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Abstract Semantic segmentation plays a crucial role in interpreting remote sensing images, especially in high-resolution scenarios where finer object details, complex spatial information and texture structures exist. To address the challenge of better extracting semantic information and ad-dressing class imbalance in multiclass segmentation, we propose utilizing diffusion models for remote sensing image semantic segmentation, along with a lightweight classification module based on a spatial-channel attention mechanism. Our approach incorporates unsupervised pretrained components with a classification module to accelerate model convergence. The diffusion model component, built on the UNet architecture, effectively captures multiscale features with rich contextual and edge information from images. The lightweight classification module, which leverages spatial-channel attention, focuses more efficiently on spatial-channel regions with significant feature information. We evaluated our approach using three publicly available datasets: Postdam, GID, and Five Billion Pixels. In the test of three datasets, our method achieved the best results. On the GID dataset, the overall accuracy was 96.99%, the mean IoU was 92.17%, and the mean F1 score was 95.83%. In the training phase, our model achieved good performance after only 30 training cycles. Compared with other models, our method reduces the number of parameters, improves the training speed, and has obvious performance advantages.

Abstract This paper examines the use of blockchain technology in power battery echelon recycling. The technology helps to improve battery capacity identification and market transaction trust. The study focuses on power battery manufacturers and recycling participants. Two recycling modes are constructed using the Stackelberg game method, and the optimal decision-making of the participating subjects in the two modes of power battery echelon recycling under the embedding of blockchain technology is compared. The influence of each parameter on the optimal decision-making is analyzed. The research findings indicate that the degree of blockchain technology integration rises as the preference coefficient for traceability information increases. When recycling competition is intense and the sensitivity of recycling prices is low, the optimal recycling model for the number of spent power batteries (SPBs) to be recycled is the model in which echelon utilizers do not participate in recycling if the level of cost optimization coefficient embedded in blockchain technology is high, otherwise, it is the model in which echelon utilizers participate in recycling. The profit of power battery manufacturers and echelon utilizers decreases with the increase of the intensity of power battery recycling competition, the cost optimization coefficient of echelon utilizers and the cost optimization coefficient of manufacturers.

Abstract Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common reproductive endocrine metabolic disorders. The lncRNA metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) reportedly can regulate the reproductive system. Despite studies, the alteration of MALAT1 expression in granulosa cells (GCs) from PCOS patients was inconsistent. To evaluate MALAT1 expression in GCs in different PCOS subgroups and its association with PCOS phenotypes, we collected GCs from 110 PCOS cases and 71 controls, and examined MALAT1 expression by quantitative PCR. The results showed MALAT1 expression was upregulated in PCOS cases, especially in insulin resistant (IR) PCOS subgroup, obese PCOS subgroup and non-hyperandrogenic (NHA) PCOS subgroup. MALAT1 expression was positively correlated with BMI and several metabolic parameters in controls. Interestingly, MALAT1 expression was notably associated with some critical endocrine indexes for PCOS, including E2, FSH, LH and LH/FSH ratio. In different PCOS subgroups, we found significant positive correlations with LH/FSH ratio in IR-PCOS and PCOS with normal weight, and with serum T and LH level in NHA-PCOS subgroup. Integrated analysis with lncRNA target databases and PCOS-related databases revealed MALAT1 could participate in PCOS by influencing immune response and lipids metabolism in GCs. In conclusion, MALAT1 was differently expressed in GCs in PCOS, especially in IR, obese and NHA PCOS subgroups. MALAT1 was likely involved in metabolism and immune response in GCs in PCOS. However, more studies are necessary to establish this concept.

Abstract Background Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common reproductive endocrine disorders in females of childbearing age. Various types of ovarian cells work together to maintain normal reproductive function, whose discordance often takes part in the development and progression of PCOS. Understanding the cellular heterogeneity and compositions of ovarian cells would provide insight into PCOS pathogenesis, but are, however, not well understood. Transcriptomic characterization of cells isolated from PCOS cases have been assessed using bulk RNA-seq but cells isolated contain a mixture of many ovarian cell types. Methods Here we utilized the reference scRNA-seq data from human adult ovaries to deconvolute and estimate cell proportions and dysfunction of ovarian cells in PCOS, by integrating various granulosa cells(GCs) transcriptomic data. Results We successfully defined 22 distinct cell clusters of human ovarian cells. Then after transcriptome integration, we obtained a gene expression matrix with 13,904 genes within 30 samples (15 control vs. 15 PCOS). Subsequent deconvolution analysis revealed decreased proportion of small antral GCs and increased proportion of KRT8 high mural GCs, HTRA1 high cumulus cells in PCOS, especially increased differentiation from small antral GCs to KRT8 high mural GCs. For theca cells, the abundance of internal theca cells (TCs) and external TCs was both increased. Less TCF21 high stroma cells (SCs) and more STAR high SCs were observed. The proportions of NK cells and monocytes were decreased, and T cells occupied more in PCOS and communicated stronger with inTCs and exTCs. In the end, we predicted the candidate drugs which could be used to correct the proportion of ovarian cells in patients with PCOS. Conclusions Taken together, this study provides insights into the molecular alterations and cellular compositions in PCOS ovarian tissue. The findings might contribute to our understanding of PCOS pathophysiology and offer resource for PCOS basic research.

Objective(MSU) crystals usually in the kidney tubules especially collecting ducts in the medulla. Previous animal models have not fully reproduced the impact of MSU on kidneys under non-hyperuricemic conditions.MethodsIn the group treated with MSU, the upper pole of the rat kidney was injected intrarenally with 50 mg/kg of MSU, while the lower pole was injected with an equivalent volume of PBS solution. The body weight and kidney mass of the rats were observed and counted. H&E staining was used to observe the pathological damage of the kidney and to count the number of inflammatory cells. Masoon staining was used to observe the interstitial fibrosis in the kidneys of the rat model. Flow cytometric analysis was used for counting inflammatory cells in rats. ElISA was used to measure the concentration of serum and urine uric acid, creatinine and urea nitrogen in rats.ResultsAt the MSU injection site, a significantly higher infiltration of inflammatory cells and a substantial increase in the area of interstitial fibrosis compared to the control group and the site of PBS injection were observed. The serum creatinine level was significantly increased in the MSU group. However, there were no significant differences in the rats’ general conditions or blood inflammatory cell counts when compared to the control group.ConclusionThe injection of urate crystals into the kidney compromised renal function, caused local pathological damage, and increased inflammatory cell infiltration and interstitial fibrosis. Intrarenal injection of MSU crystals may result in urate nephropathy. The method of intrarenal injection did not induce surgical infection or systemic inflammatory response.

Organic-inorganic metal halide perovskites solar cells (PSCs) have been emerging as a counterpart or a supplement of silicon-based solar cells. They have shown various interesting optoelectronic properties and impressive power conversion efficiencies, even outperforming the theoretical limits in tandem configurations. However, challenges such as long-term stability and scalable manufacturing remain significant obstacles to commercialization. Key factors like material composition and crystal quality are essential for the reliability and performance of PSCs. Traditional solution-based processes face challenges in scalability and reproducibility. This has drawn attention to vacuum processes, which have been successfully employed in the commercial mass production of optoelectronic devices like displays. Also, recent innovations in automated deposition systems aided by machine learning offer promising solutions. These technological advancements enable rapid optimization of material combinations and manufacturing processes, facilitating a transition from lab-scale prototypes to industrial applications. This review highlights the converging efforts from multiple disciplines—materials science, process engineering and machine learning—that are essential for the transition from experimental validation to commercial, sustainable energy solutions. In summary, the work sets a path forward, where collective expertize can address lingering challenges, making clean, accessible, and affordable energy an attainable goal.

Abstract Solar‐driven interfacial evaporation (SDIE) has attracted great attention by offering a zero‐carbon‐emission solution for clean water production. The manipulation of the surface structure of the evaporator markedly promotes the enhancement of light capture and the improvement of evaporation performance. Herein, inspired by seedless lotus pod, a flexible pristine polypyrrole (PPy) membrane with macro/micro‐bubble and nanotube asymmetric structure is fabricated through template‐assisted interfacial polymerization. The macro‐ and micro‐hierarchical structure of the open bubbles enable multiple reflections inner and among the bubble cavities for enhanced light trapping and omnidirectional photothermal conversion. In addition, the multilevel structure (macro/micro/nano) of the asymmetric PPy (PPy‐A) membrane induces water evaporation in the form of clusters, leading to a reduction of water evaporation enthalpy. The PPy‐A membranes achieve a full‐spectrum light absorption of 96.3% and high evaporation rate of 2.03 kg m−2 h−1 under 1 sun. Long‐term stable desalination is also verified with PPy‐A membranes by applying one‐way water channel. This study demonstrates the feasibility of pristine PPy membranes in SDIE applications, providing guidelines for modulation of the evaporator topologies toward high‐efficient solar evaporation.

One of the crucial factors affecting the carrying capacity of the cryogenic liquid launch vehicle is the effective volume of the tank. Theoretical and experimental investigations on vortex breaker mechanisms have proposed promising schemes applied in the oxygen tank of the liquid-propellant launch vehicle to ensure the normal operation of the engine. In this paper, the liquid surface profile functions of the laminar core when the vortex generates were derived based on the Rankine vortex model. The dimensionless residual volume V/d3 and the Froude number were applied to compare the theoretical prediction of critical height with the actual simulation data of liquid oxygen. This comparison method can improve the model's accuracy. The efficiency of different basic shapes of vortex breakers was tested by conducting CFD modelling on a non-vertical outflow tank under a specific operating condition. Simulation results suggest negligible effects of heat transfer and surface tension. A circular plate is considered the optimal vortex breaker shape in traditional vertical outflow tanks, while a higher optimize efficiency was discovered in the half baffle basic shape in a non-vertical outflow tank by comparing the dimensionless residual volume and flow coefficient. A 34.26% reduction in flow resistance of half baffle breaker can be reached when applying a twenty-degree outlet pipe chamfering setting compared to a zero-degree chamfer. Considering practical operating limitations, it is concluded that a vortex breaker mechanism in a half baffle basic shape with a radius of 2.5d and a height of 4/d is the optimal scheme, which is suitable for all types of tanks. Its optimization efficiency of the residual volume reduction is about 56.68% compared to a no-breaker installation case. Lastly, a general equation based on CFD simulation for predicting the residual volume under a certain outflow velocity was proposed: V/d3≅αFr0.3, which trend is consistent with that of mathematical prediction V/d3≅αFr1/3. This consistency proves the accuracy and applicability of optimization strategy in this paper.

Abstract Species richness is strikingly uneven across taxonomic groups at all hierarchical levels, but the reasons for this heterogeneity are poorly understood. It is well established that morphological diversity (disparity) is decoupled from taxonomic diversity, both between clades and across geological time. Morphological complexity has been much less studied, but there is theory linking complexity with differential diversity across groups. Here we devise an index of complexity from the differentiation of the fore and hind limb pairs for a sample of 983 species of extant birds. We test the null hypothesis that this index of morphological complexity is uncorrelated with clade diversity, revealing a significant and negative correlation between the species richness of clades and the mean morphological complexity of those clades. Further, we find that more complex clades tend to occupy a smaller number of dietary and habitat niches, and that this proxy for greater ecological specialisation correlates with lower species richness. Greater morphological complexity in the appendicular skeleton therefore appears to hinder the generation and maintenance of species diversity. This may result from entrenchment into morphologies and ecologies that are less capable of yielding further diversity.

BackgroundKnown for its strong diuretic properties, the perennial herbaceous plant Orthosiphon stamineus Benth. is believed to preserve the kidney disease. This study compared the boiling water extract with powdered Orthosiphon stamineus Benth. and used a highly sensitive and high resolution UHPLC-Q-Exactive-Orbitrap-HRMS technology to evaluate its chemical composition.ResultsFurthermore, by monitoring the absorption of prototype components in rat plasma following oral treatment, the beneficial ingredients of the Orthosiphon stamineus Benth. decoction was discovered. Approximately 92 substances underwent a preliminary identification utilizing relevant databases, relevant literature, and reference standards. As the compound differences between the powdered Orthosiphon stamineus Benth. and its water decoction were analyzed, it was found that boiling produced additional compounds, 48 of which were new. 45 blood absorption prototype components and 49 OS metabolites were discovered from rat serum, and a kidney tissue homogenate revealed an additional 28 prototype components. Early differences in the distribution of ferulic acid, cis 4 coumaric acid, and rosmarinic acid were shown using spatial metabolomics. It was elucidated that the renal cortex region is where rosmarinic acid largely acts, offering a theoretical foundation for further studies on the application of OS in the prevention and treatment of illness as well as the preservation of kidney function.SignificanceIn this study, UHPLC-Q Exactive Orbitrap-HRMS was employed to discern OS's chemical composition, and a rapid, sensitive, and broad-coverage AFADESI-MSI method was developed to visualize the spatial distribution of compounds in tissues.

This study investigated the antibacterial effects of ultrasound (US), β-citronellol (CT), and a combination of the two treatments on Listeria monocytogenes. Results showed that US or CT alone did not show apparent antibacterial effect (0.02–0.76 log CFU/mL reduction). The combined treatment showed obviously inactivate effect of L. monocytogenes, the populations of L. monocytogenes decreased by 8.93 log CFU/mL after US (253 W/cm2, 20 kHz) + 0.8 mg/mL CT treatment. US + CT treatment also had a significant (P 0.05) change the surface color of carrots but significantly (P

This study presents a Modified version of Chaos Grasshopper Algorithm (MCGA) as a solution to the Techno-Economic Energy Management Strategy (TEMS) problem in microgrids. Our main contribution is the optimization of parameters to minimize the overall daily electricity price in an integrated clean energy micro-grid, incorporating fuel cell, battery storage, and photovoltaic systems. Through comparative simulations with established methods (HOMER, GAMS, GWO, and MILPA), we demonstrate the superiority of our proposed strategy. The results reveal that MCGA surpasses these methods, yielding significantly improved optimal solutions for the overall daily electricity price. Notably, the MCGA approach exhibits high precision, flexibility, and adaptability to power prices and environmental constraints, leading to accurate and flexible solutions. Thus, our proposed approach offers a promising and effective solution for the TEMS problem in microgrids, with the potential to greatly enhance microgrid performance.

Cisplatin (CDDP) stands as a highly effective chemotherapeutic agent; however, its ototoxicity remains a perplexing challenge in the field. Formononetin (FMNT), a potent flavonoid isolated from Astragalus membranaceus, displays a diverse range of promising pharmacological activities, encompassing antioxidant, anti-apoptotic, and anti-inflammatory effects. Nonetheless, the advantageous effects of FMNT on cisplatin-induced cochlear hair cell injury demand further investigation. This study aimed to assess the protective properties of FMNT against cisplatin-induced hair cell damage by conducting in vitro assays on explant-cultured cochlear hair cells. The findings revealed that FMNT exhibited a notable reduction in cisplatin-induced hair cell apoptosis. Also, FMNT effectively mitigated the accumulation of reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial damage in cochlear explants exposed to cisplatin, while also restoring the turnover of the reduced glutathione (GSH)/glutathione disulfide (GSSG) ratio. Furthermore, our study demonstrated that FMNT protects hair cells against CDDP injury through the activation of the PI3K/AKT-Nrf2 signaling pathway. Consequently, formononetin emerges as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.

Lichens host highly complex and diverse microbial communities, which may perform essential functions in these symbiotic micro-ecosystems. In this research, sequencing of 16S rRNA was used to investigate the bacterial communities associated with lichens of two growth forms (foliose and crustose). Results showed that Pseudomonadota, Actinomycetota and Acidobacteriota were dominant phyla in both types of lichens, while Acetobacterales and Hyphomicrobiales were the dominant orders. Alpha diversity index showed that the richness of bacteria hosted by foliose lichens was significantly higher than that hosted by crustose ones. Principal co-ordinates analysis showed a significant difference between beta diversity of the foliose lichen-associated bacterial communities and those of crustose lichen-associated ones. Gene function prediction showed most functions, annotated by the lichen-associated bacteria, to be related to metabolism, suggesting that related bacteria may provide nutrients to their hosts. Generally, our results propose that microbial communities play important roles in fixing nitrogen, providing nutrients, and controlling harmful microorganisms, and are therefore an integral and indispensable part of lichens.

Changes in lifestyle induce an increase in patients with hyperuricemia (HUA), leading to gout, gouty arthritis, renal damage, and cardiovascular injury. There is a strong inflammatory response in the process of HUA, while dysregulation of immune cells, including monocytes, macrophages, and T cells, plays a crucial role in the inflammatory response. Recent studies have indicated that urate has a direct impact on immune cell populations, changes in cytokine expression, modifications in chemotaxis and differentiation, and the provocation of immune cells by intrinsic cells to cause the aforementioned conditions. Here we conducted a detailed review of the relationship among uric acid, immune response, and inflammatory status in hyperuricemia and its complications, providing new therapeutic targets and strategies.

Abstract To improve the phosphorus (P) recovery efficiency from livestock wastewater, a novel MgO doped mildewed corn biochar with thermal pre-puffing treatment (Mg-PBC) and without pre-puffing (Mg-BC) was synthesized and tested. The thermal-puffing pretreatment improved the effectiveness of metal soaking and MgO dispersion. P recovery time with Mg-PBC (7 h) was significantly shorter than that with Mg-BC (12 h). Moreover, Mg-PBC showed significantly higher P recovery capacity (241 mg g−1) than Mg-BC (96.6 mg g−1). P recovery capacity of the Mg-PBC fitted to the Thomas model was 90.7 mg g−1, which was 4 times higher than that of Mg-BC (22.9 mg g−1) under column test conditions. The mechanisms involved in P recovery included precipitation, surface complexation, and electrostatic interaction. After adsorption, both Mg-BC and Mg-PBC showed relatively low regeneration abilities. The P loaded Mg-BC (Mg-BC-P) and Mg-PBC (Mg-PBC-P), the later particularly, obviously increased the available P content and promoted plant growth. The release of P increased with time in the Mg-PBC-P treated soil, while it decreased with time in the P fertilizer treated soil. A cost–benefit analysis revealed that thermal-puffing pretreatment greatly increased the profit of MgO doped biochar from −0.66 to 5.90 US$ kg−1. These findings highlight that biomass pre-puffing is a feasible treatment to produce MgO modified biochar and to recover P from livestock wastewater, and that the Mg-PBC-P can be used as a slow-release P fertilizer. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Crystal morphology of metal oxides in engineered metal-biochar composites governs the removal of phosphorus (P) from aqueous solutions. Up to our best knowledge, preparation of bio-assembled MgO-coated biochar and its application for the removal of P from solutions and kitchen waste fermentation liquids have not yet been studied. Therefore, in this study, a needle-like MgO particle coated tea waste biochar composite (MTC) was prepared through a novel biological assembly and template elimination process. The produced MTC was used as an adsorbent for removing P from a synthetic solution and real kitchen waste fermentation liquid. The maximum P sorption capacities of the MTC, deduced from the Langmuir model, were 58.80 mg g−1 from the solution at pH 7 and 192.8 mg g−1 from the fermentation liquid at pH 9. The increase of ionic strength (0–0.1 mol L−1 NaNO3) reduced P removal efficiency from 98.53% to 93.01% in the synthetic solution but had no significant impact on P removal from the fermentation liquid. Precipitation of MgHPO4 and Mg(H2PO4)2 (76.5%), ligand exchange (18.0%), and electrostatic attraction (5.5%) were the potential mechanisms for P sorption from the synthetic solution, while struvite formation (57.6%) and ligand exchange (42.2%) governed the sorption of P from the kitchen waste fermentation liquid. Compared to previously reported MgO-biochar composites, MTC had a lower P sorption capacity in phosphate solution but a higher P sorption capacity in fermentation liquid. Therefore, the studied MTC could be used as an effective candidate for the removal of P from aqueous environments, and especially from the fermentation liquids. In the future, it will be necessary to systematically compare the performance of metal-biochar composites with different metal oxide crystal morphology for P removal from different types of wastewater. Graphical Abstract

Bioelectricity has been stated as a key factor in regulating cell activity and tissue function in electroactive tissues. Thus, various biomedical electronic constructs have been developed to interfere with cell behaviors to promote tissue regeneration, or to interface with cells or tissue/organ surfaces to acquire physiological status via electrical signals. Benefiting from the outstanding advantages of flexibility, structural diversity, customizable mechanical properties, and tunable distribution of conductive components, conductive fibers are able to avoid the damage-inducing mechanical mismatch between the construct and the biological environment, in return to ensure stable functioning of such constructs during physiological deformation. Herein, this review starts by presenting current fabrication technologies of conductive fibers including wet spinning, microfluidic spinning, electrospinning and 3D printing as well as surface modification on fibers and fiber assemblies. To provide an update on the biomedical applications of conductive fibers and fiber assemblies, we further elaborate conductive fibrous constructs utilized in tissue engineering and regeneration, implantable healthcare bioelectronics, and wearable healthcare bioelectronics. To conclude, current challenges and future perspectives of biomedical electronic constructs built by conductive fibers are discussed.

Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the lethal malignancies, with limited biomarkers identified to predict its prognosis and treatment response of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). This study aimed to explore the predictive ability of T cell marker genes score (TMGS) to predict their overall survival (OS) and treatment response to ICB by integrating single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and bulk RNA-seq data. Multi-omics data of PDAC were applied in this study. The uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) was utilized for dimensionality reduction and cluster identification. The non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) algorithm was applied to molecular subtypes clustering. The Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO)-Cox regression was adopted for TMGS construction. The prognosis, biological characteristics, mutation profile, and immune function status between different groups were compared. Two molecular subtypes were identified via NMF: proliferative PDAC (C1) and immune PDAC (C2). Distinct prognoses and biological characteristics were observed between them. TMGS was developed based on 10 T cell marker genes (TMGs) through LASSO-Cox regression. TMGS is an independent prognostic factor of OS in PDAC. Enrichment analysis indicated that cell cycle and cell proliferation-related pathways are significantly enriched in the high-TMGS group. Besides, high-TMGS is related to more frequent KRAS, TP53, and CDKN2A germline mutations than the low-TMGS group. Furthermore, high-TMGS is significantly associated with attenuated antitumor immunity and reduced immune cell infiltration compared to the low-TMGS group. However, high TMGS is correlated to higher tumor mutation burden (TMB), a low expression level of inhibitory immune checkpoint molecules, and a low immune dysfunction score, thus having a higher ICB response rate. On the contrary, low TMGS is related to a favorable response rate to chemotherapeutic agents and targeted therapy. By combining scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq data, we identified a novel biomarker, TMGS, which has remarkable performance in predicting the prognosis and guiding the treatment pattern for patients with PDAC.

Cooking is a very decentralized and private way of energy consumption in human activities. The existing investigation and statistical analysis can’t effectively calculate the proportion of population relying on clean cooking fuel and utilization technology in the region. Therefore, based on the big data of the earth, this paper adopts the combination of spatial analysis and statistical analysis to determine the survey sample area, and according to the economic conditions, topographic characteristics, national policies for new energy construction and living habits of the provinces and cities under investigation, the questionnaire survey is conducted for the research area to calculate the proportion of the regional population relying on clean cooking fuels and utilization technologies. Taking the south of the Yangtze River in China as an example, the paper effectively calculates that 88.25% of the population depends on clean cooking fuel and technology in this region, of which 89.81% are in urban areas and 79.87% are in rural areas. Analysis of the survey data shows that the proportion of the population using clean cooking fuels and technologies is related to factors such as economic development, income and resource endowment. There is a large urban–rural gap in terms of energy consumption tendency and structure in the south of the Yangtze River in China and cooking energy consumption in rural households also varies from region to region. The technical ideas and conclusions of the paper have high reference application value, which can help promote the upgrading of clean energy utilization and provide data basis for relevant decision and policy making.

Abstract Aims To investigate the proportion and risk factors of diabetic retinopathy (DR) by stages in less-developed rural areas in Hunan Province of China. Background DR is common among people with diabetes but not well recognized in less-developed rural areas. There is insufficient evidence on the risk factors of DR by stages, making it challenging to develop targeted prevention and intervention programs for DR in primary care settings. Methods A multi-site cross-sectional survey was conducted among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) from four less-developed counties in Hunan Province of China. All participants underwent the screening of DR via digital fundus photography and completed self-reported questionnaires on their socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, diabetes self-efficacy, diabetes self-care behaviors, social support, family function, and health service accessibility. The multinomial logistic regression models were employed to explore the risk factors of DR by stage, which were selected based on the socio-ecological model, literature, and clinical experience. Results A total of 196 participants were included in this study with an average age of 57.43 ± 10.26. 59.6% (117/196) of the participants were identified as DR, including 37.2% (73/196) non-proliferative DR and 22.4% (44/196) proliferative DR. Compared to the non-DR group, the risk factors of non-proliferative DR and proliferative DR were diabetes duration (OR: 1.10, 95 CI%: 1.04–1.17; OR: 1.14, 95 CI% 1.06–1.22) and self-monitoring of blood glucose (OR: 1.09, 95 CI% 1.01–1.17; OR: 1.11, 95 CI%: 1.02–1.20); the protective factors of non-proliferative DR was accessible complication prevention and management education (OR: 0.37, 95 CI% 0.14–0.94) while the protective factors of proliferative DR were physical activities (OR: 0.89, 95 CI%: 0.80–0.98). Compared to the non-proliferative DR group, the protective factors of proliferative DR were physical activities (OR: 0.89, 95 CI% 0.02–0.89) and family function (OR: 0.84, 95 CI%: 0.04–0.84). Conclusion DR was prevalent among people with T2DM in less-developed rural areas, indicating the need of strengthening DR screening. Risk factors of DR varied by stage while sharing some common factors. Future DR prevention and intervention programs may benefit from improving these factors to reduce the risk of DR by stage.

BackgroundElderly cancer patients are more predisposed to developing nosocomial infections during anti-neoplastic treatment, and are associated with a bleaker prognosis. This study aimed to develop a novel risk classifier to predict the in-hospital death risk of nosocomial infections in this population.MethodsRetrospective clinical data were collected from a National Cancer Regional Center in Northwest China. The Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) algorithm was utilized to filter the optimal variables for model development and avoid model overfitting. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the independent predictors of the in-hospital death risk. A nomogram was then developed to predict the in-hospital death risk of each participant. The performance of the nomogram was evaluated using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA).ResultsA total of 569 elderly cancer patients were included in this study, and the estimated in-hospital mortality rate was 13.9%. The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that ECOG-PS (odds ratio [OR]: 4.41, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.95-9.99), surgery type (OR: 0.18, 95%CI: 0.04-0.85), septic shock (OR: 5.92, 95%CI: 2.43-14.44), length of antibiotics treatment (OR: 0.21, 95%CI: 0.09-0.50), and prognostic nutritional index (PNI) (OR: 0.14, 95%CI: 0.06-0.33) were independent predictors of the in-hospital death risk of nosocomial infections in elderly cancer patients. A nomogram was then constructed to achieve personalized in-hospital death risk prediction. ROC curves yield excellent discrimination ability in the training (area under the curve [AUC]=0.882) and validation (AUC=0.825) cohorts. Additionally, the nomogram showed good calibration ability and net clinical benefit in both cohorts.ConclusionNosocomial infections are a common and potentially fatal complication in elderly cancer patients. Clinical characteristics and infection types can vary among different age groups. The risk classifier developed in this study could accurately predict the in-hospital death risk for these patients, providing an important tool for personalized risk assessment and clinical decision-making.

In China, the population of wild musk deer, belonging to the family Moschidae, has drastically decreased in recent years owing to human activities and environmental changes. During the 1990s, artificial breeding of Alpine musk deer was conducted in Xinglong Mountain, Gansu Province, China, and their ex situ conservation was explored for over a decade. Ex situ protection is beneficial for expanding the population of animals and maintaining their genetic diversity; however, it can also induce metabolic diseases and parasitic infections and reduce reproductive capacity. The gut microbiota of animals has a considerable impact on host energy metabolism and immune regulation, thereby playing a crucial role in the overall health and reproductive success of the host. In this study, by comparing the differences in the intestinal microbiome of the musk deer according to their place of origin and migration, the changes in their gut microbiota and the influencing factors were explored to provide a theoretical basis for monitoring the health status of the musk deer. We used 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing technology to analyze the structure and diversity of the gut microbiota of Alpine musk deer in Gansu (G, place of origin) and Sichuan (S, place of migration). The results showed that the dominant bacteria and genera in the intestinal microbiome of captive musk deer were similar in the places of origin and migration, but significant differences were observed in their relative abundance (p < 0.05). Regarding Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, which are related to plant cellulose digestion, the relative abundance in group G was higher than that in group S; regarding Proteobacteria and Verrucomicrobia, which are related to fat and starch intake, the relative abundance in group S was higher than that in group G; the relative abundance of Bacillus and Clostridium sensu stricto, which are related to fiber digestibility, was higher in group G than in group S; the relative abundance of conditional pathogens Acinetobacter and Escherichia–Shigella was higher in group S than in group G. The results of α and β diversity analysis also showed significant differences between the two groups (p < 0.05). The ACE and Shannon indices of musk deer in group G were considerably higher than those in group S, and the Simpson index of musk deer in group S was greater than that in group G, indicating that the abundance and diversity of intestinal microbiome were higher in musk deer of Gansu than those of Sichuan. Comparison of the changes in the intestinal microbiome of the musk deer according to the place of origin and migration showed that the plant cellulose content in the food of the musk deer, the fat content in the concentrated feed, and changes in the feeding environment have an impact on the intestinal microbiome. Effective monitoring of the health and immunity of the musk deer is crucial for ensuring their overall health, which in turn will aid in formulating a scientific and reasonable management plan for their conservation.

Abstract Stretchable conductive fibers have attracted much attention due to their potential use in wearable electronics. However, the ultra-high strain insensitive conductivity is hindered by mechanical mismatch in Young’s modulus and failure of stretchable structures under large deformation. This challenge is addressed with a conductive and elastic multifilament made of the polyurethane monofilaments that are surface-coated with buckled polypyrrole (PPy) of which flexibility is improved by sodium sulfosalicylate. Such parallel conductive monofilaments with PPy buckling on surface reduce the influence of cracks in the conductive coating on the overall conductivity, displaying an ultra-high strain insensitive behavior (quality factor Q = 10.9). Remarkably, various complex forms of wearable electronic textiles made by this conductive multifilament maintain the strain-insensitive behavior of the original multifilament, even upon the large deformation of human joint. This multifilament with wrinkled PPy has attractive advantages in the application of super-stretched wearable electronic devices.

Porous covalent organic frameworks have arisen as tunable photocatalysts for H2 production. Here, authors report frameworks engineered with co-catalyst binding sites to improve photocatalytic H2 evolution performances.

Abstract Background Along with the wild applications of nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots (N-GQDs) in the fields of biomedicine and neuroscience, their increasing exposure to the public and potential biosafety problem has gained more and more attention. Unfortunately, the understanding of adverse effects of N-GQDs in the central nervous system (CNS), considered as an important target of nanomaterials, is still limited. Results After we found that N-GQDs caused cell death, neuroinflammation and microglial activation in the hippocampus of mice through the ferroptosis pathway, microglia was used to assess the molecular mechanisms of N-GQDs inducing ferroptosis because it could be the primary target damaged by N-GQDs in the CNS. The microarray data suggested the participation of calcium signaling pathway in the ferroptosis induced by N-GQDs. In microglial BV2 cells, when the calcium content above the homeostatic level caused by N-GQDs was reversed, the number of cell death, ferroptosis alternations and excessive inflammatory cytokines release were all alleviated. Two calcium channels of L-type voltage-gated calcium channels (L-VGCCs) in plasma membrane and ryanodine receptor (RyR) in endoplasmic reticulum (ER) took part in N-GQDs inducing cytosolic calcium overload. L-VGCCs and RyR calcium channels were also involved in promoting the excess iron influx and triggering ER stress response, respectively, which both exert excessive ROS generation and result in the ferroptosis and inflammation in BV2 cells. Conclusion N-GQDs exposure caused ferroptosis and inflammatory responses in hippocampus of mice and cultured microglia through activating two calcium channels to disrupt intracellular calcium homeostasis. The findings not only posted an alert for biomedical applications of N-GQDs, but also highlighted an insight into mechanism researches of GQDs inducing multiple types of cell death in brain tumor therapy in the future. Graphical abstract

Dry direct seeding rice (DSR) is an emerging production system because of increasing labor and water scarcity in rice cultivation. The limited availability of rice cultivars suitable for dry direct seeding hampers the widespread adoption of this cultivation method in Northeast China. This study aimed to investigate grain production and plant characteristics associated with dry direct seeding rice. We conducted a field experiment on 79 japonica rice cultivars in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, Northeast China, in 2020 and 2021. This study found that the grain yield of the tested rice cultivars ranged from 5.75–11.00 t ha−1, with a growth duration lasting between 144–161 days across the cultivars. These cultivars were then categorized into high yielding (HY), medium yielding (MY), and low yielding (LY) based on daily yield by using Ward’s hierarchical clustering method. The higher grain yield for HY compared to MY and LY was attributed to more spikelets per unit area. The HY alleviated the conflict between higher panicle density and larger panicle size by improving the seedling emergence rate and productive stem rate. It also significantly increased shoot biomass at maturity. The HY reduced the period between seeding and beginning of heading (BBCH 51) and the proportion of dry matter partitioned to the leaf at the heading stage. However, it also increased the accumulation of dry matter in the grain and the proportion of dry matter partitioned to the grain at maturity. Furthermore, the HY markedly increased the harvest index and grain-leaf ratio, which are beneficial to coordinate the source–sink relationship. A quadratic function predicted that 98 days is the optimum growth duration before heading (BBCH 51) for achieving maximum yield. In conclusion, for dry direct seeding rice, it is appropriate to select high-yielding japonica inbred rice cultivars with shorter growth duration before heading (about 93–102 day), higher panicle number (about 450–500 × 104 ha–1), more spikelet number per panicle (about 110–130), higher seedling emergence rate (about 70–75%), higher productive stem rate (about 60–70%), and greater harvest index (about 50–55%).

Coffee processing generates a huge amount of waste that contains many natural products. Here, we report the discovery of a panel of novel cell-penetrating and metal ion-binding microproteins designated coffeetide cC1a–c and cL1–6 from the husk of two popular coffee plants, Coffea canephora and Coffea liberica, respectively. Combining sequence determination and a database search, we show that the prototypic coffeetide cC1a is a 37-residue, eight-cysteine microprotein with a hevein-like cysteine motif, but without a chitin-binding domain. NMR determination of cC1a reveals a compact structure that confers its resistance to heat and proteolytic degradation. Disulfide mapping together with chemical synthesis reveals that cC1a has a ginsentide-like, and not a hevein-like, disulfide connectivity. In addition, transcriptomic analysis showed that the 98-residue micrcoproten-like coffeetide precursor contains a three-domain arrangement, like ginsentide precursors. Molecular modeling, together with experimental validation, revealed a Mg2+ and Fe3+ binding pocket at the N-terminus formed by three glutamic acids. Importantly, cC1a is amphipathic with a continuous stretch of 19 apolar amino acids, which enables its cell penetration to target intracellular proteins, despite being highly negatively charged. Our findings suggest that coffee by-products could provide a source of ginsentide-like bioactive peptides that have the potential to target intracellular proteins.

Objective. Deficiencies in klotho are implicated in various kidney dysfunctions including diabetic nephropathy (DN) related to inflammatory responses. Klotho is closely related to inflammatory responses and is a potential target for ameliorating kidney failure. Pyroptosis, an inflammatory form of programmed cell death, is reported to take part in DN pathogenesis recently. This study is aimed at exploring whether and how klotho inhibited podocyte pyroptosis and whether astragaloside IV (AS-IV) protect podocyte through the regulation of klotho. Materials and Methods. SD rat model of DN and conditionally immortalized mouse podocytes exposed to high glucose were treated with AS-IV. Biochemical assays and morphological examination, cell viability assay, cell transfection, phalloidin staining, ELISA, LDH release assay, SOD and MDA detection, MMP assay, ROS level detection, flow cytometry analysis, TUNEL staining assay, PI/Hoechst 33342 staining, immunofluorescence assay, and western blot were performed to elucidate podocyte pyroptosis and to observe the renal morphology. Results. The treatment of AS-IV can improve renal function and protect podocytes exposed to high glucose. Klotho was decreased, and AS-IV increased klotho levels in serum and kidney tissue of DN rats as well as podocytes exposed to high glucose. AS-IV can inhibit DN glomeruli pyroptosis in vivo. In vitro, overexpressed klotho and treatment with AS-IV inhibited pyroptosis of podocytes cultured in high glucose. Klotho knockdown promoted podocyte pyroptosis, and treatment with AS-IV reversed this effect. Furthermore, the overexpression of klotho and AS-IV reduces oxidative stress levels and inhibited NF-κB activation and NLRP3-mediated podocytes’ pyroptosis which was abolished by klotho knockdown. In addition, both the ROS inhibitor NAC and the NF-κB pathway inhibitor PDTC can inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activation. NLRP3 inhibitor MCC950 can inhibit pyroptosis of podocytes exposed to high glucose. Conclusion. Altogether, our results demonstrate that the protective effect of AS-IV in upregulating klotho expression in diabetes-induced podocyte injury is associated with the inhibition of NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis via the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Crude oil upgrading under a methane environment can lead to improved oil quality as well as catalyst stability, but the role of methane in the reaction remains poorly understood. Here, the authors show that methane prevents coke formation inside the pores of the charged catalyst due to preferable adsorption.

ObjectiveThymic epithelial tumors (TETs) are rare tumors that originated from thymic epithelial cells, with limited studies investigating their prognostic factors. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic factors of TETs and develop a new risk classifier to predict their overall survival (OS).MethodsThis retrospective study consisted of 1224 TETs patients registered in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, and 75 patients from the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University. The univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were adopted to select the best prognostic variables. A nomogram was developed to predict the OS of these patients. The discriminative and calibrated abilities of the nomogram were assessed using the receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) and calibration curve. Decision curve analysis (DCA), net reclassification index (NRI), and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) were adopted to assess its net clinical benefit and reclassification ability.ResultsThe multivariate analysis revealed that age, sex, histologic type, TNM staging, tumor grade, surgery, radiation, and tumor size were independent prognostic factors of TETs, and a nomogram was developed to predict the OS of these patients based on these variables. The time-dependent ROC curves displayed that the nomogram yielded excellent performance in predicting the 12-, 36- and 60-month OS of these patients. Calibration curves presented satisfying consistencies between the actual and predicted OS. DCA illustrated that the nomogram will bring significant net clinical benefits to these patients compared to the classic TNM staging system. The estimated NRI and IDI showed that the nomogram could significantly increase the predictive ability of 12-, 36- and 60-month OS compared to the classic TNM staging system. Consistent findings were discovered in the internal and external validation cohorts.ConclusionThe constructed nomogram is a reliable risk classifier to achieve personalized survival probability prediction of TETs, and could bring significant net clinical benefits to these patients.

ObjectiveLung cancer is responsible for millions of deaths yearly, and its burden is severe worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the burden of lung cancer in the population of Wuhan based on the surveillance data from 2010 to 2019.MethodsData of this study was obtained from the Mortality Register System established by the Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The study systematically analyzed the burden of lung cancer deaths in the population of Wuhan and its 13 administrative regions from 2010 to 2019 via the Joinpoint regression models, Age-Period-Cohort (APC) models, and decomposition analysis.ResultsThis study found the upward and downward trends in the age-standardized mortality rates (ASMRs) and age-standardized years of life lost rates (ASYLLRs) of lung cancer from 2010 to 2019. In Joinpoint regression models, the corresponding estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) were 1.00% and -1.90%, 0.60%, and -3.00%, respectively. In APC models, lung cancer mortality tended to increase with age for both sexes in Wuhan, peaking at the 85-89 age group; The period effects for different populations have started to gradually decline in recent years. In addition, the cohort effects indicated that the risk of lung cancer death was highest among those born in the 1950s-1955s, at 1.08 (males) and 1.01 (females). Among all administrative districts in Wuhan, the ASMR of lung cancer in the Xinzhou District has remained the highest over the study period. In decomposition analysis, both population aging (P0) lung cancer deaths in the Wuhan population.ConclusionsThe burden of lung cancer death in the Wuhan population has shown a gradual decline in recent years, but the impact of aging and population growth on lung cancer mortality should not be ignored. Therefore, lung cancer surveillance must be strengthened to reduce the burden of lung cancer in Wuhan.

Abstract Single‐component emitters with stable and bright warm white‐light emission are highly desirable for high‐efficacy warm white light‐emitting diodes (warm‐WLEDs), however, materials with such luminescence properties are extremely rare. Low­dimensional lead (Pb) halide perovskites can achieve warm white photoluminescence (PL), yet they suffer from low stability and PL quantum yield (PLQY). While Pb‐free air‐stable perovskites such as Cs2AgInCl6 emit desirable warm white light, sophisticated doping strategies are typically required to increase their PL intensity. Moreover, the use of rare metal‐bearing compounds along with the typically required vacuum‐based thin‐film processing may greatly increase their production cost. Herein, organic–inorganic hybrid cuprous (Cu+)‐based metal halide MA2CuCl3 (MA = CH3NH3+) that meets the requirements of i) nontoxicity, ii) high PLQY, and iii) dopant‐free is presented. Both single crystals and thin films of MA2CuCl3 can be facilely prepared by a low‐cost solution method, which demonstrate bright warm white‐light emission with intrinsically high PLQYs of 90–97%. Prototype electroluminescence devices and down‐conversion LEDs are fabricated with MA2CuCl3 thin films and single crystals, respectively, which show bright luminescence with decent efficiencies and operational stability. These findings suggest that MA2CuCl3 has a great potential for the single‐component indoor lighting and display applications.

Background Recent studies have characterized that microRNA (miRNA) is a suitable candidate for the study of bleomycin/LPS-induced pulmonary fibrosis, but the knowledge on miRNA in bacteria-induced pulmonary fibrosis (BIPF) is limited. Forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii, FMD) is an important endangered species that has been seriously affected by BIPF. We sought to determine whether miRNA exist that modulates the pathogenesis of BIPF in FMD. Methods High-throughput sequencing and RT-qPCR were used to determine the differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) in the blood of BIPF FMD. The DEmiRNAs were further detected in the blood and lung of BIPF model rat by RT-qPCR, and the targeting relationship between candidate miRNA and its potential target gene was verified by dual-luciferase reporter activity assay. Furthermore, the function of the candidate miRNA was verified in the FMD lung fibroblast cells (FMD-C1). Results Here we found that five dead FMD were suffered from BIPF, and six circulating miRNAs (miR-30g, let-7f-5p, miR-27-3p, miR-25-3p, miR-9-5p and miR-652) were differentially expressed in the blood of the BIPF FMD. Of these, let-7f-5p showed reproducibly lower level in the blood and lung of the BIPF model rat, and the expression levels of PI3K/AKT/COX2 signaling pathway genes (PIK3CA, PDK1, Akt1, IKBKA, NF-κB1 and COX2) were increased in the lung of BIPF model rats, suggesting that there is a potential correlation between BIPF and the PI3K/AKT/COX2 signaling pathway. Notably, using bioinformatic prediction and experimental verification, we demonstrated that let-7f-5p is conserved across mammals, and the seed sequence of let-7f-5p displays perfect complementarity with the 3’ UTR of PIK3CA gene and the expression of the PIK3CA gene was regulated by let-7f-5p. In order to determine the regulatory relationship between let-7f-5p and the PI3K/AKT/COX2 signaling pathway in FMD, we successfully cultured FMD-C1, and found that let-7f-5p could act as a negative regulator for the PI3K/Akt/COX2 signaling pathway in FMD-C1. Collectively, this study not only provided a study strategy for non-invasive research in pulmonary disease in rare animals, but also laid a foundation for further research in BIPF.

The taxonomic terms “Phlomis” and “Phlomoides” had been used to describe two sections within the genus Phlomis belonging to the Lamiaceae family. Recently, phylogenetic analyses using molecular markers showed that Phlomis and Phlomoides formed two monophyletic clades, and thus they are generally accepted as separate genera. In this study, we assembled the complete chloroplast genome of Phlomis fruticosa, which is the first reported chloroplast genome belonging to Phlomis genus, as well as the complete chloroplast genome of Phlomoides strigosa belonging to Phlomoides genus. The results showed that the length of chloroplast genome was 151,639 bp (Phlomis fruticosa) and 152,432 bp (Phlomoides strigosa), with conserved large single copy regions, small single copy regions, and inverted repeat regions. 121 genes in Phlomis fruticosa and 120 genes in Phlomoides strigosa were annotated. The chloroplast genomes of Phlomis fruticosa, Phlomoides strigosa, and three reported Phlomoides species, as well as those of 51 species from the Lamiaceae family, which covered 12 subfamilies, were subjected to phylogenetic analyses. The Phlomis and Phlomoides species were split into two groups, which were well supported by both maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference tree analyses. Our study provided further evidence to recognize Phlomis and Phlomoides as independent genera.

Isobavachalcone (IBC) is a prenylated chalcone mainly distributed in some Fabaceae and Moraceae species. IBC exhibits a wide range of pharmacological properties, including anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer activities. In this study, we attempted to construct the heterologous biosynthesis pathway of IBC in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). Four previously reported prenyltransferases, including GuILDT from Glycyrrhiza uralensis, HlPT1 from Humulus lupulus, and SfILDT and SfFPT from Sophora flavescens, were subjected to an in planta screening to verify their activities for the biosynthesis of IBC, by using tobacco transient expression with exogenous isoliquiritigenin as the substrate. Only SfFPT and HlPT1 could convert isoliquiritigenin to IBC, and the activity of SfFPT was higher than that of HlPT1. By co-expression of GmCHS8 and GmCHR5 from Glycine max, endogenous isoliquiritigenin was generated in tobacco leaves (21.0 μg/g dry weight). After transformation with a multigene vector carrying GmCHS8, GmCHR5, and SfFPT, de novo biosynthesis of IBC was achieved in transgenic tobacco T0 lines, in which the highest amount of IBC was 0.56 μg/g dry weight. The yield of IBC in transgenic plants was nearly equal to that in SfFPT transient expression experiments, in which substrate supplement was sufficient, indicating that low IBC yield was not attributed to the substrate supplement. Our research provided a prospect to produce valuable prenylflavonoids using plant-based metabolic engineering.

Vanillic acid, a phenolic compound mainly obtained from the foot of Picrorhiza scrophulariiflora Pennell, has been demonstrated to possess a cardiovascular-protective effect in previous studies. However, there is lack of research on vanillic acid protecting cardiomyocytes from oxidative stress injury by mediating mitophagy. In the present study, oxidative stress injury in the H9c2 cell line was induced by H2O2. Our results confirmed that vanillic acid mitigated apoptosis and injury triggered by oxidative stress, evidenced by the decline in production of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde and level of lactate dehydrogenase and the increase of superoxide dismutase and glutathione. The use of vanillic acid could also improve the polarization of mitochondrial membrane potential and decrease the cellular calcium level. After treatment by vanillic acid, impaired autophagy flux and mitophagy were improved, and the length of mitochondria was restored. Vanillic acid increased the expression of PINK1, Parkin, Mfn2, and the ratio of LC3-II/LC3-I and decreased the expression of p62. But, under the intervention of mitophagy inhibitor 3-MA, vanillic acid could not change the expression of PINK1/Parkin/Mfn2 and downstream genes to affect cell autophagy, mitophagy, and mitochondrial function. Our findings suggested that vanillic acid activated mitophagy to improve mitochondrial function, in which the PINK1/Parkin/Mfn2 pathway could be the potential regulatory mechanism.

The quality and starch properties of rice are significantly affected by nitrogen. The effect of the nitrogen application rate (0, 180, and 230 kg ha−1) on the texture of cooked rice and the hierarchical structure and physicochemical properties of starch was investigated over two years using two japonica cultivars, Bengal and Shendao505. Nitrogen application contributed to the hardness and stickiness of cooked rice, reducing the texture quality. The amylose content and pasting properties decreased significantly, while the relative crystallinity increased with the increasing nitrogen rates, and the starch granules became smaller with an increase in uneven and pitted surfaces. The proportion of short-chain amylopectin rose, and long-chain amylopectin declined, which increased the external short-range order by 1045/1022 cm−1. These changes in hierarchical structure and grain size, regulated by nitrogen rates, synergistically increased the setback viscosity, gelatinization enthalpy and temperature and reduced the overall viscosity and breakdown viscosity, indicating that gelatinization and pasting properties were the result of the joint action of several factors. All results showed that increasing nitrogen altered the structure and properties of starch, eventually resulting in a deterioration in eating quality and starch functional properties. A moderate reduction in nitrogen application could improve the texture and starch quality of rice while not impacting on the grain yield.

BackgroundThe neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) are biomarkers that may reflect inflammatory status in some immune-related diseases. This study aims to investigate the association of NLR and MLR with the severity and prognosis of autoimmune encephalitis (AE).MethodsA total of 199 patients diagnosed with AE in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from October 2015 to October 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The Clinical Assessment Scale for Autoimmune Encephalitis (CASE) and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) were used to evaluate the severity of the patients at admission, and the patients were divided into mild group (CASE ≤ 4) and severe group (CASE ≥ 5) according to the CASE score. Poor prognosis was described as an mRS of 3 or more at 12 months. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to assess risk factors for the severity and prognosis of AE.ResultsNLR and MLR of severe group were significantly higher than that of mild group. NLR and MLR were positively correlated with the CASE score (r = 0.659, P < 0.001; r = 0.533, P < 0.001) and the mRS score (r = 0.609, P < 0.001;r = 0.478, P < 0.001) in AE patients. Multivariate logistic analysis showed that NLR (OR = 1.475, 95%CI: 1.211-1.796, P < 0.001) and MLR (OR = 15.228, 95%CI: 1.654-140.232, P = 0.016) were independent risk factors for the severity of AE. In addition, the CASE score and the mRS score were positively correlated (r = 0.849, P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that the CASE at admission (OR = 1.133, 95%CI: 1.043-1.229, P = 0.003) and age (OR = 1.105, 95%CI: 1.062-1.150, P < 0.001) were independent risk factors for the poor prognosis of AE patients. The NLR and MLR at admission and whether they decreased after immunotherapy were not associated with the prognosis of AE patients (P > 0.05).ConclusionsNLR and MLR, readily available and widespread inflammatory markers, were helpful for clinicians to monitor disease progression and identify potentially severe patients of AE early to optimize clinical treatment decisions.

The Hainan gibbon is one of the most endangered primates in the world, with a small population size, narrow distribution range, and high inbreeding risk, which retains the risk of species extinction. To explore the composition and functional differences of the intestinal microbiome of Hainan gibbons at different ages, the faecal microbiomes of young and adult Hainan gibbons were analysed using metagenome sequencing. The results showed that the dominant phyla in the intestinal tract of young and adult Hainan gibbons were Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, and the dominant genus was Prevotella. Linear discriminant analysis effect size analysis showed that Firmicutes, Ruminococcus, Clostridium, and Butyrivibrio were significantly more abundant in adults than in young, whereas Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Prevotella, and Bacteroides were significantly more abundant in young than in adults. In terms of gene function, the adult Hainan gibbon intestinal microbiome generally harboured a higher abundance of genes related to metabolic processes, such as carbohydrate, amino acid, and nucleotide metabolism. This may be due to adaptive advantages for adult Hainan gibbons, such as stable and mature intestinal microbiome composition, which allows them to utilise diverse foods efficiently. In summary, this study helps understand the dynamic changes in the intestinal microbiome of young and adult Hainan gibbons and plays a key role in the health monitoring and rejuvenation of their population.

The detection of key events and identification of the events’ context have been widely studied to detect key events from large volumes of online news and identify trends in such events. In this paper, we propose a Key News Event Detection and Context Method based on graphic convolving, clustering, and summarizing methods. Our method has three main contributions: (1) We propose the use of position vectors as time-embedding feature representations and concatenate semantic and time-embedding features as node features of the graph to distinguish different nodes of the graph. Additionally, a temporal nonlinear function was constructed using time embedding to objectively describe the effect of time on the degree of association between nodes. (2) We update the graph nodes using a graph convolutional neural network to extract deep semantic information about individual nodes of a high-quality phrase graph, thereby improving the clustering capability of graph-based key event detection. (3) We apply a summary generation algorithm to a subset of news data for each key event. Lastly, we validated the effectiveness of our proposed method by applying it to the 2014 Ebola dataset. The experimental results indicate that our proposed method can effectively detect key events from news documents with high precision and completeness while naturally generating the event context of key events, as compared to EvMine and other existing methods.

Sea buckthorn leaves have been used for tea making in food field gradually. This study was carried out to characterize the bioactive polyphenols and volatile compounds in sea buckthorn leaves (SL), sea buckthorn leaves green tea (SGT), and sea buckthorn leaves black tea (SBT) by using high-performance liquid chromatography with an UV detector (HPLC-UV), the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), and headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS), in combination with multivariate analysis. A total of 48 non-volatile metabolites and 295 volatile metabolites were identified. Then, the total polyphenol and total flavonoid contents in SL, SGT, and SBT were also analyzed. Moreover, SL and SGT showed greater antioxidant activities based on 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS), and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) results. At the concentration of 0.1 mg/ml, their DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging ratios were 66 to 95%, while SBT exhibited lower antioxidant activity of 26 to 44%. SL, SGT, and SBT displayed moderate α-glucosidase inhibitory activity.

Abstract Background Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) provide a bright prospect in the biomedical application because they contain low-toxic compounds and promise imaging of deep tissues and tiny vascular structures. However, the biosafety of this novel QDs has not been thoroughly evaluated, especially in the central nervous system (CNS). The microarray analysis provides a hint that nitrogen-doped GQDs (N-GQDs) exposure could cause ferroptosis in microglia, which is a novel form of cell death dependent on iron overload and lipid peroxidation. Results The cytosolic iron overload, glutathione (GSH) depletion, excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and lipid peroxidation (LPO) were observed in microglial BV2 cells treated with N-GQDs, which indicated that N-GQDs could damage the iron metabolism and redox balance in microglia. The pre-treatments of a specific ferroptosis inhibitor Ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1) and an iron chelater Deferoxamine mesylate (DFO) not only inhibited cell death, but also alleviated iron overload, LPO and alternations in ferroptosis biomarkers in microglia, which were caused by N-GQDs. When assessing the potential mechanisms of N-GQDs causing ferroptosis in microglia, we found that the iron content, ROS generation and LPO level in mitochondria of BV2 cells all enhanced after N-GQDs exposure. When the antioxidant ability of mitochondria was increased by the pre-treatment of a mitochondria targeted ROS scavenger MitoTEMPO, the ferroptotic biological changes were effectively reversed in BV2 cells treated with N-GQDs, which indicated that the N-GQDs-induced ferroptosis in microglia could be attributed to the mitochondrial oxidative stress. Additionally, amino functionalized GQDs (A-GQDs) elicited milder redox imbalance in mitochondria and resulted in less ferroptotic effects than N-GQDs in microglia, which suggested a slight protection of amino group functionalization in GQDs causing ferroptosis. Conclusion N-GQDs exposure caused ferroptosis in microglia via inducing mitochondrial oxidative stress, and the ferroptotic effects induced by A-GQDs were milder than N-GQDs when the exposure method is same. This study will not only provide new insights in the GQDs-induced cell damage performed in multiple types of cell death, but also in the influence of chemical modification on the toxicity of GQDs.

In this paper, we demonstrate high-performance quasi-vertical GaN-on-Sapphire Schottky barrier diodes (SBD) with a reverse GaN p-n junction termination (RPN). The SBD has a current output of 1 kA/cm2 at $V_{F}=2.5$ V, a low $V_{on}$ of 0.66 V ± 0.017 V, a low $R_{on,sp}$ of 1.4 $\text{m}\Omega \cdot $ cm2, current ON/OFF ratio of over $10^{9}$ (−3 V~3 V). By introducing the RPN, the breakdown voltage can boost from 459 V to 1419 V, and power figure-of-merit (FOM) can reach 1438 MV/cm2. It is shown that the presence of the RPN with a suitable anode recess depth can generate an electric field (EF) opposite to the built-in EF at the center of the second top p-n junction, which can decrease the EF peak intensity and make the electric field more uniformly distributed inside the device. Finally, the leakage current of the SBD is inhibited and the breakdown voltage is increased.

The effects of mother-infant separation (i.e., weaning) on the physiology, psychology and nutrition of mammalian infants have attracted much attention. Forest musk deer (FMD) is a first-class protected species in China and listed endangered in the IUCN Red List. The captive breeding population is not only an important source for restocking of wild resources, but also a necessary way to supply the market with legal musk. So far, there is no scientific basis for the appropriate separation time of FMD females and their infants. Therefore, we used metagenome sequencing and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to study changes in the fecal cortisol concentration, as well as the intestinal microbiome composition and function of females and fawns at three different separation times, i.e., after 80 days, 90 days and 100 days. The results showed that the increment of the cortisol concentration in female FMD increased with increasing lactation time. The increment of cortisol concentration in infant FMD was highest in the 80 days weaning group, but there was no significant difference between the 90 days and the 100 days separation time. Based on the annotation results of COG, KEGG and CAZy databases, the abundance of different functions annotated by the intestinal microbiome of mothers and fawns of the 90 days weaning group changed slightly after separation. Based on the above results, the separation of mother and infant FMD is recommended after 90 days, i.e., the separation time that triggered the lowest rate of weaning stress and that supported a relatively stable gastro-intestinal physiology.

Background: Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remains a lethal disease worldwide, with numerous studies exploring its potential prognostic markers using traditional RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) data. However, it cannot detect the exact cellular and molecular changes in tumor cells. This study aimed to construct a prognostic model for LUAD using single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) and traditional RNA-seq data.Methods: Bulk RNA-seq data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. LUAD scRNA-seq data were acquired from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The uniform manifold approximation and projection (UMAP) was used for dimensionality reduction and cluster identification. Weighted Gene Correlation Network Analysis (WGCNA) was utilized to identify key modules and differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The non-negative Matrix Factorization (NMF) algorithm was used to identify different subtypes based on DEGs. The Cox regression analysis was used to develop the prognostic model. The characteristics of mutation landscape, immune status, and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) related genes between different risk groups were also investigated.Results: scRNA-seq data of four samples were integrated to identify 13 clusters and 9cell types. After applying differential analysis, NK cells, bladder epithelial cells, and bronchial epithelial cells were identified as significant cell types. Overall, 329 DEGs were selected for prognostic model construction through differential analysis and WGCNA. Besides, NMF identified two clusters based on DEGs in the TCGA cohort, with distinct prognosis and immune characteristics being observed. We developed a prognostic model based on the expression levels of six DEGs. A higher risk score was significantly correlated with poor survival outcomes but was associated with a more frequent TP53 mutation rate, higher tumor mutation burden (TMB), and up-regulation of PD-L1. Two independent external validation cohorts were also adopted to verify our results, with consistent results observed in them.Conclusion: This study constructed and validated a prognostic model for LUAD by integrating 10× scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq data. Besides, we observed two distinct subtypes in this population, with different prognosis and immune characteristics.

To improve the accuracy of shallow neural networks in processing complex signals and cable fault diagnosis, and to overcome the shortage of manual dependency and cable fault feature extraction, a deep learning method is introduced, and a time−frequency domain joint impedance spectrum is proposed for cable fault identification and localization based on a deep belief network (DBN). Firstly, based on the distribution parameter model of power cables, we model and analyze the cables under normal operation and different fault types, and we obtain the headend input impedance spectrum and the headend input time−frequency domain impedance spectrum of cables under various operating conditions. The headend input impedance amplitude and phase of normal operation and different fault cables are extracted as the original input samples of the cable fault type identification model; the real part of the headend input time–frequency domain impedance of the fault cables is extracted as the original input samples of the cable fault location model. Then, the unsupervised pre−training and supervised inverse fine−tuning methods are used for automatically learning, training, and extracting the cable fault state features from the original input samples, and the DBN−based cable fault type recognition model and location model are constructed and used to realize the type recognition and location of cable faults. Finally, the proposed method is validated by simulation, and the results show that the method has good fault feature extraction capability and high fault type recognition and localization accuracy.

Forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) is an endangered, protected species in China. Intestinal coccidiosis is a significant problem for captive forest musk deer. However, there are few reports on the prevalence and molecular characteristics of Eimeria sp. in forest musk deer. We sought to investigate the prevalence of Eimeria sp. in forest musk deer in the Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces in China. We also investigated the molecular characteristics of Eimeria sp. by analyzing the 18S rRNA gene. We collected a total of 328 fecal samples from forest musk deer on seven farms throughout the Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces. We extracted this parasite’s DNA and used this as a template for nested PCR amplification. The 18S rRNA gene fragment was associated with the plasmid vector, and these products were introduced into Escherichia coli (DH5α). The cultured bacterial solution was used as a PCR reaction template for identification purposes. We collected 328 fecal samples from forest musk deer in Lixian (n = 54), Maoxian (n = 52), Ma’erkang (n = 49), Dujiangyan (n = 55), Hanyuan (n = 41), Luding (n = 36) and Weinan (n = 41). One hundred ninety-eight (60.37%) fecal samples tested positive for Eimeria sp. . In our analysis of the 18S rRNA gene we found 34 types of Eimeria sp. with a similarity of 90.5–100%. We constructed a phylogenetic tree based on the parasite’s 18S rRNA gene sequence. Our findings indicated that the Eimeria sp. that parasitized the intestinal tract of forest musk deer was closely related to Eimeria alabamensis from Bos taurus and Eimeria ahsata from Ovis aries. To the best of our knowledge, ours was the first investigation and molecular identification of Eimeria sp. sampled from captive forest musk deer in China. Our results provide epidemiological data for the monitoring and prevention of Eimeria sp. in captive forest musk deer.

Remote sensing has been used as an important means of monitoring crop growth, especially for the monitoring of the formation of crop yield in the middle and late growth period. The information acquisition on the yield formation period of winter wheat is of great significance for winter wheat growth monitoring, yield estimation and scientific management. Hence, the main goal of this study was to verify the possibility of monitoring the grain-filling process of winter wheat and its in-field variability using an alternative non-destructive method based on orbital remote sensing. High-resolution satellite imageries (3 m) were obtained from the PlanetScope platform for three commercial winter wheat fields in Jiangsu Province, China during the reproductive stage of the winter wheat (185–215/193–223/194–224 days after sowing (DAS)). Based on the quantitative analysis of vegetation indices (VIs) obtained from high-resolution satellite imageries and three indicators of the winter wheat grain-filling process, linear, polynomial and logistic growth models were used to establish the relationship between VIs and the three indicators. The research showed a high Pearson correlation (p < 0.001) between winter wheat maturity and most VIs. In the overall model, the remote sensing inversion of the dry thousand-grain weight has the highest accuracy and its R2 reaches more than 0.8, which is followed by fresh thousand-grain weight and water content, the accuracies of which are also considerable. The results indicated a great potential to use high-resolution satellite imageries to monitor winter wheat maturity variability in fields and subfields. In addition, the proposed method contributes to monitoring the dynamic spatio-temporality of the grain-filling progression, allowing for more accurate management strategies in regard to winter wheat.