• Energy Research
• Other research products close
• CN close
• JP close

Six bones from La Draga (Spain, Holocene, samples LD_01 to LD_06) and Bayisha Karst Cave (China, Pleistocene, samples BKC_07 to BKC_12) were sampled for this study. Initial sampling was divided into three sub-samples for the three digestion durations tested here (site code_sample number_3h, site code_sample number_6h, and site code_sample number_18h). Samples were then processed according to the ZooMS protocol: they were demineralised in 0.6 M hydrochloric acid (HCl) for 24 hours. The HCl supernatant was then removed and samples were rinsed thrice in 100 µL ammonium bicarbonate (50 mM, NH4HCO3, hereafter AmBic) for subsequent gelatinisation in a final volume of 100 µL AmBic for one hour at 65°C. Following gelatinisation, the 100 µL of the AmBic solution was transferred to a new microtube, to which 0.8 µg trypsin (Promega) was added for incubation at 37°C, with mild agitation at 300 rpm (VWR, Thermal Shake lite). Digestion occurred for either 3, 6, or 18 hours. To stop trypsin digestion, 2 µL of 5% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) was added to each sample. The digested extracts were then split into two parts for separate analyses via matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-ToF MS) and liquid-chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). To assess any potential contamination by non-endogenous peptides, we performed the extraction of laboratory blanks alongside the samples for each enzymatic digestion condition. Mass spectrometry analyses MALDI-ToF MS and ZooMS data analysis For ZooMS data analysis, before MALDI-ToF MS analysis, peptides were cleaned and desalted using C18 ZipTips (Thermo Fisher) and subsequently spotted in triplicate, consisting of 0.5 µL eluted peptides and 0.5 µL alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid (CHCA) matrix solution, on a 384-well Opti-ToF MALDI plate insert (AB Sciex, Framingham, MA, 01701, USA) and allowed to air-dry at room temperature. MALDI spectra were automatically acquired with an AB SCIEX 5800 MALDI-ToF spectrometer (Framingham, MA, 01701, USA) in positive reflector mode for MS acquisition. Before sample acquisition, an external plate model calibration was achieved on 13 adjacent MS standard spots with a standard peptide mix (Proteomix Peptide calibration mix4, LaserBioLabs, Sophia Antipolis, France) containing bradykinin fragment 1-5 (573.315 Da), human angiotensin II (1046.542 Da), neurotensin (1672.917 Da), ACTH fragment 18-39 (2464.199) and oxidised insulin B chain (3494.651 Da). The concentration in the prepared mixture was between 27 to 167 fmol/µL. The calibration was validated according to the laboratory specifications (resolution above 10000 for 573 Da, 12000 for 1046 Da, and 15 to 25000 for other masses, error tolerance pyro-Glu, Glu (E) -> pyro-Glu, and proline (P) hydroxylation. The internal MaxQuant contaminant list was replaced with an in-house database provided by Ruther et al., 2022 (Supplementary File PR200512_HumanCons.fasta). Since all specimens except for one were identified as belonging to either Bos sp. or Bison sp., a second search was performed against the whole Bos taurus reference proteome (downloaded from Uniprot on 2022-01-20) to explore the presence of other, additional non-collagenous proteins (NCPs). Variable modifications for this search included oxidation (M), deamidation (NQ), and proline (P) hydroxylation. The internal MaxQuant contaminant list was used. Both searches were run in semi-specific Trypsin/P digestion mode. Up to five variable modifications were allowed per peptide and all other settings were left as default for both searches. Measurement of electricity consumption A power monitor (Cowell, model no.: PMB01) was placed in between the heating block (VWR, Thermal Shake lite) and the utilised power outlet to measure electricity consumption using either 96-well plates or Eppendorf tubes for 18 hours at 37°C. The measurements for both tubes (1.5 mL Eppendorf Protein LoBind, Eppendorf) and plates (PCR Plate, 96-well, low profile, non-skirted, 0.3 mL, Thermo Fisher Scientific) were separately conducted over the time frame of 18 hours, and replicated thrice in total. Measurements started when the heating block had reached a stable temperature of 37°C. The maximum number of tubes, 40 units, were placed in the heating block with 100µL AmBic in each tube to imitate experiment conditions. Likewise, each well in the 96-well plate was filled with 100 µL AmBic. The emission intensity (gCO2eq; grams of carbon dioxide equivalent) was then calculated by alcesusing the kWh measured and gCO2eq/kWh values available through Electricity Maps for the dates on which our experiments were conducted. The gCO2eq/kWh values were obtained from various countries (Australia, Brazil, Germany, Denmark, France, Japan, the USA, and South Africa). With this selection, we hope to cover a range of countries where high-throughput palaeoproteomics facilities exist. Furthermore, countries differ significantly in the amount of carbon released for each unit of electricity consumed, the so-called carbon intensity, for example, due to the use of nuclear energy or largely completed transitions to wind and solar energy sources. The absolute impact of electricity consumption is therefore very different depending on the country, and our selection of countries aims to also cover this range of carbon intensities. Lastly, emission intensities were calculated for each tube and PCR plate well across the three digestion durations (18h, 6h, and 3h), and for each country included in the study. Palaeoproteomic analysis of skeletal proteomes is used to provide taxonomic identifications for an increasing number of archaeological specimens. The success rate depends on a range of taphonomic factors and differences in the extraction protocols employed. By analyzing 12 archaeological bone specimens from two archaeological sites, we demonstrate that reducing digestion duration from 18 to 3 hours has no measurable impact on the obtained taxonomic identifications. Peptide marker recovery, COL1 sequence coverage, or proteome complexity are also not significantly impacted. Although we observe minor differences in sequence coverage and glutamine deamidation, these are not consistent across our dataset. A 6-fold reduction in digestion time reduces electricity consumption, and therefore CO2 emission intensities. We furthermore demonstrate that working in 96-well plates further reduces electricity consumption by 60%, in comparison to individual microtubes. Reducing digestion time therefore has no impact on the taxonomic identifications, while reducing the environmental impact of palaeoproteomic projects. Funding provided by: European CommissionCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/00k4n6c32Award Number: 948365 Funding provided by: European CommissionCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/00k4n6c32Award Number: 956351 Funding provided by: European CommissionCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/00k4n6c32Award Number: 861389 Funding provided by: European CommissionCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/00k4n6c32Award Number: 101027850 Funding provided by: The Velux FoundationsCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/007ww2d15Award Number: 40747 Funding provided by: Fyssen FoundationCrossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/05ebnp485Award Number:

This upload consist the related data and the source code of the manuscript named "Optimal investment and operations of concentrating solar power plants under new market trends". The files can be opened and tested with IBM ILOG CPLEX Optimization Studio. There are 3 files in this upload which are described as follows: CSP+Wind+Heater.dat : Data file, regarding parameters, assumptions and datasets CSP+Wind+Heater.mod : Model file, regarding optimization model with OPL language CSP+Wind+Heater.ops : Optimization settings file {"references": ["National Renewable Energy Laboratory .Golden,CO., System advisor model (SAM) . URL https://sam.nrel.gov/content/downloads"]}

Abstract: Over the next century or two, sea level rise with more frequent storm surges due to climate change will invoke serious problems which are particularly foreseen in LECZ (Low-elevation coastal zone) such as lakes and riverside areas below sea level. With urbanization, coastal cities have brought numerous benefits, such as new urban development, improved transportation networks, and stable sources of economic income. However, the extensive coastal development poses risks in the degradation of coastlines and their ecology. Large-scale landfill is built to extend coastal areas with hard structures to accommodate new buildings and infrastructures may have a significant impact on marine ecology. The future strategies to accommodate water and build in coexistence with nature rather than opposing water is our objective in the future. Our research focuses on the architectural aspects of the floating community merging the gap between the planning and engineering fields. Floating platforms with modularisation and plugin units were chosen because of their flexibility to expand the needs of a community. It is basically a floating structure composed of modularized units that are interconnected on water and host all kinds of functions in order to make living on water desirable. This particular concept is developed to respond to four of the 6R’s sustainable theories (Reduce*, Reuse*, Recycle, Renew, Revalue*, Reliance*). The concept proposes sustainable theory for LECZ development of a potential site which is a lake. Firstly we “Reduce” the soil in a low-lying ground through, cut and fill, the topsoil is excavated from the site and relocated so as to raise the low-elevation site above sea level. The excavated soil creates an area a few meters below the original surface level, water is let in to produce an impoundment. Subsequently, the foundations for an urban community are set afloat within the impoundment, with buildings and other facilities settled down on these floating foundations. Secondly “Reuse” is a scenario adapted for providing flexibility to change or reconfigure the functions of the floating community. The water space within the impoundment is a controlled area which can be reused based on the situation. For instance, a floating community can be reused as a research hub or a resort. Thirdly we should be mindful of “Revalue” water which can be learned from the past history and philosophy of East Asia Water towns were constructed in many parts using the water network as an effective form of transportation interconnecting the town for trade. Lastly, the fact that being dependent upon a single source water supply system and energy is not an effective “Reliance” a multi-water supply system with farming on water will become more self-sustaining efficient, economical and safe. The paper proposes a sustainable design concept for community living in LECZ. The sustainable theory is applied in a lake to experiment with the design by applying the theories to diminish the impact of large-scale coastal land reclamation to keep a balanced ecology. The research method is identifying gaps and providing a feasible solution and how the ideology can be made more desirable for people living on water. The goal of a sustainable community is not only resilient in withstanding global environmental disasters but also to simultaneously produce a minimum burden on the environment and realise a truly sustainable community. Keywords: Floating community, Sustainability, Coastal Lake development, Ecology

Abstract Body: Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) based on nonfullerene small molecule acceptors have been the subject of renewable energy research in the past five years. Ternary photovoltaic blends comprising a polymer donor, a nonfullerene small molecule acceptor, and a fullerene acceptor have proved to be most efficient active layers for OPV devices. However, the morphological parameters and their relations with mechanical properties and photovoltaic performance of this type of highly efficient polymer:nonfullerene:fullerene OPVs are still unknown to date. To address this question, we characterized the thin-film microstructure and mechanical behavior of the best-performing ternary OPV active layer (PM6:N3:PC71BM). Specifically, we alter the relative weight ratio of acceptors and systematically examined the composition dependence of photovoltaic performance, surface/bulk morphology, and mechanical parameters of the ternary blend films. It is shown that the addition of 20 wt% PC71BM to the acceptor component results in the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) and crack-onset strain (COS) (Figure 1a). Most notably, we discover that it is possible to predict the elastic modulus of the ternary blend films by an extended Halpin-Tsai model (Figure 1b). This work provides simple guidelines for predicting the mechanical properties of many electronic devices based on ternary blends.

We use the free software R (version 4.2.0) with R packages (foreach, nlme, plyr, dplyr) to analyse these datasets. R codes are also provided.Funding provided by: Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou)Crossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100019651Award Number: SMSEGL20SC02Funding provided by: Universitetet i BergenCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100005036Award Number: FILAMO mobility grantFunding provided by: Leverhulme TrustCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000275Award Number: RPG-2020-389Funding provided by: National Science FoundationCrossref Funder Registry ID: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100000001Award Number: OCE-1736635 Conventional analyses suggest the metabolism of heterotrophs is thermally more sensitive than that of autotrophs, implying that warming leads to pronounced trophodynamic imbalances. However, these analyses inappropriately combine within- and across-taxa trends. We present a novel mathematic framework to separate these, revealing that the higher temperature sensitivity of heterotrophs is mainly caused by within-taxa responses which account for 92% of the difference between autotrophic and heterotrophic protists. This dataset contains both the datasets and R codes of per capita growth rates of autotrophic and heterotrophic protists as well as heterotrophic bacteria and insects. The datasets of per capita growth rates against temperature were compiled from the literature. Experimental data were included if they met the following criteria: at least 3 data points with positive growth rate (µ) and at least 2 unique temperatures at which positive µ were measured. To calculate apparent activation energy, we also removed data points with nonpositive µ and those with temperatures above the optimal growth temperature (defined as the temperature corresponding to the maximal µ).

Abstract: Multi-colony studies of breeding seabirds may provide insights into the mechanistic links between large-scale climate variability and local changes in prey availability. In the North Pacific, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is a dominant climate index, characterized by contrasting effects on sea surface temperature between the western and eastern North Pacific. To examine how inter-annual variability in PDO affects rhinoceros auklets Cerorhinca monocerata across the North Pacific, we measured inter-annual changes in nutritional stress (as reflected in plasma levels of corticosterone) of adults breeding on five colonies (two and three colonies from the western and eastern Pacific, respectively). We also examined concurrent changes in mass and energy content of food loads delivered to chicks. We found that higher summer PDO values were associated with increased corticosterone levels and lower mass and energy contents of the food loads in both the western and eastern North Pacific colonies. Results indicate that higher summer PDO is associated with local changes in forage fish communities leading to reduced availability of energy-rich prey, which, in turn, increases the nutritional stress of breeding birds. We conclude that higher summer PDO index is associated with food-poor conditions for breeding rhinoceros auklets across their reproductive range, and prolonged periods of high summer PDO may be detrimental to the populations of this seabird species. Authors: Ui Shimabukuro��, Akinori Takahashi��, Jumpei Okado��, Nobuo Kokubun��, Jean-Baptiste Thiebot���, Alexis Will���, Yutaka Watanuki��, BriAnne Addison���, Scott Hatch���, J. Mark Hipfner���, Leslie Slater���, Brie Drummond���, Alexander Kitaysky��� ��The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, ��The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI & National Institute of Polar Research, ��Hokkaido University, ���National Institute of Polar Research, ���University of Alaska Fairbanks, ���Deakin University, ���Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, ���Pacific Wildlife Research Centre, ���U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

This study explores the habitat distribution of Pterocarpus santalinus, a valuable rosewood species, across China, focusing on its response to current and future climate changes. Utilizing the MaxEnt model, we assess its suitable habitat under present conditions and future climate scenarios (SSPs126, SSPs245, and SSPs585). Our findings reveal that the current suitable habitat, spanning approximately 409,600 km², is primarily located in the central and southern parts of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Yunnan, as well as in the Hainan provinces, along with the coastal regions of Taiwan, and the Sichuan-Chongqing border. The habitat's distribution is significantly influenced by climatic factors such as temperature seasonality (bio4), mean temperature of the wettest quarter (bio8), annual mean temperature (bio1), and annual precipitation (bio12), while terrain and soil factors play a lesser role. Under future climate scenarios, the suitable habitat for P. santalinus is projected to expand, with a northeastward shift in its distribution center. This research not only sheds light on the geoecological characteristics and geographical distribution of P. santalinus in China but also offers a scientific basis for planning its cultivation areas and enhancing cultivation efficiency under changing climate conditions. We identified the occurrence locations of P. santalinus using a three-pronged approach: (1) A comprehensive review of relevant literature; (2) Extensive field investigations; and (3) Data acquisition from online databases, specifically the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF, https://www.gbif.org) and the National Specimen Information Infrastructure (NSII, http://www.nsii.org.cn/2017/home.php). We downloaded environmental parameters from WorldClim (https://www.worldclim.org/data/index.html) and Harmonized World Soil Database v 1.2 (HWSD; http://www.fao.org/soils-portal/soil-survey/soil-maps-and-databases/harmonized-world-soil-database-v12/en/), processed them using ArcGIS 10.2 Funding provided by: Hainan Academy of Forestry (Hainan Academy of Mangrove)*Crossref Funder Registry ID: Award Number: KYYSLK2023-018

Oleanolic acid is a widely distributed natural product, which possesses promising antitumor, antiviral, antihyperlipidemic, and anti-inflammatory activities. A heterodimeric complex formed by integrin αM (CD11b) and integrin β2 (CD18) is highly expressed on monocytes and macrophages. In the current study, we demonstrate that the I domain of αM (αM-I domain) might present a potential cellular target for oleanolic acid. In vitro data show that oleanolic acid induces clustering of αM on macrophages and reduces their nondirectional migration. In accordance with experimental data, molecular docking revealed that oleanolic acid binds to the αM-I domain in its extended-open form, the dominant conformation found in αM clusters. Molecular dynamics simulation revealed that oleanolic acid can increase the flexibility of the α7 helix and promote its movement away from the N-terminus, indicating that oleanolic acid may facilitate the conversion of the αM-I domain from the extended-closed to the extended-open conformation. As demonstrated by metadynamics simulation, oleanolic acid can destabilize the local minimum of the αM-I domain in the open conformation partially through disturbance of the interactions between α1 and α7 helices. In summary, we demonstrate that oleanolic acid might function as an allosteric agonist inducing clustering of αM on macrophages by shifting the balance from the closed to the extended-open conformation. The molecular target identified in this study might hold potential for a purposeful use of oleanolic acid to modulate chronic inflammatory responses.