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Genomic variance in Yucatan pigs and detection of donor-derived cell-free DNA after heart transplantation
Acute rejection, one of the most devastating complications that can occur following organ transplantation, is caused by antigenic differences between the organ donor and the recipient. Following cardiac transplantation, an estimated 12% of patients will experience at least one episode of moderate or severe acute rejection in the first year after transplantation. To better understand the genetic mechanisms underlying acute rejection, Yucatan pigs (YP) serve as an ideal preclinical model. Translatability of the YP preclinical model relies on the fidelity observed between preclinical and clinical pathologies. Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) analysis has emerged as a blood-based, non-invasive screening tool for acute rejection of solid organs following transplantation. We present a detailed characterization of the genomic variance in YPs. The degree of variance matches that observed in humans, enabling for the ability to detect and distinguish between donor-derived and recipient-derived fragments isolated from the transplant recipient’s blood.
Real-world FAERS safety analysis of Pralsetinib
Speed encoding in the rat striatum
The striatum plays a central role in motor control, yet how it dynamically represents variables such as locomotion speed, particularly across varying behavioral contexts, remains incompletely understood. Here, we investigated striatal encoding of locomotion speed in rats performing an automated T-maze task. We found that the activity of most (78%) analyzed striatal neurons— referred to as speed cells—was robustly correlated, either positively or negatively, with locomotion speed. This population included both putative medium spiny neurons (MSNs; 74%) and fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs; 82%). Speed-related activity was remarkably stable, showing no significant influence of elapsed time, cue type, spatial choice, or trial outcome. Additionally, positively correlated MSNs tended to precede speed changes, while positively correlated FSI activity typically followed, as did negatively correlated neurons for both types. This suggests distinct roles for different striatal cells in movement modulation. Speed cells exhibited strong modulation at movement onset and offset, yet also maintained correlations with speed throughout locomotion bouts. Finally, the firing rates of speed cells reliably predicted locomotion speed, outperforming non-speed cells and chance levels; decoding accuracy further improved when data from multiple neurons were combined, consistent with a population code. Together, these results demonstrate a robust, context-independent representation of locomotion speed in the rat striatum, driven by diverse cell types, and extends previous findings to a task with greater cognitive demands.
Synergistic effects of hybrid fibres and natural rubber latex on the thermal stability and mechanical properties of high-volume fly ash concrete
Can government-guided funds promote innovation output in strategic emerging enterprises? Evidence from China
Using 9,138 observations from 731 strategic emerging enterprises in China’s A-share market between 2010 and 2023, this study explores the impact of government-guided funds on innovation in these enterprises and their underlying mechanisms. The main empirical findings are as follows: Firstly, there is a positive correlation between government-guided funds and innovation output in strategic emerging enterprises, and their endogeneity and robustness have been tested using instrumental variable methods and a series of other methods. Secondly, government-guided funds significantly enhance corporate innovation output through two pathways: one is by alleviating financing constraints on technological R&D; the other is by enhancing companies’ ability to access policy resources such as tax incentives. Thirdly, heterogeneity tests indicate that the innovative incentive effect of government-guided funds is more pronounced in eastern regions, state-owned enterprises, and companies with higher capital intensity from downstream customers. This study focuses on strategic emerging enterprises, providing a new perspective on the impact of government-guided funds on corporate innovation.
Combinatorial QM and MD in silico design of natural product-based DHFR inhibitors
Deep learning assisted LDPC decoding for 5G IoT networks in fading environments
A robust energy management strategy for fuel cell and ultracapacitor hybrid electric vehicles under uncertainty via a jellyfish-search-based approach
Abstract This paper presents the development of an energy management system (EMS) for a fuel cell hybrid electric vehicle comprising a fuel cell (FC) and an ultracapacitor (UC). In previous studies, hydrogen consumption was the key priority, overlooking other considerations such as lifetime and characteristics of both the FC and the UC. Due to this and the restricted number of iterations, optimization strategies reported in the literature may suffer from suboptimal solutions. In addition, ignoring practical operating scenarios, such as uncertainties due to road conditions, operating status, temperature, and aging, results in poor performance. This work proposes EMS, which considers: (1) fuel usage, (2) lifespan, and the slow dynamic response of the FC, and (3) the lifetime of the UC. Because of its fast and less convergence time characteristics, the Jellyfish Search (JS) optimizer is used. To achieve resilient performance under uncertainties, robust optimization-based EMS using min-max optimization and JS is adopted. The developed EMS was tested under two different driving cycles. Based on the simulation results, the proposed EMS shows good performance. JS has a short computational time of about 0.15 s for each decision while satisfying all the system constraints, such as keeping the SoC within a suitable level (25% to 95%), and reducing the occurrences of severe changes in the power demand of fuel cells, thus increasing the life span of system components. Moreover, by adding robust optimization (RO), the system was able to meet the system requirement with DS 100% even under uncertainties.
SPP1+ macrophages promote colorectal cancer progression by activating JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway
Dynamic behavior and failure characteristics of granite with different shapes of holes
Clinical utility of comprehensive genomic profiling versus Oncomine Dx target test in pathological stage II–III non-small cell lung cancer
Abstract The next-generation sequencing (NGS)–based Oncomine Dx Target Test (ODxTT) is the standard tool for guiding postoperative adjuvant therapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Japan. To advance precision oncology, we evaluated the clinical utility of an in-house comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) assay, Rapid-Neo, as a complementary approach to ODxTT in surgically resected NSCLC. Patients with pathological stage II–III NSCLC who underwent anatomical surgical resection between December 2019 and May 2024 were included. Resected specimens underwent genomic analysis using both ODxTT and Rapid-Neo CGP. We evaluated the mutational concordance and the frequency of additional actionable alterations identified by CGP. Among 68 eligible patients, driver mutation results were concordant in 64 (94.1%) cases. Crucially, CGP rescued one patient for targeted therapy by detecting an EGFR mutation where ODxTT failed due to insufficient DNA. CGP also identified rare EGFR variants not covered by ODxTT in two cases, although it failed to detect a RET fusion in one patient. Furthermore, CGP revealed additional actionable alterations, such as tumor suppressor gene mutations, in 57 patients (83.8%). Our in-house CGP shows high concordance with ODxTT and serves as a powerful complementary tool. These findings support a strategic testing algorithm where CGP is incorporated for patients with negative or inconclusive ODxTT results, or at the time of recurrence, to maximize opportunities for individualized therapy in resected NSCLC.
Decoding covert visual attention of electroencephalography signals using continuous wavelet transform and deep learning approach
Conveyor belt restraining in natural hazardous wind events
Abstract In preparation for the natural hazardous wind events such as tornados and tropical cyclones, open-air conveyor belts used by Australian mining industry for overland bulk materials transportation are physically restrained by tying them to their structural frames with rigid steel tie-downs over set regular intervals. This study examined a restrained section of a commercial type of conveyor belt focussing on discerning the most accurate approach for optimising the belt restraint interval value. Structural integrity of the belt was analysed with strength of materials, numerical modelling, and aerodynamic methods for a range of airflow angles and for airflow velocities of up to and including category 5 cyclonic events. It was found that strength of materials approach could be used as a rough approximation only, with somewhat fine-tuned results provided by the numerical methods and the conventional aerodynamic techniques. The most accurate results were obtained from introducing dynamic component of the conveyor belt’s elasticity into the aerodynamic flexural–torsional flutter treatment of the belt, with this approach delivering an over 30% higher minimal value of the length of the restrained section of the belt at design safety factor of 1.5. This larger restrained section length will lead to a corresponding reduction of the number of belt tie-downs and this, in turn, will translate into strong operational efficiencies while also delivering significant improvements of personnel safety. Additionally, the results of our work improve understanding of the behavior of open-air overland conveyor belts under the irregular aerodynamic loading conditions of natural hazardous wind events.
m7G-related gene signatures determine prognosis in triple-negative breast cancer
Design and thermal imidization of new 1,3-thiazine-based polyimides and copolyimides for high-performance corrosion inhibition
Abstract A new polyimide, poly(1,3-thiazine imide) (PTzI), together with two co-polyimides (CoPTz-DsI and CoPTz-HaI), were synthesized from the monomer named 4,4’-(1,4-phenylene)bis(6-(benzene-2-yl)-6 H-1,3-thiazine-2-amine) (PTA), which has a di-1,3-thiazine heterocyclic structure. The structure of PTA was confirmed with FT-IR, along with NMR spectra and mass spectroscopy. A thermal imidization process was used to prepare PTzI from the corresponding polyamic acid (PAA), which was obtained by polycondensation of PTA with 3,3′,4,4′-benzophenone tetracarboxylic dianhydride (BTDA). Similarly, the copolymers were synthesized via thermal imidization of PAAs derived from the polycondensation of PTA with 4,4′-diaminodiphenyl sulfone (DDS) or 1,6-hexane diamine (HAD), in addition to BTDA. The structure and imidization of each polymer were verified at various curing temperatures using Fourier transform infrared FT-IR spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction verified their amorphous nature, while scanning electron microscopy (SEM) morphological investigation indicated different levels of homogeneity and compactness. The rigid aromatic backbones and imide linkages provide exceptional thermal stability and chemical resistance, demonstrating their high performance. Thermogravimetric study (TGA and derivative TGA) showed that the materials had outstanding thermal stability, with high degradation initiation and initial decomposition temperatures (Td 5% ) in the range of 294–418 °C, and char yields of 52–63% at 800 °C. In acidic environments, the synthesized polymers have shown exceptional corrosion prevention performance for mild steel MS, according to electrochemical evaluations. Due to its structural composition rich in 1,3-thiazine structure, PTzI exhibited the highest inhibition efficiency (99.4%). Additionally, CoPTz-HaI and CoPTz-DsI demonstrated excellent efficiencies of 95.2% and 96.4%, respectively. The inhibitory performance was shown to be improved as the PTA concentration increased, suggesting that it may be used to create more sophisticated coatings that resist corrosion.
Radiolabeling and evaluation of 64+67Cu-2,2’-(1,2,4-Oxadiazole-3,5-diyl)di aniline as a theranostic agent for solid tumors
Abstract Copper-64 ( 64 Cu) and Copper-67 ( 67 Cu) are promising theranostic isotopes for PET imaging and targeted radiotherapy. In this study, 2,2’-(1,2,4-Oxadiazole-3,5-diyl)di aniline (ODDA) was successfully radiolabeled with 64+67 Cu, achieving high radiolabeling yield (97.0 ± 0.8%) and excellent stability in serum over five days. The optimized radiolabeling conditions included a ligand concentration of 30 µg, pH 4, a reaction time of 15 min, and a temperature of 60 °C. The biodistribution study in Ehrlich ascites carcinoma-bearing mice showed an initial tumor uptake of 7.8 ± 0.4%ID/g at 0.5 h, peaking at 18.0 ± 0.3ID/g at 2 h, confirming selective tumor accumulation. The log P value of -0.8 indicated a hydrophilic nature, leading to predominant renal clearance. Molecular docking studies showed strong binding to EGFR (-9.1 kcal/mol) and VEGFR2 (-8.6 kcal/mol), suggesting potential anticancer activity.