Combined metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses were carried out with fig cultivar Green Peel and its color mutant “Purple Peel.” Five and twenty-two metabolites were identified as having significantly different contents between fruit peels of the two cultivars at young and mature stages, respectively. Cyanidin O-malonylhexoside demonstrated a 3,992-fold increase in the mature purple peel, the first identification of a major cyanidin in fig fruit; cyanidin 3-O-glucoside, cyanidin O-malonylhexoside O-hexoside and cyanidin-3,5-O-diglucoside were upregulated 100-fold, revealing the anthocyanins underlying the purple mutation. Beyond the visible differences, there was very significant accumulation of the colorless flavonoids procyanidin B1, luteolin-3′,7-di-O-glucoside, epicatechin and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside in the mature “Purple Peel” compared to “Green Peel.” At the young stage, only cyanidin O-malonylhexoside, cyanidin O-malonylhexoside O-hexoside and esculetin were upregulated a few fold in the mutant. Transcriptome analysis revealed a downregulated expression trend of genes encoding phenylpropanoid and flavonoid biosynthetic pathway enzyme in the young “Purple Peel” compared to the young “Green Peel,” whereas significant and simultaneous upregulation was revealed in almost all of the flavonoid and anthocyanin pathway components and relevant transcription factors in the mature-stage mutant. The role of R2R3-MYB transcription factors in the color morph mutation and its possible relation to the activity of retrotransposons are discussed. Moreover, large-scale upregulation of small heat-shock protein genes was found in the mature mutant. This is the first work to reveal comprehensive metabolome and transcriptome network changes underlying a fig mutation in a single horticultural attribute, and its profound effects on fruit nutrition and quality.

Superoleophobic/superhydrophilic surfaces have incomparable advantages for oil-water separation and oil droplet manipulation; however, such surfaces are difficult to obtain on the basis of surface tension theory, and existing attempts are either not fully functional or are nondurable. Here, a solution to achieve the combination of superoleophobicity and superhydrophilicity by emphasizing the polar component of surface tension is proposed. The developed surfaces can be flexibly applied to almost any solid substrate and exhibit superoleophobic and instantaneous superhydrophilic property. The surfaces applied to certain substrates can be used for controllable oil transport, oil-water separation, and emulsion demulsification. Furthermore, a novel ferroconcrete-like structure to substantially increase the durability of the developed surfaces without affecting the superwettability is developed. The coated steel meshes preserve the ability of the material to separate oilwater mixtures even after over 400 m abrasion, which can be a significant step toward its widespread application.

Wearable sensors that can conveniently detect cytokine levels in human biofluids are essential for assisting hospitals to maximize the benefits of anti‐inflammatory therapies and avoid cytokine storms. Measurement of cytokine levels in biofluids still remains challenging for existing sensors due to high interference from the background. Here, this challenge is overcome through developing a flexible and regenerative aptameric field‐effect transistor biosensor, consisting of a graphene–Nafion composite film, for detecting cytokine storm biomarkers in undiluted human biofluids. The composite film enables the minimization of nonspecific adsorption and empowers the renewability to the biosensor. With these capabilities, the device is capable of consistently and sensitively monitoring cytokines (e.g., IFN‐γ, an inflammatory and cancer biomarker) in undiluted human sweat with a detection range from 0.015 to 250 nm and limit of detection down to 740 fm. The biosensor is also shown to incur no visible mechanical damage and maintain a consistent sensing response throughout the regenerative (up to 80 cycles) and crumpling (up to 100 cycles) tests. Experimental results demonstrate that the biosensor is expected to offer opportunities for developing wearable biosensing systems for distinguishing acute infectious disease patients and monitoring of patients’ health conditions in daily life.

Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) have the potential to address a number of safety, mobility, and sustainability issues of our current transportation systems. Cooperative longitudinal motion control is one of the key CAV technologies that allows vehicles to be driven in a cooperative manner to achieve system-wide benefits. In this paper, we provide a literature survey on the progress accomplished by researchers worldwide regarding cooperative longitudinal motion control systems of multiple CAVs. Specifically, the architecture of various cooperative CAV systems is reviewed to answer how cooperative longitudinal motion control can work with the help of multiple system modules. Next, different operational concepts of cooperative longitudinal motion control applications are reviewed to answer where they can be implemented in today's transportation systems. Different cooperative longitudinal motion control methodologies and their major characteristics are then described to answer what the critical design issues are. This paper concludes by describing an overall landscape of cooperative longitudinal motion control of CAVs, as well as pointing out opportunities and challenges in the future research and experimental implementations.

Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) have the potential to address the safety, mobility and sustainability issues of our current transportation systems. Cooperative adaptive cruise control (CACC), for example, is one promising technology to allow CAVs to be driven in a cooperative manner and introduces system-wide benefits. In this paper, we review the progress achieved by researchers worldwide regarding different aspects of CACC systems. Literature of CACC system architectures are reviewed, which explain how this system works from a higher level. Different control methodologies and their related issues are reviewed to introduce CACC systems from a lower level. Applications of CACC technology are demonstrated with detailed literature, which draw an overall landscape of CACC, point out current opportunities and challenges, and anticipate its development in the near future.