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Chronic tinnitus is a central nervous system disorder. Currently, the effects of gut microbiota on tinnitus remain unexplored. To explore the connection between gut microbiota and tinnitus, we conducted 16S rRNA sequencing of fecal microbiota and serum metabolomic analysis in a cohort of 70 patients with tinnitus and 30 healthy volunteers. We used the weighted gene co-expression network method to analyze the relationship between the gut microbiota and the serum metabolites. The random forest technique was utilized to select metabolites and gut taxa to construct predictive models. A pronounced gut dysbiosis in the tinnitus group, characterized by reduced bacterial diversity, an increased Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, and some opportunistic bacteria including Aeromonas and Acinetobacter were enriched. In contrast, some beneficial gut probiotics decreased, including Lactobacillales and Lactobacillaceae. In serum metabolomic analysis, serum metabolic disturbances in tinnitus patients and these differential metabolites were enriched in pathways of neuroinflammation, neurotransmitter activity, and synaptic function. The predictive models exhibited great diagnostic performance, achieving 0.94 (95% CI: 0.85-0.98) and 0.96 (95% CI: 0.86-0.99) in the test set. Our study suggests that changes in gut microbiota could potentially influence the occurrence and chronicity of tinnitus, and exert regulatory effects through changes in serum metabolites. Overall, this research provides new perceptions into the potential role of gut microbiota and serum metabolite in the pathogenesis of tinnitus, and proposes the "gut-brain-ear" concept as a pathomechanism underlying tinnitus, with significant clinical diagnostic implications and therapeutic potential.IMPORTANCETinnitus affects millions of people worldwide. Severe cases may lead to sleep disorders, anxiety, and depression, subsequently impacting patients' lives and increasing societal healthcare expenditures. However, tinnitus mechanisms are poorly understood, and effective therapeutic interventions are currently lacking. We discovered the gut microbiota and serum metabolomics changes in patients with tinnitus, and provided the potential pathological mechanisms of dysregulated gut flora in chronic tinnitus. We proposed the innovative concept of the "gut-brain-ear axis," which underscores the exploration of gut microbiota impact on susceptibility to chronic tinnitus through serum metabolic profile modulation. We also reveal novel biomarkers associated with chronic tinnitus, offering a new conceptual framework for further investigations into the susceptibility of patients, potential treatment targets for tinnitus, and assessing patient prognosis. Subsequently, gut microbiota and serum metabolites can be used as molecular markers to assess the susceptibility and prognosis of tinnitus.Furthermore, fecal transplantation may be used to treat tinnitus.

A novel isotropic fullerene-hybridized fused-ring electron acceptor, designated C60-Y, has been synthesized via a mild [4+2] Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction with fullerene C60 to enhance the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). Comparative analysis shows that C60-Y significantly outperforms the control acceptor Me-Y, with a notable increase in the relative dielectric constant from 2.79 to 3.95. This improvement enhances exciton dissociation and reduces non-radiative energy losses. Additionally, the isotropic molecular packing of C60-Y, similar to fullerene, facilitates efficient interface formation with donor polymers and improves charge mobility. As a result, incorporating C60-Y as an electron acceptor increases the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of binary OSCs to 15.02%, surpassing the 13.31% achieved with Me-Y. Moreover, when integrated into a ternary blend system, an impressive PCE of 19.22% is achieved, top-performing among reported ternary OSCs utilizing fullerene derivatives as the third component. These results suggest that fullerene-hybridized acceptors like C60-Y hold great potential for advancing high-efficiency OSCs by enhancing exciton dissociation, reducing energy losses, and improving charge mobility., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

This study successfully designed and synthesized two nonfused ring electron acceptors, 412-6F and 412-6Cl, modified with fluorine and chlorine substituents, respectively. Single-crystal analysis revealed that 412-6F possesses a planar molecular backbone and exhibits pronounced dipole-dipole interactions between the fluorine atoms on the lateral phenyl groups and the carbonyl oxygen atoms on the end groups. This specific interaction promotes dense end-group stacking, leading to a reduced interlayer spacing. Improved crystallinity and coherence length are observed in the D18 : 412-6F blend film. Conversely, 412-6Cl adopts a more distorted configuration and lacks these interactions. As a result, the organic solar cell (OSC) based on D18 : 412-6F achieved a remarkable power conversion efficiency of 18.03 %, surpassing the performance of the D18 : 412-6Cl OSC. This underscores the importance of designing novel acceptors with beneficial intermolecular interactions to enhance OSC efficiency, thus providing a new direction for organic photovoltaic advancement., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

There are currently no studies exploring omicron infection and male sexual function and semen quality. Our aim was to estimate changes in sexual function and semen quality in men recovering from infection since the COVID-19 Omicron pandemic started in China in late 2022. We collected 1540 questionnaires and assessed male function before infection and acute phase after infection by using International Index of Erectile Function-5, Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool, and Arizona Sexual Experience Scale. We also collected the before and after semen analysis results of 247 male patients. During the acute phase after infection, the proportion of erectile dysfunction was significantly higher than before infection, but ejaculatory function was not significantly altered; In addition, semen analysis showed significant difference in semen concentration, semen activity and PR a+b sperm forward movement after infection compared to pre-infection.: COVID-19 Omicron can affect erectile function as well as sexual experience in male patients in the acute phase. Decreased sexual function due to COVID-19 Omicron may be related to body temperature and anxiety during infection., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Xiao et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Cathode interfacial layers (CILs) hold utmost importance for achieving ohmic contact at the organic semiconductor-cathode interface of organic photovoltaic devices. Delving deep into diverse design principles and working mechanisms is of great significance for designing novel CILs with high performance. Herein, two novel nonamine-based CILs are designed: one featuring a cyclopentadiene unit, designated as CIL-cp; while the other, lacking cyclopentadiene, is referred to as CIL-ph, which is an isomer of CIL-cp. The subtle changes in chemical structures result in distinct modification mechanisms toward ohmic contact. On one hand, the robust electron-withdrawing characteristic of cyclopentadiene endows CIL-cp with lower energy levels, resulting in an interfacial dipole at the active layer-CIL-cp interface due to electron transfer from D18 to CIL-cp. On the other hand, CIL-ph exhibits a strong interfacial dipole at the CIL-Ag interface, which significantly reduces the work function (W F ) of the silver electrode. Both CIL-cp and CIL-ph demonstrate excellent interfacial modification capability, whereas CIL-cp possesses a stronger electron extraction ability, thus leading to a high power conversion efficiency of 19.31% in the D18:L8-BO system. Our results reveal the distinctive operational mechanism of cyclopentadiene-based CILs, thus offering innovative design ideas for CIL materials.

The discovery of enzyme-like catalytic characteristics in nanomaterials triggers the generation of nanozymes and their multifarious applications. As a class of artificial mimetic enzymes, nanozymes are widely recognized to have better stability and lower cost than natural bio-enzymes, but the lack of catalytic specificity hinders their wider use. To solve the problem, several potential strategies are explored, among which molecular imprinting attracts much attention because of its powerful capacity for creating specific binding cavities as biomimetic receptors. Attractively, introducing molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) onto nanozyme surfaces can make an impact on the latter's catalytic activity. As a result, in recent years, MIPs featuring universal fabrication, low cost, and good stability have been intensively integrated with nanozymes for biochemical detection. In this critical review, we first summarize the general fabrication of nanozyme@MIPs, followed by clarifying the potential effects of molecular imprinting on the catalytic performance of nanozymes in terms of selectivity and activity. Typical examples are emphatically discussed to highlight the latest progress of nanozyme@MIPs applied in catalytic analysis. In the end, personal viewpoints on the future directions of nanozyme@MIPs are presented, to provide a reference for studying the interactions between MIPs and nanozymes and attract more efforts to advance this promising area., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH, DE part of Springer Nature.)

The high non-radiative energy loss is a bottleneck issue that impedes the improvement of organic solar cells. The formation of triplet exciton is thought to be the main source of the large non-radiative energy loss. Decreasing the rate of back charge transfer is considered as an effective approach to alleviate the relaxation of the charge-transfer state and the triplet exciton generation. Herein, we develops an efficient ternary system based on D18:N3-BO:F-BTA3 by regulating the charge-transfer state disorder and the rate of back charge transfer of the blend. With the addition of F-BTA3, a well-defined morphology with a more condensed molecular packing is obtained. Moreover, a reduced charge-transfer state disorder is demonstrated in the ternary blend, which decreases the rate of back charge transfer as well as the triplet exciton formation, and therefore hinders the non-radiative recombination pathways. Consequently, D18:N3-BO:F-BTA3-based device produces a low non-radiative energy loss of 0.183 eV and a record-high efficiency of 20.25%. This work not only points towards the significant role of the charge-transfer state disorder on the suppression of triplet exciton formation and the non-radiative energy loss, but also provides a valuable insight for enhancing the performance of OSCs., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

By combining the rigidity of inorganic components with the flexibility of organic components, molecule-based ferroelectrics emerge as promising candidates for flexible, self-powered piezoelectric sensors. While it is well known that the performance of piezoelectric sensor devices depends not only on the materials' piezoelectric properties but also on the device architecture, research into enhancing molecule-based piezoelectric sensor performance through microstructure optimization has never been investigated. Here, we report the synthesis of a molecule-based ferroelectric, [(2-bromoethyl) trimethylammonium][GaBr 4 ] ([(CH 3 ) 3 NCH 2 CH 2 Br][GaBr 4 ]) (1), which exhibits a piezoelectric coefficient ( d 33 ) of up to 331 pC N -1 . Our investigation reveals that the power density of a composite piezoelectric sensor device made from 1@S-PDMS(800#) (with microstructures) is twelve times that of 1-Flat-PDMS (without microstructures), due to a synergistic combination of piezoelectric and triboelectric effects. Interestingly, this flexible piezoelectric sensor can effectively detect human physiological signals, such as finger bending, breathing, and speech recognition, without the need for an external power supply., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Objective: To investigate whether Parathyroid hormone (PTH) can promote mandibular distraction osteogenesis by regulating macrophage polarization and the underlying mechanisms of this phenomenon., Methods: Forty-eight Rabbits were used to establish the mandibular distraction osteogenesis experimental model, randomly divided into 2 groups. Intermittent post-operative injections of 20 μg/kg PTH and normal saline were administered to the experimental and control groups, respectively. Regenerated new bone was examined using HE staining, osteoclast numbers were determined through tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) staining, and macrophage polarization markers arginase 1 (Arg1) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expressions were elucidated using immunohistochemistry (IHC), the mRNA expression of CD206, CD11C, Arg1 and iNOS were detected using qPCR., Results: The bone trabeculae in the experimental group were thicker, with a more homogeneous structure and more new osteoid than in the control group. In the area of distraction osteogenesis, the osteoclast count in the experimental group was higher than in the control group ( P   <   0.05 ). IHC results indicated differential expressions of Arg1 and iNOS in the experimental group compared to the control group ( P   <   0.05 ). Relative mRNA expressions of CD11c and iNOS were lower in the experimental group than in the control group ( P   <   0.05 ), whereas the expressions of CD206 and Arg1 mRNA were higher in the experimental group compared to the control group ( P   <   0.05 )., Conclusion: Intermittent PTH injections increased macrophage quantity in the mandible generated by distraction osteogenesis, downregulated iNOS, upregulated Arg1, and promoted macrophage polarization from M1 to M2 phenotype, thereby promoting mandibular distraction osteogenesis., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Radioresistance contributes to metastasis and recurrence in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. To provide novel clues, a complete multi-omics map of a radioresistant cancer cell line has been profiled. In this article, a lung adenocarcinoma cell line, radioresistant A549 (RA549), was generated by exposure to a series of irradiation. Subsequently, we adopted transcriptome, quantitative proteome and lysine 2-hydroxyisobutyrylome to construct a differential profile on the transcriptional to post-tanslational levels on A549 and RA549 cell lines, respectively. Our analysis revealed 920 significantly differentially expressed genes and 699 proteins. Furthermore, 2-hydroxyisobutyrylome identified 30,089 Khib modified sites on 4635 proteins, indicating that Khib modifications play vital role in regulating NSCLC radioresistance. Multi-omics combined analysis identified 19 significantly differentially expressed genes/proteins in total. Meanwhile, we found that EGFR, a well-known lung cancer-related receptor, was upregulated at both the protein and Khib modification levels in RA549. Further gain/loss of function experiments showed that Khib modified EGFR level positively correlates with NSCLC cell radioresistance. Taken together, our findings report that Khib-modified proteins enhanced resistance to radiation and represent promising therapeutic targets., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

This experiment was conducted to explore the effects of dietary vitamin C supplementation on non-specific immune defense, antioxidant capacity and resistance to low-temperature stress of juvenile mud crab (Scylla paramamosain). Mud crabs with an initial weight of 14.67 ± 0.13 g were randomly divided into 6 treatments and fed diets with 0.86 (control), 44.79, 98.45, 133.94, 186.36 and 364.28 mg/kg vitamin C, respectively. The experiment consisted of 6 treatments, each treatment was designed with 4 replicates and each replicate was stocked with 8 crabs. After 42 days of feeding experiment, 2 crabs were randomly selected from each replicate, and a total of 8 crabs in each treatment were carried out 72 h low-temperature challenge experiment. The results showed that crabs fed diets with 186.36 and 364.28 mg/kg vitamin C significantly improved the activities of alkaline phosphatase (AKP) and acid phosphatase (ACP) in hemolymph and hepatopancreas (P < 0.05). Crabs fed diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C significantly decreased the concentration of nitric oxide (NO) and the activity of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in hemolymph (P < 0.05). Diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C was improved the activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and the concentration of albumin (ALB) in hemolymph. Crabs fed diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C showed lower concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) in hemolymph and hepatopancreas than those fed the other diets. Meanwhile, crabs fed diet with 98.45 mg/kg vitamin C showed higher activity of total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) in hemolymph, and crabs fed diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C showed higher activity of T-SOD in hepatopancreas. Crabs fed diet with 186.36 mg/kg vitamin C significantly decreased the concentration of reduced glutathione (GSH) and the activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) in hepatopancreas (P < 0.05). In normal temperature, crabs fed diets with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C significantly up-regulated the expression levels of gpx (glutathione peroxidase) and trx (thioredoxin) in hepatopancreas compared with the control treatment (P < 0.05). The highest expression levels of relish, il16 (interleukin 16), caspase 2 (caspase 2), p38 mapk (p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases) and bax (bcl-2 associated x protein) in hepatopancreas were found at crabs fed control diet (P < 0.05). Moreover, crabs fed diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C showed higher expression levels of alf-3 (anti-lipopolysaccharide factor 3) and bcl-2 (B-cell lymphoma 2) in hepatopancreas than those fed the other diets (P < 0.05). Under low-temperature stress, crabs fed diet with 133.94 mg/kg vitamin C significantly improved the expression levels of hsp90 (heat shock protein 90), cat (catalase), gpx, prx (thioredoxin peroxidase) and trx in hepatopancreas (P < 0.05). In addition, dietary with 133.94 vitamin C significantly up-regulated the expression levels of alf-3 and bcl-2 (P < 0.05). Based on two slope broken-line regression analysis of activity of PPO against the dietary vitamin C level, the optimal dietary vitamin C requirement was estimated to be 144.81 mg/kg for juvenile mud crab. In conclusion, dietary 133.94-144.81 mg/kg vitamin C significantly improved the non-specific immune defense, antioxidant capacity and resistance to low-temperature stress of juvenile mud crab., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors confirm that they have no known financial conflicts of interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Imbalanced Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) levels may lead to liver diseases through abnormal regulation of autophagy, but the roles of SIRT1-regulated autophagy in hepatocellular carcinoma are still controversial. In this study, we found that SIRT1 mRNA and protein levels were upregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma, and high SIRT1 expression hinted an advanced stage and a poor prognosis. The differentially expressed proteins were significantly elevated in autophagy, cellular response to stress, and immune signaling pathways. In a thioacetamide-induced hepatocellular carcinoma mouse model, we found that SIRT1 expression was highly increased with increased autophagy and excessive macrophage inflammatory response. Next, we established a Hepa 1-6 cells and macrophage co-culture system in vitro to model the alteration of tumor microenvironment, and found that the medium from CCl 4 -treated or SIRT1-overexpressing Hepa 1-6 cells triggered the polarization of macrophage M1, and the culture medium derived from M1 macrophage promoted Hepa 1-6 cells growth and intracellular oxidative stress. The progression of liver fibrosis in the CCl 4 -induced liver fibrosis mouse model showed that inhibition of SIRT1 alleviated inflammatory response and ameliorated liver fibrosis. These findings suggest that SIRT1-regulated autophagy and inflammation are oncogenic in hepatocarcinogenesis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest There is no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The development of flexible ITO-free devices is crucial for the industrial advancement of organic photovoltaic (OPV) technology. Here, a novel ITO-free device architecture is proposed, and ITO-free OPV devices are realized on glass substrates with performance comparable to that of ITO-based devices. It is also demonstrated that the performance of ITO-free devices on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates is limited due to the higher surface roughness of PET, leading to high voltage losses, low device quantum efficiency, and high device leakage current. To address the issue of high roughness on the PET surface, a polyimide (PI) modification strategy is developed and the PI-modified PET is employed as the substrate to construct flexible ITO-free OPV devices and large-area modules with an active area of up to 16.5 cm 2 . This approach leads to decreased trap-assisted recombination losses, enhanced exciton dissociation efficiency, and a reduced density of pinholes in flexible OPV devices, resulting in improved photovoltaic performance under both strong and weak illumination conditions. The outcomes of this work are expected to advance the industrial development of flexible organic photovoltaic technology., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Modulating the arrangement of superstructures through noncovalent interactions has a significant impact on macroscopic shape and the expression of unique properties. Constructing π-interaction-driven hierarchical three-dimensional (3D) superstructures poses challenges on account of limited directional control and weak intermolecular interactions. Here we report the construction of a 3D diamondoid superstructure, named π-Diamond, employing a ditopic strained Z-shaped building block comprising a porphyrin unit as bow-limb double-strapped with two m-xylylene units as bowstrings. This superstructure, reminiscent of diamond's tetrahedral carbon composition, is composed of double-walled tetrahedron (DWT) driven solely by π-interactions. Hetero-π-stacking interactions between porphyrin and m-xylylene panels drive the assembly of four building blocks predominantly into a DWT, which undergoes extension to create an adamantane unit and eventually a diamondoid superstructure wherein each porphyrin panel is shared by two neighboring tetrahedra through hetero-π-stacking. π-Diamond exhibits a solid-state fluorescent quantum yield 44 times higher than that of tetraphenylporphyrin along with excellent photocatalytic performance. The precise 3D directionality of π-interactions, achieved through strained multipanel building blocks, revolutionizes the assembly of hierarchical 3D superstructures driven by π-interactions., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Biomass-derived hard carbon materials are attractive for sodium-ion batteries due to their abundance, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness. However, their widespread use is hindered by their limited specific capacity. Herein, a type of bamboo-derived hard carbon with adjustable pore structures is developed by employing a ball milling technique to modify the carbon chain length in the precursor. It is observed that the length of the carbon chain in the precursor can effectively control the rearrangement behavior of the carbon layers during the high-temperature carbonization process, resulting in diverse pore structures ranging from closed pores to open pores, which significantly impact the electrochemical properties. The optimized hard carbon with abundant closed pores exhibits a high specific capacity of 356 mAh g -1 at 20 mA g -1 , surpassing that of bare hard carbon (243 mAh g -1 ) and hard carbon with abundant open pores (129 mAh g -1 at 20 mA g -1 ). However, the kinetic analysis reveals that hard carbon with open pores shows better sodium-ion diffusion kinetics, indicating that a balance between the closed and open pores should be considered. This research offers valuable insights into pore design and presents a promising approach for enhancing the performance of hard carbon anode materials derived from biomass precursors.

Topological surface states are unique to topological materials and are immune to disturbances. In isostatic lattices, mechanical topological floppy modes exhibit softness depending on the polarization relative to the terminating surface. However, in three dimensions, the polarization of topological floppy modes is disrupted by the ubiquitous mechanical Weyl lines. Here, we demonstrate, both theoretically and experimentally, the fully polarized topological mechanical phases free of Weyl lines. Floppy modes emerge exclusively on a particular surface of the three-dimensional isostatic structure, leading to the strongly asymmetric stiffness between opposing boundaries. Additionally, uniform soft strains can reversibly shift the lattice configuration to Weyl phases, switching the stiffness contrast to a trivially comparable level. Our work demonstrates the fully polarized topological mechanical phases in three dimensions, and paves the way towards engineering soft and adaptive metamaterials.

Electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction reaction (eCO 2 RR) is one of the attractive approaches to CO 2 utilization. Nevertheless, it remains a challenge to prepare highly efficient and selective electrocatalysts to realize deep conversion of multi-carbon products. The absence of active sites due to the reconfiguration of copper-based catalysts leads to migration deactivation during catalysis, rendering low catalytic efficiency. In this work, Cu 2 Se nanowires (NWs) were obtained from the Cu foam. After further electroreduction for 90 s, Ag nanoparticles (NPs) were modified on the flower rod-shaped Cu 2 Se NWs (Ag 2.69% /Cu 2 Se NWs). This interfacial modification strategy, balanced the Cu δ+ active valence state on the surface of the Ag 2.69% /Cu 2 Se NWs, led to a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of ethanol (∼70 %) at -0.52 V (vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)). Besides, the Ag 2.69% /Cu 2 Se NWs achieved a high partial current (∼13.9 mA) for ethanol, 18.5 μmol/h ethanol yield and an energy efficiency of 47.1 % in the H-type electrolytic cell. The reaction mechanism was investigated at the molecular level through density functional theory (DFT) calculation. The interface-modified Ag NPs provided stable *COOH intermediates during the reaction process, effectively achieving surface *CO enrichment. Besides, the presence of Ag NPs resulted in the generation of abundant Cu δ+ active species. The *CO migrated to the Cu δ+ active sites to accelerate the asymmetric coupling of *CO and *CHO, which significantly improved the FE of CO 2 electroreduction to ethanol. Our work offers a promising approach for designing Cu 2 Se-based nanowires electrocatalysts for CO 2 reduction with excellent activity and selectivity., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a lethal cardiovascular disease worldwide. Emerging evidence has revealed the critical role of gut dysbiosis and impaired gut-brain axis in the pathological progression of MI. Tanshinone IIA (Tan IIA), a traditional Chinese medicine, has been demonstrated to exert therapeutic effects for MI. However, the effects of Tan IIA on gut-brain communication and its potential mechanisms post-MI are still unclear. In this study, we initially found that Tan IIA significantly reduced myocardial inflammation, apoptosis and fibrosis, therefore alleviating hypertrophy and improving cardiac function following MI, suggesting the cardioprotective effect of Tan IIA against MI. Additionally, we observed that Tan IIA improved the gut microbiota as evidenced by changing the α-diversity and β-diversity, and reduced histopathological impairments by decreasing inflammation and permeability in the intestinal tissues, indicating the substantial improvement of Tan IIA in gut function post-MI. Lastly, Tan IIA notably reduced lipopolysaccharides (LPS) level in serum, inflammation responses in paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and sympathetic hyperexcitability following MI, suggesting that restoration of Tan IIA on MI-induced brain alterations. Collectively, these results indicated that the cardioprotective effects of Tan IIA against MI might be associated with improvement in gut-brain axis, and LPS might be the critical factor linking gut and brain. Mechanically, Tan IIA-induced decreased intestinal damage reduced LPS release into serum, and reduced serum LPS contributes to decreased neuroinflammation with PVN and sympathetic inactivation, therefore protecting the myocardium against MI-induced injury., Competing Interests: Declarations Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interest or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. Ethical Approval All the animal experiments were approved by Xi’an Jiaotong University Laboratory Animal Administration Committee and were carried out strictly in accordance with Xi’an Jiaotong University Guidelines for Animal Experimentation. Consent to Participate Authors give full consent to participate. Consent for Publication Authors give full consent for publication., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

In recent research, dendritic neuron-based models have shown promise in effectively learning and recognizing object motion direction within binary images. Leveraging the dendritic neuron structure and On-Off Response mechanism within the primary cortex, this approach has notably reduced learning time and costs compared to traditional neural networks. This paper advances the existing model by integrating bio-inspired components into a learnable dendritic neuron-based artificial visual system (AVS), specifically incorporating mechanisms from horizontal and bipolar cells. This enhancement enables the model to proficiently identify object motion directions in grayscale images, aligning its threshold with human-like perception. The enhanced model demonstrates superior efficiency in motion direction recognition, requiring less data (90% less than other deep models) and less time for training. Experimental findings highlight the model's remarkable robustness, indicating significant potential for real-world applications. The integration of bio-inspired features not only enhances performance but also opens avenues for further exploration in neural network research. Notably, the application of this model to realistic object recognition yields convincing accuracy at nearly 100%, underscoring its practical utility.

The structure of molecular aggregates is crucial for charge transport and photovoltaic performance in organic solar cells (OSCs). Herein, the intermolecular interactions and aggregated structures of nonfused-ring electron acceptors (NFREAs) are precisely regulated through a halogen transposition strategy, resulting in a noteworthy transformation from a 2D-layered structure to a 3D-interconnected packing network. Based on the 3D electron transport pathway, the binary and ternary devices deliver outstanding power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of 17.46 % and 18.24 %, respectively, marking the highest value for NFREA-based OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

As nanoscale materials with the function of catalyzing substrates through enzymatic kinetics, nanozymes are regarded as potential alternatives to natural enzymes. Compared to protein-based enzymes, nanozymes exhibit attractive characteristics of low preparation cost, robust activity, flexible performance adjustment, and versatile functionalization. These advantages endow them with wide use from biochemical sensing and environmental remediation to medical theranostics. Especially in biomedical diagnosis, the feature of catalytic signal amplification provided by nanozymes makes them function as emerging labels for the detection of biomarkers and diseases, with rapid developments observed in recent years. To provide a comprehensive overview of recent progress made in this dynamic field, here an overview of biomedical diagnosis enabled by nanozymes is provided. This review first summarizes the synthesis of nanozyme materials and then discusses the main strategies applied to enhance their catalytic activity and specificity. Subsequently, representative utilization of nanozymes combined with biological elements in disease diagnosis is reviewed, including the detection of biomarkers related to metabolic, cardiovascular, nervous, and digestive diseases as well as cancers. Finally, some development trends in nanozyme-enabled biomedical diagnosis are highlighted, and corresponding challenges are also pointed out, aiming to inspire future efforts to further advance this promising field., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Designing and synthesizing narrow band gap acceptors that exhibit high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) and strong crystallinity is a highly effective, yet challenging, approach to reducing non-radiative energy losses (▵E nr ) and boosting the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). We have successfully designed and synthesized an A-D-A type fused-ring electron acceptor, named DM-F, which features a planar molecular backbone adorned with bulky three-dimensional camphane side groups at its central core. These bulky substituents effectively hinder the formation of H-aggregates of the acceptors, promoting the formation of more J-aggregates and notably elevating the PLQY of the acceptor in the film. As anticipated, DM-F showcases pronounced near-infrared absorption coupled with impressive crystallinity. Organic solar cells (OSCs) leveraging DM-F exhibit a high EQE EL value and remarkably low ▵E nr of 0.14 eV-currently the most minimal reported value for OSCs. Moreover, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of binary and ternary OSCs utilizing DM-F has reached 16.16 % and 20.09 %, respectively, marking a new apex in reported efficiency within the OSCs field. In conclusion, our study reveals that designing narrow band gap acceptors with high PLQY is an effective way to reduce ▵E nr and improve the PCE of OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Lauric acid (LA), a saturated fatty acid with 12 carbon atoms, is widely regarded as a healthy fatty acid that plays an important role in disease resistance and improving immune physiological function. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of dietary lauric acid on the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, non-specific immunity and intestinal microbiology, and evaluate the potential of lauric acids an environmentally friendly additive in swimming crab (Portunus trituberculatus) culture. A total of 192 swimming crabs with an initial body weight of 11.68 ± 0.02 g were fed six different dietary lauric acid levels, the analytical values of lauric acid were 0.09, 0.44, 0.80, 1.00, 1.53, 2.91 mg/g, respectively. There were four replicates per treatment and 8 juvenile swimming crabs per replicate. The results indicated that final weight, percent weight gain, specific growth rate, survival and feed intake were not significantly affected by dietary lauric acid levels; however, crabs fed diets with 0.80 and 1.00 mg/g lauric acid showed the lowest feed efficiency among all treatments. Proximate composition in hepatopancreas and muscle were not significantly affected by dietary lauric acid levels. The highest activities of amylase and lipase in hepatopancreas and intestine were found at crabs fed diet with 0.80 mg/g lauric acid (P < 0.05), the activity of carnitine palmityl transferase (CPT) in hepatopancreas and intestine significantly decreased with dietary lauric acid levels increasing from 0.09 to 2.91 mg/g (P < 0.05). The lowest concentration of glucose and total protein and the activity of alkaline phosphatase in hemolymph were observed at crabs fed diets with 0.80 and 1.00 mg/g lauric acid among all treatments. The activity of GSH-Px in hepatopancreas significantly increased with dietary lauric acid increasing from 0.09 to 1.53 mg/g, MDA in hepatopancreas and hemolymph was not significantly influenced by dietary lauric acid levels. The highest expression of cat and gpx in hepatopancreas were exhibited in crabs fed diet with 1.00 mg/g lauric acid, however, the expression of genes related to the inflammatory signaling pathway (relish, myd88, traf6, nf-κB) were up-regulated in the hepatopancreas with dietary lauric acid levels increasing from 0.09 to 1.00 mg/g, moreover, the expression of genes related to intestinal inflammatory, immune and antioxidant were significantly affected by dietary lauric acid levels (P < 0.05). Crabs fed diet without lauric acid supplementation exhibited higher lipid drop area in hepatopancreas than those fed the other diets (P < 0.05). The expression of genes related to lipid catabolism was up-regulated, however, and the expression of genes related to lipid synthesis was down-regulated in the hepatopancreas of crabs fed with 0.80 mg/g lauric acid. Lauric acid improved hepatic tubular integrity, and enhanced intestinal barrier function by increasing peritrophic membrane (PM) thickness and upregulating the expression of structural factors (per44, zo-1) and intestinal immunity-related genes. In addition, dietary 1.00 mg/g lauric acid significantly improved the microbiota composition of the intestinal, increased the abundance of Actinobacteria and Rhodobacteraceae, and decreased the abundance of Vibrio, thus maintaining the microbiota balance of the intestine. The correlation analysis showed that there was a relationship between intestinal microbiota and immune-antioxidant function. In conclusion, the dietary 1.00 mg/g lauric acid is beneficial to improve the antioxidant capacity and intestinal health of swimming crab., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: GPX8, which is found in the endoplasmic reticulum lumen, is a member of the Glutathione Peroxidases (GPXs) family. Its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unknown., Methods: Immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the protein levels of GPX8 in HCC tissue microarrays. A short hairpin RNA lentivirus was used to knock down GPX8, and the main signaling pathways were investigated using transcriptome sequencing and a phosphorylated kinase array. The sphere formation assays, cloning-formation assays and cell migration assays were used to evaluate the stemness and migration ability of HCC cells. Identifying the GPX8-interacting proteins was accomplished through immunoprecipitation and protein mass spectrometry., Results: The GPX8 protein levels were downregulated in HCC patients. Low expression of GPX8 protein was related to early recurrence and poor prognosis in HCC patients. GPX8 knockdown could enhance the stemness and migration ability of HCC cells. Consistently, Based on transcriptome analysis, multiple signaling pathways that include the PI3K-AKT and signaling pathways that regulate the pluripotency of stem cells, were activated after GPX8 knockdown. The downregulation of GPX8 could increase the expression of the tumor stemness markers KLF4, OCT4, and CD133. The in vivo downregulation of GPX8 could also promote the subcutaneous tumor-forming and migration ability of HCC cells. MK-2206, which is a small-molecule inhibitor of AKT, could reverse the tumor-promoting effects both in vivo and in vitro. We discovered that GPX8 and the 71-kDa heat shock cognate protein (Hsc70) have a direct interaction. The phosphorylation of AKT encouraged the translocation of Hsc70 into the nucleus and the expression of the PI3K p110 subunit, thereby increasing the downregulation of GPX8., Conclusion: The findings from this study demonstrate the anticancer activity of GPX8 in HCC by inactivating the Hsc70/AKT pathway. The results suggest a possible therapeutic target for HCC., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Dimer acceptors in organic solar cells (OSCs) offer distinct advantages, including a well-defined molecular structure and excellent batch-to-batch reproducibility. Their high glass transition temperature (T g ) aids in achieving an optimal kinetic morphology, thereby enhancing device stability. Currently, most of dimer acceptor materials are linked with conjugated units in order to obtain high power conversion efficiencies (PCEs). In this study, different from previous works on conjugation-linked dimer acceptors, a novel series of dimer acceptors are synthesized (named T1, T4, T6, and T12), each linked with different flexible alkyl linkers, and investigated their PCEs, device stability, and flexibility robustness. When blended with PM6, the T6-based device achieves a PCE of 17.09%, comparable to the fully conjugated T0-based device's PCE of 17.12%. The molecular dynamics simulations and density functional theory calculations suggested that flexible conjugation-broken linkers (FCBLs) promote intermolecular electronic couplings, thereby maintaining good electron mobilities of dimer acceptors. Notably, the T6-based device exhibits impressive long-term stability with a T80 lifetime of 1427 h, while in the T0-based device, T 80 is only 350 h. The present work has thus established the relationship between the length of flexible alkyl linkers in such dimer acceptors and the performance and stability of OSCs, which is important to further designing new materials for the fabrication of efficient and stable OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the benefits of ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) in reducing cardiovascular risk. However, its role in subclinical atherosclerosis (SA) progression remains unclear. We aim to examine the association of CVH, estimated by the American Heart Association's new Life's Essential 8 (LE8), with the progression of SA., Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted among 972 asymptomatic Chinese participants and followed up for 5.7 years. The LE8 score (range, 0-100) consisted of blood pressure, lipids, glucose, body mass index, smoking status, diet health, physical activity and sleep health was evaluated in 1998 and 2008-2009. Progression of SA was determined by carotid plaque and coronary artery calcification (CAC) in 2008-2009 and 2013-2014. Log-binomial regression model was used to estimate the association of LE8 score with SA progression., Results: Each 10 points increment in LE8 score was associated with 15.2% (RR: 0.848, 95% CI: 0.797-0.902), 17.7% (RR: 0.823, 95% CI: 0.766-0.884) and 12.0% (RR: 0.880, 95% CI: 0.845-0.916) lower risks of carotid plaque, CAC and overall SA progression, respectively. Compared with participants with non-ideal CVH at both visits, the participants with ideal CVH at both visits had 39.1% (RR: 0.609, 95% CI: 0.494-0.752), 41.0% (RR: 0.590, 95% CI: 0.456-0.764) and 29.7% (RR: 0.703, 95% CI: 0.598-0.825) lower risks of carotid plaque, CAC and overall SA progression, respectively., Conclusions: Higher LE8 scores were associated with lower risks of SA progression. Besides, long-term maintenance of optimal CVH was more beneficial to prevent SA progression., Competing Interests: None., (© 2024 JGC All rights reserved; www.jgc301.com.)

The electrocatalytic conversion of formate in alkaline solutions is of paramount significance in the realm of fuel cell applications. Nonetheless, the adsorptive affinity of adsorbed hydrogen (H ad ) on the catalyst surface has traditionally impeded the catalytic efficiency of formate in such alkaline environments. To circumvent this challenge, our approach introduces an interfacial push-pull effect on the catalyst surface. This mechanism involves two primary actions: First, the anchoring of palladium (Pd) nanoparticles on a phosphorus-doped TiO 2 substrate (Pd/TiO 2 -P) promotes the formation of electron-rich Pd with a downshifted d band center, thereby "pushing" the desorption of H ad from the Pd active sites. Second, the TiO 2 -P support diminishes the energy barrier for H ad transfer from the Pd sites to the support itself, "pulling" H ad to effectively relocate from the Pd active sites to the support. The resultant Pd/TiO 2 -P catalyst showcases a remarkable mass activity of 4.38 A mg Pd -1 and outperforms the Pd/TiO 2 catalyst (2.39 A mg Pd -1 ) by a factor of 1.83. This advancement not only surmounts a critical barrier in catalysis but also delineates a scalable pathway to bolster the efficacy of Pd-based catalysts in alkaline media.

The grouting repair process of the sealing baffle on the surface of dam cracks can improve the repair slurry diffusion distance in the cracks; however, the process must be optimized. To address the problem of crack repair technology of underwater dam concrete with one section open and the other closed, a grouting analysis model was established. By adjusting various parameters in the grouting process, the influences of the grouting pressure, position of the grouting hole, diameter of the grouting hole, and water pressure on the diffusion of the Bingham fluid repair slurry in these cracks were studied. The results show that the grouting pressure and diameter of the grouting hole significantly influence the limited diffusion distance of Bingham fluid cement slurry in cracks. With an increase in grouting pressure and grouting hole diameter, the limiting distance of the front surface increases. The influences of the water pressure and position of the grouting hole are small. In addition, through correlation analysis, the degrees of influence of different factors can be sorted, providing the priority factors for actual operation construction., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Objective: This study aims to develop machine learning models that provide both accurate and equitable predictions of 2-year stroke risk for patients with atrial fibrillation across diverse racial groups., Materials and Methods: Our study utilized structured electronic health records (EHR) data from the All of Us Research Program. Machine learning models (LightGBM) were utilized to capture the relations between stroke risks and the predictors used by the widely recognized CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-VASc scores. We mitigated the racial disparity by creating a representative tuning set, customizing tuning criteria, and setting binary thresholds separately for subgroups. We constructed a hold-out test set that not only supports temporal validation but also includes a larger proportion of Black/African Americans for fairness validation., Results: Compared to the original CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-VASc scores, significant improvements were achieved by modeling their predictors using machine learning models (Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve from near 0.70 to above 0.80). Furthermore, applying our disparity mitigation strategies can effectively enhance model fairness compared to the conventional cross-validation approach., Discussion: Modeling CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-VASc risk factors with LightGBM and our disparity mitigation strategies achieved decent discriminative performance and excellent fairness performance. In addition, this approach can provide a complete interpretation of each predictor. These highlight its potential utility in clinical practice., Conclusions: Our research presents a practical example of addressing clinical challenges through the All of Us Research Program data. The disparity mitigation framework we proposed is adaptable across various models and data modalities, demonstrating broad potential in clinical informatics., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

High performance organic solar cells (OSCs) are usually realized by using post-treatment and/or additive, which can induce the formation of metastable morphology, leading to unfavorable device stability. In terms of the industrial production, the development of high efficiency as-cast OSCs is crucially important, but it remains a great challenge to obtain appropriate active layer morphology and high power conversion efficiency (PCE). Here, efficient as-cast OSCs are constructed via introducing a new polymer acceptor PY-TPT with a high dielectric constant into the D18:L8-BO blend to form a double-fibril network morphology. Besides, the incorporation of PY-TPT enables an enhanced dielectric constant and lower exciton binding energy of active layer. Therefore, efficient exciton dissociation and charge transport are realized in D18:L8-BO:PY-TPT-based device, affording a record-high PCE of 18.60% and excellent photostability in absence of post-treatment. Moreover, green solvent-processed devices, thick-film (300 nm) devices, and module (16.60 cm 2 ) are fabricated, which show PCEs of 17.45%, 17.54%, and 13.84%, respectively. This work brings new insight into the construction of efficient as-cast devices, pushing forward the practical application of OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Danshensu, also known as salvianic acid A, is a primary active compound extracted from a traditional Chinese herb Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza). While its antioxidative and neuroprotective effects are well-documented, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. In this study, we sought out to investigate if and how Danshensu modulates neuronal excitability and voltage-gated ionic currents in the central nervous system. We prepared brain slices of the mouse brainstem and performed patch-clamp recording in bushy cells in the anteroventral cochlear nucleus, with or without Danshensu incubation for 1 h. QX-314 was used internally to block Na+ current, while tetraethylammonium and 4-aminopyridine were used to isolate different subtypes of K+ current. We found that Danshensu of 100 μm decreased the input resistance of bushy cells by approximately 60% and shifted the voltage threshold of spiking positively by approximately 7 mV, resulting in significantly reduced excitability. Furthermore, we found this reduced excitability by Danshensu was caused by enhanced voltage-gated K+ currents in these neurons, including both low voltage-activated IK,A, by approximately 100%, and high voltage-activated IK,dr, by approximately 30%. Lastly, we found that the effect of Danshensu on K+ currents was dose-dependent in that no enhancement was found for Danshensu of 50 μm and Danshensu of 200 μm failed to cause significantly more enhancement on K+ currents when compared to that of 100 μm. We found that Danshensu reduced neuronal excitability in the central nervous system by enhancing voltage-gated K+ currents, providing mechanistic support for its neuroprotective effect widely seen in vivo., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Hepatocellular adenoma (HCA) represents a rare benign hepatic neoplasm with potential for malignant transformation into hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), yet the underlying mechanism remains elusive. In this study, we investigated the genomic landscape of this process to identify therapeutic strategies for blocking malignant transformation. Using micro-detection techniques, we obtained specimens of adenoma, cancerous neoplasm and adjacent normal liver from three patients undergoing hepatic resection surgery. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed, and genomic interactions between HCA and HCC components within the same tumour were evaluated using somatic variant calling, copy number variation (CNV) analysis, clonality evaluation and mutational signature analysis. Our results revealed genomic heterogeneity among patient cases, yet within each sample, HCA and HCC tissues exhibited a similar mutational landscape, suggesting a high degree of homology. Using nonnegative matrix factorization and phylogenetic trees, we identified shared and distinct mutational characteristics and uncovering necessary pathways associated with HCA-HCC malignant transformation. Remarkably, we found that HCA and HCC shared a common monoclonal origin while displaying significant genetic diversity within HCA-HCC tumours, indicating fundamental genetic connections or evolutionary pathways between the two. Moreover, elevated immune therapy-related markers in these patients suggested heightened sensitivity to immune therapy, providing novel avenues for the treatment of hepatic malignancies. This study sheds light on the genetic mechanisms underlying HCA-HCC progression, offering potential targets for therapeutic intervention and highlighting the promise of immune-based therapies in managing hepatic malignancies., (© 2024 The Author(s). Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

The electrochemical nitrogen oxidation reaction (NOR) holds significant potential to revolutionize the traditional nitrate synthesis processes. However, the progression in NOR has been notably stymied due to the sluggish kinetics of initial N 2 adsorption and activation processes. Herein, the research embarks on the development of a CeO 2 -Co 3 O 4 heterostructure, strategically engineered to facilitate the electron transfer from CeO 2 to Co 3 O 4 . This orchestrated transfer operates to amplify the d-band center of the Co active sites, thereby enhancing N 2 adsorption and activation dynamics by strengthening the Co─N bond and diminishing the resilience of the N≡N bond. The synthesized CeO 2 -Co 3 O 4 manifests promising prospects, showcasing a significant HNO 3 yield of 37.96 µg h -1 mg cat -1 and an elevated Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 29.30% in a 0.1 m Na 2 SO 4 solution at 1.81 V versus RHE. Further substantiating these findings, an array of in situ methodologies coupled with DFT calculations vividly illustrate the augmented adsorption and activation of N 2 on the surface of CeO 2 -Co 3 O 4 heterostructure, resulting in a substantial reduction in the energy barrier pertinent to the rate-determining step within the NOR pathway. This research carves a promising pathway to amplify N 2 adsorption throughout the electrochemical NOR operations and delineates a blueprint for crafting highly efficient NOR electrocatalysts., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Rational molecular design and suitable device engineering are two important strategies to boost the efficiencies in organic solar cells (OSCs). Yet these two approaches are independently developed, while their synergy is believed to be more productive. Herein, a branched polyfluoride moiety, heptafluoroisopropoxyl group, is introduced into the side chains of conjugated polymers for the first time. Compared with the conventional alkyl chain, this polyfluoride chain can endow the resulting polymer namely PF7 with highly packing order and strong crystallinity owing to the strong polarization and fluorine-induced interactions, while good solubility and moderate miscibility are retained. As a result, PF7 comprehensively outperforms the state-of-the-art polymer PM6 in photovoltaic properties. More importantly, based on the solubility of heptafluoroisopropoxyl groups in fluorous solvents, a new post-treatment denoted as fluorous solvent vapor annealing (FSVA) is proposed to match PF7. Differing from the existing post-treatments, FSVA can selectively reorganize fluoropolymer molecules but less impact small molecules in blend films. By employing the synergy of fluoropolymer and fluorous solvent, the device achieves a remarkable efficiency of 19.09%, which is among the best efficiencies in binary OSCs. The polymer PF7 and the FSVA treatment exhibit excellent universality in various OSCs with different material combinations or device architectures., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

There is a noticeable gap in the literature regarding research on halogen-substitution-regulated ferroelectric semiconductors featuring multiple phase transitions. Here, a new category of 1D perovskite ferroelectrics (DFP) 2 SbX 5 (DFP + = 3,3-difluoropyrrolidium, X - = I - , Br - , abbreviated as I-1 and Br-2) with twophase transitions (PTs) is reported. The first low-temperature PT is a mmmFmm2 ferroelectric PT, while the high-temperature PT is a counterintuitive inverse temperature symmetry-breaking PT. By the substitution of iodine with bromine, the Curie temperature (Tc) significantly increases from 348 K of I-1 to 374 K of Br-2. Their ferroelectricity and pyroelectricity are improved (Ps value from 1.3 to 4.0 µC cm -2 , p e value from 0.2 to 0.48 µC cm -2  K -1 for I-1 and Br-2), while their optical bandgaps increased from 2.1 to 2.7 eV. A critical slowing down phenomenon is observed in the dielectric measurement of I-1 while Br-2 exhibits the ferroelastic domain. Structural and computational analyses elucidate that the order-disorder movement of cations and the distortion of the chain perovskite [SbX 5 ] 2- anions skeleton lead to PT. The semiconductor properties are determined by [SbX 5 ] 2- anions. The findings contribute to the development of ferroelectric semiconductors and materials with multiple PTs and provide materials for potential applications in the optoelectronic field., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen production owing to the utilization of sustainable solar energy and its promising performance. Silicon-based composites are generally considered ideal materials for PEC hydrogen production. However, slow reaction kinetics and poor stability are still key factors hindering the development of silicon-based photoelectrocatalysts. Herein, we present an n + -p Si pyramidal photocathode assembly method to load reduced graphene oxide (rGO) onto the surface of the n + -p Si pyramid by covalently linking (Si/rGO). rGO is utilized as a conductive layer to reduce the interfacial charge-transfer resistance. Then, MoS 2 can be successfully electrodeposited on the surface of Si/rGO to form the Si/rGO/MoS 2 composite, which possesses excellent PEC hydrogen evolution performance with a high and stable photocurrent of -41.6 mA cm -2 and a hydrogen evolution rate of about 18.1 μmol min -1 cm -2 under 0 V (vs RHE). The covalently linking rGO layer effectively enhances the transfer of photogenerated carriers between the Si substrate and MoS 2 . MoS 2 provides abundant hydrogen evolution active sites, which accelerate the surface reaction kinetics, as well as a protective layer for the Si pyramidal array structure. This work provides a low-cost, convenient, and efficient way of preparing silicon-based photocathodes.

Short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) light detection plays a key role in modern technologies. Emerging solution-processed organic semiconductors are promising for cost-effective, flexible, and large-area SWIR organic photodiodes (OPDs). However, the spectral responsivity ( R ) and specific detectivity ( D *) of SWIR OPDs are restricted by insufficient exciton dissociation and high noise current. In this work, we synthesized an SWIR small molecule with a spectral coverage of 0.3 to 1.3 micrometers peaking at 1100 nanometers. The photodiode, with optimized exciton dissociation, charge injection, and SWIR transmittance, achieves a record high R of 0.53 ampere per watt and D * of 1.71 × 10 13 Jones at 1110 nanometers under zero bias. The D * at 1 to 1.2 micrometers surpasses that of the uncooled commercial InGaAs photodiode. Furthermore, large-area semitransparent all-organic upconversion devices integrating the SWIR photodiode realized static and dynamic SWIR-to-visible imaging, along with excellent upconversion efficiency and spatial resolution. This work provides alternative insights for developing sensitive organic SWIR detection.

Pyroelectric materials hold significant potential for energy harvesting, sensing, and imaging applications. However, achieving high-performance pyroelectricity across a wide temperature range near room temperature remains a significant challenge. Herein, we demonstrate a single crystal of Fe(II) spin-crossover compound shows remarkable pyroelectric properties accompanied by a thermally controlled spin transition. In this material, the uniaxial alignment of polar molecules results in a polarization of the lattice. As the molecular geometry is modulated during a gradual spin transition, the polar axis experiences a colossal thermal expansion with a coefficient of 796×10 -6  K -1 . Consequently, the material's polarization undergoes significant modulation as a secondary pyroelectric effect. The considerable shift in polarization (pyroelectric coefficient, p=3.7-22 nC K -1 cm -2 ), coupled with a low dielectric constant (ϵ'=4.4-5.4) over a remarkably wide temperature range of 298 to 400 K, suggests this material is a high-performance pyroelectric. The demonstration of pyroelectricity combined with magnetic switching in this study will inspire further investigations in the field of molecular electronics and magnetism., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Achieving desirable charge-transport highway is of vital importance for high-performance organic solar cells (OSCs). Here, it is shown how molecular packing arrangements can be regulated via tuning the alkyl-chain topology, thus resulting in a 3D network stacking and highly interconnected pathway for electron transport in a simple-structured nonfused-ring electron acceptor (NFREA) with branched alkyl side-chains. As a result, a record-breaking power conversion efficiency of 17.38% (certificated 16.59%) is achieved for NFREA-based devices, thus providing an opportunity for constructing low-cost and high-efficiency OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

The development of high-efficiency organic solar cells (OSCs) processed from non-halogenated solvents is crucially important for their scale-up industry production. However, owing to the difficulty of regulating molecular aggregation, there is a huge efficiency gap between non-halogenated and halogenated solvent processed OSCs. Herein, we fabricate o-xylene processed OSCs with approaching 20 % efficiency by incorporating a trimeric guest acceptor named Tri-V into the PM6:L8-BO-X host blend. The incorporation of Tri-V effectively restricts the excessive aggregation of L8-BO-X, regulates the molecular packing and optimizes the phase-separation morphology, which leads to mitigated trap density states, reduced energy loss and suppressed charge recombination. Consequently, the PM6:L8-BO-X:Tri-V-based device achieves an efficiency of 19.82 %, representing the highest efficiency for non-halogenated solvent-processed OSCs reported to date. Noticeably, with the addition of Tri-V, the ternary device shows an improved photostability than binary PM6:L8-BO-X-based device, and maintains 80 % of the initial efficiency after continuous illumination for 1380 h. This work provides a feasible approach for fabricating high-efficiency, stable, eco-friendly OSCs, and sheds new light on the large-scale industrial production of OSCs., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Background: Balance plays a crucial role in the daily activities of older adults. Aquatic-based exercises (AE) are widely conducted as an alternative to land-based exercises (LE). Previous studies have compared AE and LE as effective ways to improve balance and have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, this review aimed to compare the effects of AE and LE on balance function in older adults., Methods: Electronic databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase, were searched. Randomized controlled trials published from January 2003 to June 2023 were included following predetermined criteria. Data extraction was carried out by two independent reviewers. Data synthesis was conducted using RevMan 5.3 software. The fixed-effect model or random-effect model was chosen based on the results of the heterogeneity test. Meta-analysis for the effect sizes of balance outcomes was calculated as standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). The quality of the included studies was evaluated using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. This review was registered at PROSPERO CRD42023429557., Results: A total of 29 studies involving 1486 older adults (with an average age of 66.2 years) were included. Meta-analysis results indicated that AE could improve balance ability based on two tests: the Berg balance scale (BBS: SMD = 1.13, 95% CI 0.25 to 2.00, p = 0.01, I 2  = 94%) and the 30-s chair stand test (30 CST: SMD = 2.02, 95% CI 0.50 to 3.54, p = 0.009, I 2  = 96%). However, there were no significant differences between the AE group and the LE group in terms of the 6-min walking test (6 MWT: SMD = 0.13, 95% CI -0.16 to 0.43, p = 0.38, I 2  = 62%) and time up to go test (TUGT: SMD = 0.44, 95% CI -0.44 to 0.91, p = 0.07, I 2  = 85%). Older adults with different health conditions have different gains in different balance measurements after AE intervention and LE intervention., Conclusions: Although this was influenced by participant health status, transfer effects, sample size, and other factors, AE offers better benefits than LE for improving balance function in older adults., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Semi-transparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) possess significant potential for applications in vehicles and buildings due to their distinctive visual transparency. Conventional device engineering strategies are typically used to optimize photon selection and utilization at the expense of power conversion efficiency (PCE); moreover, the fixed spectral utilization range always imposes an unsatisfactory upper limit to its light utilization efficiency (LUE). Herein, a novel solid additive named 1,3-diphenoxybenzene (DB) is employed to dual-regulate donor/acceptor molecular aggregation and crystallinity, which effectively broadens the spectral response of ST-OSCs in near-infrared region. Besides, more visible light is allowed to pass through the devices, which enables ST-OSCs to possess satisfactory photocurrent and high average visible transmittance (AVT) simultaneously. Consequently, the optimal ST-OSC based on PP2+DB/BTP-eC9+DB achieves a superior LUE of 4.77%, representing the highest value within AVT range of 40-50%, which also correlates with the formation of multi-scale phase-separated morphology. Such results indicate that the ST-OSCs can simultaneously meet the requirements for minimum commercial efficiency and plant photosynthesis when integrated with the roofs of agricultural greenhouses. This work emphasizes the significance of additives to tune the spectral response in ST-OSCs, and charts the way for organic photovoltaics in economically sustainable agricultural development., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

In the quest for proficient electrocatalysts for ammonia's electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction, cobalt oxides, endowed with a rich d-electron reservoir, have emerged as frontrunners. Despite the previously evidenced prowess of CoO in this realm, its ammonia yield witnesses a pronounced decline as the reaction unfolds, a phenomenon linked to the electron attrition from its Co 2+ active sites during electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (ENRR). To counteract this vulnerability, we harnessed electron-laden phosphorus (P) elements as dopants, aiming to recalibrate the electronic equilibrium of the pivotal Co active site, thereby bolstering both its catalytic performance and stability. Our empirical endeavors showcased the doped P-CoO's superior credentials: it delivered an impressive ammonia yield of 49.6 and, notably, a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 9.6% at -0.2 V versus RHE, markedly eclipsing its undoped counterpart. Probing deeper, a suite of ex-situ techniques, complemented by rigorous theoretical evaluations, was deployed. This dual-pronged analysis unequivocally revealed CoO's propensity for an electron-driven valence metamorphosis to Co 3+ post-ENRR. In stark contrast, P-CoO, fortified by P doping, exhibits a discernibly augmented ammonia yield. Crucially, P's intrinsic ability to staunch electron leakage from the active locus during ENRR ensures the preservation of the valence state, culminating in enhanced catalytic dynamism and fortitude. This investigation not only illuminates the intricacies of active site electronic modulation in ENRR but also charts a navigational beacon for further enhancements in this domain.

This study aimed to assess the influence of varying dietary levels of astaxanthin (AST) on the growth, antioxidant capacity and lipid metabolism of juvenile swimming crabs. Six diets were formulated to contain different AST levels, and the analyzed concentration of AST in experimental diets were 0, 24.2, 45.8, 72.4, 94.2 and 195.0 mg kg -1 , respectively. Juvenile swimming crabs (initial weight 8.20 ± 0.01 g) were fed these experimental diets for 56 days. The findings indicated that the color of the live crab shells and the cooked crab shells gradually became red with the increase of dietary AST levels. Dietary 24.2 mg kg -1 astaxanthin significantly improved the growth performance of swimming crab. the lowest activities of glutathione (GSH), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) were found in crabs fed without AST supplementation diet. Crabs fed diet without AST supplementation showed lower lipid content and the activity of fatty acid synthetase (FAS) in hepatopancreas than those fed diets with AST supplementation, however, lipid content in muscle and the activity of carnitine palmitoyl transferase (CPT) in hepatopancreas were not significantly affected by dietary AST levels. And it can be found in oil red O staining that dietary 24.2 and 45.8 mg kg -1 astaxanthin significantly promoted the lipid accumulation of hepatopancreas. Crabs fed diet with 195.0 mg kg -1 AST exhibited lower expression of ampk , foxo , pi3k , akt and nadph in hepatopancreas than those fed the other diets, however, the expression of genes related to antioxidant such as cMn-sod , gsh-px , cat , trx and gst in hepatopancreas significantly down-regulated with the increase of dietary AST levels. In conclusion, dietary 24.2 and 45.8 mg kg -1 astaxanthin significantly promoted the lipid accumulation of hepatopancreas and im-proved the antioxidant and immune capacity of hemolymph.

Objective: This review aims to provide a quantitative and qualitative bibliometric analysis of literature from 2013 to 2023 on the role of exosomes in PC, with the goal of identifying current trends and predicting future hotspots., Methods: We retrieved relevant publications concerning exosomes in PC, published between 2013 and 2023, from the Web of Science Core Collection. Bibliometric analyses were conducted using VOSviewer(1.6.19), CiteSpace(6.2.R4), and Microsoft Excel (2019)., Results: A total of 624 papers were analyzed, authored by 4017 researchers from 55 countries/regions and 855 institutions, published in 258 academic journals. China (n=285, 34.42%) and the United States (n=183, 24.87%) were the most frequent contributors and collaborated closely. However, publications from China had a relatively low average number of citations (41.45 times per paper). The output of Shanghai Jiao Tong University ranked first, with 28 papers (accounting for 4.5% of the total publications). Cancers (n=31, 4.9%); published the most papers in this field. Researcher Margot Zoeller published the most papers (n=12) on this topic. Research hotspots mainly focused on the mechanisms of exosomes in PC onset and progression, the role of exosomes in PC early diagnosis and prognosis, exosomes promote the development of PC chemoresistance, and potential applications of exosomes as drug carriers for PC therapies. We observed a shift in research trends, from mechanistic studies toward clinical trials, suggesting that clinical applications will be the focus of future attention. Emerging topics were pancreatic stellate cells, diagnostic biomarkers, mesenchymal stem cells, extracellular vesicles., Conclusion: Our scientometric and visual analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the literature on the role of exosomes in PC published during 2013-2023. This review identifies the frontiers and future directions in this area over the past decade, and is expected to provide a useful reference for researchers in this field., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zhou, Feng, Wang, Zhao, Ding, Jiang, Ji, Tang and Dai.)

Background: Acute pancreatitis (AP) has become a significant global health concern, and a high body mass index (BMI) has been identified as a key risk factor exacerbating this condition. Within this context, lipid metabolism assumes a critical role. The complex relationship between elevated BMI and AP, mediated by lipid metabolism, markedly increases the risk of complications and mortality. This study aimed to accurately define the correlation between BMI and AP, incorporating a comprehensive analysis of the interactions between individuals with high BMI and AP., Methods: Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was first applied to determine the causal relationship between BMI and the risk of AP. Subsequently, three microarray datasets were obtained from the GEO database. This was followed by an analysis of differentially expressed genes and the application of weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) to identify key modular genes associated with AP and elevated BMI. Functional enrichment analysis was then performed to shed light on disease pathogenesis. To identify the most informative genes, machine learning algorithms, including Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine-Recursive Feature Elimination (SVM-RFE), and Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO), were employed. Subsequent analysis focused on the colocalization of the Quantitative Trait Loci (eQTL) data associated with the selected genes and Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) data related to the disease. Preliminary verification of gene expression trends was conducted using external GEO datasets. Ultimately, the diagnostic potential of these genes was further confirmed through the development of an AP model in mice with a high BMI., Results: A total of 21 intersecting genes related to BMI>30, AP, and lipid metabolism were identified from the datasets. These genes were primarily enriched in pathways related to cytosolic DNA sensing, cytokine‒cytokine receptor interactions, and various immune and inflammatory responses. Next, three machine learning techniques were utilized to identify HADH as the most prevalent diagnostic gene. Colocalization analysis revealed that HADH significantly influenced the risk factors associated with BMI and AP. Furthermore, the trend in HADH expression within the external validation dataset aligned with the trend in the experimental data, thus providing a preliminary validation of the experimental findings.The changes in its expression were further validated using external datasets and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR)., Conclusion: This study systematically identified HADH as a potential lipid metabolism-grounded biomarker for AP in patients with a BMI>30., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Identifying genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) is challenging because the GEI analysis generally has low power. Large-scale consortium-based studies are ultimately needed to achieve adequate power for identifying GEI. We introduce Multi-Trait Analysis of Gene-Environment Interactions (MTAGEI), a powerful, robust, and computationally efficient framework to test gene-environment interactions on multiple traits in large data sets, such as the UK Biobank (UKB). To facilitate the meta-analysis of GEI studies in a consortium, MTAGEI efficiently generates summary statistics of genetic associations for multiple traits under different environmental conditions and integrates the summary statistics for GEI analysis. MTAGEI enhances the power of GEI analysis by aggregating GEI signals across multiple traits and variants that would otherwise be difficult to detect individually. MTAGEI achieves robustness by combining complementary tests under a wide spectrum of genetic architectures. We demonstrate the advantages of MTAGEI over existing single-trait-based GEI tests through extensive simulation studies and the analysis of the whole exome sequencing data from the UKB., (© The Author 2023. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Objective: To observe the efficacy and safety of pelvic floor magnetic stimulation (PFMS) combined with mirabegron in female patients with refractory overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms., Patients and Methods: A total of 160 female patients with refractory OAB symptoms were prospectively randomized into two groups. Eighty cases in the combination group accepted PFMS and mirabegron therapy and 80 cases as control only accepted mirabegron therapy (The clinical trial registry number: ChiCTR2200070171). The lower urinary tract symptoms, OAB questionnaire (OAB-q) health-related quality of life (HRQol), symptom bother score and OABSS between two groups were compared at the 1st, 2nd and 4th week ends., Results: All of 160 patients were randomly assigned to two groups, of which 80 patients were included in the combination group and 80 in the mirabegron group. The incidences of LUTS, including urgency, frequent urination, and incontinence episodes, in the 2nd week and the 4th week after combination treatment were significantly lower than those in the mirabegron group ( p  < 0.05). The incidence of drug-related adverse events between two groups was similar, and there was no statistically significant difference ( p  > 0.05). With respect to secondary variables, the OAB-q HRQol score in the combination group was statistically superior in comparison with that in the mirabegron group between the 2nd week and the 4th week ( p  < 0.05). This was consistent with the primary outcome. Meanwhile, from the second to fourth week, the OAB-q symptom bother score and OABSS in the combination group were both lower than in the mirabegron group ( p  < 0.05)., Conclusion: Combination therapy of PFMS and mirabegron demonstrated significant improvements over mirabegron monotherapy in reducing refractory OAB symptoms for female patients, and providing a higher quality of life without increasing bothersome adverse effects., Clinical Trial Registration: https://www.chictr.org.cn/, ChiCTR-INR-22013524., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The reviewer HC declared a shared affiliation with the authors R-zT and Z-kT to the handling editor at the time of review., (Copyright © 2024 Liang, Tang, Lin, Tang, Liu, Zhou and Tao.)

Ischemic strokes, prevalence and impactful, underscore the necessity of advanced research models closely resembling human physiology. Our study utilizes nonhuman primates (NHPs) to provide a detailed exploration of ischemic stroke, integrating neuroimaging data, behavioral outcomes, and serum proteomics to elucidate the complex interplay of factors involved in stroke pathophysiology. We observed a consistent pattern in infarct volume, peaking at 1-month postmiddle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and then stabilized. This pattern was strongly correlated to notable changes in motor function and working memory performance. Using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), we detected significant alterations in fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values, signaling microstructural changes in the brain. These alterations closely correlated with the neurological and cognitive deficits that we observed, highlighting the sensitivity of DTI metrics in stroke assessment. Behaviorally, the monkeys exhibited a reliance on their unaffected limb for compensatory movements, a common response to stroke impairment. This adaptation, along with consistent DTI findings, suggests a significant impact of stroke on motor function and spatial perception. Proteomic analysis through MS/MS functional enrichment identified two distinct groups of proteins with significant changes post-MCAO. Notably, MMP9, THBS1, MB, PFN1, and YWHAZ were identified as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for ischemic stroke. Our results underscore the complex nature of stroke and advocate for an integrated approach, combining neuroimaging, behavioral studies, and proteomics, for advancing our understanding and treatment of this condition.