Situation awareness is an important function module contained in the information system for regional emergency rescue. To improve the existing emergency information system, a situation awareness ...model of chemical release is constructed containing three levels, i.e. Data Acquisition, Intelligent Analysis and Simulation & Prediction, in which Intelligent Analysis was designed as an independent functional item for unknown source detection. Combining the receptor data with the atmospheric dispersion model, the source items estimation problem was then converted to a standardized concentration field fitting problem. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) was introduced to optimize the combination solution of multi-parameters including source strength, location, height and release time. The effectiveness and applicability of this method was verified through dozens of simulated tests. Further performance comparison with Nelder Mead Simplex Method and Genetic Algorithm show the results: in terms of estimation accuracy, computational efficiency and algorithm robustness, PSO are all superior to the other two algorithms. It can be flexible with different atmospheric dispersion models for fast source inversion in integrated situational awareness system.
The objective of this study was to develop a novel anhydrous reverse micelle nanoparticles (ARM-NPs) system to overcome the sedimentation instability of peptide-containing pressurized metered-dose ...inhalers (pMDIs). A bottom-up method was utilized to fabricate ARM-NPs. Tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA)/water system, freeze-drying and lipid inversion method were successively used to produce the ARM-NPs for pMDI. Various characteristics of ARM-NPs were investigated including particle size, morphology, secondary structure of the peptide drug, aerosolization properties and storage stability. As revealed by the results, ARM-NPs with spherical shape possessed 147.7 ± 2.0 nm of particle size with 0.152 ± 0.021 PdI. The ARM-NPs for pMDI had satisfactory fine particle fraction (FPF) value of 46.99 ± 1.33%, while the secondary structure of the peptide drug was unchanged. Stability tests showed no pronounced sedimentation instability for over 12 weeks at 4-6 °C. Furthermore, a hypothesis was raised to explain the formation mechanism of ARM-NPs, which was verified by the differential scanning calorimetry analysis. The lecithin employed in the reverse micelle vesicles could serve as a steric barrier between peptide drugs and bulk propellant, which prevented the instability of peptide drugs in hydrophobic environment. Homogenous particle size could avoid Ostwald ripening phenomenon of particles in pMDIs. It was concluded that the ARM-NPs for pMDI could successfully overcome sedimentation instability by the steric barrier effect and homogeneous particle size.
Film coating is an important unit operation to produce solid dosage forms, thereby, the monitoring of this process is helpful to find problems in time and improve the quality of coated products. ...Traditional methods adopted to monitor this process include measurement of coating weight gain, performance of disintegration and dissolution test, etc. However, not only do these methods cause destruction to the samples, but also consume time and energy. There have recently emerged the applications of process analytical technologies (PAT) on film coating, especially some novel spectroscopic and imaging technologies, which have the potential to real-time track the progress in film coating and optimize production efficiency. This article gives an overview on the application of such technologies for film coating, with the goal to provide a reference for the further researches.
This paper presents analytical solutions for the dynamic response of thin-walled curved beams induced by moving vehicles. The solutions encompass vertical, torsional, radial, and axial motions. A ...comprehensive set of governing equations for the dynamic response of thin-walled curved beams is established by considering the mass inertia of moving vehicles, rotary inertia, and warping resistance. The solutions are obtained for the four-directional response of curved beams, involving vertical, torsional, radial, and axial motions, based on the Fourier finite integral transformation, the Laplace–Carson transformation, their inverse transformations, and the Galerkin approach. A comparison of the results calculated by the analytical solutions in this study are compared with those calculated by the moving-force solutions using the Galerkin approach reported in a related literature, demonstrates the reliability and superiority of the analytical solutions. Hence, an extensive parametric study is carried out to investigate the effect of the mass inertia of moving vehicles, velocities, higher-order modes of vibrations, and radii of curvature on the dynamic responses of beams. As per the results, the mass and velocity of the moving vehicles play important roles in the dynamic response of curved beams. Furthermore, the dynamic response for thin-walled curved beams increases significantly with heavier vehicles and higher velocities, confirming that it is necessary to consider the mass inertia effect to study the dynamic response of curved beams.
•The analytical solution for out-of-plane and in-plane response of beams is proposed.•The mass inertia of vehicles, rotary inertia and warping resistant are considered.•Dynamic amplification factor increases with mass and velocities of vehicles.•Natural frequencies of loaded beams vary with the vehicle position.•The method proposed provides reliable results of dynamic response of curved beams.
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•Reverse lecithin micelle/PLGA microspheres were developed by S/O/W technique.•Properties of microspheres prepared by S/O/W and W/O/W methods were compared.•S/O/W microspheres ...achieved zero-order controlled release with a low initial burst.•S/O/W technique preserved the bioactivity of proteins without causing cytotoxicity.
To address the issue of initial burst release from poly (lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) microspheres prepared by water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) double emulsion technique, PLGA composite microspheres containing anhydrous reverse micelle (ARM) lecithin nanoparticles were developed by a modified solid-in-oil-in-water (S/O/W) technique. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) loaded ARM lecithin nanoparticles, which were obtained by initial self-assembly and subsequent lipid inversion of the lecithin vesicles, were then encapsulated into PLGA matrix by the S/O/W technique to form composite microspheres. In vitro release study indicated that BSA was slowly released from the PLGA composite microspheres over 60 days with a reduced initial burst (11.42 ± 2.17% within 24 h). The potential mechanism of reduced initial burst and protein protection using this drug delivery system was analyzed through observing the degradation process of carriers and fitting drug release data with various kinetic models. The secondary structure of encapsulated BSA was well maintained through the steric barrier effect of ARM lecithin nanoparticles, which avoided exposure of proteins to the organic solvent during the preparation procedure. In addition, the PLGA composite microspheres exhibited superior biocompatibility without notable cytotoxicity. These results suggested that ARM lecithin nanoparticles/PLGA composite microspheres could be a promising platform for long-term protein delivery with a reduced initial burst.
We report on the ice-templated preparation and sodium storage of ultrasmall SnO2 nanoparticles （3--4 nm） embedded in three-dimensional （3D） graphene （SnO2@3DG）. SnO2@3DG was fabricated by ...hydrothermal assembly with ice-templated 3DG and a tin source. The structure and morphology analyses showed that 3DG has an interconnected porous architecture with a large pore volume of 0.578 cm^3·g^-1 and a high surface area of 470.5 m^2·g^-1. In comparison, SnO2@3DG exhibited a pore volume of 0.321 cmg.g^-1 and a surface area of 237.7 m^2·g^-1 with a homogeneous distribution of ultrasmall SnO2 nanoparticles in a 3DG network. SnO2@3DG showed a discharge capacity of 1,155 mA-h·g^-1 in the initial cycle, a reversible capacity of 432 mA·h·g^-1 after 200 cycles at 100 mA·g^-1 （with capacity retention of 85.7% relative to that in the second cycle）, and a discharge capacity of 210 mAh·g^-1 at a high rate of 800 mA·g^-1 This is due to the high distribution of SnO2 nanoparticles in the 3DG network and the enhanced facilitation of electron/ion transport in the electrode.
We here report a much improved electrochemical performance of sodium batteries with the 9,10-anthraquinone (AQ) cathode encapsulated in CMK-3, an ether-based electrolyte of high-concentration ...CF3SO3Na (NaTFS) as a sodium salt in triethylene glycol dimethyl ether (TEGDME) solvent, and the Na anode.
Abstract
Gut microbiota (GM) metabolites can modulate the physiology of the host brain through the gut–brain axis. We wished to discover connections between the GM, neurotransmitters, and brain ...function using direct and indirect methods. A diet with increased amounts of sugar and fat (high-sugar and high-fat (HSHF) diet) was employed to disturb the host GM. Then, we monitored the effect on pathology, neurotransmitter metabolism, transcription, and brain circularRNAs (circRNAs) profiles in mice. Administration of a HSHF diet-induced dysbacteriosis, damaged the intestinal tract, changed the neurotransmitter metabolism in the intestine and brain, and then caused changes in brain function and circRNA profiles. The GM byproduct trimethylamine-n-oxide could degrade some circRNAs. The basal level of the GM decided the conversion rate of choline to trimethylamine-n-oxide. A change in the abundance of a single bacterial strain could influence neurotransmitter secretion. These findings suggest that a new link between metabolism, brain circRNAs, and GM. Our data could enlarge the “microbiome–transcriptome” linkage library and provide more information on the gut–brain axis. Hence, our findings could provide more information on the interplay between the gut and brain to aid the identification of potential therapeutic markers and mechanistic solutions to complex problems encountered in studies of pathology, toxicology, diet, and nutrition development.
The progression of acute kidney injury (AKI) might be associated with systemic inflammation. Our study aims to explore the association and predictive value of the red blood cell distribution width ...(RDW) to human serum albumin (ALB) ratio (RDW/ALB ratio), an inflammation-related indicator, in the risk of all-cause mortality and renal replacement therapy (RRT) in AKI patients admitted in intensive care units (ICU).
A retrospective cohort study was designed, and data were extracted from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III (MIMIC-III). The primary outcome was the risk of all-cause mortality (1-month, 3-month, and 12-month), and the secondary outcome was the risk of RRT. The association between the RDW/ALB ratio and the risk of all-cause mortality and RRT was assessed using the Cox regression analysis, with results shown as hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The relationship between the RDW/ALB ratio and crude probability of all-cause mortality or RRT was assessed using restricted cubic splines (RCS). The concordance index (C-index) was used to assess the discrimination of the prediction model.
A total of 13,856 patients were included in our study. In the fully adjusted Cox regression model, we found that a high RDW/ALB ratio was associated with an increased risk of 1-month, 3-month, and 12-month all-cause mortality and RRT (all
< 0.05). Moreover, RCS curves showed the linear relationship between the RDW/ALB ratio and the probability of all-cause mortality and RRT, and the probability was elevated with the increase of the ratio. In addition, the RDW/ALB ratio showed a good predictive performance in the risk of 1-month all-cause mortality, 3-month all-cause mortality, 12-month all-cause mortality, and RRT, with a C-index of 0.728 (95%CI: 0.719-0.737), 0.728 (95%CI: 0.721-0.735), 0.719 (95%CI: 0.713-0.725), and 0.883 (95%CI: 0.876-0.890), respectively.
The RDW/ALB ratio performed well to predict the risk of all-cause mortality and RRT in critically ill patients with AKI, indicating that this combined inflammatory indicator might be effective in clinical practice.
Two composites of phosphorus nanoparticles encapsulated in graphene scrolls (P‐G) and phosphorus nanoparticles loaded on planar graphene sheets (P/G) were successfully prepared and applied as anodes ...for sodium‐ion batteries. Phosphorus nanoparticles (ca. 100–150 nm) were firstly obtained from commercial red phosphorus by using a simple flotation method. P‐G composites with different phosphorus contents (38.6, 52.2, and 62.1 %) were synthesized through a quick‐freezing process. In addition, the P/G composite with a phosphorus content of 50.8 % was prepared for comparison purposes. As a result, the P‐G composites showed a better performance than the P/G composite. Moreover, the P‐G composite with a phosphorus content of 52.2 % showed the best performance, delivering a capacity of 2355 mAh g−1 in the second cycle and 2172 mAh g−1 after 150 cycles at 250 mA g−1 (with a capacity retention of 92.3 %).
Scrolling cycles: Phosphorus nanoparticles encapsulated in graphene scrolls are prepared, which deliver a capacity of 2355 mAh g−1 in the second cycle and 2172 mAh g−1 after 150 cycles with a high capacity retention of 92.3 %.
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