Rain streaks removal is an important issue in outdoor vision systems and has recently been investigated extensively. In this paper, we propose a novel video rain streak removal approach FastDeRain, ...which fully considers the discriminative characteristics of rain streaks and the clean video in the gradient domain. Specifically, on the one hand, rain streaks are sparse and smooth along the direction of the raindrops, whereas on the other hand, clean videos exhibit piecewise smoothness along the rain-perpendicular direction and continuity along the temporal direction. Theses smoothness and continuity result in the sparse distribution in the different directional gradient domain. Thus, we minimize: 1) the 4 norm to enhance the sparsity of the underlying rain streaks; 2) two l1 norm of unidirectional total variation regularizers to guarantee the anisotropic spatial smoothness; and 3) an 4 norm of the time-directional difference operator to characterize the temporal continuity. A split augmented Lagrangian shrinkage algorithm-based algorithm is designed to solve the proposed minimization model. Experiments conducted on synthetic and real data demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method. According to the comprehensive quantitative performance measures, our approach outperforms other state-of-the-art methods, especially on account of the running time. The code of FastDeRain can be downloaded at https://github.com/TaiXiangJiang/FastDeRain.
Efficient low-grade heat recovery can help to reduce greenhouse gas emission as over 70% of primary energy input is wasted as heat, but current technologies to fulfill the heat-to-electricity ...conversion are still far from optimum. Here we report a direct thermal charging cell, using asymmetric electrodes of a graphene oxide/platinum nanoparticles cathode and a polyaniline anode in Fe
/Fe
redox electrolyte via isothermal heating operation. When heated, the cell generates voltage via a temperature-induced pseudocapacitive effect of graphene oxide and a thermogalvanic effect of Fe
/Fe
, and then discharges continuously by oxidizing polyaniline and reducing Fe
under isothermal heating till Fe
depletion. The cell can be self-regenerated when cooled down. Direct thermal charging cells attain a temperature coefficient of 5.0 mV K
and heat-to-electricity conversion efficiency of 2.8% at 70 °C (21.4% of Carnot efficiency) and 3.52% at 90 °C (19.7% of Carnot efficiency), outperforming other thermoelectrochemical and thermoelectric systems.
Metalenses consist of an array of optical nanoantennas on a surface capable of manipulating the properties of an incoming light wavefront. Various flat optical components, such as polarizers, optical ...imaging encoders, tunable phase modulators and a retroreflector, have been demonstrated using a metalens design. An open issue, especially problematic for colour imaging and display applications, is the correction of chromatic aberration, an intrinsic effect originating from the specific resonance and limited working bandwidth of each nanoantenna. As a result, no metalens has demonstrated full-colour imaging in the visible wavelength. Here, we show a design and fabrication that consists of GaN-based integrated-resonant unit elements to achieve an achromatic metalens operating in the entire visible region in transmission mode. The focal length of our metalenses remains unchanged as the incident wavelength is varied from 400 to 660 nm, demonstrating complete elimination of chromatic aberration at about 49% bandwidth of the central working wavelength. The average efficiency of a metalens with a numerical aperture of 0.106 is about 40% over the whole visible spectrum. We also show some examples of full-colour imaging based on this design.
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IJS, NUK, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Physical activity has benefits on physical and psychological health. The aims of this study were to investigate (1) the relationships between physical activity and life satisfaction and happiness in ...young, middle-aged, and older adults while controlling for demographic characteristics, and (2) the relationships between age and life satisfaction and happiness for different physical activity levels. A total of 2345 healthy adults were recruited. Demographic characteristic, physical activity, life satisfaction, and happiness were collected. Participants were divided into young, middle-aged, and older adult groups based on age, and physical activity was categorized as high, moderate, and low. After controlling for demographic characteristics, participants with high and moderate activity levels had significantly higher life satisfaction and happiness than those with a low activity level across the total population and the three age groups. Age squared was a significant predictor of a positive curvilinear between age and life satisfaction and happiness. Physical activity was significantly related to life satisfaction and happiness in young, middle-aged, and older adults. In addition, life satisfaction and happiness increased with increasing age. The results support the promotion of physical activity.
Butyrate (BU), a gut microbiota‐derived metabolite, has been reported to play a neuroprotective role in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the specific molecular mechanism of BU has not been fully ...interpreted. This work aimed to verify the protective effects of BU against MPTP/MPPsup.+ ‐induced neurotoxicity and explore the mechanisms involved. The results showed that BU protected against MPTP‐induced motor dysfunction and decreased tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine transporter (DAT) levels. Additionally, BU pretreatment improved PC12 cell viability and reduced MPPsup.+ ‐induced PC12 cell apoptosis. BU treatment also attenuated MPPsup.+ ‐stimulated oxidative stress and inflammatory response in PC12 cells. Furthermore, BU inhibited MPTP/MPPsup.+ ‐induced hyperactivation of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling in mice and PC12 cells. Besides, a JAK2 agonist, Coumermycin A1 (C‐A1), substantially reversed BU‐mediated inhibition on JAK2/STAT3 phosphorylation in MPPsup.+ ‐challenged PC12 cells and abated BU‐induced repression on MPPsup.+ ‐triggered apoptosis, oxidative stress, and inflammatory response in PC12 cells. To sum up, BU might exert neuroprotective effects against MPPsup.+ /MPTP‐induced neurotoxicity by inactivating the JAK2/STAT3 signaling.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Amid growing interest in using body heat for electricity in wearables, creating stretchable devices poses a major challenge. Herein, a hydrogel composed of two core constituents, namely the ...negatively‐charged 2‐acrylamido‐2‐methylpropanesulfonic acid and the zwitterionic (ZI) sulfobetaine acrylamide, is engineered into a double‐network hydrogel. This results in a significant enhancement in mechanical properties, with tensile stress and strain of up to 470.3 kPa and 106.6%, respectively. Moreover, the ZI nature of the polymer enables the fabrication of a device with polar thermoelectric properties by modulating the pH. Thus, the ionic Seebeck coefficient (Si) of the ZI hydrogel ranges from −32.6 to 31.7 mV K−1 as the pH is varied from 1 to 14, giving substantial figure of merit (ZTi) values of 3.8 and 3.6, respectively. Moreover, a prototype stretchable ionic thermoelectric supercapacitor incorporating the ZI hydrogel exhibits notable power densities of 1.8 and 0.9 mW m−2 at pH 1 and 14, respectively. Thus, the present work paves the way for the utilization of pH‐sensitive, stretchable ZI hydrogels for thermoelectric applications, with a specific focus on harvesting low‐grade waste heat within the temperature range of 25–40 °C.
Combining p‐type and n‐type devices is an approach to enhance ionic thermoelectric properties. Herein, a pH‐sensitive zwitterionic hydrogel achieves bipolar thermoelectric performance, with a Seebeck coefficient of −32.6 to 31.7 mV K−1 at pH 1 and 14. Research into controlled pH values opens avenues for advancing the bipolar Seebeck coefficient in ionic thermoelectric supercapacitors, highlighting promising possibilities in the field.
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Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), an endogenous signaling gaseous molecule, is involved in various physiological activities, including vessel relaxation, regulation of cellular bioenergetics, inflammation, and ...angiogenesis. By using xenograft orthotopic implantation of prostate cancer PC3 cells and subsequently comparing bone metastatic with primary tumor‐derived cancer cells, we find that H2S‐producing enzyme cystathionine γ‐lyase (CTH) is upregulated in bone‐metastatic PC3 cells. Clinical data further reveal that the expression of CTH is elevated in late‐stage prostate cancer patients, and higher CTH expression correlates with poor survival from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) prostate cancer RNA‐seq datasets. CTH promotes NF‐κB nuclear translocation through H2S‐mediated sulfhydration on cysteine‐38 of the NF‐κB p65 subunit, resulting in increased IL‐1β expression and H2S‐induced cell invasion. Knockdown of CTH in PC3 cells results in the suppression of tumor growth and distant metastasis, while overexpression of CTH in DU145 cells promotes primary tumor growth and lymph node metastasis in the orthotopic implanted xenograft mouse model. Together, our findings provide evidence that CTH generated H2S promotes prostate cancer progression and metastasis through IL‐1β/NF‐κB signaling pathways.
Synopsis
Cystathionine‐γ‐lyase (CTH) and its catalyzed product hydrogen sulfide, a known gaseous transmitter, are dysregulated in prostate cancer. Increased CTH activity promotes cancer progression and metastasis via the sulfhydration of the NF‐κB subunit p65.
CTH induces H2S production to stimulate the sulfhydration of p65, promoting its nuclear translocation.
CTH‐dependent p65 sulfhydration triggers cell invasion via IL‐1β mediated signaling.
CTH promotes tumor growth, angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis and distant metastasis in vivo.
CTH levels are elevated in late‐stage prostate cancer patients and negatively correlated with good prognosis.
Cystathionine‐γ‐lyase (CTH) and its catalyzed product hydrogen sulfide, a known gaseous transmitter, are dysregulated in prostate cancer. Increased CTH activity promotes cancer progression and metastasis via the sulfhydration of the NF‐κB subunit p65.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Sr3Sn2O7 is the first room‐temperature ferroelectric Sn insulator with switchable electric polarization. The ferroelastic twin domains are observed using a polarized optical microscope. The ...polarization hysteresis loop clearly demonstrates the ferroelectric property. Intriguing polarization switching kinetics are observed through an in situ poling process using a dark‐field transmission electron microscopy technique.
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We present the physical properties of AKARI sources without optical counterparts in optical images from the Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) on the Subaru telescope. Using the AKARI infrared (IR) source ...catalog and HSC optical catalog, we select 583 objects that do not have HSC counterparts in the AKARI North Ecliptic Pole wide survey field (∼5 deg2). Because the HSC limiting magnitude is deep (gAB ∼ 28.6), these are good candidates for extremely red star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and/or active galactic nuclei (AGNs), possibly at high redshifts. We compile multiwavelength data out to 500 m and use them for fitting the spectral energy distribution with CIGALE to investigate the physical properties of AKARI galaxies without optical counterparts. We also compare their physical quantities with AKARI mid-IR selected galaxies with HSC counterparts. The estimated redshifts of AKARI objects without HSC counterparts range up to z ∼ 4, significantly higher than for AKARI objects with HSC counterparts. We find that (i) 3.6 - 4.5 m color, (ii) AGN luminosity, (iii) stellar mass, (iv) star formation rate, and (v) V-band dust attenuation in the interstellar medium of AKARI objects without HSC counterparts are systematically larger than those of AKARI objects with counterparts. These results suggest that our sample includes luminous, heavily dust-obscured SFGs/AGNs at z ∼ 1-4 that are missed by previous optical surveys, providing very interesting targets for the coming era of the James Webb Space Telescope.
Chromium‐doped zinc gallate, ZnGa2O4:Cr3+ (ZGC), is viewed as a long‐lasting luminescence (LLL) phosphor that can avoid tissue autofluorescence interference for in vivo imaging detection. ZGC is a ...cubic spinel structure, a typical agglomerative or clustered morphology lacking a defined cubic shape, but a sphere‐like feature is commonly obtained for the nanometric ZGC. The substantial challenge remains achieving a well‐defined cubic feature in nanoscale. The process by which dispersed and well‐defined concave cubic ZGC is obtained is described, exhibiting much stronger LLL in UV and X‐ray excitation for the dispersed cubic ZGC compared with the agglomerative form that cannot be excited using X‐rays with a low dose of 0.5 Gy. The cubic ZGC reveals a specific accumulation in liver and 0.5 Gy used at the end of X‐ray excitation is sufficient for imaging of deep‐seated hepatic tumors. The ZGC nanocubes show highly passive targeting of orthotopic hepatic tumors.
Dispersed and well‐defined ZnGa2O4:Cr3+ (ZGC) concave nanocubes are reported as providing highly passive targeting of deep‐seated hepatic tumors. They also exhibit much stronger long‐lasting luminescence in UV and X‐ray excitation for the dispersed cubic ZGC compared with the agglomerative form that cannot be charged using X‐rays with a low dose of 0.5 Gy.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
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