An experimental investigation of the stereocamera's systematic error is carried out to optimize three-dimensional (3-D) dust observation on the HL-2A tokamak. It is found that a larger 3-D region occupied by all calibration points is able to reduce the 3-D reconstruction systematic error of the stereocamera. In addition, the 3-D reconstruction is the most accurate around the region where the calibration points are located. Based on these experimental results, the design of the stereocamera on the HL-2A tokamak is presented, and a set of practical procedures to optimize the 3-D reconstruction accuracy of the stereocamera are proposed.

It has been suggested that added sugar intake is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, previous studies only focused on sugar-sweetened beverages; the evidence for associations with total added sugars and their sources is scarce. This study aimed to examine the associations of total added sugars, their physical forms (liquid v. solid) and food sources with risk of NAFLD among adults in Tianjin, China. We used data from 15 538 participants, free of NAFLD, other liver diseases, CVD, cancer or diabetes at baseline (2013–2018 years). Added sugar intake was estimated from a validated 100-item FFQ. NAFLD was diagnosed by ultrasonography after exclusion of other causes of liver diseases. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were fitted to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and corresponding 95 % CI for NAFLD risk with added sugar intake. During a median follow-up of 4·2 years, 3476 incident NAFLD cases were documented. After adjusting for age, sex, BMI and its change from baseline to follow-up, lifestyle factors, personal and family medical history and overall diet quality, the multivariable HR of NAFLD risk were 1·18 (95 % CI 1·06, 1·32) for total added sugars, 1·20 (95 % CI 1·08, 1·33) for liquid added sugars and 0·96 (95 % CI 0·86, 1·07) for solid added sugars when comparing the highest quartiles of intake with the lowest quartiles of intake. In this prospective cohort of Chinese adults, higher intakes of total added sugars and liquid added sugars, but not solid added sugars, were associated with a higher risk of NAFLD.

Prospective cohort studies linking organ meat consumption and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are limited, especially in Asian populations. This study aimed to prospectively investigate the association between organ meat consumption and risk of NAFLD in a general Chinese adult population. This prospective cohort study included a total of 15,568 adults who were free of liver disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer at baseline. Dietary information was collected at baseline using a validated food frequency questionnaire. NAFLD was diagnosed by abdominal ultrasound after excluding other causes related to chronic liver disease. Cox proportional regression models were used to assess the association between organ meat consumption and risk of NAFLD. During a median of 4.2 years of follow-up, we identified 3,604 incident NAFLD cases. After adjusting for demographic characteristics, lifestyle factors, vegetable, fruit, soft drink, seafood, and red meat consumption, the multivariable hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) for incident NAFLD across consumption of organ meat were 1.00 (reference) for almost never, 1.04 (0.94, 1.15) for tertile 1, 1.08 (0.99, 1.19) for tertile 2, and 1.11 (1.01, 1.22) for tertile 3, respectively (P for trend <0.05). Such association did not differ substantially in the sensitivity analysis. Our study indicates that organ meat consumption was related to a modestly higher risk of NAFLD among Chinese adults. Further investigations are needed to confirm this finding.

Pyroptosis is a recently identified mechanism of programmed cell death related to Caspase-1 that triggers a series of inflammatory reactions by releasing several proinflammatory factors such as IL-1β and IL-18. The process is characterised by the rupture of cell membranes and the release of cell contents through the mediation of gasdermin (GSDM) proteins. GSDMD is an important member of the GSDM family and plays a critical role in the two pathways of pyroptosis. Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a microvascular complication of diabetes and a major cause of end-stage renal disease. Recently, it was revealed that GSDMD-mediated pyroptosis plays an important role in the occurrence and development of DN. In this review, we focus on two types of kidney cells, tubular epithelial cells and renal podocytes, to illustrate the mechanism of pyroptosis in DN and provide new ideas for the prevention, early diagnosis and molecular therapy of DN.

High dietary fibre intake has been associated with a lower risk of diabetes, but the association of dietary fibre with prediabetes is only speculative, especially in China, where the supportive data from prospective studies are lacking. This study aimed to examine the association between dietary fibre intake and risk of incident prediabetes among Chinese adults. We performed a prospective analysis in 18 085 participants of the Tianjin Chronic Low-grade Systemic Inflammation and Health cohort study who were free of diabetes, prediabetes, cancer and CVD at baseline. Dietary data were collected using a validated 100-item FFQ. Prediabetes was defined based on the American Diabetes Association diagnostic criteria. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95 % CI. During 63 175 person-years of follow-up, 4139 cases of incident prediabetes occurred. The multivariable HR of prediabetes for the highest v. lowest quartiles were 0·85 (95 % CI 0·75, 0·98) (P for trend = 0·02) for total dietary fibre, 0·84 (95 % CI 0·74, 0·95) (P for trend < 0·01) for soluble fibre and 1·05 (95 % CI 0·93, 1·19) (P for trend = 0·38) for insoluble fibre. Fibre from fruits but not from cereals, beans and vegetables was inversely associated with prediabetes. Our results indicate that intakes of total dietary fibre, soluble fibre and fibre derived from fruit sources were associated with a lower risk of prediabetes.

The staining procedure is critical for investigating intra- and extra-cellular ultrastructure of microorganisms by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Here, we propose a new ultra-low lead staining (ULLS) technique for preparing the ultrathin sections for TEM analysis. Sections of Enterobacter sp. (bacteria), Aspergillus niger (filamentous fungi), Rhodotorula mucilaginosa (fungi), and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (microalgae) were tested. Compared with the sections prepared by the typical double-staining technique, ULLS-based sections showed evident advantages: (i) the staining process only required the addition of Pb(NO3)2; (ii) the Pb level during incubation was set as low as 1 mg/L, which had negligible toxicity to most microbial cells; (iii) the Pb cations were added during microbial culture, which avoided complicated sample preparation as in typical double staining. Taking C. reinhardtii as an example, the ULLS technique allowed fine investigation of microbial ultrastructure, e.g., starch granule, mitochondrion, Golgi apparatus, vacuole, and vesicle. Meanwhile, the physiological processes of the cells such as cell lysis and exocytosis were successfully captured, with relatively high contrast. This study hence shows a bright future on preparation of the high-quality ultrathin sections of microbial cells by the ULLS technique.

Gain-parameter-dependent transfer functions and phase-noise performances in a mode-locked Yb-doped fiber laser are measured in this study. It is discovered that the corner frequency in the amplitude and phase domains is determined by the absorption coefficient of the gain fiber, when the total absorption and other cavity parameters are fixed. This shows that an oscillator using gain fiber with higher dopant concentration accumulates more phase noise. Furthermore, we present net cavity dispersion-dependent transfer functions to verify the effect of dispersion management on the frequency response. We derive a guideline for optimizing mode-locked fiber laser design to achieve low phase noise and timing jitter.

Seaweeds have numerous biologically active ingredients, such as polysaccharides, polyphenols and carotenoids, that are beneficial to human health. Although these benefits might be related to the synthesis, secretion or reabsorption of uric acid, no studies have explored the relationship between seaweeds consumption and hyperuricaemia (HUA) in the general population. The aim of this study was to investigate whether seaweeds consumption is related to HUA in a large-scale adult population. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 32 365 adults (17 328 men and 15 037 women) in Tianjin, People’s Republic of China. Frequency of seaweeds consumption was assessed by a validated self-administered FFQ. HUA was defined as serum uric acid levels >420 μmol/L in men and >350 μmol/L in women. The association between seaweeds consumption and HUA was assessed by multiple logistic regression analysis. Restricted cubic spline functions were used for non-linearity tests. The prevalence of HUA in men and women was 21·17 % and 5·93 %, respectively. After adjustments for potential confounding factors, the OR (95 % CI) for HUA across seaweed consumption (g/1000 kcal per d) were 1·00 (reference) for level 1, 0·91 (95 % CI 0·81, 1·02) for level 2; 0·90 (95 % CI 0·81, 1·01) for level 3; 0·86 (95 % CI 0·78, 0·97) for level 4 in men and 0·90 (95 % CI 0·73, 1·10) for level 2; 0·82 (95 % CI 0·67, 1·00) for level 3; 0·84 (95 % CI 0·68, 1·03) for level 4 in women, respectively. A negative correlation between seaweeds consumption and HUA in males but not in females was observed. Further studies are needed to explore the causal relationship.

An 8-week feeding experiment was conducted to investigate and confront the putative functions of chitosan (CTS) and chitooligosaccharide (COS) in the growth and homoeostasis of distal intestine in juvenile turbots fed diets containing soyabean meal (SBM). Three isolipidic and isonitrogenous diets were formulated by supplemented basal diet (based on a 400 g/kg SBM) with 7·5 g/kg CTS or with 2·0 g/kg COS. Our results indicated that both CTS and COS supplementation could significantly improve (i) the growth performance and feed efficiency ratio; (ii) antioxidant activity driven by metabolic enzymes (i.e. catalase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase); (iii) glutathione levels; (iv) acid phosphatase and lysozyme activity and (v) IgM content. As a result, these two particular prebiotics were able to significantly attenuate the histological alterations due to local inflammation as well as to decrease the transcriptional levels of proinflammatory cytokines (i.e. IL-1β, IL-8 and TNF-α) and major pathway effectors (i.e. activator protein-1 (AP-1), NF-кB, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, c-Jun N-terminal kinase and extracellular regulated kinase). High-throughput sequencing data indicated that dietary CTS and COS could significantly decrease the diversity of intestinal bacteria but elevate the relative abundances of Bacillus, Lactobacillus and Pseudomonas genera. Altogether, these findings suggest that CTS and COS can improve growth of turbot, enhance intestinal immune and anti-oxidant systems and promote the balance of intestinal microbiota. The protective effects, elicited by these two prebiotics, against SBM-induced inflammation could be attributed to their roles in alleviating the overexpression of inflammatory cytokines by possibly down-regulating NF-кB, AP-1 and/or mitogen-activated protein kinases pathways.

Hypertension represents one of the most common pre-existing conditions and comorbidities in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. To explore whether hypertension serves as a risk factor for disease severity, a multi-centre, retrospective study was conducted in COVID-19 patients. A total of 498 consecutively hospitalised patients with lab-confirmed COVID-19 in China were enrolled in this cohort. Using logistic regression, we assessed the association between hypertension and the likelihood of severe illness with adjustment for confounders. We observed that more than 16% of the enrolled patients exhibited pre-existing hypertension on admission. More severe COVID-19 cases occurred in individuals with hypertension than those without hypertension (21% vs. 10%, P = 0.007). Hypertension associated with the increased risk of severe illness, which was not modified by other demographic factors, such as age, sex, hospital geological location and blood pressure levels on admission. More attention and treatment should be offered to patients with underlying hypertension, who usually are older, have more comorbidities and more susceptible to cardiac complications.

In this paper, the generation of relativistic electron mirrors (REMs) and the reflection of an ultra-short laser off this mirrors are discussed, applying two-dimensional particle-in-cell (2D-PIC) simulations. REMs with ultra-high acceleration and expanding velocity can be produced from a solid nanofoil illuminated normally by an ultra-intense femtosecond laser pulse with a sharp rising edge. Chirped attosecond pulse can be produced through the reflection of a counter-propagating probe laser off the accelerating REM. In the electron moving frame, the plasma frequency of the REM keeps decreasing due to its rapidly expanding. The laser frequency, on the contrary, keeps increasing due to the acceleration of REM and the relativistic Doppler shift from the lab frame to the electron moving frame. Within an ultra-short time interval, the two frequencies will be equal in the electron moving frame, which leads the resonance between laser and REM. The reflected radiation near this interval and the corresponding spectra will be amplified due to the resonance. Through adjusting the arriving time of the probe laser, certain part of the reflected field could be selectively amplified or depressed, leading to the selectively adjusting of the corresponding spectra.

A non-local, ordinary state-based, peridynamic elastoplastic model is formulated to numerically simulate the fracture of reinforced concrete materials. Several basic definitions are first discussed to avoid confusion; and then, a detailed derivation of the force vector state is presented, leading to a unified expression of force state for one-, two- and three-dimensional elasticity problems. Furthermore, an ordinary state-based peridynamic (OSB PD) elastoplastic analysis approach is developed for both plastic compressible and incompressible materials, including the constitutive relationship, the yield function, the consistency condition and the plasticity flow rule. The peridynamic predictions of a quasi-static deformation of the steel rods are in good agreement with the analytical solution. Moreover, the OSB PD plasticity is verified by analyzing a square plate with or without a central hole suffering different loading-unloading paths. Finally, a two dimensional reinforced concrete clamped beam subjected to impact loading is simulated with the proposed OSB PD elastoplasticity, demonstrating its capability in capturing the damage characteristics and structural failure behavior. Simulation results show good accuracy of the peridynamics in simulating elastoplastic problems.

We report on the generation of a mid-infrared (mid-IR) frequency comb with a maximum average output power of 250 mW and tunability in the 2.7–4.0 μm region. The approach is based on a single-stage difference frequency generation (DFG) starting from a compact Yb-doped fiber laser system. The repetition rate of the near-infrared (NIR) comb is locked at 75 MHz. The phase noise of the repetition rate in the offset-free mid-IR comb system is measured and analyzed. Except for the intrinsic of NIR comb, environmental noise at low frequency and quantum noise at high frequency from the amplifier chain and nonlinear spectral broadening are the main noise sources of broadening the linewidth of comb teeth, which limits the precision of mid-IR dual-comb spectroscopy.

The CoCrNiMox (x = 0, 0.1, and 0.2 in molar ratio) medium entropy alloys (MEAs) were fabricated by vacuum arc melting, followed by cold rolling and annealing treatments. The X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were employed to characterize the microstructures. It has been shown that the CoCrNi MEA has a single FCC phase and the Mo-containing MEAs contain (Cr, Mo)-rich σ precipitates. In addition, the Mo addition caused significant grain refinement, due to the fact that the presence of σ phase exerts a strong pinning effect on the grain boundary migration. The hardness testing results indicate an increment in Vickers hardness from 187.5 ± 4.5 Hv of CoCrNi alloy to 309.5 ± 10.3 Hv of CoCrNiMo0.2 alloy. The yield strength and ultimate tensile strength also increase from 339 ± 2 to 644 ± 5 MPa and from 810 ± 5 to 1071 ± 17 MPa, respectively, but the elongation drops from 88.4 ± 4.0% to 29.5 ± 7.6%. The grain refinement and the precipitation of σ phase make synergistic contribution to the reinforcement of Mo-containing CoCrNi-based MEAs. The details and explanations in this study may guide the future design and research of the CoCrNi-based quaternary alloys with enhanced properties.

The present study aimed to investigate the association of early-life exposure to famine with abdominal fat accumulation and function and further evaluate the influence of first-degree family history of diabetes and physical activity on this association. The present work analysed parts of the REACTION study. A total of 3033 women were enrolled. Central obesity was defined as waist circumferences (W) ≥ 85 cm. Chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) was used to evaluate visceral adipose distribution and function. Partial correlation analysis showed BMI, W, glycated Hb and CVAI were associated with early-life exposure to famine (both P < 0·05). Logistic regression showed that the risks of overall overweight/obesity and central obesity in fetal, early-childhood, mid-childhood and late-childhood exposed subgroups were increased significantly (all P < 0·05). Compared with the non-exposed group, the BMI, W and CVAI of fetal, early- to late-childhood exposed subgroups were significantly increased both in those with or without first-degree family history of diabetes and in those classified as physically active or inactive, respectively (all P < 0·05). The associations of BMI, W and CVAI with early-life exposure to famine were independent of their associations with first-degree family history of diabetes (all P < 0·01) or physical activity status (all P < 0·001). Early-life exposure to famine contributed to abdominal fat accumulation and dysfunction, which was independent of the influence of genetic background and exercise habits. Physical activity could serve as a supplementary intervention for women with high risk of central obesity.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. Recent evidence has suggested the protective effects of honey consumption against the metabolic syndrome, but the association between honey intake and NAFLD is still unclear. We investigated how the consumption frequency of honey was associated with NAFLD in the general population. This was a cross-sectional study of 21 979 adults aged 20–90 years. NAFLD was diagnosed based on the ultrasound-diagnosed fatty liver without significant alcohol intake and other liver diseases. Diet information, including consumption frequency of honey, was assessed by a validated 100-item FFQ. OR with 95 % CI were calculated by the binary logistic regression model, adjusting for confounding factors identified by the directed acyclic graph. Overall, 6513 adults (29·6 %) had NAFLD. Compared with participants consuming ≤1 time/week of honey, the multivariable OR of NAFLD were 0·86 (95 % CI 0·77, 0·97) for 2–6 times/week and 1·10 (95 % CI 0·95, 1·27) for ≥1 times/d (Pfor trend = 0·90). The results were generally similar in subgroups of BMI at a cut-point of 24·0 kg/m2 (Pfor interaction = 0·10). In this large-scale study, consuming honey 2–6 times/week was inversely associated with NAFLD, whereas consuming honey ≥1 times/d had no association with NAFLD. These results need replication in other large-scale prospective studies.