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Airborne NH 3 is a factor in the degradation of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) performance and lifetime. Herein, the spatial characteristics of PEMFC contaminated with NH 3 in galvanostatic and potentiostatic states are investigated by analyzing the local current density, and the effect of relative humidity (RH) during NH 3 contaminates PEMFC is studied by durability curve, polarization curve, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy testing. The results show that NH 3 leads to an obvious voltage attenuation along with a significant increase in cathode activation and mass transfer impedance. The distribution of relaxation time (DRT) results show that the anode activation is poisoned by cathode NH 3. The voltage attenuation and impedance increase caused by NH 3 are negatively correlated with the RH. At 0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% RH, the voltage decays 19.4%, 10.7%, 8.4%, and 8.1%. The current density attenuation is more severe in potentiostatic state, with a rate of 41.2% and more than 600 mA·cm−2 in the inlet region, which could be related to the low NH 3 concentration and high amount of product water promoting the dissolution of NH 3 in the intermediate and outlet regions. Consequently, it is recommended that the cell be operated in galvanostatic state with high RH to alleviate the effect of NH 3 and resulting inhomogeneous performance. This study experimentally investigated the effects of cathode NH 3 poisoning on the voltage, impedance, distribution of relaxation time, and local current density distribution of PEMFC, aiming to reveal the characteristics and mechanisms of NH 3 poisoning of PEMFC, as well as the effect of relative humidity during this period. [Display omitted] • Reducing the cathode RH aggravates the poisoning effect of NH 3 on PEMFC. • NH 3 causes a significant increase in mass transfer and cathode activation losses. • Cathode NH 3 also causes an increase in anode activation losses. • NH 3 has a more significant poisoning effect near the cathode inlet region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graves' disease is a common condition that is diagnosed clinically by determining the smoothness of the thyroid texture and its morphology in ultrasound images. Currently, the most widely used approach for the automated diagnosis of Graves' disease utilizes Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for both feature extraction and classification. However, these methods demonstrate limited efficacy in capturing texture features. Given the high capacity of wavelets in describing texture features, this research integrates learnable wavelet modules utilizing the Lifting Scheme into CNNs and incorporates a parallel wavelet branch into the ResNet18 model to enhance texture feature extraction. Our model can analyze texture features in spatial and frequency domains simultaneously, leading to optimized classification accuracy. We conducted experiments on collected ultrasound datasets and publicly available natural image texture datasets, our proposed network achieved 97.27% accuracy and 95.60% recall on ultrasound datasets, 60.765% accuracy on natural image texture datasets, surpassing the accuracy of ResNet and confirming the effectiveness of our approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Rare disease Background: Facet joint septic arthritis (SAFJ) is a rare clinical entity that is extremely challenging to diagnose, often presenting unilaterally and with nonspecific clinical symptoms. However, SAFJ has significant morbidity and mortality, especially with delayed diagnosis. It becomes all the more important for the clinician to recognize that SAFJ can present bilaterally and be associated with direct inoculation, such as in acupuncture. Case Report: A 53-year-old woman with chronic alcoholism and well-controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus was initially admitted for progressively worsening atraumatic lower back pain. Initial non-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the lumbar spine revealed bilateral L4-L5 and L5-S1 nonspecific facet joint effusions. Clinical examination was unremarkable. Biochemically, the patient had mildly elevated inflammatory markers. She was treated conservatively with close outpatient follow-up. However, her back pain progressively worsened, with new-onset lower limb weakness and numbness. Repeat MRI showed L4-L5 bilateral facet joint fluid collection with adjacent bony destruction, as well as posterior paraspinal and epidural fluid collections compatible with L4-L5 bilateral SAFJ with paraspinal and epidural abscesses. Urgent surgical drainage and bilateral lateral facet decompression was performed. Intraoperative cultures revealed methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus as the causative organism. Postoperatively, 6 weeks of intravenous and oral antibiotics were given with good recovery. Conclusions: We describe a case of bilateral SAFJ following acupuncture that was initially missed. With the increasing prevalence of acupuncture treatment for lower back pain, bilateral SAFJ should be a diagnostic consideration. Detailed clinical history is key; this, as well as a high index of suspicion, early evaluation and treatment, are essential to obtain a favorable outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diterpene synthase AfAS was identified from Aspergillus fumigatiaffinis. Its amino acid sequence and—according to a structural model—active site architecture are highly similar to those of the fusicocca‐2,10(14)‐diene synthase PaFS, but AfAS produces a structurally much more complex diterpene with a novel 6–5–5–5 tetracyclic skeleton called asperfumene. The cyclisation mechanism of AfAS was elucidated through isotopic labelling experiments and DFT calculations. The reaction cascade proceeds in its initial steps through similar intermediates as for the PaFS cascade, but then diverges through an unusual vicinal deprotonation‐reprotonation process that triggers a skeletal rearrangement at the entrance to the steps leading to the unique asperfumene skeleton. The structural model revealed only one major difference between the active sites: The PaFS residue F65 is substituted by I65 in AfAS. Intriguingly, site‐directed mutagenesis experiments with both diterpene synthases revealed that position 65 serves as a bidirectional functional switch for the biosynthesis of tetracyclic asperfumene versus structurally less complex diterpenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen permease regulator-like 2 (NPRL2/TUSC4) is known to exert both tumor-suppressing and oncogenic effects in different types of cancers, suggesting that its actions are context dependent. Here, we delineated the molecular and functional effects of NPRL2 in malignantly transformed bronchial epithelial cells. To do so, we depleted NPRL2 in oncogenic HRas-transduced and malignantly transformed human bronchial epithelial (BEAS2B), Ras-AI-T2 cells. Intriguingly, depletion of NPRL2 in these cells induced activation of mTORC1 downstream signaling, inhibited autophagy, and impaired Ras-AI-T2 cell proliferation both in vitro and in vivo. These results suggest that NPRL2 is required for oncogenic HRas-induced cell transformation. Depletion of NPRL2 increased levels of the DNA damage marker γH2AX, the cell cycle inhibitors p21 and p27, and the apoptosis marker cleaved-PARP. These NPRL2-depleted cells first accumulated at G1 and G2, and later exhibited signs of mitotic catastrophe, which implied that NPRL2 depletion may be detrimental to oncogenic HRas-transformed cells. Additionally, NPRL2 depletion reduced heat shock factor 1/heat shock element- and NRF2/antioxidant response element-directed luciferase reporter activities in Ras-AI-T2 cells, indicating that NPRL2 depletion led to the suppression of two key cytoprotective processes in oncogenic HRas-transformed cells. Overall, our data suggest that oncogenic HRas-transduced and malignantly transformed cells may depend on NPRL2 for survival and proliferation, and depletion of NPRL2 also induces a stressed state in these cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) is now suggested by many workers to play a role in the formation of orogenic gold deposits in active continental margins, given that the gold and volatiles may be introduced into the SCLM during plate subduction. The giant Cretaceous Jiaodong gold province within the North China block occurs in a convergent margin setting where there is no terrane accretion, thus eliminating from consideration the commonly accepted metal and fluid source reservoir for orogenic gold--the metamorphosed upper crust of an active orogenic belt. Thus, the auriferous fluids were released below the high-grade Archean cratonic rocks from either enriched SCLM or directly from the subducted oceanic slab. Mercury (Hg) isotopes allow fingerprinting of isotopically distinct reservoirs, discriminating between the two possibilities. We present Hg isotope data for a set of pyrite grains, native gold, and lamprophyres from six main gold districts in the Jiaodong gold province. These samples dominantly yielded near-zero Δ199Hg (0‰ ± 0.1‰), within uncertainty of the mantle Δ199Hg value. The results provide novel evidence that the SCLM predominantly controlled the Hg budget of the Jiaodong gold deposits, implying that the SCLM acted as a buffer for the crustal mass-independent fractionation Hg signatures and a storage reservoir for gold and volatiles. Consequently, during slab subduction, gold and volatiles were recycled and stored within the SCLM and were later released from the mantle during uplift and relaxation of compressional tectonics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractDespite the growing corpus of knowledge on fake news sharing, nothing much is known about the relationship between the dissemination of fake news and social media exhaustion from an empirical standpoint. There is limited knowledge that exists to show if social media exhaustion could contribute to fake news-sharing behaviour. To address the gaps in the literature, this study created and evaluated a stressor strain outcome model that forecasts social media spread of fake news. It looked at the contributing elements of social media exhaustion before connecting it to disseminating fake news online. It also looked at how social media exhaustion functions as a mediator between its antecedents and fake news-sharing activity. Data was obtained from 1650 social media users using an online survey. Smart PLS structural equation modelling was used to examine the data. Our results, which drew on the stressor strain outcome model, demonstrated that, in the context of fake news-sharing behaviour, social media usage intensity is the most important predictor of social media exhaustion. Social media exhaustion was also predicted by information irrelevance, social media overload, the fear of missing out, and information overload. Also, social media tiredness predicts how people would share misleading news. Further research indicates that the link between information relevance, social overload, fear of missing out, information overload, and the dissemination of fake news is fully mediated by social media exhaustion. Conversely, it partially mediated the link between the frequency of using social media and the dissemination of false information. Our research provides recommendations to social media businesses and developers who wish to reduce concerns about social media tiredness and the spread of fake news. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parrots are traded globally and pose a substantial risk for disease transmission involving parrot-specific pathogens. Parrot bornavirus (PaBV) belongs to the Bornaviridae family and encompasses two clades: alphapsittaciforme (PaBV-1 to -4, PaBV-7, and -8) and betapsittaciforme (PaBV-5 and PaBV-6). These clades cause proventricular dilatation disease, a chronic disease affecting all parrot species. PaBV infections can persist for varying durations in parrots, but the transmission routes are still not well understood. Therefore, surveillance of PaBV-infected parrots is necessary for disease control and improving psittacine aviculture. This study used isolated PaBV-4 NTUCL7 and PaBV-5 NTUCL54 strains to establish and validate two serological diagnostic methods: immunoblotting (IB) and immunocytochemical staining (ICC). To determine the prevalence of PaBV in parrots in Taiwan, 370 clinical serum samples were collected from 13 collaborative veterinary hospitals during a 1-year surveillance period. Serological surveillance revealed a seropositivity rate of 25.68%. Among the seropositive samples, 91.58% were infected with alphapsittaciforme PaBV, demonstrating the predominance of this viral clade in parrots. An analysis of risk factors also demonstrated an association between seropositivity and parrot genera, age, and clinical signs. Cohen's kappa coefficient analysis showed a high degree of similarity (kappa value = 0.975) between the IB and ICC results, which shows that these serological diagnostic measures are robust. This study established two reliable serological diagnostic measures that are instrumental in serological surveillance, particularly in one of the major parrot-exporting regions. The surveillance results increase the understanding of PaBV infection and associated risk factors and allow methods to be devised for the conservation and protection of parrot populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stair climbing exercise (SE) provides a feasible approach to elevate physical activity, but the effects on metabolic health are unclear. We systematically reviewed the currently available evidence on the effects of SE on fasting and postprandial glycaemia and lipidaemia. Studies were included if they investigated the effects of acute or chronic (at least 2 weeks) SE on fasting and/or postprandial glycaemic (insulin and glucose) and lipidaemic (triacylglycerols and non-esterified fatty acids) responses in healthy, prediabetic or type 2 diabetic adult populations. PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus were searched for eligible studies until July 2022. A total of 25 studies (14 acute and 11 chronic) were eligible for review. Acute bout(s) of SE can reduce postprandial glycaemia in individuals with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes (8 of 9 studies), but not in normoglycemic individuals. The effects of acute SE on postprandial lipidaemic responses and SE training on both fasting and postprandial glycaemia/lipidaemia were unclear. Acute SE may reduce postprandial glucose concentrations in people with impaired glycaemic control, but high-quality studies are needed. More studies are needed to determine the effect of chronic SE training on postprandial glucose and lipid responses, and the acute effects of SE on lipid responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the repeated action of aircraft taxiing load, the subgrade plastic deformation becomes the key factor affecting the service performance of the airfields when salinized silt is used to fill the subgrade. In this study, the dynamic triaxial tests were carried out on a region in the northern part of China to study the effects of different salt contents on the dynamic characteristics of silt under cyclic loading. A prediction model for the salinized silt dynamic strength with a plastic strain of 4% as the failure criterion for the subgrade was thus proposed. It is found that with the increase of dynamic stress amplitude, the salinized silt plastic deformation transforms gradually from plastic deformation to incremental failure. The salt contents significantly influence the plastic strain and critical dynamic stress of silt. The strength of the salinized silt specimen is related to the ion concentration in the soil pores and the arrangement pattern of soil particles, as indicated by the progressive strength increase of the salinized silt at the low salt content of 1% and a further gradual decrease at high salt content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To develop a computed tomography (CT) radiomics-based interpretable machine learning (ML) model to predict the pathological grade of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (pNETs) in a non-invasive manner. Methods: Patients with pNETs who underwent contrast-enhanced abdominal CT between 2010 and 2022 were included in this retrospective study. Radiomics features were extracted, and five radiomics-based ML models, namely logistic regression (LR), random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), XGBoost, and GaussianNB, were developed. The performance of these models was evaluated using a time-independent testing set, and metrics such as sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were calculated. The accuracy of the radiomics model was compared to that of needle biopsy. The Shapley Additive Explanation (SHAP) tool and the correlation between radiomics and biological features were employed to explore the interpretability of the model. Results: A total of 122 patients (mean age: 50 ± 14 years; 53 male) were included in the training set, whereas 100 patients (mean age: 48 ± 13 years; 50 male) were included in the testing set. The AUCs for LR, SVM, RF, XGBoost, and GaussianNB were 0.758, 0.742, 0.779, 0.744, and 0.745, respectively, with corresponding accuracies of 73.0%, 70.0%, 77.0%, 71.9%, and 72.9%. The SHAP tool identified two features of the venous phase as the most significant, which showed significant differences among the Ki-67 index or mitotic count subgroups (p < 0.001). Conclusions: An interpretable radiomics-based RF model can effectively differentiate between G1 and G2/3 of pNETs, demonstrating favorable interpretability. Clinical relevance statement: The radiomics-based interpretable model developed in this study has significant clinical relevance as it offers a non-invasive method for assessing the pathological grade of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and holds promise as an important complementary tool to traditional tissue biopsy. Key Points: • A radiomics-based interpretable model was developed to predict the pathological grade of pNETs and compared with preoperative needle biopsy in terms of accuracy. • The model, based on CT radiomics, demonstrated favorable interpretability. • The radiomics model holds potential as a valuable complementary technique to preoperative needle biopsy; however, it should not be considered a replacement for biopsy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work reported an AIE fluorescent probe for tumor imaging based on the pH induced self-assembly strategy. The fluorescent probe was composed of an acid-responsive soluble copolymer PEG-b-PAMA-DMMA with a maleic acid amide group and an anionic soluble aggregation-induced emission fluorogen (AIEgen) TPE-2SO3−. The polymer could be transformed into a protonated amine-containing polymer after the hydrolysis of maleic acid amide in acidic tumor microenvironment, which would be further self-assembled with TPE-2SO3− to form aggregated nanoparticles. The transition of TPE-2SO3− from dispersed state to aggregated state led to an obvious increase in fluorescence intensity due to its AIE characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses a study conducted by a physics teacher to verify whether ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) light can pass through glass. The study involved conducting experiments using UV sensor cards and a smartphone camera. The results showed that UV light from the sun can be transmitted through transparent glass, and infrared light emitted by a TV remote control can be detected by a smartphone camera even when a glass is placed between them. The experiments encouraged students to question the information presented in their textbooks and provided a more accurate understanding of the transmission of UV and IR light through glass. The study also highlighted the potential risks of UVA exposure through glass, as well as the blocking of UVB light, which affects vitamin D synthesis. [Extracted from the article]

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) was known as the common endocrine disease in women, featured as hyperandrogenism, ovulation disorders, etc. Fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO), a m6A demethylase, is abnormal in the occurrence of ovarian diseases. However, the mechanism of FTO in the pathogenesis of PCOS is still unclear. The level of FTO in clinical samples, PCOS rat with hyperandrogenism and granulosa cells (GCs) lines effected by DHT were investigated by ELISA, qRT-PCR, WB, and IHC, while m6A RNA methylation level was studied by m6A Colorimetric and androgen level was tested through ELISA. Changes in steroid hormone synthetase and androgen receptor (AR)/prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in vitro were visualized by WB after transient transfection silenced FTO. The effect of DHT combined with FTO inhibitor meclofenamic acid (MA) on FTO, AR/PSA, and AKT phosphorylation were also demonstrated by WB. The co-localization of FTO and AR in KGN cells was analyzed by confocal microscopy, and the physiological interaction between FTO and AR was studied by Co-IP assay. The effect of FTO-specific inhibitor MA, AKT phosphorylation inhibitor LY294002, and the combined them on GCs proliferation and cell cycle were evaluated by drug combination index, EDU assay, and flow cytometry analysis. FTO expression was upregulated in follicular fluid and GCs in PCOS patients clinically. The high FTO expression in patients was negative with the level of m6A, but positive with the level of androgen. The upregulation of FTO was accompanied with a decrease in the level of m6A in PCOS rat with hyperandrogenism. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) promoted the FTO expression and inhibited m6A content as a dose-dependent way in vitro. In contrast, suppression of FTO with siRNA attenuated the expression of steroid hormone synthetase such as CYP11A1, CYP17A1, HSD11B1, HSD3B2 except CYP19A1 synthetase, ultimately inducing the decrease of androgen level. Suppression of FTO also decreased the biological activity of androgen through downregulation AR/PSA. MA treatment as the specific FTO antagonist decreased cell survival in time- and dose-dependent way in GCs lines. Correspondingly, MA treatment decreased the expression of FTO, AR/PSA expression, and AKT phosphorylation in the presence of DHT stimulation. Additionally, we also speculate there is a potential relation between FTO and AR according to FTO was co-localized and interacted with AR in KGN cells. Compared with AKT phosphorylation inhibitor LY294002 or MA alone, LY294002 combined with MA synergistically inhibited cell survival and increased G2/M phase arrest in GC line. We first evaluated the correlation of FTO and m6A in PCOS clinically, and further explored the mechanism between FTO and hyperandrogenism in PCOS animal and cell models. These findings contributed the potential therapy by targeting the FTO for hyperandrogenism in PCOS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the effect on empathy skills of integrating narrative medicine instruction into clinical internship undergraduate medical education. Methods: One hundred clinical undergraduate students who were transferred to gynecology and obstetrics in 2016 were selected as subjects and divided into two groups. The control group adopted the traditional practice teaching mode, while the experimental group adopted a narrative medicine integrated with traditional teaching mode. The impact of the narrative medicine course was evaluated using the Davis Empathy Scale, and the students' acceptance of the course was investigated using a self-developed questionnaire. Results: After completion of the rotation, the empathy scores of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group (p < 0.05). Students in the experimental group rated the integration of narrative medicine into the internship class highly, and most students thought that the narrative medicine course was of great benefit with respect to the humanistic quality of medical teaching. Conclusion: The application of narrative medicine teaching in the clinical practice teaching of obstetrics and gynecology promoted students to improve their empathy ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying brain activity and deciphering the information in electroencephalogram (EEG) signals has become an emerging research field, and substantial advances have been made in the EEG-based classification of emotions. However, using different EEG features and complementarity to discriminate other emotions is still challenging. Most existing models extract a single temporal feature from the EEG signal while ignoring the crucial temporal dynamic information, which, to a certain extent, constrains the classification capability of the model. To address this issue, we propose an Attention-Based Depthwise Parameterized Convolutional Gated Recurrent Unit (AB-DPCGRU) model and validate it with the mixed experiment on the SEED and SEED-IV datasets. The experimental outcomes revealed that the accuracy of the model outperforms the existing state-of-the-art methods, which confirmed the superiority of our approach over currently popular emotion recognition models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accidental collisions from overheight vehicles often result in significant damage of bridges. To ensure the safety of the bridge structure, it is essential to develop a method to evaluate the damage caused by these impact loadings. This study aims to investigate the damage mechanism of a prestressed concrete (PC) box girder bridge subjected to overheight vehicle impact using the finite element analysis method. Parametric analyses were performed to study the effects of various factors on the impact force and deformation performance of the bridge. In addition, a damage assessment formula, based on the vertical residual bearing capacity, is proposed to evaluate the damage state of the impacted PC box girder. A mass–velocity (m–v) curve is developed to characterize the damage levels of the impacted PC girder under different vehicle velocity and mass conditions. Then, a theoretical equation for predicting the maximum impact force during the vehicle‐bridge collision is developed. The numerical analysis results show that vehicle‐related parameters have a significant influence on both impact force and local damage of the PC box girder bridge. The proposed mass–velocity (m–v) curve can be used to evaluate the damage state of the PC box girder by relating the performance levels of the girder to each damage index. Moreover, the predicted maximum impact force can be used as an important index to assess the extent of the local damage of the PC box girder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the time integration of parabolic equations with block implicit methods (BIM). Depending on the size of the block, high-order BIM with A-stability are designed without the need of multiple initial guesses. Similar to Runge--Kutta methods, a BIM can be defined by a tableau including two matrices and two vectors. In addition to the general methodology of BIM, we show a special scheme defined by a positive definite matrix and a positive diagonal matrix; both matrix properties are desirable but not available in Runge--Kutta methods. Moreover, we show that the traditional finite element theory for parabolic problems discretized by the backward Euler or Crank--Nicolson schemes can also be extended to BIM. Finally, we introduce some domain decomposition preconditioners for the linear systems of algebraic equations arising from the block implicit discretization in time and the finite element in space. Some numerical results are also reported to show the effectiveness of BIM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel HLA‐C*15:279 allele differs from HLA‐C*15:02:01:01 by five nucleotide substitutions in exons 4 and 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A global multimodel probabilistic subseasonal forecast system for precipitation and near-surface temperature is developed based on three NOAA ensemble prediction systems that make their forecasts available publicly in real time as part of the Subseasonal Experiment (SubX). The weekly and biweekly ensemble means of precipitation and temperature of each model are individually calibrated at each grid point using extended logistic regression, prior to forming equal-weighted multimodel ensemble (MME) probabilistic forecasts. Reforecast skill of week-3-4 precipitation and temperature is assessed in terms of the cross-validated ranked probability skill score (RPSS) and reliability diagram. The multimodel reforecasts are shown to be well calibrated for both variables. Precipitation is moderately skillful over many tropical land regions, including Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, and over subtropical South America, Africa, and Australia. Near-surface temperature skill is considerably higher than for precipitation and extends into the extratropics as well. The multimodel RPSS skill of both precipitation and temperature is shown to exceed that of any of the constituent models over Indonesia, South Asia, South America, and East Africa in all seasons. An example real-time week-3-4 global forecast for 13-26 November 2021 is illustrated and shown to bear the hallmarks of the combined influences of a moderate Madden-Julian oscillation event as well as weak-moderate ongoing La Niña event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermoelectric (TE) technology enables direct conversion between thermal and electrical energies and thus has been regarded as an alternative for energy harvesting and refrigeration. Bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) is the most widely used TE material at room temperature due to its high figure of merit (∼1). Since the first publication on the electrodeposition of Bi2Te3 films in 1994, a large number of publications has emerged in the last two decades, owing to its advantages such as simple and safe preparation, high deposition rate, convenient micromachining, good compatibility to semiconductor microfabrication techniques and so on. This article reviews the recent research progress in the electrodeposition of Bi2Te3 and its application in TE devices. Additionally, an outlook towards the future development of this area has also been discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: A high incidence of mortality and severe COVID‐19 infection was reported in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients during the early phases of the COVID‐19 pandemic; however, outcomes with subsequent severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) variants, such as the omicron variant, have yet to be reported. Additionally, rollout of COVID‐19 vaccinations in subsequent pandemic waves may modify COVID‐19 disease severity and mortality in this immunocompromised population. We describe COVID‐19 outcomes among a highly vaccinated population of HSCT recipients at a single center during successive waves of community transmission arising from the SARS‐CoV‐2 delta and omicron variants. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of all HSCT recipients at our institution who tested positive for SARS‐CoV‐2 from May 2021 to May 2022. Descriptive statistics were reported; the chi‐square test was utilized to identify factors associated with 90‐day all‐cause mortality and severity of COVID‐19 infection. Results: Over the 1‐year study period, 77 HSCT recipients at our center contracted COVID‐19 (43 allogenic; 34 autologous). Twenty‐six (33.8%) patients were infected with the SARS‐CoV‐2 delta variant, while 51 (66.2%) had the SARS‐CoV‐2 omicron variant. Thirty‐nine (50.6%) patients required hospitalization. More than 80% had received prior COVID‐19 vaccination (57.1% with two doses, 27.3% with three doses). The majority (90.9%) had mild disease; only one (1.3%) patient required mechanical ventilation. Active hematological disease at time of COVID‐19 infection was associated with increased odds of mortality [odds ratio (OR) = 6.90, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.20–40]. The 90‐day all‐cause mortality was 7.8% (six patients). Infection with the omicron variant (vs. delta) was associated with less severe illness (OR = 0.05, 95% CI = 0.01–0.47) and decreased odds of mortality (OR = 0.08, 95% CI = 0.01–0.76). Being on immunosuppression (OR = 5.10, 95% CI = 1.10–23.60) and being unvaccinated at disease onset (OR = 14.76, 95% CI = 2.89–75.4) were associated with greater severity of COVID‐19 infection. Conclusion: We observed favorable outcomes with COVID‐19 infection in a cohort of vaccinated HSCT patients. The SARS‐CoV‐2 omicron variant was associated with both less severe illness and decreased odds of mortality. As COVID‐19 moves toward endemicity, early access to treatment and encouraging vaccination uptake is crucial in mitigating the challenge of COVID‐19 management among HSCT recipients. Surveillance and assessment of clinical outcomes with new SARS‐CoV‐2 variants also remains important in this immunocompromised population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tubulointerstitial inflammation (TII) is a critical pathological feature of kidney disease leading to renal fibrosis, and its treatment remains a major clinical challenge. We sought to explore the role of quercetin, a potential exosomes inhibitor, in exosomes release and TII. Methods: The effects of quercetin on exosomes release and TII were examined by two TII mouse models: the unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) models and the LPS-induced mouse models. In vitro, exosomes-mediated crosstalk between tubular epithelial cells (TECs) and macrophages was performed to investigate the mechanisms by which quercetin inhibited exosomes and TII. Results: In this study, we found that exosomes-mediated crosstalk between TECs and macrophages contributed to the development of TII. In vitro, exosomes released from LPS-stimulated TECs induced increased expression of inflammatory cytokines and fibrotic markers in Raw264·7 cells and vice versa. Interestingly, heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) or Hsp90 proteins could control exosomes release from TECs and macrophages both in vivo and in vitro. Importantly, quercetin, a previously recognized heat shock protein inhibitor, could significantly reduce exosomes release in TII models by down-regulating Hsp70 or Hsp90. Quercetin abrogated exosomes-mediated intercellular communication, which attenuated TII and renal fibrosis accordingly. Conclusion: Quercetin could serve as a novel strategy for treatment of tubulointerstitial inflammation by inhibiting the exosomes-mediated crosstalk between tubules and macrophages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eukaryotic initiation factor 3d (eIF3d), a known RNAbinding subunit of the eIF3 complex, is a 66 to 68-kDa protein with an RNA-binding motif and a cap-binding domain. Compared with other eIF3 subunits, eIF3d is relatively understudied. However, recent progress in studying eIF3d has revealed a number of intriguing findings on its role in maintaining eIF3 complex integrity, global protein synthesis, and in biological and pathological processes. It has also been reported that eIF3d has noncanonical functions in regulating translation of a subset of mRNAs by binding to 50-UTRs or interacting with other proteins independent of the eIF3 complex and additional functions in regulating protein stability. The noncanonical regulation of mRNA translation or protein stability may contribute to the role of eIF3d in biological processes such as metabolic stress adaptation and in disease onset and progression including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection, tumorigenesis, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome. In this review, we critically evaluate the recent studies on these aspects of eIF3d and assess prospects in understanding the function of eIF3d in regulating protein synthesis and in biological and pathological processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Good syndrome (GS) is a rare acquired immunodeficiency. • Relapsing bacterial and viral infections are common in GS. • Relapsing COVID-19 infection has not been previously reported in GS. • We report a case of GS manifesting as relapsing COVID-19 infection. Good syndrome (GS) is a rare acquired immunodeficiency disease characterized by the presence of thymoma with combined B and T cell immunodeficiency in adults. Recurrent bacterial infections, particularly sinopulmonary infections caused by encapsulated bacteria, remain the most common infective presentation of GS; however, relapsing viral infections have also been reported, likely due to impaired T cell-mediated immunity. Relapsing COVID-19 infection, however, has not been previously reported as a manifestation of GS. We present two cases of relapsing COVID-19 infection in patients with GS; in one case, relapsing COVID-19 was the first manifestation of newly diagnosed GS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An I2-mediated [3+2+1] aerobic cyclization reaction of anilines with alkynes and tertiary amines without any peroxides has been reported. This protocol employed tertiary amines as a C1 building block for the direct synthesis of 2-non, 2-alkyl, and even 2-aryl substituted quinolines via C–N bond cleavage. Differing from the traditional methods, both terminal and internal alkynes were compatible in this metal-free three-component system. It is possible that the 2-vinylbenzenamine species might be produced as one of the active intermediates in this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To investigate the gender and socioeconomic disparities in the global burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD) due to glomerulonephritis from 1990 to 2019. Methods: Data were extracted from the global burden of diseases (GBD) 2019 study, including incidence, prevalence and disability‐adjusted life‐years (DALYs). Estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) were calculated to quantify the temporal trends in age‐standardized rate (ASR) of CKD due to glomerulonephritis. Paired t‐test, paired Wilcoxon signed‐rank test and Spearman correlation were performed to analyse the association and gender disparity in CKD due to glomerulonephritis. Results: Globally, incident cases of CKD due to glomerulonephritis increased 81% from 9 557 397 in 1990 to 17 308 071 in 2019. The age‐standardized incidence rate increased by 1.47 compared with 1990 and DALYs increased by 1.35 compared with 1990 (per 100 000). The number of patients with CKD due to glomerulonephritis in low‐middle SDI (3829917) and middle SDI (6268817) regions accounts for more than 55% of the total cases. CKD due to glomerulonephritis caused a higher burden including the incidence rate (p <.0001) and DALY rate (p <.0001) in men compared to women. The age‐standardized DALY rate was negatively correlated with SDI (ρ = −0.64, p <.001). In the analysis of risk factors for DALYs, male individuals had a larger burden of hypertension, high BMI and high sodium diet in the DALY rates than female subjects. Conclusion: The burden of CKD due to glomerulonephritis was more skewed towards developing and less developed economies and differed by gender, so certain nations should implement far more focused and targeted policies. Summary at a Glance: We examined the gender and socioeconomic disparities in the burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD) due to glomerulonephritis. A higher burden, including the incidence and DALY rate, was observed in men compared to women. The burden of CKD due to glomerulonephritis was more skewed towards developing and less developed economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyzed the prognostic factors for treatment outcomes amongst 34 patients with adult Burkitt lymphoma (BL) who received rituximab with standard first-line chemotherapy. Seven patients had human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated BL. Overall, we observed a complete remission (CR) rate of 91.2%, and 10-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) was 84.8 and 88.2%, respectively. In patients with concomitant HIV, the prognosis was not different with 10-year PFS of 100% and OS of 88.2%. The majority (71.4%) of HIV-associated BL patients received dose-adjusted EPOCH-R (etoposide, prednisone, vincristine, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and rituximab) and had excellent outcomes with 100% CR and no relapses. Central nervous system (CNS) disease, bone marrow involvement and elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels more than 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN) were associated with poorer survival outcomes. Patients with refractory disease, whilst uncommon (n = 4), had dismal outcomes. Patients with adult BL, including HIV-related cases, harbor generally good prognosis in the modern era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying brain activity and deciphering the information in electroencephalogram (EEG) signals has become an emerging research field, and substantial advances have been made in the EEG-based classification of emotions. However, using different EEG features and complementarity to discriminate other emotions is still challenging. Most existing models extract a single temporal feature from the EEG signal while ignoring the crucial temporal dynamic information, which, to a certain extent, constrains the classification capability of the model. To address this issue, we propose an Attention-Based Depthwise Parameterized Convolutional Gated Recurrent Unit (AB-DPCGRU) model and validate it with the mixed experiment on the SEED and SEED-IV datasets. The experimental outcomes revealed that the accuracy of the model outperforms the existing state-of-the-art methods, which confirmed the superiority of our approach over currently popular emotion recognition models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although La-loaded Al 2 O 3 (La/Al 2 O 3) is a widely used support material for three-way catalysis (TWC), little is known about the promotional effect of La in the La/Al 2 O 3 supported Pd catalyst (Pd/La/Al 2 O 3) in the catalytic NO reduction (DeNO x) for automotive emission control. Previously (Jing et al., 2020 [1]), we assessed the promotional effect of La and observed that the supported metallic Pd nanoparticles on the La/Al 2 O 3 support were more electron-deficient than those on Al 2 O 3 without La, which led to suppression of CO poisoning and a higher catalytic activity for NO reduction. Here, we further investigated the role of La in Pd/La/Al 2 O 3 for the DeNO x process by various spectroscopic methods. The results obtained suggest that the efficient generation of nitrite species and its facile reactivity are important for the promotional effect of La in NO reduction. In addition, we investigated the effects of hydrothermal aging. For the TWC, Pd/La/Al 2 O 3 with high La loading (15 wt%) was identified to be superior to the conventional industrial catalyst having a loading of 5 wt%. It was also found to show relatively high Pd dispersion even after aging at 800 °C. The observed stabilizing effect is an important benefit of the addition of La. [Display omitted] • Promotional effect of La in Pd/La/Al 2 O 3 for three-way catalysis was investigated. • Supported metallic Pd particles on La/Al 2 O 3 were more electron-deficient than those on Al 2 O 3. • Pd/La/Al 2 O 3 with high La loading is effective for three-way catalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We aimed to investigate whether parental and siblings' sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake had prospective impact on children's SSB consumption, and the potential sex difference in these associations. Methods: This study included a total of 904 children and their parents enrolled from 2004 to 2011 China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) cohort study. SSB consumption information was estimated using a short dietary questionnaire and total energy intake was assessed with three-day 24-h dietary assessments at recruitment and follow-up surveys. Multivariate logistic or linear regression analyses were used to assess the association for SSB consumption between parents, siblings and children after adjusting for age, body mass index (BMI) z-score, household income and parental educational level. Results: In this study, a majority (87.6%) of children consumed SSB. Among them, the median consumption of SSB was 70.3 ml/day per capita and 205.4 ml/day per consumer. Parental SSB consumption was relevant to children's SSB consumption, and this association was more pronounced in boys than in girls. Meanwhile, fathers seemed to have a stronger impact on whether children consume SSB than mothers which was reflected by lower P and higher OR. Additionally, children's SSB intake was prospectively associated with their older siblings' SSB consumption (Pfor trend < 0.03). Conclusions: Parental and older siblings' SSB consumption was relevant to children's SSB intake. Particularly, boys were more susceptible to parental impact than girls, and fathers seemed to have a greater influence on children than mothers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Kapustin-Fidkowski no-go theorem forbids U(1) symmetric topological orders with non-trivial Hall conductivity in (2+1)d from admitting commuting projector Hamiltonians, where the latter is the paradigmatic method to construct exactly solvable lattice models for topological orders. Even if a topological order would intrinsically have admitted commuting projector Hamiltonians, the theorem forbids so once its interplay with U(1) global symmetry which generates Hall conductivity is taken into consideration. Nonetheless, in this work, we show that for all (2+1)d U(1) symmetric abelian topological orders of such kind, we can construct a lattice Hamiltonian that is controllably solvable at low energies, even though not “exactly” solvable; hence, this no-go theorem does not lead to significant difficulty in the lattice study of these topological orders. Moreover, for the fermionic topological orders in our construction, we introduce the lattice notion of spin-c structure — a concept important in the continuum that has previously not been adequately introduced in the lattice context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC), one of the most prevalent cancers, has complex etiology. The dysbiosis of intestinal bacteria has been highlighted as an important contributor to CRC. Fusobacterium nucleatum , an oral anaerobic opportunistic pathogen, is enriched in both stools and tumor tissues of patients with CRC. Therefore, F. nucleatum is considered to be a risk factor for CRC. This review summarizes the biological characteristics and the mechanisms underlying the regulatory behavior of F. nucleatum in the tumorigenesis and progression of CRC. F. nucleatum as a marker for the early warning and prognostic prediction of CRC, and as a target for prevention and treatment, is also described. Fusobacterium nucleatum has been related to genetic and epigenetic lesions, such as microsatellite instability (MSI), CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP), and genome mutation in colorectal cancer (CRC) tissues. F. nucleatum could promote the proliferation and metabolism, remodel the immune microenvironment, and facilitate metastasis and chemoresistance in the tumorigenesis and development of CRC. F. nucleatum could function as a biomarker for screening the high-risk population for CRC. Although further in-depth studies are warranted, several virulence- or phage-based therapeutics specific to F. nucleatum may be novel promising methods in CRC treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal cell carcinoma is the most common malignant tumor of the kidneys and constitutes about 90% of all renal malignancies.[1] Renal cell carcinoma has an abundant blood supply and is thought to spread by lymphatic, hematogenous, and transcoelomic metastasis, or through direct invasion. Renal cell carcinoma is mostly diagnosed at an advanced stage, with a median survival time of only 6-12 months.[3] Gastric metastasis of renal cell carcinoma is extremely rare. A metastatic clear cell adenocarcinoma of renal origin was considered, which showed the same cellular subtype as her previous clear cell renal cell carcinoma (Figure 3). [Extracted from the article]

[Display omitted] • Promotional effect of basic metal additives in Pt/M/Al 2 O 3 (M = La, Ba or Sr) for NO x reduction was investigated. • Basic metal additives modify the electronic states of Pt0 species. • The electron-rich Pt0 species loaded on Ba/Al 2 O 3 promoted NO dissociation into N and O atoms. • Efficient formation of intermediate NOx species and their reactivity are critical for the promotional effect of Ba. Pt has been economically favored over Rh and Pd. However, Pt-based three-way catalysts (TWCs) have been studied less than Pd- and Rh-based TWCs; therefore, their properties have not yet been sufficiently evaluated, especially under conditions relevant to modern three-way catalysis operation, wherein deviations from stoichiometric conditions are often encountered. In this study, we examined the promotional effect of basic metal additives in Pt/M/Al 2 O 3 (M = Ba, La, Sr) on the efficiency of three-way catalytic reactions. The catalytic activities of the Pt/M/Al 2 O 3 catalysts for NO, CO, and total hydrocarbons were superior to those of Pt/Al 2 O 3 ; moreover, Ba enhanced the catalytic activity of Pt-based catalysts more efficiently than La and Sr. The best-performing catalyst, Pt/Ba/Al 2 O 3 , was subjected to kinetic studies and various in situ/operando spectroscopic experiments, namely, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, and ambient-pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AP-XPS), to investigate the role of Ba in the NO reduction reaction. The Pt0 species loaded on Ba/Al 2 O 3 were more electron-rich than those loaded on Al 2 O 3 , thereby promoting NO dissociation into N and O atoms, as revealed by the AP-XPS results. Moreover, the efficient formation of intermediate surface NO x species, including nitrites and nitrates, and their reactivities toward reductant gases, such as H 2 or CO, were critical for promoting the effect of Ba on the NO reduction reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective This is a cross-sectional study that compares the sales of "healthy" and "unhealthy" vending machines following the introduction of healthier vending machines on a university campus. Method: Healthy ("green" and "amber" category), competitively priced snacks and beverages in vending machines (n = 4) called Grab Goodness were placed alongside standard vending machines (n = 11). The monthly sales data from all vending machines were captured electronically for 20 months. Results: Assortment of snacks and beverages offered by standard vending machines were of low nutritional quality, with only 16% of all products categorized as "green." The new Grab Goodness machines accounted for 28% of all vending machine purchases over 20 months, and 50% of all products purchased through these machines were "green" category items. Conclusions: The purchases of healthier snack options demonstrate encouraging patterns that support more nutritious and healthy alternatives in vending machines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the importance of uranium and uranium alloys to national defence and nuclear industrial applications, it is necessary to understand dendrite formation in their solidification structures and to control their microstructures. In this study, a modified cellular automaton model was developed to predict 2-D and 3-D equiaxed dendrite growth in U-Nb alloys. The model takes into account solute diffusion, preferential growth orientation, interface curvature, etc., and the solid fraction increment is calculated using the local level rule method. Using this model, 2-D large-scale and 3-D equiaxed dendrite growth with various crystallographic orientations in the U-5.5Nb alloy were simulated, and the Nb micro-segregation behaviour during solidification was analysed. The simulated results showed reasonable agreement with the as-cast microstructure observed experimentally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we examine the electronic and optical properties of ABBA-stacked tetralayer graphene (4LG), emphasizing its unique characteristics in contrast to its counterparts. The full tight-binding model elucidates the significance of interlayer couplings in the system. We investigate the influence of gate voltage on the system and uncover alterations in the band structure, the emergence of edge states, and the formation of band gaps. The analysis of the density of states reveals the existence of van Hove singularities, which dynamically evolve with the changing gate voltage, resulting in a transition from semimetallic to semiconductor properties. The optical absorption spectrum demonstrates asymmetrical peaks and step-like structures, further affected by a potential difference. Under a finite electric field, optical excitations in gated 4LG reveal triangular isoenergy loops with significant interaction-induced distortions of up to 100 meV. This study anticipates the potential for tuning optical properties in ABBA-stacked 4LG through external electric fields, offering opportunities for experimental exploration. • Novel theoretical predictions offer unique insights into ABBA-stacked four-layer graphene (4LG). • Identified signature characteristics distinguish 4LG from other graphene configurations. • Findings contribute essential insights into 4LG's relevance to low-dimensional systems and nanostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using waste rubber particles to replace fine aggregates in the production of rubber concrete not only promotes the recycling of waste rubber but also reduces the consumption of natural sand. The difference in bonding interfaces between waste rubber particles and the concrete matrix leads to a loss of concrete strength, which has prompted many researchers to investigate surface pretreatment methods for waste rubber particles. However, these studies have been limited by low production efficiency, inconspicuous strength enhancement, and the generation of chemical waste. This study proposes a new method of pretreating waste rubber particles through high-temperature mixing, with temperature (100°C, 150°C, 200°C, 250°C, 300°C) and mixing time (15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes) as variables. The treated waste rubber particles were then subjected to thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDS), and water contact angle (WCA) tests.The results show that, compared to untreated waste rubber particles, the waste rubber particles after high-temperature stirring pretreatment form a hard oxide film on the surface under high-temperature oxidation, which enhances the elastic modulus of the particles. At the same time, surface small molecular organic compounds and loose impurities are removed under the effects of stirring and friction, greatly improving the surface cleanliness.The mechanical properties of rubber concrete prepared with high-temperature stirred pretreated waste rubber particles show an initial increase followed by a decrease with the rise of temperature.In comparison, rubber concrete prepared with pretreated waste rubber particles (Stirred for 30 minutes at 250°C) shows a 38.58 % increase in cubic compressive strength, a 67.79 % increase in shear strength, a 44.45 % increase in axial compressive strength, and a 38.06 % increase in static compressive elastic modulus after 28 days of curing, compared to rubber concrete prepared with untreated waste rubber particles. • We had pretreated scrap rubber with heat stirring to boost rubber concrete strength. • We had proposed a mechanism for oxide film formation on scrap rubber surfaces. • Heating from 100℃ to 250℃ had improved rubber concrete's interfacial bonding. • Heated from 100℃ to 250℃, rubber concrete's mechanics had steadily improved. • The high-temperature stirring pretreatment process had been simple and effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, oversized microplastics (OMPs) were intentionally introduced into soil containing manure-borne doxycycline (DOX). This strategic approach was used to systematically examine the effects of combined OMP and DOX pollution on the growth of pak choi, analyze alterations in soil environmental metabolites, and explore the potential migration of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The results revealed a more pronounced impact of DOX than of OMPs. Slender-fiber OMPs (SF OMPs) had a more substantial influence on the growth of pak choi than did coarse-fiber OMPs (CF OMPs). Conversely, CF OMPs had a more significant effect on the migration of ARGs within the system. When DOX was combined with OMPs, the negative effects of DOX on pak choi growth were mitigated through the synthesis of indole through the adjustment of carbon metabolism and amino acid metabolism in pak choi roots. In this process, Pseudohongiellaceae and Xanthomonadaceae were key bacteria. During the migration of ARGs, the potential host bacterium Limnobacter should be considered. Additionally, the majority of potential host bacteria in the pak choi endophytic environment were associated with tet G. This study provides insights into the intricate interplay among DOX, OMPs, ARGs, plant growth, soil metabolism, and the microbiome. [Display omitted] • Doxycycline (DOX) had a greater impact on pak choi growth than oversized microplastics (OMPs). • Fiber OMPs combined with DOX causes roots to secrete indole to restore growth. • Slender fibe OMPs exert a more significant influence than coarse fiber OMPs on pak choi growth. • Gene tetG spread within planting systems raises notable concerns. • The genus Limnobacter poses a substantial risk in ARGs transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary: Recently, molecular ferroelectrics have attracted more and more attention due to their structural diversity, low cost of manufacture, and environmental‐friendly processing. However, most of the design strategies for molecular ferroelectrics have focused on the selection and modification of cations, and the use of anions has been rarely reported. Here, introducing distorted [CuBr4]2– tetrahedra, we obtained a high curie temperature (Tc) ferroelectric, [cyclopentylammonium]2CuBr4, with a Tc as high as 393 K, and exceeding commercial and most of reported molecular ferroelectric BaTiO3 (393 K). Variable‐temperature hysteresis loop shows the nonlinear P‐E loop of the crystal under a wide temperature range. Variable‐temperature single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction revealed that the Aizu expression can be written as mmmFmm2. In short, this work will inspire more creative strategies by exploiting the tunability of the anion module. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a fast inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) image simulation algorithm for electric-large rough surfaces based on the 3-D beam simulation method (BSM) and point spreading function (PSF). It first computes the induced current with BSM and then convolutes it with PSF to generate the ISAR image. The BSM decomposes the large incident beam into overlapped and truncated sub-beams. Each sub-beam illuminates a small region of the rough surface, and the impedance matrix is remarkably reduced small enough for fast full-wave electromagnetic (EM) scattering computation. The edge energy suppression of the sub-beam enables each sub-block to be calculated independently and parallelly. The PSF convolution kernel is derived to generate the ISAR image fast with the induced current at a central frequency and central incident angle. The numerical simulation demonstrates that the proposed BSM-PSF image simulation method remarkably reduces the unknowns of each method of moment (MoM) equation and avoids redundant matrix solutions for sweep frequencies and angles while keeping the correlation with the traditional fast Fourier transform (FFT) method over 0.9. Moreover, for high-resolution imaging, the interpolated PSF is derived. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and potential therapeutic targets of skin aging in GEO database by bioinformatics methods. Dermal fibroblasts and skin aging related data sets GSE110978 and GSE117763 were downloaded from GEO database, and epidermal stem cells and skin aging related data sets GSE137176 were downloaded. GEO2R was used to screen DEGs of candidate samples from the three microarrays, GO function analysis and KEGG pathway analysis were performed. Protein interaction network was constructed using String database, and hub gene was obtained by Cytoscape. NetworkAnalys was used to analyze the coregulatory network of DEGs and MicroRNA (miRNA), interaction with TF, and protein-chemical interactions of DEGs. Finally, DSigDB was used to determine candidate drugs for DEGs. Six DEGs were obtained. It mainly involves the cytological processes such as response to metal ion, and is enriched in mineral absorption and other signal pathways. Ten genes were screened by PPI analysis. Gene-miRNA coregulatory network found that Peg3 and mmu-miR-1931 in DEGs were related to each other, and Cybrd1 was related to mmu-miR-290a-5p and mmu-miR-3082-5p. TF-gene interactions found that the transcription factor UBTF co-regulated two genes, Arhgap24 and Mpzl1. Protein-chemical Interactions analysis and identification of candidate drugs show results for candidate drugs. Try to explore the mechanism of hub gene action in skin aging progression, and to discover the key signaling pathways leading to skin aging, which may be a high risk of skin aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The β-sheet is one of the common protein secondary structures, and the aberrant aggregation of β-sheets is implicated in various neurodegenerative diseases. Cross-strand interactions are an important determinant of β-sheet stability. Accordingly, both diagonal and lateral cross-strand interactions have been studied. Surprisingly, diagonal cross-strand ion-pairing interactions have yet to be investigated. Herein, we present a systematic study on the effects of charged amino acid side-chain length on a diagonal ion-pairing interaction between carboxylate- and ammonium-containing residues in a β-hairpin. To this end, 2D-NMR was used to investigate the conformation of the peptides. The fraction folded population and the folding free energy were derived from the chemical shift data. The fraction folded population for these peptides with potential diagonal ion pairs was mostly lower compared to the corresponding peptide with a potential lateral ion pair. The diagonal ion-pairing interaction energy was derived using double mutant cycle analysis. The Asp2-Dab9 (Asp: one methylene; Dab: two methylenes) interaction was the most stabilizing (−0.79 ± 0.14 kcal/mol), most likely representing an optimal balance between the entropic penalty to enable the ion-pairing interaction and the number of side-chain conformations that can accommodate the interaction. These results should be useful for designing β-sheet containing molecular entities for various applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has ushered in a new era in cancer treatment. Remarkable outcomes have been demonstrated in patients with previously untreatable relapsed/refractory hematological malignancies. However, optimizing efficacy and reducing the risk of toxicities have posed major challenges, limiting the success of this therapy. The tumor microenvironment (TME) plays an important role in CAR T cell therapy's effectiveness and the risk of toxicities. Increasing research studies have also identified various biomarkers that can predict its effectiveness and risk of toxicities. In this review, we discuss the various aspects of the TME and biomarkers that have been implicated thus far and discuss the role of creating scoring systems that can aid in further refining clinical applications of CAR T cell therapy and establishing a safe and efficacious personalised medicine for individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the presence of the ligand N,N-bis(3-pyrazolamide)-1,2-hexahydrobenzene (H2dpyh), three diverse fascinating structures were constructed from different polyoxometalate (POM) anions and CuII/CoII ions: {Cu8(μ2-OH)2(dpyh)4[CrMo6(OH)5O19](H2O)8}·2[CrMo6(OH)6O18]·4H2O (1), {Co(H2dpyh)[β-Mo8O26]0.5(H2O)} (2) and {Co3(H2dpyh)2[TeMo6O24](H2O)6} (3). Complexes 1–3 were characterized through single crystal X-ray diffraction, IR spectra and powder X-ray diffraction. Single-crystal analysis shows that complexes 1–3 contain internal flexible metal–pyrazole loops and different POMs, which exhibit 1D chain or 2D layer networks, respectively. Directed by the coordination modes of the POM anions and central metals, the shape and size of these metal–pyrazole loops can be tuned, which further influence the final structures and catalytic properties of complexes 1–3. The catalytic activity of these POM-based complexes toward the oxidation of thioether derivatives has been investigated, which proved the effect of metal–pyrazole loops and their final structures on the catalysis of the title complexes as heterogeneous catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outer mitochondrial membrane protein mitoNEET (mNT) is a recently identified iron‐sulfur protein containing a unique Fe2S2(His)1(Cys)3 metal cluster with a single Fe−N(His87) coordinating bond. This labile Fe−N bond led to multiple unfolding/rupture pathways of mNT and its cluster by atomic force microscopy‐based single‐molecule force spectroscopy (AFM‐SMFS), one of most common tools for characterizing the molecular mechanics. Although previous ensemble studies showed that this labile Fe−N(His) bond is essential for protein function, they also indicated that the protein and its [2Fe2S] cluster are stable under acidic conditions. Thus, we applied AFM‐SMFS to measure the stability of mNT and its cluster at pH values of 6, 7, and 8. Indeed, all previous multiple unfolding pathways of mNT were still observed. Moreover, single‐molecule measurements revealed that the stabilities of the protein and the [2Fe2S] cluster are consistent at these pH values with only ≈20 pN force differences. Thus, we found that the behavior of the protein is consistent in both weakly acidic and basic solutions despite a labile Fe−N bond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Barium (Ba) has been widely and successfully added to three‐way catalysts to effectively control gasoline vehicle emissions. While the introduction of Ba is well‐known to have a very significant impact on three‐way catalysis (TWC) performance, the role of Ba under practical TWC conditions remains insufficiently understood. In this study, we investigated the role of Ba in a Pd‐based catalyst in a standard TWC process using a gasoline vehicle and in situ/operando infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The addition of Ba was found to reduce all of the emissions considered (NOx, CO, and non‐methane hydrocarbons) in the vehicle exhaust gas; it also suppressed supported‐metal aggregation, which is a requirement of a high‐performance catalyst. In addition, IR studies using model powder catalysts revealed that the efficient formation of intermediate surface nitrate species and their subsequent reactions with reductant gases, such as CO, H2, and C3H6 (as a hydrocarbon), play key roles in reducing emissions. This process is akin to the NOx storage and reduction (NSR) mechanism commonly used to control diesel emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The quick sequential organ failure assessment (qSOFA) is recommended to identify sepsis and predict sepsis mortality. However, some studies have recently shown its poor performance in sepsis mortality prediction. To enhance its effectiveness, researchers have developed various revised versions of the qSOFA by adding other parameters, such as the lactate-enhanced qSOFA (LqSOFA), the procalcitonin-enhanced qSOFA (PqSOFA), and the modified qSOFA (MqSOFA). This study aimed to compare the performance of these versions of the qSOFA in predicting sepsis mortality in the emergency department (ED). METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed data obtained from an electronic register system of adult patients with sepsis between January 1 and December 31, 2019. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed to determine the area under the curve (AUC), with sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values calculated for the various scores. RESULTS: Among the 936 enrolled cases, there were 835 survivors and 101 deaths. The AUCs of the LqSOFA, MqSOFA, PqSOFA, and qSOFA were 0.740, 0.731, 0.712, and 0.705, respectively. The sensitivity of the LqSOFA, MqSOFA, PqSOFA, and qSOFA were 64.36%, 51.40%, 71.29%, and 39.60%, respectively. The specificity of the four scores were 70.78%, 80.96%, 61.68%, and 91.62%, respectively. The LqSOFA and MqSOFA were superior to the qSOFA in predicting in-hospital mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with sepsis in the ED, the performance of the PqSOFA was similar to that of the qSOFA and the values of the LqSOFA and MqSOFA in predicting in-hospital mortality were greater compared to qSOFA. As the added parameter of the MqSOFA was more convenient compared to the LqSOFA, the MqSOFA could be used as a candidate for the revised qSOFA to increase the performance of the early prediction of sepsis mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymer microspheres have been widely used as a stationary phase in liquid chromatography. We characterized the properties of the novel polyionic liquid microspheres prepared and explored their application as a stationary phase in liquid chromatography. Cytosine, uracil, benzene, benzene homologs and alkaloids were successfully separated by liquid chromatography with the polymer microspheres as packing materials in the chromatographic column. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]