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Abstract Mammalian epididymal epithelial cells are crucial for sperm maturation. Historically, vacuole-like ultrastructures in epididymal epithelial cells were observed via transmission electron microscopy but were undefined. Here, we utilize volume electron microscopy (vEM) to generate 3D reconstructions of epididymal epithelial cells and identify these vacuoles as intercellular organelle reservoirs (IORs) in the lateral intercellular space (LIS), which contains protein aggregates, autophagosomes, lysosome-related organelles and mitochondrial residues. Immunolabelling of organelle markers such as P62, LC3, LAMP1 and TOMM20 confirm these findings. The IOR size or number varies across four epididymal regions and decreases with age. Rab27a mutant mice exhibit reduced IORs in the caput epididymis and a subfertility phenotype, suggesting the involvement of Rab27a in the formation of IORs. Furthermore, we observe the presence of IORs between intestinal epithelial cells besides epididymis. Amino acid transporters at IOR edges suggest dynamic protein recycling. Our findings reveal that the IOR is an important structure critical for organelle turnover and recycling outside epithelial cells with limited self-degradation capabilities.

Abstract Globally, people living with HIV (PLHIV) are at a high risk of syphilis transmission, and Hainan Province has one of the highest syphilis rates in China. However, there is no targeted syphilis screening for HIV patients in Hainan, highlighting the need for data to guide public health interventions. This study aims to assess the incidence of seropositive syphilis and its associated factors among PLHIV. A retrospective cohort study was conducted at HIV care facilities in Haikou, China, recruiting adults living with HIV. The diagnosis of syphilis was confirmed through the TRUST and TPPA tests. Univariate logistic regression was employed to compare syphilis rates across groups, while multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify factors associated with syphilis infection. Of the 650 participants, 461 (70.9%) were men who have sex with men (MSM). The median age at HIV diagnosis was 28 years, with 154 (23.7%) testing positive for syphilis. The incidence of syphilis was the highest in individuals with prior STDs before HIV (43.1%), followed by those with suboptimal HIV antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence (38.7%) and MSM (29.5%). The study identified that PLHIV who were diagnosed with HIV through voluntary testing (aOR:1.918, 95%CI:1.113–3.306), were MSM (aOR:2.648, 95%CI:1.269–5.524), had suboptimal HIV ART adherence (aOR:2.002, 95%CI:1.060–3.780), had a history of STDs before HIV (aOR:3.025, 95%CI:1.563–5.857), and had a longer duration of HIV ART (aOR:1.431, 95%CI:1.184–1.730) were at a higher risk of syphilis. The incidence of syphilis is high among PLHIV, especially in MSM and individuals with a history of STDs prior to their HIV diagnosis and suboptimal ART adherence, highlighting the need for targeted interventions and regular screening.

Acute kidney injury （AKI） is a diverse group of renal diseases characterized by a dramatic decline in renal function. Not only AKI has a high mortality rate， but also poor renal adaptation or incomplete repair after acute phase may also lead to renal fibrosis and eventually to chronic kidney disease （CKD）. Currently there are no effective measures for limiting damage， promoting recovery and improving survival. Proteolysis targeting chimeras （PROTACs） provide a novel strategy for AKI drug development through ubiquitin-proteasome system of degrading target proteins. This review summarized promising therapeutic targets for AKI and the application of PROTACs technology.

ABSTRACT The biodiversity of CO2-assimilating bacterial communities is pivotal for carbon sequestration in agricultural systems. Changes in the diversity, structure, and activity of the soil chemolithoautotrophic bacteria were examined in four agricultural areas, Dulan (DL), Gonghe (GH), Huzhu (HZ), and Datong (DT) counties in Qinghai Province, where wheat, oilseed rape, and barley were planted. This process was performed using Illumina amplicon sequencing of the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphatecarboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) gene (cbbL Form I) and activity data. The diversity, community, and activity of soil autotrophic CO2-fixing bacteria differed significantly across soil sites, whereas cbbL-bearing bacterial diversity and activity were similar across different crop types. RubisCO activity in the HZ region was significantly greater than in the other three regions (P < 0.001). The overall relative abundance trend of the bacterial taxa was similar among the three crop samples. Moreover, 31, 27, 10, and 8 significant linear discriminant analysis effect sizes were identified in the four regions collected from HZ, DL, DT, and GH, respectively. No significant biomarkers were detected in any of the crop groups. Some soil properties had significant relationships with the autotrophic bacterial community composition.IMPORTANCEAgricultural soil plays important roles in carbon fixation during carbon capture and storage. Autotrophic bacteria that utilize inorganic compounds as electron donors for growth fix CO2 photosynthetically or chemo-autotrophically in diverse ecosystems and affect soil organic carbon sequestration. Soil properties, agronomic management measures, and environmental factors can influence the community composition, abundance, and activity of CO2-assimilating bacteria. This study aims at evaluating the effects of different regions and crop types on the abundance, composition, and activity of CO2-fixing bacteria in agricultural soil.

Abstract Background Microbiomics offers new methods for conducting epidemiological surveys of oral microbiota in large populations. Compared to curette sampling, swab sampling is more convenient and less technically sensitive, making it more suitable for such surveys. To verify the feasibility of using swabs for buccal mucosa sampling in large-scale studies, we collected samples from the buccal mucosa and tooth surfaces of healthy individuals using both swabs and curettes. Microbiomics was employed to analyze and compare microbial abundance and diversity between these two methods. Methods Four sites were assessed: the buccal mucosa on both sides and the buccal surfaces of the left and right mandibular first molars. Two sampling methods, swab and curette, were used to collect bacterial communities from healthy individuals. Specifically, buccal mucosa samples (n = 10) and tooth surface samples (n = 20) were analyzed using 16 S rDNA gene sequencing. Bacterial signals were detected through fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), targeting the bacterial 16 S rDNA gene. Metastats analysis and Wilcoxon test were used. Results A total of 383 OTUs were detected in the 30 samples, which belonged to 1 kingdom (bacteria), 11 phyla, 23 classes, 40 orders, 75 families, 143 genus, and 312 species. Among them, 223 OTUs were found on both the buccal mucosa and tooth surfaces. The statistics suggest that although there were no significant differences in colony composition, there were differences in the abundance and distribution of colonies on the dental and buccal mucosal surfaces. When detecting oral disease-causing pathogens such as Enterococcus faecalis and Porphyromonas gingivalis, the efficiency of detection is higher when using curette sampling. Compared to right tooth sampling with a curette, the swab sampling group had higher levels of Firmicutes, while Fusobacteria and Bacteroidetes were more prevalent in the curette tissues. Conclusions In oral health individuals, there is no difference in the bacterial composition of the oral buccal mucosa and the dental surface, differing only in abundance. Thus, the buccal mucosa can act as a substitute for the teeth in epidemiological investigations exploring the bacterial composition of the oral cavity.

Abstract We investigate the hyperon semileptonic decays within the framework of QCD sum rules. The flavor SU(3) symmetry breaking effects are analyzed via the relevant form factors and corresponding branching fractions. Employing the z-series parameterization to capture the q 2 dependence of form factors, we calculate the hyperon semileptonic decay rates and confront them with the recent experimental measurements. Moreover, we calculate as well the non-standard tensor form factors, which involve certain new physics beyond the standard model.

Summary: Universal coatings with versatile surface adhesion, good mechanochemical robustness, and the capacity for secondary modification are of great scientific interest. However, incorporating these advantages into a system is still a great challenge. Here, we report a series of catechol-decorated polyallylamines (CPAs), denoted as pseudo-Mytilus edulis foot protein 5 (pseudo-Mefp-5), that mimic not only the catechol and amine groups but also the backbone of Mefp-5. CPAs can fabricate highly adhesive, robust, multifunctional polyCPA (PCPA) coatings based on synergetic catechol-polyamine chemistry as universal building blocks. Due to the interpenetrating entangled network architectures, these coatings exhibit high chemical robustness against harsh conditions (HCl, pH 1; NaOH, pH 14; H2O2, 30%), good mechanical robustness, and wear resistance. In addition, PCPA coatings provide abundant grafting sites, enabling the fabrication of various functional surfaces through secondary modification. Furthermore, the versatility, multifaceted robustness, and scalability of PCPA coatings indicate their great potential for surface engineering, especially for withstanding harsh conditions in multipurpose biomedical applications.

Deep learning models have made great accomplishments in space weather forecasting. The critical frequency of the ionospheric F2 layer (foF2) is a key ionospheric parameter, which can be understood and predicted by some advanced new deep learning technologies. In this paper, we utilized an Informer architecture model to predict foF2 for several hours up to 48 h and analyzed its variations during periods of quiet, moderate, and intense geomagnetic conditions. The Informer method forecasts the temporal variations of foF2 by processing and training the past and present foF2 data from the Haikou station, China, during 2006–2014. It is evident that the Informer–foF2 model achieves better prediction performance than the widely used long short-term memory model. The Informer–foF2 model captures the correlation features within the foF2 time series and better predicts the variations ranging for hours up to days during different geomagnetic activities.

Abstract The invasion-metastasis cascade in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is predominantly caused by the interaction between tumor cells and tumor microenvironment, including hypoxia as well as stromal cells. However, the mechanism of hypoxia-activated tumor-stroma crosstalk in HNSCC metastasis remains to be deciphered. Here, we demonstrated that HIF1α was upregulated in HNSCC specimens compared with adjacent normal tissues, whose overexpression was associated with lymph node metastasis and predicted unfavorable prognosis. HIF1α expression correlated positively with the levels of miR-5100 as well as α-SMA, the marker of CAFs. Hypoxia/HIF1α regulated transcriptionally miR-5100 to promote the degradation of its target gene QKI, which acts as a tumor suppressor in HNSCC. Hypoxic HNSCC-derived exosomal miR-5100 promoted the activation of CAFs by orchestrating QKI/AKT/STAT3 axis, which further facilitated HNSCC metastasis. Additionally, miR-5100 derived from plasma exosomes indicated HNSCC malignant progression. In conclusion, our findings illuminate a novel HIF1α/miR-5100/QKI pathway in HNSCC metastasis, and suggest that miR-5100 might be a potential biomarker and therapeutic target for HNSCC.

Desertification severely impacts soil environments, necessitating effective control measures to improve sandy soil. On the alpine sandy land of Gonghe Basin, taking bare land containing mobile sand dunes (LD) as a reference, surface soil undergoing four afforestation measures, namely Salix cheilophila + Populus simonii (WLYY), Salix psammophila + Salix cheilophila (SLWL), Artemisia ordosica + Caragana korshinskii (SHNT), and Caragana korshinskii (NT80), was studied, with soil physicochemical properties and enzyme activity measured and the bacterial community structure analyzed using Illumina high-throughput sequencing. Compared to LD, all four afforestation measures significantly reduced the sand content, while increasing soil total carbon, total nitrogen, organic matter, alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen, and available potassium. WLYY, SLWL, and SHNT significantly increased the surface soil total phosphorus and total potassium. Catalase, sucrase, urease, and alkaline phosphatase activities significantly increased under all four measures. Among them, the highest improvements were observed under SLWL, followed by WLYY. All treatments increased soil bacterial community richness, exhibiting significantly different bacterial community compositions to those in LD. Total phosphorus was the key physicochemical factor affecting the soil bacterial community structure, while enzyme activity was significantly correlated with the relative abundance of most major bacterial phyla. All measures improved the surface soil environment, with SLWL demonstrating the best improvement. The results provide valuable reference for sand prevention and control strategies in alpine sandy areas and offer a theoretical basis for the ecological restoration of sandy soil microenvironments.

ObjectiveThe aim of this is to explore changes in cross-modal reorganization within the auditory–visual cortex after cochlear implantation, examining their influence on auditory and speech functions along with their underlying mechanisms.MethodsTwenty prelingually deaf children who received cochlear implantation and rehabilitation training at our hospital between February 2022 and February 2023 comprised the prelingual deaf group. Simultaneously, 20 healthy children served as the control group. The prelingual deaf group underwent brain cortical activity assessment and evaluation of auditory-speech recovery pre-surgery, at postoperative weeks 1 and 2, and at months 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12. The control group underwent parallel assessments and evaluations. We analyzed the correlation between cortical activity in the auditory–visual cortex of patients and their auditory-speech functional recovery.ResultsThe group with prelingual deafness displayed elevated levels of auditory and visual cortical electromagnetic intensity compared to the control group, both prior to and 9 months after surgery. However, by the 12-month mark post-surgery, there was no discernible distinction between the two groups. Following surgery, the prelingually deaf group exhibited a progressive improvement in both Categories of Auditory Performance (CAP) and Speech Intelligibility Rate (SIR), initially lagging behind the control group. Notably, a negative correlation emerged between auditory and visual cortical electromagnetic intensity values and CAP/SIR scores at the 12-month post-surgery assessment.ConclusionCochlear implantation in prelingually deaf children results in elevated activity within the auditory and visual cortices, demonstrated by heightened electromagnetic intensity readings. Cross-modal reorganization is observed temporarily at 3 months post-surgery, which resolves to baseline levels by 12 months post-surgery. This phenomenon of reversal correlates with the restoration of auditory and speech functions in these children.

We study the feasibility to observe sterile neutrino at the high energy colliders with direct production channels through e+e−, ep collision, and indirect production channels through decays of heavy meson, baryon and Higgs. For e+e− collision, the e+e−→ν¯eN channel is explored with new signal selection method which tends to be efficient for light mN, the constraints of active-sterile mixing |UeN|2 at the SuperKEKB, CEPC and ILC are expected to reach better lower limits than current experiments. For ep collision, We investigate the heavy sterile neutrino production through a new channel via photon PDF, i.e., e−γ→NW−, hundreds of GeV heavy sterile neutrino can be probe and new limit on mixing is given. For heavy hadrons decay, the lepton-number-violating decays of Λc,Ξc,Ξcc and Λb are explored via an intermediate on-shell Majorana neutrino in GeV scale. The branching fractions and the constraints for |UℓN|2 are given, and hence may put new limits on this mass region. The Higgs→Wμμπ channel is also considered to test massive neutrino within Higgs sector.

Selenium (Se) has garnered increasing attention in the field of nutrition, as it is essential for both humans and animals. Certain microorganisms can enrich inorganic selenium and convert it into organic selenium. The growth and metabolomic profiles of six lactobacilli strains exposed to 50 μg/mL of sodium selenite were performed using gas chromatography tandem time-off light mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS) analysis. The addition of selenium significantly increased both the population and weight of the Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus PS5, Lbs. rhamnosus RT-B, Limosilactobacillus reuteri 3630, and Lmb. reuteri 1663 strains, while those of the other two strains decreased. A total of 271 metabolites were determined, with their concentrations ranked from highest to lowest as follows: organic acids and derivatives, oxygen compounds, lipids and lipid-like molecules, and benzenoids. In certain groups, the concentrations of serine, aspartic acid, trehalose, palmitic acid, methylthreonine, and melibiose increased significantly, whereas glucuronic acid, ribose, ornithine, and methionine were downregulated. The metabolic pathways were significantly associated with ABC transporters, glycine, serine, threonine metabolism, and aminobenzoate degradation and other pathways. Based on these findings, we concluded that the transport, absorption, assimilation, and stress response to selenium by lactobacilli in metabolomic changed. Furthermore, the metabolomic alterations among different types of lactobacilli varied primarily due to their distinct properties.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). And arrhythmias is a predominant symptom. As compared with the general population, the etiology of arrhythmias is more complex and formulating appropriate treatment strategies have remained problematic. This review summarized common types, risk factors, pathophysiological mechanisms and current managements of arrhythmia in CKD patients, especially those with end-stage renal disease.

Abstract The preservation of quantum correlations requires optimal procedures and the proper design of the transmitting channels. In this regard, we address designing a hybrid channel comprising a single-mode cavity accompanied by a super-Gaussian beam and local dephasing parts based on the dynamics of quantum characteristics. We choose two-level atoms and various functions such as traced-distance discord, concurrence, and local-quantum uncertainty to analyze the effectiveness of the hybrid channel to preserve quantum correlations along with entropy suppression discussed using linear entropy. The joint configuration of the considered fields is found to not only preserve but also generate quantum correlations even in the presence of local dephasing. Most importantly, within certain limits, the proposed channel can be readily regulated to generate maximal quantum correlations and complete suppression of the disorder. Besides, compared to the individual parts, mixing the Fock state cavity, super-Gaussian beam, and local dephasing remains a resourceful choice for the prolonged quantum correlations’ preservation. Finally, we present an interrelationship between the considered two-qubit correlations’ functions, showing the deviation between each two correlations and of the considered state from maximal entanglement under the influence of the assumed hybrid channel.

Abstract Background Digital technologies have recently been introduced into the fabrication of removable partial dentures (RPDs). However, it is still unclear whether the digitally fabricated RPDs fit better than conventionally cast ones in the rest region. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fit accuracy in the rest region of RPDs fabricated by digital technologies and compare it to those made by conventional lost-wax (CLW) technique. Methods A comprehensive search was conducted in Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science and SpringerLink. Studies published up to August 2022 were collected. Two authors analyzed the studies independently and assessed the risk of bias on the modified methodological index for non-randomized studies (MINORS) scale. The mean values of gap distance between rests and corresponding rest seats of each study were extracted as outcome. A random-effects model at a significance level of P

Quickly localizing the identified white dwarf (WD) binaries is the basic requirement for the space-based gravitational wave (GW) detection. In fact, the amplitude of GW signals are modulated by the periodic motion of GW detectors on the solar orbit. The intensity of the observed signals is enhanced according to the observation time beyond a year to enhance a high signal to noise ratio (SNR). As data gap exists, the completeness of the data observed for a long time depends on filling gaps in the data. Actually, in a year period, the GW sources have a best observation orbit position of GW detectors, where the intensity of GW is maximum. Thus, the best positions can be searched for the verified GW sources of the sky map to enhance SNR too, which avoids filling data gaps. For the three arms response intensity of the GW signals changing more clearly with the location of the GW sources relative to the detector, the noises and the suppression of noise by time delay interferometer are ignored. As a verification case, the four WD binaries are chosen, whose best observation orbit positions of the GW detectors are related to the direction of WD binaries perpendicular to the detection arms. The two verification binaries: J0806 and V407 Vul are observed at the best orbit positions by TAIJI for the short time of 2 and 3 days respectively. The corresponding intensities of GWs are above the values of the TAIJI sensitivity curve, significantly. Location parameter estimation of the verification WD binaries are performed using the Metropolis–Hastings MCMC method. The confidence level of the parameters obtained in the best position is significantly several times higher than that in the worst position where the direction of WD binaries are almost parallel to the detection arms. Compared with a single detector, the network of two detectors improve slightly the accuracy of location of the verification binaries. These results imply that the searching of GW signals and parameter estimation of GW sources from the experimental data of the space-based mission do not ignore the orbit positions relevant to GW sources.

Abstract Modern network and communication technologies are essential for the implementation and operation of load frequency control (LFC) systems. The measurements of crucial LFC system parameters will be compromised by attackers, rendering data received by the defence inaccurate and causing frequency fluctuations or even system collapse. To detect the potential attack on measured data and keep the LFC performance, an adaptive event‐triggered scheme with fractional order global sliding mode control scheme is proposed in this paper. Furthermore, Markov theory is employed for the modelling process with energy storage to present a multi‐area LFC power system considering renewable energy and hybrid cyber attacks. Stability and stabilisation criteria are built by employing improved Lyapunov stability theory and second‐order Bessel‐Legendre inequality. Finally, a two‐area LFC system under hybrid cyber attacks and a modified IEEE 39‐bus New England test power system with 3 wind farms are simulated to explore the efficacy of the proposed method.

Abstract The input of seismic wave with different frequency has a significant impact on loess slope instability. On the basis of field investigation and experiments, the particle flow software PFC2D was used to explore the effect of seismic frequency spectrum on slope instability through the process of calibrating soil microscopic parameters, model establishment, seismic wave input and other processes. The results show that: 1. The low-frequency component of the input wave is the main frequency band that causes the slope instability, the slope has amplifying effect on the low-frequency input wave, and the slope has a "filtering" effect on the high-frequency input wave; 2. The instability of the slope will cause an increase in frequency components above 10 Hz; 3. The special structure of the slope is one of the main reasons for the instability of the slope. This result has theoretical and practical significance for earthquake landslide prevention and monitoring and early warning.