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Background: Polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, M-protein, and skin changes (POEMS) syndrome is a rare plasma cell (PC) neoplasm with associated paraneoplastic syndrome. According to the current diagnostic criteria, peripheral polyneuropathy and monoclonal PC proliferative disorder represent two mandatory criteria. Case presentation: We report a 54-year-old male with peripheral neuropathy of bilateral lower limbs, sclerotic bone lesions, elevated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels, splenomegaly, extravascular volume overload, endocrinopathy, and skin hemangiomas. Of note, serum and urine protein electrophoresis (PEP) and immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE) of this patient indicated undetectable M-protein and the normal ratio of free light chains κ and λ (FLC-R (κ/λ)). No monoclonal PCs were found in bone marrow examinations or biopsy of diseased bones. However, his clinical manifestations matched most of the diagnostic criteria. After excluding other diseases that are easily confused with POEMS syndrome, the diagnosis of variant POEMS syndrome with undetectable M-protein was proposed. The patient obtained clinically significant improvement and elevated VEGF returned to normal after 6 months of treatment with lenalidomide plus dexamethasone. Conclusions: Monoclonal PC dyscrasia (M-protein) while being a mandatory criterion for POEMS syndrome is undetectable in a considerable amount of patients that otherwise demonstrate typical symptoms. Here, we reported a case of variant POEMS syndrome with featured clinical manifestations, elevated VEGF levels, and good response to therapies targeting PCs but no evidence of M-protein. Therefore, negative results in M-protein and monoclonal PCs aren't enough to reject the diagnosis of POEMS syndrome. It is imperative to recognize the variant form of POEMS syndrome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neural mechanisms underlying language recovery after a stroke remain controversial. This review aimed to summarize the plasticity and reorganization mechanisms of the language network through neuroimaging studies. Initially, we discussed the involvement of right language homologues, perilesional tissue, and domain-general networks. Subsequently, we summarized the white matter functional mapping and remodeling mechanisms associated with language subskills. Finally, we explored how non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) promoted language recovery by inducing neural network plasticity. It was observed that the recruitment of right hemisphere language area homologues played a pivotal role in the early stages of frontal post-stroke aphasia (PSA), particularly in patients with larger lesions. Perilesional plasticity correlated with improved speech performance and prognosis. The domain-general networks could respond to increased "effort" in a task-dependent manner from the top-down when the downstream language network was impaired. Fluency, repetition, comprehension, naming, and reading skills exhibited overlapping and unique dual-pathway functional mapping models. In the acute phase, the structural remodeling of white matter tracts became challenging, with recovery predominantly dependent on cortical activation. Similar to the pattern of cortical activation, during the subacute and chronic phases, improvements in language functions depended, respectively, on the remodeling of right white matter tracts and the restoration of left-lateralized language structural network patterns. Moreover, the midline superior frontal gyrus/dorsal anterior cingulate cortex emerged as a promising target for NIBS. These findings offered theoretical insights for the early personalized treatment of aphasia after stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we aimed to investigate cytoplasmic maturation and miRNA expression of mature oocytes cultured in porcine follicular fluid exosomes. We also examined the effect of miR-339-5p on oocyte maturation. Twenty eight differentially expressed miRNAs were detected using miRNA-seq. We then transfected cumulus oocyte complexes with miR-339-5p mimics and inhibitor during culture. The results showed that exosomes increased endoplasmic reticulum levels and the amount of lipid droplets, and decreased ROS levels, lipid droplet size, and percentage of oocytes with abnormal cortical granule distribution. Overexpressing miR-339-5p significantly decreased cumulus expansion genes, oocyte maturation-related genes, target gene proline/glutamine-rich splicing factor (SFPQ), ERK1/2 phosphorylation levels, oocyte maturation rate, blastocyst rate, and lipid droplet number, but increased lipid droplet size and the ratio of oocytes with abnormal cortical granule distribution. Inhibiting miR-339-5p reversed the decrease observed during overexpression. Mitochondrial membrane potential and ROS levels did not differ significantly between groups. In summary, exosomes promote oocyte cytoplasmic maturation and miR-339-5p regulating ERK1/2 activity through SFPQ expression, thereby elevating oocyte maturation and blastocyst formation rate in vitro. • This study examined the mechanisms behind enhanced in vitro oocyte maturation in pigs with follicular fluid exosomes. • MiRNA sequencing experiments demonstrated that miR-339-5p was differentially expressed between treatment groups. • MiR-339-5p regulated the ERK1/2 pathway through SFPQ and improved various measures of oocyte maturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel strategy is proposed in this work to accelerate proton-coupled electron transfer via phase-engineered amorphous/crystalline interface for advancing overall water splitting. [Display omitted] • Co/Co 2 C crystals have been assembled on amorphous N, S co-doped porous carbon through hydrothermal and calcination process. • The stable biphase structure and amorphous/crystalline interface enhances the conductivity and intrinsic activity. • The adsorption ability of water molecules and intermediates is improved significantly. • This work has pioneered the crystalline/amorphous phase in electrocatalysts and provided new insights into phase engineering. Traditional phase engineering enhances conductivity or activity by fully converting electrocatalytic materials into either a crystalline or an amorphous state, but this approach often faces limitations. Thus, a practical solution entails balancing the dynamic attributes of both phases to maximize an electrocatalyst's functionality is urgently needed. Herein, in this work, Co/Co 2 C crystals have been assembled on the amorphous N, S co-doped porous carbon (NSPC) through hydrothermal and calcination processes. The stable biphase structure and amorphous/crystalline (A/C) interface enhance conductivity and intrinsic activity. Moreover, the adsorption ability of water molecules and intermediates is improved significantly attributed to the rich oxygen-containing groups, unsaturated bonds, and defect sites of NSPC, which accelerates proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) and overall water splitting. Consequently, A/C-Co/Co 2 C/NSPC (Co/Co 2 C/NSPC with amorphous/crystalline interface) exhibits outstanding behavior for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), requiring the overpotential of 240.0 mV and 70.0 mV to achieve 10 mA cm−2. Moreover, an electrolyzer assembled by A/C-Co/Co 2 C/NSPC-3 (anode) and A/C-Co/Co 2 C/NSPC-2 (cathode) demonstrates a low drive voltage of 1.54 V during overall water splitting process. Overall, this work has pioneered the coexistence of crystalline/amorphous phases in electrocatalysts and provided new insights into phase engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc (Zn)–dysprosium (Dy) binary alloys are promising biodegradable bone fracture fixation implants owing to their attractive biodegradability and mechanical properties. However, their clinical application is a challenge for bone fracture healing, due to the lack of Zn–Dy alloys with tailored proper bio‐mechanical and osteointegration properties for bone regeneration. A Zn‐5Dy alloy with high strength and ductility and a degradation rate aligned with the bone remodeling cycle is developed. Here, mechanical stability is further confirmed, proving that Zn‐5Dy alloy can resist aging in the degradation process, thus meeting the mechanical requirements of fracture fixation. In vitro cellular experiments reveal that the Zn‐5Dy alloy enhances osteogenesis and angiogenesis by elevating SIRT4‐mediated mitochondrial function. In vivo Micro‐CT, SEM‐EDS, and immunohistochemistry analyses further indicate good biosafety, suitable biodegradation rate, and great osteointegration of Zn‐5Dy alloy during bone healing, which also depends on the upregulation of SIRT4‐mediated mitochondrial events. Overall, the study is the first to report a Zn‐5Dy alloy that exerts remarkable osteointegration properties and has a strong potential to promote bone healing. Furthermore, the results highlight the importance of mitochondrial modulation and shall guide the future development of mitochondria‐targeting materials in enhancing bone fracture healing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of effective non-noble metals catalysts in removing oxygen from propylene remains a substantial challenge. Herein, the designed catalyst of 0.5%Na–Fe/Al2O3 exhibited up to 100% O2 conversion and inhibited the greenhouse gas CO2 formation under hydrogen existence. Multiple characterization results confirmed that Na promoter enhances the dispersion of Fe species and the formation of oxygen vacancies, contributing to enriching the reactivity of the O2. Significantly, the TPD results further demonstrated that the Na promoter facilitates the desorption of C3H6, decreasing the reaction probability of O2 and C3H6, which plays an important role in suppressing the formation of CO2. This finding not only provides a novel approach to understand the role of Na promoter, but also opens an avenue for providing scientific guidance to design and synthesis of high-efficiency catalysts. The effective Na-promoted iron-based catalysts achieved 100% O2 conversion with almost no formation of by-product CO2. Several characterization results confirmed that the presence of Na promoter affected the electronic state of Fe atoms, promoted the formation of oxygen vacancies and improved the O2 reactivity. Significantly, the Na promoter plays an important role in the adsorption of H2 and desorption of C3H6, facilitating to improve the O2 reactivity and inhibit the formation of the by-product CO2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transient implantable piezoelectric materials are desirable for biosensing, drug delivery, tissue regeneration, and antimicrobial and tumor therapy. For use in the human body, they must show flexibility, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. These requirements are challenging for conventional inorganic piezoelectric oxides and piezoelectric polymers. We discovered high piezoelectricity in a molecular crystal HOCH2(CF2)3CH2OH [2,2,3,3,4,4-hexafluoropentane-1,5-diol (HFPD)] with a large piezoelectric coefficient d33 of ~138 picocoulombs per newton and piezoelectric voltage constant g33 of ~2450 × 10−3 volt-meters per newton under no poling conditions, which also exhibits good biocompatibility toward biological cells and desirable biodegradation and biosafety in physiological environments. HFPD can be composite with polyvinyl alcohol to form flexible piezoelectric films with a d33 of 34.3 picocoulombs per newton. Our material demonstrates the ability for molecular crystals to have attractive piezoelectric properties and should be of interest for applications in transient implantable electromechanical devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Floral resources have been increasingly utilized in conservation-based biological control to support the natural enemies of insect pests or pest mites. The native predatory mite Neoseiulus bicaudus, found in Xinjiang, plays a crucial role in the integrated pest management of agricultural crops. The aim of this experiment was to compare the impacts of floral resources on the longevity, fecundity, and predation ability of N. bicaudus. Finally, a comparative analysis of the adaptation of eight nectar and pollen plants to N. bicaudus was performed, as well as further investigation into the effect of pollen from these nectar and pollen plants on the predation ability of predatory mites. The obtained results have significant implications for the utilization of nectar and pollen plants for eco-friendly pest mite control in farmland. Neoseiulus bicaudus is a predatory mite species that could potentially be used for the biological control of spider mites and thrips. Floral resources can provide excellent habitats and abundant nutrients for natural enemies. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effects of eight floral resources on the longevity, fecundity, and predation ability of N. bicaudus. Among the considered plants, Cnidium monnieri led to the highest longevity (24 days) and fecundity (13.8 eggs) of N. bicaudus, while Tagetes erecta resulted in the lowest longevity (7 days) and fecundity (0.1 eggs) observed in the predatory mites. By comparing the effects of three nectar and pollen plants on the predation of predatory mites, it was observed that N. bicaudus still exhibited a type II functional response to Tetranychus turkestani. In the presence of pollen, the predation efficacy (a/Th) of N. bicaudus exhibited a lower value, compared to that in the absence of pollen (Control: a/Th = 24.00). When pollen was supplied, the maximum consumption (1/Th) of predatory mites was higher than in its absence (Control: 1/Th = 9.90 d−1), with the highest value obtained in the presence of B. officinalis pollen (B. officinalis: 1/Th = 17.86 d−1). The influence coefficient of predation of N. bicaudus on T. turkestani in the presence of pollen was compared in the presence of three nectar and pollen plants: Cnidium monnieri, Centaurea cyanus, and Borago officinalis. At low prey densities, the influence coefficient of C. cyanus exceeded that of B. officinalis, and the overall influence coefficient values were negative (i.e., the presence of pollen reduced predatory mite feeding on T. turkestani). They exhibited similar values at high prey densities, and all of the influence coefficient values were close to 0 (i.e., the presence of pollen had no effect on predatory mite feeding on T. turkestani). The findings revealed that diverse plant species exert differential impacts on N. bicaudus, with some influencing its lifespan and others affecting its reproductive capabilities. Furthermore, the presence of nectar and pollen plants had a significant impact on predatory mite feeding on T. turkestani at low prey densities; however, this effect diminished as the prey density increased. Therefore, we recommend planting C. monnieri, C. cyanus, and B. officinalis in the field to ensure an ample population of predatory mites. The obtained results hold significant implications for the utilization of nectar and pollen plants in eco-friendly pest management strategies within agricultural contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inherent stochasticity of electric operation vehicle (EOV) charging poses challenges to the stability and efficiency of regional power distribution networks. Existing charging behavior decision-making models often prioritize revenue considerations, neglecting the influence of multi-time-span characteristics and the potential irrationality of EOV owners. To address these limitations, this study proposes a comprehensive framework encompassing three aspects. First, operational data are statistically analyzed to reconstruct EOV operation scenarios, establishing a dynamic charging scheme tailored to multi-time-span characteristics. Second, an improved ITCH model is developed using operational equivalent change to incorporate both gains and losses. Third, a WFL framework is employed to integrate the perceptual attenuation of revenue into the ITCH model. Simulation results show that decision-makers (DMs) demonstrate a preference for charging schemes with high equivalent perceived revenues and low time costs. Moreover, when the charging price is doubled, revenue perception attenuation leads decision-makers to postpone their charging behavior. Compared to other models, the equivalent perception intertemporal choice heuristics (EP-ITCH) charging model results in reduced load peaks, valleys, and variances on the grid side. This study highlights the model's effectiveness and accuracy in optimizing EOV charging infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBackgroundObjectivesMethodsResultsConclusionAdvanced nursing practice and education with a Master’s degree as the necessary preparation, is viewed as a major strategy to cultivate senior nursing talents. Competencies are central to advanced nursing practice and education, but how can competencies be measured? Entrustable professional activities (EPAs) have been used widely in medicine as a practical approach for bridging the gaps between competency and clinical practice. Considering the paucity of research in EPAs for nursing graduates in China, it is needed to develop EPAs specifically for Chinese Master of Nursing Specialist (MNS) graduates to improve patient safety and quality patient care.To develop and evaluate a core competency-based EPAs framework for Chinese MNS graduates.A four-stage approach was adopted for the EPAs development, including: (1) forming a research team, (2) drafting an initial EPAs framework, (3) reviewing EPAs framework, and (4) conducting EPAs consensus assessment.A framework containing twelve EPAs was developed, including: 1) perform health assessments, 2) identify and prioritize nursing diagnoses, 3) formulate and implement care plan, 4) perform basic and specialized care operations, 5) recognize and manage medication needs of patients, 6) assess and manage patients with mental health problems, 7) recognize and assist in rescuing critically ill patients, 8) perform transition and handover, 9) participate in multidisciplinary team collaborative care, 10) provide health education and nursing consultation, 11) formulate and implement discharge plans, and 12) instruct nursing students in a clinical setting. The I-CVI score for the two rounds of Delphi ranged from 0.92 ∼ 1.00 and 0.96 ∼ 1.00, respectively. The mean of Equal’s score for the three domains ranged from 4.20 ∼ 4.47, 4.25 ∼ 4.51, and 4.23 ∼ 4.37, respectively.The developed EPAs framework in this study is a reliable tool to assess the core competencies of Chinese MNS graduates in clinical practice and assist with their curricula design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first step in any dietary monitoring system is the automatic detection of eating episodes. To detect eating episodes, either sensor data or images can be used, and either method can result in false-positive detection. This study aims to reduce the number of false positives in the detection of eating episodes by a wearable sensor, Automatic Ingestion Monitor v2 (AIM-2). Thirty participants wore the AIM-2 for two days each (pseudo-free-living and free-living). The eating episodes were detected by three methods: (1) recognition of solid foods and beverages in images captured by AIM-2; (2) recognition of chewing from the AIM-2 accelerometer sensor; and (3) hierarchical classification to combine confidence scores from image and accelerometer classifiers. The integration of image- and sensor-based methods achieved 94.59% sensitivity, 70.47% precision, and 80.77% F1-score in the free-living environment, which is significantly better than either of the original methods (8% higher sensitivity). The proposed method successfully reduces the number of false positives in the detection of eating episodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A Suaeda Salsa spectral index (SSSI) is proposed. • SSSI can be used for both S. salsa mapping and fractional cover (FC) estimation. • S. salsa with FC as low as 20% can be accurately detected. • SSSI performs better than NDVI and SAVI for S. salsa FC estimation. • SSSI alleviates the impact of heterogeneous soil backgrounds in intertidal wetlands. Suaeda Salsa (S. salsa), with short and red-purplish plants, is a typical pioneer saltmarsh species in the intertidal wetlands of temperate East Asia. It has important ecological, economic, and recreational values. In the past few decades, S. salsa has severely degraded in coastal China, which has brought widespread attention from regional and local governments. As a result, extensive S. salsa restoration projects have been initiated in recent years. It is urgently needed to develop satellite-based methods for both S. salsa mapping and fractional cover (FC) estimation because degradation and recovery of S. salsa are manifested by changes in both area and plant cover. However, accurate mapping and FC estimation of S. salsa are challenging because (1) S. salsa in intertidal areas have low FC and (2) heterogeneous soil backgrounds in wetlands greatly impact the spectral reflectance observed by satellites. To address these issues, this study proposed a new Suaeda Salsa Spectral Index (SSSI) to support accurate detection and FC estimation of S. salsa. The SSSI was designed based on the laboratory spectral measurements by considering variations in wetland soil moisture and by taking advantage of the reddish color of S. salsa. It consists of two components, one of which utilized blue, green and red bands to separate S. salsa from green vegetation, and the other component utilized a modification of the Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI) to reduce the impact of soil background and maintain a linear relationship with S. salsa FC. SSSI was then applied on Sentinel-2/GF-1 images over the Yellow River Delta (YRD) and Liao River Delta (LRD), China. Based on SSSI, a simple thresholding approach was used to identify S. salsa, and a linear regression model was used to estimate FC. With reference datasets provided from field investigations, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle multispectral images and high-spatial resolution satellite images, our results show that the SSSI was able to detect low-coverage S. salsa (FC > 20 % in YRD and FC > 10 % in LRD), and the S. salsa maps had an overall accuracy over 94%. The SSSI-FC models achieved good estimation accuracies (R2 = 0.77 ∼ 0.86, RMSE = 7.55 % ∼ 9.79 %). Compared to the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and SAVI, SSSI alleviated the impacts from soil backgrounds and provided better S. salsa FC estimations, particularly for low-coverage S. salsa. SSSI has great potential in supporting continuous monitoring of S. salsa dynamics and evaluating the effectiveness of S. salsa restoration projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The excellent efficacy is mitigated by the limited safety profile of microfocused ultrasound procedures. Objective: We sought to assess the safety and tightening efficacy of a novel microfocused ultrasound. Methods: The randomized middle and lower face and submental region of the participants were treated with the novel device using the following transducers: M4.5, D4.5, M3.0, and D3.0. Improvement in paired comparison of pretreatment and posttreatment photographs, three-dimensional (3D) volumetric assessments, skin thickness measured by B-ultrasonography, and skin photoaging parameters were evaluated. Adverse events and patient satisfaction were also recorded. Results: A total of 20 participants (20 female) were enrolled. Fourteen of 20 participants (70%) were judged to show clinically significant facial tightening during 3-month follow-up (P < 0.05). The mean volumetric change in the lower face, as quantitatively assessed after 3 months was −0.29 mL compared with +0.42 mL on the control side (P < 0.05). The VAS pain score was 3.00 ± 1.19 without any oral or intramuscular anesthesia. Conclusions: A small sample size, lack of clinical scales, and impersonalized treatment parameters. The novel microfocused ultrasound appears to be a safe and effective modality for lower-face tightening. Clinical Trial Registration Number: ChiCTR 2200064666. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymeric materials have been widely researched and used as active‐layers to fabricate data‐storage resistance random‐access memory (ReRAM) devices. Nevertheless, the problems as drift voltage, weak stability, and low reproducibility largely restrict their practical application in next‐generation memory systems, mainly induced by the molecular stacking defects that limited the efficient charge‐carrier migration throughout the active‐layers. Thus, how to weaken the molecular stacking defects and thus improve the overall ReRAM performance is a scientific issue that needs to be solved urgently. In this work, an organometallic polymer 5,12‐di(thiophen‐2‐l)‐2,9‐di(tridecan‐7‐yl)anthra[2,1,9‐def:6,5,10‐d'e'f']diisoquinoline‐1,3,8,10(2H,9H)‐tetraone P(DTPDI‐Fc) is designed with ferrocene (Fc) and perylenediimide (PDI) building repeats. The X‐ray diffraction (XRD) test confirms the regioregular stacking styles of P(DTPDI‐Fc) in solid states, and atomic force microscope (AFM) measurement verified the continuous and smooth surface morphology of P(DTPDI‐Fc) films. Therefore, the charge carriers can easily inject into P(DTPDI‐Fc) film and can efficiently migrate throughout P(DTPDI‐Fc) films. Thus, P(DTPDI‐Fc) devices show excellent memory behaviors with low high‐conductance state ON‐state current, stable threshold voltage, long‐time stability, and high device reproducibility. This work affords a practical strategy to weaken molecular stacking defects and to improve stacking regioregularity, which will give a guidance for the designing of multilevel data‐storage ReRAM devices in future researches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Double primary cervical cancer and ovarian cancer refer to the simultaneous or successive appearance of cervical cancer and ovarian cancer in the same patient. Due to the low incidence, there are few relevant reports. Therefore, this study is the first population-based analysis of the clinicopathological features as well as the prognostic status of double primary cervical cancer and ovarian cancer. We look forward to providing a reference for future clinical diagnosis and treatment. Methods: In this study, 473 cases of double primary cervical cancer and ovarian cancer were collected from 1975 to 2019 through the SEER database. Double primary cancers were considered non-synchronous when they were diagnosed more than 6 months apart and were classified as Group A. Double primary cancers were considered synchronous when the interval between diagnosis of the two tumors was less than or equal to 6 months and was classified as group B. Results: In this study, the incidence of double primary cervical cancer and ovarian cancer accounted for 0.39% of primary cervical cancer and 0.24% of primary ovarian cancer in the same period. 80% of patients developed second cancer within 107 months of their first cancer being diagnosed. Compared with non-synchronous cancer, synchronous cancer is mainly characterized by simultaneous bilateral ovarian involvement and early clinical stage, but highly malignant, high lymph node metastasis rate, and poor prognosis. Conclusion: Most patients developed second cancer within 107 months of their first cancer being diagnosed. Age at diagnosis, bilateral ovarian invasion, the interval between diagnoses, pathological type and stage of ovarian cancer, and grade of cervical cancer are important factors affecting survival, which still needs to be confirmed by more extensive studies in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exosomes are related to effective communication between cells. In this study we aimed to investigate the effect of porcine follicular fluid exosomes (FF-Exo) on cumulus expansion, oocyte mitochondrial membrane potential, and maturation in in vitro culture. We used different concentrations of FF-Exo (Exo-0, Exo-1, Exo-10, Exo-20, and Exo-40) and added them to an oocyte maturation medium. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) and western blot (WB) showed that the isolated samples were exosomes. Immunofluorescence showed that exosomes could be taken up by cumulus cells. Compared with the Exo-0 group, there was no significant difference in oocyte maturation rate in the Exo-1 group (p > 0.05), while the Exo-10 group (p < 0.05), Exo-20 group (p < 0.01) and Exo-40 group (p < 0.01) significantly increased. The maturation rate of the Exo-20 and Exo-40 groups was the highest, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). However, different concentrations of treatment could not effectively induce cumulus expansion and the results of JC1 showed that it had no significant effect on mitochondrial membrane potential (p > 0.05). In conclusion, the results suggest that porcine FF-Exo are involved in oocyte nuclear maturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cameron defined the concept of generalized t $t$‐designs, which generalized t $t$‐designs, resolvable designs and orthogonal arrays. This paper introduces a new class of combinatorial designs which simultaneously provide a generalization of both generalized t $t$‐designs and group divisible t $t$‐designs. In certain cases, we derive necessary conditions for the existence of generalized group divisible t $t$‐designs, and then point out close connections with various well‐known classes of designs, including mixed orthogonal arrays, factorizations of the complete multipartite graphs, large sets of group divisible designs, and group divisible designs with (orthogonal) resolvability. Moreover, we investigate constructions for generalized group divisible t $t$‐designs and almost completely determine their existence for t=2,3 $t=2,3$ and small block sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a rotating wave carrying orbital angular momentum undergoes an extreme Doppler shift, the observed frequency will become negative. The negative frequency is the prerequisite condition for rotational superradiance, which is principally in connection with the black hole radiance. This condition has been observed in a published experiment using two rotating microphones, which mainly obtained the spectral results. However, the experiment showed a few graphical details of the wave shape. We propose a numerical method not only to demonstrate the Doppler shift of the observed frequency but also to show the formation of the acoustic rotating waves in the time domain. The numerical model adopts a circular array of momentum sources to generate the rotating waves and an array of static monitoring points to simulate the rotating microphones. The time domain observation shows that a negative frequency can be explained with either the handedness reversal of orbital angular momentum or the time reversal of the signal. This point of view has never been reported. The proposed method is not only instructive for designing an experiment with static microphones which are more easily assembled than rotating microphones but also useful in exploring the physical insight of the supperadiance phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetes mellitus (DM) and its related complications are a global epidemic characterized by high morbidity and mortality. However, little is known about diabetic enteropathy (DE) and its the potential underlying mechanism. Intestinal epithelial stem cells (IESCs) were harvested from experimental mice, and the levels of dominant N6‐methyladenosine (m6A)‐related enzyme were detected by RT‐PCR, Western blotting, immunohistochemistry. The role of Mettl14 in the abnormal differentiation of intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) during DM was confirmed by knockdown experiments. RT‐PCR, MeRIP, and bioinformatics analysis were carried out to confirm the downstream target of Mettl14. Through bioinformatics analysis, RT‐PCR, and Western blotting, we further analyzed the differentiation‐related gene in the IECs from mice with DM. In this study, the levels of Mettl14 and m6A were higher in db/db mice than that in control mice. And abnormal differentiation of IECs in DM was associated with Mettl14 overexpression. Additionally, Mettl14 is a major determinant of IESCs identity and organoid‐forming upon DM state. Mechanistically, we revealed that the candidate binding target of Mettl14 was Fzd2 mRNA and affected Fzd2 stability. Moreover, Mettl14 downregulation was observed to attenuate the abnormal differentiation of IECs through modulating Fzd2 m6A modification in DM state. Together, our results provide definitive evidence for the essential role of Mettl14 in differentiation of IESCs in DM state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the reported MOF ([Co(bimip)(H2O)0.5]·0.5H2O) was employed in photocatalytic CO2 reduction, antibacterial, and dye adsorption experiments. The photocatalytic activity of the MOF for CO2 reduction was systematically investigated. The high average CO generation rate of 3421.59 μmol·g−1·h−1 after 12 h confirms the efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction ability of the MOF. At the same time, the MOF can completely inhibit the growth of S. aureus and C. albicans within 24 h when its concentration reaches 400 μg/mL and 500 μg/mL, respectively. The MOF has an adsorption capacity for CR. The adsorption rate was 83.42% at 60 min, and the adsorption capacity of the MOF for CR reached 500.00 mg·g−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc (Zn) and its alloys have recently gained research interest due to their good biosafety, biological function, biodegradability, and formability. Zinc‐phosphate (ZnP) coating has been shown to improve the corrosion resistance and biocompatibility of Zn alloys. Here, a biodegradable ZnP‐coating on Zn1Cu0.1Ti (ZCT) membrane with high strength‐ductility and mechanical stability, suitable degradation rate, effective antibacterial ability, excellent in vitro and in vivo cytocompatibility, and osteogenesis is reported. The ZnP‐coated ZCT exhibits high strength‐ductility with a yield strength of 264 MPa, ultimate tensile strength of 312 MPa, elongation of 36.0%, and high mechanical stability before and after 30 d immersion in Hanks' and AS solutions, all of which are higher than those of ZCT. The ZnP coating shows good deformation resistance, healing effect, and bond strength with the substrate, meeting the clinical contour shaping requirements. The ZnP‐coated ZCT membrane sample shows higher cell viability toward MC3T3‐E1 and MG‐63 cells, osteogenic and mitochondrial quality‐control properties in vitro than those of the ZCT sample. Using a rat calvarial defect model, the ZnP‐coated ZCT membrane shows complete biosafety and considerable osteogenesis performance. Overall, the ZnP‐coated ZCT membrane is recommended as a promising biodegradable implant material for oral guided bone regeneration application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solar-driven hydrogen production from water splitting using the composite photocatalyst is a potentially efficient strategy to achieve a stable supply of renewable hydrogen energy. Herein, hollow Cd 0.9 In 0.1 Se/Cu 2 MoS 4 nanocubes were prepared through hydrothermal and thermal deposition methods. And the optimized Cd 0.9 In 0.1 Se/Cu 2 MoS 4 photocatalyst displayed a high hydrogen production rate of 6358.42 μmol g−1 h−1 and great long-term recyclability. The hollow structure of Cu 2 MoS 4 efficiently improved the utilization ratio of visible light. When Cd 0.9 In 0.1 Se nanoparticles was modified on the surface of hollow Cu 2 MoS 4 nanocubes, the S-scheme heterojunction was formed and the built-in electric field at the interface was produced. It effectively facilitated the charge separation and transfer and reduced the recombination of photo-generated electrons and holes, thus enhancing the photocatalytic hydrogen production activity. This work provides a new insight for improving photocatalytic hydrogen production performance from the point of view of the hollow structure composite photocatalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf rolling is a crucial agronomic trait to consider in rice (Oryza sativa L.) breeding as it keeps the leaves upright, reducing interleaf shading and improving photosynthetic efficiency. The SEMI-ROLLED LEAF 1 (SRL1) gene plays a key role in regulating leaf rolling, as it encodes a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein located on the plasma membrane. In this study, we used CRISPR/Cas9 to target the second and third exons of the SRL1 gene in the indica rice line GXU103, which resulted in the generation of 14 T0 transgenic plants with a double-target mutation rate of 21.4%. After screening 120 T1 generation plants, we identified 26 T-DNA-free homozygous double-target mutation plants. We designated the resulting SRL1 homozygous double-target knockout as srl1-103. This line exhibited defects in leaf development, leaf rolling in the mature upright leaves, and a compact nature of the fully grown plants. Compared with the wild type (WT), the T2 generation of srl1-103 varied in two key aspects: the width of flag leaf (12.6% reduction compared with WT) and the leaf rolling index (48.77% increase compared with WT). In order to gain a deeper understanding of the involvement of SRL1 in the regulatory network associated with rice leaf development, we performed a transcriptome analysis for the T2 generation of srl1-103. A comparison of srl1-103 with WT revealed 459 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), including 388 upregulated genes and 71 downregulated genes. In terms of the function of the DEGs, there seemed to be a significant enrichment of genes associated with cell wall synthesis (LOC_Os08g01670, LOC_Os05g46510, LOC_Os04g51450, LOC_Os10g28080, LOC_Os04g39814, LOC_Os01g71474, LOC_Os01g71350, and LOC_Os11g47600) and vacuole-related genes (LOC_Os09g23300), which may partially explain the increased leaf rolling in srl1-103. Furthermore, the significant downregulation of BAHD acyltransferase-like protein gene (LOC_Os08g44840) could be the main reason for the decreased leaf angle and the compact nature of the mutant plants. In summary, this study successfully elucidated the gene regulatory network in which SRL1 participates, providing theoretical support for targeting this gene in rice breeding programs to promote variety improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing efficient electrocatalysts is of great significance but a huge challenge in the field of electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Ni nanoparticles are regarded as innovative electrocatalysts for enhancing electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution properties featuring decent electric conductivity and admirable electrocatalytic activity. Nevertheless, the self-aggregation nature remains a significant challenge. In this work, the uniform Ni nanoparticles assembled on the surface of biomass-derived porous carbon (named as Ni-PC-X) are successfully constructed by the traditional hydrothermal process followed by calcination methods with the aim to circumvent the self-aggregation nature. The biomass-derived porous carbon could effectively accelerate charge transfer and inhibit the aggregation phenomenon of Ni nanoparticles, giving full play to the advantages of Ni nanoparticles. As a consequence, the obtained Ni-PC-4 acquires a desirable overpotential of 32.0 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and outstanding catalytic kinetics, which is highly comparable to commercial Pt/C. Overall, this work could propose valuable contributions and inspirations, which can be created as large-scale production of high-performance Ni-based electrocatalysts for HER in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing deep learning based face anti-spoofing (FAS) or deepfake detection approaches usually rely on large-scale datasets and powerful networks with significant amount of parameters to achieve satisfactory performance. However, these make them resource-heavy and unsuitable for handheld devices. Moreover, they are limited by the types of spoof in the dataset they train on and require considerable training time. To produce a robust FAS model, they need large datasets covering the widest variety of predefined presentation attacks possible. Testing on new or unseen attacks or environments generally results in poor performance. Ideally, the FAS model should learn discriminative features that can generalize well even on unseen spoof types. In this paper, we propose a fast learning approach called Domain Effective Fast Adaptive nEt-worK (DEFAEK), a face anti-spoofing approach based on the optimization-based meta-learning paradigm that effectively and quickly adapts to new tasks. DEFAEK treats differences in an environment as domains and simulates multiple domain shifts during training. To further improve the effectiveness and efficiency of meta-learning, we adopt the metric learning in the inner loop update with careful sample selection. With extensive experiments on the challenging CelebA-Spoof and FaceForensics++ datasets, the evaluation results show that DEFAEK can learn cues independent of the environment with good generalization capability. In addition, the resulting model is lightweight following the design principle of modern lightweight network architecture and still generalizes well on unseen classes. In addition, we also demonstrate our model's capabilities by comparing the numbers of parameters, FLOPS, and model performance with other state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to produce high-resolution climate maps is crucial for assessing climate change impacts and mitigating climate disasters and risks in developing countries. Mainstream geostatistical downscaling techniques use spatial interpolation or multi-linear regression models to produce high-resolution climate maps in data-scarce regions. Since global climate evolution is a nonlinear process governed by complex physical principles, these linear downscaling techniques cannot achieve the desired accuracy. Moreover, these techniques cannot utilize different resolution data as model inputs. In this study, we developed a hybrid of multilayer perceptrons that could couple high-resolution topographic data with sparse climate observation data well and then generate high-resolution climate maps. To test the performance of our tool, we generated high-resolution precipitation and air temperature maps using sparse observation data from 21 meteorological stations in Ethiopia. The accuracy of the high-resolution climate maps generated using our hybrid of MLPs clearly outperformed those using a multi-linear regression model or a pure MLP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrostatic discharge is a vexing problem in liquid crystal display device, which can cause abnormal display. Conventional solutions for liquid crystal doped with antistatic agent usually introduce additional impurity ions and increases the power consumption of liquid crystal display device. In this study, multi-walled carbon nanotube doped liquid crystal cells without obvious clusters are successfully fabricated. Comparing the electro-optic properties of undoped and doped cells, it is verified that doping does not negatively affect the liquid crystal cells with E7 host by measuring basic parameters such as relative permittivity, threshold voltage and response time. The liquid crystal cells are then tested using an electrostatic discharge generator to simulate the human-machine air discharge that occurs during actual operation. The immunity of the doped versus undoped cells is quantitatively compared in terms of the duration of so-called image sticking, it is found that the electrostatic discharge immunity of cell has a significant relationship with electrical conductivity. In addition, the relationship between the conductivity and relaxation time of image sticking is obtained by theory. It is determined that doping carbon nanotubes into E7 can effectively improve the electrostatic discharge immunity of liquid crystal display device without negatively affecting practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel A-site three-dimensional organic–inorganic halide perovskites (3D OIHP) ferroelectric, methylphosphonium tin triiodide (MPSnI3), featuring a narrow bandgap of 1.43 eV, was synthesized. The integration of ferroelectricity with initially moderate efficiency (2.23%) may afford a promising platform to investigate the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect in organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tuning single-crystalline transition metal oxide to possess multi functionalities, for instance, ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism through strain and defect engineering is crucial for facilitating related functionalities that have implications for device applications. To clarify the dependence relationship between strain and defect for emergent ferroics in complex oxide, in this study, we report the ferroelectric and magnetic properties of oxygen-deficient SrTiO 3-σ (STO 3-σ) thin films in rigid heterostructure and freestanding forms. By an appropriate introduction of oxygen vacancies, the STO 3-σ exhibits the coexistence of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism in its rigid heterostructure, however, these features are eliminated if STO 3-σ turns to the freestanding thin films via a water-dissolution of Sr 3 Al 2 O 6 (SAO) sacrifice interlayer. Our experimental findings demonstrate that both ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism of STO 3-σ need the stabilization of the defects by strain which enlarges the activation energy of the anionic defect suggesting a promising multiferroic engineering method. Meanwhile, our study also provides valuable information on flexoelectric/flex magnet devices. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a large body of theoretical and empirical research supporting a relationship between Zhongyong thinking and creativity, some studies have found that the association is positive, while others have reported that it is negative. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis of 18 relevant studies to further clarify this relationship. On the basis of 19 independent effect sizes, the results indicated there was a medium-strength, positive, and significant relationship between Zhongyong thinking and creativity. Moderator analyses suggested that this relationship was stronger in studies in which creativity was self-evaluated than in the studies in which others evaluated the individual's creativity. The moderating effect of the tools used to measure Zhongyong thinking and publication status were not significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salt caverns are used to store different energy sources, resulting in different periodic operating frequencies. To investigate the influence of the cycle frequencies on the mechanical behavior of rock salt, uniaxial stepped cyclic loading tests with successively decreasing, successively increasing and arbitrarily changing frequency were conducted. The deformation and dissipated energy under different frequencies were compared and analyzed. The test results demonstrate that the cycle frequency slightly affects the deformation evolution and that effect only appears when the adjacent frequencies change sharply (more than 50 times). The strain induced in one frequency stage (stage deformation) caused by high frequency is greater than that at low frequency. The dissipated energy is affected significantly by frequency. The individual dissipated energy decreases nearly as a power function with the frequency, while the stage dissipated energy shows the opposite trends due to the large increase of the loading cycles. In general, a quick injection and withdrawal is more dangerous for surrounding rock. The results are helpful for the operation of salt cavern used for energy storage. Highlights: A novel test method with good accuracy and reliability—'stepped varying frequencies at the same cyclic stress' is conducted to study the effect of frequency. Deformation of rock salt is slightly affected by the changing frequency. The individual dissipated energy decreases with the increase of frequency, while the accumulated dissipated energy in a frequency stage shows the opposite. The damage and deformation of the rock surrounding a salt cavern are relatively large when the cyclic loading is fast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel boron-containing monomer, (4-(3,4-dicyanophenoxy)phenyl)boronic acid (BPhPN) was synthesized and used to promote the curing process of phthalonitrile monomer 1,3-bis(3,4-dicyanophenoxy)benzene (MPN). Differential scanning calorimetry and rheological analysis were used to study the curing behaviors of BPhPN/MPN (namely B-MPN), and results suggested that B-MPN systems have better processibility. FTIR spectra and solid-state 13C-NMR exhibited triazine and isoindoline have been formed in the curing process. Boron-containing Lewis acid curing mechanism was preliminarily speculated and verified by two model compounds with different boron chemical environments. The thermogravimetric analysis and dynamic mechanical analysis demonstrated that the cured B-MPN polymers showed excellent thermal stability and heat resistance, which were comparable with conventional catalytic systems for phthalonitrile resins. This study not only presented a novel curing system for phthalonitrile resins, but also shed light on future design of high temperature thermosets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiation protective materials are widely applied to avoid occupational hazards from either particle emissions or high-energy electromagnetic waves. Herein, we present a boron imidazolate framework (BIF) as a novel neutron shielding additive with high neutron capture cross-section elements B/Li and H. The BIF1-based epoxy resin matrix (Ep-BIF1) possesses high thermal stability and excellent resistance capacity. The neutron radiation shielding property was characterized using an Am–Be source, in which the thermal neutron shielding efficiency of Ep-BIF1 is notably higher than that of Ep-B4C with equal boron concentration, showing potential applications as an advanced efficient neutron radiation shielding composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To assess KIF11 expression in human thyroid tumor tissues and further evaluate its involvement in thyroid cancer. Methods. The expression of KIF11 in 71 cases of thyroid carcinoma as well as corresponding tissues was detected by the immunohistochemical (IHC) method. Patients were divided into the high KIF11 expression as well as low expression groups based on the staining levels. In addition, to study the relationship between the expression of KIF11 as well as clinicopathological features, the effects of KIF11 were detected on the proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle of two types of thyroid cancer cells, TPC-1 and KTC-1, through colony formation assays, MTT assays, and FCM assays, respectively. We further assessed the potential effects of KIF11 on tumor growth using an animal model. Results. The significantly high expression of KIF11 in thyroid tumor tissues was revealed, and the correlations between KIF11 expression levels as well as clinical pathological features (T stage and intraglandular dissemination) of patients were revealed. We further noticed that KIF11 knockdown remarkably suppressed thyroid cancer cell proliferation as well as induced cell apoptosis of thyroid cancer cells. Additionally, KIF11 contributed to tumor growth of thyroid cancer cells in mice. Conclusions. We noticed the involvement of KIF11 in the progression of thyroid cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Post-stroke basal ganglia aphasia (PSBGA) manifests as an atypical language disorder accompanied by emotional and cognitive impairments. • The pathogenesis of PSBGA includes damage to the limbic pathways, dorsally located tracts in the left hemisphere, and left basal ganglia pathways. • New roles played by corpus callosum forceps minor in language processing are identified. Stroke often damages the basal ganglia, leading to atypical and transient aphasia, indicating that post-stroke basal ganglia aphasia (PSBGA) may be related to different anatomical structural damage and functional remodeling rehabilitation mechanisms. The basal ganglia contain dense white matter tracts (WMTs). Hence, damage to the functional tract may be an essential anatomical structural basis for the development of PSBGA. We first analyzed the clinical characteristics of PSBGA in 28 patients and 15 healthy controls (HCs) using the Western Aphasia Battery and neuropsychological test batteries. Moreover, we investigated white matter injury during the acute stage using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging scans for differential tractography. Finally, we used multiple regression models in correlation tractography to analyze the relationship between various language functions and quantitative anisotropy (QA) of WMTs. Compared with HCs, patients with PSBGA showed lower scores for fluency, comprehension (auditory word recognition and sequential commands), naming (object naming and word fluency), reading comprehension of sentences, Mini-Mental State Examination, and Montreal Cognitive Assessment, along with increased scores in Hamilton Anxiety Scale-17 and Hamilton Depression Scale-17 within 7 days after stroke onset (P < 0.05). Differential tractography revealed that patients with PSBGA had damaged fibers, including in the body fibers of the corpus callosum, left cingulum bundles, left parietal aslant tracts, bilateral superior longitudinal fasciculus II, bilateral thalamic radiation tracts, left fornix, corpus callosum tapetum, and forceps major, compared with HCs (FDR < 0.02). Correlation tractography highlighted that better comprehension was correlated with a higher QA of the left inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF), corpus callosum forceps minor, and left extreme capsule (FDR < 0.0083). Naming was positively associated with the QA of the left IFOF, forceps minor, left arcuate fasciculus, and uncinate fasciculus (UF) (FDR < 0.0083). Word fluency of naming was also positively associated with the QA of the forceps minor, left IFOF, and thalamic radiation tracts (FDR < 0.0083). Furthermore, reading was positively correlated with the QA of the forceps minor, left IFOF, and UF (FDR < 0.0083). PSBGA is primarily characterized by significantly impaired word fluency of naming and preserved repetition abilities, as well as emotional and cognitive dysfunction. Damaged limbic pathways, dorsally located tracts in the left hemisphere, and left basal ganglia pathways are involved in PSBGA pathogenesis. The results of connectometry analysis further refine the current functional localization model of higher-order neural networks associated with language functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel fully autonomous multi-stage thermal-response@storage smart window. • Combining solar modulation and heat storage to cut off building energy consumption. • Indoor and outdoor thermal regulation experiments are conducted. • The MTRS smart window achieves an energy saving rate of up to 21.37%. As a bridge connecting indoor and outdoor environment, windows cause extremely high energy consumption, and near infrared light entering rooms is the primary reason for the increase of cooling load in summer. Thermochromic smart windows, which dynamically regulate light transmittance through stimulus–response mechanism, aroused enormous interest in building energy-saving. However, the development of traditional thermochromic smart windows is often limited by single function and inappropriate response temperature. Herein, a novel fully autonomous multi-stage thermal-response@storage (MTRS) smart window that responds to the ambient temperature was designed by using the thermoresponsive SPCM@PNIPAm-PAM hydrogel for energy-saving and privacy protection. The SPCM@PNIPAm-PAM hydrogel exhibited satisfactory luminous transmittance of 62.70 % and solar modulation ability (Δ T s o l , 25 - 40 ° C =27.39 %, Δ T s o l , 40 - 55 ° C = 19.28 %). With the temperature changing from low (<28 °C) to medium (28–45 °C) to high (>45 °C), the MTRS smart window realized the multi-stage reversible transition from opaque to transparent to opaque, which achieved privacy protection at night and thermal insulation during the day. The obtained MTRS smart window achieved a peak temperature drop of 12.14 °C compared with the regular window on a certain day in the midsummer in Tianjin region. Based on this day's temperature data, the cooling load of was calculated, and the energy saving was further calculated, which was as high as 21.37 %. The proposed work has a great significance for further development of effective smart windows and deserves attention for the future design of windows for energy saving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although substantial quantities of potent therapies for multiple myeloma (MM) have been established, MM remains an incurable disease. In recent years, our understanding of the initiation, development, and metastasis of cancers has made a qualitative leap. Cancers attain the abilities to maintain proliferation signals, escape growth inhibitors, resist cell death, induce angiogenesis, and more importantly, escape anti-tumor immunity and reprogram metabolism, which are the hallmarks of cancers. Besides, different cancers have different tumor microenvironments (TME), thus, we pay more attention to the TME in the pathogenesis of MM. Many researchers have identified that myeloma cells interact with the components of TME, which is beneficial for their survival, ultimately causing the formation of immunosuppressive and high-metabolism TME. In the process, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), as a pivotal cytokine in the TME, controls various cells’ fates and influences numerous metabolic pathways, including inhibiting immune cells to infiltrate the tumors, suppressing the activation of anti-tumor immune cells, facilitating more immunosuppressive cells, enhancing glucose and glutamine metabolism, dysregulating bone metabolism and so on. Thus, we consider TGF-β as the tumor promoter. However, in healthy cells and the early stage of tumors, it functions as a tumor suppressor. Due to the effect of context dependence, TGF-β has dual roles in TME, which attracts us to further explore whether targeting it can overcome obstacles in the treatment of MM by regulating the progression of myeloma, molecular mechanisms of drug resistance, and various signaling pathways in the immune and metabolic microenvironment. In this review, we predominantly discuss that TGF-β promotes the development of MM by influencing immunity and metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Actinoplanes utahensis deacylase (AAC)-catalyzed deacylation of echinocandin B (ECB) is a promising method for the synthesis of anidulafungin, the newest of the echinocandin antifungal agents. However, the low activity of AAC significantly limits its practical application. In this work, we have devised a multi-dimensional rational design strategy for AAC, conducting separate analyses on the substrate-binding pocket's volume, curvature, and length. Furthermore, we quantitatively analyzed substrate properties, particularly on hydrophilic and hydrophobic. Accordingly, we tailored the linoleic acid-binding pocket of AAC to accommodate the extended long lipid chain of ECB. By fine-tuning the key residues, the resulting AAC mutants can accommodate the ECB lipid chain with a lower curvature binding pocket. The D53A/I55F/G57M/F154L/Q661L mutant (MT) displayed 331 % higher catalytic efficiency than the wild-type (WT) enzyme. The MT product conversion was 94.6 %, reaching the highest reported level. Utilizing a multi-dimensional rational design for a customized mutation strategy of the substrate-binding pocket is an effective approach to enhance the catalytic efficiency of enzymes in handling complicated substrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Genetic testing of UGT1A1 was used to facilitate the diagnosis of Gilbert syndrome, and analyze the distribution features of pathogenic variants in the Chinese population. Methods: DNA was extracted from whole blood samples of patients with unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia, and sequencing of the UGT1A1 gene was performed after PCR amplification. After alignment with reference sequences, the known pathogenic variants were identified, the variant spectrum was analyzed, and the pathogenicity of novel variants was predicted using online mutation prediction tools. Results: A total of 117 patients were confirmed with Gilbert syndrome by UGT1A1 genetic diagnosis, where the most common pathogenic variants included promoter A(TA)7TAA insertion and p.Gly71Arg missense variant. Following novel variants were also identified: p.Ala61Gly, p.Tyr67Phe, p.Leu166Alafs*16, p.Arg240Lys, p.Ser306Phe, p.Arg341Gln, and p.Glu424* variants. Conclusions: Genetic testing of UGT1A1 in clinical practices could facilitate confirming Gilbert syndrome and performing differential diagnosis. The pathogenic variant spectrum in the Chinese population was similar to other Asian populations. The novel pathogenic variants identified in this study require further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deformation mode of the Tibetan Plateau is of crucial importance for understanding its construction and extrusion processes, as well as for the assessment of regional earthquake potential. Block motion and viscous flow models have been proposed to describe the deformation field but are not fully supported by modern geophysical observations. The 2021 Mw 7.4 Maduo earthquake, which occurred inside the SongpanGanzi terrane (SGT) in central-east Tibet, provides a chance to evaluate the associated deformation mode of the region. We conduct a joint inversion for this earthquake and resolve a bilateral rupture process, which is characterized by super- and subshear rupture velocities, respectively. We interpret this distinct rupture behavior to be the result of the respective slip concentration depths of the two ruptured segments. We analyze geological, seismic, and geodetic evidence and find that the SGT upper crust shows distributed shear deformation and distinct transverse anisotropy, which are associated with folded structures originating from compression of the paleo-Tethys ocean accretional prism realigned by following shear deformation. The SGT receives lateral shear loading from its NS boundary and accommodates a right-step sinistral motion across the terrane boundary faults. The unique tectonic setting of the SGT defines locations and behaviors of internal faulting and strong earthquakes such as the 2021 Maduo earthquake, with the latter occurring on slow-moving faults at intervals of several thousands of years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) and Vibrio parahaemolyticus acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (VPAHPND) are two of the diseases that have frequently infected farmed shrimp in recent years, causing great economic losses to the shrimp industry worldwide. In this study, we established a sensitive and accurate duplex droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) method that can simultaneously detect and quantify the two pathogens simultaneously. The results showed that the ddPCR methods could detect EHP and VPAHPND specifically. The sensitivity levels of ddPCR for EHP and VPAHPND were 2.3 copies/μl and 4.6 copies/μl, respectively, which were 10‐fold higher than the sensitivity of the qPCR assay and showed good reproducibility. Twenty‐six suspected diseased shrimp samples were used for practical determination. For EHP, the detection rates of ddPCR and qPCR were 53.84% and 42.31%, respectively; for VPAHPND, the detection rates of ddPCR and qPCR were both 23.08%. The results indicated that the ddPCR method shows superiority for detection in samples with low viral loads, which will facilitate monitoring of the source and transmission of EHP and VPAHPND and will help control shrimp epidemic disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a major microtubule-associated protein, tau is involved in the assembly of microtubules in the central nervous system. However, under pathological conditions tau assembles into amyloid filaments. Liquid droplets formed by liquid−liquid phase separation (LLPS) are a recently identified assembly state of tau and may have a major effect on the physiological function of tau and the formation of tau aggregates. 14-3-3 proteins are ubiquitously expressed in various tissues and regulate a wide variety of biological processes. In this work, we demonstrate that 14-3-3ζ is recruited into tau droplets and regulates tau LLPS by in vitro assays. While the mobility of tau molecules inside the droplets is not affected in the presence of 14-3-3ζ, the amount and size of droplets can vary significantly. Mechanistic studies reveal that 14-3-3ζ regulates tau LLPS by electrostatic interactions and hydrophobic interactions with the proline-rich domain and the microtubule-binding domain of tau. Surprisingly, the disordered C-terminal tail rather than the amphipathic binding groove of 14-3-3ζ plays a key role. Our findings not only provide a novel dimension to understand the interactions between 14-3-3 proteins and tau, but also suggest that 14-3-3 proteins may play an important role in regulating the LLPS of their binding partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic ferroelectrics are flexible, lightweight, and bio‐friendly, promising for bio‐harmonized electronic devices, while their ferroelectric lithography remains relatively unexplored. Here, by introducing homochirality and ZE photoisomerization, we obtained a pair of organic enantiomorphic ferroelectrics, di(benzylamino)‐substituted derivatives of muconic acids, the first ferroelectrics in the muconic family. Their ferroelectric and chiral features were confirmed by the polarization–electric field hysteresis loops and circular dichroism spectra, respectively. Piezoresponse force microscopy measurements demonstrate that the desired domain structure can be precisely achieved by applying a local electric field on a predefined pattern in their thin films. Moreover, thermogravimetric analyses reveal that their ferroelectricity can persist up to above 550 K. The precise pattern lithography and excellent thermal stability make them competitive candidates for ferroelectric lithography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic ferroelectrics are flexible, lightweight, and bio‐friendly, promising for bio‐harmonized electronic devices, while their ferroelectric lithography remains relatively unexplored. Here, by introducing homochirality and ZE photoisomerization, we obtained a pair of organic enantiomorphic ferroelectrics, di(benzylamino)‐substituted derivatives of muconic acids, the first ferroelectrics in the muconic family. Their ferroelectric and chiral features were confirmed by the polarization–electric field hysteresis loops and circular dichroism spectra, respectively. Piezoresponse force microscopy measurements demonstrate that the desired domain structure can be precisely achieved by applying a local electric field on a predefined pattern in their thin films. Moreover, thermogravimetric analyses reveal that their ferroelectricity can persist up to above 550 K. The precise pattern lithography and excellent thermal stability make them competitive candidates for ferroelectric lithography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Formaldehyde (FA) is a toxic compound that is considered to have a carcinogenic effect due to its damage to biological macromolecules. However, the influence of FA at the protein level remains to be explored. Here, we used LC-MS/MS to identify the differentially expressed proteins and modifications to proteins between FA-treated and untreated HeLa cells. Among 2021 proteins identified, 196 proteins were significantly down-regulated and 152 up-regulated. The differentially expressed proteins were further analyzed using bioinformatics tools for annotating the characterization of their localizations and functions. To evaluate the interaction of FA with proteins, we performed proteomic analysis for a mass shift of 12 Da on the side chains of lysine, cysteine and tryptophan, which are induced by FA as noticeable signals. We identified the modified proteins and sites, suggesting direct interaction between FA and proteins. Motif analysis further showed the characterization of amino acid sequences that react with FA. Cluster analysis of the modified proteins indicated that the FA-interacting networks are mostly enriched in the nuclei, ribosomes and metabolism. Our study presents the influence of FA on proteomes and modifications, offering a new insight into the mechanisms underlying FA-induced biological effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: There are knowledge gaps regarding STEC and EPEC strains in livestock in Jiangsu, China. This study aimed to evaluate the potential public health significance of STEC and EPEC strains isolated from livestock by determining the serotypes, virulence profiles, and genetic relationship with international STEC strains. Methods and Results: A total of 68 STEC and 37 EPEC strains were obtained from 231 faecal sheep samples and 70 faecal cattle samples. By using whole‐genome sequencing (WGS) analysis, all STEC belonged to 15 O: H serotypes, and the most prevalent serotypes were O6:H10 (19.1%), O155:H21 (14.7%), and O21:H25 (10.3%). The main Shiga toxin gene subtypes detected were stx1c (41.2%), stx1a (26.5%), stx2b (14.7%), and stx2k (14.7%). Only the STEC from cattle carried eae gene. Other adherence‐associated or toxin‐related genes, including lpfA (70.6%), iha (48.5%), subA (54.4%), and ehxA (33.8%), were found in STEC. All EPEC strains were bfpA‐negative, and the predominant eae variants were eae‐β1 (62.2%), eae‐ζ (21.6%), and eae‐θ (8.1%). The core‐genome multi‐locus sequence typing (cgMLST) analysis revealed nine scattered clusters in STEC and one dominant cluster in EPEC. The strains with the same serotypes, including O22:H8 and O43:H2 in the two towns, possessed a closely genomic distance. The core genome single‐nucleotide polymorphism (cgSNP) showed that part of STEC strains in this study was clustered with isolates possessing the same serotypes from the Netherlands, Sweden, and Xinjiang of China. Five serotypes of STEC isolates were associated with the clinical STEC strains from databases. Conclusion: This study provided the diverse serotypes and the virulence genes profiles in STEC and EPEC strains. Local strains possessed widely diverse and scattered clusters by cgMLST. Closely genomic correlation with clinical isolates displayed that part of the STEC strains may threaten to public health. Significance and Impact of the Study: Non‐O157 STEC strains act as important pathogens for human infections. This study supports the increased surveillance work of non‐O157 STEC rather than just O157 STEC in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]