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Oxaliplatin (L‐OHP), a third‐generation platinum‐based anti‐tumor drug, finds widespread application in the first‐line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer. Despite its efficacy, the drug's usage is curtailed by a litany of side effects, with L‐OHP‐induced peripheral neuropathy (OIPN) being the most debilitating. This condition can be classified into varying degrees of severity. Employing serum metabolomics, a high‐sensitivity, high‐throughput technique, holds promise as a method to identify biomarkers for clinical assessment and monitoring of OIPN patients across different severity levels. In our study, we analyzed serum metabolites in patients with different OIPN levels using ultra‐performance liquid chromatography‐high resolution mass spectrometry. By employing statistical analyses and pathway enrichment studies, we aimed to identify potential biomarkers and metabolic pathways. Our findings characterized the serum metabolic profiles of patients with varying OIPN levels. Notably, pathway analysis revealed a significant correlation with lipid metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and energy metabolism. Multivariate statistical analysis and receiver operator characteristic curve evaluation pointed to anhalamine and glycochenodeoxycholic acid as potential biomarkers for OIPN C and A, which suggest that serum metabolomics may serve as a potent tool for exploring the metabolic status of patients suffering from diverse diseases and for discovering novel biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY A fundamental question in developmental biology is how to regulate grain size to improve crop yields. Despite this, little is still known about the genetics and molecular mechanisms regulating grain size in crops. Here, we provide evidence that a putative protein kinase‐like (OsLCD3) interacts with the S‐adenosyl‐L‐methionine synthetase 1 (OsSAMS1) and determines the size and weight of grains. OsLCD3 mutation (lcd3) significantly increased grain size and weight by promoting cell expansion in spikelet hull, whereas its overexpression caused negative effects, suggesting that grain size was negatively regulated by OsLCD3. Importantly, lcd3 and OsSAMS1 overexpression (SAM1OE) led to large and heavy grains, with increased ethylene and decreased polyamines production. Based on genetic analyses, it appears that OsLCD3 and OsSAMS1 control rice grain size in part by ethylene/polyamine homeostasis. The results of this study provide a genetic and molecular understanding of how the OsLCD3‐OsSAMS1 regulatory module regulates grain size, suggesting that ethylene/polyamine homeostasis is an appropriate target for improving grain size and weight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thanks to the introduction of non‐fullerene acceptors, efficiencies of organic photovoltaics are now approaching 20%. Closing the gap with inorganic photovoltaics requires minimizing voltage losses without penalizing charge extraction, for which microstructure control is crucial. However, the complex interplay between microstructure and charge generation, recombination, and extraction has so far not been unraveled. Here, a systematic study linking device performance to distinct microstructural features via machine learning is presented. Building bi‐layer devices allows to separately study the influence of aggregation and disorder on the energies and lifetimes of bulk and interfacial states. Unambiguous assignments of specific structural motifs to the device photophysics are thus possible. It is found that the control of aggregation‐caused quenching is decisive for the exciton splitting efficiency and thus the carrier generation. Furthermore, the static disorder at the donor–acceptor interface controls the nonradiative recombination by shifting the excited state population from the bulk toward the interface. Finally, the amount of disorder in the bulk is found decisive for charge extraction. The finding that charge generation, recombination, and extraction are controlled by distinct structural features, is the key to optimizing these motifs independently, which will pave the way for organic photovoltaics toward the detailed balance limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technology has become an integral part of our daily lives, permeating every aspect. One area where technology has shown potential to enhance English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning is through the use of animated movies. Despite the growing significance of technology in education, research is scarce in this specific area. Therefore, the aim of this study, conducted in 2023, was to investigate the impact of animated movies on the development of speaking abilities among motivated EFL learners. A total of 370 elementary students studying EFL in various institutions participated by responding to questionnaires. A multiple‐stage cluster sampling approach was employed to select the participants. The students were divided into two groups: the experimental group (EG) and the control group (CG). The selection of 15 animated films from a pool of 50 was performed using the Lawsh CVR (content validity ratio) and CVI (content validity index) algorithms, following validation by professionals. The study was designed as an experiment, and descriptive statistics and the ANCOVA test were employed to analyse the quantitative data. The findings revealed a significant difference between the pre‐test and post‐test results of the EG in English‐speaking skills, vocabulary learning, English pronunciation skills, understanding and recognition. According to the study, animated movies have the potential to aid teachers and EFL students in enhancing their speaking skills. This research sheds light on the benefits of incorporating animated movies into language learning environments, offering valuable insights for both educators and learners alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: Kaempferol‐3‐O‐sophoroside (PCS‐1) is the main component in Crocus sativus (Saffron), a herb with mood‐enhancing properties. AMP‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a potential therapeutic target for depression. This study explores the antidepressive‐like properties of PCS‐1 and its AMPK activation to confirm AMPK as a target for antidepression. Experimental Approach: Corticosterone (CORT)‐induced PC12 cell injury served as an in vitro model to evaluate the neuroprotective effect of PCS‐1. Neuro‐2a cells and primary neurons were utilized to evaluate the synaptogenesis role of PCS‐1. CORT‐induced mouse depression model and chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model were used to assess the antidepressive‐like properties of PCS‐1 through behavioural tests, magnetic resonance imaging, and biochemical index measurements. Western blot and immunofluorescence assays were used to study the mechanisms of PCS‐1. Cellular thermal shift assay was used to confirm the binding target. Key Results: PCS‐1 (12.5–50 μM) ameliorated CORT‐induced PC12 cell damage, oxidative stress and inflammation. PCS‐1 alone promoted an increase in synapses in Neuro‐2a cells and primary neurons. Oral administration of PCS‐1 (10 and 20 mg·kg−1) ameliorated weight loss, dyskinesia, and hippocampal volume reduction induced by CORT and CUMS. PCS‐1 bound to AMPK to improve the expression of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and induce autophagy. Conclusion and Implications: PCS‐1 binds to AMPK to promote BDNF production and autophagy enhancement, ultimately achieving antidepressant effects. This study provides support for the clinical application of saffron petals and provides further evidence for AMPK as a potential target for antidepression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vascular occlusion induced by hyaluronic acid injections is rare, but can lead to severe adverse events, including necrosis, blindness, and cerebral infarction. Objective: This study aims to explore methods of reducing the risk of complications such as embolism induced by hyaluronic acid injection, and to study the impact of comprehensive systematic treatment on the prognosis of patients with hyaluronic acid embolism. Methods: The clinical data of three female patients with vascular occlusion due to hyaluronic acid injection was analyzed. Their median age was 26 years, with symptoms presenting 1–6 h postinjection. Hospital stays averaged 6 days. Two patients had ptosis, diplopia, and severe pain after injection of eyebrows. The other, who had a nose enhancement, experienced facial skin color changes and intense pain. Results: Two patients received comprehensive, systematic treatment based on injectable hyaluronidase. One patient self‐discharged after receiving injectable hyaluronidase, antispasmodic, and vasodilator treatment on the night of embolism and returned to the hospital 3 days later with worsening embolism symptoms and received symptomatic treatment again. Two patients who received comprehensive, systematic treatment based on injectable hyaluronidase showed significant improvement, while the patient who did not undergo systematic treatment left scars on the face. Conclusion: Vascular occlusion caused by hyaluronic acid facial filling is a severe adverse event, and timely, comprehensive, systematic treatment can effectively improve irreversible damage caused by thrombosis, and even cure it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treatment of castration‐resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) is a long‐standing clinical challenge. Traditionally, CRPC drugs work by either reducing dihydrotestosterone biosynthesis or blocking androgen receptor (AR) signaling. Here it is demonstrated that AR inhibitor treatment gives rise to a drug‐tolerant persister (DTP) state. The thioredoxin/peroxiredoxin pathway is up‐regulated in DTP cells. Peroxiredoxin 5 (PRDX5) promotes AR inhibitor resistance and CRPC development. Inhibition of PRDX5 suppresses DTP cell proliferation in culture, dampens CRPC development in animal models, and stabilizes PSA progression and metastatic lesions in patients. Therefore, the study provides a novel mechanism and potential target for the management of castration‐resistant prostate cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To explore the neuroprotective effects of ARA290 and the role of β‐common receptor (βCR) in a mouse model of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Methods: This study included male C57BL/6J mice that underwent MCAO and reperfusion. The neuroprotective effect of ARA290 on MCAO‐induced brain injury was investigated using neurological function tests (Longa and modified neurological severity score). Cerebral infarction was examined by 2, 3, 5‐triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining, neuronal apoptosis was assessed by immunofluorescence staining, blood parameters were measured using a flow cytometry‐based automated hematology analyzer, liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry was used to identify the serum metabolomics signature, inflammatory cytokines and liver index were detected by commercially available kits, and the protein levels of the erythropoietin (EPO) receptor and βCR were measured by western blot. Results: ARA290 exerted a qualitatively similar neuroprotective effect after MCAO as EPO. ARA290 significantly reduced neuronal apoptosis and the level of inflammatory cytokines in the brain tissue. However, ARA290's neuroprotective effect was significantly suppressed following the injection of siRNA against βCR. Conclusion: ARA290 provided a neuroprotective effect via βCR in cerebral ischemic mice without causing erythropoiesis. This study provides novel insights into the role of ARA290 in ischemic stroke intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thanks to the development of novel electron acceptor materials, the power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices are now approaching 20%. Further improvement of PCE is complicated by the need for a driving force to split strongly bound excitons into free charges, causing voltage losses. This review discusses recent approaches to finding efficient OPV systems with minimal driving force, combining near unity quantum efficiency (maximum short circuit currents) with optimal energy efficiency (maximum open circuit voltages). The authors discuss apparently contradicting results on the amount of exciton binding in recent literature, and approaches to harmonize the findings. A comprehensive view is then presented on motifs providing a driving force for charge separation, namely hybridization at the donor:acceptor interface and polarization effects in the bulk, of which quadrupole moments (electrostatics) play a leading role. Apart from controlling the energies of the involved states, these motifs also control the dynamics of recombination processes, which are essential to avoid voltage and fill factor losses. Importantly, all motifs are shown to depend on both molecular structure and process conditions. The resulting high dimensional search space advocates for high throughput (HT) workflows. The final part of the review presents recent HT studies finding consolidated structure–property relationships in OPV films and devices from various deposition methods, from research to industrial upscaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loving‐kindness and compassion meditation (LKCM) have been well applied among employees to improve their health and well‐being. Existing studies on LKCM have also provided supportive evidence of its benefits and effectiveness under organizational contexts. The current meta‐analytical study aimed to systematically summarise the effects of LKCM in the workplace and to outline directions for future research and practice. Among 327 empirical studies on LKCM published until March 2022, 21 trials focussed on employees and provided sufficient information, which were included in the following meta‐analysis. The results showed that LKCM benefited eight categories of workplace outcomes. Specifically, LKCM effectively decreased employees' burnout (g = 0.395, k = 10) and stress (g = 0.544, k = 10) and facilitated their mindfulness (g = 0.558, k = 14), self‐compassion (g = 0.646, k = 12), personal mental health (g = 0.308, k = 13), job attitudes (g = 0.283, k = 4), interpersonal relationships (g = 0.381, k = 12), and psychological resources (g = 0.406, k = 6). The results of moderation analyses further indicated that the participants' job type, gender, and the focus of LKCM might differentially fluctuate the magnitude of LKCM effects. To advance research and best practice, we finally pointed out several issues that deserve attention, such as long‐term effects, underlying mechanisms, potential moderators, and outcomes or influential factors at the organizational level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Treatments for multiple myeloma (MM) have evolved over time and improved MM survival. While racial differences in MM treatment and prognosis between non‐Hispanic African American (NHAA) and non‐Hispanic White (NHW) patients are well‐established, it is unclear whether they have persisted after the introduction of novel agents. Methods: Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results‐Medicare linked database, our study investigated racial difference in the receipt of treatment within 1 year following diagnosis and assessed survival outcomes among Medicare beneficiaries (≥66 years) diagnosed with MM from 2007 to 2017. We applied multivariable Cox proportional hazards models to estimate the association between race and survival and presented hazard ratios (HRs). Results: Of 2094 NHAA and 11,983 NHW older patients with MM, 59.5% and 64.8% received treatment during the first year, respectively. Discrepancy in the proportion of patients receiving treatment between the two groups increased from 2.9% in 2007 to 2009 to 6.9% in 2014–2017. After controlling for relevant factors, patients who received treatment within the first year had lower mortality than those who did not (HR = 0.90, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.86–0.94). NHAA patients had a lower probability to receive treatments during the first year than NHW patients (HR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.85–0.97) but had lower mortality (HR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.88–1.00). The lower mortality was only observed among patients who received no treatment (HR = 0.84, 95% CI: 0.77–0.93); NHAA and NHW patients who received treatment had similar survival (p = 0.63). Conclusions: The increasing racial disparity in treatment utilization over time is concerning. Efforts are needed to eliminate the barriers of receiving treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Over the last century, lakes all over the world have experienced significant eutrophication and become more susceptible to critical transitions. This has prompted a growing need to understand how community dynamics shift following ecological perturbations. This study aims to elucidate the present status, spatial patterns and determinants of biological diversity, and how they have changed in response to alterations driven by eutrophication. Location: Lakes of East China, mostly in the Yangtze River Basin. Taxa: Bacillariophyceae (163 species in 33 genres, see taxa names in Appendix S1). Methods: The environmental conditions of over 60 lakes were assessed based on parameters such as water quality, physical characteristics and biogeochemical constituents. Surface sediment samples and high‐resolution sediment records were collected to quantify the biodiversity of diatom communities, and principal component analysis (PCA) was used to determine the major environmental gradients. Meanwhile, linear regression, canonical correlation analysis and Mantel tests were used to quantify the correlations between variables. Results: Biodiversity metrics showed no distinct geographic patterns, although areas near large lakes showed comparatively high evenness. Smaller pairwise dissimilarities were observed among hypereutrophic lakes in comparison to lakes with a lower trophic status. The past century has witnessed a decrease in both pairwise dissimilarity and the standard deviation of evenness. A significant statistical association was found between dissimilarity and ionic concentration and composition in the surface sediment of lakes, rather than nutrient levels. Main Conclusions: Following regional eutrophication and human disturbance, a significant reduction in biodiversity differentiation was observed in lakes located in East China. Currently, the dominant factor in determining the beta diversity of diatom communities is geochemical conditions rather than nutrient concentrations. Long‐term stress caused by cultural eutrophication may also have altered the dominant determinant of regional biodiversity and diatom community dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) increase the risk of stroke and cognitive impairment. This study aims to determine the cross‐sectional and longitudinal associations between adiposity and WMH. Methods: Participants were enrolled from the UK Biobank cohort. Associations of concurrent, past, and changes in overall and central adiposity with WMH were investigated by linear and nonlinear regression models. The association of longitudinal adiposity and WMH volume changes was determined by a linear mixed model. Mediation analysis investigated the potential mediating effect of blood pressure. Results: In 34,653 participants with available adiposity measures and imaging data, the concurrent obese group had a 25.3% (β [95% CI] = 0.253 [0.222–0.284]) higher WMH volume than the ideal weight group. Increment in all adiposity measures was associated with a higher WMH volume. Among them, waist circumference demonstrated the strongest effect (β [95% CI] = 0.113 [0.101–0.125]). Past adiposity also demonstrated similar effects. Among the subset of 2664 participants with available WMH follow‐up data, adiposity measures were predictive of WMH change. Regarding changes of adiposity, compared with ideal weight stable group, those who turned from ideal weight to overweight/obese had a 8.1% higher WMH volume (β [95% CI] = 0.081 [0.039–0.123]), while participants who turned from overweight/obese to ideal weight demonstrated no significant WMH volume change. Blood pressure partly meditates the associations between adiposity and WMH. Conclusions: Both concurrent and past adiposity were associated with a higher WMH volume. The detrimental effects of adiposity on WMH occurred throughout midlife and in the elderly and may still exist after changes in obesity status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aromatic hydrocarbons are carcinogenic and can induce mutations in living organisms, posing a threat to the ecological environment and human life and health. Catalytic hydrogenation of aromatics to reduce the saturation of aromatics not only reduces their toxicity, but also greatly increases their potential value. Compared with the unsupported catalysts with only active components, the supported metal catalysts have higher catalytic activity and better selectivity, the catalytic activity of the hydrogenation reaction depends on the metal active phase and catalyst support. On metal/acid catalysts, the metal active center and nearby acid sites are involved in the conversion of aromatics, the active hydrogen leaking from the metal center can hydrogenate the adsorbed aromatics at the acid site. This paper reviews the recent research progress of nickel‐based catalysts for aromatic hydrocarbon catalytic hydrogenation and discusses the development prospects and challenges faced by non‐precious metal catalysts. In addition, the sulfur tolerance and hydrogen storage properties of catalysts for aromatics are reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intermolecular carbophosphination reaction of alkynes or alkenes with unreactive C−P bonds remains an elusive challenge. Herein, we used a Ni−Al bimetallic catalyst to realize an intermolecular carbophosphination reaction of alkynes with 5‐membered phosphole oxides, providing a series of 7‐membered phosphepines in up to 94 % yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intermolecular carbophosphination reaction of alkynes or alkenes with unreactive C−P bonds remains an elusive challenge. Herein, we used a Ni−Al bimetallic catalyst to realize an intermolecular carbophosphination reaction of alkynes with 5‐membered phosphole oxides, providing a series of 7‐membered phosphepines in up to 94 % yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic forcing caused the biodiversity loss and stability decline of communities. There is still controversy over whether the decline in biodiversity will lead to a decrease in community stability. The stability of biological communities is related to both biodiversity and structure, and this paper aims to reveal the human impacts on diatom communities' biodiversity and structure. We studied the richness, β‐diversity and network distance of diatom communities in Qinghai‐Xizang, Yunnan‐Sichuan and Lower Yangtze River Basin, China through empirical dataset and simulation method. The results showed that the diatoms richness in the Qinghai‐Xizang and the Yunnan‐Sichuan region was lower and the network distance was higher than that of the Lower Yangtze River Basin. β‐diversity in the Lower Yangtze River Basin was the lowest and the diatom network distance responds negatively to human population densities in China. The simulation showed that the network distance kept constant during random species loss, and declined while specialist species were lost or replaced by generalist species. The results suggested diatom communities' homogeneity and stability decline were associated with human activities. Human impacts may cause biodiversity loss targeted to specialist species or no biodiversity loss while generalist species replace those specialist species. This study showed that how diversity changes determined ecological stability depends on the type of species changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The widely observed positive response of productivity to biodiversity, known as the biodiversity‐productivity relationship (BPR), underpins nature‐based solutions for mitigating and adapting to global changes. Little is known of the role of such emergent processes in the restoration of damaged ecosystems. Here, we test for evidence of a BPR in degraded freshwater lakes, and its role in underpinning or undermining lake recovery from eutrophic states. Location: Lower Yangtze and Huaihe river basins, China, East Asia. Taxa: Freshwater phytoplankton; also macrophytes, fish, zooplankton and zoobenthos. Methods: A systematic review of biodiversity studies was conducted to enumerate freshwater biodiversity change during eutrophication, encompassing 572 samples from 155 lakes in East China. Empirical samples were then taken of 93 phytoplankton communities from 38 lakes in ecologically degraded states of eutrophication. Samples were analysed for niche overlap in relation to biodiversity and productivity, and metrics of network structure indicative of community stability. Results: Reviewed publications on eutrophication in East China lakes revealed losses in biodiversity of macrophytes, fishes, zooplankton and zoobenthos but not phytoplankton. Empirically sampled eutrophic lakes maintained high phytoplankton biodiversity through niche differentiation, and phytoplankton biodiversity correlated positively with biomass, in line with the expectations of BPR. Conclusions: The positive effect of biodiversity on phytoplankton productivity in eutrophic lakes acts in opposition to the negative impacts on productivity induced by eutrophication‐management strategies of nutrient suppression. In degraded systems, the BPR contributes to sustaining productivity of lake phytoplankton communities, impeding recovery from a eutrophic state. This is a case of the BPR playing an undesirable role at the ecosystem level. Lake recovery programmes need to anticipate that the control of phytoplankton biomass will depend on reducing nutrients to a level sufficient to degrade the internal structure of the phytoplankton community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Polycythemia vera (PV) and essential thrombocythemia (ET) are linked to increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. In addition to the reduction in of arterial thrombotic events, statins may prevent venous thrombosis including among patients with cancer. As previous registry‐ and claims‐based studies revealed that the use of statins may improve the survival of patients with various malignancies we evaluated their impact on outcomes of older adults with PV and ET. Methods: We identified 4010 older adults (aged 66–99 years at diagnosis) with PV (n = 1809) and ET (n = 2201) in a population‐based cohort study using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results‐Medicare database with median follow‐up of 3.92 (interquartile range: 2.58–5.75) years. Propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) approaches were utilized to assess potential association between statins and overall survival. Multivariable competing risk models with death as a competing risk were used to evaluate possible relationship between statins and the incidence of thrombosis. Results: 55.8% of the patients used statins within the first year after PV/ET diagnosis, and statin use was associated with a 22% reduction in all‐cause mortality (PSM: hazard ratio [HR] = 0.78, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.63–0.98, p = 0.03; IPTW: HR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.64–0.97, p = 0.03). Statins also reduced the risk of thrombosis in this patient population (PSM: HR = 0.63, 95% CI: 0.51–0.78, p < 0.01; IPTW: HR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.49–0.66, p < 0.01) as well as in PV and ET subgroups. Conclusions: These findings suggest that it may be important to incorporate statins into the therapeutic strategy for older adults with PV and ET. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is an emerging biomarker for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC), giving hope for stratified treatment. As the completed studies have small sample sizes and different experimental methods, systematic review and meta‐analysis were performed to explore their role in predicting pathological complete response (pCR), tumor recurrence, and prognosis. Methods: PubMed, Embase, and the Web of Science were searched for potentially eligible studies published up to September 6, 2022. Pooled relative risk (RR) was calculated to predict pCR and tumor recurrence, and pooled hazard ratio (HR) was calculated to evaluate the prognosis of overall survival (OS), recurrence‐free survival (RFS), and metastasis‐free survival (MRS). Results: Twelve studies published between 2018 and 2022 included 931 patients, and 2544 serum samples were eventually included in the meta‐analysis. The pooled revealed that ctDNA‐negative patients were more likely to have a pCR (RR = 1.64, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.26–2.12). The pooled revealed that ctDNA‐positive patients were at high risk of recurrence (RR = 3.37, 95% CI: 2.34–4.85) and had a poorer prognosis for OS (HR = 3.03, 95% CI: 1.86–4.95), RFS (HR = 7.08, 95% CI: 4.12–12.14), and MRS (HR = 2.77, 95% CI: 2.01–3.83). Conclusion: ctDNA may be useful for stratifying treatment and assessing prognosis in patients with LARC, but its clinical application still needs to be confirmed in a prospective multicenter study with large samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, poly(vinyl sulfonate) (PVS)–capped surfaces are constructed on the polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEMs) of poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and poly(styrene sulfonate) via electrostatic assembly. The water wetting behavior on the resulting PVS‐capped PEMs is meticulously correlated with the number of surface sulfonate groups with the aid of sum frequency generation spectroscopy and quartz crystal microbalance. It is found that when the molecular packing density of surface sulfonate groups is adjusted to be comparable to the maximal packing density of spheres in two dimensions (≈0.9), the PVS capping is able to effectively adsorb water molecules from the surrounding to form hydrogen‐bonded networks, which not only promote complete surface wetting by water in air but also diminish surface affinity to adhesion of ice, oil and wax deposited atop. As a result, the PVS‐capped PEMs are able to fulfil all the self‐cleaning functions proposed for superhydrophilic surfaces including anti‐fogging, anti‐icing, anti‐grease, anti‐smudge, anti‐graffiti, and anti‐wax. After being coated with the self‐cleaning PVS‐capped PEMs, conventional stainless steel meshes are able to perform oil‐water separation without prior water wetting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liver cytosol antibody type 1 (anti‐LC1) is reported to be a marker of type 2 autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), a type of autoimmune liver disease (AILD). However, anti‐LC1 is not entirely disease‐specific, and its clinical value in other hepatic diseases has not been well elucidated. Our study aimed to explore the associations between the diagnoses and outcome of decompensated cirrhosis or liver failure (DC/LF) in patients positive for anti‐LC1. A total of 157 patients positive for anti‐LC1 were included in our final analysis. DC/LF was defined as the outcome of patients positive for anti‐LC1. The risk of DC/LF according to diagnosis was estimated using multivariable Cox proportional hazards models, while stratified Cox regression models were used in the subgroup analyses. The diagnoses of patients positive for anti‐LC1 were found to be comprised of various liver disorders. Versus other diagnoses, viral hepatitis was associated with a 2.25‐fold increased risk of DC/LF in these patients, independent of sex, age, disease course, treatment and drinking history. Additionally, the associations were more significant by subgroup analysis in male patients, younger patients, non‐newly diagnosed patients, patients without treatment and patients without drinking history. Anti‐LC1 is not a disease‐specific antibody, as it was found in multiple types of hepatic disease. Furthermore, viral hepatitis rather than AILD was associated with an increased risk of DC/LF in patients positive for anti‐LC1. These findings emphasize the important role of viral hepatitis in the progression of DC/LF in patients positive for anti‐LC1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA repair enzyme ALKBH3 has shown great potential as diagnostic as well as therapeutic target for several cancers. However, methods for the sensitive measurement of ALKBH3 repair activity are highly desirable but challenging. Herein, we report a dual DNA amplifier by integrating catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) with CRISPR/Cas12a for highly sensitive monitoring of ALKBH3 activity. A 3MeC‐modified initiator DNA was designed as the substrate of ALKBH3. Upon ALKBH3‐mediated DNA repair to remove the lesion from initiator DNA, it effectively triggered CHA circuits to generate duplexes that could be recognized by CRISPR/Cas12a to activate the trans‐cleavage activity, resulting significant fluorescence increase. We showed that our method could sensitively detection ALKBH3 activity with a calculated detection limit of 30.5 pM. We also showed that it allowed efficient screening of enzyme inhibitors. Our method enabled specific and sensitive measurement of ALKBH3 activity, thus providing a useful tool for disease diagnostics and therapeutic evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermo‐penetrative spreading behaviours of oil in microgrooves on stainless steel 316L surfaces were studied experimentally under temperature gradient conditions. An interface of smooth surface and microgrooved surface was designed to comparatively investigate the penetrative spreading of oil in microgrooves and the apparent spreading of oil on microgrooves and smooth surfaces. Then, microgrooves with different depths but a same width were laser processed to analyse the relationship between the actions of surface texture and temperature gradient on oil directional spreading. Results showed that the apparent oil on microgrooves extended directionally along the temperature gradient, leading to the lubricant loss from the high‐temperature region to the lower, while the penetrative oil in microgrooves could spread rapidly from the low‐temperature region to the higher under the obstruction of the thermocapillary effect, providing a potential method to enhance the lubrication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the prevalence and clinical significance of the dense fine speckled (DFS) pattern in a large‐scale cohort of Chinese patients. Data on the antinuclear antibody (ANA) and extractable nuclear antigen (ENA) autoantibody obtained from 165 498 patients who attended Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2019 to December 2021 were retrospectively analysed. The prevalence of the DFS pattern was 1.14%, and it mainly appeared in young patients (≤24 years old). A higher positive rate of the DFS pattern was observed in patients with dermatosis (18.12%) and systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs) (13.53%). The DFS pattern titre was mostly low or medium (≤1:160). A higher titre was associated with an increased risk of SARDs (p <.001), dermatosis (p =.015) and pulmonary disease (p =.016). In 37 patients with ENA autoantibody positivity, anti‐SSA antibody was the most common (2.55%). If the low titre (<1:160) or the DFS pattern with negative ENA autoantibody were to be used as exclusion criteria for SARDs, the diagnosis would have been missed in 42 or 77 patients, respectively. The prevalence of the DFS pattern was low in ANA test samples and was more common in patients with dermatosis and SARDs, but the titre was usually higher in patients with SARDs. There was no evidence that the DFS pattern could be used as an exclusion criterion for SARDs diagnosis. The DFS pattern was associated with certain pathological states, which may inform the clinical significance of the DFS pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Circulating metabolites have been implicated in stroke pathogenesis, but their genetic determinants are understudied. Using a Mendelian randomization approach, our aim was to provide evidence for the relationship of circulating metabolites and the risk of stroke and its subtypes. Methods: Genetic instruments of 102 circulating metabolites were obtained from a genome‐wide association study, including 24,925 European individuals. Stroke was extracted from the MEGASTROKE dataset (67,162 cases; 454,450 controls) and a lacunar stroke dataset (7338 cases; 254,798 controls). The magnetic resonance imaging markers of cerebral small vessel disease and microstructural injury were evaluated by a genome‐wide association study of white matter hyperintensities (N = 18,381), fractional anisotropy (N = 17,663), mean diffusivity (N = 17,467) and brain microbleeds (N = 25,862). The inverse‐variance weighted method Mendelian randomization was used as the primary analytical method, and directional pleiotropy and heterogeneity were examined in sensitivity analyses. Results: A genetic predisposition to a higher level of cholesterol in small and low‐density lipoprotein (LDL) was associated with risk of stroke (odds ratio [OR] 1.14, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08–1.21, p = 5.98 × 10−7), especially for large‐artery atherosclerotic stroke (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.19–1.52, p = 1.90 × 10−6). Total lipids in LDL particles were also associated with risk of stroke. A genetically determined higher cholesterol level in high‐density lipoprotein (HDL‐C) was associated with risk of intracerebral haemorrhage (OR 1.74, 95% CI 1.23–2.45, p = 1.66 × 10−3). No statistically significant association was found between genetic predisposition to circulating metabolites and magnetic resonance imaging markers of cerebral small vessel disease and microstructural injury. Conclusions: Genetically determined levels of lipids in small LDL were associated with the risk of stroke, suggesting that a therapeutic strategy targeting small LDL levels may be crucial for stroke prevention. HDL‐C was positively associated with the risk of intracerebral haemorrhage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a simple, accurate, and rapid capillary electrophoresis with an indirect ultraviolet detection method was developed to simultaneous separate 10 biogenic amines. It was found that β‐cyclodextrin and ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid facilitated the separation of tryptamine and tyramine, spermidine and spermine, respectively. The optimized background electrolytes consisted of 20.0 mmol/L imidazole, 8.0 mmol/L β‐cyclodextrin, 0.5 mmol/L ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid, and 6.0% methanol (at pH 4.50 adjusted with acetic acid). The total analysis time of this method was less than 11 min with limits of detection in the range of 0.14–1.98 mg/L. The interday relative standard deviation of migration time and peak area were less than 1.36% and 4.44% (n = 6), respectively. To verify the applicability, this method was carried out to analyze biogenic amines in commercial luncheon meat samples. Due to the complex composition of luncheon meat, the real samples were rinsed with deionized water to reduce the influence of matrices. It was found that both storage temperature and protein content of the luncheon meat samples affected the biogenic amines content during storage. The results of this study are instructive for the storage of high‐protein meat products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surgical resection of lesions and closed‐loop suppression are the two main treatment options for patients with refractory epilepsy whose symptoms cannot be managed with medicines. Unfortunately, failures in foci localization and seizure prediction are constraining these treatments. Electrical impedance tomography (EIT), sensitive to impedance changes caused by blood flow or cell swelling, is a potential new way to locate epileptic foci and predict seizures. Animal validation is a necessary research process before EIT can be used in clinical practice, but it is unclear which among the many animal epilepsy models is most suited to this task. The selection of an animal model of epilepsy that is similar to human seizures and can be adapted to EIT is important for the accuracy and reliability of EIT research results. This study provides an overview of the animal models of epilepsy that have been used in research on the use of EIT to locate the foci or predict seizures; discusses the advantages and disadvantages of these models regarding inducement by chemical convulsant and electrical stimulation; and finally proposes optimal animal models of epilepsy to obtain more convincing research results for foci localization and seizure prediction by EIT. The ultimate goal of this study is to facilitate the development of new treatments for patients with refractory epilepsy. This article is categorized under:Neuroscience > Clinical NeurosciencePsychology > Brain Function and Dysfunction [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to climate change and increasing anthropogenic activities, lakes are disturbed frequently, usually by press (e.g., diffused pollution, rising temperatures) or pulse (e.g., storms, rainfall, pollution events) disturbances. Both press and pulse disturbances can affect abiotic and biotic environments, changing the structure of ecosystems and affecting ecosystem services. To confront with the effects of climate change and increasing anthropogenic activities, understanding the different effects of press and pulse disturbances on lake ecosystems is essential. This study assessed the effect of press and pulse disturbances of phosphorus on a microcosmic aquatic ecosystem by measuring the total phosphorus (TP), algae density, and physiological indicators of submerged macrophytes. We found that the microcosmic aquatic ecosystem responded differently to press and pulse disturbances. Our results suggested that it had a lower resistance to pulse phosphorus disturbances than to press phosphorus disturbances. There were significantly higher nutrient concentrations and algal densities in the pulse treatment than in the press treatment. Positive feedback was found between the biomass of submerged macrophytes and the water quality. There was a higher submerged macrophytes biomass at low TP concentration and algal density. In the context of climate change, press and pulse disturbances could have severe impacts on lake ecosystems. Our findings will provide some insight for further research and lake management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zhi mu (Anemarrhena asphodeloides Bunge.) is an important medicinal plant in China, and its growth is greatly threatened by the fungal disease anthracnose, which can be caused by a number of species of Colletotrichum. Studying the phytopathogen and its sensitivities to fungicides will help to control anthracnose on zhi mu. Ten isolates of Colletotrichum were collected from zhi mu in Hebei, Anhui and Shanxi Provinces in China for this study. The isolates were identified as C. gloeosporioides, C. liriopes and C. spaethianum based on multi‐locus phylogenetic analyses, including ACT, CHS‐1, GADPH, HIS3 and ITS, micromorphological characteristics and the characteristics of colonies. Koch's postulates were confirmed by inoculating the leaves of zhi mu in vitro. The levels of virulence of 10 isolates varied significantly. Isolate YC‐1 was the most virulent, while BZ‐2 was the least virulent. The sensitivity of isolates YC‐1, BY‐1 and BY‐2 (C. spaethianum, C. gloeosporioides and C. liriopes respectively) to fungicides were examined. The EC50 values of BY‐1, BY‐2, and YC‐1 to tebuconazole, difenoconazole, prochloraz, fludioxonil, pyraclostrobin, carbendazim and azoxystrobin confirm that all of the isolates were markedly sensitive to the seven fungicides tested, strongly suggesting that these fungicides could be used to control anthracnose on zhi mu in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic activities such as eutrophication and fishing have prominent effects on freshwater ecosystems. However, the ways in which ecosystem function and biodiversity respond to multiple drivers from eutrophication and top‐down predation remains inconclusive. We studied zooplankton communities in 102 subtropical shallow lakes in the eastern plain of China and further examined the joint effects of nutrient enrichment and predation on biodiversity and ecological networks. We found that alpha diversity was negatively influenced by nutrient conditions (such as total phosphorus and total nitrogen [TN]), whereas beta diversity (β‐diversity) was positively related to nutrients and was also structured by omnivorous fish showing a unimodal pattern. Furthermore, the network skewness of zooplankton increased with nutrient enrichment, especially TN, and was negatively related to omnivorous fish. This skewness is more sensitive than β‐diversity, whereas negative skew is primarily caused by omnivorous fish. Our results demonstrated that top‐down effects were dominant for zooplankton communities and resulted in structural adjustment of zooplankton communities, mainly with an increase in fish predation. A negative skewed network indicates the presence of more generalist species and stronger connections among the zooplankton assemblages, as well as decreased β‐diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal phthalocyanines (MePc) hold great promise in electrochemical reduction of CO2 to value‐added chemicals, whereas the catalytic activity of MePc‐containing polymers often suffers from a limited molecular modulation strategy. Herein, we synthesize an ultrathin conjugated microporous polymer sheath around carbon nanotubes by an ionothermal copolymerization of CoPc and H2Pc via the Scholl reaction. Given the H2Pc‐mediated regulation in the synthesis, CoII metal is well preserved in the form of single atoms on the polymer sheath of the carbon nanotubes. With the synergistic effect of H2Pc moieties as proton/electron donors, the composites can selectively reduce CO2 to CO with a high Faradaic efficiency (max. 97 % at −0.9 V) in broad potential windows, exceptional turnover frequency (97 592 h−1 at −0.65 V) and large current density (>200 mA cm−2). It is thus desirable to develop a family of heterogeneous polymerized MePc with molecularly regulating electrocatalytic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal phthalocyanines (MePc) hold great promise in electrochemical reduction of CO2 to value‐added chemicals, whereas the catalytic activity of MePc‐containing polymers often suffers from a limited molecular modulation strategy. Herein, we synthesize an ultrathin conjugated microporous polymer sheath around carbon nanotubes by an ionothermal copolymerization of CoPc and H2Pc via the Scholl reaction. Given the H2Pc‐mediated regulation in the synthesis, CoII metal is well preserved in the form of single atoms on the polymer sheath of the carbon nanotubes. With the synergistic effect of H2Pc moieties as proton/electron donors, the composites can selectively reduce CO2 to CO with a high Faradaic efficiency (max. 97 % at −0.9 V) in broad potential windows, exceptional turnover frequency (97 592 h−1 at −0.65 V) and large current density (>200 mA cm−2). It is thus desirable to develop a family of heterogeneous polymerized MePc with molecularly regulating electrocatalytic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quality of high‐resolution luminescent films is key for high‐definition and near‐eye displays, but is limited by the apparent boundary effects at sub‐micrometer scales, such as boundary quenching in inorganic light‐emitting diodes and the coffee ring effect in inkjet printing. This study demonstrates that the electroplating of electrified electrode microarrays is not limited by boundary effects, enabling the deposition of luminescent dyes as high‐quality films with uniform and smooth morphologies as well as strong electroluminescence. As radial diffusion is the key to boundary effect in electroplating technology, small pixels tend to weaken the boundary effects and ease the overlap of diffusion layers. When the pixel size is lower than the critical value, the boundary effects can be eliminated. The smallest pixel width attempted is 3 µm, and prototype devices of monochrome and red‐green‐blue‐colored pixel arrays are successfully fabricated on glass and flexible backplanes without bad pixels and lines, indicating the high potential of the electroplating technique to achieve high‐resolution and immersive virtual reality for fine displays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design of robust separation materials with superwettability for efficient oil–water separation is of great significance because of the serious problem of oil leakage. Herein, we have fabricated a superwetting material based on copper foam via chemical oxidation and hydrothermal method for oil–water separation. These modified copper foam with rough structure exhibit excellent superhydrophilicity and underwater superoleophobicity. Thus, it shows high oil–water separation efficiency (99%), excellent circulation and high‐flux (24,129 Lm−2 h−1). Meanwhile, the modified copper foam exhibits favorable durability and stability under extreme environment conditions, such as immersion tests in salt, different pH conditions, high temperature and mechanical abrasion tests. Therefore, the modified copper foam has the advantages of high separation efficiency and remarkable stability, and is promising material, which can be used for the treatment of industrial oily wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Children, adolescents, and young adults with hematologic malignancies tend to receive high‐intensity end‐of‐life care (HI‐EOLC), but sociodemographic and hospital‐based predictors of HI‐EOLC remain unclear. Methods: The authors conducted a population‐based, retrospective cohort study with the Premier Healthcare Database. They identified individuals with hematologic malignancies who were 0 to 39 years old at death and died between 2010 and 2017. HI‐EOLC was defined as experiencing 2 or more of the following: cardiopulmonary resuscitation, intravenous chemotherapy, hemodialysis, mechanical ventilation, tracheostomy placement, or an emergency department visit within the last 30 days of life and death in the intensive care unit. Multivariable logistic regression models were constructed to identify patient sociodemographic and hospital characteristics associated with HI‐EOLC. Results: Among 1454 decedents, more than half (55%) experienced HI‐EOLC. In multivariable models, patients treated in medium (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.63; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07‐2.50) or large hospitals (aOR, 2.21; 95% CI, 1.45‐3.39), insured by Medicaid (aOR, 1.40 ; 95% CI, 1.09‐2.06), or receiving cancer‐directed treatment in the Northeast (aOR, 1.50; 95% CI, 1.05‐2.15) were more likely to receive HI‐EOLC. Conclusions: A majority of children, adolescents, and young adults with hematologic malignancies experienced HI‐EOLC, and the likelihood of HI‐EOLC was influenced by the hospital size, type of insurance, and geographic region. Further research is needed to determine how to mitigate these risks. Many children, adolescents, and young adults with hematologic malignancies experience intense end‐of‐life care across the United States. Predictors for more intense care may include 1) receiving care in larger hospitals, 2) having Medicaid insurance, and 3) receiving care in the Northeast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catastrophic regime shifts in various ecosystems are increasing with the intensification of anthropogenic pressures. Understanding and predicting critical transitions are thus a key challenge in ecology. Previous studies have mainly focused on single environmental drivers (e.g. eutrophication) and early warning signals (EWSs) prior to population collapse. However, how multiple environmental stressors interact to shape ecological behaviour and whether EWSs were detectable prior to the recovery process in lake ecosystems are largely unknown.We present long‐term empirical evidence of the critical transition and hysteresis with the combined pressures of climate warming, eutrophication and trophic cascade effects by fish stocking in a subtropical Chinese lake in the Yangtze floodplain. The catastrophic regime shifts are cross‐validated by 64‐year multi‐trophic level monitoring data and paleo‐diatom records.We show that EWSs are detectable in both the collapse and recovery trajectories and that including body size information in composite EWSs requires shorter time‐series data and can improve the predictive ability of regime shifts. Although full recovery has not yet been observed, EWSs prior to recovery provide us with the opportunity to take measures for a clear‐water regime.Climate warming and top‐down cascade effects have a negative influence on water clarity by altering lower trophic level abundance and body size, which, in turn, have a negative effect on macrophyte abundance. Furthermore, we identify a shift in the dominant driving forces from bottom‐up to top‐down after regime shifts, decoupling the relationships between nutrients and biological components and thus decreasing the efficiency of nutrient reduction.Synthesis. This study provides new insights into ecological hysteresis under multiple external stressors and improves our understanding of trait‐based early warning signals in both the collapse and recovery processes in natural freshwater ecosystems. For management practice, our work suggests that slowing down climate warming and weakening the fish predation pressure on food webs are necessary to increase the effectiveness of nutrient reduction in the restoration of lakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an advanced two‐step hot‐pressing process for fabricating the 1‐3 type Pb(ZrTi)O3/poly(vinylidene fluoride‐trifluoroethylene) (PZT/P(VDF‐TrFE)) piezoelectric composite sheets, demonstrating significant potential for nondestructive evaluation and information storage applications. The engineered columnar architecture within these composites induces a two‐phase clamping effect, which, upon polarization, facilitates the elongation of PZT and suppresses its lateral vibrations, thus enhancing the electromechanical coupling effect as verified by COMSOL simulations. A notable dielectric constant of 2200 at 100 Hz and a coupling coefficient of 0.725 was achieved with specific geometric modifications to the PZT/P(VDF‐TrFE) sheets. These findings suggest that P(VDF‐TrFE) as a polymer matrix exceeds the performance of conventional epoxy matrices, offering a novel approach to designing 1‐3 type piezoelectric composites. Highlights: P(VDF‐TrFE) effectively drives the elongation strain of internal PZT columns.COMSOL simulation clarifies the clamping effect of piezoelectric P(VDF‐TrFE).PZT/P(VDF‐TrFE) shows a higher kt of 0.725 than that of pure PZT samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Hypertension requires continuous and long‐term care to prevent associated complications. Chronic disease management mode (CDMM) was developed to improve patients' self‐management. We aimed to evaluate quality of care and clinical outcomes of CDMM versus routine care. Methods: 300 patients aged >30 years with primary hypertension were randomly allocated to the CDMM intervention group (n = 162) or the usual care control group (n = 138). CDMM comprised nursing consultations, telephone contact, online WeChat link, health education, and appropriate referrals during hospitalisation and after discharge. QLICD‐HY (V 2.0) scale was used to evaluate the quality of life. Care outcomes were biochemical parameters, body mass index, blood pressure levels, waist circumference, psychological indicators and quality of life assessed on admission (baseline) and one month post‐care for both groups. Data were collected and analysed using SPSS 20.0. Results: After one month, the intervention group had 6 mm Hg (95% CI: −5.12 to −9.08) lower SBP and 0.6 mM/L (95% CI: −0.52 to −0.68) lower LDL than the control group. In terms of improvements in BMI, UmAlb or waist circumference, there were no differences between both groups. The intervention group scored better on psychological indicators than controls (P < 0.05), and scores reflecting social and psychological function in the intervention group were significantly higher than scores at baseline, and higher than scores of controls after one month (P < 0.05). In the control group, there was no statistically significant difference between the scores at baseline and after one month. Conclusions: Under CDMM hypertension care, improvement of blood pressure and LDL was clinically significant. Intervention care further improves social and psychological function among participants with primary hypertension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynamic urban growth is affected by various driving factors which are important for building cellular automata (CA) models. Two categories of urban‐growth drivers (i.e., proximity and accessibility) have not been well differentiated in simulating urban patterns. We built two CA models (Pro‐CAPSO and Acc‐CAPSO) using particle swarm optimization (PSO) incorporating the proximity and accessibility drivers and applied these models to simulate urban growth at Zhuji in China. The results show that although both models accurately reproduced urban growth from 2005 to 2015, differences in the allocation of urban cells are apparent. The proximity‐based model yielded a slightly better figure of merit (FOM) of 19.3% during calibration (2005–2010) as compared to the accessibility‐based model with FOM of 17.5%. An opposite trend (FOM 17.5% vs. 18.3%) was found for subsequent validation (2010–2015). The simulations by the Acc‐CAPSO model are closer to the real urban patterns as measured by landscape metrics. The results indicate that accessibility is a relatively robust driver in predicting long‐term future urban growth. For specific regions, urban future scenarios produced by the two models show opposing patterns; in the same areas, when Pro‐CAPSO predicted more new urban cells, Acc‐CAPSO predicted fewer, and vice versa. Our methods are useful for modelers in selecting appropriate factors between proximity and accessibility and arrange the combination to represent human disturbance when simulating urban growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalytic enantioselective diorganozinc additions to cyclic diketones including pyrazolin‐4,5‐diones and isatins have been developed. In the presence of morpholine‐containing chiral amino alcohol ligand, the corresponding chiral cyclic tertiary alcohols were produced in good to excellent yields (up to 97 %) and enantioselectivities (up to 95 % ee). The notable feature of this protocol includes its mild reaction conditions, Lewis acid additives free and broad functional group tolerance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Convolutional neural network (CNN), as one of the mainstream deep learning models, has achieved great success in image recognition. All neurons used in CNN are based on the McCulloch‐Pitts model, which is over‐simplified. To further improve CNN's learning capacity, this paper proposes a novel dendritic CNN (DCNN), which considers the nonlinear information processing functions of dendrites in a single neuron. The superiority of DCNN is confirmed based on four widely used image recognition tasks. © 2021 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Esophageal cancer (EC) is the leading cause of cancer‐related mortality worldwide. The underlying genetic risk factors remain unclear. The association between gene growth hormone receptor (GHR) and phospholipase C epsilon 1 (PLCE1) polymorphisms and the EC risk were identified in this study. Methods: A total of 506 EC cases and 507 controls were included in this research. Two SNPs (rs6898743 of GHR and rs2274223 of PLCE1) were selected and genotyped. The associations between gene polymorphisms and the EC risk were assessed by logistic regression analysis. The databases RegulomeDB, GTEx, and UALCAN were used for functional annotations. Results: In the allelic frequencies analysis, the rs6898743 of GHR was associated with decreased susceptibility of EC (OR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.70–1.00, p = 0.049), while rs2274223 of PLCE1 was associated with increased 0.25‐fold EC risk (OR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.02–1.53, p = 0.037). The "GC" genotype of rs6898743 was associated with a 0.24‐fold decreased risk of EC under co‐dominant model (OR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.58–0.99, p = 0.046), and the "GA" genotype of rs2274223 was associated with increased EC risk under co‐dominant model (OR = 1.36, 95% CI: 1.04–1.77, p = 0.023). Using GTEx database, rs2274223 was found to be significant associated with increased PLCE1 expression (p = 4.1 × 10−7) in esophagus muscularis. The UALCAN database demonstrated that the GHR gene was under‐expressed in esophageal cancer tissues (p = 0.017). Conclusion: The gene GHR and PLCE1 polymorphisms are associated with EC in the general population and the results need to be verified in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter presents a study exploring the diverse characteristics of Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs) employed at eight research universities in the United States and investigates the ways in which these characteristics impact the value GSIs place on types of professional development and support in teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Anther development and pollen tube elongation are key steps for pollination and fertilization. The timing and spatial distribution of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and programmed cell death are central to these processes, but the regulatory mechanism of ROS production is not well understood. Inflorescence deficient in abscission (IDA) is implicated in many plant development and responses to environmental stimuli. However, their role in reproductive development is still unknown. We generated tomato knockout lines (CR‐slida) of an IDA homolog (SlIDA), which is expressed in the tapetum, septum and pollen tube, and observed a severe defect in male gametes. Further analysis indicated that there was a programmed cell death defect in the tapetum and septum and a failure of anther dehiscence in the CR‐slida lines, likely related to insufficient ROS signal. Liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry identified mature SlIDA as a 14‐mer EPIP peptide, which was shown to be secreted, and a complementation experiment showed that application of a synthetic 14‐mer EPIP peptide rescued the CR‐slida defect and enhanced the ROS signal. Moreover, the application of the ROS scavengers diphenyleneiodonium or Mn‐TMPP suppressed peptide function. Collectively, our results revealed that SlIDA plays an essential role in pollen development and pollen tube elongation by modulating ROS homeostasis. Significance Statement: Optimal and timing reactive oxygen species (ROS) is essential for fertilization. We found SlIDA, which is expressed in tapetum, septum and pollen tube. Knockout SlIDA showed a severely disrupted male gamete. The further analysis indicated tapetum and septum programmed cell death defect and failure of anther dehiscence in CRslida are related to downregulated ROS signal. The result uncovers novel ROS‐dependent function of SlIDA in regulating fertilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Top‐down and bottom‐up controls regulate the structure and stability of ecosystems, but their relative roles in terrestrial systems have been debated. Here we studied a hydro‐inundated land‐bridge system in subtropical China and tested the relative importance of these two controls in determining the rodent‐mediated regeneration of a locally dominant tree species. Our results showed that both controls operated in terrestrial habitats and that their relative importance switched as habitat size changed. Habitat loss initially removed predators of rodents that released rodent populations and triggered massive seed predation (top‐down control), leading to reduced seedling establishment. A further reduction in habitat size led to decrease in rodent population that was supposed to increase seedling survival of the tree species, but the decline in habitat size deteriorated the abiotic environments (bottom‐up control) that severely prevented seedling recruitment. As the ongoing global land use change is creating increasing number of small‐sized forest fragments, our findings provide novel insights into the restoration of seriously fragmented forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Radiomics is increasingly utilized to distinguish pulmonary nodules between lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and tuberculosis (TB). However, it remains unclear whether different segmentation criteria, such as the inclusion or exclusion of the cavity region within nodules, affect the results. Methods: A total of 525 patients from two medical centers were retrospectively enrolled. The radiomics features were extracted according to two regions of interest (ROI) segmentation criteria. Multiple logistic regression models were trained to predict the pathology: (1) The clinical model relied on clinical‐radiological semantic features; (2) The radiomics models (radiomics+ and radiomics−) utilized radiomics features from different ROIs (including or excluding cavities); (3) the composite models (composite+ and composite−) incorporated both above. Results: In the testing set, the radiomics+/− models and the composite+/− models still possessed efficient prediction performance (AUC ≥ 0.94), while the AUC of the clinical model was 0.881. In the validation set, the AUC of the clinical model was only 0.717, while that of the radiomics+/− models and the composite+/− models ranged from 0.801 to 0.825. The prediction performance of all the radiomics+/− and composite+/− models were significantly superior to that of the clinical model (p < 0.05). Whether the ROI segmentation included or excluded the cavity had no significant effect on these models (radiomics+ vs. radiomics−, composite+ model vs. composite−) (p > 0.05). Conclusions: The present study established a machine learning‐based radiomics strategy for differentiating LUAD from TB lesions. The ROI segmentation including or excluding the cavity region may exert no significant effect on the predictive ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Minimizing energy loss in organic solar cells (OSCS) is critical for attaining high photovoltaic performance. Among the parameters that correlated to photovoltaic performance, the energy offsets between donor–acceptor pairs play a vital role in photoelectric conversion processes. For so far reported a large number of non‐fullerene acceptors (NFAs), only Y6 and its derivatives can achieve external quantum efficiencies (EQEs) over 80% with negligible energy offsets when combined with polymeric donors. Thus, understanding the relationship between energy offsets and energy losses in representative NFAs is the key to further enhancing the efficiency of OSCs. In this study, a series of wide‐bandgap polymer donors based on pyrrolo[3,4‐f]benzotriazole‐5,7(6H)‐dione (TzBI) and benzo[1,2‐c:4,5‐c′] dithiophene‐4,8‐dione building blocks are combined with representative NFAs, including ITIC and Y6, to gain deep insights into their photovoltaic performances and related energy losses. Outstanding EQEs (≈70%) and suppressed non‐radiative recombination are achieved at negligible energy offsets. Moreover, it is noted that a prolonged exciton lifetime of acceptor is not essential to obtain high EQEs in OSCs with negligible energy offsets. Eventually, ITIC derivatives with high electroluminescence efficiencies and near‐infrared absorptions have the potential to be assembled to obtain high‐efficiency OSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of ethical leadership in mitigating the effects of abusive supervision and subsequent impact on employee outcomes including interaction justice, job attitudes and well‐being. We examined two sets of moderated mediating models to link positive and negative leader behaviors together by taking on a subordinate‐centric perspective. The first set stipulates that prior ethical leadership, as a moral licence, will reduce the negative impact of subsequent abusive supervision on interactional justice, which, in turn, will enhance subordinates' job‐related attitudes and well‐being. The second set hypothesizes that prior ethical leadership will accentuate the importance of interactional justice, making subordinates more easily influenced by subsequent abusive supervision. Data were obtained from full‐time Chinese employees by using a three‐wave time lagged design (n = 223). The results generally supported our second hypothesized model. Specifically, interactional justice mediated the relations between abusive supervision and work outcomes. Moreover, prior ethical leadership moderated the interactional justice–work outcome relations as well as the indirect effect of abusive supervision on work outcomes via interactional justice. Key points Ethical leadership and abusive supervision may coexist.Ethical leadership amplifies the importance of justice to employees.Ethical leadership cannot compensate for the harms of abusive supervision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]