Dual Control Research Articles

Coordinating mitochondrial translation with assembly of the OXPHOS complexes.

The mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system produces the majority of energy required by cells. Given the mitochondrion's endosymbiotic origin, the OXPHOS machinery is still under dual genetic control where most OXPHOS subunits are encoded by the nuclear DNA and imported into mitochondria, while a small subset is encoded on the mitochondrion's own genome, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The nuclear and mtDNA encoded subunits must be expressed and assembled in a highly orchestrated fashion to form a functional OXPHOS system and meanwhile prevent the generation of any harmful assembly intermediates. While several mechanisms have evolved in eukaryotes to achieve such a coordinated expression, this review will focus on how the translation of mtDNA encoded OXPHOS subunits is tailored to OXPHOS assembly.

Plant–Entomopathogenic Fungi Interaction: Recent Progress and Future Prospects on Endophytism-Mediated Growth Promotion and Biocontrol

Entomopathogenic fungi, often acknowledged primarily for their insecticidal properties, fulfill diverse roles within ecosystems. These roles encompass endophytism, antagonism against plant diseases, promotion of the growth of plants, and inhabitation of the rhizosphere, occurring both naturally and upon artificial inoculation, as substantiated by a growing body of contemporary research. Numerous studies have highlighted the beneficial aspects of endophytic colonization. This review aims to systematically organize information concerning the direct (nutrient acquisition and production of phytohormones) and indirect (resistance induction, antibiotic and secondary metabolite production, siderophore production, and mitigation of abiotic and biotic stresses) implications of endophytic colonization. Furthermore, a thorough discussion of these mechanisms is provided. Several challenges, including isolation complexities, classification of novel strains, and the impact of terrestrial location, vegetation type, and anthropogenic reluctance to use fungal entomopathogens, have been recognized as hurdles. However, recent advancements in biotechnology within microbial research hold promising solutions to many of these challenges. Ultimately, the current constraints delineate potential future avenues for leveraging endophytic fungal entomopathogens as dual microbial control agents.

Reprogrammable reflection-transmission integrated coding metasurface for real-time terahertz wavefront manipulations in full-space

In recent years, there has been notable advancement in programmable metasurfaces, primarily attributed to their cost-effectiveness and capacity to manipulate electromagnetic (EM) waves. Nevertheless, a significant limitation of numerous available metasurfaces is their capability to influence wavefronts only in reflection mode or transmission mode, thus catering to only half of the spatial coverage. To the best of our knowledge and for the first time, a novel graphene-assisted reprogrammable metasurface that offers the unprecedented capability to independently and concurrently manipulate EM waves within both half-spaces has been introduced in the THz frequency band. This intelligent programmable metasurface achieves wavefront control in reflection mode, transmission mode, and the concurrent reflection-transmission mode, all within the same polarization and frequency channel. The meta-atom is constructed with two graphene sections, enabling straightforward modification of wave behavior by adjusting the chemical potential distribution within each graphene segment via an external electronic source. The proposed functionalities encompass various programmable modes, including single and dual beam control in reflection mode, dual beam control in transmission mode, simultaneous control of dual beams in reflection mode-direct transmission, and vice versa, and control of beam steering in reflection mode-dual beams in transmission mode simultaneously. The proposed metasurface is expected to be reprogrammable due to wavefront manipulation in both half-spaces separately and continuously for various applications such as imaging systems, encryption, miniaturized systems, and next-generation wireless intelligent communications.

Interplay between sexual excitation and inhibition: impact on sexual function and neural correlates of erotic stimulus processing in women.

As outlined by the dual control model (DCM), individual differences in the regulation of sexual arousal following sexual stimulation depend on two distinct neurophysiological processes: sexual excitation (SE) and sexual inhibition (SI). Although associations with sexual function, behavior, and cue processing have been demonstrated in previous research, underlying neural correlates remain insufficiently explored. Moreover, interactive effects of SE/SI as proposed by the DCM, as well as factors impacting SE/SI properties, such as the use of oral contraceptives (OCs), have not received adequate attention in existing research. 90 healthy, sexually active women (n = 51 using OCs, n = 39 naturally cycling) completed an Emotional-Picture-Stroop-Paradigm (EPSP) while a 64-channel EEG was recorded. LPP amplitudes toward erotic and neutral stimuli were consecutively computed as a marker of motivational salience and approach motivation. Additionally, women provided self-reports of SE/SI and sexual function. Moderation analyses were performed to assess interactive effects of SE/SI in predicting LPP amplitudes and sexual function. Sexual function was negatively associated with SI levels but unrelated to SE. Higher SI was associated with reduced LPP amplitudes in response to erotic stimuli. This negative association was, however, attenuated for women high in SE, suggesting interactive effects of SE/SI. Furthermore, women using OCs reported lower SE compared to naturally cycling women. The observed findings provide additional psychophysiological evidence supporting the DCM and underscore the relevance of interactive SE/SI effects in stimulus processing and approach motivation. They also highlight the possible impact of OCs on psychosexual variables that warrants further research.

Performance analysis of dual material control gate cavity on source electrically doped TFET biosensor for biomedical applications

The fabrication complexity, low sensitivity, detection speed, and costs associated with nanoscale devices have been significant concerns in the development of label-free biosensors. To address these issues, we report a novel dual material control gate cavity on source electrically doped tunnel field-effect transistor (DM-CG-CS-ED-TFET) for label-free biosensors. In this regard, the n+ drain and p+ source regions within the proposed device are induced by applying polarity gate (PG) bias voltages of PG-1 = +1.2 V and PG-2 = −1.2 V, respectively, across the respective polarity gate electrodes. This approach not only overcomes doping control issues but also avoids thermal budget constraints and minimizes fabrication complexity when compared to conventional TFET. For biomolecule sensing in the device, a nanogap cavity is created within the gate dielectric by selectively etching a portion of the polarity gate dielectric layer towards the source side. The performance of the proposed biosensor device is evaluated based on the variations in carrier concentration profile, energy band diagram, electric field, transfer (IDS - VGS) characteristics, drain current (IDS) sensitivity, ON-state current (ION) sensitivity, switching ratio (ION/IOFF) and subthreshold swing (SS) sensitivity. The sensitivity of the device is also investigated based on nano-cavity dimensions, practical challenges such as various filling factors, and the step profile generated from the steric hindrance. Moreover, the effect of temperature on sensitivity has also been investigated. For this, various biomolecules including Streptavidin (k = 2.1), APTES (k = 3.57), ferrocytochrome c (k = 4.7), keratin (k = 8) and Gelatin (k = 12), have been investigated for their performance using Silvaco ATLAS device simulator. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed biosensor is a viable option for biosensing applications in biomedical engineering.

Quantitative analysis of social influence and digital piracy contagion with differential equations on networks

Illegal file sharing of copyrighted contents through popular file sharing networks poses an enormous threat to providers of digital contents, such as, games, softwares, music and movies. Though empirical studies of network effects on piracy is a well-studied domain, the dynamics of peer effect in the context of evolving social contagion has not been enough explored using dynamical models. In this research, we methodically study the trends of online piracy with a continuous ODE approach and differential equations on graphs to have a clear comparative view. We first formulate a compartmental model to study bifurcations and thresholds mathematically. We later move on with a network-based analysis to illustrate the proliferation of online piracy dynamics with an epidemiological approach over a social network. We figure out a solution for this online piracy problem by developing awareness among individuals and introducing media campaigns, which could be a valuable factor in eradicating and controlling online piracy. Next, using degree-block approximation, network analysis has been performed to investigate the phenomena from a heterogeneous approach and to derive the threshold condition for the persistence of piracy in the population in a steady state. Considering the dual control of positive peer influence and media-driven awareness, we examine the system through realistic parameter selection to better understand the complexity of the dynamics and suggest policy implications.

How effective is the reduction of major pollutants in thermal power plants under the ultra-low emission policy?

In 2015, the Chinese government set ultra-low emission standards for thermal power to alleviate the pressure of increasing total pollutants from energy demand. This paper analyzes the policy effect of ultra-low emission in different regions based on panel data of 1202 thermal power enterprises, and the results of hierarchical linear model show that the total amount of air pollutants emitted by thermal power enterprises showed a decreasing trend during 2017–2021, realizing the dual control of concentration and total amount. Due to the differences in primary energy structure, industrial structure and economic development level of different regions, the total emission reduction of thermal power pollutants is affected differently. First, the proportion of the region's secondary industry in the region's GDP is negatively correlated with the decrease of the total pollutant emission of local thermal power enterprises. Second, the higher the per capita GDP of the region, the more significant the decrease in the total amount of pollutants, economic development is conducive to pollutant emission reduction. Third, the higher the proportion of thermal power in local energy, the more obvious the reduction of total pollutant emissions of thermal power enterprises, indicating that the implementation of ultra-low emission policies in these regions is more thorough. In addition, the environmental protection tax plays a positive role in the total emission reduction, and the higher the sulfur dioxide tax rate, the more significant the reduction of total pollutants of thermal power enterprises. To further reduce the total amount of pollutants in thermal power, more coordinated efforts of environmental and economic policies are needed.

Self-Decoupled Dual Sequence Current Control of D-STATCOM Under Unbalanced Grid Voltage

Self-Decoupled Dual Sequence Current Control of D-STATCOM Under Unbalanced Grid Voltage

DCCS: A dual congestion control signals based TCP for datacenter networks

As cloud computing advances, datacenter networks (DCNs) face unprecedented pressure due to the increasing prevalence of high bandwidth and low delay applications. Current reliable transmission protocols such as TCP harness packet loss, network delay, and Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) for congestion control, aiming to maintain low latency and high throughput. We investigate the efficacy of ECN-based protocols against incast congestion in one-hop networks and delay-based protocols for maintaining low end-to-end delay in multi-hop networks, at the expense of throughput fairness. Thus, we introduce a novel TCP protocol, Dual Congestion Control Signals (DCCS), merging ECN and delay signals for a broader congestion control mechanism. DCCS effectively handles burst traffic, prevents packet loss, ensures low end-to-end delay, and resolves throughput unfairness by determining a precise minimum round-trip time (RTT) for each flow through a drain signal. Simulations on ns-3 confirm that DCCS surpasses ECN-based (i.e., DCTCP), delay-based (i.e., DC-Vegas and Swift), and hybrid-based protocols (i.e., EAR) in fat-tree topology under realistic workload, cutting down Flow Completion Time (FCT) by 3.8%–20.5%. This substantiates DCCS’s competency in providing high-quality service for DCNs.

Design and analysis of solitary AC–AC converter using reduced components for efficient power generation system

Considering different applications that require varied power and voltage conversion levels between AC grids and AC loads, AC–AC power conversion between AC grids has become an inevitable technology of energy management systems. An isolated converter for performing AC-to-AC transmission is proposed with minimal components for reduced losses and enhanced system efficiency. Single-phase direct buck-boost AC to AC converter with minimum components constituted with two dual IGBT control units (IGBT 1–IGBT 4), inductor (Lf), and capacitor (Cf) is proposed in this work. The MATLAB/Simulink platform is used to provide in-depth analysis of the circuit and components along with the design guidelines, and simulation outcomes of this proposed model. The voltage gains of G = 2.13, power factor of 0.97, and overall efficiency of 98% are achieved in the proposed system with minimum components of 4 switches, 2 conductors, and 1 capacitor and inductor respectively. The obtained results are compared with existing technology to evaluate the proposed system.

Regulatory interactions between daptomycin- and bacitracin-responsive pathways coordinate the cell envelope antibiotic resistance response of Enterococcus faecalis.

Enterococcal infections frequently show high levels of antibiotic resistance, including to cell envelope-acting antibiotics like daptomycin (DAP). While we have a good understanding of the resistance mechanisms, less is known about the control of such resistance genes in enterococci. Previous work unveiled a bacitracin resistance network, comprised of the sensory ABC transporter SapAB, the two-component system (TCS) SapRS and the resistance ABC transporter RapAB. Interestingly, components of this system have recently been implicated in DAP resistance, a role usually regulated by the TCS LiaFSR. To better understand the regulation of DAP resistance and how this relates to mutations observed in DAP-resistant clinical isolates of enterococci, we here explored the interplay between these two regulatory pathways. Our results show that SapR regulates an additional resistance operon, dltXABCD, a known DAP resistance determinant, and show that LiaFSR regulates the expression of sapRS. This regulatory structure places SapRS-target genes under dual control, where expression is directly controlled by SapRS, which itself is up-regulated through LiaFSR. The network structure described here shows how Enterococcus faecalis coordinates its response to cell envelope attack and can explain why clinical DAP resistance often emerges via mutations in regulatory components.

Performance Comparison of a DC–DC Boost Converter With Conventional and Non-linear SMC Controller in Dual Loop Structure

Generally, the control system confronts various control techniques in the dual-loop control concept. Most of the studies deal with two different controllers in their loops, which increases the problem of designing two distinct procedures with lengthened calculations. In this article, different control techniques like conventional proportional integral (PI), proportional integral derivative (PID), and nonlinear sliding mode control (SMC) have been discussed, and the implementation of SMC in the Dual loop control of a DC–DC Boost converter is presented. The converter’s dynamic behavior is observed by driving their analytical equations. The effective controller for the proposed converter is ascertained by their comparative analysis. The proposed concept is validated with MATLAB/Simulink and a hardware prototype. The controller’s response is compared for various disturbances. Here, dual-loop SMC is put forward in both loops and its competence is confirmed with a minimal settling period of 0.005 sec and a percentage overshoot of 0.2% during the startup conditions, whereas during the line disturbances a minimum peak time of 0.0001 sec is achieved with a settling time of 0.025 sec. Additionally, a nil percentage overshoot and a settling time of 0.02 sec with a 0.001 sec peak time are attained during the load variations. Furthermore, a settling time of 0.01 sec and a percentage overshoot of 0.8% is reached during the reference voltage variations. From the numerical analysis, it is contemplated that an appropriate selection of SMC controllers in both the outer and inner loop results in optimal performance of the converter during the closed loop operation. Finally, the SMC + SMC controller exhibits superior controlling action compared to PI + PI and PID + PID controllers.

Trajectory tracking for non-holonomic mobile robots: A comparison of sliding mode control approaches

This paper implements and compares the performance of three controllers based on Sliding Mode Control (SMC) applied to the motion control of mobile robots. The controllers include a standard SMC controller and two variations, namely Dynamic Sliding Mode Control (D-SMC) and Dual Sliding Mode Control (DM-SMC). The three controllers differ from conventional SMC approaches since they are designed based on a generic reduced-order empirical model that can represent any system that exhibits behavior akin to a First-Order Plus Delay Time (FOPDT) system. In this study, the comparison of controllers focuses on the Trajectory Tracking Problem (TTP) of a Nonholonomic Mobile Robot (NMR). Performance indices are employed to quantify the controllers' results across three trajectory types. Simulation results evidence that if a smooth curvature trajectory is tracked, the best performance (in terms of minimizing trajectory tracking error and controller effort) can be obtained by using a DM-SMC. On the other hand, if there are discontinuities in the curvature, the results suggest that a better alternative is the D-SMC since it compensates for abrupt changes as in the case of tracking a square trajectory. Overall, the findings from this work demonstrated that the use of simplified empirical models to design SMC-based motion controllers can be successfully applied to solve the TTP of NMR.

Green Public Finance and “Dual Control” of Carbon Emissions: New Evidence from China

In response to the escalating global climate change, countries are progressively adopting green public finance as a crucial instrument for achieving carbon neutrality. This study considers energy conservation and emission reduction (ECER) in demonstration cities’ construction as a natural experiment and verifies the effect of green public finance on total carbon emissions (TCEs) and carbon emission intensity (CEI) by using a difference-in-differences (DID) model with the help of the panel data of 276 Chinese cities from 2006 to 2019. The empirical results indicate that (1) the ECER policy effectively reduces CEs in the demonstration cities, resulting in a reduction of TCEs by 13.13% and CEI by 12.90%; (2) the ECER policy can help optimize energy structure, accelerate green technology innovation, and improve energy efficiency, thus promoting “dual control” of CEs; and (3) the CE reduction effect of the ECER policy is stronger in western cities, southern cities, lower-administrative-level cities, and cities with weaker financial strength, which has a typical “supporting the weak” effect. Based on this, we conclude that green public finance is conducive to promoting “dual control” of CEs. Our conclusions not only enrich the theoretical research on green public finance but also provide governments with empirical evidence to implement more effective green public finance policies and expedite carbon neutrality.

Expanding the Drosophila toolkit for dual control of gene expression.

The ability to independently control gene expression in two different tissues in the same animal is emerging as a major need, especially in the context of inter-organ communication studies. This type of study is made possible by technologies combining the GAL4/UAS and a second binary expression system such as the LexA system or QF system. Here, we describe a resource of reagents that facilitate combined use of the GAL4/UAS and a second binary system in various Drosophila tissues. Focusing on genes with well-characterized GAL4 expression patterns, we generated a set of more than 40 LexA-GAD and QF2 insertions by CRISPR knock-in and verified their tissue specificity in larvae. We also built constructs that encode QF2 and LexA-GAD transcription factors in a single vector. Following successful integration of this construct into the fly genome, FLP/FRT recombination is used to isolate fly lines that express only QF2 or LexA-GAD. Finally, using new compatible shRNA vectors, we evaluated both LexA and QF systems for in vivo gene knockdown and are generating a library of such RNAi fly lines as a community resource. Together, these LexA and QF system vectors and fly lines will provide a new set of tools for researchers who need to activate or repress two different genes in an orthogonal manner in the same animal.

Expanding the Drosophila toolkit for dual control of gene expression

The ability to independently control gene expression in two different tissues in the same animal is emerging as a major need, especially in the context of inter-organ communication studies. This type of study is made possible by technologies combining the GAL4/UAS and a second binary expression system such as the LexA system or QF system. Here, we describe a resource of reagents that facilitate combined use of the GAL4/UAS and a second binary system in various Drosophila tissues. Focusing on genes with well-characterized GAL4 expression patterns, we generated a set of more than 40 LexA-GAD and QF2 insertions by CRISPR knock-in and verified their tissue specificity in larvae. We also built constructs that encode QF2 and LexA-GAD transcription factors in a single vector. Following successful integration of this construct into the fly genome, FLP/FRT recombination is used to isolate fly lines that express only QF2 or LexA-GAD. Finally, using new compatible shRNA vectors, we evaluated both LexA and QF systems for in vivo gene knockdown and are generating a library of such RNAi fly lines as a community resource. Together, these LexA and QF system vectors and fly lines will provide a new set of tools for researchers who need to activate or repress two different genes in an orthogonal manner in the same animal.

Dual Current Control of Renewable Energy Sources for Recent Grid Code Compliance and Reliability Enhancement

Dual Current Control of Renewable Energy Sources for Recent Grid Code Compliance and Reliability Enhancement

The Current Sequence Components Extraction for Dual Synchronous Rotation Frame Current Control in Unbalanced Grid Conditions

The Current Sequence Components Extraction for Dual Synchronous Rotation Frame Current Control in Unbalanced Grid Conditions

Direct power control of dual three-phase permanent magnet synchronous motor based on multiple vectors

In response to the traditional mode of dual three-phase permanent magnet synchronous generator switch form vector direct power control (DPC), the current harmonics are large, the active (P) and reactive (Q) harmonic oscillations are large, and the unstable losses of each phase current are large. A virtual voltage vector direct power control method based on duty cycle modulation is proposed. This method compares and synthesizes the two vectors of the outermost and second layers of the PWM rectifier, as well as three large vector synthesis methods, to obtain 12 new virtual voltage vectors. Then, the combined voltage vector is directly modulated into the deadbeat switching table, and the optimal predicted vector value is calculated based on the principle of the deadbeat formula, further suppressing the problem of large fluctuations in active and reactive power. Results show that the proposed multi-vector composite odd even quadrant DPC can effectively reduce current harmonics and power ripple, make the phase current more stable, reduce motor operating losses, and significantly improve the motor.

Dual three-phase permanent magnet synchronous motors model predictive torque control based on zero common-mode voltage

This article proposes a multi-vector model predictive torque control strategy based on zero common-mode voltage to suppress common-mode voltage and harmonic currents in a dual three-phase permanent magnet synchronous motor. Firstly, 20 zero common-mode voltage vectors are selected from the traditional 64 basic voltage vectors. By synthesizing these 20 vectors into 6 virtual voltage vectors (VVV), control over the harmonic plane is achieved, reducing harmonic currents and eliminating common-mode voltage. Then, the control error of the flux is reduced by increasing the number of vectors to achieve the purpose of reducing the flux ripple. Finally, through duty cycle modulation, multi-vector model predictive torque control extends the modulation range to the entire sector plane. Simulation results confirm that this strategy can effectively suppress harmonic currents and common mode voltage.