36 research outputs found
Research Progress in Diseases Caused by STAT1 Gain-of-Function Mutations
No full textSignal transduction and activator of transcription factor 1(STAT1), one of the important members of the STAT family, is a key cytoplasmic transcription factor and an important component of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway. Gain-of-function mutations in STAT1 (STAT1-GOF) impaired the dephosphorylation of STAT1 protein, mediated the enhancement of cell signaling pathways such as type Ⅰ, Ⅱ, and Ⅲ interferon(IFN) and interleukins-27 (IL-27), IL-6, IL-10, and IL-17, and inhibited Th17 cells. The clinical manifestations of STAT1-GOF are diverse, including chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis and autoimmune diseases. For the treatment of STAT1-GOF, such as targeted therapy with ruxolitinib for STAT1 hyperphosphorylation, immunomodulatory therapy and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for different self-immune systems, certain curative effects can be obtained. With the understanding of disease mechanisms and the discovery of new clinical phenotypes, this review focuses on the diseases caused by gain-of-function mutations of STAT1, and introduces the clinical manifestations and treatment progress of STAT1-GOF to promote the understanding of such diseases and their future diagnosis, treatment and research works
Ophthalmothrips elongatus Li & Dang 2022, sp. nov.
No full text<i>Ophthalmothrips elongatus</i> Li & Dang, sp. nov. (Figs 1–15) <p>Description. Holotype female (macropterous). Body length 4.2 mm. Body uniform brown; antennal segment III yellow, but brownish apically, IV yellow at basal half, brown at apical half, V yellow at basal 1/3, rest of antennae uniform brown (Fig. 10); tube darkest; all major setae yellowish-brown.</p> <p>Head. Head about two times as long as wide (Figs 1, 8); head elongate, preocular projection about 1.4 times as long as wide; compound eyes prolonged posteriorly on ventral surface (Fig. 1); interocellar setae well developed, longest setae on head, pointed at apex; postocular setae small, not reaching posterior margin of eyes, pointed at apex, arise behind inner margin of eyes; cheeks with several pairs of spine-like setae (Fig. 1). Antennae 8-segmented, slender, segment III longest, about 5 times as long as wide, III with 1+1 sense cone, IV with 2+2 (Figs 2, 10). Mouth-cone short and rounded, maxillary stylets V-shaped, retracted into head one third way to posterior margin of eyes (Fig. 1).</p> <p>Thorax. Pronotum almost smooth, notopleural sutures complete (Figs 1, 8), aa and am slightly developed, pointed at apex, ml and pa developed, longer than aa, pointed at apex, epim well-developed, blunt at apex; basantra surround mouth-cone, ferna developed (Figs 1, 12). Mesopresternum boat-shaped (Figs 4, 12). Metanotal median setae well developed, metanotum smooth anterior middle, metathoracic sternopleural sutures absent. Fore wing broad, three pairs of sub-basal setae pointed at apex, S1 smaller, shorter than S2, S3 longest (Fig. 3), with 15–16 duplicated cilia. All tibia and tarsus without tooth.</p> <p>Abdomen. Pelta triangular, with entire reticulation (Figs 5, 11); abdominal tergites II–VII dorsal with reticulation in front half, each with two pairs of wing-retaining setae (Fig. 11); tergite IX setae almost as long as tube; tube smooth, shorter than head, anal setae about as long as tube (Figs 7, 13).</p> <p>Measurements (holotype female in microns). Body length 4200. Head length 540, width across eyes 240; preocular projection length 170, width 125; eyes length 130, ventral length 180; postocular setae length 20. Antennae length 810, segment I–VIII lengths (maximum width) 70 (50), 80 (40), 170 (35), 140 (35), 115 (30), 90 (30), 65 (30), 65 (20). Pronotum length 225, width 300, length of pronotal setae, am 10, aa 15, ml 30, epim 75, pa 35. Metanotal median setae length 15. Fore wing length 1470, sub-basal setae S1– S3, 20, 55 and 90. Abdominal sternite IX S1–S3 length, 375, 445 and 265, tube length 375, basal width 115, at apex 60, anal setae length 410.</p> <p>Male (macroptera). Very similar to female, but smaller, fore tarsal without tooth (Figs 9, 14).</p> <p>Measurements (paratype male in microns). Body length 3860. Head length 505, width across eyes 230; preocular projection length 145, width 120; eyes length 115, ventral length 160; postocular setae length 20. Antennae length 740, segment I–VIII lengths (maximum width) 70 (50), 75 (35), 160 (35), 125 (35), 95 (30), 70 (30), 60 (25), 60 (20). Pronotum length 180, width 270, length of pronotal setae, am 15, aa 15, ml 25, epim 65, pa 35. Metanotal median setae length 20. Fore wing length 1120, sub-basal setae S1– S3, 20, 50 and 65. Abdominal sternite IX S1–S3 length, 265, 310 and 215, tube length 305, basal width 105, at apex 60, anal setae length 300.</p> <p>Material examined. Holotype ♀, China, Hunan, Yongzhou, Dupangling National Nature Reserve (25.46°N, 111.37°E; elev. 380 m), from the root of Poaceae grasses (Fig. 15), 4.IX.2020, coll. Xia Wang. Paratype. 1♂, same data as holotype.</p> <p> Etymology. This species name is composed of the Latin word, “ <i>elongatus</i> ”, based on its elongated preoclular projection of head.</p> <p> Comments. This new species can be recognized as the genus <i>Ophthalmothrips</i> by the elongated preocular projection of the head, which is about 1.4 times as long as its wide. Similarly, this character is also present to <i>O. faurei</i> and <i>O. longiceps</i>. But the new species differs by having postocular setae small (not reaching at posterior margin of eyes), interocellar setae, pronotal epimal setae well-developed and pelta triangular with slightly rounded laterally. In <i>O</i>. <i>faurei</i>, the original description showed that it had postocular setae well-developed (Ananthakrishnan, 1964); Ananthakrishnan (1973) redescribed both sexes of <i>O</i>. <i>faurei</i> in detail, of which its postocular setae were also developed, interocellar setae absent, and one pair of median dorsal setae of head well-developed (but we think that these setae were probably located ventrally.); Haga (1975) studied Ananthakrishnan’s specimens of <i>O</i>. <i>faurei</i>, and showed that the pronotal epimeral setae are small and the interocellar setae developed. The genus <i>Ophthalmothrips</i> was reviewed worldwide by Minoura & Mound (2019) as the latest research. They recorded only one female represented as <i>O</i>. <i>faurei</i> from Guilin City in China, but the author helped to re-check this specimen, and found its head was too dark to see any characters. And the specimens from Japan identified as <i>O</i>. <i>faurei</i> together with Chinese specimen showed developed postocular setae. Thus, the only female specimen identified as <i>faurei</i> need to further study in the future. In <i>O. longiceps</i>, it is distinguished from <i>O</i>. <i>elongatus</i> Li & Dang, <b>sp. nov.</b> by the shorter preocular projection (wider than long), the well-developed postocular setae, and the pelta sharply pointed laterally.</p> <p> Figures 16–25. <i>Ophthalmothrips formosanus</i> (16–17, 21–22, 24), <i>O. miscanthicola</i> (18, 20, 23) and <i>O. longiceps</i> (19, 25). 16. Head and pronotum; 17–19. Antenna; 20, 22. Fore leg, female; 21. Fore leg, male; 23–25. Pelta.</p>Published as part of <i>Li, Yanqiao, Zhao, Linpeng, Li, Chengwen & Dang, Lihong, 2022, Review of the genus Ophthalmothrips Hood (Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae) from China, with a new species, pp. 305-312 in Zoological Systematics 47 (4)</i> on pages 306-309, DOI: 10.11865/zs.2022403, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/10940767">http://zenodo.org/record/10940767</a>
Fano resonance from a one-dimensional topological photonic crystal
No full textAn ultra-compact one-dimensional topological photonic crystal (1D-TPC) is designed in a single mode silicon bus-waveguide to generate the Fano resonance lineshape. The Fano resonance comes from the interference between the discrete topological boundary state of the 1D-TPC and the continuum high-order leaky mode of the bus-waveguide. Standalone asymmetric Fano resonance lineshapes are obtained experimentally in the waveguide transmission spectrum with a maximum extinction ratio of 33 dB and a slope ratio of 10 dB/nm over a broadband flat background
The design and protocol of acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis: A multicenter randomized controlled trial
No full textBackground: Many studies have already reported encouraging results in the prophylactic therapy of migraine by acupuncture, but there seems to be a lack of high quality randomized controlled trials from China. We design and perform a randomized controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture compared with flunarizine in the prophylactic therapy of patients with migraine without aura in China. Methods: This trial is a multicenter, prospective, randomized controlled clinical trial. The 140 migraine patients are randomly allocated to two different groups. The acupuncture groups (n = 70) is treated with acupuncture and placebo medicine; while the control group (n = 70) is treated with sham acupuncture and medicine (Flunarizine). Both Flunarizine and placebo are taken 10 mg once per night for the first 2 weeks and then 5 mg once per night for the next 2 weeks. Patients in both groups receive 12 sessions of verum/sham acupuncture in 4 weeks. Discussion: The study design and the long term clinical practice of acupuncturists guarantee a high external validity for the results. The results of our trial will be helpful to supply the evidence on the efficacy of acupuncture for migraine prophylaxis in China. Trial Registration: The trial is registered at Controlled Clinical Trials: ISRCTN49839714.Medicine, Research & ExperimentalSCI(E)0ARTICLEnull1
A Study on the Influence of Natural Fractures in Tight Sandstone Reservoirs on Hydraulic Fracture Propagation Behavior and Post-Fracture Productivity
No full textTight sandstone gas reservoirs are rich in reserves and are an important part of unconventional oil and gas resources. However, natural fractures’ impact on hydraulic fracture propagation behavior and network formation mechanisms remain unclear. Exploring how to optimize fracturing parameters to maximize post-fracturing productivity requires further investigation. Therefore, this study focused on the characteristics of tight sandstone gas reservoirs and established a three-dimensional numerical simulation model for hydraulic fracture propagation and post-fracturing productivity using production history matching to validate the reliability of the model. Based on this model, this study investigated the influence mechanisms of natural fracture angles, density, and lengths on hydraulic fracture propagation behavior and network formation. The spatial distribution of hydraulic fracture widths in three dimensions is also explored. When natural fracture angles are lower, a greater number of natural fractures are activated, leading to more developed secondary hydraulic fractures and the formation of complex fracture networks. Hydraulic fractures tend to penetrate directly through high-angle natural fractures. Single-well cumulative gas production increases initially with increasing natural fracture angles, then decreases, but increases with higher natural fracture density and length. Optimal fracturing in areas with longer natural fractures, lower angles, and higher density distribution enhances single-well productivity effectively
A compact structure for realizing Lorentzian, Fano, and electromagnetically induced transparency resonance lineshapes in a microring resonator
No full textMicroring resonators, as a fundamental building block of photonic integrated circuits, are well developed into numerous functional devices, whose performances are strongly determined by microring’s resonance lineshapes. We propose a compact structure to reliably realize Lorentzian, Fano, and electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) resonance lineshapes in a microring. By simply inserting two air-holes in the side-coupled waveguide of a microring, a Fabry-Perot (FP) resonance is involved to couple with microring’s resonant modes, showing Lorentzian, Fano, and EIT lineshapes over one free spectral range of the FP resonance. The quality factors, extinction ratios (ERs), and slope rates (SRs) in different lineshapes are discussed. At microring’s specific resonant wavelength, the lineshape could be tuned among these three types by controlling the FP cavity’s length. Experiment results verify the theoretical analysis well and represent Fano lineshapes with ERs of about 20 dB and SRs over 280 dB/nm. The reliably and flexibly tunable lineshapes in the compact structure have potentials to improve microring-based devices and expand their application scopes
High-efficiency second-harmonic and sum-frequency generation in a silicon nitride microring integrated with few-layer GaSe
No full textSilicon nitride (SiN) photonics platform has attributes of ultra-low linear
and nonlinear propagation losses and CMOS-compatible fabrication process,
promising large-scale multifunctional photonic circuits. However, the
centrosymmetric nature of SiN inhibits second-order nonlinear optical responses
in its photonics platform, which is desirable for developing efficient
nonlinear active devices. Here, we demonstrate high-efficiency second-order
nonlinear processes in SiN photonics platform by integrating a few-layer GaSe
flake on a SiN microring resonator. With the pump of microwatts continuous-wave
lasers, second-harmonic generation and sum-frequency generation with the
conversion efficiencies of 849%/W and 123%/W, respectively, are achieved, which
benefit from the ultrahigh second-order nonlinear susceptibility of GaSe,
resonance enhanced GaSe-light interaction, and phase-matching condition
satisfied by the mode engineering. Combining with the easy integration, the
GaSe-assisted high-efficiency second-order nonlinear processes offer a new
route to enriching already strong functionality of SiN photonics platform in
nonlinear optics.Comment: 23 pages, 4 figure
Optical Transmission Properties of Si<sub>3</sub>N<sub>4</sub> Add-Drop Micro-Ring Resonator Induced by a Fabry–Perot Resonance Effect
No full textTo resolve the problem of miscellaneous peaks and improve the accuracy of data processing in micro-ring resonators (MRRs), we propose an optical transmission model based on a Fabry–Perot (F-P) resonance effect in a Si3N4 add-drop MRR-waveguide structure, which is analyzed using a coupled mode theory and stationary interference method. The analysis indicates the experimentally obtained miscellaneous peaks are mainly induced by the multiple reflections between the two end grating couplers, which form a F-P cavity. In addition, an anti-reflection film on the interface of the grating couplers is proposed to reduce the F-P resonance effect. This work could be useful to analyze optical transmission properties of other MRR-based structures
Surface plasmon resonance of the W nanowires
No full textThe Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of metal materials has been widely used in photocatalysis, light sensing, biomarkers, solar cells and other fields. In this study, the surface plasmon characteristics of tungsten (W) nanowires with different diameters and lengths are analyzed using the finite element method. The thermal effect in the gap of crossed nanowires induced by the plasma resonance is studied. Results show that the resonance peak shifts red, and the resonance intensity increases with the increase in diameter. The increasing diameter results in decreasing electric field intensity and heat in the gap of the crossed tungsten (W) nanowires. The frequency of resonance peaks almost remains unchanged with increasing length. The two to six wave belly plasma modes are visible with increasing nanowire length. With exposure to incident light, the SPR in the shortened spacing results in increasing electric field intensity and the generated heat of gap between the two crossed tungsten (W) nanowires. Once the two crossed nanowires are welded, the heat production in the crossed part decreases, which indicates the self-limitation of plasma welding
Compact on-chip power splitter based on topological photonic crystal
No full textWe propose and demonstrate an on-chip 1*N power splitter based on topological
photonic crystal (TPC) on a monolithic silicon photonic platform. Benefiting
from the valley-locked propagation mode at the interface of TPCs with different
topological phases, the proposed power splitter has negligible backscattering
around the sharp bendings and good robustness to fabrication defects, which
therefore enable lower insertion loss, better uniformity, and more compact
footprint than the conventional designs. For the fabricated 1*2 (8) power
splitter, the uniformity among the output ports is below 0.35 (0.65) dB and the
maximum insertion loss is 0.38 (0.58) dB with compact footprint of 5*5 um2
(10*12 um2) within a bandwidth of 70 nm. In addition, the topological power
splitter only requires simple configurations of TPCs with different topological
phases, which is more reliable in design and fabrication compared with the
conventional designs.Comment: 8 pages,4 figure
