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Predicting kidney graft survival with a machine learning model based on for-cause biopsy transcriptomics
Modulation of Nudt21 levels reveals dose-dependent roles of alternative polyadenylation in tissue regeneration
Prognostic significance of POD24 in primary central nervous system diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: a retrospective study
Duration of super-emitting oil and gas methane sources
The influence of freeze-thaw action and particle size characteristics on the shear resistance of black soil
Abstract To explore how freeze-thaw action modulates the relationship between particle size and soil shear strength, cohesion ( c ), internal friction angle ( φ ), and shear strength ( τ ) of seven particle size groups (at 4% water content) were measured using a direct shear apparatus. Results show: Particle size significantly influences c dynamics. naturally graded soil and d ≥ 1 mm (particle size ≥ 1 mm) groups exhibit decreasing c with freeze-thaw cycles, while d < 1 mm groups show the opposite trend. Among them, d 5–10 mm groups are least affected, and d < 0.25 mm groups are most affected, with c stabilizing after 6–9 cycles. For φ , d ≥ 2 mm groups first increase then decrease, whereas d < 2 mm groups show the reverse. d < 0.25 mm groups retain the highest φ values; after 30 cycles, d 2 –5 mm groups exhibit the largest φ decrease (− 4.70%), while d 0.5−1 mm groups show a slight increase (2.17%). Naturally graded soil has the highest τ due to inter-particle synergistic effects, with d 1–2 mm groups leading among single particle size groups. τ correlates positively with cycles for d < 1 mm groups but negatively for naturally graded soil and d ≥ 1 mm groups. Particle size dominates shear resistance ( c :71.78%, φ :45.43%, τ :53.22%), with freeze-thaw cycles as a key secondary factor (18.82%, 11.27%, 20.52%).
A tidal disruption event from an intermediate-mass black hole revealed by comprehensive multi-wavelength observations
Decomposition and nutrient release from leaves of some common agroforestry tree/shrub species of Sudano-Sahelian West Africa
Abstract Foliar inputs from indigenous agroforestry tree/shrub provide organic matter and nutrients to sustain crop production in the West African Sahelian region. This study aims at monitoring the decomposition and nutrients release of leafy biomass of selected agroforestry tree and shrub species. In Mali and Burkina Faso, fresh leaves were collected from leguminous trees ( Faidherbia albida (Delile) A. Chev., Pterocarpus lucens Lepr.) and non-leguminous trees ( Vitellaria paradoxa C.F. Gaertn., Khaya senegalensis (Desr.) A. Juss.) and in Senegal, fresh leaves were obtained from leguminous trees ( Faidherbia albida (Delile) A. Chev., Pterocarpus lucens Lepr. and Piliostigma reticulatum (DC.) Hochst.) and the non-leguminous tree Guiera senegalensis J.F. Gmel. The leaf samples collected during the dry and rainy seasons were deployed for decomposition and nutrient release experiments using the litter bag technique. Average decomposition rate for this study was 0.23 k week − 1 whereby the rate of decomposition was 155% higher in the rainy season than in the dry season. Average decomposition rate of leguminous tree and shrub leaves was 1.4-folds greater than that of non-leguminous counterparts. To optimize the synchronization of nutrient release from green manure with crop nutrient demands, manure should be co-applied considering seasonal and species effects.
Entanglement-inspired frequency-agile rangefinding
Abstract Entanglement, a key feature of quantum mechanics, is recognized for its non-classical correlations which have been shown to provide significant noise resistance in single-photon rangefinding and communications. Drawing inspiration from the advantage given by energy-time entanglement, we developed an energy-time correlated source based on a classical laser that preserves the substantial noise reduction typical of quantum illumination while surpassing the quantum brightness limitation by over six orders of magnitude, making it highly suitable for practical remote sensing applications. A frequency-agile pseudo-random source is realized through fiber chromatic dispersion and pulse carving using an electro-optic intensity modulator. Operating at a faint transmission power of 48 μ W, the distance between two buildings 154.8182 m apart can be measured with a precision better than 0.1 mm, under varying solar background levels and weather conditions with an integration time of only 100 ms. These trials verified the predicted noise reduction of this system, demonstrating advantages over quantum illumination-based rangefinding and highlighting its potential for practical remote sensing applications.
Influence of nutrition pattern on exercise performance, inflammation and muscle damage biomarkers in a non-athlete healthy young cohort
An open decoupled cell design achieving electricity generation and amplification through waste-to-energy conversion
SynPoC: a high-quality generative diffusion model for transforming ultra-low-field point-of-care MRI using high-field MRI representations
Abstract Ultra-low-field (ULF) point-of-care (PoC) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) offers a promising pathway to improve accessibility in medical imaging due to its portability and lower cost. However, the diagnostic utility of ULF MRI is currently limited by lower image quality, particularly in signal-to-noise ratio, resolution, and contrast. To address this, we introduce SynPoC, a generative diffusion model designed to enhance ULF MRI by synthesizing high-field MRI-like images. SynPoC employs a conditional adversarial diffusion framework that leverages both noise and contrast-specific features to model inter-field representations. We evaluated SynPoC across a multi-site dataset of 180 participants, including both healthy individuals and patients with a variety of brain conditions. The enhanced images exhibited improved anatomical clarity and structural alignment with corresponding high-field MRI, as supported by quantitative and volumetric analyses. Our model demonstrates promise for image quality enhancement and research applications; however, as with other generative approaches, there is a non-zero risk of hallucinated or misleading features, particularly near low-SNR boundaries and fine structures. We therefore provide synchronized slice-by-slice comparison videos (3T, PoC, SynPoC) to aid reader inspection and emphasize that SynPoC is not intended for diagnostic decision-making without additional safeguards and validation. Further validation is warranted before diagnostic use.
Atroposelective interrupted CuAAC reaction using cyclic diaryliodoniums
Co-inoculation of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and Rhizobium leguminosarum phaseoli improves salinity tolerance in common bean cultivars
Potential and challenges for sustainable progress in human longevity
Abstract Decelerating gains in life expectancy ( e 0 ) in high-income countries have raised concerns about the future of human longevity. To enhance our understanding of these developments, we examine subnational ( N = 450) mortality trends in Western Europe in the period 1992-2019. Between 1992 and 2005, gains in life expectancy were both substantial and widespread. Laggard regions experienced the fastest improvements, yielding rapid regional convergence. Between 2005 and 2019, however, gains in these regions decelerated, while remaining remarkably stable in vanguard regions, suggesting that it remains possible to continue extending longevity. The observed slowing of e 0 gains is strongly associated with mortality at ages 55-74, which increased in this period across large areas of Western Europe, particularly in Germany and France. In this work, we show that monitoring mortality trends at a fine geographical level is crucial for revealing both the potential for, and challenges to, sustainable progress in human longevity.
High purity lithium recovery from spent lithium-ion batteries using commercial nanofiltration membranes: a comparative performance assessment
Giant near-field nonlinear electrophotonic effects in an angstrom-scale plasmonic junction
Abstract Plasmons facilitate a strong confinement and enhancement of near-field light, offering exciting opportunities to enhance nonlinear optical responses at the nanoscale. However, despite significant advancements, the electrically tunable range of the nonlinear optical responses at nanometer-scale plasmonic structures remains limited to a few percents per volt. Here, we transcend the limitation of the nanometer regime by expanding the concept of electrophotonics into angstrom-scale platform, enabling high-performance modulation of near-field nonlinear optical responses inaccessible in prior architectures. We demonstrate ~2000% enhancement in second-harmonic generation (SHG) within 1 V of voltage application by utilizing an angstrom-scale plasmonic gap between a metallic tip and a flat metal substrate in a scanning tunneling microscope. Extending this near-field SHG scheme to sum-frequency generation that is accompanied by large frequency upconversion, we also found that such giant electrical modulation of plasmon-enhanced nonlinear optical phenomena is effective over mid-infrared to visible broad wavelength range. Our results and concepts lay the foundation for developing near-field-based angstrom-scale nonlinear electrophotonics with significant modulation depth at low driving voltage.
Prognostic factors for severe community-acquired pneumonia in high altitude areas
Interaction and functional specialization across a distributed neural circuit for flexible task control in macaques
Abstract Reversal tasks have been regarded as probes of behavioural inhibition and linked to prefrontal and specifically orbitofrontal cortex. The centrality of behavioural inhibition to reversal task performance and the task’s dependence on particular prefrontal sub-regions have, however, been questioned in primates. Using a combination of whole brain recording, transient ultrasonic disruption, two types of reversal task, and a task model emphasizing identification of transitions between latent states, we show that male macaques track latent state transitions in addition to choice values in reversal tasks. Activity reflecting both these features is prominent in dorsomedial frontal cortex, and anterior and dorsomedial thalamus when, and just before, animals select choices. By contrast, hippocampal activity continually tracks the probability of a reversal between latent states. We identify patterns of activity interaction spanning the three nodes of this circuit and demonstrate that disruption of each leads to reversal task impairment albeit in different ways.