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Nephron loop-vessel countercurrent arrangement in the medulla provides the structural basis for the formation of concentrated urine. To date, the morphogenesis of it and relevant water and solutes transportation has not been fully elucidated. In this study, with immunohistochemistry for aquaporins (AQP) and Na-K-2Cl co-transporter (NKCC2), as well as 3D visualization, we noticed in embryonic day 14.5 kidneys that the countercurrent arrangement of two pairs of loop-vessel was established as soon as the loop and vessel both extended into the medulla. One pair happened between descending limb and ascending vasa recta, the other occurred between thick ascending limb and descending vasa recta. Meanwhile, the immunohistochemical results showed that the limb and vessel expressing AQP-1 such as descending thick and thin limb and descending vasa recta was always accompanied with AQP-1 negative ascending vasa recta or capillaries and thick ascending limb, respectively. Moreover, the thick ascending limb expressing NKCC2 closely contacted with descending vasa recta without expressing NKCC2. As kidney developed, an increasing number of loop-vessels in countercurrent arrangement extended into the interstitium of the medulla. In addition, we observed that the AQP-2 positive ureteric bud and their branches were separated from those pairs of tubule-vessels by a relatively large and thin-walled veins or capillaries. Thus, the present study reveals that the loop-vessel countercurrent arrangement is formed at the early stage of nephrogenesis, which facilitates the efficient transportation of water and electrolytes to maintain the medullary osmolality and to form a concentrated urine.

The molecular weight of a polymer is of prime importance and greatly influences the processing and mechanical properties of the polymer. Trans-1,4-poly(butadiene-co-isoprene) multi-block copolymer rubbers (TBIR) exhibit outstanding fatigue resistance, low heat build-up and good abrasion resistance, and are expected to be desirable candidate for high performance tire. Study on the influence of TBIR with different molecular weights on the structure and properties of TBIR and natural rubber (NR)/TBIR blends is essential to understand its contribution to the greatly improved dynamic properties of the rubber vulcanizates. TBIR with different molecular weights characterized by 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, GPC, and DSC were highly trans-1,4-copolymers with similar chain sequence distribution and crystalline trans-1,4-polyisoprene (TPI) blocks. The green strength and modulus of TBIR increased with the increasing molecular weight. The NR/TBIR compounds filled with 40 phr carbon black were chemically cured by sulfur for the preparation of NR/TBIR vulcanizates. The compatibility between NR and TBIR, filler distribution, crosslinking bond and density, and properties of NR/TBIR vulcanizates were studied. The NR/TBIR vulcanizates showed increasing tensile strength, hardness, modulus, rebound, abrasion resistance, and flexural fatigue properties with increasing molecular weight of TBIR. Furthermore, they presented significant improvement in flexural fatigue resistance when compared with that of NR vulcanizate. The contribution mechanism of TBIR on the NR/TBIR blends was discussed. The TBIR with a wide range of molecular weight are ideal rubbers for high performance tires.

Based on the lattice configuration of zinc tungstate, the luminescent samarium-doped zinc tungstate solid solution materials were prepared by doping rare earth ions and applied to the visualization of corrosion protection. Since samarium ion could produce a small amount of red fluorescence, after mixing with the blue-green fluorescence of ZnWO 4 , the doped material exhibited a strong white fluorescence under 254 nm UV light. The physical shielding properties of the corrosion protective film FeWO 4 and the enhanced hydrophobic properties of the material hindered the penetration of corrosion ions. Meanwhile, the increased optical band gap of the doped material enhanced the electron reducibility and slowed down the substrate corrosion process. After 72 h of corrosion, the anticorrosion performance of the ZnWO 4 doped with 0.5% samarium ions improved by 169.9% compared with the epoxy resin coating. Interestingly, when corrosion occurred, the loss of fluorescence due to material reaction produced bright dark spots that could be used to monitor the corrosion sites. This work not only enhances the corrosion protection of ZnWO 4 materials, but also helps to realize the visualization of metal corrosion sites.

We investigated the microRNA172 (miR172)-mediated regulatory network for the perception of changes in external and endogenous signals to identify a universally applicable floral regulation system in ornamental plants, manipulation of which could be economically beneficial. Transgenic gloxinia plants, in which miR172 was either overexpressed or suppressed, were generated using Agrobacterium -mediated transformation. They were used to study the effect of altering the expression of this miRNA on time of flowering and to identify its mRNA target. Early or late flowering was observed in transgenic plants in which miR172 was overexpressed or suppressed, respectively. A full-length complementary DNA (cDNA) of gloxinia ( Sinningia speciosa ) APETALA2-like ( SsAP2-like ) was identified as a target of miR172. The altered expression levels of miR172 caused up- or down-regulation of SsAP2-like during flower development, which affected the time of flowering. Quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR analysis of different gloxinia tissues revealed that the accumulation of SsAP2-like was negatively correlated with the expression of miR172a, whereas the expression pattern of miR172a was negatively correlated with that of miR156a. Our results suggest that transgenic manipulation of miR172 could be used as a universal strategy for regulating time of flowering in ornamental plants.

Based on seismic source spectrum solution by multi-station and multi-event coda method, applying Brune seismic source model, we have got the source factors and spectra of 48 small earthquakes occurred before and after the Douhe earthquake of October 6 in 1995. The seismic moments, corner frequencies and stress drops are estimated from the spectra, and their correlation and variation with time before and after the Douhe earthquake are discussed. The results indicate that the source factors show good stability, their peak frequencies and variation with frequency appear quite similar. Some events with higher stress drops occurred about one year before the Douhe earthquake. Taking into the account that the stress drop is calculated from seismic moment and frequency, as well as the correlation between them, we emphasis that the higher stress drop mentioned here just implies the higher corner frequency than the normal value.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

The physical implication of coda amplitude ratio is discussed in term of energy ratio. The digitized data recorded at the station of Beijing Telemetered Seismograph Network between 1989 and 1990 are used to calculate amplitude ratios of coda to direct S wave, and energy ratios. The spectral energy ratios are used to estimate the coda Q and mean free path l in the Beijing area, as well as the two quality factors Q ^sub i^ and Q ^sub S^ separately due to intrinsic absorption and scattering attenuation. The decay of seismic waves in their propagation seems mainly resulted from the intrinsic absorption in Beijing region. The temporal variations of amplitude ratio and energy ratio at Changli station during the above two years are inspected; some of them largely depart from their mean value. It may reflect the seismogenic process, but using the data lasting longer time with more case histories needs further study.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Based on the empirical formulation formed from coda observations, the digital waveforms from 33 local events with magnitude M ^sub L^ ranging between 2.1 and 3.5, recorded at Changli station of Beijing Telemetered Seismographic Network from 1989 to 1991, are used to compute coda Q for the Changli region and the source factors of all earthquakes by single-station coda method. Furthermore, assuming a certain source model, we have obtained the station site frequency response and source spectra, as well as source parameters such as corner frequencies, seismic moments and stress drops and so on. Their variations with time are monitored before and after larger earthquakes. Because the coda method can more effectively reduce the influence of source radiation pattern and a particular propagation path than direct wave method, more data can be used and more accurate results can be obtained, which provided a possible approach to study the source properties and reveal the variation of source parameters before larger earthquakes.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

We report the phonon and magnetic properties of various well-stabilized Co 3 O 4 nanoparticles. The net valence in cobalt (II)/(III) cation can be obtained by subtracting the Co 2+ ions in tetrahedral interstices and Co 3+ ions in the octahedral interstices, respectively, which will possess spatial inhomogeneity of its magnetic moment via Co 2+ in tetrahedra and Co 3+ in octahedral configurations in the normal spinel structure. Furthermore, the distribution of Co 2+ /Co 3+ governed by various external (magnetic field and temperature) and internal (particle size and slightly distorted CoO 6 octahedra) sources, have led to phenomena such as a large redshift of phonon-phonon interaction and short-range magnetic correlation in the inverse spinel structure. The outcome of our study is important in terms of the future development of magnetic semiconductor spintronic devices of Co 3 O 4 .

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a worldwide medical concern. This study aimed to elucidate the mechanism underlying the protective effect of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) against SCI-induced neurologic defects in rats via exploring the stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1)/CXC chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) axis and expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). An acute SCI rat model was established in Sprague-Dawley rats using the Allen method. Sixty rats were divided into four groups (n = 15 in each group): sham-operated, SCI, SCI treated with HBO (SCI + HBO), and SCI treated with both HBO and AMD3100 (an antagonist of CXCR4; SCI + HBO + AMD) groups. The rats were treated with HBO twice a day for 3 days and thereafter once a day after the surgery for up to 28 days. Following the surgery, neurologic assessments were performed with the Basso-Bettie-Bresnahan (BBB) scoring system on postoperative day (POD) 7, 14, 21, and 28. Spinal cord tissues were harvested to assess the expression of SDF-1, CXCR4, and BDNF at mRNA and protein levels, using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, Western blot analysis, and histopathologic analysis. HBO treatment recovered SCI-induced descent of BBB scores on POD 14, (1.25 ± 0.75 vs. 1.03 ± 0.66, P < 0.05), 21 (5.27 ± 0.89 vs. 2.56 ± 1.24, P < 0.05), and 28 (11.35 ± 0.56 vs. 4.23 ± 1.20, P < 0.05) compared with the SCI group. Significant differences were found in the mRNA levels of SDF-1 (mRNA: day 21, SCI + HBO vs. SCI + HBO + AMD, 2.89 ± 1.60 vs. 1.56 ± 0.98, P < 0.05), CXCR4 (mRNA: day 7, SCI + HBO vs. SCI, 2.99 ± 1.60 vs.1.31 ± 0.98, P < 0.05; day 14, SCI + HBO vs. SCI + HBO + AMD, 4.18 ± 1.60 vs. 0.80 ± 0.34, P < 0.05; day 21, SCI + HBO vs. SCI, 2.10 ± 1.01 vs.1.15 ± 0.03, P < 0.05), and BDNF (mRNA: day 7, SCI + HBO vs. SCI, 3.04 ± 0.41 vs. 2.75 ± 0.31, P < 0.05; day 14, SCI + HBO vs. SCI, 3.88 ± 1.59 vs. 1.11 ± 0.40, P < 0.05), indicating the involvement of SDF-1/CXCR4 axis in the protective effect of HBO. HBO might promote the recovery of neurologic function after SCI in rats via activating the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis and promoting BDNF expression.

Accurate high-resolution datasets on regional climate change are vital for ecological assessments, yet it remains difficult to obtain the spatiotemporal dynamics of air temperature and precipitation in high-elevation mountainous regions due to complex topography. Existing gridded climate datasets are often too coarse to represent the strong spatial heterogeneity of mountainous regions. To address this knowledge gap, downscaled air temperature and precipitation datasets provide an effective way to generate high precision climate data. Here, we downscaled the CN05.1 dataset using a geographically weighted regression model to produce a 1 km × 1 km monthly air temperature and precipitation dataset for the Qilian Mountains during 1961–2022. The downscaled air temperature and precipitation were validated using observations from high-elevation meteorological stations. Compared with the original CN05.1 product, the downscaled dataset showed better agreement with station observations and captured finer terrain-driven patterns. Results indicated the high-resolution data reveal mean annual air temperature and precipitation increased significantly, with strongest warming in winter and the most marked precipitation increased in summer and winter. Spatially, the strongest warming trend was observed in the Qaidam Basin, whereas the most pronounced wetting occurred in the Qinghai Lake Basin. Importantly, regions with elevations >4500 experienced the fastest rate of warming than lower regions. These findings improve our understanding of historical climate change in the Qilian Mountains and provide a high-resolution climate dataset suitable for mountain-scale ecological applications.