人体步态差异性的参数化辨识方法及应用

通过对下肢3 个关节步态曲线建立具有共性控制点的数学模型,提出了以个体的局部形状参数作为区别同一关节中不同曲线的方法.实验采用Perception Neuron 动作捕捉系统,对正常组10 名健康男性青年,验证组2 名健康和3 名处于不同康复期的右腿踝关节损伤男性青年在正常步速下的步态数据进行实验测量以获得髋关节、膝关节和踝关节的上下位移轨迹曲线,并计算得出正常组步态曲线的局部形状参数作为判别步态正常与否的参考调整范围.经分析,验证组中健康被试者的局部形状参数大多属于该范围,而恢复较差的病人参数大多超出该范围,表明该参数化方法可有效辨别步态曲线差异,此外还可对康复评价的方法提供依据.     

The Role of CaMKII and ERK Signaling in Addiction

Nicotine is the predominant addictive compound of tobacco and causes the acquisition of dependence through its interactions with nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and various neurotransmitter releases in the central nervous system. The Ca²⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) play a pivotal role in synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. CaMKII is involved in long-term potentiation induction, which underlies the consolidation of learning and memory; however, the roles of CaMKII in nicotine and other psychostimulant-induced addiction still require further investigation. This article reviews the molecular mechanisms and crucial roles of CaMKII and ERK in nicotine and other stimulant drug-induced addiction. We also discuss dopamine (DA) receptor signaling involved in nicotine-induced addiction in the brain reward circuitry. In the last section, we introduce the association of polyunsaturated fatty acids and cellular chaperones of fatty acid-binding protein 3 in the context of nicotine-induced addiction in the mouse nucleus accumbens and provide a novel target for the treatment of drug abuse affecting dopaminergic systems.     

Lactobacillus plantarum BC299 can alleviate dextran sulphate sodium-induced colitis by regulating immune response and modulating gut microbiota

It is well known that probiotics are effective in relieving inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, their exact mechanism is still unclear. Herein, we evaluated the effect of novel Lactobacillus plantarum BC299 on dextran sodium sulphate (DSS)-induced colitis model mice and investigated the molecular mechanism. We found BC299 could regulate immune response and reduce immunosuppression by enhancing the expression of Th1 T cells in cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppressive model mice. Meanwhile, DSS-induced colitis model mice were furtherly constructed. The results displayed BC299 can restore bodyweight and relieve colon morphology of colitis mice. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction results demonstrated BC299 can regulate immune response by reducing the expression of TNF-α and IL-1β mRNA and increasing the expression of IL-10 and TGF-β mRNA. Moreover, BC299 administration reshaped and increased the diversity of gut microbiota in IBD mice. Therefore, BC299 can alleviate colitis by regulating immune response and modulating gut microbiota.     

Human responses to high levels of carbon dioxide and air temperature

In this study, 30 subjects were exposed to different combinations of air temperature (T_a: 24, 27, and 30°C) and CO₂ level (8000, 10 000, and 12 000 ppm) in a high-humidity (RH: 85%) underground climate chamber. Subjective assessments, physiological responses, and cognitive performance were investigated. The results showed that as compared with exposure to T_a = 24°C, exposure to 30°C at all CO₂ levels caused subjects to feel uncomfortably warm and experience stronger odor intensity, while increased mental effort and greater intensity of acute health symptoms were reported. However, no significant effects of T_a on task performance or physiological responses were found. This indicated that subjects had to exert more effort to maintain their performance in an uncomfortably warm environment. Increasing CO₂ from 8000 to 12 000 ppm at all T_a caused subjects to report higher rates of headache, fatigue, agitation, and feeling depressed, although the results were statistically significant only at 24 and 27°C. The text typing performance and systolic blood pressure (SBP) decreased significantly at this exposure, whereas diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and thermal discomfort increased significantly. These effects suggest higher arousal/stress. No significant interaction effect of T_a and CO₂ concentration on human responses was identified.     

A strategy for defects healing in 3D printed ceramic compact via cold isostatic pressing: Sintering kinetic window and microstructure evolution

In this study, we developed a unique defect healing method for 3D printed ceramic compact via cold isostatic pressing (CIP) after debinding, and typical features of interlayer interface defects of 3D-printed zirconia compact were characterized and found to be reduced significantly. The characteristic sintering kinetics window and microstructure evolution of the healed sintered bodies were systematically investigated, which was found to be quite different from conventional shaping methods. The three sintering stages are probed by their feature microstructure details such as the mechanically flattening surface at the early sintering stage, the heterogeneous microstructure and high porosity in the interlayer interface region at the middle stage, and the slightly ripple-like structural features combined with the healed interlayer defects at the final stage. The evolution of the pore structure of the healed 3D printed bodies were traced and the mechanical properties such as the Young's modulus, hardness, and fracture toughness were measured to understand the significance of the heal effect.     

Reusable and durable electrostatic air filter based on hybrid metallized microfibers decorated with metal-organic-framework nanocrystals

As global air pollution becomes increasingly severe,various types of fibrous filters have been devel-oped to improve air filter performance.However,fibrous filters have limitations such as high packing density that generally causes high-pressure drop and ultimately deterioration in the filtration effi-ciency.High-pressure particulate matter precipitators are limited in terms of scope for commercialization because they require high voltage supplies and ozone generators.In this study,we develop fibrous fil-ters with enhanced durability and improved performance using metallized microfibers decorated with metal-organic-framework(MOF)nanocrystals.Not only does the efficiency of the developed filters remain at or above 97％for 0.50-1.5 μm PMs but the durability also significantly increases.In addi-tion,using the water purification ability of the MOF,we explore the dye degradation effect of the hybrid microfibers by immersing them into Rhodamine B aqueous solution.In such an experiment the Rho-damine B aqueous solution is completely purified by the presence of the hybrid microfibers under the UV irradiation.     

Widely Tunable Terahertz-Wave Parametric Oscillator with a Shallow Surface Cross-pump Configuration

Journal of Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves - An efficient and widely tunable Si-prism-array coupled terahertz-wave parametric oscillator (TPO) with a very narrow linewidth is demonstrated...