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Purpose: To examine the effect of walking interventions on sleep quality of persons with dementia (PWD) and their caregivers (dyads), and how different companions affect results. Method: Forty-five dyads were divided into three groups: a control group and two experimental groups (one with a care attendant, one with a family caregiver). The two experimental groups engaged in 120 minutes of walking per week for 24 weeks. Results: A significant improvement in sleep quality was observed among PWD in the family caregiver group (Wald χ[sup.2] = 4.55, p = 0.033), whereas there was no improvement in the care attendant group. A slight improvement in sleep quality of family caregivers was also found. Conclusion: Findings suggest the importance of creating individualized walking activity plans for dyads, incorporating trust and rapport-building strategies to improve sleep quality. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 50(8), 46–56.], Persons with dementia (PWD) and their family caregivers encounter various health challenges. Previous studies have shown that older adults with Alzheimer's disease exhibit various behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia [...]

Objective: This study aimed to establish a neural cell injury model in vitroby stimulating PC12 cells with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and to examine the effects of astragaloside IV on key targets using high-throughput sequence technology and bioinformatics analyses. Methods: PC12 cells in the logarithmic growth phase were treated with LPS at final concentrations of 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, and 1.25 mg/mL for 24 h. Cell morphology was evaluated, and cell survival rates were calculated. A neurocyte inflammatory model was established with LPS treatment, which reached a 50% cell survival rate. PC12 cells were treated with 0.01, 0.1, 1, 10, or 100 µmol/L astragaloside IV for 24 h. The concentration of astragaloside IV that did not affect the cell survival rate was selected as the treatment group for subsequent experiments. NOS activity was detected by colorimetry; the expression levels of ERCC2, XRCC4, XRCC2, TNF-α, IL-1β, TLR4, NOS and COX-2 mRNA and protein were detected by RT-qPCR and Western blotting. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the groups were screened using a second-generation sequence (fold change>2, P<0.05) with the following KEGG enrichment analysis, RT-qPCR and Western blotting were used to detect the mRNA and protein expression of DEGs related to the IL-17 pathway in different groups of PC12 cells. Results: The viability of PC12 cells was not altered by treatment with 0.01, 0.1, or 1 µmol/L astragaloside IV for 24 h (P>0.05). However, after treatment with 0.5, 0.75, 1, or 1.25 mg/mL LPS for 24 h, the viability steadily decreased (P<0.01). The mRNA and protein expression levels of ERCC2, XRCC4, XRCC2, TNF-α, IL-1β, TLR4, NOS, and COX-2 were significantly increased after PC12 cells were treated with 1 mg/mL LPS for 24 h (P<0.01); however, these changes were reversed when PC12 cells were pretreated with 0.01, 0.1, or 1 µmol/L astragaloside IV in PC12 cells and then treated with 1 mg/mL LPS for 24 h (P<0.05). Second-generation sequencing revealed that 1026 genes were upregulated, while 1287 genes were downregulated. The DEGs were associated with autophagy, TNF-α, interleukin-17, MAPK, P53, Toll-like receptor, and NOD-like receptor signaling pathways. Furthermore, PC12 cells treated with a 1 mg/mL LPS for 24 h exhibited increased mRNA and protein expression of CCL2, CCL11, CCL7, MMP3, and MMP10, which are associated with the IL-17 pathway. RT-qPCR and Western blotting analyses confirmed that the DEGs listed above corresponded to the sequence assay results. Conclusion: LPS can damage PC12 cells and cause inflammatory reactions in nerve cells and DNA damage. astragaloside IV plays an anti-inflammatory and DNA damage protective role and inhibits the IL-17 signaling pathway to exert a neuroprotective effect in vitro.

The P2Y14receptor has been proven to be a potential target for IBD. Herein, we designed and synthesized a series of 4-amide-thiophene-2-carboxyl derivatives as novel potent P2Y14receptor antagonists based on the scaffold hopping strategy. The optimized compound 39(5-((5-fluoropyridin-2-yl)oxy)-4-(4-methylbenzamido)thiophene-2-carboxylic acid) exhibited subnanomolar antagonistic activity (IC50: 0.40 nM). Moreover, compound 39demonstrated notably improved solubility, liver microsomal stability, and oral bioavailability. Fluorescent ligand binding assay confirmed that 39has the binding ability to the P2Y14receptor, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations revealed the formation of a unique intramolecular hydrogen bond (IMHB) in the binding conformation. In the experimental colitis mouse model, compound 39showed a remarkable anti-IBD effect even at low doses. Compound 39, with a potent anti-IBD effect and favorable druggability, can be a promising candidate for further research. In addition, this work lays a strong foundation for the development of P2Y14receptor antagonists and the therapeutic strategy for IBD.

Deep learning has achieved great progress in image recognition, segmentation, semantic recognition, and game theory. It also shows potential to solve scientific computing such as simulation problems in engineering. On the other hand, the numerical simulation method requires constitutive modelling, involves a huge computation volume and takes a long time. In this paper, two mirror U-Net models were proposed for the simulation of the heat transfer during the casting process. These models include an upper U-Net branch for the treatment of the geometries of casting, mold, and chill, and a lower U-Net branch for the treatment of the initial temperature field. Their difference is whether the bottoms of upper and lower U-Nets are shared. These two branches tackle the problems involving the input of a geometrical model which consists of three types of materials and the input of an initial or current temperature field image. These models were trained and validated with a big database with hundreds of casting shapes. The prediction results show that the average accuracy reaches 98.8%.

Prussian blue analogue (PBA)/metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are multifunctional precursors for the synthesis of metal/metal compounds, carbon, and their derived composites (P/MDCs) in chemical, medical, energy, and other applications. P/MDCs combine the advantages of both the high specific surface area of PBA/MOF and the electronic conductivity of metal compound/carbon. Although the calcination under different atmospheres has been extensively studied, the transformation mechanism of PBA/MOF under hydrothermal conditions remains unclear. The qualitative preparation of P/MDCs in hydrothermal conditions remains a challenge. Here, we select PBA to construct a machine-learning model and measure its hydrothermal phase diagram. The architecture–activity relationship of substances among nine parameters was analyzed for the hydrothermal phase transformation of PBA. Excitingly, we established a universal qualitative model to accurately fabricate 31 PBA derivates. Additionally, we performed three-dimensional reconstructed transmission electron microscopy, X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy, in situ X-ray powder diffraction, and theoretical calculation to analyze the advantages of hydrothermal derivatives in the oxygen evolution reaction and clarify their reaction mechanisms. We uncover the unified principles of the hydrothermal phase transformation of PBA, and we expect to guide the design for a wide range of composites.

Foam concrete is a prospective material in defense engineering to protect structures due to its high energy absorption capability resulted from the long plateau stage. However, stress enhancement rather than stress mitigation may happen when foam concrete is used as sacrificial claddings placed in the path of an incoming blast load. To investigate this interesting phenomenon, a one-dimensional difference model for blast wave propagation in foam concrete is firstly proposed and numerically solved by improving the second-order Godunov method. The difference model and numerical algorithm are validated against experimental results including both the stress mitigation and the stress enhancement. The difference model is then used to numerically analyze the blast wave propagation and deformation of material in which the effects of blast loads, stress–strain relation and length of foam concrete are considered. In particular, the concept of minimum thickness of foam concrete to avoid stress enhancement is proposed. Finally, non-dimensional analysis on the minimum thickness is conducted and an empirical formula is proposed by curve-fitting the numerical data, which can provide a reference for the application of foam concrete in defense engineering.

Primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease with an unclear pathogenesis, and there is currently no approved drug for the treatment of this disease. Iguratimod, as a novel clinical anti-rheumatic drug in China and Japan, has shown remarkable efficacy in improving the symptoms of patients with pSS in clinical studies. In this study we investigated the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effect of iguratimod in the treatment of pSS. Experimental Sjögren’s syndrome (ESS) model was established in female mice by immunizing with salivary gland protein. After immunization, ESS mice were orally treated with iguratimod (10, 30, 100 mg·kg−1·d−1) or hydroxychloroquine (50 mg·kg−1·d−1) for 70 days. We showed that iguratimod administration dose-dependently increased saliva secretion, and ameliorated ESS development by predominantly inhibiting B cells activation and plasma cell differentiation. Iguratimod (30 and 100 mg·kg−1·d−1) was more effective than hydroxychloroquine (50 mg·kg−1·d−1). When the potential target of iguratimod was searched, we found that iguratimod bound to TEC kinase and promoted its degradation through the autophagy-lysosome pathway in BAFF-activated B cells, thereby directly inhibiting TEC-regulated B cells function, suggesting that the action mode of iguratimod on TEC was different from that of conventional kinase inhibitors. In addition, we found a crucial role of TEC overexpression in plasma cells of patients with pSS. Together, we demonstrate that iguratimod effectively ameliorates ESS via its unique suppression of TEC function, which will be helpful for its clinical application. Targeting TEC kinase, a new regulatory factor for B cells, may be a promising therapeutic option.

Double perovskites (DPs) have attracted attention in the field of luminescence due to their inherent broadband emission of self-trapping excitons. In this work, we choose [(CH3)3NCH2CHCH2]+and [CH3CHOHCH2NH2]+as organic cations to synthesize two new organic–inorganic hybrid DPs, [(CH3)3NCH2CHCH2]2KInCl6(1) and [CH3CHOHCH2NH2]2KInCl6(2). The [KCl6]3–and [InCl6]3–octahedra are interchangeably connected by sharing two opposite faces, forming a one-dimensional coordination chain. Each K atom coordinates with six chlorine atoms in 1, while it coordinates with two oxygen atoms in addition to the six chlorine atoms in 2. The coordination between ions K and O in compound 2may have significantly reduced its luminescence. As a result, compound 1shows bright-yellow light with a quantum yield of more than 90%, while 2shows weak blue light with a quantum yield of only 0.98%. In addition, different from no phase transition found in 2, 1undergoes a reversible phase transition at 324/307 K in the heating–cooling cycle. Through structural and spectral analysis and density functional theory calculation, we conclude that the larger degree of [InCl6]3–octahedral distortion and the larger anion distance (In···In) also cause the PLQY of compound 1to be higher than that of compound 2.

Cesium carbonate promoted direct amidation of unactivated esters with amino alcohols was developed without the use of transition-metal catalysts and coupling reagents. This method enabled the synthesis of several serine-containing oligopeptides and benzamide derivatives with yields up to 90%. The methodology proceeds under mild reaction conditions and exhibits no racemization for most naturally occurring amino acid substrates. The reaction demonstrates good compatibility with primary alkyl and benzyl esters and broad tolerance for a range of amino acid substrates with nonpolar and protected side chains. The hydroxy group on the amine nucleophile was found to be critical for the reaction to be successful. A likely mechanism involving cesium coordination to the substrates enabling the subsequent proximity-driven acyl transfer was proposed. The practicality of this approach was demonstrated in the preparation of a biologically active nicotinamide derivative in a reasonable yield.

This study aims to develop the culture methods for Longfin Smelt Spirinchus thaleichthysin a laboratory setting, achieving the first production of a fully captive second generation (F2). The objective includes understanding the critical factors influencing the breeding and maturation of this species in captivity, contributing to conservation efforts and potential revival of this threatened species. Longfin Smelt broodstock were collected from the San Francisco Estuary and reared in controlled conditions at the University of California Davis Fish Conservation and Culture Laboratory (FCCL). The study involved spawning of wild broodstock, rearing of first generation (F1) progeny to adulthood, and subsequent spawning to produce F2 offspring. Key variables such as salinity, temperature, and diet were carefully managed throughout the process. Fertilization and hatching rates were calculated, and the larvae were reared using the same methods to closely monitor and understand their growth and development. First generation Longfin Smelt successfully matured and spawned at age 1, earlier than commonly observed in the wild. From five crosses, four produced viable offspring. The study recorded a range of fertilization rates (10–40%) and high hatching rates (75–97%). Salinity was identified as a critical factor in both larval development and adult maturation. While initial larval survival was challenging, the larval rearing system used in this study proved effective. The study represents a major breakthrough in the cultivation of Longfin Smelt, showing that it is possible to complete their life cycle under controlled conditions. It has provided valuable understanding of the maturation and breeding processes in these fish, with an emphasis on the influence of salinity. These outcomes are crucial for conservation strategies, offering the potential to help establish a refuge population and laying the groundwork for further research aimed at refining captive breeding methods for this species. Impact statementThis research achieves a significant milestone in protecting Longfin Smelt, a threatened fish vital to both river and ocean environments. Successful breeding in labs takes us a step closer to their conservation, enhancing ecosystem health and aiding local fisheries. This work shows the power of dedicated conservation efforts in preserving at‐risk species and sustaining the balance of our natural habitats. This research achieves a significant milestone in protecting Longfin Smelt, a threatened fish vital to both river and ocean environments. Successful breeding in labs takes us a step closer to their conservation, enhancing ecosystem health and aiding local fisheries. This work shows the power of dedicated conservation efforts in preserving at‐risk species and sustaining the balance of our natural habitats.

Red yeast rice (RYR), a natural lipid-lowering agent, is widely used in clinical practice. However, the existing meta-analyses concerning the safety of RYR preparations have yielded inconsistent results, and the credibility of the evidence has not been quantified.

The flexoelectric effect, as a novel form of the electromechanical coupling phenomenon, has attracted significant attention in the fields of materials science and electronic devices. It refers to the interaction between strain gradients and electric dipole moments or electric field intensity gradients and strain. In contrast to the traditional piezoelectric effect, the flexoelectric effect is not limited by material symmetry or the Curie temperature and exhibits a stronger effect at the nanoscale. The flexoelectric effect finds widespread applications ranging from energy harvesting to electronic device design. Utilizing the flexoelectric effect, enhanced energy harvesters, sensitive sensors, and high-performance wearable electronic devices can be developed. Additionally, the flexoelectric effect can be utilized to modulate the optoelectronic properties and physical characteristics of materials, holding the potential for significant applications in areas such as optoelectronic devices, energy storage devices, and flexible electronics. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the historical development, measurement of flexoelectric coefficients, enhancement mechanisms, and current research progress of the flexoelectric effect. Additionally, it offers a perspective on future prospects of the flexoelectric effect.

Pyroelectricity is a characteristic property of materials that converts temperature fluctuations into electric signals. Ferroelectric materials, such as BaTiO3, are frequently applied in pyroelectric devices. However, the depolarization of the material above the Curie temperature (Tc) restricts the pyroelectric response of existing ferroelectric-based devices. Here, we propose an alternative approach where the pyroelectric response relates to the built-in electric field generated at a Schottky interface. The indium tin oxide/BaTiO3/LaNiO3film with a Schottky interface exhibits good pyroelectric performance when the operating temperature is ∼20°C higher than the Tc(125°C) of bulk BaTiO3. The film exhibits a pyroelectric current density of 0.537 μA/cm2and a high cyclic stability at 150°C. The pyroelectric film can operate as a self-powered temperature sensor above the Tcof bulk BaTiO3, with a response time of 30 ms. This study provides a new strategy to enhance the pyroelectric properties and reliability of ferroelectric-based devices.

The antagonistic coculture with tea phytopathogen Colletotrichum pseudomajusinduces antifungal cryptic metabolites from isogenesis endophyte Daldinia eschscholtziiagainst tea phytopathogens. Sixteen new polyketides with six structural frameworks including ten cryptic ones, named coldaldols A–C (1–3), collediol (5), and daldinrins A–L (10–20and 23), were found from the coculture of C. pseudomajusand D. eschscholtziiby different culture methods. The unique framework of compounds 11and 12featured a benzopyran-C7polyketone hybrid, and compounds 13–16were characterized by the novel benzopyran dimer. The structures were determined mainly by spectroscopic methods, including extensive one-dimensional (1D), two-dimensional (2D) NMR, high resolution electrospray ionisation mass spectroscopy (HRESIMS), ECD calculation, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The configuration of acyclic compounds 5and 18were determined by application of the universal NMR database. Most compounds showed significant antifungal activities against the tea pathogens C. pseudomajusand Alternariasp. with MICs of 1–8 μg/mL. Compound 12had stronger antifungal activity than that of positive drug nystatin. The ether bond at C-4 of the benzopyran derivative increased the antifungal activity. Compounds 4–9and 11–23showed antifeedant activities against silkworms with feeding deterrence indices of 15–100% at the concentration of 50 μg/cm2.

Vaccines are one of the most practical means to stop the spreading of Aeromonas veroniiin aquaculture. In this study, virulence factor aerolysin mutant NTaer which has lost its hemolytic activity was used as a target antigen. Pichia pastorisconstitutive secretory expression NTaer (GS115-NTaer) was used as a potential safe oral vaccine to evaluate its effectiveness on zebrafish immunity. The result shows that vaccination of GS115- NTaer for four weeks did not affect the growth performance of the host, while eliciting an effective immune protective response. Compared with the control group, the GS115-NTaer could significantly up-regulate the relative expression level of the intestinal tight junction protein 1α (TJP1α) gene, and significantly increased the contents of lysozyme (LYZ), complement C3 and C4 in the gut, indicating that the innate immune response of the fish was activated. The relative gene expression levels of macrophage-expressed gene 1 (MPEG1) and T cell receptor (TCR-α) in the gut, and MPEG1, CD4, CD8, TCR-α, GATA3,and T-betin the spleen were all increased significantly, indicating that the cellular immune response of the fish was activated. Furthermore, the contents of serum IgM and intestinal mucosa IgZ antibodies were significantly increased, which showed that humoral immunity was also activated. Moreover, inoculation with GS115-NTaer significantly changed the structure of gut microbiota. In particular, the relative ratio of (Firmicutes + Fusobacteriota + Bacteroidota)/Proteobacteria was significantly higher than that of the control and GS115 groups. Lastly, the vaccinated fish were challenged with A. veronii,and the relative percent survival of GS115 and the GS115-NTear groups was 14.28% and 33.43%. This improvement of immunity was not only due to the specific immune response but also attributed to the improvement of innate immunity and the gut microbiota which was demonstrated by the germ-free zebrafish model. Collectively, this study provides information on the effectiveness of GS115-NTear as an oral vaccine for the green prevention and control of A. veroniiinfection in fish aquaculture.

As an essential link in ultra-precision machining technology, various new surface polishing technologies and processes have always attracted continuous in-depth research and exploration by researchers. As a new research direction of ultra-precision machining technology, magnetorheological polishing technology has become an important part. The polishing materials and magnetorheological fluids involved in the process of magnetorheological polishing are reviewed. The polishing principle, equipment development, theoretical research and process research of magnetorheological polishing technologies, such as the wheel-type, cluster-type, ball-type, disc-type and other types, derived from the magnetorheological polishing process, are reviewed. The above magnetorheological polishing technologies are analyzed and compared from the perspective of processing accuracy, processing efficiency and application range. The curvature adaptive magnetorheological polishing technology with a circulatory system is proposed to achieve high efficiency and high-quality polishing.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder characterized by cognitive impairments. Despite the limited efficacy of current treatments for AD, the 1,2,4-oxadiazole structure has garnered significant attention in medicinal chemistry due to its potential impact on mGluR1 and its association with AD therapy. In this study, a series of novel 1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for the neuroprotective effects in human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells. Among all the derivatives tested, FO-4-15(5f) existed the lowest cytotoxicity and the highest protective effect against H2O2. Based on these in vitro results, FO-4-15was administered to 3×Tg mice and significantly improved the cognitive impairments of the AD mice. Pathological analysis showed that FO-4-15significantly reduced Aβ accumulation, Tau hyper-phosphorylation, and synaptic impairments in the 3×Tg mice. Dysfunction of the CaMKIIα/Fos signaling pathway in 3×Tg mice was found to be restored by FO-4-15and the necessity of the CaMKIIα/Fos for FO-4-15was subsequently confirmed by the use of a CaMKIIα inhibitor in vitro. Beyond that, mGluR1 was identified to be a potential target of FO-4-15, and the interaction of FO-4-15and mGluR1 was displayed by Ca2+flow increase, molecular docking, and interaction energy analysis. The target of FO-4-15was further confirmed in vitro by JNJ16259685, a nonselective inhibitor of mGluR1. These findings suggest that FO-4-15may hold promise as a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.

Angiosperms are the cornerstone of most terrestrial ecosystems and human livelihoods1,2. A robust understanding of angiosperm evolution is required to explain their rise to ecological dominance. So far, the angiosperm tree of life has been determined primarily by means of analyses of the plastid genome3,4. Many studies have drawn on this foundational work, such as classification and first insights into angiosperm diversification since their Mesozoic origins5–7. However, the limited and biased sampling of both taxa and genomes undermines confidence in the tree and its implications. Here, we build the tree of life for almost 8,000 (about 60%) angiosperm genera using a standardized set of 353 nuclear genes8. This 15-fold increase in genus-level sampling relative to comparable nuclear studies9provides a critical test of earlier results and brings notable change to key groups, especially in rosids, while substantiating many previously predicted relationships. Scaling this tree to time using 200 fossils, we discovered that early angiosperm evolution was characterized by high gene tree conflict and explosive diversification, giving rise to more than 80% of extant angiosperm orders. Steady diversification ensued through the remaining Mesozoic Era until rates resurged in the Cenozoic Era, concurrent with decreasing global temperatures and tightly linked with gene tree conflict. Taken together, our extensive sampling combined with advanced phylogenomic methods shows the deep history and full complexity in the evolution of a megadiverse clade.

With the advancement of human–computer interaction and technology revolution, the value and importance of user convenience and human-centered framework are emphasized, which leads to the improvement of interface design to achieve a better user experience. In recent years, the lifestyle of browsing short videos in leisure time is commonly and by degree altering media exposure and consumption patterns, audience experience and practices to immersive communication. The perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), and cognitive attention and flow elicitation of the interactive interface determine users’ direct evaluation. This study applied the neurocognitive method and behavior experiment to explore the influence of short video app interaction interface on human brain information processing mechanism and user experience by comparing two models, cascade flow interactive (CFI) and up-down sliding (UDS). The results revealed that judging from perceived usefulness, perceived purpose, perceived control, and perception of time illusion, the CFI model performed better in perceived usefulness and control, while the UDS model scored in perceived ease of use and concentration. It is imperative to simplify the information flowing and processing, as complex patterns may emphasis overarching operation and cognitive overload, and to further discuss on perceived hedonism and participatory interaction. Thus, drew upon the characteristics of mobile short video apps, the implication of the study is to increase the sense of affordance in interaction, maintain a satisfied user short video-watching experience successively, and eventually foster brand loyalty.

This study examines how firms cope with internal (behavioural) uncertainty and external (environmental) uncertainty when they make FDI entry mode decisions, and the possible differences between FBs and non-FBs. Drawing from the Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) tradition and new internalisation theory, we hypothesise that all firms tend to choose Joint Venture (JVs) over Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries (WOSs) when they encounter high uncertainty. We further hypothesise that, due to FBs' concerns of Socioemotional Wealth (SEW), they are more likely than non-FBs to choose JVs when coping with high internal uncertainty and external uncertainty. The empirical results partially support our hypotheses, suggesting that FBs and non-FBs cope with internal uncertainty differently: FBs exhibit a higher tendency to choose JVs when they cope with internal uncertainty. However, FBs and non-FBs make similar FDI entry mode decisions when coping with external uncertainty. Findings in this study contribute to FDI entry mode studies, as well as FB internationalisation research and new internalisation theory.

We report a compact modeling framework based on the Grove–Frohman (GF) model and artificial neural networks (ANNs) for emerging gate-all-around (GAA) MOSFETs. The framework consists of two ANNs; the first ANN constructed with the drain current model not only can capture the main trend of device ${I}$ – ${V}$ characteristics but also can predict its variation even when the amount of training data for the ANN is insufficient or outside the range of applied biases. The second one is then designed to improve the model accuracy by further minimizing the errors between the target and the model outputs. We implement the proposed framework to accurately model emerging GAA nanosheet (NS) MOSFETs and complementary FETs (CFETs) without suffering from divergent issues in circuit simulation. In addition, nonphysical behaviors, such as nonzero current at zero bias, do not occur in the modeling framework. Compared to recently reported machine-learning (ML) models, our approach can achieve a similar level of model accuracy with merely 20% amount of the training data.

Purpose: Migraine, a severely debilitating condition, may be effectively managed with topiramate, known for its migraine prevention and weight loss properties due to changes in body muscle and fat composition and improved insulin sensitivity. However, the mechanism of topiramate in modulating insulin response in adipocytes and myocytes remains elusive. This study aims to elucidate these molecular mechanisms, offering insights into its role in weight management for migraine sufferers and underpinning its clinical application. Methods: Insulin resistance improvements were evaluated through glucose uptake measurements in C2C12 muscle cells and 3T3L-1 adipocytes, with Oil red O staining conducted on adipocytes. RNA-seq transcriptome analysis was used to identify the regulatory target genes of topiramate in these cells. The involvement of key genes and pathways was further validated through western blot analysis. Results: Topiramate effectively reduced insulin resistance in C2C12 and 3T3L-1 cells. In C2C12 cells, it significantly lowered SORBS1gene and protein levels. In 3T3L-1 cells, topiramate upregulated CTGFand downregulated MAPK8and KPNA1genes. Changes were notable in nuclear cytoplasmic transport and circadian signaling pathways. Furthermore, it caused downregulation of MKK7, pJNK1/ JNK1, BMAL1, and CLOCK proteins compared to the insulin-resistant model. Conclusion: This study provides preliminary insights into the mechanisms through which topiramate modulates insulin resistance in C2C12 myocytes and 3T3L-1 adipocytes, enhancing our understanding of its therapeutic potential in managing weight and insulin sensitivity in migraine patients.

Designing filters with perfect frequency responses (i.e., flat passbands, sharp transition bands, highly suppressed stopbands, and linear phase responses) is always the ultimate goal of any digital signal processing (DSP) practitioner. High-order finite impulse response (FIR) filters may meet these requirements when we put no constraint on implementation complexity. In contrast to FIR filters, infinite impulse response (IIR) filters, owing to their recursive structures, provide an efficient way for high-performance filtering at reduced complexity. However, also due to their recursive structure, IIR filters inherently have nonlinear phase responses, and this does restrain their applicability. In this article, we propose two tricks regarding cascading a prototype IIR filter with a few shaping all-pass filters (APFs) for an almost linear phase response over its passband. After performing a delicate design on the prototype and shaping filters, we approach perfect filtering with reduced complexity.

Background: Iodine is an essential element for the biosynthesis of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). Both excessive and deficient iodine are major risk factors for thyroid diseases, including thyroid dysfunction, thyroid nodules, and thyroid autoimmunity (TAI). This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between iodine status and the prevalence of thyroid diseases through a national cross-sectional epidemiological survey in Jiangxi province (China). Methods: This population-based, cross-sectional study enrolled 2636 Chinese local inhabitants who aged over 18 years old from April to August in 2015. Physical examination was performed and biochemical indices, urinary iodine concentration (UIC), and TSH level were measured. The Chi-square test, nonparametric test, and 4 multivariate logistic regression models adjusted for risk factors were applied to analysis. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated to investigate the relationship between iodine intake level and the prevalence of thyroid diseases. Results: The median UIC was 176.4 μg/L, and a significant difference was found in median UIC between men (182.45 μg/L) and women (169.25 μg/L) (P= 0.03). Among these study subjects, 14.4%, 44.5%, 26.1%, and 15.0% had deficient, adequate, more than adequate, and excessive iodine concentrations, respectively. The prevalence rates of hyperthyroidism, subclinical hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, subclinical hypothyroidism, thyroid nodules, and TAI were 0.91%, 0.57%, 0.34% and 7.89%, 9.45%, and 12.7%, respectively. Significant differences were found in iodine status, waist circumstance, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), total cholesterol (TC), TSH, thyroid nodules, and TAI between men and women (P< 0.05). Compared with those with adequate UIC, subjects with excessive UIC had higher prevalence rates of thyroid dysfunction (odds ratio (OR) = 1.74, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.40–2.54) and thyroid nodules (OR = 3.33, 95%CI 1.32–8.42). In addition, subjects with deficient and excessive UIC were at the higher risk of TAI compared with those with adequate UIC (OR = 1.68, 95%CI: 1.19–2.60; OR = 1.52, 95%CI: 1.04–2.96, respectively). UIC was positively correlated with the prevalence rates of thyroid nodules (r = −0.44, P< 0.01) and TAI (r = −0.055, P< 0.01). On the contrary, UIC was negatively correlated with the risk of thyroid dysfunction (r = −0.24, P> 0.05). Conclusion: Adult inhabitants from Jiangxi province in the TIDE study were in the adequate iodine status. Excessive iodine status was noted as a risk factor for thyroid dysfunction and thyroid nodules. In addition, both iodine deficiency and excessive iodine were risk factors for TAI.

The pyroelectric effect is used in a wide range of applications such as infrared (IR) detection and thermal energy harvesting, which require the pyroelectric materials to simultaneously have a high pyroelectric coefficient and a low dielectric constant for high figures of merit. However, in conventional proper ferroelectrics, the positive correlation between the pyroelectric coefficient and the dielectric constant imposes an insurmountable challenge in upgrading the figures of merit. Here, we explored superior pyroelectricity in [(CH3)4N][FeCl4] (TMA-FC) and [(CH3)4N][FeCl3Br] (TMA-FCB) molecular ferroelectric plastic crystals, which could decouple this positive correlation due to the nature of improper polarization behavior. Therefore, TMA-FC and TMA-FCB derive a high pyroelectric coefficient and a low dielectric constant simultaneously, yielding record-high figures of merit around room temperature. Furthermore, the favorable plasticity enables ferroelectric crystals to attach surfaces with different shapes for device design and integration. More interestingly, the molecular ferroelectrics could be softened and reshaped at elevated temperatures without decay in pyroelectricity, making them recyclable for cost savings and e-waste reduction. Combined with the facile fabrication process, the findings of this work would open avenues for employing molecular ferroelectric plastic crystals in the manufacture of high-performance pyroelectric devices.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is an attractive target for cancer therapy. However, identifying potent and selective STAT3 small-molecule inhibitors with drug-like properties remains challenging. Based on a scaffold combination strategy, compounds with a novel N-(benzimidazol-5-yl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-amine scaffold were designed and their inhibition of the interleukin-6 (IL-6)/JAK/STAT3 pathway was tested in HEK-Blue IL-6 reporter cells. After optimization of lead compound 12, compound 40was identified as a selective STAT3 inhibitor that directly binds the SH2 domain to inhibit STAT3 phosphorylation, translocation, and downstream gene transcription. Compound 40exhibited antiproliferative activities against STAT3-overactivated DU145 (IC50value = 2.97 μM) and MDA-MB-231 (IC50value = 3.26 μM) cancer cells and induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. In the DU145 xenograft model, compound 40showed in vivo antitumor efficacy following intraperitoneal administration, with a tumor growth inhibition rate of 65.3% at 50 mg/kg, indicating promise for further development.

In this work, a modeling study of the average and distributed properties of hyperbranched polymers has been performed. A kinetic Monte Carlo algorithm was developed to trace the formation of hyperbranched structures by three typical synthetic routes: (i) polycondensation of AB2-type monomers; (ii) self-condensing vinyl polymerization (SCVP) of AB-type monomers; and (iii) polycondensation of A2and B3monomers. Model validation was performed with experimental data. Significantly, the expression of the degree of branching (DB) was revised to make it sensitive to cyclic defects. Critical factors such as cyclization and non-equal reactivity were analyzed for each case, summarizing that cyclization can cause a decrease in dispersity and an increase in linear unit reactivity can improve the average degree of branching (DB¯). Specifically, for SCVP, the relative reactivity of two active sites and the composition of the inimer and monomer determine how much the linear dendritic hybrid can be branched. Additionally, the DB¯can also be increased as much as possible by delaying the gelation for the A2and B3system. This work contributes to the study of the DB distribution of hyperbranched polymers with cyclic defects and provides theoretical guidance for the design of hyperbranched structures.

Rational utilization of exogenous additives is the key to enhance phytoremediation efficiency for removal of heavy metal contamination in soil. However, the physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms of organic acids promoting the removal of Cd from soil by hyperaccumulator Solanum nigrumare still not well understood. EDTA and five organic acids, oxalic acid (OA), citric acid (CA), malic acid (MA), tartaric acid (TA), and succinic acid (SA), were added as exogenous additives to S. nigrumseedlings treated with Cd. The effect of EDTA and organic acids on physiological processes, Cd accumulation, and the expression of Cd stress related-genes in S. nigrumunder Cd stress were analyzed. The growth of S. nigrumseedlings was significantly inhibited by Cd, but the addition of CA resulted in a 3.01-fold increase in seedling biomass compared to those treated with Cd alone. The content of the photosynthetic pigments in seedlings decreased significantly due to Cd toxicity, while CA could effectively restore the photosynthetic pigments to the level of CK. The levels of MDA, proline, and H2O2induced by Cd toxicity decreased after CA application, which revealed that CA effectively alleviated Cd toxicity to S. nigrum. CA alleviates the Cd toxicity in the following aspects: it maintains the non-enzymatic antioxidant content, mediates the expression of enzymatic antioxidant genes such as SnCAT1, and alters the chemical form of Cd from high toxicity to low toxicity. Notably, CA effectively stimulates the expression of Cd transport and compartment-related genes, such as SnNRAMP3and SnPCS1, thus facilitating Cd transport from the roots to the shoots. Through comprehensive evaluation, CA is considered to be the most effective chelating agent to enhance the efficiency of S. nigrumin removing Cd contamination. CA effectively alleviates photosynthetic pigment degradation and ROS homeostasis imbalance caused by Cd toxicity by regulating gene expression, thereby maintaining the growth of S. nigrumunder Cd stress. Additionally, CA facilitates the accumulation of Cd in the shoots of S. nigrum. These findings suggest that CA can replace EDTA as a chelating agent for enhancing the ability of S. nigrumto remove Cd contamination.

Olivine compositions are widely used to constrain magmatic thermodynamic conditions such as magmatic temperature, oxygen fugacity, and H2O content. However, elemental diffusion may change the initial compositions and lead to large uncertainty on the estimation of these thermodynamic conditions. In this study, we conducted LA-ICP-MS elemental mapping and EPMA analysis of olivine phenocrysts and olivine-hosted spinel from the Jiagedaqi (JGD) alkaline basalts in northeast China to evaluate the influence of elemental difusion on olivine-composition-based geothermometry, oxybarometry, and hygrometry. The JGD olivines show normal Fo [Mg/(Mg + Fe) × 100 in moles] zoning, with cores having Fo of 77–87 and rims having Fo of 67–73. The constant P contents from core to rim indicate that these compositional zonings were caused mainly by difusion. Because Al is a slow-diffusing element and its content is relatively constant from core to rim, the temperature calculated by the Al-in-olivine thermometer is not influenced by elemental difusion and preserves the JGD olivine crystallization temperature up to 1150 °C. The temperatures calculated using the Sc/Y-in-olivine thermometer, the oxygen fugacity calculated using the olivine–spinel oxybarometer, and the H2O content calculated on the basis of Ca partitioning between olivine and melt are strongly influenced by the diffusion of Fo, Sc/Y, and Ca. However, the compositional plateaus in olivine cores, which were not influenced by elemental diffusion, preserve the magmatic temperature (1150 °C), oxygen fugacity (QFM+1.4), and H2O content (4 wt%) that applied during the formation of the JGD olivines. Together, these findings suggest that the mantle source of the JGD basalts was metasomatized by fluids released from the subducted slab. This study highlights that elemental difusion in olivine phenocrysts can strongly afect the application of olivine-composition-based geothermometers, oxybarometers, and hygrometers. However, primitive olivine cores that have not been influenced by difusion preserve the initial magmatic thermodynamic conditions.

Oral healthcare monitoring is a vital aspect of identifying and addressing oral dental problems including tooth decay, gum pain, and oral cancer. Day by day, healthcare facilities and regular checkups are becoming more costly and time-consuming. In this context, consumers are moving toward advanced technology, such as bite sensors, to obtain regular data about their occlusal chewing patterns and strength. The triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) can potentially eliminate the need for a battery by simply converting abundant vibrations from nature or human motion into electrical energy. In this work, biomaterials are obtained from biowastes such as cellulose from wood waste, chitosan from crab shells, and gelatin from fish scales. All wastes are biodegradable, and our work aims at sustainability and waste hierarchy. The single electrode mode-based TENG was designed and fabricated using biodegradable poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)–biomaterial composites, rice paper as a substrate, and edible silver leaf as an electrode. The highest electrical output was obtained for PVA/chitosan 10 wt % composite-based TENG (PC10) of about 20 V, 200 nA, and 12 nC. The biomechanical energy harvesting was measured, and powering of LED was demonstrated using a PC10 TENG device. A biocompatible bite sensor based on the TENG was used to measure the biting force of a dummy teeth model to demonstrate its potential use in dental health applications. It indicates the promising future value of disposable oral medication devices without any invasive surgery or injection.

Myocardial ischemia–reperfusion injury (MIRI) was often observed after surgeries, causing a lot of suffering to patients. Inflammation and apoptosis were critical determinants during MIRI. We conveyed experiments to reveal the regulatory functions of circHECTD1 in MIRI development. The Rat MIRI model was established and determined by 2,3,5‐triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining. We analyzed cell apoptosis using TUNEL and flow cytometry. Proteins expression was evaluated by western blot. The RNA level was determined by qRT‐PCR. Secreted inflammatory factors were analyzed by ELISA assay. To predict the interaction sequences on circHECTD1, miR‐138‐5p, and ROCK2, bioinformatics analysis was performed. Dual‐luciferase assay was used to confirm these interaction sequences. CircHECTD1 and ROCK2 were upregulated in the rat MIRI model, while miR‐138‐5p was decreased. CircHECTD1 knockdown alleviated H/R‐induced inflammation in H9c2 cells. Direct interaction and regulation of circHECTD1/miR‐138‐5p and miR‐138‐5p/ROCK2 were confirmed by dual‐luciferase assay. CircHECTD1 promoted H/R‐induced inflammation and cell apoptosis by inhibiting miR‐138‐5p. miR‐138‐5p alleviated H/R‐induced inflammation, while ectopic ROCK2 antagonized such effect of miR‐138‐5p. Our research suggested that the circHECTD1‐modulated miR‐138‐5p suppressing is responsible for ROCK2 activation during H/R‐induced inflammatory response, providing a novel insight into MIRI‐associated inflammation.

Serious climate changes and energy-related environmental problems are currently critical issues in the world. In order to reduce carbon emissions and save our environment, renewable energy harvesting technologies will serve as a key solution in the near future. Among them, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs), which is one of the most promising mechanical energy harvesters by means of contact electrification phenomenon, are explosively developing due to abundant wasting mechanical energy sources and a number of superior advantages in a wide availability and selection of materials, relatively simple device configurations, and low-cost processing. Significant experimental and theoretical efforts have been achieved toward understanding fundamental behaviors and a wide range of demonstrations since its report in 2012. As a result, considerable technological advancement has been exhibited and it advances the timeline of achievement in the proposed roadmap. Now, the technology has reached the stage of prototype development with verification of performance beyond the lab scale environment toward its commercialization. In this review, distinguished authors in the world worked together to summarize the state of the art in theory, materials, devices, systems, circuits, and applications in TENG fields. The great research achievements of researchers in this field around the world over the past decade are expected to play a major role in coming to fruition of unexpectedly accelerated technological advances over the next decade.

De novo drug design with desired biological activities is crucial for developing novel therapeutics for patients. The drug development process is time- and resource-consuming, and it has a low probability of success. Recent advances in machine learning and deep learning technology have reduced the time and cost of the discovery process and therefore, improved pharmaceutical research and development. In this paper, we explore the combination of two rapidly developing fields with lead candidate discovery in the drug development process. First, artificial intelligence has already been demonstrated to successfully accelerate conventional drug design approaches. Second, quantum computing has demonstrated promising potential in different applications, such as quantum chemistry, combinatorial optimizations, and machine learning. This article explores hybrid quantum-classical generative adversarial networks (GAN) for small molecule discovery. We substituted each element of GAN with a variational quantum circuit (VQC) and demonstrated the quantum advantages in the small drug discovery. Utilizing a VQC in the noise generator of a GAN to generate small molecules achieves better physicochemical properties and performance in the goal-directed benchmark than the classical counterpart. Moreover, we demonstrate the potential of a VQC with only tens of learnable parameters in the generator of GAN to generate small molecules. We also demonstrate the quantum advantage of a VQC in the discriminator of GAN. In this hybrid model, the number of learnable parameters is significantly less than the classical ones, and it can still generate valid molecules. The hybrid model with only tens of training parameters in the quantum discriminator outperforms the MLP-based one in terms of both generated molecule properties and the achieved KL divergence. However, the hybrid quantum-classical GANs still face challenges in generating unique and valid molecules compared to their classical counterparts.

Formazans, containing the characteristic chain of atoms –NN-CRN–NH- (R ​= ​–CN or tetrazyl) are nitrogen-rich and conjugated compounds exhibiting unique properties. In this work, new cyano and tetrazylformazans and their series of nitrogen-rich energetic salts were synthesized via base-promoted gem-diazo coupling reaction. The resulting derivatives were well characterized, and their performances were further investigated. The experimental results indicated that the decomposition temperatures of 1–12lie between 159 ​°C and 279 ​°C. All of them are much less impact sensitive (≥20 ​J) than trinitrotoluene (TNT), 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazacyclohexane (RDX) and 1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX). They have relatively high positive heats of formation between 987.7 and 1457.3 ​kJ ​mol-1, which are much higher than those of 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20), RDX and HMX. The calculated detonation pressures (p) range between 23.2 and 30.2 ​GPa and calculated detonation velocities (D) between 7480 and 8274 ​m ​s-1. Interestingly, compound 4shows excellent laser ignition combustion performance.

Text-mining algorithms can identify the most prevalent factors of risk-benefit assessment on the use of complementary and integrative health approaches that are found in healthcare professionals' written notes. The aims of this study were to discover the key factors of decision-making on patients' complementary and integrative health use by healthcare professionals and to build a consensus-derived decision algorithm on the benefit-risk assessment of complementary and integrative health use in diabetes. The retrospective study of an archival dataset used a text-mining method designed to extract and analyze unstructured textual data from healthcare professionals' responses. The techniques of classification, clustering, and extraction were performed with 1398 unstructured clinical notes made by healthcare professionals between 2019 and 2020. The most important factor for decision-making by healthcare professionals about complementary and integrative health use in patients with diabetes was the ingredients of the product. Other important factors were the patient's diabetes control, the undesirable effects from complementary and integrative health, evidence-based complementary and integrative health, medical laboratory data, and the product's affordability. This exploratory text-mining study provides insight into how healthcare professionals decide complementary and integrative health use for patients with diabetes after a risk-benefit assessment from clinical narrative notes.

Ferroelectric materials have a variety of properties, such as piezoelectricity, pyroelectricity, and the ferroelectric photovoltaic effect, which enable them to obtain electrical energy from various external stimuli. Here, we report a coupled nanogenerator based on flexible BTO ferroelectric films with a cantilevered beam structure. It combines the photovoltaic and flexoelectric effects in a ferroelectric materials-based coupled nanogenerator for simultaneously scavenging vibration energy and light energy, thus improving energy scavenging performance. As compared with the photovoltaic effect individually, simultaneous vibration and light illumination under a light intensity of 57 mW/cm2at 405 nm can produce a photo-flexoelectric coupling current of 85 nA, where the current peak has been enhanced by 121%. Due to the photo-flexoelectric coupling effect, the device has outstanding charging performance, where a 4.7 μF capacitor can be charged to 60 mV in 150 s. These devices have potential applications in multi-energy scavenging and self-powered sensors.

Graphical AbstractImpact of multicomponent integrated care on mortality and hospitalization after acute coronary syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Primary water and oxygen isotope composition are important tools in tracing magma source and evolution. Metamictization of zircon due to U-Th radioactive decay may introduce external secondary water to the crystal, thereby masking the primary water and oxygen isotope signature. Recently, Raman-based screening has been established to select the low-degree metamict zircons. However, such an approach may not be appropriate for ancient samples, in which nearly all zircons are metamict. It was reported that thermal annealing can potentially heal crystals and retrieve primary water content and δ18O information from metamict zircons, given the weaker hydrogen bond of secondary water than that of primary water. Heating experiments at temperatures of 200–1000 °C over a period of 2–10 h reveal that annealing can effectively recover primary water and oxygen isotopes from metamict zircons. Primary water in crystalline and metamict zircons remains intact when heated at <700 °C, while secondary water can be effectively expelled from metamict zircons when heated at 600 °C for >4 h, which represent the optimal annealing treatment condition. Hydrothermally altered zircon is an exception. It only yields the minimum estimate of its primary water contents at 600 °C over a period of >4 h, probably due to partial primary water loss during metamictization for hydrothermal zircons. Moreover, the proportion of low-δ18O (<4.7‰) zircon grains that may be influenced by secondary water dropped from ~21% at <600 °C to ~9% when annealed at >700 °C. This study therefore provides the basis for applying zircon water and δ18O proxies to geologically ancient samples.

The H6 voltage-source inverter (H6-VSI) has been increasingly used in the power distribution systems due to its capacity of maintaining a constant common mode voltage (CMV) amplitude. To simultaneously achieve excellent dynamic and steady-state responses, this article proposes a novel cascaded repetitive controller for the LC-filtered H6-VSI. Compared to the conventional repetitive controller, the proposed cascaded repetitive controller for the LC-filtered H6-VSI shows superior performance in both transients and steady states. Comparative studies of the conventional repetitive controller and the proposed method are presented with both linear and nonlinear loads. Simulation and experimental results confirm the validity of the proposed method.

The culture of Psathyrella candolleanain host Dioscorea oppositemedium produced seven new guanacastane diterpenoids, psayamin (1) as an unprecedented 5/7/6/6/6/6/7/5-fused octacyclic spiro scaffold both under liquid and semisolid conditions, psathins A–C (4–6) with a 5/7/6 tricyclic backbone by liquid medium, psathins D–E (7–8) as the same unprecedented skeletons of 5/6/7/6-fused tetracyclic or 6/7/6 tricyclic structures, and psathin F (9) with a 5/7/5/6 tetracyclic backbone by semisolid medium. The structures were elucidated by detailed spectroscopic analyses and those of 1and 7were determined by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The semisolid culture led to four structure types of the guanacastane diterpenoid. Compound 5showed antifungal activity against phytopathogen Fusarium incarnatumwith a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 8 μg/mL, while compound 4showed significant antifungal activity against Alternariasp. with an MIC of 2 μg/mL. Compounds 1and 8also showed antifeedant activities against the silkworms with the feeding deterrence indices of 50%, at the concentrations of 50 μg/cm2. Compound 1showed significant cytotoxicity with IC50at 10.87 ± 0.24–15.96 ± 0.30 μM and anti-acetylcholinesterase activity with IC50at 37.3 μM. Also, compound 1remarkably induced apoptosis of HL-60 at 10, 20 μM in a concentration-dependent manner. The spiral ring of 1was vital in cytotoxicity and anti-acetylcholinesterase activity. The different media fermented by P. candolleanaresulted in the chemical diversity of bioactive guanacastane diterpenoids and potential applications in the agricultural and food functions.

Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), achieved through the continuous attack of reactive oxygen species (ROS), are considered the most efficient way to mineralize organic pollutants. Among them, photocatalysis is the most environmentally friendly strategy for pollution mitigation but is hampered by low conversion efficiency. By exploiting the coupling effect without changing the properties of the semiconductor, the application of pyroelectric fields can significantly improve the catalytic performance. The degradation rate of rhodamine B by Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3(BNT) nanoparticles under temperature fluctuations and visible light irradiation was up to 98%. The performance was enhanced by 216.54% and 31.48% compared to the pyroelectric catalysis and photocatalysis alone, respectively. The improved performance is due to the introduced pyroelectric potential with the imposition of temperature fluctuations, which can make the domains enhance the polarization of ferroelectrics, thus promoting the charge separation. This method can significantly advance the coupled pyro-photocatalytic reaction of ferroelectric semiconductors and also can enable the synergistic utilization of multiple energy sources such as solar and thermal energy, which is a promising strategy for environmental remediation.

Inflammation is one of the pathogenic processes in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Dopamine receptor agonist pramipexole (PPX) is extensively used for PD treatment in clinics. A number of studies show that PPX exerts neuroprotection on dopaminergic (DA) neurons, but the molecular mechanisms underlying the protective effects of PPX on DA neurons are not fully elucidated. In the present study, we investigated whether PPX modulated PD-related neuroinflammation and underlying mechanisms. PD model was established in mice by bilateral striatum injection of lipopolyssaccharide (LPS). The mice were administered PPX (0.5 mg·kg−1·d−1, i.p.) 3 days before LPS injection, and for 3 or 21 days after surgery, respectively, for biochemical and histological analyses. We showed that PPX administration significantly alleviated the loss of DA neurons, and suppressed the astrocyte activation and levels of proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β in the substantia nigra of LPS-injected mice. Furthermore, PPX administration significantly decreased the expression of NLRP3 inflammasome-associated proteins, i.e., cleaved forms of caspase-1, IL-1β, and apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruit domain (ASC) in the striatum. These results were validated in LPS+ATP-stimulated primary mouse astrocytes in vitro. Remarkably, we showed that PPX (100–400 μM) dose-dependently enhanced the autophagy activity in the astrocytes evidenced by the elevations in LC3-II and BECN1 protein expression, as well as the increase of GFP-LC3 puncta formation. The opposite effects of PPX on astrocytic NLRP3 inflammasome and autophagy were eliminated by Drd3 depletion. Moreover, we demonstrated that both pretreatment of astrocytes with autophagy inhibitor chloroquine (40 μM) in vitro and astrocyte-specific Atg5 knockdownin vivo blocked PPX-caused inhibition on NLRP3 inflammasome and protection against DA neuron damage. Altogether, this study demonstrates an anti-neuroinflammatory activity of PPX via a Drd3-dependent enhancement of autophagy activity in astrocytes, and reveals a new mechanism for the beneficial effect of PPX in PD therapy.

Sulfur redox reactions are crucial in lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, typically characterized by intricate multiphase conversion processes. A catalytic approach to transform polysulfides effectively mitigates the shuttle effects in Li-S batteries. However, a catalyst consisting of a single component cannot fully participate in the two-way redox process. In this study, we have addressed these issues by fabricating one-dimensional ZnO@NiO core-shell nanobelts (CNBs), which establish a p-n junction interface. A built-in electric field (BIEF) at this interface results in the spontaneous redistribution of charges, facilitating the transfer of electrons between the ZnO and NiO surfaces. While this weakens the strong adsorption properties, it simultaneously expedites the transfer of polysulfide. As a result of the moderate adsorption capacity of polysulfide and the lowered energy barrier for sulfur conversion, the intrinsic catalytic activity of ZnO@NiO p-n junctions contributes to the increased speed of bidirectional sulfur conversion. The as-prepared cathode, composed of ZnO@NiO CNBs, demonstrates an outstanding discharge capacity of 1525.5 mA h g−1at a rate of 0.1 C. Following 1000 cycles at a rate of 2 C, the ZnO@NiO CNBs cathode maintains a substantial capacity, with a retention rate of 73.60%, equivalent to an impressively low capacity loss of 0.026% per cycle. This research highlights the synergy of the BIEF and heterostructures in facilitating the gradual transport of polysulfides, offering new perspectives on designing interfacial structures for the controlled regulation of polysulfide redox reactions.

Dual-hereditary jaundice (Dubin–Johnson syndrome (DJS) and Gilbert’s syndrome (GS)) is a rare clinical entity resulting from defects of the ATP binding cassette subfamily C member 2 (ABCC2) and UDP glucuronosyltransferase family 1 member A1 (UGT1A1) genes with autosomal recessive inheritance. In this study, we aimed to investigate the mutation profiles and characterize the phenotypes in a Han Chinese family with DJS and GS. Genetic screening for variants in the ABCC2and UGT1A1, immunohistochemistry for expression of ABCC2, and histopathological examination were carried out. The proband and his brother had unconjugated and conjugated hyperbilirubinemia after birth. The proband’s sister had only conjugated hyperbilirubinemia after birth. The proband developed into pleural effusions and ascites, pericardial thickening, intrahepatic and extrahepatic biliary duct dilatation, and enlarged gallbladder at age 50. Hepatocellular carcinoma occurred in the proband’s brother at age 46. Seven compound defects of the ABCC2gene [c.2414delG, p.(Ile1489Gly), p.(Thr1490Pro), and p.(Ile1491Gln)] and the UGT1A1gene (c.-3279T>G, p.(Gly71Arg), and p.(Pro451Leu)) were identified in family members. Accumulation of pigment in hepatocytes characteristic of that in DJS was present in the proband and his brother. Expression of ABCC2 protein was markedly diminished in the patient’s liver. Our results show a different genetic profile of DJS and GS in a Han Chinese family, indicating a more complex pattern of dual-hereditary jaundice among different populations. The present study illuminates the underpinnings of DJS and GS and extends the mutation profiles and phenotypes of these two syndromes in dual-hereditary jaundice.

Objectives:Many prehospital trauma triage scores have been proposed, but none has emerged as a criterion standard. Therefore, a rapid and accurate tool is necessary for field triage. The shock index (SI) multiplied by the AVPU (Alert, responds to Voice, responds to Pain, Unresponsive) score (SIAVPU) reflected the hemodynamic and neurological conditions through a combination of the SI and AVPU. This study aimed to investigate the prediction performance of SI multiplied by the AVPU and to compare the prediction performance of other prehospital trauma triage scores in a population with traumatic injury. Patients and Methods:This study included 6,156 patients with trauma injury from the Taipei Tzu Chi trauma database. We investigated the accuracy of four scoring systems in predicting mortality, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and prolonged hospital stay (defined as a duration of hospitalization >14 days). In the subgroup analysis, we also analyzed the effects of age, injury mechanism and severity, underlying diseases, and traumatic brain injury. Results:The predictive accuracy of SIAVPU for mortality, ICU admission, and prolonged hospital stay was significantly higher than that of SI, modified SI, and SI multiplied by age in the traumatic injury population, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.738 for mortality, 0.641 for ICU admission, and 0.606 for prolonged hospital stay. In the subgroup analysis, the prediction accuracy of mortality, ICU admission, and prolonged hospital stay of SIAVPU was also better in patients with younger age, older age, major trauma (Injury Severity Score ≥16), motor vehicle collisions, fall injury, healthy, cardiovascular disease, mixed traumatic brain injury, and isolated traumatic brain injury. The best cutoff levels of SIAVPU score to predict mortality, ICU admission, and total length of stay ≥14 days in trauma injury patients were 0.90, 0.82, and 0.80, with accuracies of 88.56%, 79.84%, and 78.62%, respectively. Conclusions:In conclusion, SIAVPU is a rapid and accurate field triage score with better prediction accuracy for mortality, ICU admission, and prolonged hospital stay than SI, modified SI, and SI multiplied by age in patients with trauma. Patients with SIAVPU ≥0.9 should be considered for the highest-level trauma center available within the geographic constraints of regional trauma systems.

Mass screening for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is important to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Pooling samples can increase the number of tests processed. LabTurbo AIO 48 is an automated platform that allows ribonucleic acid extraction and sample analysis on the same instrument. We created a novel pooling assay on this platform for SARS-CoV-2 detection and demonstrated that the pooling strategy increases testing capacity without affecting accuracy and sensitivity.