Explore the vast range of titles available.

Near‐inertial waves (NIWs) are essential energy sources for deep diapycnal mixing. However, the mechanisms for generating deep and abyssal NIWs are largely unknown. Here, using 3 year full‐depth mooring data at 130°E/15°N, we demonstrate that downward propagating tropical cyclone (TC)‐induced NIWs and parametric subharmonic instability (PSI) can contribute to the intensification of near‐inertial kinetic energy (NIKE) over 1,000–3,000 m. The deep warm core eddy (WCE) is found to facilitate the downward propagation of TC‐induced NIWs with fast vertical group velocity and the intensified PSI efficiency that improves the energy transfer from diurnal internal tides (DITs) to NIWs at the site poleward of critical latitude for DITs. Quantitative regression analysis suggests that compared to the PSI, downward penetrating TC‐induced NIWs contribute more to the deep NIKE. Our study emphasizes that accurately representing deep eddy activities and TC's wind intensity in numerical models is crucial to simulating the deep NIKE.

The red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) is a worldwide invasive and dangerous insect that is controlled mainly by chemical insecticides. Plant-derived insecticidal compounds are generally better than synthetic insecticides for environmental compatibility and the biosafety of non-targets. The toxicity of the ethanol extract of Sophora flavescens roots against S. invicta was evaluated under laboratory conditions. The ethanol extract showed toxicity against minor and medium workers of S. invicta with 7-day LC50 values of 1426.25 and 2292.60 mg/L, respectively. By bioactivity-directed chromatographic separations using the minor worker as the test insect, two active compounds, matrine and sophocarpine, were isolated from the S. flavescens total alkaloids; their chemical structure was identified by 13C NMR data. Matrine showed toxicities against minor and medium workers with 7-day LC50 values of 46.77 and 71.49 mg/L, respectively, and for sophocarpine, 50.08 and 85.87 mg/L, respectively. The two compounds could substantially reduce the foraging response, food consumption, and aggregation of S. invicta workers at a sublethal concentration of 15 mg/L. The present research suggests that S. flavescens roots have potential as a natural control agent for red imported fire ants.

Background Eriocaulon is a wetland plant genus with important ecological value, and one of the famous taxonomically challenging groups among angiosperms, mainly due to the high intraspecific diversity and low interspecific variation in the morphological characters of species within this genus. In this study, 22 samples representing 15 Eriocaulon species from China, were sequenced and combined with published samples of Eriocaulon to test the phylogenetic resolution using the complete chloroplast genome. Furthermore, comparative analyses of the chloroplast genomes were performed to investigate the chloroplast genome evolution of Eriocaulon. Results The 22 Eriocaulon chloroplast genomes and the nine published samples were proved highly similar in genome size, gene content, and order. The Eriocaulon chloroplast genomes exhibited typical quadripartite structures with lengths from 150,222 bp to 151,584 bp. Comparative analyses revealed that four mutation hotspot regions ( psbK-trnS , trnE-trnT , ndhF-rpl32 , and ycf1 ) could serve as effective molecular markers for further phylogenetic analyses and species identification of Eriocaulon species. Phylogenetic results supported Eriocaulon as a monophyletic group. The identified relationships supported the taxonomic treatment of section Heterochiton and Leucantherae , and the section Heterochiton was the first divergent group. Phylogenetic tree supported Eriocaulon was divided into five clades. The divergence times indicated that all the sections diverged in the later Miocene and most of the extant Eriocaulon species diverged in the Quaternary. The phylogeny and divergence times supported rapid radiation occurred in the evolution history of Eriocaulon . Conclusion Our study mostly supported the taxonomic treatment at the section level for Eriocaulon species in China and demonstrated the power of phylogenetic resolution using whole chloroplast genome sequences. Comparative analyses of the Eriocaulon chloroplast genome developed molecular markers that can help us better identify and understand the evolutionary history of Eriocaulon species in the future.

Background Osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are often difficult to distinguish in the early stage of the disease. The purpose of this study was to explore the similarities and differences between the two diseases through Mendelian randomization (MR) and transcriptome analysis. Methods We first performed a correlation analysis of phenotypic data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of OA and RA. Then, we performed functional and pathway enrichment of differentially expressed genes in OA, RA, and normal patients. The infiltration of immune cells in arthritis was analyzed according to gene expression. Finally, MR analysis was performed with inflammatory cytokines and immune cells as exposures and arthritis as the outcome. The same and different key cytokines and immune cells were obtained by the two analysis methods. Results GWAS indicated that there was a genetic correlation between OA and RA. The common function of OA and RA is enriched in their response to cytokines, while the difference is enriched in lymphocyte activation. T cells are the main immune cells that differentiate between OA and RA. MR analysis further revealed that OA is associated with more protective cytokines, and most of the cytokines in RA are pathogenic. In addition, CCR7 on naive CD4 + T cell was positively correlated with OA. SSC-A on CD4 + T cell was negatively correlated with RA, while HLA DR on CD33- HLA DR + was positively correlated with RA. Conclusion Our study demonstrated the similarities and differences of immune inflammation between OA and RA, allowing us to better understand these two diseases.

Synthetic insecticides are effective in controlling insect pests but can also harm nontarget organisms and the environment. During the last 40 years, there has been an increasing interest in alternative insecticides, particularly those derived from plants, commonly known as botanical insecticides. However, commercially available botanical insecticides remain limited. Rotenone is one of the earliest identified compounds and was used as fish poison and pest management. Due to its link with Parkinson disease, the use of rotenone was banned in many developed countries. Rotenone used to be isolated from Derris spp. and Lonchocarpus spp., and it can also be isolated from Tephrosia species. In this article, we present basic botanical information on selected Tephrosia species and their major compounds related to insecticidal activities and highlight the current use of extracts derived from some species, Tephrosia vogelii in particular, for control of insect pests in stored grains and crop production. The crude extracts contain multiple bioactive compounds, mainly rotenone, deguelin, rotenolone, and tephrosin, which act in either additive or synergistic fashion, resulting in effective control of insect pests. There are about 400 species in the genus Tephrosia, and species and even strains or variants vary greatly in these active compounds. We argue that a systematic evaluation of bioactive compounds in different species are needed, and species or strains with high insecticidal activities should be selected for use in the sustainable control of insect pests.

Estimating camera pose is one of the key steps in computer vison, photogrammetry and SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping). It is mainly calculated based on the 2D–3D correspondences of features, including 2D–3D point and line correspondences. If a zoom lens is equipped, the focal length needs to be estimated simultaneously. In this paper, a new method of fast and accurate pose estimation with unknown focal length using two 2D–3D line correspondences and the camera position is proposed. Our core contribution is to convert the PnL (perspective-n-line) problem with 2D–3D line correspondences into an estimation problem with 3D–3D point correspondences. One 3D line and the camera position in the world frame can define a plane, the 2D line projection of the 3D line and the camera position in the camera frame can define another plane, and actually the two planes are the same plane, which is the key geometric characteristic in this paper’s estimation of focal length and pose. We establish the transform between the normal vectors of the two planes with this characteristic, and this transform can be regarded as the camera projection of a 3D point. Then, the pose estimation using 2D–3D line correspondences is converted into pose estimation using 3D–3D point correspondences in intermediate frames, and, lastly, pose estimation can be finished quickly. In addition, using the property whereby the angle between two planes is invariant in both the camera frame and world frame, we can estimate the camera focal length quickly and accurately. Experimental results show that our proposed method has good performance in numerical stability, noise sensitivity and computational speed with synthetic data and real scenarios, and has strong robustness to camera position noise.

The identification and quantification of the ecological risks, sources and distribution of heavy metals in purple soils are essential for regional pollution control and management. In this study, geo-accumulation index (I geo ), enrichment factor (EF), pollution index (PI), potential ecological risk index (RI), principal component analysis (PCA) model and geographical detector (GD) were combined to evaluate the status, ecological risk, and sources of heavy metals (HMs) in soils from a typical purple soil areas of Sichuan province. The results showed that the average contents of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn in purple soil were 7.77, 0.19, 69.5, 27.9, 0.077, 30.9, 26.5 mg/kg and 76.8 mg/kg, and the I geo , EF and RI of topsoil Hg and Cd in designated area was the highest, and the average contents of Hg and Cd in topsoil were obviously greater than respective soil background value in Sichuan province and purple soil. The hot spots for the spatial distribution of 8 HMs were mainly focused in the southwest and northeast of the designated area, and there were also significant differences for 8 HMs distribution characteristics in the profile soil. Cu comes from both anthropogenic and natural sources, Zn, Ni and Cr mainly come from natural sources, but As, Pb, Hg and Cd mainly derived from human activities. GD results showed that soil texture (X 18 ), altitude (X 4 ), total nitrogen (TN), clay content (X 3 ), sand content (X 2 ) and silt content (X 1 ) had the greatest explanatory power to 8 HMs spatial differentiation.This study provides a reference for understanding the status and influencing factors of HM pollution in typical purple soil, and lays a theoretical foundation for the environmental treatment of purple soil in China.

The lower deep branch of the Pacific Meridional Overturning Circulation (L‐PMOC) is a crucial element of the ocean's climate and biogeochemical systems through carrying the Lower Circumpolar Water (LCPW). For the first time, the pathway and volume transport of L‐PMOC from the Yap‐Mariana Junction (YMJ) to the Northern Philippine Basin (NPB) are revealed by a six‐mooring array measurement over 2019–2021. The L‐PMOC seasonally intrudes into the western Pacific at the YMJ. Then, it is directed into the West Mariana Basin (WMB) through YMJ‐Northern Channel with 1.41 ± 1.43/0.26 (mean ± standard deviation/total rms error) Sv, and further into the NPB through Kyushu‐Palau Ridge (KPR) Channel with 0.75 ± 0.53/0.18 Sv. Their difference 0.65 ± 1.35/0.28 Sv is the net lateral flux of LCPW into the WMB over the 2.5 yr. Analyses of a data‐assimilative ocean model solution suggest that the L‐PMOC transports through the deep channels are consistent with deep pressure gradients forced mainly by upper ocean processes. Plain Language Summary The North Pacific bottom water cannot be locally formed due to the shallow connection to the Arctic. It originates from the Antarctic and is transported northward by the lower deep branch of the Pacific Meridional Overturning Circulation (L‐PMOC). We deployed a six‐mooring array over 2019–2021 to measure the L‐PMOC from the Yap‐Mariana Junction (YMJ) to the Northern Philippine Basin (NPB). The new data extend our previous observations about the pathway and volume transport of L‐PMOC intruding into the western Pacific at the YMJ, and for the first time depicts the abyssal flow from the West Mariana Basin (WMB) into the NPB through the Kyushu‐Palau Ridge (KPR) Channel. Because the YMJ‐Northern and KPR Channels are effectively the only two channels allowing the Lower Circumpolar Water (LCPW) in/out of the WMB, the positive difference of transport through them is the net lateral flux of LCPW into the WMB over the 2.5 yr. A high‐resolution data assimilative ocean model is analyzed to link the variations of the transports through deep channels to the deep pressure gradient. Key Points A six‐mooring array captured hitherto unknown abyssal flow from Yap‐Mariana Junction to Northern Philippine Basin (NPB) during 2019–2021 A single mooring in a deep channel at Kyushu‐Palau Ridge provides an exploratory transport estimate of Lower Circumpolar Water into NPB Model data reveal that lower deep branch of the Pacific Meridional Overturning Circulation transport variations through channels correspond to deep pressure gradients mainly forced by upper ocean

Background Deep-branching phylogenetic relationships are often difficult to resolve because phylogenetic signals are obscured by the long history and complexity of evolutionary processes, such as ancient introgression/hybridization, polyploidization, and incomplete lineage sorting (ILS). Phylogenomics has been effective in providing information for resolving both deep- and shallow-scale relationships across all branches of the tree of life. The olive family (Oleaceae) is composed of 25 genera classified into five tribes with tribe Oleeae consisting of four subtribes. Previous phylogenetic analyses showed that ILS and/or hybridization led to phylogenetic incongruence in the family. It was essential to distinguish phylogenetic signal conflicts, and explore mechanisms for the uncertainties concerning relationships of the olive family, especially at the deep-branching nodes. Results We used the whole plastid genome and nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data to infer the phylogenetic relationships and to assess the variation and rates among the main clades of the olive family. We also used 2608 and 1865 orthologous nuclear genes to infer the deep-branching relationships among tribes of Oleaceae and subtribes of tribe Oleeae, respectively. Concatenated and coalescence trees based on the plastid genome, nuclear SNPs and multiple nuclear genes suggest events of ILS and/or ancient introgression during the diversification of Oleaceae. Additionally, there was extreme heterogeneity in the substitution rates across the tribes. Furthermore, our results supported that introgression/hybridization, rather than ILS, is the main factor for phylogenetic discordance among the five tribes of Oleaceae. The tribe Oleeae is supported to have originated via ancient hybridization and polyploidy, and its most likely parentages are the ancestral lineage of Jasmineae or its sister group, which is a “ghost lineage,” and Forsythieae. However, ILS and ancient introgression are mainly responsible for the phylogenetic discordance among the four subtribes of tribe Oleeae. Conclusions This study showcases that using multiple sequence datasets (plastid genomes, nuclear SNPs and thousands of nuclear genes) and diverse phylogenomic methods such as data partition, heterogeneous models, quantifying introgression via branch lengths (QuIBL) analysis, and species network analysis can facilitate untangling long and complex evolutionary processes of ancient introgression, paleopolyploidization, and ILS.

Background The anion gap (AG) has been linked to the prognosis of many cardiovascular disorders. However, the correlation between albumin-corrected anion gap (ACAG) and 30 d all-cause mortality of intensive care patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is unclear. Furthermore, owing to the lack of studies, it is also unknown whether ACAG is more accurate than AG in predicting the mortality of AMI. Methods The Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC IV) dataset was used to provide patient data in this retrospective cohort study. ACAG is computed using the formulae: [4.4—{albumin (g/dl)}] × 2.5 + AG. The primary outcome was 30 d all-cause mortality intensive care patients with AMI. To explore the prognostic worthiness of ACAG, the receiver operating characteristic curve, smooth curve fitting, Cox regression model, and Kaplan survival analysis was performed. Results We enrolled 2,160 patients in this study. ACAG had a better predictive value for 30 d all-cause mortality than AG, with an area under the curve of 0.66. The association between ACAG levels and overall mortality was nonlinear. In our model, after correcting for confounding factors, the ACAG was the independent predictor for 30 d all-cause mortality (HR 1.75, 95%CI 1.24, 2.47). ACAG K-M estimator curve analyses revealed that the group with ACAG ≥ 21.75 mmol/l had poor survival rate than the other group. Conclusions High serum ACAG levels were a significant risk factor for 30 d all-cause mortality in critically ill patients with AMI. ACAG concentration and 30 d all-cause mortality had a nonlinear relationship. ACAG had better predictive value in identifying 30 d all-cause mortality of patients with AMI in ICU than the AG.