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Paintable on-skin dry electrodes with robust skin and device connection for wireless sensing and human–machine interfaces
Reliable and continuous electrophysiological recording is important for health monitoring and human–machine interactions. However, most existing epidermal electrodes suffer from either limited skin–electrode contact during skin deformation and sweating, or unstable connections between soft electrodes and relatively rigid data acquisition systems due to the inherent mechanical mismatch. Besides, their lack of personalization further discourages long-term use, particularly among children, adolescents, and individuals sensitive to stigma. Here, this work presents a paintable, drawn-on-skin dry electrode that forms an ultraconformal interface on hierarchically textured skin topographies with a thickness gradient to minimize interfacial stress, achieving low contact impedance (10.8 kΩ cm 2 ) and high adhesion (~963 kPa) on skin. The resulting electrodes are customizable in shape and color, transforming them from “medical devices” into playful wearable accessories, thus enhancing user compliance and long-term wearability. Moreover, the in situ paintability enables seamless integration with porous silver textile connectors, yielding an interlocked junction with a built-in modulus gradient for stable signal transmission. The versatility of this platform is demonstrated through diverse use cases, including wireless electrocardiogram monitoring during long-term complex daily activities, machine learning-enabled electromyogram for gesture recognition and robotic hand control, and through-hair electroencephalogram detection for neural response analysis. In addition, the absence of image artifact highlights its potential for multimodal MRI imaging and electrophysiology. Overall, this strategy establishes a personalized, scalable platform for next-generation electronic tattoos toward continuous healthcare and interactive bioelectronics.
Host plant-mediated bottom-up effects on the biology and demographic parameters of the predatory mite Amblyseius swirskii via the citrus red mite Panonychus citri
Developmental divergence in voice–reward circuitry differentiates autistic from typically developing children and adolescents
Adolescence is a period of profound social change marked by a developmental shift in attention and motivation from parents toward nonfamilial peers. Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by lifelong challenges in social communication. However, the neurobiological signatures of adolescent social reorientation in autism are poorly understood. Human voice processing is a primary driver of social learning and communication, but it remains understudied in the autism literature, particularly as it relates to neurodevelopmental change. Here we used functional brain imaging of voice processing in children and adolescents with autism and matched controls (ages 7 to 17) to examine neural responses to mother’s voice and nonfamilial voices. We identified divergent age-related patterns in autism across reward, salience, social evaluative, and frontoparietal processing regions consistent with models of an extended voice processing network. Results showed that while typically developing participants exhibited age-related increases in neural activity and connectivity within regions of the voice processing network, individuals with autism showed no age-related increases, and often decreases, in these regions. Adolescents with autism further revealed a reversal of the characteristic developmental pattern: with increasing age, they exhibited decreasing neural engagement with nonfamilial voices and increasing engagement with mother’s voice, a pattern that was most pronounced in individuals with more severe social communication challenges. Findings suggest that disrupted organization of the extended voice processing network, including reward, salience, social evaluative, and frontoparietal circuitry, may underlie atypical social neurodevelopment in autism. More broadly, results suggest that individual differences in social communication shape age-related neural patterns supporting social reorientation.
A novel quantitative method for evaluating surface roughness using dual-angle images from a field emission scanning electron microscope
Abstract This study aims to assess the impact of pre-clinical (ex vivo) use including autoclave sterilization on the surface roughness of reciprocating NiTi instruments using a new treatment of two images with different angles captured by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and Mountains software. A pre-clinical study was conducted to evaluate surface roughness changes in NiTi instruments after three instrumentations. Using a repeated-measures design in which each instrument served as its own control, Instruments were examined using FE-SEM and analyzed with Mountains software to quantify roughness parameters (Sa, Sq, Sz) at two locations: the cutting edge and the adjacent flute. Three-dimensional surfaces were reconstructed from dual-angle stereo-pair micrographs per ISO 25178-2. Pre- and post-instrumentation roughness measurements were statistically compared using repeated-measures ANOVA and Friedman tests. There was no significant difference in surface roughness between experimental groups in the pre-clinical environment at the edge of the One RECI instrument. However, there is a linear trend of the increase of the Sa and Sq parameters at the cutting edge of the instrument after several human-extracted root canal instrumentations. There is a significant difference in surface roughness in Sa parameter between experimental groups in the pre-clinical environment at the flute of the One RECI instrument. Pre-clinical use leads to measurable increases in surface roughness in reciprocating NiTi instruments, particularly at the cutting-edge. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring instrument wear to ensure optimal performance and safety.
Age-associated epigenetic drift trajectory and cross-national disparities in accelerated aging in domestic dogs
Aging is accompanied by both increasing interindividual heterogeneity and systematic, age-associated alterations in DNA methylation (DNAm). Here, we investigated these complementary dimensions of epigenetic aging in dogs using global and locus-specific measures of epigenetic drift alongside clock-based estimates of biological aging. We observed pervasive, yet genomically structured epigenetic instability throughout the canine lifespan. The extent of age-associated epigenetic drift further varied by body size, suggesting biological stratification of methylation instability. Cross-national comparison of clock-derived epigenetic age acceleration (EAA) between South Korea and the United States revealed consistently higher EAA in Korean dogs, with sex-associated differences detected within the Korean cohort. We further identified CpGs with cohort-specific age-associated methylation patterns, indicating that population-level differences in epigenetic aging extend beyond clock-based estimates to locus-specific methylation dynamics. Together, these findings highlight population-level diversity in canine epigenetic aging and support dogs as a tractable model for investigating biological and environmental determinants of age-related epigenetic change.
Early morphological and gene/protein expression dynamics of human synovial mesenchymal stem cells during adhesion to a damaged meniscal surface
Abstract Synovial mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a potential therapeutic option for meniscal injuries; however, the early cellular events following MSC application remain obscure. This study aimed to characterize the morphological and molecular changes occurring during the first 24 h after application of human synovial MSCs onto a structurally disrupted meniscal surface. MSCs were seeded onto a frozen-thawed , mechanically abraded meniscal surface under non-inflammatory conditions , and MSC morphology and gene/protein expression were evaluated before adhesion and at 1 h and 24 h after seeding. Scanning electron microscopy revealed MSCs with a round morphology and pseudopodia at 1 h, but flattened cells and multilayer formation at 24 h. MSCs attaching to nonbiological substrates showed similar time-dependent morphological changes. Gene expression analysis demonstrated time-dependent changes in CD44 , BMP2 , PRG4 , TIMP1 , TSG6 , and integrin-related genes, including increased ITGA2 expression and decreased ITGA11 and ITGA4 expression at 24 h. Immunofluorescence staining detected these proteins before and after adhesion. These findings indicate that synovial MSCs undergo rapid morphological and transcriptional changes during early adhesion. Although these changes may partly reflect general adhesion-related processes, the results provide a descriptive framework for understanding the early behavior of MSCs upon application to a structurally disrupted , devitalized meniscal matrix surface .
Evolutionary innovation through fusion of sequences from across the tree of life
Novel genes arise through multiple mechanisms, including gene duplication, gene fusion, and horizontal gene transfer (HGT). While HGT has increasingly been documented in animals, the posttransfer evolutionary fate of horizontally acquired genes is less well understood. We hypothesized that fusion with endogenous sequences in animal genomes might generate what we call “HGT-chimeras”: genes with regions of nonmetazoan and metazoan descent in the same open reading frame. To test this hypothesis, we developed a molecular phylogenetics pipeline that enables the identification of HGT-chimeras. We applied our pipeline to 319 high-quality annotated arthropod genomes and uncovered a high-confidence set of 274 HGT-chimeras corresponding to 104 independent origination events across diverse arthropods. HGT-chimeras contain intervals acquired from across the tree of life, and many likely originated via a gene duplication-based mechanism. To assess whether HGT-chimeras might be functionally important, we performed RT-PCR and Sanger sequencing of tissues from 20 arthropod species predicted to harbor HGT-chimeras in their genome. We found evidence for the expression of contiguous chimeric messenger RNA transcripts (mRNAs) for 36 of 41 tested HGT-chimeras across 18 of 20 different tested species. We also found evidence that HGT-chimeras evolve under purifying selection and have acquired potentially functional domain architectures, consistent with the hypothesis that these genes are in active use and may participate in diverse biological processes. These results illuminate an underappreciated combinatorial mechanism underlying the origin of novel genes across the largest animal phylum, and suggest that interdomain sequence fusion can play important roles in animal biology and evolution.
Sources, distribution characteristics, and risk evaluation of heavy metals in sludge from industrial parks
Pseudokinase-converting mutation in protein kinase C alpha drives chordoid glioma by pathway rewiring
Chordoid glioma (ChG) is a rare, low-grade brain tumor characterized by a novel recurrent point mutation, D463H, in the kinase domain of protein kinase C alpha (PKCα). The mutation is invariably an Asp to His substitution, suggesting a unique function beyond catalytic inactivation associated with other cancer-associated PKCα mutations. Here, we show that this mutation converts PKCα into a pseudokinase, abolishing catalytic activity, and, additionally, confers novel scaffolding functions. Activity assays in vitro and in cellulo revealed that PKCα D463H is catalytically inactive and functions as a dominant-negative to suppress endogenous PKC activity. Molecular dynamics simulations predicted that mutation to His, but not Asn, not only destabilizes the active site, but stabilizes the substrate-binding helices in the kinase C-lobe to potentially promote aberrant interactions. Supporting this, phosphoproteomic, proximity labeling, and coimmunoprecipitation mass spectrometry data from cells overexpressing PKCα D463H identified both altered phosphorylation of substrates and binding to multiple proteins involved in cell–cell junctions compared to WT enzyme. Last, single nuclei RNAseq established that ChG derives from specialized tanycytes. Our data reveal that this disease-defining, fully penetrant mutation converts PKCα into a pseudokinase with novel scaffold functions that uniquely rewire the cellular interactome to impair cell junction function.
Parameter estimation of MO-qGEVL distribution under type II progressive censoring with application in environmental data
BRCA1P1 immunotherapy requires pseudogene-aware transcriptomics
The relationship between parenting styles and emotional competence in Chinese young children: a moderated mediation model
Reply to Chi et al.: Defining <i>BRCA1P1</i> as a tumor-intrinsic immunoregulatory axis in breast cancer
Intuitive therapist robot patient physical interaction is worth a thousand words
Abstract Robotic systems can enhance the amount and repeatability of physical guided motor training. Yet their real-world adoption is limited, partly due to non-intuitive trainer/therapist-trainee/patient interactions. To address this gap, we present a haptic teleoperation system for trainers to remotely guide and monitor the movements of a trainee wearing an arm exoskeleton. The trainer can physically interact with the exoskeleton through a commercial handheld haptic device via virtual contact points at the exoskeleton’s elbow and wrist, allowing intuitive guidance. Thirty-two participants tested the system in a trainer–trainee paradigm, comparing our haptic demonstration system with conventional visual demonstration in guiding trainees in executing arm poses. Quantitative analyses showed that haptic demonstration significantly reduced movement completion time and improved smoothness, while speech analysis—using large language models for automated transcription and categorization of verbal commands—revealed fewer verbal instructions. The haptic demonstration did not result in higher reported mental and physical effort by trainers compared to the visual demonstration, while trainers reported greater competence and trainees lower physical demand. These findings support the feasibility of our proposed interface for effective remote human-robot physical interaction. Future work should assess its usability and efficacy for clinical populations in restoring clinicians’ sense of agency during robot-assisted therapy.
Crowding controls the scaling of bus frequency with demand
Cities must allocate limited resources to maintain mobility, with uncertainties about the resulting state of the system. Analyzing roughly 3,000 bus routes with more than 4 billion yearly riders across 19 metropolitan areas worldwide, we uncover a robust scaling law of the form f ∼ ( d / t ) α with exponent α ∈ [ 1 / 2 , 2 / 3 ] , linking the service frequency f to passenger demand d and route duration t . We show that this scaling emerges from a simple optimization principle: Cities implicitly minimize total passenger waiting time under a fixed operational budget when both schedule frequency and crowding are taken into account. This mechanism produces two universal regimes: a frequency-dominated regime with α = 1 / 2 when crowding is negligible and a capacity-dominated regime with α = 2 / 3 when most routes are overloaded. Intermediate exponents arise when only part of the network operates near capacity. Furthermore, we find that the benefits of additional investment are highly uneven across systems. For instance, our model suggests that a 20 % budget increase yields nearly a 5-min reduction in daily waiting time per passenger in Boston, compared to only about 1 min in Paris. These findings place urban transit within a broader class of constrained capacity-allocation problems, while highlighting a distinct regime in which prescribed route demands shape the allocation of limited service resources. The resulting scaling laws show how simple optimization principles can generate systematic exponents in complex transport systems, beyond the dissipation-based frameworks usually considered in physical and biological flow networks.
Machine learning–assisted performance prediction of graphene–silicon twin-port band-notched wideband antenna for THz 6G communication systems
Abstract A graphene–silicon-based twin-port terahertz (THz) antenna is proposed and investigated in this work. The antenna employs an aperture-coupled asymmetric ring dielectric resonator configuration to achieve wideband operation in the THz regime. Circular metallic rings integrated with the printed feed structure introduce a band-notch characteristic between 2.75 THz and 3.15 THz for interference suppression. A graphene coating is incorporated to provide frequency tunability, while DGS is utilized to reduce mutual coupling between the antenna ports. The proposed antenna operates efficiently over the 2.2–2.65 THz and 3.3–3.7 THz frequency bands with isolation levels below − 25 dB. The antenna also exhibits stable radiation characteristics, low envelope correlation coefficient (ECC), high diversity gain (DG), low channel capacity loss (CCL), and acceptable total active reflection coefficient (TARC), confirming its suitability for THz MIMO communication systems. Furthermore, deep neural network (DNN) and random forest (RF) ML approaches are employed to predict the |S 11 | characteristics of the antenna using a large parametric dataset generated through full-wave electromagnetic simulations. The ML models are evaluated using MAE, MSE, RMSE, Variance Score, and R² metrics, demonstrating strong agreement between predicted and simulated results. The proposed antenna provides a compact, tunable, and ML-assisted THz communication solution suitable for future intelligent 6G wireless applications.
Orbitofrontal noradrenaline supports adaptive learning-rate adjustment in probabilistic reversal learning
Adaptive decision-making in dynamic environments requires flexible adjustment of learning speed to balance stability and flexibility. When outcomes are highly stochastic, learners must avoid over-interpreting noise and update more slowly, whereas in volatile environments where contingencies change frequently, learning should accelerate to rapidly incorporate new evidence. Theories propose that internal estimates of uncertainty tune learning rates through neuromodulation-dependent mechanisms. Here, we investigated how noradrenergic inputs from the locus coeruleus (LC) to the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) support adaptive learning under uncertainty. We show that, in a probabilistic reversal learning task performed across different levels of stochasticity, rats exhibited behavior best explained by an adaptive reinforcement-learning model in which learning rates dynamically adjusted according to model-estimated stochasticity and volatility, outperforming standard fixed-rate models. Noradrenaline release in the OFC closely tracked trial-by-trial, model-derived volatility estimates around contingency changes. Disrupting LC→OFC noradrenergic inputs reproduced the model-predicted impairment in adaptive learning-rate adjustment associated with model-estimated volatility. Together, these findings identify OFC noradrenergic signaling as a key circuit mechanism supporting learning-rate adjustment in response to internal estimates of volatility during adaptive decision-making under uncertainty.
Research and application of precision three-dimensional drilling for stress relief and surrounding rock control in high-stress roadways
Inhibitory modulation of age-dependent behavior through <i>dsx</i> -expressing cells in honeybees
Social insects exhibit distinct age-dependent behavioral repertoires that collectively contribute to the common benefits of a colony. However, how the nervous system manifests the capacity of such age-dependent, disparate behavioral repertoires underlying the division of labor is largely unknown. In honeybee ( Apis mellifera ), a classical model of such age-dependent polyethism, young but not older worker bees attend and feed the queen (retinue behavior), which is triggered by the queen mandibular pheromone (QMP). Here, we revealed that older bees are still equipped with a latent QMP retinue response that is, however, modulated by the electrical activity of doublesex -expressing ( dsx + ) cells. We genetically expressed a designed neuron silencer hM4Di protein from the endogenous dsx promoter. We conditionally activated this receptor protein by feeding or not feeding the synthetic ligand C21. Eight- to 11-day-old worker bees displayed a retinue-like QMP response under electrical silencing conditions (+C21) but not under nonsilencing conditions (−C21). Control experiments demonstrated that the administration of the ligand C21 could not account for the observed increase in retinue behaviors in older bees, which is otherwise only observed in younger bees. Our study suggests an inhibitory role of dsx + cells of age-dependent retinue behaviors and establishes an unexplored connection between polyethism and its manifestation in the nervous system. Hence, chemogenetically driven manipulations suggest inroads for examining the division of labor at the level of neuronal activity.