst formation, and embryo quality. In contrast, droplet merge vitrification exhibited decreasing survival rates, a reduced proportion of oocytes with normal spindle morphology, and lower blastocyst rates as the number of loaded oocytes increased. Notably, when more than six oocytes were loaded, reduced oocyte survival rates, abnormal oocyte spindle morphology, and poor embryo quality were observed. These findings highlight that the vitrification of mouse metaphase II oocytes by the modified multi-gradient equilibration vitrification has the advantage of maintaining oocyte survival, spindle morphology, and subsequent embryonic development.

This study aimed to investigate the causal effect of diet habits on COVID-19 susceptibility, hospitalisation, and severity. We used data from a large-scale diet dataset and the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative to estimate causal relationships using Mendelian randomisation. The inverse-variance weighted method (IVW) was used as the main analysis. For COVID-19 susceptibility, IVW estimates indicated that milk (OR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.68-0.98; P = 0.032), unsalted peanut (OR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.35-0.82; P = 0.004), beef (OR: 0.59; 95% CI: 0.41-0.84; P = 0.004), pork (OR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.42-0.93; P = 0.022), and processed meat (OR: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.63-0.92; P = 0.005) were causally associated with reduced COVID-19 susceptibility, while coffee (OR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.04-1.45; P = 0.017) and tea (OR: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.05-1.31; P = 0.006) were causally associated with increased risk. For COVID-19 hospitalisation, beef (OR: 0.51; 95% CI: 0.26-0.98; P = 0.042) showed negative correlations, while tea (OR: 1.54; 95% CI: 1.16-2.04; P = 0.003), dried fruit (OR: 2.08; 95% CI: 1.37-3.15; P = 0.001), and red wine (OR: 2.35; 95% CI: 1.29-4.27; P = 0.005) showed positive correlations. For COVID-19 severity, coffee (OR: 2.16; 95% CI: 1.25-3.76; P = 0.006), dried fruit (OR: 1.98; 95% CI: 1.16-3.37; P = 0.012), and red wine (OR: 2.84; 95% CI: 1.21-6.68; P = 0.017) showed an increased risk. These findings were confirmed to be robust through sensitivity analyses. Our findings established a causal relationship between dietary habits and COVID-19 susceptibility, hospitalisation, and severity.

The third-order law links energy transfer rates in the inertial range of magneto- hydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence with third-order structure functions. Anisotropy, a typical property in the solar wind, challenges the applicability of the third-order law with the isotropic assumption. To shed light on the energy transfer process in the presence of anisotropy, we conducted direct numerical simulations of forced MHD turbulence with normal and hyper-viscosity under various strengths of the external magnetic field ($B_0$), and calculated three forms of third-order structure function with or without averaging of the azimuthal or polar angles with respect to $B_0$ direction. Correspondingly, three estimated energy transfer rates were obtained. The result shows that the peak of normalized third-order structure function occurs at larger scales closer to the $B_0$ direction, and the maximum of longitudinal transfer rates shifts away from the $B_0$ direction at larger $B_0$. Compared with normal viscous cases, hyper-viscous cases can attain better separated inertial range, thus facilitating the estimation of the energy cascade rates. We find that the widespread use of the isotropic form of the third-order law in estimating the energy transfer rates is questionable in some cases, especially when the anisotropy arising from the mean magnetic field is inevitable. In contrast, the direction-averaged third-order structure function properly accounts for the effect of anisotropy and predicts the energy transfer rates and inertial range accurately, even at very high $B_0$. With limited statistics, the third-order structure function shows a stronger dependence on averaging of azimuthal angles than the time, especially for high $B_0$ cases. These findings provide insights into the anisotropic effect on the estimation of energy transfer rates.

The sediments of closed-basin lakes on the margin of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) are valuable archives of past changes in hydroclimate and dust activity and thus potentially can help us to understand future climate changes. We present high-resolution, well-dated records of the grain size and carbonate mineralogy from Lake Bayanchagan, northern China, spanning the last 11.5 ka. Grain-size endmember (EM) analysis distinguished four EMs, each linked to different sediment transport processes. EM1 (0.4–0.6 μm) and EM3 (14–102 μm) reflect the strength of regional dust activity, whereas EM2 (1.3–31 μm) represents variations in local hydrodynamic conditions related to lake-level changes and EM4 (68–500 μm) is associated with local dust activity. Our results show that a high lake level and weakened dust activity occurred during 10–5.8 ka, as indicated by increased EM2 and decreased EM3, respectively. After 5.8 ka, EM2 decreased as the three other EMs increased, and dolomite appeared in the sediments while calcite decreased—indicating both a decline in lake level and strengthened dust activity. The fluctuations in lake level and dust activity are in good agreement with precipitation variations reconstructed from other records, which are in turn correlated to movement of the EASM rainfall belt, in response to temperature changes.

Before the Omicron variant ran amok inside China in November 2022, the Chinese central government’s dynamic zero-COVID policy effectively contained the spread of the coronavirus and its variants during multiple waves of outbreaks. However, it was not without cost. This study examines the impacts of stringent lockdown interventions on urban residents’ mental health during the initial outbreak of the Omicron variant in the spring of 2022. Using survey data from 522 respondents within the same neighbourhood and a spatial quasi-experimental design, the results show that strict lockdown interventions are significantly related to higher levels of psychological distress after controlling for observed confounders and that lockdown interventions have further spillover effects on mental health for residents in adjacent residential compounds who are otherwise free. Moreover, the results show that the lack of material supplies and medical care plays a more salient role in explaining lockdown effects on psychological distress than residents’ social interaction and trust levels of COVID-19 policy. Policy and intervention implications are also discussed.

Rodents and shrews are major reservoirs of various pathogens that are related to zoonotic infectious diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate co-infections of zoonotic pathogens in rodents and shrews trapped in four provinces of China. We sampled different rodent and shrew communities within and around human settlements in four provinces of China and characterised several important zoonotic viral, bacterial, and parasitic pathogens by PCR methods and phylogenetic analysis. A total of 864 rodents and shrews belonging to 24 and 13 species from RODENTIA and EULIPOTYPHLA orders were captured, respectively. For viral pathogens, two species of hantavirus (Hantaan orthohantavirus and Caobang orthohantavirus) were identified in 3.47% of rodents and shrews. The overall prevalence of Bartonella spp., Anaplasmataceae, Babesia spp., Leptospira spp., Spotted fever group Rickettsiae, Borrelia spp., and Coxiella burnetii were 31.25%, 8.91%, 4.17%, 3.94%, 3.59%, 3.47%, and 0.58%, respectively. Furthermore, the highest co-infection status of three pathogens was observed among Bartonella spp., Leptospira spp., and Anaplasmataceae with a co-infection rate of 0.46%. Our results suggested that species distribution and co-infections of zoonotic pathogens were prevalent in rodents and shrews, highlighting the necessity of active surveillance for zoonotic pathogens in wild mammals in wider regions.

The random distributed-feedback fiber laser (RFL) is a new approach to obtain a high-power stable supercontinuum (SC) source. To consider both structure simplification and high-power SC output, an innovative structure achieving a kilowatt-level SC output in a single-stage RFL with a half-open cavity is demonstrated in this paper. It consists of a fiber oscillator, a piece of long passive fiber and a broadband coupler, among which the broadband coupler acting as a feedback device is crucial in SC generation. When the system has no feedback, the backward output power is up to 298 W under the pump power of 1185 W. When the feedback is introduced before the pump laser, the backward power loss can be reduced and the pump can be fully utilized, which could promote forward output power and conversion efficiency significantly. Under the maximum pump power of 1847 W, a 1300 W SC with spectrum ranging from 887 to 1920 nm and SC conversion efficiency of 66% is obtained. To the best of our knowledge, it is the simplest structure used for high-power SC generation, and both the generated SC output power and the conversion efficiency are highest in the scheme of the half-opened RFL output SC.

Polymers maintain colloidal stability by adsorbing onto the surface of sepiolite particles, and changes in temperature and salinity can affect this process. We chose three typical polymers to investigate their interactions with sepiolite under high-salinity (15 wt.% NaCl) conditions at >180°C. Sepiolite samples were characterized using infrared testing, X-ray diffraction testing, contact angle testing, thermogravimetric testing, filtration loss testing and rheological testing. The experimental results showed that the desorption of the polymers under high-temperature and high-salinity conditions reduces the stability and filtration control of the suspension significantly. Adding polymers to sepiolite suspensions can maintain good stability even after thermal ageing at 240°C. In terms of drilling fluid regulation, sepiolite can play a role in regulating rheological properties, and the interactions between various polymers and sepiolite can be utilized to maintain the stable colloidal state of the drilling fluid. Studying the adsorption behaviour of various types of polymers on the surface of sepiolite under high-temperature and high-salinity conditions has important implications for the design and selection of sepiolite drilling fluid treatment agents.

The nuclear factor of κ-light chain of enhancer-activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling pathway, which is conserved in invertebrates, plays a significant role in human diseases such as inflammation-related diseases and carcinogenesis. Angiogenesis refers to the growth of new capillary vessels derived from already existing capillaries and postcapillary venules. Maintaining normal angiogenesis and effective vascular function is a prerequisite for the stability of organ tissue function, and abnormal angiogenesis often leads to a variety of diseases. It has been suggested that NK-κB signalling molecules under pathological conditions play an important role in vascular differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis and tumourigenesis by regulating the transcription of multiple target genes. Many NF-κB inhibitors are being tested in clinical trials for cancer treatment and their effect on angiogenesis is summarised. In this review, we will summarise the role of NF-κB signalling in various neovascular diseases, especially in tumours, and explore whether NF-κB can be used as an attack target or activation medium to inhibit tumour angiogenesis.

Compared with nitrogen and argon, helium is lighter and can better reduce the beam loss caused by angular scattering during beam transmission. The molecular dissociation cross-section in helium is high and stable at low energies, which makes helium the prevalent stripping gas in low-energy accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). To study the stripping behavior of 14C ions in helium at low energies, the charge state distributions of carbon ion beams with −1, +1, +2, +3, and +4 charge states were measured at energies of 70–220 keV with a compact 14C-AMS at Guangxi Normal University (GXNU). The experimental data were used to analyze the stripping characteristics of C-He in the energy range of 70–220 keV, and new charge state yields and exchange cross-sections in C-He were obtained at energies of 70–220 keV.