Browse Articles

Left Atrial Appendage Closure or Anticoagulation for Atrial Fibrillation

Glycerol-driven TNAP activation in thermogenesis and mineralization

Measurement, regional disparities, and dynamic evolution of food crop breeding technology innovation in China

Finerenone in Type 1 Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease

Data-driven and machine learning framework for Alfalfa yield response to long-term climate variability in the Kansas High Plains (USA)

Abstract Climate extremes and declining water availability in the U.S. High Plains threaten the long-term sustainability of alfalfa production. This study presents a machine learning (ML) based modeling framework to identify and evaluate key agro-climatic predictors of alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.) yield across nine agricultural districts in Kansas from 1981 to 2018. A novel contribution of this study is the integration of a high-dimensional climate predictor space, long-term historical records, and district-level stratification of irrigated and rainfed systems to systematically assess spatially varying climate-yield relationships. Using a high-dimensional feature space of 117 climate-derived variables from PRISM and yield data from USDA-NASS, a Minimum Redundancy Maximum Relevance (mRMR) algorithm was applied to rank predictors, followed by forward feature selection with three non-parametric regression models. Four spatial configurations were evaluated—statewide, district-specific, irrigated, and rainfed datasets. The Kansas High Plains region, with its strong west-to-east precipitation gradient, groundwater-dependent irrigation systems, and recurrent drought exposure, offers a globally relevant testbed for understanding crop-climate interactions in semi-arid environments. Model evaluation RMSE during feature selection ranged from 0.52 to 1.14 tons/acre. Dew point temperature in August and seasonal VPD metrics emerged as dominant predictors, indicating these variables are strongly associated with late-summer yield variability. Rainfed districts prioritized drought indicators (e.g., no precipitation days, VPD), while irrigated districts showed stronger associations with thermal and humidity metrics. By explicitly accounting for climate sensitivities across management regimes and spatial scales, this framework provides a transferable approach for identifying robust, region-specific climate drivers in high-dimensional agricultural datasets.

High-Flow or Standard Oxygen in Acute Hypoxemic Respiratory Failure

Acute effects of an individually timed lower-limb post-activation performance enhancement protocol on 50 m front crawl performance and race kinematics in national-level swimmers

Childhood Vaccine Hesitancy

Assessment of neurotransmitter-related structural brain changes in borderline personality disorder: an MRI study

Author Correction: De novo antioxidant peptide design via machine learning and DFT studies

Enzymatic quorum quenching alters the phyllosphere microbiome and suppresses a bacterial-induced plant disease

Photographic determination of bubble departure diameter in subcooled flow boiling of aqueous calcium sulfate solution

Synthesis, biological activities, DFT, and molecular docking of 1,3,4-thiadiazolo[2,3-c]-1,2,4-triazine-Palladium (II) complex

Abstract A developed synthesis of 4-amino-6-methyl-3-thioxo-3,4-dihydro-1,2,4-triazin-5(2 H)-one ( 2 ) was presented. Its reaction with PhNCS in ethanol afforded 3-methyl-7-(phenylamino)-4 H-[1,3,4]thiadiazolo[2,3-c][1,2,4]triazin-4-one (L) via an unexpected mechanism. A combination of different characterization techniques (CHN, IR, NMR, UV-Vis TGA, XRD and MS) was utilized for comprehensive structure elucidation. [Pd(L)Cl 2 ].4DMF complex was obtained by preparing the Pd(II) complex at a molar ratio of 1:1 with respect to Pd(II): L. DFT simulated several proposed intermediates for (L) production. Furthermore, DFT corroborated the square planar geometric configuration of the synthesized Pd(II) complex. In vitro, the antimicrobial activity of the synthesized compound on Escherichia coli , Klebsiella pneumoniae , Staphylococcus aureus , Streptococcus mutans , Candida albicans , and Aspergillus Nigar using the inhibition zone technique was evaluated. Subsequent determination of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the Pd complex against Klebsiella confirmed its potent antibacterial activity, in agreement with the pronounced inhibition zone observed in the diffusion assay. The results indicate that the palladium (II) complex is more potent than the ligand against the tested microorganisms, especially against K. pneumoniae , where it demonstrated promising activity that, upon further research, could be used to overcome gentamicin resistance. Both compounds exhibited similar cytotoxicity against the proliferation of the human liver cancer cell line. The interactions at the docking active sites were assessed using the chosen proteins, EGFR tyrosine kinase, and the protein crystal structure of GlcN-O-P synthase. The anti-inflammatory effect results indicated that both compounds have a moderate effect on bovine serum albumin (BSA).

Modelling the global invasion potential of Pelagia noctiluca under climate change

Metamaterial-enhanced near-field radiative heat transfer

Predicting high pathogenicity avian influenza H5N1 susceptibility in wild birds

Reduced/No Dexamethasone With Netupitant/Palonosetron and Olanzapine for Chemotherapy‑Induced Nausea/Vomiting in Highly Emetogenic Chemotherapy: Phase III Noninferiority Trial

PURPOSE Guideline-recommended 4-day dexamethasone (DEX) for highly emetogenic chemotherapy (HEC) raises toxicity and immunotherapy interference concerns. We tested whether DEX reduction or omission with netupitant/palonosetron (NEPA) plus olanzapine (OLZ) is noninferior to standard DEX. PATIENTS AND METHODS In this open-label, randomized phase III noninferiority trial across 28 Chinese centers, adults receiving HEC received NEPA (day 1) plus OLZ (days 1-4) and were randomly assigned to standard DEX (12 mg day 1, 8 mg days 2-4), DEX-sparing (6 mg day 1 only), or DEX-free (no DEX). The primary end point was complete response (CR; no emesis/no rescue medication) from 0 to 120 h. Noninferiority margin was –12% (one-sided α = .025). RESULTS Of 644 randomly assigned patients (median age 54.9 years; 66.0% female), stratified analysis showed overall CR rates of 72.4% for standard, 72.2% for DEX-sparing (stratified risk difference [RD], –0.2% [95% CI, –8.7 to 8.5]; P noninferiority = .005), and 70.1% for DEX-free (stratified RD, –2.2% [95% CI, –10.7 to 6.4]; P noninferiority = .014). Both met noninferiority, confirmed in per-protocol analysis. Steroid-related toxicities were significantly lower with DEX-sparing and DEX-free regimens versus standard. CONCLUSION NEPA plus OLZ with reduced (6 mg day 1 only) or no DEX is noninferior to standard 4-day DEX for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting prevention in HEC, supporting steroid-sparing strategies particularly relevant in the chemo-immunotherapy era.

Predicting student grades via adaptive multi-level learning models

Digital twin–based multi-scale framework for seismic integrity assessment of deep underground caverns

Three strains isolated from Northern Germany constitute the novel genera Njordella and Rania in the family Pirellulaceae

Abstract This study reports the characterization of three novel species belonging to the two newly established genera Njordella gen. nov. and Rania gen. nov. in the family Pirellulaceae within the phylum Planctomycetota . The three investigated strains SH302 T , SH451 T and SH573 T were isolated from water samples originating from distinct locations across Northern Germany: Lägerdorf (a municipality close to Hamburg), Fjord Schlei (a 42 km estuary of the Baltic Sea) and Fehmarn Island in the Baltic Sea. All strains form (light) pink colonies, reproduce asymmetrically by polar budding and display an acorn-shaped cell morphology typical in the family Pirellulaceae . Rosette formation was only observed for strains SH302 T and SH573 T . The three strains are mesophilic with a temperature optimum at 28 °C, aerobic and heterotrophic, but differ in their pH preference. While strains SH302 T and SH573 T are neutrophilic (pH optimum at 7.0 and 7.5, respectively), strain SH451 T is slightly alkaliphilic (optimal growth at pH 8.0). The genome sizes of strains SH302 T , SH451 T and SH573 T are 7.2 Mb, 6.6 Mb and 9.4 Mb, respectively. Based on phylogenetic, morphological and physiological analyses, we conclude that the novel strains belong to three novel species of two novel genera. For the novel taxa, we introduce the names Njordella aestuarii gen. nov., sp. nov., represented by strain SH451 T (= CECT 30907 T  = KCTC 102089 T ) as the type strain and Njordella calcicola sp. nov. with type strain SH302 T (= DSM 116728 T  = KCTC 102091 T ). For the third taxon, we chose the name Rania fehmarnensis gen. nov., sp. nov. represented by the type strain SH573 T (= DSM 116763 T  = CECT 31080 T  = KCTC 102135 T ).