Neurological disorders can be caused by viral infections. The association between viral infections and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) has been well-documented for a long time, and ...this connection has recently come to attention with the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, the precise nature of the causal connection between NMOSD and COVID-19 infection remains uncertain.
To investigate the causal relationship between COVID-19 and NMOSD, we utilized a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach. This analysis was based on the most extensive and recent genome-wide association study (GWAS) that included SARS-CoV-2 infection data (122616 cases and 2475240 controls), hospitalized COVID-19 data (32519 cases and 2062805 controls), and data on severe respiratory confirmed COVID-19 cases (13769 cases and 1072442 controls). Additionally, we incorporated a GWAS meta-analysis comprising 132 cases of AQP4-IgG-seropositive NMOSD (NMO-IgG+), 83 cases of AQP4-IgG-seronegative NMOSD (NMO-IgG-), and 1244 controls.
The findings of our study indicate that the risk of developing NMO-IgG+ is elevated when there is a genetic predisposition to SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR = 5.512, 95% CI = 1.403-21.657, P = 0.014). Furthermore, patients with genetically predicted NMOSD did not exhibit any heightened susceptibility to SARS-CoV2 infection, COVID-19 hospitalization, or severity.
our study using Mendelian randomization (MR) revealed, for the first time, that the presence of genetically predicted SARS-CoV2 infection was identified as a contributing factor for NMO-IgG+ relapses.
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•The initial grain nucleation prefers to occur inside of the DBs in the comparison with grain boundaries.•DB is demonstrated to be the source of orientations and positions for the ...nucleated grains.•The area fraction of DBs has a positive correlation with the number of nucleated grains which would contribute to the RX rate.•The developed KWC phase-field model successfully calculated the kinetics of the RX process in different microstructures.
Deformation bands (DBs), formed after plastic deformation, are known to have an impact on the recrystallization (RX) process. The exact mechanisms of how DBs influence grain nucleation and grain growth remain unclear. In this paper, deformed single and multicrystal pure aluminium samples are annealed to explore the likely effects of DBs on the grain nucleation and the subsequent grain growth. Regarding the prediction of the recrystallized (RXed) texture, it is noticeable that the orientations of nucleated grains nearby DB are originated from the orientation in DB. Regarding the nucleated positions, it is demonstrated that potential nucleation sites are more likely located in DBs in comparison with the initial grain boundary. Regarding the rate of RX, the number of nucleated grains is also predicted to have a strong positive correlation with the area fraction of DBs, which would consequently affect the kinetics of the grain growth in the deformed microstructure. All the above observations imply that the RX process is strongly controlled by the ensemble characteristics of DBs rather than the initial grain boundaries.
Abstract
Magnetic skyrmions, whose shapes are ellipse due to the presence of anisotropic Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction (DMI), have already been discovered in experiments recently. By using ...micromagnetic simulations, we discuss the ground state and the spin-wave modes of a single elliptical skyrmion in a confined nanodot. It is found that the shapes of skyrmion are stretched into a horizontal ellipse, vertical ellipse, or stripe shape under different strengths of anisotropic DMI. When elliptical skyrmions are excited by in-plane ac magnetic fields, the spin-wave mode contains a counterclockwise rotation mode at high frequencies and a clockwise (CW) rotation mode at low frequencies, and the CW mode depends on the strength of anisotropic DMI. When elliptical skyrmions are excited by out-of-plane ac magnetic fields, the spin-wave mode is split from a simple breathing mode into two complex breathing modes, including a mixed mode of CW rotation and breathing, and another anisotropic breathing mode. Our results provide an understanding of the rich spin-wave modes for skyrmions, which may contribute to the applications in magnonics.
Abstract
We report the resonance excitations and the spin-wave modes of a single bimeron in a confined nanodot by using micromagnetic simulations. Magnetic bimerons can be considered as in-plane ...topological spin textures of magnetic skyrmions, which means that the spin-wave modes of bimerons also rotate in-plane compared to skyrmions, for example, through the application of out-of-plane microwave magnetic fields, the spin-wave mode of bimerons is no longer a breathing mode but contains a counterclockwise mode at low frequencies and a clockwise mode at high frequencies. When in-plane microwave magnetic fields rotated at different angles are applied, the spin-wave mode of bimerons has an anisotropic property, i.e., the spin-wave mode presents as a breathing mode for the microwave magnetic field applied along the
x
-direction, and a couple of azimuthal modes for the microwave magnetic field applied along the
y
-direction. Moreover, we demonstrate that the breathing mode, the counterclockwise rotation mode, and the clockwise rotation mode can simultaneously appear together when the microwave magnetic field is applied at a specific angle in the plane. In addition to the three typical spin-wave modes, two high-phase counterclockwise rotation modes lead to the periodic deformation of bimerons due to the broken rotational symmetry of the spin texture. Our results reveal the rich spin-wave modes of bimerons, which may contribute to the applications in spintronics and magnonics.
The fish-flower symbiosis model is an eco-friendly sustainable farming technology combining plants, fish and microorganisms in a recirculating aquaculture system. However, there are few studies on ...the structure and diversity of microbial communities in fish intestines, culture water and plant roots during fish-flower symbiosis. Here, we cultured carp (
Cyprinus carpio
), crucian carp (
Carassius auratus
) and grass carp (
Ctenopharyngodon idella
) with mint (
Mentha spicala
L.) and extracted total genomic DNA from intestinal microorganisms, culture-water microorganisms and root microorganisms for each fish species for high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. Analysis of microbial community structure and diversity revealed changes in abundance of microbial genera in the intestines and culture water of each fish species, including changes in the dominant taxa.
Pirellula, Truepera, Aquincola, Cetobacterium
and
Luteolibacter
were widespread in the fish intestine, culture water and mint root system. This study revealed the effects of mint feeding on the structure and diversity of microbial communities of fish, water bodies and the mint root system during fish-flower symbiosis, providing a theoretical reference for the promotion and application of fish-flower (mint) symbiosis technology and healthy fish culture technology.
Generalized convulsive epilepsy (GCE), an important subtype of epilepsy, is a syndrome of neuronal dysfunction characterized by diffuse abnormal discharge of neurons within the brain. Compounding ...evidence suggests a correlation between epilepsy and inflammatory factors, for instance, cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin-1β, and interleukin-6. Elevated levels of inflammatory factors have been observed in patients with epilepsy and several animal models. Therefore, inflammation may be closely associated with the pathogenesis and progression of GCE. However, the cause-and-effect relationship between the two is difficult to determine because of small sample sizes and confounding factors.
To test for causality of the 41 cytokines on GCE, we conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) based on the largest and latest genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 290 cases and 453,521 European controls and a GWAS meta-analysis consisting of 41 cytokines from 8,293 individuals.
R confirmed a bidirectional causal link between cytokines and GCE. Genetically predicted increased levels of hepatocyte growth factor and decreased levels of eotaxin and interleukin-18 are associated with an increased risk of GCE (OR = 1.904, 95% CI = 1.019-3.561,
= 0.044; OR = 0.641, 95% CI = 0.417-0.984,
= 0.042; OR = 0.482, 95% CI = 0.251-0.927,
= 0.046). Furthermore, the presence of GCE is related to an increase in levels of multiple cytokines, such as macrophage inflammatory protein-1α, interleukin-12p70, interleukin-17, interleukin-1 receptor antagonist, and basic fibroblast growth factor (OR = 1.038, 95% CI = 1.005-1.073,
= 0.024; OR = 1.031, 95% CI = 1.009-1.054,
= 0.006; OR = 1.027, 95% CI = 1.002-1.053,
= 0.037; OR = 1.037, 95% CI = 1.003-1.072,
= 0.032; OR = 1.032, 95% CI = 1.000-1.066,
= 0.048; OR = 1.025, 95% CI = 1.003-1.048,
= 0026).
A bidirectional causal link existed between inflammation and GCE. Detecting significantly altered factor concentrations may be of great significance for screening GCE and predicting their occurrence. Moreover, available pharmacological treatments for GCE are focused primarily on suppressing seizures. In future, altering the concentration of these cytokines in the body through targeted anti-inflammatory therapy to modify the epileptogenic mechanism and prevent the recurrence and refractoriness of GCE may become the key to new treatments.
In order to explore the influence of cold heading equipment based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) polymer sensing material on steel ball stamping, a new method was proposed to reflect the defects ...of cold heading forming of steel ball by load signal. PVDF piezoelectric film is used as the sensor design of force and support structure of steel ball cold heading electromechanical sensor model. PVDF piezoelectric thin film force sensor is used for the structural optimization and simulation. The structural parameters affecting the natural frequency are numerically analyzed by MATLAB software. The mapping relationship between the external load and the output load of the sensor is obtained by using ANSYS software, and the simulation curve of the natural frequency of the sensor is compared with the theoretical curve to verify the factors affecting the natural frequency. The results show that the nonlinear error of sensors refers to the measured curve and the maximum deviation between the fitting line and the percentage of full-scale output.
► High temperature thermoelectric properties of Bi2Sr2Co2Oy/Ag composites have been investigated. ► The resistivity is remarkably decreased while the seebeck coefficient is hardly affected with ...increasing Ag content. ► A small addition of Ag can decrease the thermal conductivity due to the enhanced phonon scattering by the fine Ag particles. ► Sample of Bi2Sr2Co2Oy/3wt% Ag has a ZT of about 0.26 at 973K, which is the best value so far reported for Bi2Sr2Co2Oy.
Bi2Sr2Co2Oy/Ag composites have been synthesized by solid state reaction by using the Bi2Sr2Co2Oy powder and Ag2O powder as the precursors. Both X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements reveal metallic Ag mainly precipitates as the second phase in the film rather than being doped into the crystal lattice of Bi2Sr2Co2Oy. With the increase of Ag content in the composites, the resistivity is remarkably decreased while the seebeck coefficient is hardly affected due to the size of dispersed Ag particles is much smaller than that of Bi2Sr2Co2Oy matrix, resulting in an enhancement of power factor. Moreover, a small amount of Ag addition results in a slight decrease of thermal conductivity and further addition leads to an increase of thermal conductivity. Sample of Bi2Sr2Co2Oy/3wt% Ag exhibits a figure of merit of about 0.26 at 973K, indicating it is a promising thermoelectric candidate for high temperature applications.
We reported the epitaxial growth of
c
-axis-oriented Bi
1−
x
Ba
x
CuSeO (0 ≤
x
≤ 10%) thin films and investigated the effect of Ba doping on the structure, valence state of elements, and ...thermoelectric properties of the films. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis reveal that Bi
3+
is partially reduced to the lower valence state after Ba doping, while Cu and Se ions still exist as + 1 and − 2 valence state, respectively. As the Ba doping content increases, both resistivity and Seebeck coefficient decrease because of the increased hole carrier concentration. A large power factor, as high as 1.24 mWm
−1
K
−2
at 673 K, has been achieved in the 7.5% Ba-doped BiCuSeO thin film, which is 1.5 times higher than those reported for the corresponding bulk samples. Considering that the nanoscale-thick Ba-doped films should have a very low thermal conductivity, high
ZT
can be expected in the films.
Significant enhancement of light-induced transverse thermoelectric (LITT) effect in tilted BiCuSeO film has been achieved via introduction of an ultra-thin layer of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with ...the thickness of a few nanometers. In both cases of pulsed and continuous light irradiation, about two times increment in the LITT voltage sensitivity is observed for the BiCuSeO film coated with 4-nm-thick AuNPs layer. This can be ascribed to the increased photo-thermal conversion efficiency in the LITT effect owing to the efficient usage of the incident light of AuNPs layer. Thicker AuNPs layer will suppress the voltage sensitivity increment due to the electrical connectivity effect. This work provides an effective strategy for optimizing the performance of thermal-type optical detectors based on the LITT effect.
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