Browse Articles

Cyber resilient framework with energy efficient swarm routing and ensemble threat detection in fog assisted wireless sensor networks

Dosimetric comparison of Monte Carlo, Acuros XB, and anisotropic analytical algorithm for lung cancer plans on halcyon accelerators

This study evaluates the differences in application of the RayStation Monte Carlo algorithm (RMC) compared to Acuros XB (AXB) and the Anisotropic Analytical Algorithm (AAA) in Eclipse for conventional radiotherapy planning of lung cancer using the novel ring-shaped Halcyon accelerator. A total of 63 non-small-cell lung cancer patients were retrospectively included, with a prescription dose of 60 Gy delivered in 30 fractions. Radiotherapy plans were initially designed and optimized in RayStation, then recalculated in Eclipse using AXB and AAA to assess algorithmic differences in dose distributions. Analysis of data from 63 patients, combined with simulations using square fields and cylindrical water phantoms, revealed that RMC and AXB achieved high consistency in target dose coverage and conformity. High-dose indicators, such as D2% and D0.03cc, showed close agreement between RMC and AAA, while AXB tended to slightly underestimate peak doses. For prescription dose coverage metrics like D95% and D98%, the difference between RMC and AXB was less than 1%, whereas AAA exhibited minor degradation. In organ-at-risk dose evaluations, RMC delivered higher doses compared to AXB and AAA, with AAA doses exceeding those of AXB. These findings confirm the dose consistency of RayStation and Eclipse algorithms for use with the Halcyon accelerator. The RayStation Monte Carlo algorithm (RMC) is a viable alternative to AXB, especially in lung cancer cases with high tissue heterogeneity, as target coverage and conformity discrepancies remain within 0.5%. Additionally, recalculation of RMC-optimized plans in Eclipse using AXB resulted in lower organ-at-risk doses. Therefore, recalculations performed before treatment do not compromise the clinical adequacy of volumetric dose evaluations.

Decoupling photothermal-mechanical degradation through lattice-stabilizing networks in Sn–Pb perovskites and all-perovskite tandem solar cells

The paradoxical prognostic effects of T-cell-derived circulating DNA in EGFR-mutated advanced non-small-cell lung cancer involve the crosstalk between heme biosynthesis and immune microenvironment

Effects of different physical therapy training protocols on patients with idiopathic scoliosis: Short-term results

Background Idiopathic scoliosis (IS), a three-dimensional spinal deformity common in adolescents, can be treated with numerous approaches, including Schroth, Spiral stabilization (SPS), and core exercises, to improve spinal alignment and health. However, few studies have shown the superiority of one treatment over another. Objective This retrospective cohort study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of three distinct physical therapy protocols in managing IS among adolescents aged 6–18 years with Cobb angles ≤40°. Methods A total of 61 patients were allocated to one of three therapeutic groups. Each group received interventions twice weekly for 10 sessions. Primary outcomes were assessed by measuring changes in the Cobb angle, whereas secondary outcomes included evaluations of pain (visual analog scale, VAS), the angle of trunk rotation (ATR), trunk aesthetic clinical evaluation (TRACE), radiographic parameters (Alignment of the C7 plumbline (C7PL), clavicle angle, and pelvic obliquity), and quality of life (the Scoliosis Research Society-22 questionnaire,SRS-22). Results The findings revealed significant within-group improvements in the Cobb angle, pain, and trunk rotation for all interventions (p < 0.05). Notably, between-group comparisons indicated that both the Schroth and SPS modalities resulted in greater reductions in the Cobb angle and trunk rotation than core stabilization exercises did (p < 0.05). Moreover, SPS resulted in superior enhancements in the clavicle angle and dynamic postural control, whereas Schroth yielded significant improvements in C7PL alignment. Conclusion This short-term study underscores the relative effectiveness of the Schroth and SPS interventions in managing three-dimensional spinal deformities and enhancing dynamic postural control while recognizing the limitations of core stabilization exercises for scoliosis. Clinical trial registration This retrospective analysis of a clinical trial has been registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2500096077) https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=ChiCTR2500096077.

Systematic benchmarking of high-throughput subcellular spatial transcriptomics platforms across human tumors

Abstract Recent advancements in spatial transcriptomics technologies have significantly enhanced resolution and throughput, underscoring an urgent need for systematic benchmarking. Here, we generate serial tissue sections from colon adenocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and ovarian cancer samples for systematic evaluation. Using these uniformly processed samples, we generate spatial transcriptomics data across four high-throughput platforms with subcellular resolution: Stereo-seq v1.3, Visium HD FFPE, CosMx 6K, and Xenium 5K. To establish ground truth datasets, we profile proteins on tissue sections adjacent to all platforms using CODEX and perform single-cell RNA sequencing on the same samples. Leveraging manual nuclear segmentation and detailed annotations, we systematically assess each platform’s performance across capture sensitivity, specificity, diffusion control, cell segmentation, cell annotation, spatial clustering, and concordance with adjacent CODEX. The uniformly generated and processed multi-omics dataset could advance computational method development and biological discoveries. The dataset is accessible via SPATCH, a user-friendly web server for visualization and download.

Executive functions predict time reference processing in French-speaking people with Alzheimer’s disease

Abstract The ability to express time through language, known as time reference, is impaired in people with Alzheimer’s disease. While cognitive impairments have been documented in this population, particularly in executive functions, few studies have examined how these deficits impact time reference abilities, including tense and grammatical aspect. Since producing time reference requires the integration of grammatical, conceptual, and subjective information, potentially demanding in processing resources, the aim of this study was to investigate whether the cognitive profile (i.e., executive function abilities) of French-speaking people with biologically probable Alzheimer’s disease determines their ability in time reference. Verb inflection tasks and cognitive tests were administered to 21 people with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease confirmed by cerebrospinal fluid or amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) biomarkers and a control group. Results revealed that individuals with Alzheimer’s disease have difficulty with tense and aspect marking, with verbal working memory, inhibition, and mental flexibility playing a significant role in time reference processing. These findings suggest that deficits in executive functions impact the ability of French speakers with Alzheimer’s disease to mark tense and grammatical aspect, highlighting the cognitive basis of time reference impairments in this population.

Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis retention among men who have sex with men and transgender persons: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Successful implementation of oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) requires retention in PrEP care among those with an increased likelihood of HIV. This study aimed to estimate the proportion of retention on PrEP and extent to which variability in PrEP retention is associated with population-, program-, and study-specific characteristics among men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender persons (TGP). We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis examining PrEP studies and conference abstracts retrieved from the PubMed and Ovid online databases, capturing demonstration projects or observational studies published from January 1, 2010 to March 24, 2021. We included 84 studies (totaling 90 study “cohorts” analyzed) that reported on the retention of oral PrEP for HIV and included predominantly MSM and TGP. The proportion of retained participants was obtained from each study and used to estimate the cumulative probability of being retained on PrEP and the loss of PrEP retention rate over time via a random-effects meta-analysis survival model. We examined sources of heterogeneity by including study-level covariates in this model. The pooled cumulative probability of PrEP retention was 77.0%, 64.7%, 48.5%, and 24.1% at 6, 12, 24, and 60 months, respectively. Loss of PrEP retention rates were significantly (p < 0.05) lower in studies from Europe, Australia and multiple regions (vs. North America), and with ≥3-monthly follow-up (vs. < 3). Rates were significantly higher in studies from Africa (vs. North America), with lower median age, higher proportions of non-MSM/TGP participants, higher proportions of participants with unspecified (vs. mixed) ethnicity, with unspecified (vs. daily) PrEP regimen, free-of-charge (vs. unspecified) STI testing, whose data were from conference abstracts (vs. peer-reviewed papers), and that were more recent. In conclusion, oral PrEP retention decreased over time and differed across population-, program-, and study-specific characteristics. The heterogeneity across studies highlights PrEP implementation challenges and the need for tailored retention strategies.

Altered effort and deconditioning are not valid explanations of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome

The efficacy and safety analysis of D-TACE combined with donafenib and tislelizumab in recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma after surgery

Comparative transcriptome analysis provides new insights into the response of common bean to infection by race 65 of Colletotrichum lindemuthianum

The farming of common beans ( Phaseolus vulgaris ) is crucial for global nutrition, culture, and economy, but the crop faces significant challenges from biotic and abiotic stresses. Among these, anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum lindemuthianum , particularly race 65, is notable due to its widespread occurrence and high genetic and virulence diversity, especially in tropical regions such as Brazil. Understanding the molecular basis of resistance and susceptibility to specific pathogen races is key to accelerating the development of superior cultivars. Despite its significance, global gene expression studies addressing the interactions between bean genotypes and race 65 remain scarce. In this study, we explored the molecular basis of resistance and susceptibility to race 65 in two Brazilian common bean cultivars. RNA was extracted from leaves at 0, 48, and 96 hours after inoculation and sequenced using the Illumina NextSeq 500 platform. Our transcriptome analysis identified several candidate genes linked to resistance, including those involved in pathogen recognition, such as kinases and NB-LRR (nucleotide-binding and leucine-rich repeat) genes, as well as genes involved in the phenylpropanoid, glycerolipid biosynthesis, linoleic acid pathways, and cell wall remodeling. In contrast, the susceptible genotype exhibited activation of auxin signaling and sugar transport genes. Additionally, gene coexpression network analysis revealed a strong correlation among resistance-related genes. These findings provide valuable insights into the molecular-genetic mechanisms underlying common bean resistance to race 65 of C. lindemuthianum .

Unicorn: U-Net for sea ice forecasting with convolutional neural ordinary differential equations

The recurrence and mortality risk in Luminal A breast cancer patients who lived in high pollution area

Luminal A is the most common subtype of breast cancer and has the best prognosis comparing to the others. The association between air pollution and survival of breast cancer have been reported but not specific to this subtype. We examined pollutant distributions over a decade in upper Northern Thailand, the area of high average annual particulate matter levels, and their impact on the mortality and recurrence risks of patients with luminal A breast cancer. Retrospective data of 1,305 luminal A breast cancer patients diagnosed from 2003 to 2018 were enrolled to this study. Cox proportional hazard models were used to identify factors associated with mortality and recurrence risks including all known risk factors and the annually averaged concentrations of pollutants. On multivariable analysis; metastatic stage (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) =10.50; 95% confidence interval (95%CI): 7.23–15.25), smoking history (aHR = 1.72; 95% CI: 1.14–2.60), and age ≥ 50 years old (aHR = 1.46; 95% CI: 1.13–1.90) were significant factors influencing mortality risk. Factors contributing to recurrence risk included metastatic stage (aHR) 4.96 (95% CI: 2.78–8.83) and exposure to the time-updated local concentration of PM 10  > 55 µg/m 3 (aHR = 1.68; 95% CI: 1.16–2.45). Exposure to air pollutants is one of the detrimental factors affected to recurrence and mortality in luminal A subtype breast cancer.

Comparative transcriptome profiling reveals molecular mechanisms of freezing stress responses in cultivated and wild Cicer species

New bridging eco-acoustic indices inspired by deep neural networks for fine-grained bird vocalization recognition across diurnal cycles

Revealing difference in bird vocalization changes from the perspectives of song recognition and acoustic indices has become a hot topic and challenge in recent ecological landscape research. This paper proposes a fine-grained (Dawn, noon, night) bird vocalization recognition framework based on a two-layer deep network to identify the same species’ bird vocalization at different times of the day. Additionally, a new acoustic index method, the Log-Mel Acoustic Complexity Index (Log-Mel ACI), is introduced to explore the differences in bird vocalization of the same species throughout the day. The results of two-layer deep network showed significant separability of the bird vocalization of the same species at dawn, noon, and night based on Log-Mel spectrum. Furthermore, it was found that the improved ACI based on Log-Mel exhibits better circadian rhythmic performance than the traditional ACI, being highest at dawn, followed by night, and lowest at noon. These findings demonstrate that Log-Mel is effective in both deep network recognition and ACI calculation.

Hydrogeochemical assessment of groundwater for agricultural suitability in the Ksour Mountains, Algeria

Clinically interpretable electrovectorcardiographic machine learning criteria for the detection of echocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy

Echocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy (Echo-LVH) is frequently underdetected by traditional electrocardiogram (ECG) criteria due to limited sensitivity. We investigated whether integrating ECG with vectorcardiography (VCG) using a clinically interpretable machine learning algorithm (C5.0) could improve diagnostic performance. We analyzed ECG and VCG data from 664 patients, 42.8% of whom had Echo-LVH. The study introduced three new criteria—Marcos VCG, Marcos VCG-ECG, and Marcos VCG-ECGsp—named in honor of the software used for VCG synthesis, and compared their diagnostic performance against 23 established ECG criteria, including Cornell voltage, Peguero-Lo Presti, and Sokolow-Lyon. Marcos VCG-ECGsp, optimized for higher specificity, was included to evaluate trade-offs in performance. Validation was performed using train/test split and 10-fold cross-validation. Marcos VCG-ECG achieved higher AUC than Cornell voltage in both training (0.81 vs. 0.68, p < 0.0001) and testing (0.78 vs. 0.69, p = 0.04). The new criteria also showed superior sensitivity compared to Peguero-Lo Presti, the most sensitive traditional criterion (73.1%, 62.4%, 55.9% vs. 30.1%, p < 0.0001). While specificity was lower than Cornell (81.1% vs. 96.4%, p = 0.017), it remained acceptable, reflecting a clinically relevant trade-off favoring detection over false positives. In conclusion, integrating ECG with VCG through machine learning enances Echo-LVH detection, delivering superior sensitivity while preserving specificity. The proposed criteria are clinically interpretable, highlight the novelty of combining two electrical spectra, and hold potential to impact routine diagnostic practice.

Potential of pyridine nanobelt in detecting and trapping of harmful UV filters

Association of ABCG2 421G>T (rs2231142) Polymorphism with rosuvastatin induced adverse effects in dyslipidemic patients: Implication for personalized medicine

Statins are considered as the first line drugs for the treatment of hyperlipidemia. Despite proven efficacy of rosuvastatin, inter-individual variations in plasma rosuvastatin levels have been documented in various studies which causes variable response to statin tolerance. This study aims to evaluate the possible association of ABCG2 421 G > T (rs2231142) polymorphism with inter-individual variations in plasma rosuvastatin levels which potentially increases the rosuvastatin related adverse effects. This quasi experimental study was carried out from June 2022 till December 2023 in two tertiary care hospitals of Pakistan. Hyperlipidemic patients with low density lipoprotein more than 130 mg/dl were enrolled through non-probability purposive sampling. All the enrolled patients were treated with rosuvastatin 10 mg once daily for 12 weeks. Fasting lipid profile, serum creatine phosphokinase, liver and renal function tests were measured at the start of study and after 12 weeks of intervention with rosuvastatin. Blood samples were also collected for genotyping and determination of plasma rosuvastatin levels. Frequency of ABCG2 421 G > T polymorphism for wild type GG, heterozygous mutant GT and homozygous mutant TT genotypes were 54.5, 36.2 and 9.3% respectively. Minor allele frequency was 0.27. Patients with TT and GT genotypes have significantly raised plasma levels of rosuvastatin with mean value of 30.23 ± 4.8 ng/mL and 22.35 ± 5.1 ng/mL respectively as compared to wild GG genotypes 13.95 ± 8.9 ng/mL ( p =<0.001). Frequency of myopathy, hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity in study population was 5.3, 3.2 and 4.8% respectively. All the genetic models including co-dominant model GT (OR= 5.45, 95% CI: 3.09–9.62, p = < 0.0001), TT (OR= 88.51, 95% CI: 24.84–315.44), dominant model (OR= 8.45, 95% CI: 4.91–14.52, p = < 0.0001), recessive model (OR=37.29, 95%CI 11.06–125.78, p < 0.001), over-dominant model, (OR= 2.26, 95% CI: 1.42–3.60, p = < 0.0001) showed significant association with rosuvastatin adverse effects. It is inferred that patients having T variant allele is associated with higher plasma rosuvastatin concentration and increased the risk of development of adverse effects compared with G allele carriers. It is therefore suggested that genetic profiling may be done for dose tailoring to minimize the statin intolerance.

The influence of human agency beliefs on ascribing gaze-signalled communicative intent

Abstract Communication with artificial agents, such as virtual characters and social robots, is becoming more prevalent, making it crucial to understand how their behaviours can best support social interaction. Eye gaze is a key communicative behaviour, as it signals attention and intentions. Prior research shows that perceiving an agent as sentient affects how its gaze is interpreted. This study examined how such beliefs affect the interpretation of gaze as a signal of communicative intent. In a semi-interactive online task, 160 participants viewed a virtual agent exhibiting dynamic gaze sequences. Each trial varied whether eye contact occurred and whether the agent looked at the same object twice. Participants judged whether the agent was requesting help or merely inspecting the object. Beliefs about the agent’s sentience (human- or AI-controlled) were also manipulated. Results showed that when gaze cues were ambiguous, participants were more likely to ascribe communicative intent if they believed the agent was human-controlled compared to when they believed the agent was AI-controlled. Subjective ratings also indicated a general preference for human-controlled agents. These findings underscore the influence of user expectations on interpreting gaze in artificial agents.