Browse Articles

Going to Extreme Lengths: Bicyclic Diborane(6) Anions and the Limits of Boron–Boron σ Bonding

Estrogenic activity of mixtures in the Salish Sea: The use of high throughput toxicity data with chemical information from fish bile and other matrices

A subset of anthropogenic chemicals known as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), are released into aquatic environments through human activities. CECs occur in mixtures, and some may share a common mode of action such as estrogen receptor agonism, which lead to reproductive disturbances in fish. In this study, the estrogenic activity of mixtures was assessed with in vitro high throughput data, which expanded the number of chemicals included in the evaluation. Data were compiled from 16 studies, analyzing 387 CECs (19 estrogen agonists detected), across various matrices including water, wastewater treatment plant effluent, fish and mussel tissue, and fish bile. Novel estrogenic mixture thresholds in water and bile were developed. In one application of the bile thresholds, field sites with elevated exogenous estrogenic activity were identified; thresholds were qualitatively validated using field measures of organism response. Using validated water and bile thresholds in a second application, samples were evaluated to identify mixtures with high, medium, and low estrogenic activity, and individual chemicals were prioritized from those mixtures. Prioritized chemicals were identified as drivers of estrogenic activity (individually exceeding the threshold) or as major or minor contributors (resulting in an exceedance only when combined with other chemicals). Among fish bile samples with medium or high estrogenic activity, 62% of mixture response was explained by chemical drivers rather than mixtures of contributing chemicals. The primary drivers were: estrone, 17β-estradiol, and to some extent, estriol. Bisphenol A was identified as a major contributor.

A hybrid deep learning model EfficientNet with GRU for breast cancer detection from histopathology images

Long-Lived Immunogenic Cell Death Induced by a Water-Soluble Redox Active Au(I) Bis-N-Heterocyclic Carbene

Retraction: The comparative effectiveness of 55 interventions in obese patients with polycystic ovary syndrome: A network meta-analysis of 101 randomized trials

Real-world FDA database analysis unveiling cardiovascular adverse events associated with bispecific T cell engagers in multip myeloma

Gram-Scale Total Synthesis of Illisimonin A

Editorial Note: Household latrine utilization and associated factors in semi-urban areas of northeastern Ethiopia

Changes in scanographic bone mineral density in melanoma patients treated with immunotherapy: a new irAE from real-life data

MXenoids: Generalization of MXene-Inspired Covalent Surface Modifications Across Two-Dimensional Materials

A study of the relationship between cough and wheezing complicated by common respiratory viral infections in infants and secondary thrombocythemia

Objective To explore the relationship between respiratory viral infections complicated by cough and wheezing and the clinical features of thrombocythemia in infants. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 200 infants with fever, cough and wheezing who were admitted to the Department of Pediatrics of Anqing Municipal Hospital between January 2023 and October 2024. Respiratory viruses were detected using real-time PCR to screen for virus-positive infants. Infants were classified into the thrombocythemia group (ST group) and the non-thrombocythemia group (non-ST group) based on platelet counts. We compared the clinical characteristics of the two groups and analyzed the relationships between thrombocythemia, positive respiratory virus results, and cough with wheezing. Results The overall virus positivity detection rate was 56.5% (113/200). In the ST group, patients with positive respiratory virus results had significantly longer hospital stays, higher fever incidence, and more severe cough symptoms (P < 0.05), and significantly higher leukocyte and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels (P < 0.05). Among the virus-positive cases, the duration of fever, cough, and wheezing was longer in the ST group than in the non-ST group (P < 0.05). Higher platelet counts were significantly associated with longer hospitalization duration, prolonged cough duration and a higher co-occurring wheezing rate (p < 0.05). Point-biserial correlation analysis indicated that thrombocythemia was closely associated with respiratory virus positivity complicated by cough and wheeze (r = 0.314, P < 0.05). Multifactorial analysis revealed that age, non-respiratory symptoms, platelet levels, and IL-6 level were independent influencing factors for respiratory virus-positive infants with complicated cough and wheezing (P < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that the areas under the curve of thrombocythemia for assessing hospital stay duration and cough and wheeze durations were 0.964 and 0.936, respectively (P < 0.05), indicating a significant assessment value. Conclusion Infant respiratory viral infections complicated by cough and wheezing are closely related to secondary thrombocythemia. Elevated platelet levels can prolong the hospital stay and cough duration. The clinical risk in children can be assessed early by measuring platelet levels.

Hybrid deep learning framework for real-time DO prediction in aquaculture

Dual Active Sites on Cu/Cu₂O Heterostructures for the Cascade Electrocatalytic Synthesis of Amino Acids

Object permanence in domestic cats (Felis catus) using violation-of-expectancy by owner and stranger

Object permanence, the understanding that objects continue to exist while out of sight, is a key part of the sensorimotor stage of cognitive development. Cats have been shown to reach Stage 5 object permanence by passing successive visible displacement tests, but their understanding of Stage 6 object permanence is less clear. We tested 18 domestic cats on their understanding of Stage 4 and Stage 6 of object permanence in their home environment. Additionally, we investigated how person familiarity may influence study engagement. In single visible displacement (SVD) tests, the box manipulator (owner or researcher) hid a toy in one of two cardboard boxes for the cat to find. In invisible displacement (IVD) tests, we implemented a violation-of-expectancy procedure in which the box manipulator showed a toy re-appearing out of either a) the same box it was hidden in (consistent trials) or b) the box it was not hidden in (violation trials). Approximately half of the cats (56%) did not find the hidden toy in SVD trials, with 42% of these cats not attempting to find the toy, despite previous research demonstrating that cats can retrieve hidden objects in successive SVD tests. None of our predictors significantly influenced whether cats found the toy, or which box was checked first (toy or empty box). In IVD trials, we unexpectedly found that cats were more likely to play with the toy and displayed more toy box-directed behaviours in consistent trials than violation trials. Similarly, we found that cats were more likely to display box-directed behaviours in trials where the researcher acted as the box manipulator. Breed, outdoor access, cat sex, and the first person to act as the box manipulator also influenced toy-directed behaviours. We discuss the complexity of person familiarity in research contexts and highlight some methodological challenges in studying cat cognition.

Therapeutic potential of super activated platelet lysate (sPL) and umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UCMSCs) in enhancing endometrial regeneration in rats with thin endometrium

Quantum Spin Dynamics of One-Dimensional Magnetic van der Waals Heterostructures

The seasonality experiment: Investigating how seasons affect the burning conditions of cremations

This study investigates the influence of seasons and weather conditions on cremation processes, using experimental archaeology and advanced analytical techniques. Four outdoor cremation experiments were conducted across different seasons in Greece, during which the four fleshed legs (front and hind) of the same domestic pig (Sus scrofa) were burned. The study highlights the effects of variables such as temperature, dryness of fuelwood, atmospheric pressure, and precipitation on the structural and chemical composition of burned bones. Results demonstrate a strong correlation between burning conditions and isotopic (δ13C, δ18O) as well as infrared indices (Infrared Splitting Factor (IRSF), Carbonyl-to-Carbonate ratio (C/C)), which are temperature-related. Comparisons with archaeological data from Belgium reveal potential seasonal patterns in past cremation practices. The findings underscore the need for expanded experimental research in various geographical areas with different altitudes and weather conditions to further investigate how the location in which burning was performed in combination with weather conditions affected the cremation settings and therefore past funerary practices.

Predicting time-to-first cancer diagnosis across multiple cancer types

Reversible Multielectron Transfer Chemistry of I-Activated Voltage-Enhanced Ferrocene-Based Organic Cathodes

Production of recombinant D-allulose 3-epimerase utilizing an auto-induction approach in fermentor cultures suitable for industrial application

D-Allulose 3-epimerase (DAEase) is the key enzyme catalyzing D-fructose to catalyze into D-allulose, a rare sugar in foods, which has lately drawn increasing worldwide attention owing to its possible health advantages and application as a substitute sucrose. This work focused on the development of an economical, scalable production method of DAEase by using the Escherichia coli BL21 star™ (DE3) as host expression. The research work aims to optimize the production of the enzyme through an auto-induction strategy in chemically defined media by using lactose as a natural inducer, thereby overcoming various limitations of conventional IPTG induction methods. The optimal concentration of lactose, glucose, and glycerol for maximum expression of DAEase was determined to be 1.5%, 0.125%, and 1.5%, respectively. Fermentor-scale optimization yielded a maximum amount of this enzyme with 5% inoculant, 300 rpm agitation, and 2 vvm aeration. Purification by affinity and anion exchange chromatography resulted in a sevenfold increase in specific activity with an overall yield of 12% and 43 mg of pure recombinant DAEase per liter of culture. Enzyme assays confirmed that DAEase had catalytic activity in the conversion of D-fructose to D-allulose, which was further confirmed by HPLC analysis. This optimized auto-induction-based strategy demonstrated its potential for large-scale production of DAEase in a cost-effective manner with enhanced reproducibility to meet industrial demands for synthesizing D-allulose.