Browse Articles

Ex vivo evaluation of Newcastle disease virus to enhance natural killer cell function against acute myeloid leukemia cells

Effects of cold temperatures on abrasion resistance of concrete with different mixture compositions

Abstract This study investigates the abrasion resistance of concrete used in cold-region infrastructure, with a focus on the effects of temperature and mixture composition. A number of self-consolidating concrete (SCC) and normal concrete (NC) mixtures was evaluated under four temperature conditions (+ 20 °C, 0 °C, − 10 °C, and − 20 °C). The mixtures incorporated varying supplementary cementing materials (SCMs), namely metakaolin (MK), silica fume (SF), slag (SL), fly ash (FA), aggregate sizes, coarse-to-fine (C/F) aggregate ratios, and binder contents. Abrasion resistance was assessed using rotating-cutter and sandblasting test methods to provide a comprehensive evaluation of surface durability. The results indicate that mixtures containing MK and SF achieved the highest compressive strength and abrasion resistance, while FA showed the poorest performance; SL provided moderate strength gains but limited abrasion improvement. Due to denser aggregate packing from mechanical vibration, NC consistently outperformed SCC at all temperatures. Regarding mix design trade-offs, increasing the C/F aggregate ratio or maximum aggregate size reduced compressive strength but enhanced abrasion resistance. Lowering the binder content from 500 to 250 kg/m³ caused the largest overall performance losses. Decreasing temperature consistently enhanced both compressive strength and abrasion resistance across all mixtures. This enhancement was more pronounced in mixtures with low binder content or FA, whereas mixtures with refined MK and SF exhibited smaller relative gains but maintained superior absolute performance. The findings emphasize the interactive effects of temperature and mix design variables on abrasion performance, offering practical insight for developing concrete mixtures suited to cold-region infrastructures.

DNA barcoding and phylogenetic insights into the selected endemic flora of the Western Himalayas

Understanding Wavelength-Dependent Photopolymerizations via Nano-Second Resolved Transient Spectroscopy

Federated continual learning for privacy-preserving chest radiograph classification

Integrative transcriptomic and machine learning analysis identifies key extracellular matrix-related genes in diabetic retinopathy

A Missing Link in Dinitrogen Fixation Enabled by Hydrazido Isomerization

Collagen IV outperforms alternative ECM coatings to preserve human neural progenitor properties on electrically conductive neural interfaces

Abstract Human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) are promising candidates for neural repair, however, their in vitro expansion commonly relies on Matrigel, a tumor-derived and xenogeneic matrix that limits translational applicability. In this study, we evaluated defined extracellular matrix (ECM) coatings, including poly-L-ornithine (PLO), laminin, PLO/laminin, and collagen IV, as alternatives to Matrigel for hNPC culture under conventional and electrically stimulated conditions. We found that collagen IV consistently supported hNPC viability, proliferation, and maintenance of progenitor markers Nestin and SOX1 at levels comparable to Matrigel and superior to other chemically defined substrates. Enhanced ERK/MAPK signaling on collagen IV suggested integrin-mediated adhesion as a key mechanism underlying sustained cell survival. When applied to conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) neural interfaces, ECM coatings increased surface hydrophilicity without compromising electrical conductivity. Notably, collagen IV coated ITO maintained high hNPC viability and progenitor identity under uniform electrical stimulation. These findings identify collagen IV as a defined, electrically compatible ECM coating for conductive neural interfaces in translational neural engineering.

Experimental investigation on the stable operating range of a two-stroke aviation kerosene engine at idle based on cyclic variation analysis

Visualizing Structural Disorder in Submicron Crystals by 3D Electron Diffraction-Maximum Entropy Method

Molecular excitons in arylazopyrazole aggregates: a quantum chemical study

Abstract Aggregation of molecular photoswitches may affect their functionality. Fundamentally, interaction of monomers in the aggregated state results in formation of exciton states, which, in turn, govern energy and charge transfer processes in the materials made of the photoswitches. In this work, we study the exciton states of aggregates of arylazopyrazole — the photoswitch which gained popularity in last decade as an alternative to azobenzene — using quantum chemical calculations. We perform cluster excited-state calculations for aggregates including up to 32 arylazopyrazole monomers as well as periodic calculations for the crystal structure. We obtain and analyze the composition of the exciton states, exciton splittings, and monomer-to-aggregate spectral shifts, thus providing quantitative insight into the electronic states and absorption spectra of realistic arylazopyrazole aggregates.

Decadal-scale pollen records link land use and plant diversity change across European lowlands over seven millennia

Increasingly Reversible Na/Cl ₂ and Li/Cl ₂ Batteries

Electronic and molecular dynamics mechanisms of wogonin adsorption on graphene nanocarriers

Discovery of a snail hibernation-inducer offering hibernation-like cardioprotection through metabolic rewiring and autophagy in mice

A Predictive Design Framework for Ultrarobust Superhydrophobic Coatings Based on Lyophobic Interconnected Close-Packed Nanostructures

Synergy of postural adaptation and exteroception for robust CPG-driven quadrupedal locomotion

The disulfonic acid ANDS disrupts ANP32B-p53 interaction to suppress chronic myeloid leukemia

AI-assisted extraction of opportunistic findings from oncologic CT reports using large language models

Mutation-biased adaptation is consequential even in large bacterial populations