PurposeThe authors seek to understand the process of digital servitization as a shift of manufacturing companies from the provision of standard products and services to smart solutions. Specifically, ...the authors focus on changes in the business model (i.e. the value proposition, the value delivery system and the value capture mechanism) for digital servitization.Design/methodology/approachThe authors examine a Chinese air conditioner manufacturer, Gree, who became the global leader with their smart solutions. These solutions included performance-based contracts underpinned by artificial intelligence (AI)-powered air conditioners that automatically adjust to environmental changes and are capable of remote monitoring and servicing thanks to its Internet of things (IoT) technology.FindingsTo successfully offer smart solution value propositions, a manufacturer needs an ecosystem value delivery system composed of suppliers, distributors, partners and customers. Once the ecosystem relationships are well aligned, the manufacturer gains value with multiple value capture mechanisms (i.e. efficiency, accountability, shared customer value and novelty). To arrive at this point, a manufacturer has to pass through different stages that are characterized by both discontinuous and continuous interplay between business models and digital technologies. At the beginning of each stage, new value propositions and value delivery systems are first discontinuously created and then enabled with digital technology. As a result, new value capture mechanisms are activated. Meanwhile, the elements of the existing business model are continuously improved.Research limitations/implicationsBy combining process-perspective and business-model lenses, the authors offer nuanced insights into how digital servitization unfolds.Practical implicationsExecutives can obtain insights into the business model elements, they need to change over the course of digital servitization and how to manage the process.Originality/valueA longitudinal case study of a traditional manufacturer that has achieved stellar success through digital servitization business models development.
Intraflagellar transport (IFT) is a conserved mechanism thought to be essential for the assembly and maintenance of cilia and flagella. However, little is known about its role in mammalian sperm ...flagella formation. To fill this gap, we disrupted the Ift20 gene in male germ cells. Homozygous mutant mice were infertile with significantly reduced sperm counts and motility. In addition, abnormally shaped elongating spermatid heads and bulbous round spermatids were found in the lumen of the seminiferous tubules. Electron microscopy revealed increased cytoplasmic vesicles, fiber-like structures, abnormal accumulation of mitochondria and a decrease in mature lysosomes. The few developed sperm had disrupted axonemes and some retained cytoplasmic lobe components on the flagella. ODF2 and SPAG16L, two sperm flagella proteins failed to be incorporated into sperm tails of the mutant mice, and in the germ cells, both were assembled into complexes with lighter density in the absence of IFT20. Disrupting IFT20 did not significantly change expression levels of IFT88, a component of IFT-B complex, and IFT140, a component of IFT-A complex. Even though the expression level of an autophagy core protein that associates with IFT20, ATG16, was reduced in the testis of the Ift20 mutant mice, expression levels of other major autophagy markers, including LC3 and ubiquitin were not changed. Our studies suggest that IFT20 is essential for male fertility and spermiogenesis in mice, and its major function is to transport cargo proteins for sperm flagella formation. It also appears to be involved in removing excess cytoplasmic components.
The “chain chief system” is an institutional innovation that can enhance the responsibility of the industrial chain. Currently, various provinces and cities in China are adopting it to reap the ...benefits of resource combination. Traditional industrial synergy emphasizes “scale orientation,” and research on industrial policy, involving government administrative power, needs to be thoroughly discussed from the perspectives of government behavior and industry characteristics. This study utilizes the evolutionary game method to analyze the behavioral strategies of the government, leading enterprises, and other enterprises in the industrial chain under different conditions based on the perspective of value synergy. Relevant parameters of revenue and cost are modified for numerical simulation. The results demonstrate that the evolutionary stability strategy is influenced by various factors such as the government’s due diligence, subsidies, proportions allocated to different enterprises, benefits and costs, and industrial characteristics. Furthermore, the government can appropriately increase subsidies to leading enterprises and penalties for inaction, reduce barriers to data and scene sharing among enterprises in the industry, and lower industry concentration. These measures are more conducive to establish a “chain chief system” value synergy ecology in which all members actively participate.
Compared with straight tunnels, over-excavation occurs on the inner side of the curved section during shield construction of small radius curved tunnels, and the disturbance to the ground surface and ...mechanical properties of surrounding rock and segment are more severe. This paper establishes the numerical models of small radius curve tunnels and straight tunnels to study the characteristics of surface deformation caused by the shield excavation of small radius curved tunnels and the influence of shield construction parameters on ground settlement, surrounding rock deformation, and segment force. The maximum error between the numerical simulation results and the measured surface settlement curve is 7.3%, which is in good agreement. The results show that: (1) The maximum value of the surface settlement of the small radius curve tunnel appears inside the curve section, and with the decrease in the curve radius, the surface settlement increases, and the distance between the peak settlement point and the tunnel center is larger. (2) When the curve radius of the tunnel is smaller, the lateral displacement of the ground surface moves farther to the inner side, and the range of soil mass with lateral displacement in the inner side is also wider. (3) Increasing the heading face pressure and grouting pressure can reduce surface settlement, but the heading face pressure should not exceed 350 kPa, and the grouting pressure should not exceed 250 kPa. (4) When the curve radius is smaller, the deformation of surrounding rock and the segment stress is larger.
This study was to explore the influencing factors of atherosclerotic plaque formation and stability in patients with asymptomatic carotid atherosclerotic plaques, so as to identify the vulnerable ...plaques at early stage, and then find high-risk group of cardio-cerebrovascular events for early clinical intervention to reduce related mortality and disability.
A total of 302 enrolled patients with asymptomatic carotid atherosclerotic plaques were divided into 3 groups based on the results of carotid artery color Doppler ultrasound: atherosclerotic unstable plaque (UP) group, atherosclerotic stable plaque (SP) group, and control group without plaques. Serum markers were measured by ELISA. χ
test, t test, Pearson correlation analysis, and Logistic multivariate regression analysis were used in the analysis, and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
It revealed that high MMP-9, LOX-1and YKL-40 were independent risk factors for unstable plaque formation. The area under the curve (AUC) of serum markers combined with MMP-9, LOX-1 and YKL-40 was 0.850, with sensitivity 87.67%, specificity 81.13%, and diagnostic accuracy 84.92%, which was significantly better than the individual diagnostic efficacy of other three factors. The accuracy rate of Crouse Plaque Score (CPS) in the diagnosis of vulnerable plaques was 61.90%, the 10-year ICVD diagnosis accuracy rate was 56.75%, and the diagnostic accuracy of serum markers was significantly better than CPS and 10-year ICVD.
Noninvasive cervical color Doppler ultrasound combined with serum markers MMP-9, LOX-1 and YKL-40 have significant early recognition effect on asymptomatic carotid vulnerable plaque patients.
This paper establishes a three-dimensional symmetrical shield model to investigate the influence of a double-line shield tunnel undercrossing an existing foundation pit and of changed grouting ...pressure on the deformation and mechanical characteristics of both the foundation pit and the tunnel itself, and it proposes a method of symmetrical segmented pressure, in which different grouting pressure is applied in different sections of the tunnel. The monitoring data are used to verify the reliability of the model, and the maximum relative error is 5.44%. The numerical results show that the maximum subsidence of the retaining pile and anchor are 3.76 mm and 10.33 mm, respectively, and the maximum tensile stress of the anchor is increased by 32.4%. The subsidence shape of the foundation pit raft is an arch with four corners warping upward and the maximum subsidence difference is 3.17 mm. Uneven subsidence of the tunnel occurs along the longitudinal direction, and large and small subsidences are located at the outside and underpart of the foundation pit, respectively, and the maximum and minimum values are 11.15 mm and 2.13 mm, respectively, and the maximum subsidence difference is 9.02 mm. The deformation and mechanical characteristics of both the foundation pit and the tunnel are significantly decreased by appropriately increasing the grouting pressure, and it is recommended that the grouting pressure should not exceed 300 kPa. The proposed method of segmented pressure can reduce the differential subsidence by 47.2% and the maximum tensile stress by 27.2%, so it can significantly reduce the uneven subsidence of the tunnel and improve the tunnel stress condition. The research results can provide a theoretical basis for the safe construction of shield tunnels under the existing foundation pit.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Intraflagellar transport (IFT) is a conserved mechanism essential for the assembly and maintenance of most eukaryotic cilia and flagella. However, little is known about its role in sperm flagella ...formation and male fertility. IFT140 is a component of IFT‐A complex. In mouse, it is highly expressed in the testis. Ift140 gene was inactivated specifically in mouse spermatocytes/spermatids. The mutant mice did not show any gross abnormalities, but all were infertile and associated with significantly reduced sperm number and motility. Multiple sperm morphological abnormalities were discovered, including amorphous heads, short/bent flagella and swollen tail tips, as well as vesicles along the flagella due to spermiogenesis defects. The epididymides contained round bodies of cytoplasm derived from the sloughing of the cytoplasmic lobes and residual bodies. Knockout of Ift140 did not significantly affect testicular expression levels of selective IFT components but localization of IFT27 and IFT88, two components of IFT‐B complex, was changed. Our findings demonstrate that IFT140 is a key regulator for male fertility and normal spermiogenesis in mice. It not only plays a role in sperm flagella assembling, but is also involved in critical assembly of proteins that interface between the germ cell plasma and the Sertoli cell.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The surface settlement formula of large slope tunnel is derived firstly. Then, the finite element model of shield tunnel is established by using ABAQUS software. Finally, the influences of tunnel ...slope, grouting pressure and shield tail clearance on ground surface settlement, and mechanical properties of surrounding rock and segments are studied by the field measurement and numerical simulation method. The results show that (1) For the slope is less than 4°, the slope increases by 1°, the settlement of ground surface increases by about 2.85 %, the shear stress of surrounding rock increases by about 4.5 kPa, and the tensile and circumferential stresses of segment increase by about 5 % and 3.1 %, respectively. (2) The proper grouting pressure is beneficial to the settlement of ground surface, and the mechanical properties of surrounding rock and segment. (3) For the shield tail clearance is less than 15 cm, the clearance increases by 1 cm, the settlement of ground surface increases by about 0.65 mm, the shear stress of surrounding rock increases by about 4.77 kPa, and the circumferential stress of segment reduces by about 0.02 MPa. Therefore, the grouting pressure with 200 kPa and the shield tail clearance with 10 cm are recommended.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
A key event in the process of spermiogenesis is the formation of the flagella, which enables sperm to reach eggs for fertilization. Yeast two-hybrid studies revealed that meiosis-expressed gene 1 ...(MEIG1) and Parkin co-regulated gene (PACRG) interact, and that sperm-associated antigen 16, which encodes an axoneme central apparatus protein, is also a binding partner of MEIG1. In spermatocytes of wild-type mice, MEIG1 is expressed in the whole germ cell bodies, but the protein migrates to the manchette, a unique structure at the base of elongating spermatid that directs formation of the flagella. In the elongating spermatids of wild-type mice, PACRG colocalizes with α-tubulin, a marker for the manchette, whereas this localization was not changed in the few remaining elongating spermatids of Meig1-deficient mice. In addition, MEIG1 no longer localizes to the manchette in the remaining elongating spermatids of Pacrg-deficient mice, indicating that PACRG recruits MEIG1 to the manchette. PACRG is not stable in mammalian cells, but can be stabilized by MEIG1 or by inhibition of proteasome function. SPAG16L is present in the spermatocyte cytoplasm of wild-type mice, and in the manchette of elongating spermatids, but in the Meig1 or Pacrg-deficient mice, SPAG16L no longer localizes to the manchette. By contrast, MEIG1 and PACRG are still present in the manchette of Spag16L-deficient mice, indicating that SPAG16L is a downstream partner of these two proteins. Together, our studies demonstrate that MEIG1/PACRG forms a complex in the manchette and that this complex is necessary to transport cargos, such as SPAG16L, to build the sperm flagella.
Tantalum disilicide (TaSi2) has been widely studied for its excellent physical properties such as high hardness, high temperature oxidation resistance and low resistivity. Here, we aim to investigate ...the effects of different sintering temperatures and pressures on the microstructure and physical properties of TaSi2 ceramics. We successfully prepared dense TaSi2 ceramics using high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) sintering techniques. Characterization results show that TaSi2 ceramic properties are strongly influenced by the sintering temperature. The density, Vickers hardness and fracture toughness of TaSi2 sintered samples reaches a maximum value of 9.182 g/cm3, 11.34 GPa and 11.97 MPa m1/2, respectively. The fracture toughness of TaSi2 sintered samples was significantly improved and also exhibited excellent high-temperature oxidation resistance. Meanwhile, we also investigated the microstructure and grain size variation of TaSi2 sintered samples with sintering conditions using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The results show that HPHT sintering can effectively refine the grains of TaSi2 ceramics. It provides effective data and ideas for more efficient utilization of TaSi2 and preparation of other high-performance ceramics.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
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