Browse Articles

Pulse pressure after thrombectomy predicts functional outcomes and mortality in acute ischemic stroke with large artery occlusion

Abstract Post-procedure blood pressure (BP) strongly influences the prognosis of ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusion. However, no consensus or guidelines currently exist regarding BP targets and management after endovascular thrombectomy (EVT). Although several recent clinical trials have investigated BP management after EVT, their conclusions were inconsistent and contradictory. In this study, we systematically analyzed 12 post-procedure BP parameters from 826 acute ischemic stroke patients within 24 h after EVT; 587 cases were included in the final analysis. We utilized multivariate logistic regression to identify predictors of poor prognosis and mortality after EVT. Restrictive cubic splines were used to evaluate dose–response relationships of mean pulse pressure (PP) with clinical outcomes. Subgroup analyses were conducted to assess the predictive performance of mean PP across patient subgroups. Mean PP demonstrated statistically significant positive dose–response relationships with poor functional outcomes, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH), and mortality after EVT. Elevated mean PP (> 57.39 mmHg) was a stronger predictor of adverse outcomes relative to systolic or diastolic BP alone; it exhibited the highest adjusted odds ratio (aORs 2.39; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.58–3.62) and area under the curve (AUC = 0.661; 95% CI 0.617–0.705). Mean PP exhibited linear relationships with all other outcome events except mortality at 12 months after EVT. Mean PP within 24 h after EVT is an independent risk factor for sICH, poor functional outcomes, and mortality in stroke patients. BP management strategies should prioritize reducing systolic BP and stabilizing PP fluctuations.

Opportunistic pathogens and polycocktail drugs fuel dynamic public health threats during the opioid crisis

More than 100,000 preventable deaths have occurred each year in the United States since 2021 from intravenous drug use. A challenging problem for clinicians, researchers, and public health workers involves understanding a dynamic opioid crisis for implementing state and national policy to support the rehabilitation and treatment of individuals who inject drugs. To address these issues, this study used drug needles obtained from people who inject drugs to address three goals: First, based on a forensic analysis, what narcotics are contained in the needles? Second, are there non-viral pathogens contained in the needles? Third, if pathogens are identified, can potential infections be treated with common medication? Results demonstrate that 27 total psychoactive substances (most listed in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s schedule of controlled substances) were present in 50 randomly selected syringes. The average used drug needle contained eight psychoactive substances. In addition to drugs, non-viral culturable microbes in used syringes were identified. The most problematic of these was an opportunistic fungal pathogen, Candida parapsilosis, that persists on skin and for which few medical options exist for treatment. To thus facilitate antifungal discovery, soil-derived bacteria that inhibit the growth of Candida pathogens were identified. Transposon mutagenesis was utilized to discover the biosynthetic gene cluster involved in antifungal activity which encoded a non-ribosomal peptide synthetase. Although limited to syringes from only one mid-western city, results suggest that potentially fatal, emergent, and opportunistic pathogens may have the ability to persist in used drug syringes. While this finding may be alarming to public health and public safety officials, the identification of bacteria which inhibits the growth of Candida parapsilosis poses a foundation for antifungal drug discovery.

Tree rings reveal persistent Western Apache (Ndee) fire stewardship and niche construction in the American Southwest

Identifying the influence of low-density Indigenous populations in paleofire records has been methodologically challenging. In the Southwest United States, well-replicated fire histories suggest that abundant lightning and suitable climate conditions drove frequent low-severity wildfires in dry pine forests independent of human activities even as ethnography provided hints that highly mobile indigenous populations used fire in myriad land use contexts. Here, we leverage published and unpublished tree-ring fire history records from pine forests in Western Apache (Ndee) traditional territory in central and eastern Arizona (N = 34 sites, N = 649 trees) to demonstrate that historical fire regimes were overwhelmingly influenced by Ndee cultural burning. Our tree-ring synthesis shows significantly more frequent fires in Ndee territory than elsewhere in the region for centuries before the establishment of reservations (1600–1870 CE). Despite the heightened fire activity, fires were largely small and asynchronous, occurred disproportionately in late April and May, when Ndee invested significant subsistence activities in these pine forests, and occurred independent of climate drivers. This suggests that Ndee fire stewardship created a patchwork of nearly annual small, spring fires that inhibited natural fire spread and limited the influence of drought on fire activity. Our work shows that even relatively small, highly mobile populations of forager-gardeners had significant influence on some pre-Euroamerican fire regimes despite abundant natural ignitions. Our study shows clearly that Indigenous fire management impacted fire-size distributions, fire frequencies, and fire seasonality in ways that cannot be explained by seasonal and annual lightning densities.

Screening and dissecting electroorganic synthesis by mass spectrometry decoupling of electrode and homogeneous processes

Functionalization of gelatin films dressings with silver-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles for prevention of bacterial infection and promoting wound repair

Abstract Gelatin-based films loaded with silver-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles (Ag-doped ZnONPs) were synthesized using the solution casting technique. The analyzed data of Ag-doped ZnONPs reveal their spherical shape with a small size. In our work, three different concentrations of the prepared Ag-doped ZnONPs (0.05 g, 0.1 g, and 0.2 g) were added to GeL solution for the formation of three films (Ag/ZnO 0.05@GeL film, Ag/ZnO 0.1@GeL film, and Ag/ZnO 0.2@GeL). These prepared films were compared with GeL film that prepared without Ag-ZnONPs. The obtained results demonstrated the relatively homogeneous distribution of Ag-ZnONPs on the surface of the prepared films. Besides, this study investigated the antibacterial properties, biocompatibility, and potential applications of Ag/ZnO 0.2@GeL film for wound healing. Ag/ZnO 0.2@GeL film exhibited the highest antibacterial efficacy, with zones of inhibition ranging from 17 to 21 mm against Gram-negative bacteria. Furthermore, this formulation showed a marked ability to inhibit biofilm formation, completely eradicating bacterial biofilm by day 7. In bacterial growth inhibition assays, Ag/ZnO 0.2@GeL reduced bacterial counts by up to 6 log CFU/mL within 210 min. Biocompatibility was assessed using a Microtox® analyzer, with EC50% values exceeding 100 across all time points, confirming the films’ non-toxic nature. These findings suggest that Ag/ZnO@GeL films, particularly Ag/ZnO 0.2@GeL formulation, offer strong antibacterial activity, effective biofilm suppression, and high biocompatibility, highlighting their potential as multifunctional wound dressings for infection control and enhanced wound healing.

Enhancing the gravity model for commuters: Time-and-spatial-structure-based improvements in Japan’s metropolitan areas

Metropolitan commuting flows reveal crucial insights into urban spatial dynamics; however, existing mobility models often struggle to capture the complex, heterogeneous patterns within these regions. This study introduces the Spatially Segregated Urban Gravity (SSUG) model, a novel approach that synergistically combines urban classification with gravity-based flow prediction to address this limitation. The SSUG model’s key innovations include: (1) demonstrating the existence of different scaling laws in metropolitan areas, (2) identifying the existence of data-driven bifurcation that delineates urban-suburban commuting behaviors, (3) employing scaling exponents to reveal spatial segregation, and (4) leveraging high-resolution Global Positioning System (GPS) data for precise deterrence factor measurement. This multifaceted approach enables simultaneous improvement in flow prediction accuracy and robust urban functional classification. Empirical validation across six diverse Japanese metropolitan areas—Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka, Sendai, and Sapporo—demonstrates the SSUG model’s superior predictive power compared to traditional gravity models. Our results unveil previously undetected patterns of spatial structure and functional segregation, particularly highlighting the divergent commuting dynamics between urban cores and suburban peripheries. The SSUG model’s capacity to discern fine-grained urban-suburban differences while accurately forecasting commuting flows offers transformative potential for evidence-based urban planning. By providing a more nuanced understanding of metropolitan mobility patterns, this study equips policymakers with a powerful tool for optimizing transportation networks, refining land-use strategies, and fostering sustainable urban development in increasingly complex metropolitan landscapes.

Confined colloidal droplets dry to form circular mazes

During drying, particle-laden sessile droplets will leave so-called coffee-stain rings behind. This phenomenon is well known and well understood (Deegan et al ., Nature 389 , 827–829 (1997). Here, we show that when particle-laden droplets confined in a slit are allowed to evaporate very slowly, they do not deposit coffee rings, but form surprisingly intricate, circular maze-like patterns. We present experiments that illustrate this pattern formation and discuss the factors that determine when such patterns can form. We are not aware of reports of natural examples of the formation of such beautiful patterns under confinement, although it seems likely that they exist.

Irreversible furin cleavage site exposure renders immature tick-borne flaviviruses fully infectious

Abstract Flavivirus assembly is driven by the envelope glycoproteins pre-membrane (prM) and envelope (E) in the neutral pH environment of the endoplasmic reticulum. Newly budded, spiky particles are exported through the Golgi apparatus, where mildly acidic pH induces a major surface rearrangement. The glycoproteins reorganize into (prM/E)\₂ complexes at the surface of smooth particles, with prM trapped at the E dimer interface, thereby exposing a furin cleavage site (FCS) for proteolytic maturation into infectious virions. Here, we show that in the absence of furin, immature tick-borne flavivirus particles—tick-borne encephalitis virus, Langat virus, and Louping ill virus—remain fully infectious and pathogenic in female BALB/c mice, in contrast to mosquito-borne flaviviruses such as Usutu, West Nile, and Zika viruses. We further show that the FCS in tick-borne viruses remains exposed at neutral pH, allowing furin at the surface of target cells to activate viral fusogenicity, while mosquito-borne counterparts require acidic re-exposure. Mutations increasing the dynamic behavior of the E dimer mimic the mosquito-borne phenotype, with retracted FCS at neutral pH and loss of infectivity. Our multidisciplinary approach—combining virological assays, targeted mutagenesis, structural modeling, and molecular dynamics simulations—highlights the role of E dimer dynamics in regulating flavivirus maturation and infectivity.

The relationship between microbial diversity and the physicochemical characteristics of pit mud of Strong-flavor Baijiu

Retraction: Screening of potential biomarkers for polycystic ovary syndrome and identification of expression and immune characteristics

Understanding rate-dependent textured growth in zinc electrodeposition via high-throughput in situ x-ray diffraction

ICU environment as a reservoir of KPC-ST307-Klebsiella pneumoniae high-risk clone resistant to ceftazidime-avibactam

Abstract We characterized all ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-producing K. pneumoniae (KPC-Kp) isolates recovered from both patients and environmental samples at the ICU of our hospital in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic initiation. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing (Sensititre-EUMDROXF; disk-diffusion) and WGS analysis (Illumina-Novaseq/Miseq; Oxford Nanopore®-MinION) were performed. Ten patients (16% of ICU patients) were colonized/infected by a ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-Kp isolate (March-December), six of them during/after treatment with ceftazidime-avibactam. Two ceftazidime-avibactam-resistant KPC-Kp were also recovered from two ICU sinks (July-September). All isolates belonged to ST307 clone and had identical resistance gene content. Six KPC-variants were detected in patient isolates (KPC-62, KPC-92, KPC-150, KPC-66, KPC-53, KPC-46). KPC-92 and KPC-66 variants were also detected in sink isolates. Regardless of the origin (patients or sinks), KPC-92-, KPC-150 and KPC-62-Kp isolates combining altered porin proteins also exhibited increased/resistant MIC values to cefiderocol, cefepime-taniborbactam, aztreonam-avibactam, meropenem-vaborbactam and/or imipenem-relebactam. A cgMLST analysis demonstrated the clonal spread of KPC-ST307-Kp within the ICU, between patients and the hospital environment. Clustering was observed mainly by KPC variants (KPC-92, KPC-62). A variant calling analysis and plasmid characterization showed possible transmission between patients and sinks. Our results suggest that the patient care environment likely contributed to persistence and spread of last-line antibiotics-resistant KPC-Kp within the ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Caring for home care workers: Health and safety hazards, harms and risk factors

Home care workers support the growing number of older adults or people with disabilities who are living at home in their own private residences. The complex and varied work health and safety (WHS) hazards these workers face on the job include both physical and psychosocial harms. While physical WHS hazards in this sector have been articulated, there is an urgent need to update, understand and address psychosocial risks such as verbal abuse and sexually inappropriate behaviour and bullying, particularly when perpetrated by clients. This study sought to identify the range of WHS hazards and harms that home care workers face and the risk factors that mitigate or exacerbate them. Interviews with 70 stakeholders including local Australian (n = 18) and migrant (n = 17) workers and organisational providers were analyzed thematically using a hybrid of deductive and inductive coding. Common and severe hazards reported included abuse and aggression, demanding workloads, unsuitable and dynamic workspaces, manual labour, challenging client behaviours and difficulty maintaining clear professional boundaries. Few differences were identified between aged and disability sectors, or between standard and online providers. Key recommendations include improved sharing of relevant client information, addressing rather than ignoring worker isolation, promoting appropriate self-care and developing skills in dynamic risk assessment. These findings call for sector-wide reforms that integrate best practices, enhance worker support, and redefine organisational priorities to improve both worker safety and the quality of care provided.

Complementary cytoskeletal feedback loops control signal transduction excitability and cell polarity

Genetic insights into causal effects of lipids and lipid-modifying targets on calcific aortic valve stenosis: a Mendelian randomized study

Applications of artificial intelligence and urban innovation performance: A quasi-natural experiment based on the pilot zones for the innovative application of artificial intelligence

Innovation is the core driving force behind the ability to cope with risks and enhance urban competitiveness. Against the backdrop of frequent global crises and intensified competition, improving urban innovation performance is important. This study uses 283 Chinese cities from 2012 to 2023 to empirically analyze the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) applications on urban innovation performance and the underlying mechanism. The results show that AI significantly promotes urban innovation performance while simultaneously improving both the quality and quantity of urban innovation. Moreover, through testing, it was found that the enhancement of human capital and absorptive capacity has become an important channel through which AI drives urban innovation. Additionally, the degree of government intervention weakens the positive impact of AI applications on urban innovation performance. Further research reveals that the impact of AI applications on urban innovation performance varies according to geographical region, implementation time of policies, and scale of cities.

Fluctuating local polarization: a generic fingerprint for enhanced piezoelectricity in Pb-based and Pb-free perovskite ferroelectrics

Autonomous defect estimation in aluminum plate and prognosis through stochastic process modeling

Abstract The structural integrity and longevity of aluminum alloy components in lightweight engineering require accurate and efficient damage detection and prognosis methods. Traditional supervised machine learning (ML) techniques often face limitations due to dependency on large datasets, risk of overfitting, and high computational costs. To overcome these challenges, this study proposes an unsupervised learning framework that combines k-means clustering with a multi-phase gamma process to detect and model damage in aluminum plates. Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM) images serve as the data source, from which comprehensive features are extracted in time, frequency, and time-frequency domains using Short-Time Fourier Transform (STFT). The K-means algorithm enables precise localization and sizing of surface defects without prior labels, while the gamma process captures the stochastic progression of damage over time. The method demonstrates high accuracy in estimating defect geometry and prognostic trajectories while maintaining low computational complexity. This unified, interpretable approach is generalizable to a range of materials and holds strong potential for real-time structural health monitoring (SHM) in safety-critical domains.

CRISPR-Cas9 targeting the blaKPC gene in a clinical isolate of Klebsiella michiganensis: Reduction of imipenem resistance and changes in genomic carbapenem resistance determinants

The CRISPR-Cas technology can be used to disable drug resistance genes. Since carbapenem resistance can be mediated by multiple resistance determinants, we here investigated the extent of re-sensizitation when targeting the blaKPC carbapenemase gene and assessed possible effects on porins and efflux pumps. While full re-sensitization was achieved in a laboratory strain of Escherichia coli solely equipped with blaKPC, resistance reduction in a clinical isolate of Klebsiella michiganensis was achieved in 63% of analyzed transformants, which was a consequence of plasmid copy number reduction and decreased blaKPC gene expression. Damages in the Cas9, as well as alterations in carbapenem-resistance promoting genes including ompK36 downregulation and mutations in the acrB gene were found, likely preventing more efficient re-sensitization. Hence, interference with a single resistance gene promoted the emergence of clonal variants that exhibit alterations in outer membrane proteins. Those bacterial countermeasures, however, were not sufficient to restore the original carbapenem-resistant phenotype.

DNA polymerase actively and sequentially displaces single-stranded DNA-binding proteins