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High-fidelity electrical detection of spin transport in graphene

The effect of Punicalagin on tongue carcinoma cells viability and angiogenesis by regulating TGF-β signalling pathway: an in vitro study

Abstract Punicalagin (PUN) is a major bioactive ellagitannin derived from pomegranate and showed a potential anticancer property on several cell lines, no studies investigate its effect on tongue carcinoma cells. The present study aimed to evaluate the cytotoxic and antiangiogenic effects of PUN on human tongue carcinoma cell line. The viability of the tongue carcinoma cell line was assessed following treatment with PUN (250, 200, 150, 100, and 50 µmol) for 24 h using MTT assay. In addition, the calculated (IC 50) was used for apoptosis validation using Annexin-V/Propidium Iodide (PI) flow cytometry, angiogenesis investigation using endothelial tube formation assay, and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) expression on human tongue carcinoma cells after treatment with Punicalagin using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The vitality of tongue carcinoma cells treated with PUN was 61.1 ± 4.36% and the untreated cells were 98 ± 2%. Flow cytometry confirmed that treatment with 185 µmol/mL of PUN induced significant apoptosis, yielding 51.3% apoptotic cells, 2.3% necrotic cells, and 46.7% viable cells. Regarding tubules no. HPF Untreated cells had a statistically significant higher value (5.83 ± 1.94) than cells treated with PUN (3.17 ± 1.17) ( p  = 0.023). The junction no/HPF had a higher value in untreated cells (5.50 ± 2.43) than in cells treated with PUN (3.33 ± 1.37) yet the difference was not statistically significant ( p  = 0.119). The Tube length showed a statistical significance between untreated cells (5.28 ± 0.77) and cells treated with PUN (1.83 ± 0.26) ( p  = 0.004). The values for lobules no/HPF were higher in untreated cells (2.67 ± 0.52) than in cells treated with PUN (1.67 ± 0.82) yet the difference was not statistically significant ( p  = 0.053). The expression of TGF-β gene showed a significantly higher value in untreated cells (0.97 ± 0.03) than in cells treated with PUN (0.02 ± 0.01) ( p  = 0.004). These initial in vitro observations indicate an anticancer effect of PUN on tongue carcinoma cells through the induction of apoptosis and inhibition of cell viability and angio-mimetic tube formation, closely correlating with the downregulation of TGF-β gene expression. This provides a possible preliminary therapeutic direction to the study of tongue carcinoma.

A symbiotic skin hydrogel interface enabled by flexible hydrogel network with embedded enhancement structure

Associations of plasma MMP-9 and MPO with functional outcome in moderate to severe acute ischemic stroke

Abstract Inflammation plays a pivotal role in acute ischemic stroke (AIS), with neutrophil granulocytes acting as major contributors to the post-stroke immune response. Upon degranulation, neutrophils release matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and myeloperoxidase (MPO), both of which may influence functional outcomes following AIS. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between systemic levels of MMP-9 and MPO, functional outcome, and neutrophil counts in patients with moderate to severe AIS, with a focus on their pathophysiological relevance rather than standalone prognostic performance. This prospective single-center cohort study included patients with moderate to severe AIS in the anterior circulation (NIHSS score ≥ 6 points and /or indication for mechanical recanalization). Venous blood was sampled in order to assess plasma concentrations of MMP-9 via zymography as well as MPO plasma levels via ELISA. Furthermore, differential blood count was determined simultaneously to venous biomarker sampling. Poor outcome was defined as mRS score ≥ 3. Uni- and multivariable regression analyses were performed. Between 07/2020 and 09/2022 a total of 279 patients with blood samples taken up to 48 h after symptom onset with a median NIHSS score of 13 and a median age of 79 were included. Of these patients, 81.0% underwent mechanical recanalization and 42.7% received systemic thrombolytic therapy. Systemic MMP-9 and MPO plasma levels were significantly higher in patients with poor functional outcome compared to patients with good functional outcome at 3-months (MMP-9: 359.1 vs. 303.5 ng/ml, p  = 0.0006; MPO: 27.0 vs. 19.2 ng/ml, p  = 0.0010). Both biomarkers were associated with a poor outcome in unadjusted analyses [MMP-9: unadjusted OR = 15.63 (95% CI: 3.54-80.69), p  = 0.0005; MPO: unadjusted OR = 4.02 (95% CI: 1.84-9.21), p  = 0.0007]. In addition, MMP-9 and MPO concentrations correlated with neutrophil counts (MMP-9: r  = 0.39, p  < 0.0001; MPO: r  = 0.31, p  < 0.0001). In conclusion, systemic MMP-9 and MPO plasma concentrations are associated with functional outcome in patients with moderate to severe AIS and reflect neutrophil-driven inflammatory processes. Their value appears to lie in complementing established clinical predictors rather than serving as independent prognostic markers.

Molecularly defined auditory neuron subtypes show different vulnerabilities to noise- and age-related synaptopathy in mice

Passive stretchable infrared modulator and reversible strain sensor based on a nano/microstructured metal–elastomer composite

Observation of giant acoustoelectric currents in graphene on lead magnesium niobate–lead titanate

Abstract Acoustoelectric (AE) devices enable coupling between acoustic waves and mobile charge carriers, offering a route toward RF-to-DC conversion, RF power sensing, energy harvesting, and responsive sensing applications. The efficiency of this coupling depends on both the electromechanical properties of the piezoelectric substrate and the transport properties of the conductive film interacting with the surface acoustic wave (SAW). Here an AE SAW delay line platform is presented for generating large AE currents using graphene on lead magnesium niobate–lead titanate (PMN–PT). Leveraging graphene’s high carrier mobility and the strong electromechanical coupling of (111)-cut PMN–PT, this platform achieves giant AE current generation. Additionally, AE responsivity ( $${{\boldsymbol{{\mathscr{R}}}}}_{{{\bf{AE}}}}$$ R AE ) is introduced here as a figure of merit for comparing AE platforms. The platform comprises interdigitated transducers (IDTs) deposited and patterned on the bulk PMN–PT surface for launching SAW and a monolayer graphene film positioned within the SAW propagation region. Experimental measurements confirm generation of AE current and voltage within the SAW passband, with the AE current reaching up to 90.39 µA at an RF input power of 20 dBm, corresponding to an $${{\boldsymbol{{\mathscr{R}}}}}_{{{\bf{AE}}}}$$ R AE of 7.66 µA/(W·MHz). The reported AE current and AE responsivity outperform most of the previously reported platforms, validating the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Abiotic Peptide-Like Bond Formation in Gas-Phase Nitrile–Water Clusters Driven by Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoionization

Enhancing formation breakdown pressure using optimized drilling fluid additives with preventive wellbore strengthening approach

Redefining topological robustness in optical polarization fields through a generalized skyrmion number

Abstract Skyrmions are important topologically non-trivial fields characteristic of models spanning scales from the microscopic to the cosmological. However, the skyrmion number can only be defined for fields with specific boundary conditions, limiting its use in broader contexts. Here, we address this issue through a generalized notion of the skyrmion derived from the de Rham cohomology of compactly supported forms. This allows for the definition of an entirely new $${\coprod }_{i=1}^{\infty }{{\mathbb{Z}}}^{i}$$ ∐ i = 1 ∞ Z i -valued topological number that assigns a tuple of integers $$({a}_{1},\ldots,{a}_{k})\in {{\mathbb{Z}}}^{k}$$ ( a 1 , … , a k ) ∈ Z k to a field instead of a single number, with no restrictions to its boundary. To demonstrate the power of our new formalism, we focus on the propagation of optical polarization fields and show, both theoretically and experimentally, that our newly defined generalized skyrmion number significantly increases the dimension of data that can be stored within the field while also demonstrating strong robustness. This novel topological number supports the idea that optical skyrmions are topologically protected states when interpreted in this more general context, and addresses some of the core issues in the application of optical skyrmions to communications and computing.

Atomic-Scale Visualization of Vacancy-Ordered Intermediates and Pathway Selection in the Perovskite-Infinite-Layer Transformation

Comparative essential oil profiling and pathway mapping of Juniperus communis and Juniperus sabina

Abstract This study provides a comparative characterization of the essential oil profiles and database-supported pathway mapping of Juniperus communis and Juniperus sabina collected from the Salouk region of North Khorasan, Iran. Essential oils were extracted by hydrodistillation, analyzed using GC–MS, statistically compared between species, and interpreted through multivariate analysis and pathway mapping based on KEGG, UniProt, MetaCyc, and supporting literature. Essential oil yield was markedly higher in J. sabina than in J. communis (1.70 and 0.54 g per 100 g dried material, respectively). A total of 63 volatile compounds were identified, with significant interspecific differences for most evaluated metabolites. J. communis was mainly characterized by higher relative abundances of trans -pinene (15.00%), α -phellandrene (14.97%), α -pinene (11.28%), terpinolene (6.66%), and trans -sabinene acetate (5.02%). In contrast, J. sabina showed higher levels of sabinene (12.78%), camphene (10.12%), terpinolene (8.04%), α -terpinene (6.78%), 3-octanol (4.75%), δ -terpinyl acetate (3.83%), and linalool (3.38%). PCA revealed a clear separation between the two species, with the first two dimensions explaining 99.94% of the total variance, indicating that species differentiation was driven by coordinated changes across multiple volatile constituents. Pathway mapping assigned 49 of the 63 detected compounds, approximately 77.78%, to GPP-related routes, highlighting the predominance of monoterpene-derived compounds in both essential oils. Additional metabolites were associated with PEP-, shikimate/phenylalanine-, acetyl-CoA-, valine-, and FPP-related routes, providing a broader biochemical organization of the detected compounds. Overall, the results demonstrate strong chemical differentiation between J. communis and J. sabina and identify dominant and species-associated volatile metabolites that may serve as candidate markers for phytochemical characterization, essential oil quality assessment, chemotaxonomic comparison, and future bioactivity-focused studies.

High-throughput characterization of transcription factors that modulate UV damage formation and repair at single-nucleotide resolution

Abstract Genomic studies revealed elevated DNA damage and mutation rates at transcription factor (TF) binding sites in UV-linked cancers. While TFs can promote UV-induced mutagenesis by altering both damage formation and repair, these mechanisms have not been systematically characterized across TFs at high resolution. Using genome-wide UV damage maps from skin fibroblasts, we develop a scalable statistical framework to analyze TF-mediated mutagenic mechanisms across hundreds of TFs. We identify numerous previously unreported TFs that significantly enhance or suppress UV damage formation within their binding sites. A systematic survey of TF-DNA complexes reveals that damage modulation often coincides with TF-induced DNA distortions that either protect against or promote photodimer formation. Additionally, we analyze repair efficiency in TF binding sites at high resolution, identifying TFs likely to compete with repair. Comparisons with skin cancer mutations distinguish mutation enrichment driven by increased damageability versus attenuated repair, revealing the highly contextual nature of TF-mediated mutagenesis.

Interpretable coal mine fault detection via orthogonal Kolmogorov–Arnold networks

Navigating chemical-linguistic sharing space with heterogeneous molecular encoding

Characteristics of ST11-K64 carbapenem-resistant hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae in Central-South China

Energy intensity, offshoring and the illusion of decarbonization

Evolutionary gene number variation and functional diversification of retinal EAATs are reflected in expression pattern adaptation

Abstract Excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs; SLC1 family) are expressed in neurons and glial cells and are essential for glutamatergic signaling and neuroprotection in the vertebrate retina. However, lineage-specific genome duplications, especially in teleosts, and eaat gene losses during vertebrate evolution, raise the question of whether retinal EAAT functions are conserved across species. In our study, we combine retinal expression mapping, transgenic reporter assays, and electrophysiological characterization to examine the evolutionary diversification of EAAT expression and function of some key species across different vertebrate clades. The gene loss of eaat6 and eaat7 in eutherian mammals results in a pronounced shift in retinal expression of eaat1 to eaat5 when compared to non-therian vertebrates. While in the mouse retina Eaat1 ( Glast-1 ) is expressed in Muller glia cells, Eaat2 ( Glt-1 ) transcripts are predominantly found in bipolar cells. In contrast to this, Muller glia cells of zebrafish ( Danio rerio ) predominantly express eaat2a and transcripts for neither of the two zebrafish eaat1 paralogs are present in the retina. On the other hand, the predominant neuronal eaat transcripts in the zebrafish retina are eaat2b and eaat7 . A transgenic zebrafish line expressing GFP under the control of mouse Eaat1 regulatory elements demonstrates that mouse Eaat1 cis-regulatory sequences drive neuronal, rather than glial, expression in zebrafish, indicating evolutionary divergence of regulatory logic. Electrophysiological analyses of recombinant EAAT proteins reveal that these expression changes are paralleled by differences in biophysical properties. Glial EAATs display a low ratio of uncoupled anion conductances to glutamate transport currents, consistent with a primary role in glutamate clearance, whereas neuronally expressed EAATs exhibit disproportionately large anion currents, supporting a role in modulating membrane excitability. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that retinal eaat expression patterns and functional specializations have been extensively reshaped during vertebrate evolution, advising caution against a direct extrapolation of mouse retinal glutamate handling to non-mammalian species.

c-JUN controls microbial colonization via selective phagocytosis in the sea anemone Nematostella

Abstract Innate immunity is traditionally viewed as a broad defense system with limited specificity. However, increasing evidence suggests that innate immune cells can discriminate between distinct microbial partners. How such specificity arises in early-diverging animals remains unclear. Here, we identify in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis a selective host innate immune mechanism mediated by nematosomes, motile multicellular bodies that differentially process bacterial cells. Nematosomes preferentially engulf non-native Vibrio isolates while showing reduced uptake of native host-associated strains. We identify the transcription factor cJUN as a key regulator of this process. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockout of cJUN reduces nematosome abundance, impairs lysosomal response, alters microbiome assembly, and increases susceptibility to bacterial infection. These results link immune gene function to microbial selectivity and demonstrate that even early-diverging animals exhibit sophisticated innate immunity mechanisms for microbiome regulation. Our findings support the idea that immune specificity can arise through repurposing deeply conserved pathways and may have deep evolutionary origin.

Pair approximation of the biased-independence q-voter model for innovation diffusion in organizational networks

Abstract Collective adaptation, including innovation adoption, pro-environmental change, and organizational change, emerges from the interplay between individual decisions and social influence. We study the biased-independence q -voter model, in which agents choose between adoption and non-adoption under conformity and independent choice. Independent choice is governed by an engagement parameter inspired by earlier models of eco-innovation diffusion. For engagement equal to 0.5, the model reduces to the standard q -voter model with independence; otherwise, the symmetry between the two options is broken. This asymmetry generates discontinuous phase transitions and irreversible hysteresis, reflecting path-dependent adoption dynamics. We first review variants of the asymmetric q -voter model and then analyze the model using mean-field approximation, pair approximation, and Monte Carlo simulations on artificial and empirical organizational networks. We derive, for the first time, a pair approximation for an asymmetric q -voter model and test how well it reproduces simulations on empirical networks. Pair approximation captures the dependence on network density and systematically improves upon mean-field approximation. However, while the improvement is substantial for random graphs, it is moderate for empirical networks. These results demonstrate the need to test analytical approximations directly in realistic settings, as such tests may show that, in some cases, a simple mean-field approach is sufficient.