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Summary: The salinization of soil constitutes a substantial hindrance to the advancement of sustainable agriculture. Our research seeks to elucidate the role of a Rab GTPase‐activating protein (RabGAP) family member, SlRabGAP22, in salt tolerance and its translational regulation under salt stress in tomatoes, employing gene‐editing techniques and ribosome profiling methodologies. Findings demonstrate that SlRabGAP22 acts as a positive regulator of tomato salt tolerance, with four predicted upstream open reading frames (uORFs) classified into three categories. Functional uORFs were found to be negative regulation. Editing these uORFs along with altering their classifications and characteristics mitigated the inhibitory effects on primary ORFs and fine‐tuned gene expression. Enhanced tomato salt tolerance was attributed to improved scavenging of reactive oxygen species, reduced toxicity Na+, and diminished osmotic stress effects. Furthermore, we conducted genome‐wide analysis of ORFs to lay the foundation for further research on uORFs in tomatoes. In summary, our findings offer novel perspectives and important data for the enhancement of genetic traits via uORF‐based strategies and translational regulation against the backdrop of salt stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitophagy is a selective cellular process critical for the removal of damaged mitochondria. It is essential in regulating mitochondrial number, ensuring mitochondrial functionality, and maintaining cellular equilibrium, ultimately influencing cell destiny. Numerous pathologies, such as neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular disorders, cancers, and various other conditions, are associated with mitochondrial dysfunctions. Thus, a detailed exploration of the regulatory mechanisms of mitophagy is pivotal for enhancing our understanding and for the discovery of novel preventive and therapeutic options for these diseases. Nanomaterials have become integral in biomedicine and various other sectors, offering advanced solutions for medical uses including biological imaging, drug delivery, and disease diagnostics and therapy. Mitophagy is vital in managing the cellular effects elicited by nanomaterials. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the molecular mechanisms underpinning mitophagy, underscoring its significant influence on the biological responses of cells to nanomaterials. Nanoparticles can initiate mitophagy via various pathways, among which the PINK1‐Parkin pathway is critical for cellular defense against nanomaterial‐induced damage by promoting mitophagy. The role of mitophagy in biological effects was induced by nanomaterials, which are associated with alterations in Ca2+ levels, the production of reactive oxygen species, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and lysosomal damage. Mitophagy, a form of selective autophagy that maintains mitochondrial homeostasis and protects cells, is closely associated with the pathogenesis of numerous diseases. Given the widespread use and increasing exposure of nanomaterials to the human body, it is crucial to comprehend their biological effects. Therefore, we conducted a comprehensive review of the regulatory mechanisms of mitophagy and its impact on cellular responses to nanomaterials, in order to provide intervention strategies for diagnosing and treating mitochondria‐related disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardio‐cerebrovascular disease (CCVD) is a serious threat to huma strategy to prevent the occurrence and development of disease by giving electroacupuncture intervention before the disease occurs. EAP has been shown in many preclinical studies to relieve ischemic symptoms and improve damage from ischemia–reperfusion, with no comprehensive review of its mechanisms in cardiovascular disease yet. In this paper, we first systematically discussed the meridian and acupoint selection law of EAP for CCVD and focused on the progress of the mechanism of action of EAP for the prevention and treatment of CCVD. As a result, in preclinical studies, AMI and MCAO models are commonly used to simulate ischemic injury in CCVD, while MIRI and CI/RI models are used to simulate reperfusion injury caused by blood flow recovery after focal tissue ischemia. According to the meridian matching rules of EAP for CCVD, PC6 in the pericardial meridian is the most commonly used acupoint in cardiovascular diseases, while GV20 in the Du meridian is the most commonly used acupoint in cerebrovascular diseases. In terms of intervention parameters, EAP intervention generally lasts for 30 min, with acupuncture depths mostly between 1.5 and 5 mm, stimulation intensities mostly at 1 mA, and commonly used frequencies being low frequencies. In terms of molecular mechanisms, the key pathways of EAP in preventing and treating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are partially similar. EAP can play a protective role in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases by promoting autophagy, regulating Ca2+ overload, and promoting vascular regeneration through anti‐inflammatory reactions, antioxidant stress, and anti‐apoptosis. Of course, both pathways involved have their corresponding specificities. When using EAP to prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases, it involves the metabolic pathway of glutamate, while when using EAP to prevent and treat cerebrovascular diseases, it involves the homeostasis of the blood–brain barrier and the release of neurotransmitters and nutritional factors. I hope these data can provide experimental basis and reference for the clinical promotion and application of EAP in CCVD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Giant trees are pivotal in forest ecosystems, yet our current understanding of their significance is constrained primarily by the limited knowledge of their precise locations and structural characteristics. Amidst escalating human‐induced disturbances globally, there is an urgent need to devise a practical approach to discover and measure giant trees accurately and efficiently.Here, we propose a novel light detection and ranging (lidar)‐based framework designed for the discovery and measurement of giant trees. Our framework integrates cutting‐edge lidar platforms, including spaceborne, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and backpack lidar, to create an end‐to‐end workflow. The algorithm involved in the proposed framework was compiled into a code package and made available as open source.The method successfully identified the tallest trees in China, including the tallest tree in Asia, a Cupressus austrotibetica with a height of 102.3 m, discovered in Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon in May 2023. This finding has not only established a new record but also demonstrated the efficacy of our proposed framework. Utilising lidar data, we performed meticulous measurements at both individual and stand levels, revealing the unique characteristics of this giant tree.The new framework for the discovery and measurement of giant trees, encompassing detailed procedures and codes, is expected to facilitate the discovery and measurement of giant trees with high efficiency, thus fostering advancements in giant tree ecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Currently, an advanced imaging method may be necessary for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to diagnosis and quantify liver fibrosis (LF). Purpose: To evaluate the feasibility of the multicompartmental restriction spectrum imaging (RSI) model to characterize LF in a mouse model. Methods: Thirty mice with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)‐induced LF and eight control mice were investigated using multi‐b‐value (ranging from 0 to 2000 s/mm2) diffusion‐weighted imaging (DWI) on a 3T scanner. DWI data were processed using RSI model (2–5 compartments) with the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC) determining the optimal model. Conventional ADC value and signal fraction of each compartment in the optimal RSI model were compared across groups. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis was performed to determine the diagnosis performances of different parameters, while Spearman correlation analysis was employed to investigate the correlation between different tissue compartments and the stage of LF. Results: According to BIC results, a 4‐compartment RSI model (RSI4) with optimal ADCs of 0.471 × 10−3, 1.653 × 10−3, 9.487 × 10−3, and > 30 × 10−3, was the optimal model to characterize LF. Significant differences in signal contribution fraction of the C1 and C3 compartments were observed between LF and control groups (P = 0.018 and 0.003, respectively). ROC analysis showed that RSI4‐C3 was the most effective single diffusion parameter for characterizing LF (AUC = 0.876, P = 0.003). Furthermore, the combination of ADC values and RSI4‐C3 value increased the diagnosis performance significantly (AUC = 0.894, P = 0.002). Conclusion: The 4‐compartment RSI model has the potential to distinguish LF from the control group based on diffusion parameters. RSI4‐C3 showed the highest diagnostic performance among all the parameters. The combination of ADC and RSI4‐C3 values further improved the discrimination performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is generally believed that the introduction of the 3D structure in Cu current collector (CuCC) is beneficial for the uniform deposition of Li due to the reduced local current density and mitigatory reaction rate. However, the influence of the microstructure change in CuCC on the nucleation behaviors of Li through mechanical treatment has been ignored. Hence, microindent is used to prepare 3D structure on the surface of CuCC, the structure evolution during microindentation as well as its impact on Li nucleation behaviors are investigated. It is found that the increased specific surface area results in decreased current density and reduced nucleation driving force. The crystal misorientation beneath the indent leads to the increased surface energy and inhomogeneous nucleation of Li. Thus, the indented CuCC (Ind CuCC) exhibits higher nucleation overpotential and slower electron transfer rate. This manuscript provides a new perspective to the study of the impact of the microstructure of current collector on the nucleation behaviors of Li. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SARS‐CoV‐2 viruses are highly transmissible and immune evasive. It is critical to develop broad‐spectrum prophylactic and therapeutic antibodies for potential future pandemics. Here, we used the phage display method to discover nanobodies (Nbs) for neutralizing SARS‐CoV‐2 viruses especially Omicron strains. The leading nanobody (Nb), namely, Nb4, with excellent physicochemical properties, can neutralize Delta and Omicron subtypes, including BA.1, BA.1.1 (BA.1 + R346K), BA.2, BA.5, BQ.1, and XBB.1. The crystal structure of Nb4 in complex with the receptor‐binding domain (RBD) of BA.1 Spike protein reveals that Nb4 interacts with an epitope on the RBD overlapping with the receptor‐binding motif, and thus competes with angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) binding. Nb4 is expected to be effective for neutralizing most recent Omicron variants, since the epitopes are evolutionarily conserved among them. Indeed, trivalent Nb4 interacts with the XBB1.5 Spike protein with low nM affinity and competes for ACE2 binding. Prophylactic and therapeutic experiments in mice indicated that Nb4 could reduce the Omicron virus loads in the lung. In particular, in prophylactic experiments, intranasal administration of multivalent Nb4 completely protected mice from Omicron infection. Taken together, these results demonstrated that Nb4 could serve as a potent and broad‐spectrum prophylactic and therapeutic Nb for COVID‐19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To analyse the clinical data of patients who developed incisional complications and those who did not develop incisional complications after lumbar internal fixation, and investigate the risk factors for incisional complications in patients after lumbar internal fixation with posterior midline incision. A standardised data collection form was used to collect the clinical data of patients who were admitted and underwent lumbar internal fixation in our hospital from July 2018 to July 2021. Patients who experienced any one of the incisional complications, such as incision exudates, swelling, blisters, bruising, superficial/deep incisional infections, poor healing and scarring, after surgery were included in the incisional complication group, and patients who did not develop the above‐mentioned incisional complications were included in the control group. Univariate logistic regression analysis was first performed to identify potential risk factors, significant factors from univariate analysis were then included in multivariable logistic regression analysis to identify independent risk factors for incisional complications after lumbar spine surgery. Among 455 patients included in the study, postoperative incision complications occurred in 82 patients, with an incidence rate of 18.02%. Multivariate regression analysis identified seven independent risk factors for incisional complications: age, body mass index, preoperative albumin level, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, operation time and local anaesthetic infiltration at the incision site after surgery. Our findings documented that age, body mass index, preoperative albumin level, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, operation time, and postoperative local anaesthetic infiltration at the incision site were risk factors for incisional complications after lumbar internal fixation with posterior median incision. Awareness of these risk factors can enable surgeons to develop a more appropriate perioperative management plan for patients undergoing lumbar internal fixation, thus helping them recover faster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the treatment effect of non‐surgical ear molding correction in children with mild cryptotia deformity. Methods: 51 cases were collected from 2016 to 2021. They were divided into four groups (6 months–1 year group, 1–3 years group, 3–6 years group, and ≥6 years group). The effective rate, recurrence rate, complication rate, and treatment duration of non‐surgical ear molding correction were analyzed among the four groups. Results: 3 months after the end of corrective treatment, the overall effective rate was 92.2% (47/51), the overall recurrence rate was 7.8% (4/51), and there was statistical significance among the four groups (p = 0.001). The overall complication rate was 2.0% (1/51), and there was no statistical significance among the four groups (p = 1.000). There was statistical significance in the treatment duration among the four groups (p < 0.001), and the mean duration of treatment was positively correlated with the age at treatment (p < 0.001, R = 0.614). Conclusions: We first propose and recommend that the treatment time window for non‐surgical ear molding correction be maximally extended to 6 years old in children with mild cryptotia deformity. There is a high success rate of non‐surgical ear molding correction in children with mild cryptotia deformity. The complication rate is low. There is a positive correlation between the mean treatment duration and the age at treatment, and the treatment duration increases with the growth of months. Level of Evidence: 4 Laryngoscope, 133:2122–2128, 2023 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new process route for the preparation of Ni/Al2O3 composite powder through fluidized crystallization granulation–hydrogen reduction and investigates the effects of process feasibility, nickel concentration, nucleation method, and hydrogen reduction on Ni/Al2O3‐coated powder. The decrease in nickel concentration, heterogeneous nucleation, and natural air‐drying properties of precursor particles was beneficial to the formation of a complete and uniform cladding layer, and the increase in hydraulic retention time could improve the thickness of the cladding layer. The optimum process involves a nickel concentration of 50 mg/L; hydraulic residence time of 75 h to ensure heterogeneous nucleation; two‐step hydrogen reduction of precursor particles to obtain a complete and uniform Ni/Al2O3 cladding layer; and a powder surface nickel content of 59.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deadbeat predictive current control (DPCC) has been widely studied in induction motor drives due to its simple concept, quick response and excellent steady‐state performance. However, conventional DPCC uses a lot of motor parameters to predict current and voltage. Therefore, the performance of DPCC is affected by the accuracy of motor parameters in the controller. The performance of DPCC will severely deteriorate when the motor parameters used in the controller deviate greatly from their actual values. To improve the parameter robustness of DPCC, this paper proposes a robust DPCC (RDPCC), which utilizes the error between the measured currents and predicted currents to compensate for the influence of machine parameter mismatches. The proposed method is compared with the conventional DPCC, and the experimental results confirm its strong robustness against motor parameter mismatch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the emerging of the Internet of Things, chemiresistive gas sensors have been extensively applied in industrial production, food safety, medical diagnosis, and environment detection, etc. Considerable efforts have been devoted to improving the gas‐sensing performance through tailoring the structure, functions, defects and electrical conductivity of sensitive materials. Among the numerous sensitive materials, mesoporous semiconductor metal oxides possess unparalleled properties, including tunable pore size, high specific surface area, abundant metal–oxygen bonds, and rapid mass transfer/diffusion behavior (Knudsen diffusion), which have been regarded as the most potential sensitive materials. Herein, the synthesis strategies for mesoporous metal oxides are overviewed, the classical functionalization techniques of sensitive materials are also systemically summarized as a highlight, including construction of mesoporous structure, regulation of micro‐nano structure (i.e., heterojunctions), noble metal sensitization (e.g., Au, Pt, Ag, Pd) and heteroatomic doping (e.g., C, N, Si, S). In addition, the structure–function relationship of sensitive materials has been discussed at molecular‐atomic level, especially for the chemical sensitization effect, elucidating the interface adsorption/catalytic mechanism. Moreover, the challenges and perspectives are proposed, which will open a new door for the development of intelligent gas sensor in various applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wolbachia are the most successful intracellular bacteria in arthropods. They can manipulate host reproduction to favour infected females, which transmit Wolbachia to their progeny and increase the presence of Wolbachia in the population. The reproductive alterations caused by Wolbachia include feminization, parthenogenesis, male killing and cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), among which CI is the most common. CI leads to embryonic lethality when Wolbachia‐infected males mate with uninfected females or those infected with an incompatible strain. This lethality can be rescued if females are infected with a compatible strain. Although CI was described in the 1960s and its connection to Wolbachia was made in the 1970s, the genes responsible for CI, called CI factors, were not identified until recently. Since then, significant progress has been made in understanding the molecular mechanism of CI using a combination of genetic, phylogenetic, biochemical and structural approaches. The detailed molecular mechanisms behind this fascinating endosymbiotic bacteria‐induced phenotype have begun to emerge. Here, we summarize recent progress in understanding the molecular mechanism of CI, especially focusing on the recently solved CI factor structures and discussing what these new structures brought in terms of CI mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In electricity markets, locational marginal price (LMP) forecasting is particularly important for market participants in making reasonable bidding strategies, managing potential trading risks, and supporting efficient system planning and operation. Unlike existing methods that only consider LMPs' temporal features, this paper tailors a spectral graph convolutional network (GCN) to greatly improve the accuracy of short‐term LMP forecasting. A three‐branch network structure is then designed to match the structure of LMPs' compositions. Such kind of network can extract the spatial‐temporal features of LMPs, and provide fast and high‐quality predictions for all nodes simultaneously. The attention mechanism is also implemented to assign varying importance weights between different nodes and time slots. Case studies based on the IEEE‐118 test system and real‐world data from the PJM validate that the proposed model outperforms existing forecasting models in accuracy, and maintains a robust performance by avoiding extreme errors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐power lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) are critical for power‐intensive applications; however, their development is largely hindered by the lack of anode materials that have stability and high capacity at high charging/discharging rates. Herein, a cationic disordering strategy is reported to build an ideal high‐power anode with boosted intercalation kinetics and a stable framework. A novel titanium niobate (TiNb2O7) anode with unique predistorted Nb(Ti)O6 octahedrons (pd‐TNO) is developed by introducing cation disorder, which allows ultrafast Li+ storage within seconds and exceptional stability over long cycling at high rates. The pd‐TNO delivers an outstanding specific capacity of 153 mAh g−1 at 100 C, 20 times higher than that of conventional TNO anodes without cationic disordering, and retains 42.8% of the capacity after 15,000 cycles. Using the pd‐TNO anode, a high‐power LIB with an unprecedented power density of 91,197 W kg−1 at 200 C, which is approximately eight times higher than that of the advanced commercial high‐power anode Li4Ti5O12 (11,813 W kg−1 at 50 C), is demonstrated. Importantly, the pd‐TNO is prepared under ambient conditions via a high‐throughput process, and it exhibits considerable potential for scalability for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetically responsive elastomers generate continuous motions and locomotion through changes in external magnetic fields. The magnetic particles in an elastomer achieve shape‐morphing, but overall structural integrity can be limited by the compliance of elastomers. To overcome this limitation, magnetic elastomers are enhanced with programmable template creases to generate deployable structures as a library. Current methods to program magnetic domains into actuatable segments use sequential or continuous rasterized magnetization, which is gradual and requires dedicated equipment. To achieve faster magnetic domain programming, template folding for the magnetization process is explored. The crease pattern can reconfigure facets to attain the desired magnetization direction and act as discrete mechanical joints. Crease patterns from the foldable templates allow more variations in robotic kinematics and discretize the deformations. The approach using magnetic elastomers and folding templates as a library can simultaneously program a wide range of deployable mechanisms with inherent crease foldability. Additionally, magnetic responsive robots can encompass bistable actuation imparted from the crease design. Functionalization of magnetic origami structures is demonstrated by imbuing the template material with catalytic properties. These robots have the potential to be deployed from a compact folded form to confined environments, enabling a broader spectrum of minimally invasive procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cephalopod skin, which is capable of dynamic optical camouflage, environmental perceptions, and herd communication, has long been a source of bio‐inspiration for developing soft robots with incredible optoelectronic functions. Yet, challenges still exist in designing a stretchable and compliant robotic skin with high‐level functional integration for soft robots with infinite degrees of freedom. Herein, an emerging 2D material, Ti3C2Tx MXene, and an interfacial engineering strategy are adopted to fabricate the soft robotic skin with cephalopod skin‐inspired multifunctionality. By harnessing interfacial instability, the MXene robotic skin with reconfigurable microtextures demonstrates tunable infrared emission (0.30–0.80), enabling dynamic thermal camouflage for soft robots. Benefiting from the intrinsic Seebeck effect, crack propagation behaviors as well as high electrical conductivity, the MXene robotic skins are tightly integrated with thermal/strain sensation capabilities and can serve as a deformable antenna for wireless communication. Without additional electronics installed, the soft robots wearing the conformal MXene skins perform adaptive thermal camouflage based on the thermoelectric feedback in response to environmental temperature changes. With built‐in strain sensing and wireless communication capabilities, the soft robot can record its locomotion routes and wirelessly transmit the key information to the following soft robot to keep both in disguise under thermographic cameras. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hierarchical porous carbons are the most viable electrode material for supercapacitors because of their balanced capacitive performance and chemical stability. Their pore connectivity plays a pivotal role in electrolyte transport, which is quantified by a new parameter, defined in this work as the longest possible pore separation (LPPS). Herein, we report hierarchical porous carbon nanospheres (HPC‐NS) with a unique ball‐in‐ball structure, which is achieved by the pyrolysis of a supramolecular complex of γ‐cyclodextrin (γ‐CD)/PEO‐PPO‐PEO (F127). This approach differs from the conventional soft‐templating method in that, apart from the assembly of the monomicelles that leads to the host nanospheres (approximately 300 nm), the γ‐CD‐containing monomicelles themselves are converted to small porous carbon nanospheres (<10 nm), which results in an ultralow LPPS of 10 nm, representing the best‐known pore connectivity of the HPC family. The HPC‐NS delivers a high specific capacitance (405 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 and 71% capacitance retention at 200 A g−1), wide voltage window (up to 1.6 V), and simultaneously high energy and power densities (24.3 Wh kg−1 at a power density of 151 W kg−1 and 9 Wh kg−1 at 105 W kg−1) in aqueous electrolytes. This new strategy boosts the development of porous carbon electrodes for aqueous supercapacitors with simultaneously high power and energy densities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A non‐reflecting tapered slotline antenna (NRTSA) with linear phase responses of both reflection and transmission is proposed in this article. The non‐reflecting characteristic is achieved by designing a resistive and reactive loading network, which could effectively absorb the non‐radiated reflected signals and transmit the pulse with little distortion simultaneously. The integration of the loading network and the tapered slotline antenna enables the NRTSA to realize the linear phase responses of both port reflection and pulse transmission. Also, the time‐domain reflection and radiation performance of the NRTSA excited by a short‐pulse are investigated. A prototype was fabricated to verify the antenna performance. The measured results show that the NRTSA features a −9‐dB impedance bandwidth from DC to 16 GHz (200%), a peak realized gain of 9.36 dBi, a maximal cross‐polarization level of −14.8 dB (2.5–16 GHz), and a waveform fidelity of 0.95 when transmitting a Gaussian pulse with a spectrum from 4.5 GHz to 12.5 GHz. Both the non‐reflecting characteristic and short‐pulse transmission performance of the NRTSA enable it to be favorable for ultra‐wideband short‐pulse applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulse‐width modulation (PWM) rectifiers with LCL filters can achieve better filtering and have lower total inductance than its counterpart of L filters. However, the control complexity is also increased due to the higher system order. Furthermore, the performance may deteriorate significantly when the inductance used in the controller deviates from its actual value due to saturation, temperature, and so on. This paper proposes a robust predictive current control (RPCC) scheme based on the ultra‐local model for LCL‐filtered PWM rectifiers. Excluding the converter voltage related term, the other part of the system F$\bm {F}$ including the disturbance caused by parameter mismatches and other dynamic process, can be estimated using differential algebra (DA) or an extended state observer (ESO). After obtaining F$\bm {F}$, the reference voltage vector can be calculated based on the principle of deadbeat current control. The proposed RPCC is extended to an unbalanced and distorted grid by modifying the grid current reference; thus, the three‐phase grid currents are balanced and sinusoidal. The proposed RPCC based on DA and ESO is compared to the conventional model‐based predictive current control (MPCC), and the experimental results confirm its robustness and effectiveness under mismatched parameters and network disturbances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thrombosis remains an important complication for children with single‐ventricle physiology following the Fontan procedure, and effective thromboprophylaxis is an important unmet medical need. To obviate conventional dose‐finding studies and expedite clinical development, a rivaroxaban dose regimen for this indication was determined using a model‐informed drug development approach. A physiologically based pharmacokinetic rivaroxaban model was used to predict a pediatric dosing regimen that would produce drug exposures similar to that of 10 mg once daily in adults. This regimen was used in an open‐label, multicenter phase III study, which investigated the use of rivaroxaban for thromboprophylaxis in post‐Fontan patients 2 to 8 years of age. The pharmacokinetics (PK) of rivaroxaban was assessed in part A (n = 12) and in part B (n = 64) of the UNIVERSE study. The safety and efficacy in the rivaroxaban group were compared to those in the acetylsalicylic acid group for 12 months. Pharmacodynamic end points were assessed in both parts of the study. Rivaroxaban exposures achieved in parts A and B were similar to the adult reference exposures. Prothrombin time also showed similarity to the adult reference. Exposure‐response analysis did not identify a quantitative relationship between rivaroxaban exposures and efficacy/safety outcomes within the observed exposure ranges. A body weight–based dose regimen selected by physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling was shown in the UNIVERSE study to be appropriate for thromboprophylaxis in the post‐Fontan pediatric population. Model‐based dose selection can support pediatric drug development and bridge adult dose data to pediatrics, thereby obviating the need for dose‐finding studies in pediatric programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stretchable energy storage devices have become indispensable components toward energy autonomy for wearable electronic, implantable medical devices, and untethered soft machines. A Zn‐based battery with a neutral electrolyte could act as a competitive candidate for wearable/implantable electronics because of its intrinsic safety and high energy density. Therefore, it is highly desired to develop a synergistic combination of stretchable anodes/cathodes and neutral electrolytes for stretchable Zn‐based batteries. Herein, a scalable fabrication process is developed to produce stretchable Zn‐ion hybrid batteries composed of V2CTx MXene cathodes and zinc‐decorated Ti3C2Tx MXene anodes. To endow high stretchability to the Zn‐ion hybrid battery, both MXene‐based electrodes are fabricated with crumple‐like microtextures enabling reversible folding/unfolding behaviors to attenuate in‐plane stress while stretching. In comparison with the state‐of‐the‐art work, the as‐fabricated Zn‐ion hybrid battery features large deformability (50% strain), ultrathin device (≈170 µm), low areal weight (≈20 mg cm−2), and an ultralow self‐discharge rate (0.7 mV h−1), and demonstrates rechargeable and strain‐insensitive specific capacities of 118.5 and 103.6 mAh g−1 under 0% and 50% strains, respectively. Finally, with ultrathin and lightweight merits, the stretchable battery is further fabricated into a magnetically actuated soft robot with remote control, capable of crawling between two designated points for charging/discharging tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rivaroxaban has been investigated in the EINSTEIN‐Jr program for the treatment of acute venous thromboembolism (VTE) in children aged 0 to 18 years and in the UNIVERSE program for thromboprophylaxis in children aged 2 to 8 years with congenital heart disease after Fontan‐procedure. Physiologically‐based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) and population pharmacokinetic (PopPK) modeling were used throughout the pediatric development of rivaroxaban according to the learn‐and‐confirm paradigm. The development strategy was to match pediatric drug exposures to adult exposure proven to be safe and efficacious. In this analysis, a refined pediatric PopPK model for rivaroxaban based on integrated EINSTEIN‐Jr data and interim PK data from part A of the UNIVERSE phase III study was developed and the influence of potential covariates and intrinsic factors on rivaroxaban exposure was assessed. The model adequately described the observed pediatric PK data. PK parameters and exposure metrics estimated by the PopPK model were compared to the predictions from a previously published pediatric PBPK model for rivaroxaban. Ninety‐one percent of the individual post hoc clearance estimates were found within the 5th to 95th percentile of the PBPK model predictions. In patients below 2 years of age, however, clearance was underpredicted by the PBPK model. The iterative and integrative use of PBPK and PopPK modeling and simulation played a major role in the establishment of the bodyweight‐adjusted rivaroxaban dosing regimen that was ultimately confirmed to be a safe and efficacious dosing regimen for children aged 0 to 18 years with acute VTE in the EINSTEIN‐Jr phase III study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scaling the synergistic properties of MXene nanosheets to microporous aerogel architectures requires effective strategies to overcome the nanosheet restacking without compromising MXene's advantageous properties. Traditional assembly approaches of 3D MXene aerogels normally involve external binders/templates and/or additional functionalization, which sacrifice the electrical conductivities and electrochemical activities of MXene aerogels. Herein, inspired by the hierarchal scale textures of Phrynosoma cornutum, a crumple‐textured Ti3C2Tx MXene platform is engineered to facilitate Mg2+‐induced assembly, enabling conformal formation of large‐area Mg2+‐MXene aerogels without polymeric binders. Through a doctor blading technique and freeze drying, the Mg2+‐MXene aerogels are produced with customized shapes/dimensions, featuring high surface area (140.5 m2 g−1), superior electrical conductivity (758.4 S m−1), and high robustness in water. The highly conductive MXene aerogels show their versatile applications from macroscale technologies (e.g., electromagnetic interference shielding and capacitive deionization (CDI)) to on‐chip electronics (e.g., quasi‐solid‐state microsupercapacitors (QMSCs)). As CDI electrodes, the Mg2+‐MXene aerogels exhibit high salt adsorption capacity (33.3 mg g−1) and long‐term operation reliability (over 30 cycles), showing a superb comparison with the literature. Also, the QMSCs with interdigitated Mg2+‐MXene aerogel electrodes demonstrate high areal capacitances (409.3 mF cm−2) with superior power density and energy density compared with other state‐of‐art QMSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper is concerned with multiple solutions of a nonhomogeneous elliptic system with Sobolev critical exponent over a noncontractible domain, precisely, a smooth bounded annular domain. We prove the existence of four solutions using variational methods and Lusternik–Schnirelmann theory, when the inner hole of the annulus is sufficiently small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North Chinese leopard (Panthera pardus japonensis), the least‐known big cat, disappeared in most historical range for decades, following the development of modern civilization. Unfortunately, we have scarce knowledge about the status of this big cat so far, apart from anecdotal reports. In this study, we investigated density, distribution, and habitat use of the leopard, the apex predator, in a complex forest landscape in the Loess Plateau. We used a camera‐trapping network to obtain population estimates for leopards over 2 years through spatially explicit capture–recapture models. Our results, based on maximum likelihood and Bayesian/MCMC methods, reveal that the largest wild population of the leopard was found widely distributed in remnant forests in central Loess plateau. The population is increasing in our study area, and the density of leopards (1.70 (SE = 0.48) − 2.40 (SE = 0.67)/100 km2) is higher than other areas of China. According to the analysis of 2 seasonal occupancy models, prey species drive partially the leopard habitat use, predicting that the big cat thrives from the recovery of prey community. However, human disturbances, especially oil wells, seem to have negative impacts on the habitat use of leopards. Specifically, it is necessary to have joint efforts by the government and researchers to improve human disturbances management and prey species population density, as well as strengthen the investment in research on the North Chinese leopard, which could all further strengthen protection ability and ensure the long‐term survival of this species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High frequency (HF) sinusoidal pulsating voltage injection is a reliable method for position sensorless control in low speed range. For HF voltage injection based methods, position signal demodulation plays a key role. However, the conventional sinusoidal demodulation suffers from long settling time and limited bandwidth because of requirement of a low‐pass filter (LPF) to suppress HF harmonics in the estimated position. Additionally, the overall performance is deteriorated due to the characteristic of linear demodulation. To address these issues, the cube of q‐axis HF current instead of itself is used as the carrier of position estimation error. In this way, the input variable for phase‐locked loop (PLL) is the cube function with respect to the position deviation. During steady state, the equivalent gain in PLL is very small and thus the estimated position is non‐sensitive against high‐frequency harmonics, thereby the LPF is no longer required in the proposed method. While during dynamic process, the equivalent gain is increased leading to a fast converging rate when compared with the conventional method. The stability and dynamic performance are theoretically analysed by the magnitude–frequency diagram. The superiority of the proposed method was experimentally justified and the obtained results show that both steady‐state and dynamic performance are improved when compared with the prior art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It has been documented that Helicobacter hepaticus (H hepaticus) infection is linked to chronic hepatitis and liver cancer. However, our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying progression of the H hepaticus‐induced hepatic inflammation to cellular hepatocarcinoma is still limited. Materials and methods: In our study, male BALB/c mice were infected by H hepaticus for 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24 weeks. Histopathology, H hepaticus colonization dynamics, select signaling pathways, and expression of key inflammatory cytokines in the liver were examined. Results: We found that H hepaticus was detectible in feces of mice at 7 days postinfection (DPI) by PCR, but it was not detected in the livers by PCR until 8 weeks postinfection (WPI). In addition, abundance of colonic and hepatic H hepaticus was progressively increased over the infection duration. H hepaticus‐induced hepatic inflammation and fibrosis were aggravated over the infection duration, and necrosis or cirrhosis developed in the infected liver at 24 WPI H hepaticus infection increased levels of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase. Moreover, mRNA levels of Il‐6 and Tnf‐α were significantly elevated in the livers of H hepaticus‐infected mice compared to uninfected control from 8 WPI to 24 WPI. Furthermore, Stat3, nuclear factor‐κB (p65), and MAPK (Erk1/2 and p38) were activated by H hepaticus infection. Conclusions: These data demonstrated that male BALB/c mice can be used as a new mouse model of H hepaticus‐induced liver diseases and that the H hepaticus‐induced liver injury is triggered by NF‐κB, Jak‐Stat, and MAPK signaling pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following significant developments in technology, alternative devices have been applied in fieldwork for animal and plant surveys. Thermal‐image acquisition cameras installed on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been used in animal surveys in the wilderness. This article demonstrates an example of how UAVs can be used in high mountainous regions, presenting a case study on the Sichuan snub‐nosed monkey with a detection rate of 65.19% for positive individual identification. It also presents a model that can prospectively predict population size for a given animal species, which is based on combined initial work using UAVs and traditional surveys on the ground. A great potential advantage of UAVs is significantly shortening survey procedures, particularly for areas with high mountains and plateaus, such as the Himalayas, the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, Hengduan Mountains, the Yunnan‐Gui Plateau and Qinling Mountains in China, where carrying out a traditional survey is extremely difficult, so that species and population surveys, particularly for critically endangered animals, are largely absent. This lack of data has impacted the management of endangered animals as well as the formulation and amendment of conservation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The University of Florida Center for Pharmacometrics and Systems Pharmacology and the Food and Drug Administration Office of Generic Drugs have collaborated on a research project to develop a mechanism‐ and risk‐based strategy that systematically investigates postmarketing reports of therapeutic inequivalence following the switch between brand and generic drug products. In this study we developed and qualified a physiologically based pharmacokinetic model to systematically investigate the influence of drug‐ and formulation‐related properties on the oral absorption and bioequivalence of modified‐release products using metoprolol as an example. Our findings show that the properties of the release‐controlling polymer are the critical attributes for in vitro dissolution, in vivo absorption, and systemic exposure (ie, pharmacokinetics) and, thus, the bioequivalence of metoprolol extended‐release products rather than the properties of the drug itself. Differences in dissolution rate can result in significant differences in maximum plasma concentration but not in area under the concentration‐time curve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper studies the length effect on fatigue life of longitudinal element at the macroscale. An asymptotic weakest‐link Weibull phenomenological model that incorporates a statistical length effect for the fatigue life of longitudinal element is proposed in this research. In the proposed model, the weakest‐link effect gradually becomes dominant and causes a decrease in fatigue life that increases along L ̂, the normalized length of the longitudinal element. To this end, the fatigue life under a specified stress range is divided into 3 zones according to the normalized length L ̂: (1) L ̂ ≤ 1 is the zone where length effects can be ignored, and the fatigue life can be treated as a random variable; (2) 1 < L ̂ < L ̂ ρ is the zone where the fatigue life is length dependent; and (3) L ̂ ≥ L ̂ ρ is the zone where the fatigue life follows asymptotic length dependence. The asymptotic threshold normalized length, L ̂ ρ, can be evaluated by the asymptotic weakest‐link Weibull model. To validate the proposed model, 3 previously published datasets are used: (1) the fatigue data of Picciotto yarn, (2) hipo‐eutectoid steel wire with different lengths, and (3) the fatigue data of high‐strength steel wire with different lengths and different constant stress ranges. Finally, the results obtained by the proposed model are compared with those from the literature and discussed in detail. The analytical solutions obtained using the proposed model allows for assessment of the fatigue life of certain components and structures that are beyond current testing capabilities. In particular, the length effects on the fatigue life of the high‐strength steel wire in stay cables are investigated to gain insight into issues regarding safe designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Energy transfer between fluorescent dyes and quenchers is widely used in the design of light‐up probes. Although dual quenchers are more effective in offering lower background signals and higher turn‐on ratios than one quencher, such probes are less explored in practice as they require both quenchers to be within the proximity of the fluorescent core. In this contribution, we utilized intramolecular motion and photoinduced electron transfer (PET) as quenching mechanisms to build super‐quenched light‐up probes based on fluorogens with aggregation‐induced emission. The optimized light‐up probe possesses negligible background and is able to detect not only free formaldehyde (FA) but also polymeric FA, with an unprecedented turn‐on ratio of >4900. We envision that this novel dual quenching strategy will help to develop various light‐up probes for analyte sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Li‐rich layer‐structured oxides are regarded one of the most promising candidates of cathode materials for high energy‐density Li‐ion batteries. However, the uninterrupted migration of the transition metal (TM) ions during cycling and the resultant continuous fading of their discharge potentials bring challenges to the battery design and impede their commercial applications. Various efforts have been taken to suppress the migration of the TM ions such as surface modification and elemental substitution, but no success has been achieved to date. Another strategy hereby is proposed to address these issues, in which the TM migration is promoted and the layered material is transformed to a rocksalt in the first few charge/discharge cycles by specially designing a novel Li‐rich layer‐structured Li1.2Mo0.6Fe0.2O2 on the basis of density functional theory calculations. With such, the continuous falling of the discharge potential is detoured due to enhanced completion of the cation mixing. In‐depth studies such as aberration‐corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy confirm the drastic structural change at the atomic scale, and in situ X‐ray absorption spectroscopy and Mössbauer spectroscopy clarify its charge compensation mechanism. This new strategy provides revelation for the development of the Li‐rich layered oxides with mitigated potential decay and a longer lifespan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Robustness against parameter mismatches and position‐sensorless operation are two important research topics for permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) drives. Usually, the existing observers are designed for achieving a specific function. While here, both the above two functions are integrated into the proposed sliding‐mode disturbance observer: (i) if a position sensor is equipped, accurate current regulation can be achieved by deadbeat predictive current control despite mismatched motor parameters; (ii) if the position sensor is not equipped but with a good estimation of motor parameters, the observer can serve as a back electromotive force estimator. Then, the rotor position can be extracted for position‐sensorless control. Usually, a low‐pass filter is required to suppress high‐frequency noises in the conventional sliding‐mode observer. This inevitably leads to phase delay in the estimation. By comparison, a complex coefficient filter is inherently embedded in the proposed method, which can provide accurate estimation without phase delay or magnitude error. Experimental results obtained from a 2.4 kW PMSM drive platform indicate that high‐performance current control can be achieved with good robustness for position sensor‐based operation. Also, rotor position can be accurately estimated with good steady and dynamic performance for position‐sensorless operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a speed‐sensorless finite control set‐model predictive current control method is proposed based on an adaptive full order observer. The control system features simplicity and low cost because of no requirement for speed measurement, modulator and tuning of weighting factors. In most sensorless based schemes, the motor is assumed to be started from standstill. There is limited research considering starting a free running motor with unknown rotational direction and speed. To start a free‐running induction motor (IM), the feedback gain matrix is designed to guarantee the convergence of estimated speed to actual speed even with incorrect initial value. To improve the efficiency, amplitude of flux is adjusted along with load condition. The presented results show that the proposed method is able to smoothly start an IM with unknown initial speed and work well over a wide speed range. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by both simulation and experimental tests on a two‐level inverter fed IM drive platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to the widespread modulation‐based control strategies such as field oriented control (FOC), MPC eliminates the use of internal current control loops and modulation block, hence featuring very quick dynamic response. Furthermore, MPC well respects the discrete nature of power converters by evaluating the influence of each voltage vector on the concerned control variables, which are usually combined into a cost function, hence featuring simple concept. In spite of the merits of quick response and conceptual simplicity, it seems that MPC may be inferior to FOC in terms of steady‐state performance, especially in the low speed range, which is usually a drawback of MPC‐branched methods. This study proposes an improved two‐vectors‐based MPC (MPC2) and compares it to the well‐established FOC. A detailed experimental study of both methods is presented, including steady‐state performance, dynamic response, low speed operation and control complexity. Very promising results are obtained in MPC2 by providing better steady‐state performance and much quicker response than FOC under the condition of similar average switching frequency. The results prove that MPC2 is a powerful alternative to FOC and may find wide applications in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential for infection by coronaviruses (CoVs) has become a serious concern with the recent emergence of Middle East respiratory syndrome and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in the human population. CoVs encode two large polyproteins, which are then processed into 15-16 nonstructural proteins (nsps) that make significant contributions to viral replication and transcription by assembling the RNA replicase complex. Among them, nsp9 plays an essential role in viral replication by forming a homodimer that binds single-stranded RNA. Thus, disrupting nsp9 dimerization is a potential anti-CoV therapy. However, different nsp9 dimer forms have been reported for alpha- and beta-CoVs, and no structural information is available for gamma-CoVs. Here we determined the crystal structure of nsp9 from the avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), a representative gamma-CoV that affects the economy of the poultry industry because it can infect domestic fowl. IBV nsp9 forms a homodimer via interactions across a hydrophobic interface, which consists of two parallel alpha helices near the carboxy terminus of the protein. The IBV nsp9 dimer resembles that of SARS-CoV nsp9, indicating that this type of dimerization is conserved among all CoVs. This makes disruption of the dimeric interface an excellent strategy for developing anti-CoV therapies. To facilitate this effort, we characterized the roles of six conserved residues on this interface using site-directed mutagenesis and a multitude of biochemical and biophysical methods. We found that three residues are critical for nsp9 dimerization and its abitlity to bind RNA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim The objectives of this study were: (i) to develop a standardized method of quantifying bone mineral density ( BMD) and microarchitecture in the hand and wrist bones of patients with rheumatoid arthritis ( RA) using high resolution- peripheral quantitative computed tomography ( HR- pQCT); (ii) to compare quantitative bone parameters between RA and post-menopausal osteopenic ( PM- OP) subjects; and (iii) to correlate quantitative bone parameters at the distal radius with those at the metacarpal heads in RA subjects. Methods HR- pQCT imaging of the dominant hand and wrist was performed in 12 female RA patients. BMD and trabecular parameters for the 2-12% head region of the second and third metacarpals were calculated and compared between RA patients and healthy controls. Bone parameters were also calculated for 110 slices of the distal radius in RA patients and compared to data from controls and PM- OP women from a previous study. Results Compared to controls, RA patients had significantly decreased BMD, trabecular volume and number, and increased trabecular heterogeneity in the third metacarpal and distal radius. Significantly lower trabecular number and significantly higher ratio of outer annular trabecular BMD to inner trabecular BMD were observed in patients with RA, compared to patients with osteopenia ( P < 0.05). Trabecular BMD in the third metacarpal and in the distal radius were significantly correlated (ρ = 0.918, P < 0.0001) in RA patients. Conclusion This study established a standardized method for quantifying bone density and trabecular properties in the hand and wrist bones of RA patients using HR- pQCT. Deterioration of bone structure in RA patients was found comparable to that in osteopenic women, and trabecular bone loss near affected joints was found to be correlated with bone loss away from joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an increasing need for new strategies to improve the heating efficiency or the specific absorption rate (SAR) of magnetite (Fe3O4), which is the only FDA approved magnetic material. We propose a facile approach to obtain well-dispersed highly crystalline Fe3O4 nanorods (NRs) by the reduction of β-FeOOH in an organic solvent and demonstrate that the SAR of Fe3O4 NRs can be enhanced by tuning their aspect ratios. Fe3O4 NRs with an aspect ratio of 4.5 have a much higher SAR as compared with 15 nm Fe3O4 nanoparticles and Fe3O4 NRs counterparts with an aspect ratio of 10. The highest SAR is greatly increased up to 1072 W g−1 for an ac field of 33 kA m−1 and a concentration of 5 mg mL−1, which is mostly attributed to hysteresis losses. These findings pave a new pathway for the design and synthesis of novel anisotropic iron oxide nanostructures with an optimal heating efficiency for advanced hyperthermia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]