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STUDY QUESTION Do prepregnancy peripheral leukocytes (PPLs) and their subsets influence the risk of spontaneous abortion (SAB)? SUMMARY ANSWER PPLs and their subsets are associated with the risk of SAB. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Compelling studies have revealed the crucial role of maternal peripheral leukocytes in embryo implantation and pregnancy maintenance. Adaptive changes are made by PPLs and their subsets after conception. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This population-based retrospective cohort study was based on data from the National Free Pre-pregnancy Check-up Project (NFPCP) in mainland China. Couples preparing for pregnancy within the next six months were provided with free prepregnancy health examinations and counseling services for reproductive health. The current study was based on 1 310 494 female NFPCP participants aged 20–49 who became pregnant in 2016. After sequentially excluding 235 456 participants lost to follow-up, with multiple births, and who failed to complete blood tests, a total of 1 075 038 participants were included in the primary analysis. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS PPLs and their subset counts and ratios were measured. The main outcome was SAB. A multivariable logistic regression model was used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and 95% CI of SAB associated with PPLs and their subsets, and restricted cubic spline (RCS) was used to estimate the nonlinear exposure-response relationship. MAIN RESULTS AND ROLE OF CHANCE Of the included pregnant participants, a total of 35 529 SAB events (3.30%) were recorded. Compared to participants with reference values of PPLs, the ORs (95% CIs) of leukopenia and leukocytosis for SAB were 1.14 (1.09–1.20) and 0.74 (0.69–0.79), respectively. The RCS result revealed a monotonous decreasing trend (P nonlinear < 0.05). Similar relationships were observed for the neutrophil count and ratio, monocyte count, and middle-sized cell count and ratio. The lymphocyte ratio showed a positive and nonlinear relationship with the risk of SAB (P nonlinear < 0.05). Both eosinophils and basophils showed positive relationships with the risk of SAB (eosinophil P nonlinear > 0.05 and basophil P nonlinear < 0.05). LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION Chemical abortion events and the cause of SAB were not collected at follow-up. Whether women with abnormal PPLs had recovered during periconception was not determined. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS PPLs and their subsets are associated with the risk of SAB. Leukopenia and neutropenia screening in women preparing for pregnancy and developing a feasible PPL stimulation approach should be emphasized to utilize the immune window of opportunity to prevent SAB. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) This study was approved by the Institutional Research Review Board of the National Health and Family Planning Commission. This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (grants 2021YFC2700705 [Y.Y.] and 2016YFC100307 [X.M.]) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 82003472 [L.W.]). The funding source was not involved in the study design, data collection, analysis and interpretation of the data, writing the report, or the decision to submit this article for publication. No competing interests. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER N/A. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combination of π-conjugated groups [NO3] and Cl-centered polyhedra generates a new birefringent crystal with a perovskite-related framework, KRb2(NO3)2Cl, which is the first alkali metal nitrate chloride synthesized by a mild hydrothermal method. It crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group pbam (no. 55). In addition, KRb2(NO3)2Cl crystals with dimensions up to 7 × 1.5 × 1 mm3 were grown. Notably, KRb2(NO3)2Cl has a short UV cut-off edge (below 228 nm) and a significantly enhanced birefringence (Δn = 0.084 at 1064 nm). Theoretical calculations indicate that the birefringence enhancement mainly derives from π-conjugated [NO3] plane triangles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new silicate fluoride, Mg2Pb2Si2O7F2, has been successfully synthesized using a high-temperature solution method. It crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Pbcn (No. 60). Mg2Pb2Si2O7F2 is the first lead-containing alkali earth metal silicate fluoride. The optical characterization indicates that Mg2Pb2Si2O7F2 possesses a wide transparent window. To confirm the coordination environment of Si and its thermostability, infrared spectra and thermal behaviors were also analyzed. First-principles calculations were also implemented for a better understanding of the relationship between the structure of Mg2Pb2Si2O7F2 and its properties. Additionally, to further explore the structural novelty of Mg2Pb2Si2O7F2, its structure is compared with anionic structures of silicate fluorides with alkali metals, alkaline earth metals or lone pair metal cations. Interestingly, the results indicate that the isolated [Si2O7] dimer is rare among the above systems, which enriches the structural chemistry of silicate fluorides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the complete synchronization of drive‐response Boolean networks (BNs) using the semi‐tensor product of matrices. First, a necessary and sufficient condition for complete synchronization is obtained. Next, a pinning control method for achieving complete synchronization of drive‐response BNs is proposed, based on certain transformations of the state transition matrix of drive BN. Then, an algorithm is proposed to obtain the minimum number of pinning nodes, based on the perturbation method. Finally, two numerical examples are given to verify the validity of the study results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hypoxic region microenvironment reduces the susceptibility of the cancer cells to radiotherapy and anticancer drugs of the solid tumors. However, the reduced oxygen surroundings provide an appreciable habitat for anaerobic bacteria to colonize and proliferate. Herein, we present a biocompatible bacteriabased system that can deliver poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)(PLGA) nanoparticles(PLGA NPs) specifically targeting into solid tumor to achieve precision imaging and treatment. In our strategy, anaerobic bacterium Bifidobacterium longum (B. longum) that colonizes selectively in hypoxic regions of animal body was successfully used as a vehicle to conjugate with PLGA NPs and transported into solid tumors. To improve the efficacy and specificity of tumor therapy, low-boiling point perfluorohexane (PFH) liquid was wrapped in the core of PLGA NPs (PFH/PLGA NPs), which could increase the deposition of energy by affecting the acoustic environment of the tumor and destroy cells after liquid-gas phase transition during High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) irradiation. This strategy shows an effective diagnosis and treatment integration for giving stronger imaging, longer retention period and more effective tumor therapy. • Bifidobacterium was conjugated with nanoparticles by carbodiimide method, and the biological activity of Bifidobacterium was not affected. • In vitro experiments demonstrated high efficient and stable binding efficiencies. • In vivo tumor targeting showed stronger fluorescence signal and longer retention time, achieving precision imaging. • In vivo precision targeted treatment showed more therapeutic effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work reports the use of monolayer colloidal crystal of polystyrene spheres as a template combined with electroless deposition to fabricate Ag through-sphere segment void (SSV) arrays. Experimental and theoretical (finite-difference time-domain) results reveal that the structured Ag through-SSV arrays create extraordinary optical transmission (EOT) and largely enhanced localized fields, thereby enabling EOT-based plasmonic sensing with a sensitivity of 295.38 nm/RIU (RIU = refractive index unit) and reproducible enhanced Raman signal with an enhancement factor of about 10 4 , respectively. These results suggest a low cost, feasible way to integrate plasmonic sensing and molecule-specified Raman detection on a single biochip. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the biggest renewable energy installation and generation country globally, it is important to deeply understand China's wind power production determinants and draw implications for energy policy. This paper analyzes local electricity deployment, electricity consumption, investment in wind power, and price of wind power electricity on-grid apart from traditional GDP and CO2 factors in the panel data regression model, and some interesting results are found. The investment of installation and the price of wind power electricity on-grid have negative impacts on wind power generation, while local electricity consumption and inter-provincial power transmission capacity significantly impact wind power generation positively. GDP and CO2 emission per capita have negative and positive impacts on wind power production, respectively. As for different wind power zones, the most influencing factors are local electricity consumption. Hence, this paper concludes that local absorbing capacity is still an important limiting factor to Chinese renewable energy development. At last, some policies are suggested to enhance the local absorbing capacity of renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Composite natural emulsifiers such as whey protein isolate (WPI) and chitosan (CS) are commonly used in Pickering emulsions to address the effect of thermal deformation of proteins before complexation with CS and heating after complexation. In this study, the properties of WPI and CS composites were investigated by complexing CS with either unmodified WPI or thermally denatured WPI (DWPI). Three types of composite particles were prepared, WPI-CS, DWPI-CS, and D(WPI-CS). Atomic force microscopy revealed that the composite particles formed larger aggregates with increased contour size and surface roughness compared to CS and WPI, whereas the interfacial tension decreased, indicating improved emulsifying abilities. Fourier-transform infrared analysis revealed differences in the hydrogen bonds between CS and WPI/DWPI. All three composite particles formed stable emulsions with droplet sizes of 20.00 ± 0.15, 27.80 ± 0.35, and 16.77 ± 0.51 μm, respectively. Thermal stability experiments revealed that the curcumin emulsion stabilized with WPI-CS and DWPI-CS exhibited relatively better thermal stability than that stabilized with D(WPI-CS). In vitro experiments results indicated that the bioaccessibility of the curcumin emulsion stabilized with WPI-CS was 61.18 ± 0.16%, significantly higher than that of the emulsions prepared with the other two composite particles ( p < 0.05). This study will enable the customized design of WPI composite-based Pickering emulsions for application in the food and nutrition industries., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Pu, Long, Xu, Niu, Wu, Chen, Wang and Ge.)

Two deep ultraviolet (DUV) hydroxylated-alkali-metal borates, NaRbB 10 O 14 (OH) 4 (I) and Na 3 CsB 10 O 16 (OH) 2 (II), have been successfully synthesized by a high-temperature solution and solvothermal method. Both of them feature [B 5 O m (OH) n ] units, which form chains for (I) and bilayers with nine-membered boron rings for (II). It is worth noting that both compounds exhibit very wide theoretical band gaps of 7.33 and 6.55 eV for (I) and (II), respectively, which denotes that they should have desirable DUV transmittance ability. Moreover, the title compounds have moderate birefringence owing to the π-conjugated [BO 3 ], [BO 2 (OH)] groups, corresponding to 0.070 for (I) and 0.054 for (II) at 1064 nm. The structure characteristics and optical properties were also investigated and discussed. The results make it beneficial for exploring novel DUV hydroxylated borate optical crystals.

The vanadate (VO) polyhedron offers a compelling avenue for exploring birefringent materials within the infrared frequency range. Among many potential building blocks, the implementation of [VO 3 ] ∞ chains demonstrated great potential as effective birefringent functional units. In this article, we successfully synthesized the Li 0.8 Na 0.2 CsV 2 O 6 ·H 2 O compound, which exhibits a remarkable birefringence of 0.134 at 546.1 nm, as confirmed by the experiment. Notably, the introduction of alkali metals in this compound led to a significantly shorter cutoff edge at 340 nm. Through a comprehensive investigation, Li 0.8 Na 0.2 CsV 2 O 6 ·H 2 O has the shortest UV cutoff edge among all vanadates, whose birefringences are larger than 0.1, to the best of our best knowledge. This finding underscores the application potential of this novel material as a birefringent crystal.

The combination of π-conjugated groups [NO 3 ] and Cl-centered polyhedra generates a new birefringent crystal with a perovskite-related framework, KRb 2 (NO 3 ) 2 Cl, which is the first alkali metal nitrate chloride synthesized by a mild hydrothermal method. It crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group pbam (no. 55). In addition, KRb 2 (NO 3 ) 2 Cl crystals with dimensions up to 7 × 1.5 × 1 mm 3 were grown. Notably, KRb 2 (NO 3 ) 2 Cl has a short UV cut-off edge (below 228 nm) and a significantly enhanced birefringence (Δ n = 0.084 at 1064 nm). Theoretical calculations indicate that the birefringence enhancement mainly derives from π-conjugated [NO 3 ] plane triangles.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of the application of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) hat-type ablation mode in in vitro and in vivo models, and to compare the ablation effects of different parameter combinations. MATERIAL AND METHODS HIFU hat-type ablation was performed in isolated bovine liver tissue and in the liver tissue in living rabbits, and the coagulative necrosis for different parameter combinations (plane angles and irradiation order) was investigated. We also analyzed and compared the ablation effects of traditional ablation and hat-type ablation modes. Coagulative necrosis morphology was detected with TTC staining, and the coagulative necrosis volume and energy efficiency factor (EEF) were calculated and compared. RESULTS Coagulative necrosis was observed in all the ablated groups, and the coagulative necrosis volume was much larger than the irradiation area. The coagulative necrosis induced by the hat-type ablation was more regular and controllable than the traditional ablation. The angles between the ablation planes determined the coagulative necrosis morphology, but did not affect the coagulative necrosis volume. Moreover, the irradiation order significantly influenced the coagulative necrosis. Importantly, under certain conditions, hat-type ablation achieved higher efficiency compared with the traditional ablation mode. CONCLUSIONS Compared with the traditional ablation mode, HIFU hat-type ablation effectively shortened the irradiation time, reduced the over-accumulation of energy, and increased the HIFU ablation efficiency.

High-efficient, plasmon-enhanced nonlinear phenomena based on hybrid nanostructures, which combine nonlinear dielectrics with plasmonic metals, are of fundamental importance for various applications ranging from all-optical switching to imaging or bio-sensing. However, the high loss of the excitation energy in nanostructures and the poor spatial overlap between the plasmon enhancement and the bulk of nonlinear materials largely limit the operation of plasmon-enhanced nonlinear effects, resulting in low nonlinear conversion efficiency. Here, we design and fabricate a ZnO-covered, 2D silver-bowl array, which can serve as an efficient platform for plasmon-enhanced second-harmonic generation (PESHG). Validated by experiments and simulations, we demonstrate that the high spatial overlap between the near-field enhancement and the ZnO film plays the key role for this nanostructure-based PESHG process. The enhancement mainly originates from the fundamental wavelength-derived plasmon resonance, providing an enhancement factor of approximately 33 times. These results achieved pave the way for future applications, which require localized light sources at nanoscale.