Sonic food words influence the experience of beverage healthfulness

The consumption of healthful foods is relevant for the well-being of society. However, understanding healthfulness may be difficult because, in some cultures (i.e., the U.S.), individuals assume that unhealthy equals tasty, an association that does not hold in other contexts (i.e., France). Auditory cues could serve to inform consumers about the expected experience with food and thus could signal the sensory experience of a healthy product. This research contributes to the literature on the use of sound symbolism for analysis of the influence of onomatopoeias as packaging information that influences the expected healthfulness of a bottled drink. The study is a 4 × 4 mixed-model experiment. Grouping was done according to onomatopoeia variables as follows: “Fizz,” “Glup,” “Ahhh,” and control. Beverage color, a within-subject variable, was grouped as green, yellow, red, and control. Results show that the healthful concept is defined in two dimensions: fulfilling and light. Onomatopoeias motivated the experience of a less fulfilling beverage, which had the strongest effect on “Fizz” condition. For the light dimension, “Ahhh” diminishes the perception of light, thus creating the idea that the drink is high in calories. This study reaches out to food industries on the need to find the most consistent and pleasurable sound associated with their products. This will enable food industries to provide information to consumers as well as ascertain how much they enjoy the product.     

板栗壳黄酮结构分析及其对胰脂肪酶活力的抑制作用

在分析板栗壳黄酮结构的基础上，研究其对胰脂肪酶的抑制作用及类型。采用醇提法提取板栗壳中的黄酮，并用AB-8大孔吸附树脂进行纯化，冻干后得到的黄酮含量为（107.50±1.00）mg/g，提取得率为（5.66±0.05）%。利用超高效液相色谱-四极杆/静电场轨道阱质谱联用技术对板栗壳黄酮进行结构分析，鉴定出8 种黄酮类化合物。采用对硝基苯酚法测定胰脂肪酶活力，分别考察板栗壳黄酮对胰脂肪酶的抑制效果及不同反应条件下板栗壳黄酮对胰脂肪酶活性的影响，结果表明，板栗壳黄酮对胰脂肪酶有较好的抑制作用，半抑制浓度（half maximal inhibitory concentration，IC50）为0.074 mg/mL，且使胰脂肪酶最适pH值向碱性偏移。通过Lineweaver-Burk双倒数作图法确定其抑制类型为非竞争性抑制，抑制常数Ki＝53.19 mg/mL。由此可见，板栗壳黄酮是一种效果良好的胰脂肪酶抑制剂。     

Ontology-based approach for the provision of simulation knowledge acquired by Data and Text Mining processes

Numerical simulation techniques such as Finite Element Analyses are essential in today's engineering design practices. However, comprehensive knowledge is required for the setup of reliable simulations to verify strength and further product properties. Due to limited capacities, design-accompanying simulations are performed too rarely by experienced simulation engineers. Therefore, product models are not sufficiently verified or the simulations lead to wrong design decisions, if they are applied by less experienced users. This results in belated redesigns of already detailed product models and to highly cost- and time-intensive iterations in product development.Thus, in order to support less experienced simulation users in setting up reliable Finite Element Analyses, a novel ontology-based approach is presented. The knowledge management tools developed on the basis of this approach allow an automated acquisition and target-oriented provision of necessary simulation knowledge. This knowledge is acquired from existing simulation models and text-based documentations from previous product developments by Text and Data Mining. By offering support to less experienced simulation users, the presented approach may finally lead to a more efficient and extensive application of reliable FEA in product development.     

基于Kӧtter方程的盾构掘进面上被切削土体受力研究

为了计算不同土体性质与不同掘进参数下盾构刮刀与土体之间的作用力以及由此带来的切削扭矩,引入了修正后的Kӧtter方程作为补充方程,求解出开挖面上土体在被动切削至破坏时滑动面上的应力分布,建立了被切削土体受力模型,求解出刮刀刃面与土体之间的正压力p、摩擦力Q与侧向土体间抗剪阻力U,进而推导出刀盘切削扭矩T的计算公式。分析得到特定刀盘上刮刀的p,Q,U值随土体c,φ值增大而增大,通过适当提高刮刀刃面粗糙度来增大摩擦可使土体更易被切至破坏;p,Q,U值随刀盘转速ω增大而减小,p,Q随支护荷载p线性增大且p对于被切削土体受力的影响在砂性土中较大,最终给出特定刀盘掘进至部分种类土体中的切削扭矩值作为工程参考。     

一种改进的最小二乘回归子空间分割方法

最小二乘回归(LSR)算法是一种常见的子空间分割方法，由于LSR具有解析解，因此它的聚类性能较高。然而LSR算法是应用谱聚类方法聚类数据，谱聚类方法初始化聚类中心是随机的，会影响后面的聚类效果。针对这一问题，提出一种基于聚类中心局部密度和距离这2个特点的改进的LSR算法（LSR-DC）。在Extended Yale B数据集上进行实验，结果表明，该算法有较高的聚类精度，具有一定的鲁棒性，优于现有LSR等子空间分割方法。     

高速率通信网络下时变系统的有限时域H∞控制

针对高速率通信网络和Round-Robin（RR）协议影响下网络化时变系统的有限时域[H∞]控制问题，考虑到系统中存在乘性噪声、随机时滞和量化效应，提出了一种基于观测器的有限时域[H∞]控制器的设计方法。利用李雅普诺夫稳定性理论和线性矩阵不等式（Linear Matrix Inequality，LMI）技术得到有限时域[H∞]控制器存在的充分条件。基于锥补线性化（Cone Complementarity Linearization，CCL）方法通过求解一组递归矩阵不等式得到观测器和控制器参数。所设计的控制器保证闭环网络化时变系统在给定的时域内稳定，且满足预定的[H∞]性能指标。数值仿真验证了所提方法的有效性。     

Environmental Enrichment Enhances Cav 2.1 Channel-Mediated Presynaptic Plasticity in Hypoxic–Ischemic Encephalopathy

Hypoxic–ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a devastating neonatal brain condition caused by lack of oxygen and limited blood flow. Environmental enrichment (EE) is a classic paradigm with a complex stimulation of physical, cognitive, and social components. EE can exert neuroplasticity and neuroprotective effects in immature brains. However, the exact mechanism of EE on the chronic condition of HIE remains unclear. HIE was induced by a permanent ligation of the right carotid artery, followed by an 8% O₂ hypoxic condition for 1 h. At 6 weeks of age, HIE mice were randomly assigned to either standard cages or EE cages. In the behavioral assessments, EE mice showed significantly improved motor performances in rotarod tests, ladder walking tests, and hanging wire tests, compared with HIE control mice. EE mice also significantly enhanced cognitive performances in Y-maze tests. Particularly, EE mice showed a significant increase in Ca_v 2.1 (P/Q type) and presynaptic proteins by molecular assessments, and a significant increase of Ca_v 2.1 in histological assessments of the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. These results indicate that EE can upregulate the expression of the Ca_v 2.1 channel and presynaptic proteins related to the synaptic vesicle cycle and neurotransmitter release, which may be responsible for motor and cognitive improvements in HIE.     

Inhibition of Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase Ameliorates Phenotype and Cognitive Abilities in a Murine Model of Niemann Pick Type C Disease

Niemann–Pick type C (NPC) disease is a rare autosomal recessive inherited childhood neurodegenerative disease characterized by the accumulation of cholesterol and glycosphingolipids, involving the autophagy-lysosome system. Inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH), an enzyme that metabolizes epoxy fatty acids (EpFAs) to 12-diols, exerts beneficial effects in modulating inflammation and autophagy, critical features of the NPC disease. This study aims to evaluate the effects of UB-EV-52, an sEH inhibitor (sEHi), in an NPC mouse model (Npc) by administering it for 4 weeks (5 mg/kg/day). Behavioral and cognitive tests (open-field test (OF)), elevated plus maze (EPM), novel object recognition test (NORT) and object location test (OLT) demonstrated that the treatment produced an improvement in short- and long-term memory as well as in spatial memory. Furthermore, UB-EV-52 treatment increased body weight and lifespan by 25% and reduced gene expression of the inflammatory markers (i.e., Il-1β and Mcp1) and enhanced oxidative stress (OS) markers (iNOS and Hmox1) in the treated Npc mice group. As for autophagic markers, surprisingly, we found significantly reduced levels of LC3B-II/LC3B-I ratio and significantly reduced brain protein levels of lysosomal-associated membrane protein-1 (LAMP-1) in treated Npc mice group compared to untreated ones in hippocampal tissue. Lipid profile analysis showed a significant reduction of lipid storage in the liver and some slight changes in homogenated brain tissue in the treated NPC mice compared to the untreated groups. Therefore, our results suggest that pharmacological inhibition of sEH ameliorates most of the characteristic features of NPC mice, demonstrating that sEH can be considered a potential therapeutic target for this disease.     

The Bark Beetle Dendroctonus rhizophagus (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) Has Digestive Capacity to Degrade Complex Substrates: Functional Characterization and Heterologous Expression of an α-Amylase

Dendroctonus-bark beetles are natural agents contributing to vital processes in coniferous forests, such as regeneration, succession, and material recycling, as they colonize and kill damaged, stressed, or old pine trees. These beetles spend most of their life cycle under stem and roots bark where they breed, develop, and feed on phloem. This tissue is rich in essential nutrients and complex molecules such as starch, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, which apparently are not available for these beetles. We evaluated the digestive capacity of Dendroctonus rhizophagus to hydrolyze starch. Our aim was to identify α-amylases and characterize them both molecularly and biochemically. The findings showed that D. rhizophagus has an α-amylase gene (AmyDr) with a single isoform, and ORF of 1452 bp encoding a 483-amino acid protein (53.15 kDa) with a predicted signal peptide of 16 amino acids. AmyDr has a mutation in the chlorine-binding site, present in other phytophagous insects and in a marine bacterium. Docking analysis showed that AmyDr presents a higher binding affinity to amylopectin compared to amylose, and an affinity binding equally stable to calcium, chlorine, and nitrate ions. AmyDr native protein showed amylolytic activity in the head-pronotum and gut, and its recombinant protein, a polypeptide of ~53 kDa, showed conformational stability, and its activity is maintained both in the presence and absence of chlorine and nitrate ions. The AmyDr gene showed a differential expression significantly higher in the gut than the head-pronotum, indicating that starch hydrolysis occurs mainly in the midgut. An overview of the AmyDr gene expression suggests that the amylolytic activity is regulated through the developmental stages of this bark beetle and associated with starch availability in the host tree.