We present the results of two population surveys conducted 10 years apart (December 2010–February 2011 and December 2020–January 2021) of the Critically Endangered white-headed langur Trachypithecus leucocephalus in the Chongzuo White-Headed Langur National Nature Reserve, Guangxi Province, China. In the first survey, we recorded 818 individuals in 105 groups and 16 solitary adult males. In the second survey, we recorded 1,183 individuals in 128 groups and one solitary adult male. As a result of government policies, poaching for food and traditional medicine is no longer a primary threat to these langurs. However, severe forest loss and fragmentation caused by human activities could limit any future increase of this langur population.

The great demographic pressure brings tremendous volume of beef demand. The key to solve this problem is the growth and development of Chinese cattle. In order to find molecular markers conducive to the growth and development of Chinese cattle, sequencing was used to determine the position of copy number variations (CNVs), bioinformatics analysis was used to predict the function of ZNF146 gene, real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used for CNV genotyping and one-way analysis of variance was used for association analysis. The results showed that there exists CNV in Chr 18: 47225201-47229600 (5.0.1 version) of ZNF146 gene through the early sequencing results in the laboratory and predicted ZNF146 gene was expressed in liver, skeletal muscle and breast cells, and was amplified or overexpressed in pancreatic cancer, which promoted the development of tumour through bioinformatics. Therefore, it is predicted that ZNF146 gene affects the proliferation of muscle cells, and then affects the growth and development of cattle. Furthermore, CNV genotyping of ZNF146 gene was three types (deletion type, normal type and duplication type) by Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR (qPCR). The association analysis results showed that ZNF146-CNV was significantly correlated with rump length of Qinchuan cattle, hucklebone width of Jiaxian red cattle and heart girth of Yunling cattle. From the above results, ZNF146-CNV had a significant effect on growth traits, which provided an important candidate molecular marker for growth and development of Chinese cattle.

Streptococcus agalactiae (S. agalactiae) infection is a significant cause of mastitis, resulting in loss of cellular homeostasis and tissue damage. Autophagy plays an essential function in cell survival, defense, and the preservation of cellular homeostasis, and is often part of the response to pathogenic challenge. However, the effect of autophagy induced by S. agalactiae in bovine mammary epithelial cells (bMECs) is mainly unknown. So in this study, an intracellular S. agalactiae infection model was established. Through evaluating the autophagy-related indicators, we observed that after S. agalactiae infection, a significant quantity of LC3-I was converted to LC3-II, p62 was degraded, and levels of Beclin1 and Bcl2 increased significantly in bMECs, indicating that S. agalactiae induced autophagy. The increase in levels of LAMP2 and LysoTracker Deep Red fluorescent spots indicated that lysosomes had participated in the degradation of autophagic contents. After autophagy was activated by rapamycin (Rapa), the amount of p-Akt and p-mTOR decreased significantly, whilst the amount of intracellular S. agalactiae increased significantly. Whereas the autophagy was inhibited by 3-methyladenine (3MA), the number of intracellular pathogens decreased. In conclusion, the results demonstrated that S. agalactiae could induce autophagy through PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway and utilize autophagy to survive in bMECs.

The Harihada–Chegendalai ophiolitic mélange, which is located between the Bainaimiao arc and the North China Craton, holds significant clues regarding the tectonic setting of the southern margin of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The ophiolitic mélange is mainly composed of gabbroic and serpentinized ultramafic rocks. Here, zircon U–Pb dating, in situ zircon Hf isotopic, whole-rock geochemical and in situ mineral chemical data from the ophiolitic mélange are reported. The zircons in the gabbroic rocks yielded concordia U–Pb ages of 450–448 Ma and exhibited slightly positive ϵHf(t) values (0.87–4.34). The geochemical characteristics of the gabbroic rocks indicate that they were generated from a mantle wedge metasomatized by subduction-derived melts from sediments with continental crust contamination, in a fore-arc tectonic setting. These rocks also experienced the accumulation of plagioclase. The geochemical characteristics of the ultramafic rocks and their Cr-spinels indicate that they may constitute part of residual mantle that has experienced a high degree of partial melting and has interacted with fluids/melts released from the subducted slab in the same fore-arc tectonic setting. The ophiolitic mélange may therefore have formed in this fore-arc tectonic setting, resulting from the northward subduction of the South Bainaimiao Ocean beneath the Bainaimiao arc during Late Ordovician time, prior to the collision between the Bainaimiao arc and the North China Craton during the Silurian to Carboniferous periods.

Sepiolite powder was hydrothermally solidified into a cemented, designed to function both in humidity regulation and volatile organic compound (VOC) removal. The solidification process mimicked the cementation of sedimentary rocks. The formation of the calcium aluminium silicate hydrate (C-A-S-H) or Al-tobermorite enhanced the strength (maximum flexural strength >17 MPa) and improved the porosity of the solidified materials. Due to the low temperature of hydrothermal solidification (≤473.15 K), most sepiolite remained in the matrix of the solidified specimens. The cemented sepiolite aggregate shows outstanding humidity-regulating performance (moisture adsorption of 430 g m–2), and the synergistic effects of the residual sepiolite and neoformed Al-tobermorite exerted a positive influence on the humidity regulation performance of the material. Similarly to the behaviour of sepiolite, the solidified material also displayed good formaldehyde-removal capacity (60–68%). The pore dimensions controlled the humidity regulation and formaldehyde removal. The humidity regulation depends on the mesopores, which originate mainly from both the original sepiolite and the neoformed C-A-S-H phases and Al-tobermorite, while the formaldehyde removal depends on the micropores from the original sepiolite in the matrix. As such, the cemented sepiolite aggregate might be hydrothermally synthesized and might be used to improve the comfort and safety of indoor environments for human beings.

A simple and effective strategy is proposed for fabricating honeycomb-patterned ethyl cellulose (EC) films via a combination of the dip-coating and breath figure methods under a wide humidity range (40–90%). A mixture of toluene and methanol as a volatile solvent/nonsolvent pair was used to effectively control the surface morphology. Additionally, honeycomb patterns were successfully formed via dip-coating under a low humidity (relative humidity less than 40%), when water was directly added into the mixed solution. The important factors that influenced the morphology of EC honeycomb-patterned films were investigated, such as the humidity, solution concentration, and the withdrawal speed during dip-coating. The pore sizes could be controlled by changing the film-formation conditions. Water contact angle enables a transition from hydrophilic to hydrophobic. The possible mechanisms of honeycomb pattern formation are discussed. The fabrication of an ordered honeycomb-patterned film in a cost-effective and convenient manner will have broad application potential in the future.

To determine whether a potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) surface mitigated by micro-milling would potentially threaten downstream optics, we calculated the light-field modulation based on angular spectrum diffraction theory, and performed a laser damage test on downstream fused silica. The results showed that the downstream light intensification caused by a Gaussian mitigation pit of 800 μm width and 10 μm depth reached a peak value near the KDP rear surface, decreased sharply afterward, and eventually kept stable with the increase in downstream distance. The solved peak value of light intensification exceeded 6 in a range 8–19 mm downstream from the KDP rear surface, which is the most dangerous for downstream optics. Laser damage sites were then induced on the fused silica surface in subsequent laser damage tests. When the distance downstream was greater than 44 mm with a downstream light intensification of less than 3, there were no potential damage threats to downstream optics. The study proves that a mitigated KDP surface can cause laser damage to downstream optical components, to which attention should be paid in an actual application. Through this work, we find that the current manufacturing process and the mitigation index still need to be improved. The research methods and calculation models are also of great reference significance for related studies like optics mitigation and laser damage.

A Fast Ice Prediction System (FIPS) was constructed and is the first regional land-fast sea-ice forecasting system for the Antarctic. FIPS had two components: (1) near-real-time information on the ice-covered area from MODIS and SAR imagery that revealed, tidal cracks, ridged and rafted ice regions; (2) a high-resolution 1-D thermodynamic snow and ice model (HIGHTSI) that was extended to perform a 2-D simulation on snow and ice evolution using atmospheric forcing from ECMWF: either using ERA-Interim reanalysis (in hindcast mode) or HERS operational 10-day predictions (in forecast mode). A hindcast experiment for the 2015 season was in good agreement with field observations, with a mean bias of 0.14 ± 0.07 m and a correlation coefficient of 0.98 for modeled ice thickness. The errors are largely caused by a cold bias in the atmospheric forcing. The thick snow cover during the 2015 season led to modeled formation of extensive snow ice and superimposed ice. The first FIPS operational service was performed during the 2017/18 season. The system predicted a realistic ice thickness and onset of snow surface melt as well as the area of internal ice melt. The model results on the snow and ice properties were considered by the captain of R/V Xuelong when optimizing a low-risk route for on-ice transportation through fast ice to the coastal Zhongshan Station.

This numerical study focuses on the coherent structures and bypass transition mechanism of the Stokes boundary layer in the intermittently turbulent regime. In particular, the initial disturbance is produced by a temporary roughness element that is removed immediately after triggering a two-dimensional vortex tube under an inflection-point instability. The present study reveals a complete scenario of self-induced motion of a vortex tube after rollup from the boundary layer. The trajectory of the vortex tube is reasonably described based on the Helmholtz point-vortex equation. The three-dimensional transition of the vortex tube is attributed to the Crow instability, which leads to a sinusoidal disturbance that eventually evolves into a ring-like structure, especially for the weaker vortex. Further investigation demonstrates that three-dimensional or quasi-three-dimensional vortex perturbations in the free stream play a critical role in the boundary layer transition through a bypass mechanism, which is featured by the non-modal and explosive transient growth of the subsequent boundary layer instabilities. This transition scenario is found to be analogous to the oblique transition in the steady boundary layer, both of which are characterised by the formation of streaks, rollup of hairpin-like vortices and burst into turbulent spots. In addition, the streamwise propagation of turbulent spots is discussed in detail. To shed more light on the nature of the intermittently turbulent Stokes boundary layer, a conceptual model is proposed for the periodically self-sustaining mechanism of the turbulent spots based on the present numerical results and experimental evidence reported in the literature.

The COVID-19 outbreak is ongoing in China. Here, Boltzmann function-based analyses reveal the potential total numbers of COVID-19 deaths: 3,260 (95% confidence interval [CI], 3187–3394) in China; 110 (95% CI, 109–112) in Hubei Province; 3,174 (95% CI, 3095–3270) outside Hubei; 2,550 (95% CI, 2494–2621) in Wuhan City; and 617 (95% CI, 607–632) outside Wuhan.

Few studies have investigated the association between maternal dietary patterns (DP) during pregnancy, derived from reduced-rank regression (RRR), and fetal growth. This study aims to identify DP during pregnancy associated with macro- and micronutrient intakes, using the RRR method, and to examine their relationship with birth weight (BW). We used data of 7194 women from a large-scale cross-sectional survey in Northwest China. Dietary protein, carbohydrate, haem Fe density and the ratio of PUFA and MUFA:SFA were used as the intermediate variables in the RRR model to extract DP. Generalised estimating equation models were applied to evaluate the associations between DP and BW and related outcomes (including BW z-score, low birth weight (LBW) and small for gestational age (SGA)). Four DP during pregnancy were identified. Socio-demographically disadvantaged pregnant women were more likely to have lower BW and lower adherence to DP1 (high legumes, soyabean products, vegetables and animal-source foods, with relative low wheat and oils). Women with medium and high adherence to DP1 had significantly increased BW (medium 28·6 (95 % CI 7·1, 50·1); high 25·2 (95 % CI 2·7, 47·6)) and BW z-score and had significantly reduced risks of LBW and SGA. The associations were stronger among women with babies <3100 g. There is no association between other DP and outcomes. Higher adherence to the DP that was high in legumes, soyabean products, vegetables and animal-source foods was associated with improved BW in the Chinese pregnant women, particularly among those with disadvantageous socio-demographic conditions.

We aimed to comprehensively examine the association of breast-feeding, types and initial timing of complementary foods with adolescent cognitive development in low- and middle-income countries. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 745 adolescents aged 10–12 years who were born to women who participated in a randomised trial of prenatal micronutrient supplementation in rural Western China. An infant feeding index was constructed based on the current WHO recommendations. Full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) was assessed and derived by the fourth edition of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children. The duration of exclusive or any breast-feeding was not significantly associated with adolescent cognitive development. Participants who regularly consumed Fe-rich or Fe-fortified foods during 6–23 months of age had higher FSIQ than those who did not (adjusted mean differences 4·25; 95 % CI 1·99, 6·51). For cows’/goats’ milk and high protein-based food, the highest FSIQ was found in participants who initially consumed at 10–12 and 7–9 months, respectively. A strong dose–response relationship of the composite infant feeding index was also identified, with participants in the highest tertile of overall feeding quality having 3·03 (95 % CI 1·37, 4·70) points higher FSIQ than those in the lowest tertile. These findings suggest that appropriate infant feeding practices (breast-feeding plus timely introduction of appropriate complementary foods) were associated with significantly improved early adolescent cognitive development scores in rural China. In addition, improvement in Fe-rich or Fe-fortified foods complementary feeding may produce better adolescent cognitive development outcomes.

Energy chirp compensation of the electron bunch (e-bunch) in a laser wakefield accelerator, which is caused by the phase space rotation in the gradient wakefield, has been applied in many schemes for low energy spread e-bunch generation. We report the experimental observation of energy chirp compensation of the e-bunch in a nonlinear laser wakefield accelerator with a negligible beam loading effect. By adjusting the acceleration length using a wedge-roof block, the chirp compensation of the accelerated e-bunch was observed via an electron spectrometer. Apart from this, some significant parameters for the compensation process, such as the longitudinal dispersion and wakefield slope at the bunch position, were also estimated. A detailed comparison between experiment and simulation shows good agreement of the wakefield and bunch parameters. These results give a clear demonstration of the longitudinal characteristics of the wakefield in a plasma and the bunch dynamics, which are important for better control of a compact laser wakefield accelerator.