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A high-resolution, US-scale digital similar of interacting livestock, wild birds, and human ecosystems for multihost epidemic spread

One Health issues, such as the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza, present unique challenges at the human–animal–environmental interface. Ongoing H5N1 outbreaks underscore the urgent need for comprehensive modeling efforts that capture the complex interactions between various entities in these interconnected ecosystems. To support such efforts, we develop a methodology to construct a realistic spatiotemporal gridded digital similar of livestock production and processing, human population, and wild birds for the contiguous United States. It involves multiscale and multisource data fusion and synthesis using statistical and optimization techniques, followed by verification and validation. This framework, called FIELD, consists of multiple layers and sublayers. It includes farm-level representations of four major livestock types—cattle, poultry, swine, and sheep—with further categorization into commodities such as dairy cows, beef cows, chickens, and turkeys. Abundance data for relevant wild bird species are included. Gridded distributions of the human population, with demographic and occupational features, capture the agricultural workers and the general population. We apply FIELD to evaluate the evolving incidence likelihood risk to dairy and poultry operations and validate these results using historical incidences and phylogenetic analysis. The resulting commodity-specific spatiotemporal risk maps identify high-risk hotspots, enabling prioritization of surveillance efforts. While regional infection presence significantly enhances outbreak risk, the models reveal substantial differences in spread dynamics across poultry and dairy cattle. Furthermore, the colocation of these high-risk agricultural areas with dense human populations suggests heightened potential for zoonotic spillover and underscores the need for targeted surveillance in these coupled socioecological systems.

Pricing strategies of the tobacco companies in response to cigarette excise tax increases in Montenegro

This study examines the impact of excise tax increases on cigarette prices in Montenegro, offering insights into the tobacco industry’s pricing strategies. Using both panel quantile regression and fixed-effects models, the research estimates excise tax pass-through to cigarette prices across different price ranges and market segments. The analysis is based on monthly price data from 2010 to 2022 for 269 cigarette brands. The findings reveal partial tax pass-through for lower-priced brands, while premium brands experience over-shifting, meaning tax increases are more than fully passed on to consumers. Slim cigarettes remain relatively affordable, as their prices never fully reflect tax increases. This pricing strategy allows the industry to maintain a substantial price gap between premium and low-cost cigarettes while sustaining profitability. Industry-driven cross-price subsidies for low-cost cigarettes undermine the intended impact of excise tax increases by maintaining their affordability and consumption. This highlights the need for comprehensive reforms in Montenegro’s tobacco tax policy to ensure effective tobacco control.

Cross-seasonal influence of China Coastal Current water on spring carbonate system in the northern South China Sea

Targeting hypothalamic SIK3 to promote weight loss and improve glycemic control in mice

Abstract Salt-Inducible Kinase 3 (SIK3) has emerged as a key regulator of peripheral metabolism, however its cellular and molecular function in regulating body weight and energy metabolism, particularly in hypothalamic neurons, remains unclear and largely unexplored. Here, we demonstrate that SIK3 expression is elevated in the hypothalamus of obese mice. Inactivation of SIK3 specifically in orexigenic NPY neurons reduces food intake, increases energy expenditure, and enhances white adipose tissue browning, resulting in resistance to high-fat diet-induced obesity in mice. Pharmacological inhibition of SIK3 with the inhibitor GLPG3970 in diet-induced obese mice led to significant reductions in body weight and adiposity, primarily due to decreased energy intake, with notable improvements in metabolic health. These effects are linked to enhanced central leptin and insulin signaling, and the dephosphorylation and nuclear translocation of key transcriptional metabolic regulators, CRTC1 and HDAC5. These findings reveal a previously unidentified SIK3-mediated pathway that promotes positive energy balance and suggests SIK3 inhibition may offer therapeutic potential for treating obesity and metabolic disorders.

<i>Akkermansia muciniphila</i> –derived L-norleucine modulates FABP1-dependent fatty acid transport

Fatty acids undergo re-esterification to form triglycerides or are directly oxidized for energy production following absorption. Fatty acid binding protein 1 (FABP1), a key transporter highly expressed in both hepatic and intestinal tissues, directs the metabolic fate of absorbed fatty acids. Although its role in facilitating fatty acid transport and lipogenesis in the liver is well established, the functional mechanisms of intestinal FABP1 remain poorly understood due to the complexity of the intestinal microenvironment. In this study, using animal models with intestinal-specific FABP1 knockout and gut microbiota depletion, we demonstrate that intestinal FABP1 directly facilitates the absorption of dietary fatty acids, and that gut microbiota regulate FABP1-mediated dietary fatty acid absorption through metabolites. Notably, the abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila exhibits an inverse correlation with FABP1-dependent obesity progression in an arachidonic acid-induced model. Supplementation with A. muciniphila markedly alleviates this obese phenotype. Through FABP1 protein-based metabolite enrichment coupled with untargeted metabolomics, we identified L-norleucine as a competitive FABP1 inhibitor despite its smaller molecular size relative to long-chain fatty acids. L-norleucine possesses a hydrophobic alkyl chain structurally analogous to fatty acids and a hydrophilic amino acid moiety, which may explain its binding to FABP1. Critically, L-norleucine constitutes a major metabolite in the gut, which may play an underappreciated role in regulating lipid homeostasis. Collectively, this study uncovers a previously unrecognized gut microbiota–FABP1 axis governing lipid homeostasis, offering therapeutic insights for metabolic disorders.

Retraction: Molecular separation of ibuprofen and 4-isobutylacetophenone using octanol organic solution by porous polymeric membranes

Fracability evaluation of deep continental shale oil reservoirs based on combination weighting with game theory: a case study in the Lower Permian Fengcheng Formation in Mahu Sag, Junggar Basin

BCS-BEC crossover driven by small Fermi pockets of a high-Tc cuprate superconductor

Abstract Fermi arcs observed in underdoped cuprates have sparked debate over whether they represent segments of a large Fermi surface or small Fermi pockets. This ambiguity has long hindered their classification as either the conventional Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) regime or the strongly coupled Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) crossover limit. Here, using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and quantum oscillations, we demonstrate the coexistence of a small Fermi pocket and a large superconducting gap in the clean inner CuO 2 layers of the four-layer cuprate Ba 2 Ca 3 Cu 4 O 8 (F,O) 2 . This coexistence constitutes a hallmark of the BCS-BEC crossover and has remained elusive for decades. Despite the presence of antiferromagnetic (AF) order, the superconducting gap in the small pocket is remarkably large, yielding a gap-to-Fermi energy ratio (Δ pocket / ε F  ~ 0.6) and a critical-to-Fermi temperature ratio ( T c / T F  ~ 0.13) that reach the theoretical upper bound for two-dimensional superconductivity. Unexpectedly, this BCS-BEC crossover emerges not as the carrier density decreases but as it increases, abruptly within a narrow doping range of less than 1%. These results provide a long-sought microscopic foundation for the d -wave pairing mechanism in doped AF-Mott insulators.

Ancient DNA from shells reveals delayed genomic erosion and rapid immune adaptation in the critically endangered black abalone

Predicting the genetic consequences of population decline is a major problem in conservation genomics. Time lags following demographic bottlenecks can delay genomic erosion and make it difficult to determine a population’s current and future risk, especially when prebottleneck genomic baselines are unavailable. Black abalone ( Haliotis cracherodii ) suffered a severe disease bottleneck in the 1980s, resulting in an estimated 99% population decline. However, recent work found surprisingly high genetic diversity and little population structure in current black abalone populations, raising questions of whether genomic erosion has been delayed. To investigate this, we applied ancient DNA methods to prebottleneck abalone shells, generating 59 whole genomes including one 34-fold coverage genome from a 1,500-y-old specimen. These data show that heterozygosity, runs of homozygosity, genetic load, and population structure remained stable up to and following the bottleneck. Simulations reveal that this stability is consistent with even severe bottleneck scenarios because too few generations have lapsed since the decline. Projections suggest that future genomic erosion may be avoided even in limited recovery scenarios. Following the bottleneck we observe widespread balancing selection at genes with immune function, along with parallel increases of two inversions on separate chromosomes that are in linkage disequilibrium, where the disease bottleneck was most severe. Altogether, these findings explain why genomic change has thus far been limited, outline recovery scenarios that minimize genomic erosion, and identify loci that may harbor adaptive variation key to the success of future black abalone populations.

Burden of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries from 1990 to 2023 and projections to 2050: A systematic analysis from the global burden of disease study 2023

Background Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) is the most common and curable malignancy in children and adolescents, yet it remains a significant health threat. Despite global survival improvements driven by new drugs and treatment protocols, comprehensive data on disease burdens and attributable risk factors across diverse socio-economic contexts remain limited. This study evaluated the epidemiological characteristics, temporal trends, and modeled attributable risk factors of ALL in LMICs from 1990 to 2023. Methods Using GBD 2023 data, we analyzed ALL incidence, mortality, and DALYs in children and adolescents (0–19 years), stratified by World Bank income groups. We assessed temporal trends via Joinpoint regression, projected burdens to 2050 using the Bayesian Age-Period-Cohort (BAPC) model, and evaluated risk attribution for occupational benzene and formaldehyde exposure. Results In 2023, LMICs reported 64,477 new ALL cases and 30,909 deaths, with a higher burden in males. While the age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) declined overall, absolute cases rose due to population growth. Although occupational benzene and formaldehyde exposure were the only modeled risk factors, their Population Attributable Fractions (PAFs) were negligible (&lt;1%), indicating minimal contribution to the total burden. Projections suggest the age-standardized ALL burden will continue declining through 2050, with the sharpest decrease expected in low-income countries. Conclusion Globally, childhood and adolescent ALL mortality and DALYs are declining, yet the burden remains substantial in many LMICs, with the smallest improvements observed in low-income countries from 1990 to 2023. Occupational benzene and formaldehyde exposure contributed minimally to the total burden (PAFs &lt; 1%), indicating that direct occupational exposure is rare in children. These findings suggest that the persistent burden in LMICs is primarily driven by healthcare system factors rather than occupational environmental exposures. Therefore, efforts to further reduce ALL mortality and DALYs in high-burden regions should address gaps in healthcare access and treatment delivery.

Comparison of genetic programming and HEC-HMS as a conceptual model in simulating rainfall-runoff time series

Dual-wavelength photopatterning unlocks spatially programmable heterogeneity in liquid crystal elastomers

A Lipoxygenase 3 mutation reverses growth phenotypes in an Arabidopsis Plastid Lipase 3 overexpression line

Plastid Lipase 3 (PLIP3) is a chloroplast phospholipase A that cleaves linolenic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid, from the sn -1 position of the chloroplast membrane lipid monogalactosyldiacylglycerol. Linolenic acid is subsequently converted by enzymes in the chloroplast and the peroxisome to jasmonic acid (JA) requiring transport between the organelles. Overexpression of a cDNA encoding PLIP3 resulted in stunted plant growth with altered leaf morphology caused by accumulation of JA and other oxylipin metabolites redirecting the metabolism from growth to defense. We conducted a genetic suppressor screen in the PLIP3 -OX ( PLIP3 overexpression) line to query the entire pathway from the start of JA biosynthesis to its perception, transduction, and modification by other signaling pathways. We identified a mutant allele of the 13-lipoxgenase LOX3, lox3–4 , that is causal to the attenuation of the PLIP3 -OX phenotype with reduced dwarfism and decreased production of JA and other oxylipins. The responsible G776E point mutation is in the C terminal catalytic domain in proximity to the non heme iron binding site of LOX3. The point mutation likely inhibits the oxidation of α-linolenic acid demonstrating its importance for general JA biosynthesis as its activity cannot be compensated for by other 13-lipoxygenases.

PIF4 enhances temperature-independent tolerance to TSWV in Nicotiana benthamiana

Recombinant Bombali ebolavirus in cynomolgus macaques as a survival model of Ebola virus disease

Tumor hypoxia is associated with global copy-number alteration burden and subtype-dependent overall survival in breast cancer: Evidence from TCGA and METABRIC

Tumor hypoxia is biologically important in breast cancer, but its prognostic value may be distorted by intrinsic molecular subtype composition. This study evaluated whether hypoxia-related prognosis was subtype-dependent and whether hypoxia was associated with genome-wide copy-number alteration (CNA) burden. Transcriptome-derived hypoxia scores, CNA burden, and overall survival data were analyzed from TCGA and METABRIC. Survival differences between hypoxia groups were assessed using Kaplan–Meier analysis and log-rank tests. Multivariable Cox models were used to evaluate hypoxia-related prognosis after adjustment for subtype and eligible clinical covariates. Proportional hazards diagnostics and Weibull accelerated failure time models were further applied to address potential model-assumption violations. In TCGA, the cohort-wide survival association was no longer evident after adjustment for subtype and clinical covariates. The clearest subtype-specific signal was observed in Luminal B tumors. Within this subtype, low hypoxia was associated with better survival after adjustment for age, stage, and CNA burden. In METABRIC, high hypoxia remained associated with poorer survival in Weibull accelerated failure time models. Higher hypoxia was also consistently associated with greater CNA burden across both cohorts. These findings support subtype-aware interpretation of hypoxia biomarkers and suggest a reproducible link between hypoxia and genomic instability in breast cancer.

Mechanism of stress relief by deep-hole blasting in floor drainage roadways and its effectiveness evaluation

Continuous-wave organic laser enabled by monolayer molecular crystal

Dynamic confinement controls the porous-to-free convection transition

Convection in porous materials governs heat transport across scales ranging from planetary subsurface systems to engineered cooling devices. While the onset of buoyancy-driven flow is well described by linear stability theory within a porous-continuum representation, the subsequent transition from viscous, matrix-dominated convection toward inertia-influenced and ultimately bulk fluid-like plume convection has lacked a unified description. Here we develop a confinement-based scaling framework that connects these flow states through a common scale-ratio perspective and quantitatively bridges classical porous convection with laterally confined Rayleigh–Bénard systems. Because random porous and fractured media do not admit an obvious static scale-ratio, we recover an effective confinement measure from the onset condition. This links permeability-based systems to the classical confinement framework and defines a characteristic pore length for natural convection. Comparing this pore length with the thermal boundary-layer thickness yields a dynamic criterion for the emergence of unconfined behavior. Embedding experimental and numerical porous–convection datasets into a unified phase diagram of buoyant forcing and static confinement reveals a systematic progression from viscous, drag-dominated heat transport to inertia-corrected flow and ultimately to plume-driven convection whose statistics approach those of unconfined fluids. The resulting framework delineates the limits of porous-continuum validity, clarifies when inertial corrections become relevant, and highlights the dynamical analogy between strongly confined porous flows and thin-gap Hele–Shaw configurations. By linking heat-transport scaling to static and dynamic length scales, the phase diagram provides a practical diagnostic for selecting appropriate governing equations across geophysical and engineered porous systems.

A low-cost markerless motion capture system to automate functional gait assessment: Feasibility study

Functional gait assessments in older adults have traditionally required manual in-person quantification of clinical measures such as walking speed and step placement. This reliance on individuals trained in motion analysis hinders the frequency with which they are performed and reduces their generalizability and replicability. To standardize, simplify, and broaden access to gait assessments we here deploy recently-developed open-source tools to produce a low-cost, AI driven markerless motion capture system with custom analysis software for Functional Gait Assessment. Our system uses 3 Cameras and was validated with a traditional marker-based system on subjects (N = 3), showing strong correlation to laboratory-standard measures of step length ( R 2  = 0.98), step width ( R 2  = 0.97), and head speed ( R 2  = 0.95). The markerless system’s FGA reports demonstrated data similar to previous FGA findings in older adult subjects (N = 5). Moreover, supplemental standard biomechanical gait measures Step Width, walking Duration, and continuous Gait Speed may be integrated to augment existing FGA. This study demonstrates a proof-of-principle open-source markerless system for analyses of functional gait.