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Water scarcity is a global challenge, and solar evaporation technology offers a promising and eco‐friendly solution for freshwater production. Photothermal conversion materials (PCMs) are crucial for solar evaporation. Improving photothermal conversion efficiency and reducing water evaporation enthalpy are the two key strategies for the designing of PCMs. The desired PCMs that combine both of these properties remain a challenging task, even with the latest advancements in the field. Herein, we developed copper nanoparticles (NPs) with different conjugated nitrogen‐doped microporous carbon coatings (Cu@C–N) as PCMs. The microporous carbon enveloping layer provides a highly efficient pathway for water transport and a nanoconfined environment that protects Cu NPs and facilitates the evaporation of water clusters, reducing the enthalpy of water evaporation. Meanwhile, the conjugated nitrogen nodes form strong metal‐organic coordination bonds with the surface of copper NPs, acting as an energy bridge to achieve rapid energy transfer and provide high solar‐to‐vapor conversion efficiency. The Cu@C–N exhibited up to 89.4% solar‐to‐vapor conversion efficiency and an evaporation rate of 1.94 kg m−2 h−1 under one sun irradiation, outperforming conventional PCMs, including carbon‐based materials and semiconductor materials. These findings offer an efficient design scheme for high‐performance PCMs essential for solar evaporators to address global water scarcity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solvent‐free synthetic methods have received more attention because of their reducing chemical waste and simplifying the process. A series of functionalized magnesium hydroxides (FMHs) were successfully modified with siloxanes containing different functional groups (Octyl: OTES, Octadecyl: OTMS, Phenyl: PTMS, Vinyl: VTEO, and 3‐Aminopropyl: APS) via a solvent‐free mechanochemical method. Ball milling conditions (such as reaction time, siloxane/MH ratio), the morphology, surface properties and particle size of the FMHs were investigated in detail and the results showed that both of the adjustment of particle size and the modification of surface of MH were successfully achieved at one time within 20 min. All FMHs were successfully converted from hydrophilic to hydrophobic except for the sample modified by the silane containing APS group. The influence of the different functional groups and particle size of FMHs on the mechanical properties and flame retardancy of styrene‐ethylene‐butadiene‐styrene (SEBS)/polypropylene (PP) composites were discussed. Compared with original MH/SEBS/PP, the FMHs/SEBS/PP composites have better tensile strength and elongation at break. When 68 wt% of FMHs were added to the SEBS/PP matrix, the composites can pass V‐0 rating of UL‐94 testing, and their limiting oxygen index values are above 32.3%. Meanwhile, the composites also exhibited strong smoke suppression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2D hexagonal boron nitride (h‐BN), which has a similar honeycomb lattice structure to graphene, is a promising dielectric material for a wide variety of applications. Herein, the growth of high‐quality and large‐size multilayer h‐BN crystals on Cu foils is reported by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at atmospheric pressure. The size of an individual isolated hexagonal crystal of h‐BN is about 20 µm, and the thickness is 3 nm. This paper studies the variables that affect h‐BN growth during the process and the microstructure changes during the growth. Through analysis of the thermal and dynamic processes of chemical vapor deposition, relationships are derived between the mass of h‐BN grown in the gas phase and various temperature and pressure factors. This information is used to develop appropriate parameters for commercial copper foil growth. Finally, using optimized conditions, high‐quality h‐BN at high pressure and low gas flow conditions are grown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Per the Amyloid/Tau/Neurodegeneration (A/T/N) framework, beta‐amyloid accumulates during preclinical Alzheimer's Disease (AD), followed by tau, then neurodegeneration. As AD symptoms are most linked to tau and neurodegeneration, both are expected by the MCI stage of disease. Thus, A+T‐N+ MCI ("mismatch MCI") is thought to have both AD pathophysiology and non‐AD pathology, with the latter (given absence of tau) driving neurodegeneration and symptoms. We investigate the cognitive and neurodegenerative profile of mismatch MCI compared to "standard" A+T+N+ MCI ("prodromal AD"). Method: A+ (by CSF) and N+ (by hippocampal volume <90th‐percentile for A+ dementia) MCI patients from ADNI2/GO were grouped by tau status (based on CSF p‐tau): mismatch MCI (T‐; n=44; 34 followed longitudinally) and prodromal AD (T+; n=84; 61 followed longitudinally) (Table 1). Baseline AVLT immediate‐memory first trial, AVLT delayed recall, animal naming (category fluency), and Trails‐B‐minus‐Trails‐A (executive function; log‐transformed) z‐scores were compared. Longitudinal cognition was analyzed using mixed‐effects models. A Kaplan‐Meier analysis compared dementia‐free survival. Whole‐brain voxel‐wise analyses compared cortical thicknesses of each MCI group to A‐ controls. Medial temporal lobe (MTL) subregion volumes, determined using ASHS‐T1 (Xie, 2019) on T1‐weighted MRI, were compared at baseline and longitudinally. Result: Mismatch MCI had less baseline delayed‐recall impairment (Figure 1), but was similar on other domains. Time*group interaction terms for longitudinal cognition were all significant (p<0.05), indicating slower decline in mismatch MCI (Figure 2). Mismatch MCI had longer dementia‐free survival (Figure 3, p<0.001).Whole‐brain voxel‐wise analyses revealed differential cortical thinning in MCI groups VS controls, with prodromal AD having more extensive atrophy, especially in the MTL (Figure 4). Mismatch MCI had lower mean anterior‐to‐posterior hippocampal volume ratio (p=0.016). While baseline entorhinal cortex, BA35, BA36, and parahippocampal cortex volumes were comparable (both groups had significant atrophy compared to controls), mismatch MCI had slower atrophy in these regions and the hippocampus (Table 2). Conclusion: Mismatch MCI's lower anterior‐to‐posterior hippocampal volume suggests possible enrichment in individuals with TDP‐43, a common non‐AD pathology, given previous work suggesting TDP‐43 preferentially affects the anterior hippocampus. Overall, these results support the concept that mismatch MCI and prodromal AD have different underlying pathologic profiles in light of their divergent cognition and neurodegenerative topography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cigarette smoking continues to be a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality. Although the majority of smokers report making a quit attempt in the past year, smoking cessation rates remain modest. Thus, developing accurate, data-driven methods that can classify and characterize the neural features of nicotine use disorder (NUD) would be a powerful clinical tool that could aid in optimizing treatment development and guide treatment modifications. This investigation applied support vector machine-based classification to resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) data from individuals diagnosed with NUD (n = 108; 63 male) and matched nonsmoking controls (n = 108; 63 male) and multi-dimensional scaling to visualize the heterogeneity of NUD in individual smokers based on rsFC measures. Machine-based learning models identified five resting-state networks that played a role in distinguishing smokers from controls: the posterior and anterior default mode networks, the sensorimotor network, the salience network and the right executive control network. The classification method constructed classifiers with an average correct classification rate of 88.1 percent and an average area under the curve of 0.93. Compared with controls, individuals with NUD had weaker functional connectivity measures within these networks (P < 0.05, false discovery rate corrected). Further, multi-dimensional scaling visualization demonstrated that controls were similar to each other whereas individuals with NUD had less similarity to controls and to other individuals with NUD. Our findings build upon previous literature demonstrating that machine learning-based approaches to classifying rsFC data offer a valuable technique to understanding network-level differences in nicotine-related neurobiology and extend previous findings by improving classification accuracy and demonstrating the heterogeneity in resting-state networks of individuals with NUD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present a new method based on the Retinex algorithm to achieve the transformation of SDR image signal to HDR image signal. A novel tone mapping method is used in this algorithm, through which the image color distortion can be solved, the contrast and lightness can be improved and the effect of SDR image can be promoted as HDR image [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurological disorder that causes uncontrolled repetitive motor and vocal tics in children. Examining the neural basis of TS churned out different research studies that advanced our understanding of the brain pathways involved in its development. Particularly, growing evidence points to abnormalities within the fronto-striato-thalamic pathways. In this study, we combined Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) and Atlas-based regions of interest (ROI) analysis approach, to investigate the microstructural diffusion changes in both deep and superficial white matter (SWM) in TS children. We then characterized the altered microstructure of white matter in 27 TS children in comparison with 27 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. We found that fractional anisotropy (FA) decreases and radial diffusivity (RD) increases in deep white matter (DWM) tracts in cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuit as well as SWM. Furthermore, we found that lower FA values and higher RD values in white matter regions are correlated with more severe tics, but not tics duration. Besides, we also found both axial diffusivity and mean diffusivity increase using Atlas-based ROI analysis. Our work may suggest that microstructural diffusion changes in white matter is not only restricted to the gray matter of CSTC circuit but also affects SWM within the primary motor and somatosensory cortex, commissural and association fibers. Hum Brain Mapp 37:1903-1919, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The inedible bottom part (∼30-40%) of asparagus ( Asparagus officinalis L.) spears is usually discarded as waste. However, since this by-product has been reported to be rich in many bioactive phytochemicals, it might be utilisable as a supplement in foods or natural drugs for its therapeutic effects. In this study it was identifed that saponins from old stems of asparagus ( SSA) exerted potential inhibitory activity on tumour growth and metastasis. Results SSA suppressed cell viability of breast, colon and pancreatic cancers in a concentration-dependent manner, with half-maximum inhibitory concentrations ranging from 809.42 to 1829.96 µg mL−1. However, SSA was more functional in blocking cell migration and invasion as compared with its cytotoxic effect, with an effective inhibitory concentration of 400 µg mL−1. A mechanistic study showed that SSA markedly increased the activities of Cdc42 and Rac1 and decreased the activity of RhoA in cancer cells. Conclusion SSA inhibits tumour cell motility through modulating the Rho GTPase signalling pathway, suggesting a promising use of SSA as a supplement in healthcare foods and natural drugs for cancer prevention and treatment. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hispidulin, an active component from Artemisia vestita, a traditional Tibetan medicinal plant, has been shown to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative activities. However, the functional role of hispidulin on tumor growth and angiogenesis has not been elucidated. We found that hispidulin significantly inhibited human pancreatic tumor growth in xenograft mice when s.c. treated at a dosage of 20 mg/kg daily, and this effect was accompanied with a potent inhibition on angiogenesis. When examining the cytotoxicity of hispidulin on HUVECs and pancreatic cancer cells in vitro, we found that HUVECs were more susceptible to the treatment, suggesting angiogenesis might be the primary target of hispidulin. Our results further showed that hispidulin inhibited vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced cell migration, invasion, and capillary-like structure formation of HUVECs in a dose-dependent manner. In ex vivo and in vivo angiogenesis assays, we showed that hispidulin suppressed VEGF-induced microvessel sprouting of rat aortic rings and corneal neovascularization in C57/BL6 mice . To understand the underlying molecular basis, we next examined the effects of hispidulin on different molecular components in treated HUVECs, and found that hispidulin suppressed the VEGF-triggered activation of VEGF receptor 2, PI3K, Akt, mTOR, and ribosomal protein S6 kinase, but had little effect on focal adhesion kinase or extracellular signal-regulated kinase at an effective concentration. Taken together, our results indicate that hispidulin targets the VEGF receptor 2-mediated PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in endothelial cells, leading to the suppression of pancreatic tumor growth and angiogenesis. ( Cancer Sci 2011; 102: 219-225) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Outcomes of operations for total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) have improved. However, postoperative pulmonary venous obstruction remains the most significant complication with high morbidity and mortality. We introduce a window anastomosis technique for repair of supracardiac TAPVC in infants. The mainstay of the surgical technique is to resect the anterior wall of the pulmonary vein confluence and part of the posterior wall of the left atrium to form a large and undistorted "window to window" anastomosis., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)