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This study investigated how dietary myo‐inositol affects osmoregulation, carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, immunity, and antioxidant properties in Penaeus vannamei under long‐term low‐salinity conditions. A two‐factor (2 × 3) orthogonal approach was used with three different concentrations of dietary myo‐inositol (0, 1,200, and 2,000 mg/kg) at two dietary carbohydrate levels: normal carbohydrate or high carbohydrate (HC). Six experimental diets were formulated, and a feeding trial was carried out for 42 days. The interaction of myo‐inositol with an HC diet significantly improved shrimp survival, weight gain, and specific growth rates. Dietary myo‐inositol increased the contents of Na+, K+, and Ca2+ in the serum and reduced the ion loss caused by low‐salinity stress. In addition, a lack of myo‐inositol can lead to loosening of gill filament connections and thinning or disappearance of the cuticle. However, myo‐inositol supplementation protected the structural and functional integrity of the shrimp gills and significantly enhanced the ion transport capacity (P < 0.05). Two‐factor analysis showed that myo‐inositol concentration was affected by dietary carbohydrate levels, and an HC diet enhanced myo‐inositol biosynthesis in shrimp gills (P < 0.05). The concentrations of myo‐inositol are highest in the gills and lowest in the liver and pancreas. Moreover, dietary myo‐inositol can improve the immune function and antioxidant capacity of P. vannamei. The results also indicated that under sustained low‐salinity stress, high levels of carbohydrates cannot relieve the stress caused by low‐salinity conditions and can even affect the healthy growth of P. vannamei. Under HC levels, adding dietary myo‐inositol significantly improved glycogen and lipid deposition in hepatopancreas tissue and enhanced carbohydrate utilization and osmotic adjustment ability in P. vannamei under chronic low‐salinity stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers nonzero-sum discrete-time stochastic games with finite state and action spaces, and focuses on the performance criteria under prospect theory. Based on the average criterion of stochastic games with prospect theory established firstly in 2018, we first present the discounted criterion of stochastic games with prospect theory and study the relationships between them. Both the criterion/value function and the Nash equilibrium are studied. We derive the equality of discounted and average criterion functions for any fixed strategy by the Abelian theorem, and discuss the relationships of value function. Moreover, since the probability is distorted in prospect theory, there is no optimality equation which is the commonly used tool in the existing literature of Markov decision processes and stochastic games. In this work, the bilateral relationships of equilibria between discounted and average criterion are investigated by the performance criterion (instead of the optimality equation), with the convergence of strategy sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NaYbF4 upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) have enhanced optical properties compared to the NaYF4 UCNPs. However, synthesis of monodisperse NaYbF4 with controllable size and optical properties poses challenges, and the mechanism of phase transformation remains to be understood. Here, they report on the effect of Na+/Yb3+ molar ratio on the morphological and optical properties of upconverting NaYbF4: 2% Er3+ nanoparticles. Controllable transformation of cubic phase nanoparticles produced with [Na+]/[Yb3+] = 1 to hexagonal phase is achieved by increasing Na+ content. The hexagonal UCNPs produced with [Na+]/[Yb3+] = 4 have significantly enhanced intensity of optical emission of ≈600 times compared with the pure cubic phase crystal. The work reveals that the increasing dislocation of sodium and ytterbium distribution cause the accumulation of the lattice strain with increasing Na+ content, and triggers the lattice strain‐mediated phase transformation in cubic cell, as confirmed by the Density Function Theory simulations. These results provide new insights into the growth of UCNPs and pave the way for developing controlled synthesis of UCNPs for applications as bio‐probes and for energy harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Premature birth (PTB) remains a major global health concern due to its association with neonatal morbidity and mortality. The unfolded protein response (UPR) within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is tightly regulated by Inositol‐requiring enzyme type 1 (IRE‐1), a pivotal cellular modulator. This study seeks to elucidate the role of the ER stress (ERS)‐related IRE‐1 pathway in PTB. Methods: Human placental trophoblast cells HTR8/Svneo were exposed to the ER‐stress inducer tunicamycin (TM). The expression of IRE‐1 and ERS‐associated proteins ATF6, GRP78, and XBP‐1 was assessed in placental tissues and TM‐treated cells. Cellular viability, migration, invasion, and apoptosis were evaluated through a series of experimental assays. Additionally, various methods were employed to assess and verify the activation of autophagy, using the autophagy marker, microtubule‐associated protein 1A/1B‐light chain 3 (LC3). Additionally, TUDCA (an ERS inhibitor) was used to assess its potential to counteract the TM‐induced cell effects. Results: Elevated levels of ATF6, GRP78, and XBP‐1 were observed in PTB tissues and cells. TM treatment substantially reduced cell viability, migration, and invasion while promoting apoptosis. Treatment with TUDCA (an ERS inhibitor) counteracted the effects of TM on the cells. Furthermore, we identified an overexpression of IRE‐1 in PTB tissues and cells and its knockdown enhanced cell viability, migration, and invasion while suppressed apoptosis and autophagy under TM stimulation. Notably, IRE‐1 was found to modulate the activity of the IRE‐1/XBP1/CHOP signaling pathway in TM‐treated cells. Conclusion: The upregulation of IRE‐1 in PTB placental tissues is implicated in the pathogenesis of PTB. Importantly, inhibiting the ERS‐associated IRE‐1/XBP1/CHOP pathway may be a good strategy in mitigating PTB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graph neural networks (GNNs) have shown great potential in representation learning for various graph tasks. However, the distribution shift between the training and test sets poses a challenge to the efficiency of GNNs. To address this challenge, HomoTTT proposes a fully test-time training framework for GNNs to enhance the model's generalization capabilities for node classification tasks. Specifically, our proposed HomoTTT designs a homophily-based and parameter-free graph contrastive learning task with adaptive augmentation to guide the model's adaptation during the test-time training, allowing the model to adapt for specific target data. In the inference stage, HomoTTT proposes to integrate the original GNN model and the adapted model after TTT using a homophily-based model selection method, which prevents potential performance degradation caused by unconstrained model adaptation. Extensive experimental results on six benchmark datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed framework. Additionally, the exploratory study further validates the rationality of the homophily-based graph contrastive learning task with adaptive augmentation and the homophily-based model selection designed in HomoTTT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NaYbF4 upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) have enhanced optical properties compared to the NaYF4 UCNPs. However, synthesis of monodisperse NaYbF4 with controllable size and optical properties poses challenges, and the mechanism of phase transformation remains to be understood. Here, they report on the effect of Na+/Yb3+ molar ratio on the morphological and optical properties of upconverting NaYbF4: 2% Er3+ nanoparticles. Controllable transformation of cubic phase nanoparticles produced with [Na+]/[Yb3+] = 1 to hexagonal phase is achieved by increasing Na+ content. The hexagonal UCNPs produced with [Na+]/[Yb3+] = 4 have significantly enhanced intensity of optical emission of ≈600 times compared with the pure cubic phase crystal. The work reveals that the increasing dislocation of sodium and ytterbium distribution cause the accumulation of the lattice strain with increasing Na+ content, and triggers the lattice strain‐mediated phase transformation in cubic cell, as confirmed by the Density Function Theory simulations. These results provide new insights into the growth of UCNPs and pave the way for developing controlled synthesis of UCNPs for applications as bio‐probes and for energy harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The carrot has a high water content, and dehydration is an important means to extend its edible period and reduce storage and transportation costs. In the case of infrared (IR) drying, the porosity of the product is low and the structure is compact; the textural properties of the product are improved by using combined ultrasound and infrared (US-IR) drying; however, there is a lack of reports on the mechanism of this. Pectin has an important influence on the formation of the textural properties of fruit and vegetable tissues. In order to investigate the mechanism of the change in endogenous pectin properties in the carrot cell wall under US-IR drying on the improvement of the textural properties of the product, different fractions of pectins (water-soluble pectin, chelating pectin, alkali-soluble pectin) of the carrot were extracted, separated, and analysed. The thermal stability, component and content changes, Fourier infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), esterification degree, molecular weight, monosaccharide composition, Ca ion content, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) of the pectins were determined. The results showed that the changes in the contents and properties of the carrot pectins under US-IR conditions had a positive effect on the improvement of the textural properties of the carrot tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

River water pollution is a key environmental issue to human society. How to effectively simulate the flow velocity and pollution transport in a vegetated river can provide a theoretical basis for solving such problems. Based on previous experimental data, this article uses the lattice Boltzmann method and random displacement method to simulate the velocity distribution and nutrient transport in multi-layer rigid vegetated rivers. The simulation results indicate that incorporating the drag force of the vegetation into the model according to different vegetation layers can effectively simulate the velocity in a multi-layer vegetated river. Incorporating the turbulent diffusion and mechanical diffusion effects of nutrients caused by vegetation into the model can effectively simulate the effects of multi-layer vegetation on nutrient transport. This model can provide effective predictions of the flow velocity and pollution transport in multi-layer vegetation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Deleterious BRCA1/2 (BRCA) mutation raises the risk for BRCA mutation-related malignancies, including breast, ovarian, prostate, and pancreatic cancer. Germline variation of BRCA exhibits substantial ethnical diversity. However, there is limited research on the Chinese Han population, constraining the development of strategies for BRCA mutation screening in this large ethnic group. Methods: We profile the BRCA mutational spectrum, including single nucleotide variation, insertion/deletion, and large genomic rearrangements in 2,080 apparently healthy Chinese Han individuals and 522 patients with BRCA mutation-related cancer, to determine the BRCA genetic background of the Chinese Han population, especially of the East Han. Incident cancer events were monitored in 1,005 participants from the healthy group, comprising 11 BRCA pathogenic/likely pathogenic (PLP) variant carriers and 994 PLP-free individuals, including 3 LGR carriers. Results: Healthy Chinese Han individuals demonstrated a distinct BRCA mutational spectrum compared to cancer patients, with a 0.53% (1 in 189) prevalence of pathogenic/likely pathogenic (PLP) variant, alongside a 3 in 2,080 occurrence of LGR. BRCA1 c. 5470_5477del demonstrated high prevalence (0.44%) in the North Han Chinese and penetrance for breast cancer. None of the 3 LGR carriers developed cancer during the follow-up. We calculated a relative risk of 135.55 (95% CI 25.07 to 732.88) for the development of BRCA mutation-related cancers in the BRCA PLP variant carriers (mean age 42.91 years, median follow-up 10 months) compared to PLP-free individuals (mean age 48.47 years, median follow-up 16 months). Conclusion: The unique BRCA mutational profile in the Chinese Han highlights the potential for standardized population-based BRCA variant screening to enhance BRCA mutation-related cancer prevention and treatment. Key message of article: There is significant ethnical diversity in the prevalence and spectrum of BRCA germline variants. While previous studies of regional and preliminary national BRCA mutation screening have contributed to our knowledge of BRCA germline mutation in China, our research has unveiled a distinctive mutational profile in the Han Chinese across major regions of the country, representing 20% of the world's population. It also demonstrated the potential of BRCA mutation screening in the general healthy population for identifying individuals at higher risk of BRCA mutation-related cancer, a risk often overlooked by family history-based screening strategies. These findings offer initial insights into the potential benefits of population-based screening for preventing BRCA mutation-related cancer in the Chinese Han. Further investigation is warranted, including multi-center, long-term prospective trials, cost-effectiveness analysis, and psychosomatic medical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This research tackles the intricate challenges of detecting densely distributed maize leaf diseases and the constraints inherent in YOLO-based detection algorithms. It introduces the GhostNet_Triplet_YOLOv8s algorithm, enhancing YOLO v8s by integrating the lightweight GhostNet (Ghost Convolutional Neural Network) structure, which replaces the YOLO v8s backbone. This adaptation involves swapping the head's C2f (Coarse-to-Fine) and Conv (Convolutional) modules with C3 Ghost and GhostNet, simplifying the model architecture while significantly amplifying detection speed. Additionally, a lightweight attention mechanism, Triplet Attention, is incorporated to refine the accuracy in identifying the post-neck layer output and to precisely define features within disease-affected areas. By introducing the ECIoU_Loss (EfficiCLoss Loss) function, replacing the original CIoU_Loss, the algorithm effectively mitigates issues associated with aspect ratio penalties, resulting in marked improvements in recognition and convergence rates. The experimental outcomes display promising metrics with a precision rate of 87.50%, a recall rate of 87.70%, and an mAP@0.5 of 91.40% all within a compact model size of 11.20 MB. In comparison to YOLO v8s, this approach achieves a 0.3% increase in mean average precision (mAP), reduces the model size by 50.2%, and significantly decreases FLOPs by 43.1%, ensuring swift and accurate maize disease identification while optimizing memory usage. Furthermore, the practical deployment of the trained model on a WeChat developer mini-program underscores its practical utility, enabling real-time disease detection in maize fields to aid in timely agricultural decision-making and disease prevention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]