The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between muscle water properties, water-holding capacity (WHC), and woody breast (WB) severity in intact raw broiler breast fillets. ...Broiler pectoralis major deboned at 3 h postmortem was collected from a commercial plant and categorized as normal (NORM), moderate WB, or severe WB (SEV). Meat drip loss was calculated based on weight loss during overnight storage at 4°C. Water properties of the intact fillets were determined with time domain nuclear magnetic resonance and the T
relaxation times were determined using an inverse Laplace algorithm (CONTIN). Three T
water components, hydration water (T
), intra-myofibrillar water (T
), and extra-myofibrillar water (T
), were identified. With increasing WB severity, the time constant of each water component and the relative content of T
(P
) increased while the relative areas of T
and T
(P
and P
, respectively) decreased. Spearman correlation analysis showed that there were significant correlations between the WB condition score and either the time constant or normalized area for each T
component. T
normalized areas (A
) were most strongly correlated with the WB score (r = 0.75); however, the weakest correlation was found between the WB score and T
areas (A
). Pearson correlation analysis revealed that the strongest correlation (r = 0.64) was found between A
and drip loss; however, there was no correlation between A
and drip loss. Within the NORM group, drip loss was significantly correlated to the time constants for both T
and T
. Within the SEV group, only A
was significantly correlated to drip loss. These data indicate that the WB condition has a significant impact on the distribution of water within the intact muscle tissue. The content of extra-myofibrillar water in broiler breast fillets may be a key factor responsible for the poor WHC measurements in WB meat.
Spin excitations in the overdoped high temperature superconductors Tl_{2}Ba_{2}CuO_{6+δ} and (Bi,Pb)_{2}(Sr,La)_{2}CuO_{6+δ} were investigated by resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) as ...functions of doping and detuning of the incoming photon energy above the Cu-L_{3} absorption peak. The RIXS spectra at optimal doping are dominated by a paramagnon feature with peak energy independent of photon energy, similar to prior results on underdoped cuprates. Beyond optimal doping, the RIXS data indicate a sharp crossover to a regime with a strong contribution from incoherent particle-hole excitations whose maximum shows a fluorescencelike shift upon detuning. The spectra of both compound families are closely similar, and their salient features are reproduced by exact-diagonalization calculations of the single-band Hubbard model on a finite cluster. The results are discussed in the light of recent transport experiments indicating a quantum phase transition near optimal doping.
Three different procedures for isolation of cellulose from sugarcane bagasse (SCB) were comparatively studied. Sequential extractions of dewaxed SCB with water with or without ultrasonic irradiation, ...various concentrations of alkali and alkaline peroxide yielded 44.7 and 45.9% cellulose preparations, which contained 6.0 and 7.2% associated hemicelluloses and 3.4 and 3.9% bound lignin, respectively. Delignification with acidic sodium chlorite followed by extraction with alkali (10% KOH and 10% NaOH) gave cellulose yields of 44.7 and 44.2%, which contained 5.7 and 3.7% residual hemicelluloses and 1.6 and 1.5% remaining lignin, respectively. Interestingly, a one-step treatment of SCB with an 80% acetic acid–70% nitric acid mixture under the conditions given yielded 43.0–43.6% of the more pure cellulose fractions, which contained minor amounts of bound hemicelluloses (3.2–4.3%) and were relatively free of associated lignin (0.2–0.6%). The isolated six cellulose samples were comparatively studied by both degraded methods such as acid hydrolysis and thermal analysis and non-degradation techniques such as FT-IR and CP/MAS
13C-NMR spectroscopy, and the relative crystallinity was also comparatively estimated.
We performed the broadband (1-100 keV) spectral analysis of the first Galactic Be ultraluminous X-ray pulsar (BeULX) Swift J0243.6+6124 observed by Insight-HXMT during the 2017−2018 outburst. The ...results show spectral transitions at two typical luminosities, roughly consistently with those reported previously via pure timing analysis. We find that the spectrum evolves and becomes softer and has higher cutoff energies until the luminosity reaches L1 (∼1.5 × 1038 erg s−1). Afterwards the spectrum becomes harder with lower cutoff energies until the luminosity increases to L2 (∼4.4 × 1038 erg s−1), around which the second spectral transition occurs. Beyond L2, the spectrum softens again and has larger cutoff energies. Similar behaviors were observed previously in other high-mass X-ray binary systems (HMXBs), especially for the second transition at higher luminosities, which is believed to have a correlation with the magnetic field of the harbored neutron star. Accordingly, we speculate that Swift J0243.6+6124 owns a neutron star with magnetic field strength >1013 G. The spectral transition at around L1 of Swift J0243.6+6124 is first observed thoroughly for any HMXB outburst characterized by strong evolution of the thermal component: the temperature of the blackbody drops sharply accompanied by a sudden increase of the blackbody radius. These spectral transitions can in principle be understood in a general scenario of balancing the emission patterns between the pencil and the fan beams at the magnetic pole, for which the extreme brightness of Swift J0243.6+6124 may provide an almost unique lab to probe the details.
We performed a two-stage genome-wide association study of IgA nephropathy (IgAN) in Han Chinese, with 1,434 affected individuals (cases) and 4,270 controls in the discovery phase and follow-up of the ...top 61 SNPs in an additional 2,703 cases and 3,464 controls. We identified associations at 17p13 (rs3803800, P = 9.40 × 10(-11), OR = 1.21; rs4227, P = 4.31 × 10(-10), OR = 1.23) and 8p23 (rs2738048, P = 3.18 × 10(-14), OR = 0.79) that implicated the genes encoding tumor necrosis factor (TNFSF13) and α-defensin (DEFA) as susceptibility genes. In addition, we found multiple associations in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) region (rs660895, P = 4.13 × 10(-20), OR = 1.34; rs1794275, P = 3.43 × 10(-13), OR = 1.30; rs2523946, P = 1.74 × 10(-11), OR = 1.21) and confirmed a previously reported association at 22q12 (rs12537, P = 1.17 × 10(-11), OR = 0.78). We also found that rs660895 was associated with clinical subtypes of IgAN (P = 0.003), proteinuria (P = 0.025) and IgA levels (P = 0.047). Our findings show that IgAN is associated with variants near genes involved in innate immunity and inflammation.
Encouraging results from a small sample of patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) undergoing haploidentical donor (HID) hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) must be extended. ...Furthermore, an algorithm derived from a comparison of the outcomes of HID and identical-sibling donor (ISD) HSCT must be established. Therefore, the outcomes of 454 MDS patients who underwent HSCT from HIDs (n=226) or ISDs (n=228) between 2003 and 2013 that were reported to the Chinese Bone Marrow Transplantation Registry were analyzed. Among the 3/6 HID (n=136), 4-5/6 HID (n=90) and ISD patient groups, the 4-year adjusted cumulative incidences of non-relapse mortality were 34, 29 and 16%, respectively (overall P=0.004), and of relapse were 6, 7 and 10%, respectively (overall P=0.36). The 4-year adjusted probabilities of overall survival were 58, 63 and 73%, respectively (overall P=0.07), and of relapse-free-survival were 58, 63 and 71%, respectively (overall P=0.14); pairwise comparison showed that the difference was only statistically significant in the 3/6 HID vs ISD pair. The data suggest that ISDs remain the best donor source for MDS patients while HIDs (perhaps 4-5/6 HID in particular) could be a valid alternative when an ISD is not available; human leukocyte antigen disparity had no effect on survival among the HID patients.
Ultrafine iron ore concentrate pose challenges such as poor pellet formation performance, low-bursting temperature, and a complex drying thermal regime. To examine the drying characteristics of green ...pellets made from ultrafine iron ore concentrate, the Weibull distribution function and Dincer model were employed to fit and analyze the corresponding drying curve. The effects of drying temperature and air speed on the strength of dried pellets were also studied. The findings revealed that the drying process of green pellets of ultrafine iron ore concentrate involved three stages: ascending speed, constant speed, and descending speed. As the drying temperature and air speed increased, the drying time decreased. The coefficient of determination R2 for the fitted Weibull distribution function model ranged from 0.995 to 0.998, while the R2 value for the Dincer model ranged from 0.990 to 0.996. Both fitted models aligned with the experimental data and proved to be effective. According to the Bi values obtained through the Dincer model, raising the drying air speed in the initial stage and the drying air temperature in the subsequent stage of the drying system could efficiently remove moisture, reduce the risk of green pellet rupture, and maintain productivity. The moisture diffusion coefficient and convective mass transfer coefficient increased with rising temperature and air velocity, following the order of Deff > Dcal > D*eff as determined by the Weibull distribution function, Dincer model, and Fick?s second law. Additionally, the activation energy value of ultrafine iron ore concentrate for drying derived from the Arrhenius formula was 4515.60 J/(mol?K). Notably, increasing the drying temperature increased the strength of the dried particles due to their more compact and dense internal structure. This study offers theoretical support for simulating the drying of green ultrafine iron ore concentrate pellets and provides guidelines for selecting diverse drying conditions and designing drying equipment.
Tibetan Plateau uplift has been suggested as the main driving force for mid-latitude Asian inland aridity (AIA) and for deposition of thick aeolian sequences in northern China since the Miocene. ...However, the relationship between earlier AIA and Tibetan Plateau mountain building is uncertain because of a lack of corresponding thick aeolian sequences with accurate age constraints. We here present results for a continuous aeolian sequence that spans the interval from >51 to 39 Ma from the eastern Xorkol Basin, Altun Shan, northeastern Tibetan Plateau. The basal age of the studied sequence postdates initial uplift of the Tibetan Plateau by several million years. Our results indicate that the local palaeoclimate was teleconnected strongly to the overall global cooling pattern, so that local enhanced aridification recorded by the studied aeolian sequence is dominantly a response to global climatic forcing rather than plateau uplift.
Chromium (Cr)/nitrogen (N) alloying can enhance the yield strength of high-manganese (Mn) steels. This work investigated the mechanical properties of a high-Mn twin-induced plastic (TWIP) steel with ...6.3% Cr and 0.2% N by tensile testing in an ambient atmosphere and impact testing at –196°C. The yield strength of the high-Mn steel was improved significantly with Cr/N alloying and an excellent low-temperature toughness was maintained. Solid–solution strengthening resulting from dissolved nitrogen was the most effective strength mechanism to increase the yield strength of the steel compared with grain-boundary and precipitation strengthening, which result from the precipitation of aluminum nitride. Grain-boundary and precipitation strengthening result from the precipitation of aluminum nitride. Because of its excellent mechanical properties, high-Mn steel that is produced by Cr/N alloying can be used to manufacture storage tanks for liquefied natural gas.
An electrochemical tetrahedral APT biosensor (Au-TAN biosensor) was successfully constructed, which had a stable structure and excellent performance using tetrahedral DNA nanomaterials (TDN) and Au ...nanoparticles (AuNPs) for the detection of acetamiprid. Specifically, we designed a partial paired complementary DNA (cDNA) of acetamiprid aptamer and inserted the cDNA together with the acetamiprid aptamer into four single-stranded DNA sequences forming each side of the TDN, modifying AuNPs to increase the current signal intensity, to assemble the Au-TAN. This proposed aptasensor was compared with ssAPT aptasensor and tetrahedral APT nanostructures (TAN) aptasensor, respectively. The results showed that the performance of the designed aptasensor was better than those of the above two aptasensors. The detection limit of the aptasensor was calculated to be 0.077 pM (S/N = 3), which was far lower than that of other methods that we compared. Under optimized conditions, the proposed aptasensor showed a wide linear detection range from 0.1 pM to 10 nM. The Au-TAN biosensor opens up new ideas for the construction of aptasensors and provides a new method for detection of small molecular substances, such as pesticides residues.
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