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Abstract Mechanochemistry studies the effect of mechanical force on chemical bonds, bringing opportunities for synthesizing alloys, ceramics, organics, polymers, and biomaterials. A vital issue of applying macro-scale mechanical force to manipulate crystal structures is finding ways to precisely adjust the force directions to break micro-scale target chemical bonds. Inspired by a common technique of driving a wedge into the wood to make wood chopping much easier, a wedging strategy of splitting three-dimensional structured crystalline frameworks and then converting them to nanosheets was proposed, where specific molecules were wedged into crystalline frameworks to drive the directional transmission of mechanical force to break chemical bonds. As a result, various crystalline framework nanosheets including metal−organic framework nanosheets, covalent organic framework nanosheets, and coordination polymer nanosheets were fabricated. This wedging crystal strategy exhibits advantages of operability, flexibility and designability, and furthermore, it is expected to expand mechanochemistry applications in material preparation.

RationaleRelapse to drug use is a major clinical challenge in the treatment of addictive disorders, including psychostimulant use and may be exacerbated by reduced sensitivity to natural, non-drug reward. Given the relatively limited set of outcomes, and short withdrawal time in rodent studies, we conducted a more detailed assessment of the response to natural rewards in methamphetamine (METH) naive versus exposed monkeys during long-term abstinence.MethodsThis study introduced an improved sucrose preference test (iSPT) to assess natural reward seeking and consumption in monkeys with long-term abstinence after methamphetamine (METH) use. The test was administered to sixteen naive monkeys and five METH exposed monkeys that had been abstinent for at least 3 months.ResultsMETH exposed monkeys showed a lower sucrose preference score in both the iSPT (z = -2.10, p = 0.036) and the sucrose preference test (z = -2.61, p = 0.009). The sucrose preference score was significantly correlated with the latency of the establishment of stable sucrose-preference (r = -0.76, df = 46, p < 0.001) but not with the other variables. Furthermore, water-sucrose switch latency and switch times were significantly negatively correlated (r = -0.50, df = 20, p = 0.02).ConclusionThese results show reductions in natural reward consumption during long-term methamphetamine abstinence.

The application of non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) in non-human primates (NHPs) is critical for advancing understanding of brain networks and developing treatments for neurological diseases. Improving the precision of targeting can significantly enhance the efficacy of these interventions. Here, we introduce a 3D-printed helmet designed to achieve repeatable and precise neuromodulation targeting in awake rhesus monkeys, eliminating the need of head fixation. Imaging studies confirmed that the helmet consistently targets the primary motor cortex (M1) with a margin of error less than 1 mm. Evaluations of stimulation efficacy revealed high resolution and stability. Additionally, physiological evaluations under propofol anesthesia showed that the helmet effectively facilitated the generation of recruitment curves for motor area, confirming successful neuromodulation. Collectively, our findings present a straightforward and effective method for achieving consistent and precise NIBS targeting in awake NHPs, potentially advancing both basic neuroscience research and the development of clinical neuromodulation therapies.

Purposes Transition element oxides, sulfides, and hydroxides are widely used as a kind of pseudocapacitance materials owing to their excellent theoretical specific capacitance, high power density, and low cost. However, most of the transition element-based electrodes are fabricated under abnormal temperatures combined with conductive agent and binder, which deeply restricts their application towards silicon-based micro-supercapacitor (MSC). Methods In this research, one layer of titanium collector was deposited on the silicon substrate followed by the sputtering of copper film. The copper hydroxide nanowire was fabricated through an in-situ wet oxidation method at room temperature. The copper sulfide was further synthetized by soaking above product in sodium sulfide solution for enhancing energy storage properties. The synthetise method showed a good compatibility with traditional silicon micro fabrication. Conclusion The results showed that in 1.0 mol/L sodium sulfate electrolyte, the copper sulfide electrode exhibited high average areal capacitance of 166.98 mF/cm2 at the current density of 1 mA/cm2, which was 6.68 times than that of copper hydroxide electrode. After 500 cycles, 74.2% of the areal capacitance was preserved. The copper-based electrodes reported here could have a wide application prospect in silicon-based micro-supercapacitor.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been widely considered as ideal platforms for the preparation of biomimetic catalysts, but it remains challenging to fabricate MOF-based enzyme-like catalysts with optimal activity. Here, we leverage the inherent flexibility of MOFs and propose a novel trans-functionalization strategy to construct a carbonic anhydrase (CA) mimic by the structural transformation from ZIF-L to ZIF-8. Theoretical and experimental results reveal that during the structural transformation, the hydroxyl group will preferentially coordinate with the interlayer Zn clusters to form the CA-like active center Zn-N3-OH. Therefore, more accessible active centers are generated on the as-prepared ZIF-8-OH, resulting in substantially enhanced catalytic activity in the hydrolysis of para-nitrophenyl acetate.

Adhesives are commonly assessed by two properties: strength and toughness. Here we study how strength and toughness are affected by adhesive thickness. We sandwich gelatin adhesives of various thicknesses between glass substrates. The transparency of the adhesives and substrates enables us to observe crack nucleation and growth. We measure strength by lap shear of samples without precrack, and measure toughness by lap shear of samples with precrack. Our data show a characteristic adhesive thickness, about 0.5 mm. For adhesives below the characteristic thickness, strength is independent of thickness, but toughness increases with thickness. For adhesives above the characteristic thickness, strength decreases as thickness increases, but toughness is a constant. Strength scatters narrowly for samples of a thin adhesive, but broadly for samples of a thick adhesive. By contrast, toughness scatters narrowly for samples of all thicknesses. This work shows the importance of assessing adhesives of various thicknesses.

Elevated impulsivity has been frequently reported in individuals with opioid addiction receiving methadone maintenance therapy (MMT), but the underlying neural mechanisms and cognitive subprocesses are not fully understood. We acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from 37 subjects with heroin addiction receiving long-term MMT and 33 healthy controls who performed a probabilistic reversal learning task, and measured their resting-state brain glucose using fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET). Subjects receiving MMT exhibited significantly elevated self-reported impulsivity, and computational modeling revealed a marked impulsive decision bias manifested as switching more frequently without available evidence. Moreover, this impulsive decision bias was associated with the dose and duration of methadone use, irrelevant to the duration of heroin use. During the task, the switch-related hypoactivation in the left rostral middle frontal gyrus was correlated with the impulsive decision bias while the function of reward sensitivity was intact in subjects receiving MMT. Using prior brain-wide receptor density data, we found that the highest variance of regional metabolic abnormalities was explained by the spatial distribution of μ-opioid receptors among 10 types of neurotransmitter receptors. Heightened impulsivity in individuals receiving prolonged MMT is manifested as atypical choice bias and noise in decision-making processes, which is further driven by deficits in top-down cognitive control, other than reward sensitivity. Our findings uncover multifaceted mechanisms underlying elevated impulsivity in subjects receiving MMT, which might provide insights for developing complementary therapies to improve retention during MMT.

Free-space optical (FSO) communication can be subject to various types of distortion and loss as the signal propagates through non-uniform media. In experiment and simulation, we demonstrate that the state of polarization and degree of polarization of light passed though underwater bubbles, causing turbulence, is preserved. Our experimental setup serves as an efficient, low cost alternative approach to long distance atmospheric or underwater testing. We compare our experimental results with those of simulations, in which we model underwater bubbles, and separately, atmospheric turbulence. Our findings suggest potential improvements in polarization based FSO communication schemes.

Background Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is known to prevent methamphetamine (METH)-induced neurotoxicity and plays a role in various stages of METH addiction. However, there is a lack of research with longitudinal design on changes in plasma BDNF levels in active METH-dependent individuals.Aims The aim of the study was to investigate changes in BDNF levels during METH self-administration in monkeys.Methods This study measured plasma BDNF levels in three male rhesus monkeys with continuous METH exposure and four male control rhesus monkeys without METH exposure. Changes in plasma BDNF levels were then assessed longitudinally during 40 sessions of METH self-administration in the three monkeys.Results Repeated METH exposure decreased plasma BDNF levels. Additionally, plasma BDNF decreased with long-term rather than short-term accumulation of METH during METH self-administration.Conclusions These findings may indicate that the changes in peripheral BDNF may reflect the quantity of accumulative METH intake during a frequent drug use period.

The Pygmy corydoras Corydoras pygmaeus Knaack, 1966, is the smallest member of the genus Corydoras, belonging to the family Callichthyidae and order Siluriformes. The complete mitochondrial genome of C. pygmaeus was sequenced and assembled using next-generation sequencing technology, and phylogenetically compared with those of other species of this genus. The mitochondrial genome of C. pygmaeus is a circular DNA molecule with a size of 16,840 bp (GenBank no. ON729306). A phylogenetic tree was constructed based on 13 protein-coding genes of C. pygmaeus and 13 species of the family Callichthyidae, which showed that C. pygmaeus clustered with other species of this genus, but was the first branch to differentiate. These results could provide basic data for phylogenetic analysis and population genetic diversity protection of Corydoras and Callichthyidae fish in the future.

This study sought to examine the role of bile acids in the regulation of glucose and lipid metabolism, intestinal flora, and growth in high-fat diet-fed common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.). Fish (6.34±0.07 g) were fed for 56 days with three different diets, the control diet (CO, 5.4% lipid), high-fat diet (HF, 11% lipid), and high-fat diet with 60 mg/kg bile acids (BAs, 11% lipid). The results showed that high-fat diets resulted in poor growth performance and increased triglyceride (TG) in serum and the liver. The addition of bile acids significantly alleviated the adverse effects of a high-fat diet. The mRNA expression results indicated that bile acids may improve lipid metabolism through the enhancement of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPARa). The expression of gluconeogenesis-related phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) mRNA was inhibited, while fibroblast growth factor 19 (FGF19) was significantly higher. Bile acids reshaped the intestinal microflora community, with the level of Bacteroidetes increasing. The correlation analysis indicated that Patescibacteria, Dependentiae, Myxococcota, and Planctomycetota in the gut are associated with genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism. These results indicated that bile acids could ameliorate the negative effects of high-fat diets on common carp.

A 56-day feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effects of genistein on growth, lipid metabolism, antioxidant capacity, and immunity of common carp fed with high-carbohydrate or high-fat diets. Five diets were used to feed fish: control diet (5% fat; CO), high-fat diet (11% fat; HF), high-carbohydrate diet (45% carbohydrate; HC), and HF or HC diet with 500 mg/kg genistein (FG or CG). Results showed that final body weight (FW) and specific growth rate (SGR) were significantly reduced, but the supplementation with genistein resulted in higher values of FW and SGR than the HF or HC group. Both high carbohydrate and high fat belong to high-energy diets, which may promote lipid deposition. Genistein obviously decreased liver triglyceride (TG) content and alleviated hepatic fat vacuolation in the HF and HC groups. The expression of lipid metabolism genes (cpt-1 and atgl) was markedly higher in the FG group than in the HF group. The lipid synthesis-related genes (fas, acc, and pparγ) were elevated in high-energy diets but recovered to the control level or reduced after genistein treatments. With respect to fatty acid transporter genes, fatp increased in the FG group, and cd36 increased in the CG group. Furthermore, the antioxidant and immune indexes, such as total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), superoxide dismutase (SOD), acid phosphatase (ACP), and lysozyme (LZM) activities, were decreased, while malonate aldehyde (MDA) content, activities of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were enhanced in the HF and HC groups. The antioxidant and immunity values could be ameliorated by treatment with genistein. Moreover, the transcript levels of antioxidant-related genes (cat, gr, and nrf2) in the liver and anti-inflammatory factors (tgf-β and il-10) and lyz in the head kidney tissue were promoted, although the expression levels of proinflammatory factors (tnf-α and il-6) declined in the genistein supplementation group, which confirmed the antioxidant and immune-enhancing effects of genistein. Therefore, 500 mg/kg genistein could ameliorate the negative effects of high-energy diets on immunity.

Genistein exhibits anti-diabetic and anti-lipogenic effects in mammals, however, there are rare reports on the effects of genistein on glucose and lipid metabolism in fish. This study explored the regulation role of genistein on glucose and lipid metabolism of common carp. After oral gavage with genistein (20 mg/kg body weight), the content of genistein in serum was the highest at 4 h and rapidly returned to basal values at 48 h. The blood glucose (GLU) concentrations were decreased at 24 h after gavage with genistein. The total cholesterol (TC) level was significantly down-regulated by genistein except for 24 h (P

Abstract Characterizing the antigen‐binding and innate immune‐recruiting properties of the humoral response offers the chance to obtain deeper insights into mechanisms of protection than revealed by measuring only overall antibody titer. Here, a high‐throughput, multiplexed Fab‐Fc Array was employed to profile rhesus macaques vaccinated with a gp120‐CD4 fusion protein in combination with different genetically encoded adjuvants, and subsequently subjected to multiple heterologous simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) challenges. Systems analyses modeling protection and adjuvant differences using Fab‐Fc Array measurements revealed a set of correlates yielding strong and robust predictive performance, while models based on measurements of response magnitude alone exhibited significantly inferior performance. At the same time, rendering Fab‐Fc measurements mathematically independent of titer had relatively little impact on predictive performance. Similar analyses for a distinct SIV vaccine study also showed that Fab‐Fc measurements performed significantly better than titer. These results suggest that predictive modeling with measurements of antibody properties can provide detailed correlates with robust predictive power, suggest directions for vaccine improvement, and potentially enable discovery of mechanistic associations.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted significant research interest for supercapacitor applications due to their high-tunable conductivity and their structure’s pore size. In this work, we report a facile one-step hydrothermal method to synthesize nickel-based metal-organic frameworks (MOF) using organic linker 4,4′-biphenyl dicarboxylic acid (BPDC) for high-performance supercapacitors. The pore size of the Ni-BPDC-MOF nanostructure is tuned through different synthesization temperatures. Among them, the sample synthesized at 180 °C exhibits a nanoplate morphology with a specific surface area of 311.99 m2·g−1, a pore size distribution of 1–40 nm and an average diameter of ~29.2 nm. A high specific capacitance of 488 F·g−1 has been obtained at a current density of 1.0 A·g−1 in a 3 M KOH aqueous electrolyte. The electrode shows reliable cycling stability, with 85% retention after 2000 cycles. The hydrothermal process Ni-BPDC-MOF may provide a simple and efficient method to synthesize high-performance hybrid MOF composites for future electrochemical energy storage applications.

Isostructural MOFs with similar crystallographic parameter are easily available for MOF-on-MOF growth and possible to form core–shell structure by isotropic growth. However, due to well-matched cell lattice, selective growth in isostructural MOF heterostructures remains a great challenge for engineering atypical MOF heterostructures. Herein, an anisotropic MOF-on-MOF growth strategy was developed to structure a range of multilayer sandwich-like ZIF-L heterostructures via stacking isostructural ZIF-L-Zn and ZIF-L-Co alternately with three-, five-, seven-, and more layer structures. Moreover, these heterostructures with highly designable feature were fantastic precursors for fabricating derivatives with tunable magnetic and catalytic properties. Such strategy explores a novel way of achieving anisotropic MOF-on-MOF growth between isostructural MOFs and opens up new horizons for regulating the properties by MOF modular assembly in versatile functional nanocomposites.

Orexins are neuropeptides involved in energy homeostasis. In fish, the function of orexin-A in glucose metabolism is less reported. The present study aims to identify the potential role of orexin-A in the glucose absorption and metabolism in common carp. The full length of orexin cDNA was cloned using RT-PCR and RACE method. The prepro-orexin cDNA was 513 bp containing an open reading frame of 474 bp and encoded 157 amino acids which including 47 amino acids of orexin-A and 28 amino acids of orexin-B. The tissue distribution results showed that orexin was expressed in multiple tissues, especially with high-level expression in hypothalamus. The exogenous orexin-A protein was chemical synthesized. Intraperitoneal injection of orexin-A alleviated the increase of plasma glucose level at 1 h and 2 h after OGTT (Oral glucose tolerance test). Orexin-A also decreased glucose uptake activity and the expression of sglt1 and glut2 mRNA in intestine. However, orexin-A significantly increased the mRNA expression of glut2 in liver and glut4 in muscle. Moreover, the gluconeogenesis-related gene fbpase mRNA was significantly down-regulated, while glycolysis-related genes gk and hk were significantly up-regulated after treatment with orexin-A in vivo and vitro. These results implied that hyperglycemia could be alleviated in common carp after the injection of orexin-A and suggest a role of this peptide as a plasma glucose regulator by inhibition glucose absorption in intestine, promotion glucose transport to liver and muscle. Furthermore, hepatic gluconeogenesis was inhibited. Taken together, this study helped to understand the characterization of prepro-orexin and the function of orexin-A in fish glucose homeostasis.

In this work, we report the fabrication and enhanced supercapacitive performance of nitrogen-doped nanoporous stainless steel foils, which have been prepared by electrochemical anodization and subsequent thermal annealing in ammonia atmosphere. The nanoporous oxide layers are grown on type-304 stainless steel foil with optimal thickness ~11.9 μm. The N-doped sample exhibits high average areal capacitance of 321.3 mF·cm−2 at a current density of 1.0 mA·cm−2, 3.6 times of increment compared with untreated one. Structural and electrochemical characterizations indicate that the significant enhancement is correlated to the high charge transfer efficiency from nitriding nanosheet products Fe3N. Our report here may provide new insight on the development of high-performance, low-cost and binder-free supercapacitor electrodes for flexible and portable electronic device applications with multiple anions.

Spontaneous ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (sOHSS) usually occurs in patients with a spontaneous ovulation cycle, especially in those with multiple pregnancies combined with hypothyroidism and polycystic ovary syndrome. sOHSS rarely occurs in women who are not pregnant. A 23-year-old woman with obvious abdominal distension visited our hospital. The patient was not pregnant and had not undergone controlled superovulation. Apart from abdominal distension, the patient denied any symptom of obvious incentives, abdominal pain, abnormal vaginal bleeding, or drainage. Biochemical analysis showed a high carbohydrate antigen-125 level and low total protein and albumin levels. Abdominal ultrasound and computed tomography showed a large amount of ascites and cystic uneven masses with an irregular shape in the area of the ovaries and fallopian tubes. Post-surgical histopathology indicated the diagnosis of sOHSS. Wedge resection of both ovaries was performed. Symptomatic treatment was further performed and the patient recovered well. Our findings indicate that sOHSS can occur in women who are not pregnant. Additionally, besides the follicle-stimulating hormone receptor gene mutation hypothesis, the pathogenesis of sOHSS should be further studied.

Haematococcus pluvialis has high commercial value, yet it displays low development of genetic transformation systems. In this research, the endogenous 5′ and 3′ flanking sequences of the constitutive alpha tubulin (tub) gene were cloned along with its encoding region in H. pluvialis, in which some putative promoter elements and polyadenylation signals were identified, respectively. Three selection markers of tub/aadA, tub/hyr and tub/ble with three different antibiotic-resistance genes fused between the endogenous tub promoter (Ptub) and terminator (Ttub) were constructed and utilized for biolistic transformation of H. pluvialis. Stable resistant colonies with introduced aadA genes were obtained after bombardments of either H. pluvialis NIES144 or SCCAP K0084 with the tub/aadA cassette, the efficiency of which could reach up to 3 × 10–5 per μg DNA through an established manipulation flow. Two key details, including the utilization of culture with motile flagellates dominant and controlled incubation of them on membrane filters during bombardments, were disclosed firstly. In obtained transformants, efficient integration and transcription of the foreign tub/aadA fragments could be identified through genome PCR examination and qPCR analysis, nonetheless with random style instead of homologous crossover in the H. pluvialis genome. The presented selection marker and optimized transforming procedures in this report would strengthen the platform for genetic manipulation and modification of H. pluvialis.

Hierarchical three-dimensional (3D) flower-like n-ZnO/p-NiO heterostructures with various ZnxNiy molar ratios (Zn5Ni1, Zn2Ni1, Zn1Ni1, Zn1Ni2 and Zn1Ni5) were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method. Their crystal phase, surface morphology, elemental composition and chemical state were comprehensively investigated by XRD, SEM, EDS, TEM and XPS techniques. Gas sensing measurements were conducted on all the as-developed ZnxNiy-based sensors toward ammonia (NH3) detection under various working temperatures from 160 to 340 °C. In particular, the as-prepared Zn1Ni2 sensor exhibited superior NH3 sensing performance under optimum working temperature (280 °C) including high response (25 toward 100 ppm), fast response/recovery time (16 s/7 s), low detection limit (50 ppb), good selectivity and long-term stability. The enhanced NH3 sensing capabilities of Zn1Ni2 sensor could be attributed to both the specific hierarchical structure which facilitates the adsorption of NH3 molecules and produces much more contact sites, and the improved gas response characteristics of p-n heterojunctions. The obtained results clear demonstrated that the optimum n-ZnO/p-NiO heterostructure is indeed very promising sensing material toward NH3 detection for different applications.

Background Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is known to prevent methamphetamine (METH)-induced neurotoxicity and plays a role in various stages of METH addiction. However, there is a lack of research with longitudinal design on changes in plasma BDNF levels in active METH-dependent individuals. Aims The aim of the study was to investigate changes in BDNF levels during METH self-administration in monkeys. Methods This study measured plasma BDNF levels in three male rhesus monkeys with continuous METH exposure and four male control rhesus monkeys without METH exposure. Changes in plasma BDNF levels were then assessed longitudinally during 40 sessions of METH self-administration in the three monkeys. Results Repeated METH exposure decreased plasma BDNF levels. Additionally, plasma BDNF decreased with long-term rather than short-term accumulation of METH during METH self-administration. Conclusions These findings may indicate that the changes in peripheral BDNF may reflect the quantity of accumulative METH intake during a frequent drug use period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]