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The critical temperature is a key parameter in coal spontaneous combustion. To acquire variation of the critical temperature and the corresponding relationship between the index gases and critical temperature, we gleaned the coal samples from No. 3 seam in Yanzhou coalfield, Shandong Province, China. Thermogravimetry (TG) was used to analyze the effects of particle size, heating rate, and oxygen concentration on critical temperature. The index gases were determined by 15-t experimental furnace of coal spontaneous combustion. The results showed that the critical temperature measured by TG experiment indicates a trend that is augmented with the increase in particle size. When the heating rate was set up with 5 °C min−1 and the oxygen concentration was 14.9 mass% (13 vol%), the critical temperatures of coal samples with different particle sizes reached the maximal values. When the heating rate rose to 20 °C min−1 and the oxygen concentration was 14.9 mass% (13 vol%), the critical temperatures of coal samples with particle sizes <0.105 mm reached maximums, while they reached minimums when the particle size was >0.105 mm. As the particle was smaller than 0.098 mm, the difference in critical temperatures during two kinds of heating rate tended to first increase, then decrease, and reached a maximum under the condition that the oxygen concentration was 14.9 mass% (13 vol%), while it reached a minimum when the particle size was larger than 0.098 mm and presented a style of “M.” The critical temperature as measured by TG experiment was in the range of 45.4–103.2 °C. The critical temperature is, respectively, achieved in coal spontaneous combustion by the 15-t experimental furnace, in which the concentrations of CO and CO2 increased obviously and the value of CO2/CO reached its maximum.

Objective To investigate the metabolic remodeling and functional specialization of immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME) of bone tumors, including Ewing’s sarcoma, osteosarcoma, and giant cell tumor of bone, through high-resolution single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis. Methods Immune cells were isolated from 13 bone tumor samples and profiled via scRNA-seq to delineate cellular compositions, metabolic adaptations, and intercellular communication networks. Differential gene expression analysis, metabolic pathway enrichment, and pseudotime trajectory inference were employed to characterize functional states and differentiation processes of immune cell subsets. Results We identified 12 major immune cell clusters with distinct functional and metabolic characteristics. Naïve T cells exhibited amino acid metabolism-dependent activation potential, whereas NK cells relied on lipid metabolism and the TCA cycle for cytotoxic activity. Macrophage subsets demonstrated functional divergence: C06 macrophages adopted lipid metabolism to facilitate immunosuppression and tissue repair, while C04 macrophages displayed pro-inflammatory characteristics associated with complement activation. Intercellular signaling analysis revealed FN1 as a central regulator of immune coordination, governing cell adhesion, migration, and homeostasis within the TME. Conclusion This study provides novel insights into the metabolic and functional plasticity of immune cells in bone tumor TMEs, underscoring the critical role of metabolic remodeling in immune regulation. Our findings highlight potential therapeutic targets for modulating immune cell function and offering new avenues to improve treatment outcomes for patients with bone tumors.

Spin-polarized light-emitting diodes convert electron spin into circularly polarized light, enabling direct optical readout of spin information and applications in on-chip information processing. Previous demonstrations have largely relied on GaAs-based emitters integrated with spin injectors. These devices, however, require complex epitaxial growth, limiting integration, while high circular polarization remains difficult, demanding high-quality materials for efficient spin injection, coherent spin transport, and spin-conserving radiative recombination. Here, we report an alternative approach for spin-polarized light-emitting diodes by employing monolayer CrI₃ as the emitter, sandwiched between two graphene/hexagonal boron nitride tunneling contacts. Although these contacts inject unpolarized carriers into CrI₃, the resulting electroluminescence exhibits circular polarization, with helicity governed by the magnetic order of CrI₃. Notably, the electroluminescence degree of polarization reaches 20% and its helicity can be reversed with a low magnetic field (~0.17 T). Combined with the inherent integrability of heterostructures, this approach provides a promising platform for future on-chip spin-optoelectronics. This study shows spin-LEDs based on a 2D magnet that emit circularly polarized light with helicity controlled by its magnetic order without the need for external spin injectors, offering a simple, integrable platform for future spin-optoelectronics.

Background RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) function as master regulators of gene expression. Alterations in RBP expression and function are often observed in cancer and influence critical pathways implicated in tumor initiation and growth. Identification and characterization of oncogenic RBPs and their regulatory networks provide new opportunities for targeted therapy. Results We identify the RNA-binding protein SERBP1 as a novel regulator of glioblastoma (GBM) development. High SERBP1 expression is prevalent in GBMs and correlates with poor patient survival and poor response to chemo- and radiotherapy. SERBP1 knockdown causes delay in tumor growth and impacts cancer-relevant phenotypes in GBM and glioma stem cell lines. RNAcompete identifies a GC-rich region as SERBP1-binding motif; subsequent genomic and functional analyses establish SERBP1 regulation role in metabolic routes preferentially used by cancer cells. An important consequence of these functions is SERBP1 impact on methionine production. SERBP1 knockdown decreases methionine levels causing a subsequent reduction in histone methylation as shown for H3K27me3 and upregulation of genes associated with neurogenesis, neuronal differentiation, and function. Further analysis demonstrates that several of these genes are downregulated in GBM, potentially through epigenetic silencing as indicated by the presence of H3K27me3 sites. Conclusions SERBP1 is the first example of an RNA-binding protein functioning as a central regulator of cancer metabolism and indirect modulator of epigenetic regulation in GBM. By bridging these two processes, SERBP1 enhances glioma stem cell phenotypes and contributes to GBM poorly differentiated state.

To investigate the impact of oxygen for the feature parameters of the coal oxidation process, the coal samples were selected from mines of Liuhuanggou and Ewirgol in Xinjiang Province, China. TGA/DSC–FTIR was employed to conduct the coal mass, heat, and functional groups under oxygen concentrations of 3, 6, 9, 15, and 21 vol% from 30 to 950 °C. In the entire coal–oxygen reaction, the characteristic temperatures were divided into T1 (adsorption temperature), T2 (oxygen-adsorption mass-gain starting temperature), T3 (oxygen-adsorption mass-gain maximum temperature), T4 (ignition temperature), T5 (max mass loss rate temperature), and T6 (burnout temperature). The results indicated that with the decrease in oxygen concentration, the feature temperature point gradually transferred to the high-temperature area. The coal samples maximum exothermic temperature rose, the maximum exothermic power decreased, and the net thermal release decreased along the entire reaction process of coal sample. The feature temperature excursion of the coal–oxygen composite reactive incurred the hysteresis effect, which was obvious when the oxygen concentration was 3 vol%. Furthermore, the content of main functional groups of coal microstructure was the highest at T2, and the content gradually decreased with the temperature increase continuously. As the increase in oxygen concentration, the content of main functional groups increased. Among them, there was no considerable change in the hydroxyl content in the coal microstructure on the characteristic temperatures of 75, 140, and 350 °C. As the temperature rose to 140 °C, the content of main functional groups with a varying degree grew. When the temperature reached 350 °C, the oxygen-containing functional group began to decrease.

Little is known about the adverse effects of frailty transitions. In this study, we aimed to characterize the transitions between frailty states and examine their associations with the type of death among older adults in China, a developing country with a rapidly growing aging population. We used data of 11,165 older adults (aged 65-99 years) from the 2002 and 2005 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). Overall, 44 health deficits were used to construct frailty index (FI; range: 0-1), which was then categorized into a three-level variable: nonfrail (FI ≤0.10), prefrail (0.10< FI ≤0.21), and frail (FI >0.21). Outcome was four types of death based on bedridden days and suffering state (assessed in the 2008 wave of CLHLS). During the 3-year period, 3,394 (30.4%) participants had transitioned between different frailty states (nonfrail, prefrail, and frail), one-third transitioned to death, and one-third remained in previous frailty states. Transitions to greater frailty (ie, \"worsening\") were more common than transitions to lesser frailty (ie, \"improvement\"). Among four categories of frailty transitions, \"worsening\" and \"remaining frail\" had increased risks of painful death, eg, with odds ratios of 1.92 (95% confidence interval [CI] =1.41, 2.62) and 4.75 (95% CI =3.32, 6.80), respectively, for type 4 death (ie, ≥30 bedridden days with suffering before death). This large sample of older adults in China supports that frailty is a dynamic process, characterized by frequent types of transitions. Furthermore, those who remained frail had the highest likelihood of experiencing painful death, which raises concerns about the quality of life in frail populations.

Melatonin (MT) is a crucial hormone that controls and positively regulates plant growth under abiotic stress, but the biochemical and physiological processes of the combination of melatonin seed initiation and exogenous spray treatments and their effects on maize germination and seedling salt tolerance are not well understood. Consequently, in this research, we utilized the maize cultivars Zhengdan 958 (ZD958) and Demeiya 1 (DMY1), which are extensively marketed in northeastern China’s high-latitude cold regions, to reveal the modulating effects of melatonin on maize salinity tolerance by determining the impacts of varying concentrations of melatonin on maize seedling growth characteristics, osmoregulation, antioxidant systems, and gene expression. The findings revealed that salt stress (100 mM NaCl) significantly inhibited maize seed germination and seedling development, which resulted in significant increases in the H2O2 and O2− content and decreases in the antioxidant enzyme activity and photosynthetic pigment content in maize seedlings. However, exogenous melatonin considerably reduced the development inhibition caused by salt stress in maize seedlings. Moreover, exogenous melatonin alleviated NaCl-induced membrane damage and oxidative stress, and reduced Na+ content and excessively large quantities of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In addition, exogenous melatonin increased antioxidant enzyme activity and the expression of the antioxidant enzyme genes ZmSOD4, ZmCAT2, and ZmAPX2. This study demonstrates the potential role of combined melatonin seed initiation and foliar spray treatments in mitigating the detrimental effects of salt stress on maize growth, giving a theoretical foundation to future research on the possible advantages of exogenous regulating chemicals in attaining sustainable production in salt-alkaline soils.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are an important part of adaptation to biotic and abiotic stresses and regulate seed germination through positive or negative signaling. Seed adaptation to abiotic stress may be mediated by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). The effects of the ROS scavenger N,N′-dimethylthiourea (DMTU) on maize seed germination through endogenous H2O2 regulation is unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of different doses of DMTU on seed endogenous H2O2 and radicle development parameters using two maize varieties (ZD958 and DMY1). The inhibitory effect of DMTU on the germination rate and radicle growth was dose-dependent. The inhibitory effect of DMTU on radicle growth ceased after transferring maize seeds from DMTU to a water medium. Histochemical analyses showed that DMTU eliminated stable H2O2 accumulation in the radicle sheaths and radicles. The activity of antioxidant enzyme and the expression of antioxidant enzyme-related genes (ZmAPX2 and ZmCAT2) were reduced in maize seeds cultured with DMTU compared with normal culture conditions (0 mmol·dm−3 DMTU). We suggest the use of 200 mmol·dm−3 DMTU as an H2O2 scavenger to study the ROS equilibrium mechanisms during the germination of maize seeds, assisting in the future with the efficient development of plant growth regulators to enhance the seed germination performance of test maize varieties under abiotic stress.

Aim: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a serious complication of diabetes (DM). Luo Tong formula (LTF) exerts protective effects against DR in rats, but its underlying mechanism remains unknown. Methods : Sprague-Dawley rats injected with streptozotocin (STZ) were used as an experimental diabetes model. LTF or calcium dobesilate (CaD) was administered to diabetic rats via gastric gavage. After the 12 weeks of treatment, blood and tissue samples were collected to determine serum glucose and retinal structure. Blood samples were collected for blood glucose and hemorheology analysis. Gene or protein expression levels were evaluated by immunohistochemistry, western blotting and/or quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: DM rats exhibits significantly increased blood retinal-barrier (BRB) breakdown and VEGF/VEGFR expression in the retina, and decreased miR-200b and tight junction ZO-1/Occludin/ Claudin-5 genes expression, as well as Ang-1/Tie-2 expressions in the retina compared to normal control group. LTF treatment significantly moderated histological abnormalities in diabetic rats, independent of blood glucose level; improved some hemorrheological parameters; decreased the expressions of VEGF/VEGFR and BRB breakdown, significantly increased PEDF and tight junction proteins ZO-1/Occludin, as well as increased retinal miR-200b expression compared to non-treatment diabetic rats. Moreover, LTF prevented the reduction in Ang-1/Tie-2 expression. Conclusions: LTF treatment ameliorated DR through its repair vascular and attenuate vascular leakage. A mechanism involving miR-200b may contribute to benefit effects.

Background Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a serious microvascular complication of diabetes and remains the leading cause of blindness in adults. Retinal inflammation is playing a crucial role in the development of DR, and targeting inflammatory mediators is a promising strategy for controlling DR. Here, we investigated compound Chinese medicine Luo Tong formula (LTF) alleviated retinal inflammatory responses in a STZ-induced diabetic rat model. Methods Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into four groups: control, streptozotocin-induced diabetic, LTF-treated diabetic, and calcium dobesilate (CaD)-treated diabetic rats. Blood samples were collected for blood glucose examination. Hematoxylin–eosin and periodic acid-Schiff staining were conducted for light microscopy observations. Retinal cell apoptosis was detected using the TUNEL assay. Proteins expression was quantified by Western blotting and/or immunohistochemistry, and gene expression was assessed by real-time PCR. Results Diabetic rats showed significant increases in the expression of tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), and the phospho-p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p-p38-MAPK)/p38 MAPK ratio compared to control rats. LTF treatment significantly improved both retinal and pancreatic pathological injury, LTF treatment also inhibited inducible the p-p38 MAPK/p38 MAPK ratio and NF-κB activation and decreased the subsequent induction of the retinal expression of proinflammatory mediators TNF-α, IL-1β, MCP-1 and ICAM-1 compared to diabetic rats. LTF also exhibited a protective effect on islet function. Conclusions LTF before the onset of DR can alleviate retinal pathological injury, LTF may play an anti-inflammatory role by inhibiting p38-MAPK and then inhibiting NF-κB pathway. But further studies are needed to confirm this conclusion. Trial registration This is an animal experiment, trial registration is not necessary.