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Both seed germination and subsequent seedling establishment are key checkpoints during the life cycle of seed plants, yet flooding stress markedly inhibits both processes, leading to economic losses from agricultural production. Here, we report that melatonin (MT) seed priming treatment enhances the performance of seeds from several crops, including soybean, wheat, maize, and alfalfa, under flooding stress. Transcriptome analysis revealed that MT priming promotes seed germination and seedling establishment associated with changes in abscisic acid (ABA), gibberellin (GA), and reactive oxygen species (ROS) biosynthesis and signaling pathways. Real‐time quantitative RT‐PCR (qRT‐PCR) analysis confirmed that MT priming increases the expression levels of GA biosynthesis genes, ABA catabolism genes, and ROS biosynthesis genes while decreasing the expression of positive ABA regulatory genes. Further, measurements of ABA and GA concentrations are consistent with these trends. Following MT priming, quantification of ROS metabolism‐related enzyme activities and the concentrations of H2O2 and superoxide anions (O2−) after MT priming were consistent with the results of transcriptome analysis and qRT‐PCR. Finally, exogenous application of GA, fluridone (an ABA biosynthesis inhibitor), or H2O2 partially rescued the poor germination of non‐primed seeds under flooding stress. Collectively, this study uncovers the application and molecular mechanisms underlying MT priming in modulating crop seed vigor under flooding stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Migraine is one of the most common diseases worldwide while current treatment options are not ideal. New therapeutic classes of migraine, the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) antagonists, have been developed and shown considerable effectiveness and safety. The present study aimed to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of atogepant, a CGRP antagonist, for migraine prophylaxis from the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Methods: The Cochrane Library, Embase, PubMed and https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ were searched for RCTs that compared atogepant with placebo for migraine prophylaxis from inception of the databases to Feb 1, 2024. Outcome data involving efficacy and safety were combined and analyzed using Review Manager Software version 5.3 (RevMan 5.3). For each outcome, risk ratios (RRs) or standardized mean difference (SMD) were calculated. Results: 4 RCTs with a total of 2813 subjects met our inclusion criteria. The overall effect estimate showed that atogepant was significantly superior to placebo in terms of the reduction of monthly migraine (SMD − 0.40, 95% CI -0.46 to -0.34) or headache (SMD − 0.39, 95% CI -0.46 to -0.33) days, the reduction of acute medication use days (SMD − 0.45, 95% CI -0.51 to -0.39) and 50% responder rate (RR 1.66, 95% CI 1.46 to 1.89), while no dose-related improvements were found between different dosage groups. For the safety, significant number of patients experienced treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) with atogepant than with placebo (RR 1.10, 95% CI 1.02–1.21) while there was no obvious difference between the five dosage groups. Most TEAEs involved constipation (RR 2.55, 95% CI 1.91–3.41), nausea (RR 2.19, 95% CI 1.67–2.87) and urinary tract infection (RR 1.49, 95% CI 1.05–2.11). In addition, a high dosage of atogepant may also increase the risk of treatment-related TEAEs (RR 1.64, 95% CI 1.02–2.63) and fatigue (RR 3.07, 95% CI 1.13–8.35). Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggests that atogepant is effective and tolerable for migraine prophylaxis including episodic or chronic migraine compared with placebo. It is critical to weigh the benefits of different doses against the risk of adverse events in clinical application of atogepant. Longer and multi-dose trials with larger sample sizes are required to verify the current findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Networked Turing patterns often manifest as groups of nodes distributed on either side of the homogeneous equilibrium, exhibiting high and low density. These pattern formations are significantly influenced by network topological characteristics, such as the average degree. However, the impact of clustering on them remains inadequately understood. Here, we investigate the relationship between clustering and networked Turing patterns using classical prey–predator models. Our findings reveal that when nodes of high and low density are completely distributed on both sides of the homogeneous equilibrium, there is a linear decay in Turing patterns as global clustering coefficients increase, given a fixed node size and average degree; otherwise, this linear decay may not always hold due to the presence of high-density nodes considered as low-density nodes. This discovery provides a qualitative assessment of how clustering coefficients impact the formation of Turing patterns and may contribute to understanding why using refuges in ecosystems could enhance the stability of prey–predator systems. The results link network topological structures with the stability of prey–predator systems, offering new insights into predicting and controlling pattern formations in real-world systems from a network perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcriptional regulation plays a key role in the control of seed dormancy, and many transcription factors (TFs) have been documented. However, the mechanisms underlying the interactions between different TFs within a transcriptional complex regulating seed dormancy remain largely unknown. Here, we showed that TF PHYTOCHROME‐INTERACTING FACTOR4 (PIF4) physically interacted with the abscisic acid (ABA) signaling responsive TF ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE4 (ABI4) to act as a transcriptional complex to promote ABA biosynthesis and signaling, finally deepening primary seed dormancy. Both pif4 and abi4 single mutants exhibited a decreased primary seed dormancy phenotype, with a synergistic effect in the pif4/abi4 double mutant. PIF4 binds to ABI4 to form a heterodimer, and ABI4 stabilizes PIF4 at the protein level, whereas PIF4 does not affect the protein stabilization of ABI4. Subsequently, both TFs independently and synergistically promoted the expression of ABI4 and NCED6, a key gene for ABA anabolism. The genetic evidence is also consistent with the phenotypic, physiological and biochemical analysis results. Altogether, this study revealed a transcriptional regulatory cascade in which the PIF4–ABI4 transcriptional activator complex synergistically enhanced seed dormancy by facilitating ABA biosynthesis and signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Narrowband emissive multiple resonance (MR) emitters promise high efficiency and stability in deep‐blue organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). However, the construction of ideal ultra‐narrow‐band deep‐blue MR emitters still faces formidable challenges, especially in balancing bathochromic‐shift emission, spectral narrowing, and aggregation suppression. Here, DICz is chosen, which possesses the smallest full‐width‐at‐half‐maximum (FWHM) in MR structures, as the core and solved the above issue by tuning its peripheral substitution sites. The 1‐substituted molecule Cz‐DICz is able to show a bright deep‐blue emission with a peak at 457 nm, an extremely small FWHM of 14 nm, and a CIE coordinate of (0.14, 0.08) in solution. The corresponding OLEDs exhibit high maximum external quantum efficiencies of 22.1%–25.6% and identical small FWHMs of 18 nm over the practical mass‐production concentration range (1–4 wt.%). To the best of the knowledge, 14 and 18 nm are currently the smallest FWHM values for deep‐blue MR emitters with similar emission maxima under photoluminescence and electroluminescence conditions, respectively. These discoveries will help drive the development of high‐performance narrowband deep‐blue emitters and bring about a revolution in OLED industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there have been some researches focusing on temperature and respiratory diseases, few studies have focused specifically on suburban rural villages or semi-arid regions. In current study, we evaluated the effects of extreme temperatures on hospital admissions for respiratory diseases in suburban rural areas, a semi-arid region in Northwest China. Objective: This study evaluated the effects of extreme temperatures on hospital admissions for respiratory diseases (RDs) in a semi-arid region in the Northwest of China. Methods: Distributed lag nonlinear model was constructed, and stratified analysis by gender and age was performed. Results: The exposure–response curve between temperature and RD hospital admissions was almost W-shaped. Either extremely cold temperatures or moderately cold temperatures presented a short-term acute harmful effect, and the relative risks were higher among males (1.976, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.773–2.203; 1.242, 95% CI: 1.203–1.282) and the elderly (2.363, 95% CI: 1.724–3.240; 1.267, 95% CI: 1.154–1.390). Both extreme and moderately hot temperatures had higher risks among females (2.040, 95% CI: 1.815–2.292; 1.328, 95% CI: 1.276–1.381). Conclusions: The relationship between air temperature and RD hospital admissions was nonlinear. Vulnerable populations varied according to extreme temperature conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As there are no targeted medicines or vaccines for newly emerging infectious diseases, isolation among communities (villages, cities, or countries) is one of the most effective intervention measures. As such, the number of intercommunity edges (NIE ) becomes one of the most important factor in isolating a place since it is closely related to normal life. Unfortunately, how NIE affects epidemic spread is still poorly understood. In this paper, we quantitatively analyzed the impact of NIE on infectious disease transmission by establishing a four-dimensional SIR edge-based compartmental model with two communities. The basic reproduction number R 0 (⟨ l ⟩) is explicitly obtained subject to NIE ⟨ l ⟩ . Furthermore, according to R 0 (0) with zero NIE , epidemics spread could be classified into two cases. When R 0 (0) > 1 for the case 2, epidemics occur with at least one of the reproduction numbers within communities greater than one, and otherwise when R 0 (0) < 1 for case 1, both reproduction numbers within communities are less than one. Remarkably, in case 1, whether epidemics break out strongly depends on intercommunity edges. Then, the outbreak threshold in regard to NIE is also explicitly obtained, below which epidemics vanish, and otherwise break out. The above two cases form a severity-based hierarchical intervention scheme for epidemics. It is then applied to the SARS outbreak in Singapore, verifying the validity of our scheme. In addition, the final size of the system is gained by demonstrating the existence of positive equilibrium in a four-dimensional coupled system. Theoretical results are also validated through numerical simulation in networks with the Poisson and Power law distributions, respectively. Our results provide a new insight into controlling epidemics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brucellosis a the serious infectious disease in Hinggan League. Research has demonstrated that a large amount of transportation is one of the main reasons for so many cases. However, the specific transmission mechanism of brucellosis is not clear. In this paper, we utilize a multi-patch model to study the effect of the transportation of sheep on the spread of brucellosis in Hinggan League. Theoretically, we prove the global stability of the disease-free equilibrium and the uniform persistence of the endemic equilibrium. In a practical application, we apply the model to investigate the spread of brucellosis in Ulanhot city and Jalaid Banner, which are geographically adjacent in Hinggan League. The strains carried by humans are B.melitensis bv.1 and B.melitensis bv.3. We use the two-patch model to fit reported brucellosis cases data of two places by Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulations. It is found that the global basic reproduction number R 0 is larger than 1, but the isolated basic reproduction numbers in Ulanhot city and Jalaid Banner are both less than 1. This indicates that the prevalence of brucellosis may be caused by the transportation of sheep. Sensitivity analysis of parameters on R 0 shows that it is the most effective means to control the transportation of sheep from Jalaid to Ulanhot on preventing brucellosis. Moreover, we also discover that improving vaccine efficiency is an effective method compared with strengthening the vaccination coverage rate and improving the detection rate of sheep with brucellosis. Our dynamic behavior analysis of the two-patch model can provide a reference for the dynamic behavior analysis of the n-patch model, and our results provide a guide for how to control brucellosis based on transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the low reactivity and difficulty in large-scale utilization of lithium slag (LS), this study successfully synthesized highly reactive alkali-fused LS(ALS) through NaOH treatment and thermal activation, and analyzed the mechanism behind its enhanced reactivity. The results indicate that, under alkali erosion and high-temperature conditions, the Si-O and Al-O bonds within the LS become more susceptible to breaking. The non-bridging oxygen content increased from 37.8 % to 47.1 %, and the amorphous phase content rose from 15.9 % to 54.3 %. Consequently, more Si4+ and Al3+ can dissolve in an alkaline environment, enhancing reactivity. Based on this, a one-part geopolymer (OPG) was prepared for the first time by gradually replacing slag with ALS. The results showed that the incorporation of ALS extended the setting time of the OPG but reduced its compressive strength. At a 60 % substitution level, the initial setting time of the OPG was 81 minutes, and the compressive strength after 28 days of curing reached 50.6 MPa. Through XRD, SEM, and TG analysis, it was evident that the primary product of the OPG is N(C)-A-S-H gel. Since the reactivity of ALS remains lower than that of slag, increasing the proportion of ALS in the geopolymer system consumed more alkali while reducing the formation of N(C)-A-S-H gel, thus decreasing the compressive strength of the OPG. However, the slight incorporation of ALS did not significantly reduce the strength of OPG and effectively improved the setting time of the geopolymer. This reduction in slag consumption while promoting the resource utilization of LS in cementitious materials is beneficial. • The amorphous phase content of alkali-fused lithium slag increased to 54.2 %. • Alkali fusion facilitated the leaching of Si4+ and Al3+ from lithium slag. • The geopolymer prepared with alkali-fused lithium slag achieved a strength of 50.6 MPa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium slag (LS) exhibits potential as a silica-alumina precursor for geopolymer synthesis, yet its limited reactivity poses challenges for widespread application in one-part geopolymers. This study employs alkali fusion activation to enhance LS reactivity and investigates the underlying mechanisms using XRD, FTIR, and ICP techniques. Results reveal that post-alkali fusion treatment transforms spodumene and quartz within LS into amorphous phases, significantly increasing the amorphous content from 15.9% to 53.1%. However, excessive inclusion of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) during alkali fusion reduces the amorphous phase content. Alkali fusion also enhances LS leaching concentration in an alkaline solution, but an overly abundant incorporation of NaOH adversely affects Si and Al leaching. Within specific parameters, increasing the alkali solution concentration and dissolution temperature enhances Si and Al leaching from LS. Subsequently, alkali-fused LS, along with slag and fly ash, is utilized to fabricate a one-part geopolymer that exhibits outstanding compressive strength. Results indicate that the compressive strength of alkali-fused LS geopolymer consistently surpasses that of the initial LS geopolymer during the curing period, reaching 50.6 MPa after 28 days. Alkali fusion effectively raises the pH of the geopolymer pore solution, promoting the formation of N(C)-A-S-H gel. The overall structure of the geopolymer prepared from alkali-fused LS is dense, with unreacted particles covered by a flocculent gel. However, excessive NaOH incorporation during alkali fusion reduces LS reactivity, diminishing the formation of N(C)-A-S-H gel. Simultaneously, the alkaline environment resulting from excessive NaOH facilitates carbonation reactions in geopolymer samples, thereby reducing compressive strength. • Alkali fusion altered the phase composition and crystalline structure of lithium slag. • Alkali fusion facilitated the leaching of Si4+ and Al3+ from lithium slag. • One-part geopolymer was prepared using alkali-fused lithium slag. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Appropriate timing of seed germination is crucial for plant survival and has important implications for agricultural production. Timely germination relies on harmonious interactions between endogenous developmental signals, especially abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellins (GAs), and environmental cues such as light. Recently, a series of investigations of a three-way crosstalk between phytochromes, ABA, and GAs in the regulation of seed germination demonstrated that the transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE 5 (ABI5) is a central mediator in the light–ABA/GA cascades. Here, we review current knowledge of ABI5 as a key player in light-, ABA-, and GA-signaling pathways that precisely control seed germination. We highlight recent advances in ABI5-related studies, focusing on the regulation of seed germination, which is strictly controlled at both the transcriptional and the protein levels by numerous light-regulated factors. We further discuss the components of ABA and GA signaling pathways that could regulate ABI5 during seed germination, including transcription factors, E3 ligases, protein kinases, and phosphatases. The precise molecular mechanisms by which ABI5 mediates ABA–GA antagonistic crosstalk during seed germination are also discussed. Finally, some potential research hotspots underlying ABI5-mediated seed germination regulatory networks are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How to improve the adoption of green control techniques by farmers under the trend of continuous labor outflow is of vital importance to ensure food safety and promote sustainable agricultural development in China. Previous studies focused on the impact of changes in the economic value perception caused by labor migration on the adoption of green control techniques by farmers. However, the potential contribution of health safety and ecological safety perceptions to the adoption of techniques has not been fully discussed. This article established a theoretical framework including 'labor migration-value perception-green control technology adoption'. Based on the field survey data of 712 rural households in Hubei and Jiangxi provinces, this study used the Ordered Probit model and linear regression model to investigate the impact of labor migration on farmers' adoption of green control techniques and its mechanism. The results showed that: First, labor migration had a positive impact on the farmers' adoption of green control techniques. The above conclusion was still valid after considering the possible endogeneity and measurement errors caused by missing variables. Second, the analysis of the mechanism found that the greater the proportion of migrant workers, the stronger the farmers' perception of the economic value of adopting green control techniques, and the stronger the perception of health safety and ecological safety brought to themselves and their families, thus promoting farmers to adopt green control techniques. The three intermediary effects accounted for 20.3%, 34.1%, and 24.0% of the total effect. Third, farmers' health, years of education, planting scale, technical training and technical subsidies also had a significant impact on farmers' adoption of green control techniques. Therefore, strengthening farmers' vocational training and agricultural technology training to improve their ability to participate, and relying on the government, enterprises, and new media to cultivate farmers' comprehensive technical awareness can be effective methods to promote and popularize green control techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the China Family Panel Studies, this study examined the effect of internet use on women-headed rural households' clean energy use with the Probit model and examined the mechanism of action of this effect. The results found that women-headed rural households were more likely to use clean energy than male-headed households. Furthermore, internet access greatly facilitated women-headed rural household use of clean energy. The mechanism analysis found that internet use expands residents' access to information, engages participation in off-farm employment, enhances the frequency of social interaction, and thus leads to clean energy use in women-headed rural households. • Women-headed rural household are more inclined to use clean energy than male-headed households. • Internet use contributes to rural women-headed household clean energy use. • Internet can facilitate the access to information and promote rural women's household clean energy use. • Internet use promotes rural women's participation in non-farm employment and use clean energy. • Internet use enhances the use of clean energy in their household by increasing social interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Salinity stress enhances reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation by activating the transcription of NADPH oxidase genes such as RbohD, thus mediating plant developmental processes, including seed germination. However, how salinity triggers the expression of ROS‐metabolism‐related genes and represses seed germination has not yet been fully addressed.In this study, we show that Abscisic Acid‐Insensitive 4 (ABI4), a key component in abscisic acid (ABA) signaling, directly combines with RbohD and Vitamin C Defective 2 (VTC2), the key genes involved in ROS production and scavenging, to modulate ROS metabolism during seed germination under salinity stress.Salinity‐induced ABI4 enhances RbohD expression by physically interacting with its promoter, and subsequently promotes ROS accumulation, thus resulting in cell membrane damage and a decrease in seed vigor. Additional genetic evidence indicated that the rbohd mutant largely rescues the salt‐hypersensitive phenotype of ABI4 overexpression seeds. Consistently, the abi4/vtc2 double mutant showed the salt‐sensitive phenotype, similar to the vtc2 mutant, suggesting that both RbohD and VTC2 are epistatic to ABI4 genetically.Altogether, these results suggest that the salt‐induced RbohD transcription and ROS accumulation is dependent on ABI4, and that the ABI4‐RbohD/VTC2 regulatory module integrates both ROS metabolism and cell membrane integrity, ultimately repressing seed germination under salinity stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the internal transmission mechanism and influence of political participation and village support on farmers' happiness based on an analysis of data from a micro survey of farmers. The research uses the big surname identity as a tool variable to estimate the influence of political participation on farmers' happiness within the unified framework of CMP and Bioprobit, and adopts a propensity score matching method to construct a counterfactual framework to correct possible selectivity bias. The empirical results show that, firstly, there is a significant positive effect of political participation and village support on the happiness of farmers. Secondly, except for the direct impact on happiness, political participation indirectly affects happiness through village support by playing an intermediary role between political participation and happiness. Thirdly, given the heterogeneity among farmers, political participation has a more significant effect on the happiness of high-income, male, young farmers, while village support has a more pronounced effect on the happiness of low-income, male, older farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, allowing for general transmission and recovery times distributions, we proposed an edge-based age-structured-like compartmental model for STIs (EBACMS) in a coupled network. We considered sexual transmissions between men with also heterosexual contacts. Mathematically, we gave the general approach of proving the nonnegativity of solutions for the system coupling ordinary and partial differential equations, which can be applied to all edge-based compartment models. We then analyzed the epidemic threshold ℛ 0 with different distributions which couples the thresholds of the single-layer and bipartite networks in the percolation theory. We also studied the global stability of disease-free equilibrium with ℛ 0 < 1 and the final epidemic size F (the proportion of the population experiencing infection during the epidemic) with ℛ 0 > 1. In addition, numerical simulations indicated that given a fixed exponential transmission distribution, a higher variance (with same mean) in general recovery distribution gives smaller ℛ 0 and F. Sensitivity analysis on ℛ 0 and F in terms of the parameters illustrated that male-to-male transmission routes have a greater impact on ℛ 0 and F than the heterosexual transmission routes for the Markovian transmission process and arbitrary recovery process. The results provide a good theoretical guideline to consider the distributions of real-world STIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to explore the predictive value of procalcitonin (PCT) in Gram-negative bloodstream infections (BSIs) in hematological patients with febrile neutropenia. A total of 1466 samples (396 blood culture (BC)-positive, 1052 BC-negative, and 18 contaminated specimens) were included, comprising 268 Gram-negative, 88 Gram-positive, 19 fungal, and 21 polymicrobial BSIs. Median PCT value (0.72 ng/mL; IQR: 0.23–3.87) was significantly higher in Gram-negative than Gram-positive (0.34 ng/mL; IQR: 0.14–2.23; p <.01), or fungal (0.27 ng/mL; IQR: 0.13–0.40; p <.01) BSIs. In mono-microbial BSIs, the best PCT cutoff distinguishing Gram-negative BSIs from all other fever causes was 0.56 ng/ml, with a specificity of 76.8%. PCT levels were significantly higher in BSIs from multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative strains than from non-MDR (p <.01). This study confirms that elevated PCT may predict Gram-negative BSIs in hematological patients with febrile neutropenia, and demonstrates higher PCT levels in MDR Gram-negative BSIs in these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthesis of 3-aminopyrrole using the amination reagent nitrosoarenes and homopropargylic amines catalyzed by I2 through cyclization and amination has been developed. This protocol features excellent functional group tolerance and mild reaction conditions, yielding 3-aminopyrroles in moderate to good yields without a metal catalyst. This method realizes the construction and amination of the 3-aminopyrroles in which nitrosoarenes serve as the amine source and oxidant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The antibacterial activity of Cinnamaldehyde against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Bovine Mastitis is investigated in this study, providing insights into inhibition mechanisms and elucidating the effects on bacterial cell membranes. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentration and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration were determined in this study. In addition, growth curves and a time-kill assay were constructed to assess the antibacterial activity of Cinnamaldehyde. The study revealed that the MIC values ranged from 62.5 to 125 μg/mL, and the MBC values ranged from 125 to 250 μg/mL. The presence of sublethal concentrations of Cinnamaldehyde impeded bacterial growth, while high concentrations demonstrated a significant and rapid bactericidal effect. Subsequently, we examined cell morphology using SEM and TEM, evaluated membrane integrity via laser confocal fluorescence microscopy, and measured levels of β-galactosidase, extracellular DNA release, LDH activity, and ROS, to assess the antibacterial mechanism of Cinnamaldehyde. The findings indicated that with higher concentrations of Cinnamaldehyde, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus demonstrated significant morphological alterations and disruption of both the cell wall and membrane. Furthermore, Cinnamaldehyde disrupted the integrity of membranes and increased permeability of the outer membrane in a manner dependent on its concentration. Cinnamaldehyde notably triggered the release of β-galactosidase, extracellular DNA, and LDH, in addition to elevating cellular ROS levels. Finally, the effect of Cinnamaldehyde on the transcription levels of genes related to cell membrane synthesis was assessed using RT-qPCR, and the effect of Cinnamaldehyde on the total protein content of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus cells was assessed using WB. The RT-qPCR results showed that Cinnamaldehyde at 1xMIC notably upregulated the transcription levels of genes related to fatty acid biosynthesis in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus cell membranes, with a significant or highly significant effect. The WB results showed that Cinnamaldehyde exerts its antibacterial action by suppressing protein expression in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. These findings illustrate that Cinnamaldehyde exerts a potent inhibitory effect on Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, establishing a fundamental foundation for the potential use of Cinnamaldehyde essential oil as an antibacterial agent in the treatment of bovine mastitis, in accordance with established scientific standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Au-Ag OHCs-based SERS sensor coupled with CNN to detect pesticides has proposed. • Au-Ag OHCs served as the substrate with EF = 4.837 × 106 were synthesized. • Automatic updating of learning rate makes CNN model converge to local optimum. • A robust SERS sensor were developed with a LOD of 0.286 and 29 ppb. • Nonlinear correlation between pesticides and SERS data was diagnosed by APaRPs method. Pesticide residue detection in food has become increasingly important. Herein, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) coupled with an intelligent algorithm was developed for the rapid and sensitive detection of pesticide residues in tea. By employing octahedral Cu 2 O templates, Au-Ag octahedral hollow cages (Au-Ag OHCs) were developed, which improved the surface plasma effect via rough edges and hollow inner structure, amplifying the Raman signals of pesticide molecules. Afterward, convolutional neural network (CNN), partial least squares (PLS), and extreme learning machine (ELM) algorithms were applied for the quantitative prediction of thiram and pymetrozine. CNN algorithms performed optimally for thiram and pymetrozine, with correlation values of 0.995 and 0.977 and detection limits (LOD) of 0.286 and 29 ppb, respectively. Accordingly, no significant difference (P greater than 0.05) was observed between the developed approach and HPLC in detecting tea samples. Hence, the proposed Au-Ag OHCs-based SERS technique could be utilized for quantifying thiram and pymetrozine in tea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel hybrid fluorescent nanoparticles (NPs) characterized with salient features of fluorescence brightness, photostability and fluorescence lifetime were fabricated based on fluorescent dyes (DBQ-3PXZ) with thermal activation delayed fluorescence (TADF) and aggregation-induced emission (AIE) characteristics (aggregation-induced delayed fluorescence, AIDF). An amphiphilic polymer with oxygen-blocking properties was used as the host matrix, while small-molecular-weight antifade agents (singlet oxygen quencher and antioxidant) and a triplet energy barrier were incorporated in the hybrid NPs. The matrix polymer, which is capable of separating DBQ-3PXZ molecules from molecular oxygen, and the incorporated antifade agents, which are capable of suppressing the oxygen-mediated photodegradation of DBQ-3PXZ, contributed to the excellent photostability of the target hybrid NPs. The intrinsic AIE properties and the triplet energy barrier capable of confining the triplet excitons within the dye molecules jointly enabled the high fluorescing ability of DBQ-3PXZ dyes residing in the core part of the NPs. Additionally, the TADF nature of DBQ-3PXZ dye together with the protective role of the matrix polymer and antifade agents imparted long fluorescence lifetimes to the target NPs. The preliminary cell fluorescence imaging results verified the practicability of these feature-packed NPs for highlighting regions of interest and enabling high-resolution visualization of fine subcellular architectures; this unequivocally proclaims this probe to be an ideal tag for biological fluorescence imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional porous sponge with good mechanical strength, high absorption capacity and recyclability is of scientific and technological interest. In this work, graphene oxide has been incorporated into poly(vinyl alcohol)–chitosan sponge during acetalization reaction of poly(vinyl alcohol) for the fabrication of macroporous and amphiphilic sponges. Mercury intrusion porosimetry and scanning electron microscopy indicate that the as-prepared sponges have interconnected open-cell structures. The incorporation of graphene oxide and the interconnected macroporous structures in the amphiphilic sponges endow them with improved absorption capacity for both water and organic liquids. Moreover, the absorbed liquids can be effectively collected through simple squeezing and the sponges can be used repeatedly while maintaining a relative high absorption capacity. The simple fabrication and improved performance of the resulting sponges suggest that they have potential industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Conducting polypyrrole (PPy) hydrogels are considered as one promising class of materials for high performance supercapacitors because they synergize the unique features of conducting polymers and hydrogels with three-dimensional porous network. PPy hydrogels are synthesized in the absence of any additional crosslinkers by using ammonium persulfate as the oxidizing agent and sodium dodecylsulfonate as the surfactant. The as-prepared hydrogels exhibit nanoparticle-based porous networks with high surface area and electrical conductivity. The effect of different oxidants on the formation and the morphology of PPy hydrogels are also studied. The facile synthesis method offers PPy hydrogels morphology-controllable nanostructures and good mechanical property, as well as scalable processability. Moreover, PPy hydrogels coated on carbon cloth as binder free electrodes are further used for the fabrication of a symmetric solid-state supercapacitor with good rate capability, cyclic stability and bendable performance. Based on the simple fabrication and electrochemical performances, this PPy hydrogel can be expected as a potential material for flexible energy storage device. Highlights • PPy hydrogels are prepared in the absence of any additional crosslinkers. • Morphology-controllable PPy hydrogels possess remarkable properties. • Solid-state supercapacitor based on PPy hydrogel show good electrochemical property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition from the vegetative growth phase to flowering is a crucial checkpoint for plant reproduction and survival, especially under environmental stress conditions. Numerous factors regulate flowering time, including exogenous environmental cues such as day length and temperature, as well as salt and drought stresses, and endogenous phytohormone signaling cascades. Gibberellins and ABA are one classic combination of phytohormones which antagonistically regulate several biological processes, including seed dormancy and germination, primary root growth and seedling development. As regards control of flowering time, gibberellin exhibits a positive role, and represents an important pathway in the regulation of floral transition. However, over the past decades, numerous investigations have demonstrated that the contribution of the stress hormone ABA to floral transition is still controversial, as both positive and negative effects have been documented. It is important to determine why and how ABA shows this contradictory effect on flowering time. In this up to date review, primarily based on recent publications and emerging data, we summarize the distinct and contrasting roles of ABA on floral transition, while the detailed molecular mechanisms underlying these roles are discussed. Finally, the remaining challenges and open questions in this topic are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied the acceptance dependence of proton cumulants (up to fourth order) and correlation functions in 0–5% most central Au+Au collisions at s NN = 7.7 , 11.5, 19.6, 27, 39, 62.4 and 200 GeV from UrQMD model. We found that high order proton cumulants show suppressions at large acceptance. By decomposing the proton cumulants into linear combination of multi-proton correlation functions, we observed the two-proton correlation functions always show negative values due to the effects of baryon number conservations. The three and four-proton correlation functions are close to zero and show negligible acceptance dependence. We further observed that the proton cumulants and correlation functions follow similar trends and show a scaling behavior when plotting the results versus mean number of protons. The comparisons between experimental data and the UrQMD calculations show that the non-monotonic energy dependence of proton correlation functions measured by STAR experiment cannot be described by the UrQMD model. The UrQMD calculations can provide us baselines for the experimental studies of the proton cumulants and correlation functions. Finally, we propose to measure the rapidity dependence of the reduced proton correlation functions to search for the QCD critical point in heavy-ion collisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluate the second to fourth-order baryon, charge and strangeness susceptibilities near a chiral critical point using the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model under different temperatures and baryon chemical potential. Baryon number susceptibilities are found to be of the greatest magnitude, offering the strongest signal. Whereas the strangeness susceptibilities have the smallest divergence dominating area, owing to the large strange quark mass. We also make an attempt to compare our results with experiment data. The trend at high collision energy is found to be consistent between theory and experiment. The model calculation predicts more complex behavior at low collision energies, near the postulated critical end point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demographics have significant effects on disease spread in populations and the topological evolution of the underlying networks that represent the populations. In the context of network-based epidemic modeling, Markov chain-based approach and pairwise approximation are two powerful tools - the former can capture stochastic effects of disease transmission dynamics and the latter can characterize the dynamical correlations in each pair of connected individuals. However, to our best knowledge, the study on epidemic spreading in networks relying on these two techniques is still lacking. To fill this gap, in this paper, a deterministic pairwise susceptible-infected-susceptible (SIS) epidemic model with demographics on complex networks with arbitrary degree distributions is studied based on a continuous time conditional Markov chain. This deterministic model is rigorously derived - using the moment generating function - from the Kolmogorov differential equations for the evolution of individuals and pairs. It is found that demographics will induce the extinction of the disease by reducing the basic reproduction number or lowering the epidemic prevalence after the disease prevails. Moreover, due to the demographical effects, the resulting network tends to a homogeneous network with a degree distribution similar to Poisson distribution, irrespective of the initial network structure. Additionally, we find excellent agreement between numerical solutions and individual-based stochastic simulations using both Erdös-Renyi (ER) random and Barabási-Albert (BA) scale-free initial networks. Our results may provide new insights on the understanding of the influence of demographics on epidemic dynamics and network evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel method was introduced based on a type of profiling elastic press roller to solve the problem that soil compaction pressure is difficult to monitor in real time. The pressure real-time values were acquired through the measurement of the profiling elastic press roller’s eccentricity. In order to evaluate the relationship between the profiling elastic press roller’s eccentricity and the pressure, the study was conducted in an indoor soil bin, in July 2015. Three experimental treatments with soil volumetric moisture content 14.9%, 22.7% and 29.7%, were used in clay soils. The relationship between the profiling elastic press roller’s eccentricity and soil cone index, and the relationship between the static pressure and soil cone index, were investigated. With the equivalent relationship of the cone index, the data was curve fitted and the model equation was established between eccentricity and pressure, in the topsoil layer in which the depth is 0–0.1 m. The correlation coefficient values (R 2 ) of the model equation all reached 0.99 at three experimental treatments, indicating the high degree of correlation. In order to evaluate the pressure measurement method, the validation experiments were conducted. The relationship was compared between the cone index predicted from the press roller measurements and the cone index measured from the manual measurements. The results showed that the dots of scatter diagram are all concentrated around the 1:1 ratio line, with high R 2 values, at three volumetric moisture contents. These experiments indicate that the predictions were very consistent with the manual measurements, indicating the pressure measurement method based on the profiling elastic press roller can be used into real-time pressure monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thiabendazole (TBZ) exposure through food can have substantial long-term health consequences for humans. Herein, SERS coupled with flower-like AgNPs and python-scikit-learn (PSL) algorithms, was proposed for rapid detection of TBZ. Initially, AgNFs with a strong enhancement factor (EF) of 1.303 × 106 were synthesized to collect TBZ spectra. Subsequently, three PSL-based variable selection algorithms, including SelectKBest (SKB), variance threshold (VT) and recursive feature elimination (RFE), were comparatively applied to select the informative variables for TBZ prediction. The RFE exhibited the optimal selection ability, and RFE-SVM achieved the best performance for TBZ prediction (Rp2 = 0.976, RPD = 6.477), with a computed limit of detection (LOD) of 0.24 μg/mL obtained. Finally, good recoveries of spiked samples (78.5–95.09%) were obtained, demonstrating that the proposed method is practicable and potentially effective for TBZ rapidly detection in food. • AgNFs-based SERS coupled with PSL algorithms for TBZ has proposed. • AgNFs with a strong enhancement factor of 1.303 × 106 were synthesized. • SKB, VT, RFE variable selection methods were comparatively investigated. • RFE-SVM achieved the most accurate prediction of TBZ with RPD of 6.477. • The proposed robust SERS-RFE-SVM method for TBZ obtained a LOD of 0.24 μg/mL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beam energy scan programs in heavy-ion collisions aim to explore the QCD phase structure at high baryon density. Sensitive observables are applied to probe the signatures of the QCD phase transition and critical point in heavy-ion collisions at RHIC and SPS. Intriguing structures, such as dip, peak and oscillation, have been observed in the energy dependence of various observables. In this paper, an overview is given and corresponding physics implications will be discussed for the experimental highlights from the beam energy scan programs at the STAR, PHENIX and NA61/SHINE experiments. Furthermore, the beam energy scan phase II at RHIC (2019–2020) and other future experimental facilities for studying the physics at low energies will be also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the rapidity and transverse momentum dependence for the cumulants of the net-proton and net-baryon distributions in Au+Au collisions at s NN = 5 GeV with a microscopic hadronic transport (JAM) model. To study the effects of mean field potential and softening of equation of state (EoS) on the fluctuations of net-proton (baryon) in heavy-ion collisions, the calculations are performed with two different modes. The softening of EoS is realized in the model by implementing the attractive orbit in the two-body scattering to introduce a reduction pressure of the system. By comparing the results from the two modes with the results from default cascade, we find the mean field potential and softening of EoS have strong impacts on the rapidity distributions ( d N / d y ) and the shape of the net-proton (baryon) multiplicity distributions. The net-proton (baryon) cumulants and their ratios calculated from all of the three modes are with similar trends and show significant suppression with respect to unity, which can be explained by the presence of baryon number conservations. It indicates that the effects of mean field potential and softening of EoS might be not the ingredients that are responsible to the observed strong enhancement in the most central Au+Au collisions at 7.7 GeV measured by the STAR experiment at RHIC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using survey data from 280 farmers in Jianghan Plain, China, this paper establishes an evaluation index system for three dimensions of farmers' flood perceptions and then uses the entropy method to estimate their overall flood perception. Farmers' flood perceptions exhibit the following characteristics: (i) their flood-occurrence, flood-prevention, and overall flood perceptions gradually increase with age, whereas their flood-effects perception gradually decreases; (ii) their flood-occurrence and flood-effects perceptions gradually increase with a higher level of education, whereas their flood-prevention perception gradually decreases and their overall flood perception shows nonlinear change; (iii) flood-occurrence, flood-effects, and overall flood perceptions are higher among farmers who serve in public offices than among those who do not do so; (iv) the flood-occurrence, flood-effects, and overall flood perceptions of farmers who work off-farm are higher than those of farmers who work solely on-farm, contrary to the flood-prevention perception; and (v) the flood-effects and flood-prevention perceptions of male farmers are lower than those of female farmers, but the flood-occurrence and overall flood perceptions of male farmers are higher than those of female farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: To examine the prevalence and correlates of smoking versus tobacco chewing, and potential gender differences in tobacco use among HIV-infected individuals in a rural community in Yunnan Province, China. Method: A cross-sectional design using face-to-face interviews. Results: Among the participants, 301 (66.2%) were male; 79 (17.4%) were ethnic Han, 310 (68.1%) were Jingpo minority, 62 (13.6%) were Dai minority; 17.8% had no formal education and 55.6% had only primary school education; 15.4% were never married; 40% reported drinking in the past 30 days; 55.4% had ever used drugs; and 67% were currently receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). The mean age of the study participants was 38.1 years (SD=8.8). About 62% were current cigarette smokers. Current cigarette smoking was positively associated with being male (OR=142.43, 95% CI: 35.61–569.72) and current drinking (OR=7.64, 95% CI: 2.68–21.81), as well as having ever used drugs (OR=4.03, 95% CI: 1.31–12.35). Among current smokers, 67.6% were heavy smokers (smoked at least 20 cigarettes per day). Those who were older than 46 years of age (OR=9.68, 95% CI: 1.41–66.59) and current drinkers (OR=2.75, 95% CI: 1.56–4.83) were more likely to be heavy smokers. Approximately 9% were currently used chewing tobacco. Those who were female (OR=41.29, 95% CI: 8.53–199.93) and current drinkers (OR=3.22, 95% CI: 1.02–10.16) were more likely to use chewing tobacco. All who used chewing tobacco were ethnic minorities. Conclusions: Cigarette smoking and use of chewing tobacco were highly prevalent among HIV-infected individuals in rural Yunnan, underscoring the urgent need for tobacco prevention and intervention programs tailored for this population. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Highlights: [•] Adsorptive geometry and energy on perfect and defective surface have been calculated. [•] The electronic structure has been analyzed by CDD and DOS. [•] Adsorption rate has been deduced employing a model of grand canonical ensemble. [•] The transition temperate of nuclide from adsorption to desorption has been obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The adsorption behaviors of radioactive Cesium and Iodine nuclides on the graphitic surface in the high temperature gas-cooled reactor have been studied by the first-principles and statistic physics. It turns out that Cs atom prefers to be absorbed at the hollow of carbon hexagonal cell by 1.44eV while I atom likes to site on the vertex of the hexagonal cell, right above carbon atoms with the adsorption energy of 0.54eV. Electronic structure analysis reveals that Cs donates 0.81e of its 6s and 5p states to graphite substrate while the 5p state of I accepts 0.5e from carbon atoms. The variation of adsorption rate of Cs and I atoms with temperature and pressure is presented using a model of grand canonical ensemble. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: To examine alcohol use and subsequent HIV risky behaviors among a sample of predominately ethnic minority people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in a rural community in Yunnan Province, China. Method: A cross-sectional study with a face-to-face questionnaire interview was conducted among eligible participants. Results: In total, 455 (94.4%) out of 482 eligible HIV patients participated in the study. Of them, 82.6% were ethnic minorities; 15.4% were never married; 96.5% were sexually experienced; 55.4% had used drugs, 67% were receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). Over 65% were ever drinkers; of whom 61.5% were current drinkers. Among current drinkers, 32.4% drank daily and 41.2% were hazardous drinkers. Chinese white wine was the preferred choice. Higher level of alcohol use among drinkers in the preceding month was positively associated with being males (OR = 2.76, 95%CI: 1.03–7.43), ethnic minorities (OR Jingpo = 2.21, 95%CI: 1.06–4.59; OR other minorities = 3.20, 95%CI: 1.34–7.62), higher education (OR1–6 = 1.98, 95%CI: 0.99–3.96; OR≥7 = 2.35, 95%CI: 1.09–5.06) and being ART-naive (OR = 2.69, 95%CI: 1.67–4.32). About 39% of ever drinkers reported having engaged in sex after drinking since HIV diagnosis. Those who were younger than 46 years (OR16–25 = 7.77, 95%CI: 1.22–49.60, OR26–35 = 2.79, 95%CI: 1.06–7.35, OR36–45 = 2.96, 95%CI: 1.57–7.58), hazardous drinkers (OR = 1.99, 95%CI: 1.00–3.97) and drug users (OR = 3.01, 95%CI: 1.19–7.58) were more likely to have had sex after drinking. Approximately 56% of drug users had used drugs after drinking. Conclusions: High prevalence of alcohol use and subsequent risky behaviors including sexual engagement and drug use among HIV patients in rural Yunnan require tremendous and integrated efforts for prevention and control of alcohol and drug abuse and HIV spreading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We celebrate the legacies of our friend and mentor Professor Lianshou Liu who was one of the pioneers for the phenomenology of multi-particle interactions and initiated the physics of relativistic heavy-ion collisions in China. In this article, we discuss some of the recent exciting experimental observations on the collective phenomena including collectivity, chirality, criticality, strangeness production, and thermal equilibrium in high-energy nuclear collisions. Future directions, especially the physics at high baryon density, will be discussed with a focus on the first-order phase boundary and hyperon–nucleon interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four welded H-beams with trapezoidal corrugated webs were tested according to the relating provisions of GB 50017--2003' Code for design of steel structures' to study their fatigue performance. The test investigated in particular how the results can be "affected by the crane girder installation deviation as regulated in GB 50278--2010 'Code for construction and acceptance of cranes installation engineering'. By adopting the ANSYS finite element method, it is attempted to prove the validity of the failure mode. Results of the test and finite element analysis show that, the fatigue life of welded H-beam with trapezoidal corrugated webs is higher than that of H-beam with conventional fiat web with regard to the H-beams with corrugated webs of a corrugation profile recommended in CECS 291:2011 'Technical specification for steel structures with corrugated webs for approval'. In fatigue design, it can be rendered as valid as steel members of class 3 and the stress concentration caused by the folding of the web corrugation and installation deviation as well as other constructing factors can be ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports for the first time about a novel category of mono-substituted acetylene monomers (1-4, M1-M4) (C≡CCH2NHCSNHR, R for M1 = CH2CH3; M2 = (CH2)3CH3; M3 = (CH2)5CH3; M4 = C6H5). The four monomers were identified by FT-IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR spectroscopy and elementary analysis. In the presence of a rhodium catalyst ((nbd)Rh+B-(C6H5)4 (nbd = 2,5-norbornadiene)), M1-M4 underwent polymerization and provided the expected poly(N-propargylthiourea)s in a moderate to high yield (58-92%) and with a high cis content (≥91%) in the polymer backbones. The substituents had a big influence on the solubility of poly(N-propargylthioureas). Among the four polymers, polymer 4 (poly(4)) showed good solubility and relatively higher number-average molecular weight (up to 12 000). This polymer was further characterized by FT-IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy. TGA analysis demonstrated that the polymer remained stable up to 175° C. Poly(4) exhibited considerable adsorption ability toward to Fe3+ ions. The novel substituted polyacetylenes are also expected to exhibit some unique properties, such as inhibition of bacteria, chiral recognition, metal extraction and metal detection, derived from a combination of conjugated polymer backbones and highly functional thiourea groups in the side-chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This article presents novel N-propargylurea-based copolymers that contain both carbazole and urea moieties in their side chains. The homopolymer of monomer 1 with a carbazole group exhibited interesting fluorescence properties, while the homopolymer of monomer 2 with a chiral center formed helical structures. The copolymerizations of monomers 1 and 2 provided optically active helical copolymers, which had fluorescence properties, even for the copolymer that contained as low as 20mol% of monomer unit 1. Fluorescent and optically active composite films were further prepared based on the copolymers and with poly(vinyl butyl) as the supporting material. This study contributes to the intriguing research field of optically active helical polymers and their practical applications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• We study the effects of agricultural insurance on pesticide application in China. • Purchasing agricultural insurance helps to encourage farmers to apply biological pesticides. • Purchasing agricultural insurance reduce the use of chemical pesticides. • Agricultural insurance can reduce the risk of applying biological pesticides. • Moral hazard is an important factor in encouraging farmers to apply biological pesticides. Based on the survey data from farmers in Hubei, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang provinces, this paper constructs a theoretical model of the impact of agricultural insurance on farmers' biopesticide application behavior. Furthermore, it adopts the endogenous switching probit model to empirically analyze the effect of agricultural insurance on farmers' biopesticide application behavior. We also estimate the probability that farmers will buy agricultural insurance and apply biological pesticides under the counterfactual framework. The results show that, first, 59.12% of the farmers in the sample area have purchased agricultural insurance and that 62.45% of the farmers have used biological pesticides. Second, the overall average treatment effect is 0.082. This indicates that, if all farmers buy agricultural insurance, the probability that farmers will apply biological pesticides increases by 8.2%. It can be seen that purchasing agricultural insurance encourages farmers to apply biological pesticides. Third, purchasing agricultural insurance can encourage farmers to increase the use of biological pesticides and reduce the use of chemical pesticides. In addition, purchasing agricultural insurance increases the ratio of the amount of biological pesticides to chemical pesticides. This finding shows that agricultural insurance can increase the relative importance of biological pesticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) method for the analysis of dipicolinic acid, a specific component found in spores but not in vegetative cells, was used to determine spore concentration in Bacillus thuringiensis according to the relationship between the spore concentration and the content of dipicolinate. The quantitative relationship was established by using purified spores. Electrolyte conditions that affected the separation efficiency of dipicolinate and the reproducibility were investigated. With 10 mM phosphate, 10 mM ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and 0.25 mM tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide at pH 6.2 as the carrier electrolyte, dipicolinate can be determined within 8 min at an applied voltage of −25 kV (anode at detector) and a capillary temperature of 25 °C. The method has a high separation efficiency with which the number of theoretical plates is above 300 000 plates m−1. The relative standard deviations for migration time and peak area are less than 0.5% and 2.0%, respectively. The detection limit for dipicolinate was 10 ng ml−1, which corresponds to 7.2·105 spores ml−1. The method was used to determine spores in fermentation broths, and the results obtained agreed well with the values obtained by plate counting. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this study, the ovariectomized rat model was used to explore the impact of menopause on rats' dorsal lingual epithelium; at the same time, the curative effects of Remifemin and estradiol were also observed. 28 adult female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups randomly, including sham-operated group (SHAM), an ovariectomized group (OVX), an ovariectomized treated with estradiol (OVX + E), an ovariectomized treated with Remifemin (OVX + iCR). Variation and possible mechanisms were studied via morphology, immunohistochemistry and electron microscope. The results showed that the dorsal lingual epithelium became thinner significantly in the apex part in OVX group, as well as the levels of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and the epidermal growth factor (EGF) were lower than that in other three groups. However, they could reverse close to normal after estradiol and Remifemin treatment respectively. The thinning in the apex of dorsal lingual epithelium might be due to the reduced proliferation in the germinal layer led by the abating of estrogen level, instead of apoptosis. This might play an important role in the pathogenesis of the menopause female tongue burning sensation. Remifemin had certain curative effect on the dorsal lingual mucosa, but a little more inferior than estrogen. • Explore the main pathological causes of burning mouth in perimenopausal women and provide the possibility for clinical discovery of effective treatment methods. • It is proved that estrogen and iCR have therapeutic effects on mucosal thinning but the mechanism of action of the two is different. • Initially explored the main action sites of estrogen and iCR on the dorsal tongue mucosa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seed germination is a crucial stage in a plant's life cycle, during which the embryo, surrounded by several tissues, undergoes a transition from the quiescent to a highly active state. Endosperm weakening, a key step in this transition, plays an important role in radicle protrusion. Endosperm weakening is initiated upon water uptake, followed by multiple key molecular events occurring within and outside endosperm cells. Although available transcriptomes have provided information about pivotal genes involved in this process, a complete understanding of the signaling pathways are yet to be elucidated. Much remains to be learnt about the diverse intercellular signals, such as reactive oxygen species-mediated redox signals, phytohormone crosstalk, environmental cue-dependent oxidative phosphorylation, peroxisomal-mediated pectin degradation, and storage protein mobilization during endosperm cell wall loosening. This review discusses the evidences from recent researches into the mechanism of endosperm weakening. Further, given that the endosperm has great potential for manipulation by crop breeding and biotechnology, we offer several novel insights, which will be helpful in this research field and in its application to the improvement of crop production. • Significance of endosperm cell wall rupture during the seed germination process is discussed. • The current review has postulated several research questions to be answered in the future. • Molecular pathways triggering endosperm weakening are highlighted. • Understanding more about endosperm rupture will be useful in modulating seeds for better germination capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher moments of event-by-event net-proton multiplicity distributions have been applied to search for the QCD critical point. Model results are used to provide a baseline for this search. The measured moment products, κσ and Sσ of net-proton distributions, which are directly connected to the thermodynamical baryon number susceptibility ratio in Lattice QCD and Hadron Resonance Gas (HRG) model, are compared to the transport and thermal model results. We argue that a non-monotonic dependence of κσ and Sσ as a function of beam energy can be used to search for the QCD critical point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine the characteristics and treatment outcomes of patients with TP53-mutant acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and to explore potential prognostic factors. This retrospective analysis included 130 patients diagnosed with TP53-mutant AML at the Fujian Medical University Union Hospital between January 2016 and June 2023. Patients' ages ranged from 17 to 80 years, with a median age of 59 years. The proportions of de novo, therapy-related, and secondary AML cases were 71.5%, 7.7%, and 20.8%, respectively. Complex karyotypes were observed in 60.6% of patients, and the proportions of -5 or del(5q), -7 or del(7q), and − 17 or del(17p) were 41.7%, 27.9% and 14.4%, respectively. DNA methylation- and myelodysplasia-related (MR) gene mutations were observed in 36.9% and 25.4% of patients, respectively. These patients showed poor survival, with a median overall survival (OS) of 4.5 months, a 1-year OS rate of 32.5%, a 3-year OS rate of 18.8%, and a 5-year OS rate of 11.3%. The complete response rates for intensive chemotherapy (IC), hypomethylating agent (HMAs)-based therapies, and azacitidine plus venetoclax were 35.7%, 22.2%, and 37.5%, respectively. Patients who did or did not receive allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) had similar prognoses (median OS: 6.0 vs. 3.9 months; P = 0.6415). Multivariate analysis indicated that MR gene mutations is an independent favorable prognostic factor of OS (HR = 0.366, 95% CI: 0.181–0.738, P = 0.005). In conclusion, patients with TP53-mutant AML have poor prognoses under current treatment strategies and MR gene mutations are associated with a more favorable survival. Therefore, further studies are needed to improve the survival rates in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellins (GA) antagonistically mediate several biological processes, including seed germination, but the molecular mechanisms underlying ABA/GA antagonism need further investigation, particularly any role mediated by a transcription factors module.Here, we report that the DELLA protein RGL2, a repressor of GA signaling, specifically interacts with ABI4, an ABA signaling enhancer, to act as a transcription factor complex to mediate ABA/GA antagonism.The rgl2, abi3, abi4 and abi5 mutants rescue the non‐germination phenotype of the ga1‐t. Further, we demonstrate that RGL2 specifically interacts with ABI4 to form a heterodimer. RGL2 and ABI4 stabilize one another, and GA increases the ABI4‐RGL2 module turnover, whereas ABA decreases it. At the transcriptional level, ABI4 enhances the RGL2 expression by directly binding to its promoter via the CCAC cis‐element, and RGL2 significantly upregulates the transcriptional activation ability of ABI4 toward its target genes, including ABI5 and RGL2. Abscisic acid promotes whereas GA inhibits the ability of ABI4‐RGL2 module to activate transcription, and ultimately ABA and GA antagonize each other. Genetic analysis demonstrated that both ABI4 and RGL2 are essential for the activity of this transcription factor module.These results suggest that the ABI4‐RGL2 module mediates ABA/GA antagonism by functioning as a double agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we strategically propose an efficient asymmetric structure design strategy aimed at simultaneously optimizing the horizontal emitting dipole orientation and aggregation state properties of the deep-blue multi-resonance emitters. The corresponding electroluminescent device exhibited leading performance for deep-blue OLEDs, with a CIEy coordinate of 0.08, an external quantum efficiency up to 41.5%, and an excited state energy down to 2.68 eV. [Display omitted] Narrowband emitters offer significant advantages in the fabrication of next-generation deep-blue organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) due to their wide color gamut, high stability, and high efficiency. It is a pressing challenge to increase the light outcoupling efficiency to further boost device performance, even though 100% internal quantum efficiency is already achievable through rational molecular design. Here, we strategically propose a novel asymmetric structure design strategy aimed at simultaneously optimizing the horizontal emitting dipole orientation and aggregation state properties of the deep-blue multi-resonance (MR) emitters. This proof-of-concept emitter A-BN is capable of displaying ultrapure deep-blue emission with a peak of ∼461 nm, a small full-width-at-half-maximum of ∼25 nm, a CIEy coordinate of ∼0.08, a high horizontal dipole ratio of ∼90 %, and a near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield of ∼98 % in the practical mass-production concentration range (1–3 wt%). The corresponding non-sensitized device achieves a maximum external quantum efficiency of 41.5% without any external light extraction techniques, representing state-of-the-art performance for deep-blue OLEDs. These findings will help drive the development of highly efficient and stable narrowband deep-blue emitters and lead to a revolution in OLED technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]