Total Synthesis of (−)‐Pepluanol B: Conformational Control of the Eight‐Membered‐Ring System

The first total synthesis of the Euphorbia diterpenoid pepluanol B in both racemic and enantioenriched form involves 20 steps from a known bicyclic diol. This synthesis features an unprecedented bromo‐epoxidation to control the eight‐membered‐ring conformation. In addition, salient reactions for the construction of the tetracyclic backbone include a sterically challenging aldol reaction to establish the quaternary center, a ring closing metathesis (RCM) to forge the eight‐membered ring, and a diastereoselective cyclopropanation to assemble the embedded cyclopropane motif.     

Nonlinear free vibrations of porous composite microplates incorporating various microstructural-dependent strain gradient tensors

The main objective of the present numerical analysis is to predict the nonlinear frequency ratios associated with the nonlinear free vibration response of porous composite plates at microscale in the presence of different microstructural gradient tensors. To achieve this end, by taking cubic-type elements into account, isogeometric models of porous composite microplates are obtained with and without a central cutout and relevant to various porosity patterns of distribution along the plate thickness. The established unconventional models have the capability to capture the effects of various unconventional gradient tensors continuity on the basis of a refined shear deformable plate formulation. For the simply supported microsized uniform porous functionally graded material (U-PFGM) plate having the oscillation amplitude equal to the plate thickness, it is revealed that the rotation gradient tensor causes to reduce the frequency ratio about 0.73%, the dilatation gradient tensor causes to reduce it about 1.93%, and the deviatoric stretch gradient tensor leads to a decrease of it about 5.19%. On the other hand, for the clamped microsized U-PFGM plate having the oscillation amplitude equal to the plate thickness, these percentages are equal to 0.62%, 1.64%, and 4.40%, respectively. Accordingly, it is found that by changing the boundary conditions from clamped to simply supported, the effect of microsize on the reduction of frequency ratio decreases a bit.

     

Orally administered bismuth drug together with N-acetyl cysteine as a broad-spectrum anti-coronavirus cocktail therapy

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern compromises vaccine efficacy and emphasizes the need for further development of anti-SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics, in particular orally administered take-home therapies. Cocktail therapy has shown great promise in the treatment of viral infection. Herein, we reported the potent preclinical anti-SARS-CoV-2 efficacy of a cocktail therapy consisting of clinically used drugs, e.g. colloidal bismuth subcitrate (CBS) or bismuth subsalicylate (BSS), and N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC). Oral administration of the cocktail reduced viral loads in the lung and ameliorated virus-induced pneumonia in a hamster infection model. The mechanistic studies showed that NAC prevented the hydrolysis of bismuth drugs at gastric pH via the formation of the stable component [Bi(NAC)₃], and optimized the pharmacokinetics profile of CBS in vivo. Combination of bismuth drugs with NAC suppressed the replication of a panel of medically important coronaviruses including Middle East respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus (MERS-CoV), Human coronavirus 229E (HCoV-229E) and SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant (B.1.1.7) with broad-spectrum inhibitory activities towards key viral cysteine enzymes/proteases including papain-like protease (PL^pro), main protease (M^pro), helicase (Hel) and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Importantly, our study offered a potential at-home treatment for combating SARS-CoV-2 and future coronavirus infections.

A cocktail therapy comprising bismuth drugs and N-acetyl-l-cysteine is reported to suppress the replication of SARS-CoV-2 via the oral route. The broad-spectrum inhibitory activities of the combination upon key viral cysteine enzymes are verified.     

随机生长误差对双腔型平顶法布里-珀罗滤波器的影响

在光网络中平顶滤波器可以有效地提高信道光检测的快速性和准确性。利用两个法布里珀罗腔间的串联耦合,可以构建出具有平顶透射特性的双腔型法布里珀罗滤波器。采用传输矩阵的方法,研究了随机生长误差对双腔型平顶滤波器透射特性的影响。模拟分析表明,当两个法布里珀罗腔的物理厚度差超过一个纳米时,在透射谱中就会出现两个高度不同的透射峰;解释了实测器件的透射谱中的双峰不对称性;用界面起伏的概念解释了实测滤波器带宽大于理论值的原因。理论分析与实验结果取得了较好的一致。     

气力提升系统气液两相流数值模拟分析

污水处理、油田采油、液态金属冷却反应堆和磁流体动力转换器等领域采用气力提升系统有其显著优势.由于不同液体介质与气体介质密度对气力提升系统性能影响较大,因此本文基于Fluent仿真软件,采用欧拉模型、k-ω剪切应力输运湍流模型数值模拟了氮气-水、氮气-煤油、氮气-水银及空气-水、氩气-水、氮气-水下气力提升系统内气液两相流动行为,分析了系统稳定时提升立管内气相体积分数、提升液体流量、提升效率、提升管出口处液体径向速度的变化规律.研究结果表明:1)氮气-水、氮气-煤油、氮气-水银系统中,提升管内液体介质密度越大,提升管内气相体积分数越小、提升液体流量越大、提升效率越高;2)空气-水、氩气-水、氮气-水系统中,提升管内气体介质密度越大,提升管内气相体积分数越小、提升液体流量越大、提升效率峰值越小;3)提升管出口处提升液体径向速度随气体充入量的不断增加而整体波动升高,最终管轴中心附近液体速度较大,管壁附近液体速度较小.本文研究成果为污水处理、气举采油、液态重金属冷却核反应堆和磁流体动力转换器等应用领域的气力提升技术的优化提供科学的理论基础.     

NeuDATool：支持GPU硬件加速和计算机集群跨节点并行的开源中子散射数据分析软件

实验势精修是20世纪80年代英国散裂中子源无定型材料组开发的用于分析中子散射实验数据的软件. 实验势精修的目标是根据中子散射数据重建样品的三维原子结构. 在过去的几十年,实验势精修被广泛用于中子散射实验数据分析,为实验用户提供了可靠的分析结果. 但是实验势精修是基于共享内存并行计算(OpenMP)的Fortran程序,不支持计算机服务器集群跨节点并行加速和GPU加速;这限制了它的分析速度. 随着计算机服务器集群的广泛建设和GPU加速技术的普遍使用,有必要重新编写EPSR程序以提高运算速度. 本文使用面向对象的C++语言,开发了一套实现EPSR算法的开源软件包NeuDATool;软件通过MPI和CUDA C实现了计算机集群跨节点并行和GPU加速. 使用液态水和玻璃态二氧化硅的中子散射实验数据对软件进行了测试. 测试显示软件可以正确重建出样品的三维原子结构;并且模拟体系达到10万原子以上时,使用GPU加速可以比串行的CPU算法提高400倍以上的模拟速度. NeuDATool为中子实验用户尤其是对熟悉C++编程并希望定义特殊分析算法的实验科学家提供了一种新的选择.     

EFFECTIVE ELASTIC MODULUS OF BONE-LIKE HIERARCHICAL MATERIALS

A shear-lag model is used to study the mechanical properties of bone-like hierarchical materials.The relationship between the overall effective modulus and the number of hierarchy level is obtained.The result is compared with that based on the tension-shear chain model and finite element simulation,respectively.It is shown that all three models can be used to describe the mechanical behavior of the hierarchical material when the number of hierarchy levels is small.By increasing the number of hierarchy level,the shear-lag result is consistent with the finite element result.However the tension-shear chain model leads to an opposite trend.The transition point position depends on the fraction of hard phase,aspect ratio and modulus ratio of hard phase to soft phase.Further discussion is performed on the flaw tolerance size and strength of hierarchical materials based on the shear-lag analysis.     

分子识别在纳米材料组装中的应用

分子识别应用于纳米材料组装中的研究正受到人们的广泛关注,并逐渐成为超分子化学研究领域中的一个热点。本文对近年来利用分子识别实现纳米材料的组装及可控组装的研究工作进行了综述,并对该领域的研究前景进行了展望。