Browse Articles

A novel, synthesized, amphiphilic ethylene glycol squalene derivative suppresses BBN-induced bladder carcinogenesis

A novel hesitant fuzzy tensor-based group decision-making approach with application to heterogeneous wireless network evaluation

Clinical characteristics of peripheral exudative hemorrhagic chorioretinopathy easily misdiagnosed at initial presentation in Korean patients

Comprehensive evaluation of risk factors for LNM and distant metastasis in patients with NSCLC

OpenAI launches reasoning LLM that you can download and tweak

Operating parameter optimization and experiment of spiral outer grooved wheel seed metering device based on discrete element method

Decoding the amniotic membrane transcriptome during equine ascending placentitis

Enhancement of doxorubicin efficacy by diosmetin through DNA damage accumulation and P-glycoprotein inhibition in breast cancer cells

Abstract Doxorubicin (DOX) is widely used in treatment; however, its efficacy is often compromised by multidrug resistance (MDR), limiting therapeutic outcomes. This study investigates the anticancer potential of diosmetin (DT), a metabolite of diosmin commonly used in chronic venous insufficiency, and its ability to enhance the efficacy of DOX in the treatment of breast cancer. Several breast cancer cell lines were used to assess the effects of DT and DOX on cell viability. The MCF-7 cell line, which showed the most significant effect, was selected for further investigation. The effects of DT on apoptosis, DNA damage, and P-glycoprotein expression and activity were analyzed. DT significantly enhanced DOX-induced apoptosis and DNA damage, while downregulating ABCB1 expression and activity, a key factor in MDR development. These findings highlight the potential of DT as a valuable adjuvant in breast cancer therapy by enhancing the efficacy of DOX. Its ability to overcome multidrug resistance mechanisms underlines its potential for future clinical trials aimed at developing effective treatments.

Image-based honey bee larval viral and bacterial diagnosis using machine learning

Abstract Honey bees are essential pollinators of ecosystems and agriculture worldwide. With an estimated 50–80% of crops pollinated by honey bees, they generate approximately $20 billion annually in market value in the U.S. alone. However, commercial beekeepers often face an uphill battle, losing anywhere from 40 to 90% of their hives yearly, often by brood diseases caused by bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogens. Accurate diagnosis of brood diseases, especially distinguishing European Foulbrood (EFB) from viral infections with a superficial resemblance to EFB (EFB-like disease), remains challenging. Incorrect diagnoses often lead to prophylactic antibiotic treatment across entire apiaries, exacerbating antibiotic resistance, disrupting native gut microbiota, and increasing susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens. Correct field diagnosis of brood disease is challenging and requires years of experience to identify and differentiate various disease states according to subtle differences in larval symptomology. To explore the feasibility of an image-based AI diagnosis tool, we collaborated with apiary inspectors and researchers to generate a dataset of 2,759 honey bee larvae images from Michigan apiaries, molecularly verified through 16 S rRNA microbiome sequencing and qPCR viral screening. Our dataset included EFB cases and viral infections (ABPV, DWVA, and DWVB), which were augmented to 8,430 and 8,124 images, respectively. We leveraged transfer learning techniques, fine-tuning deep convolutional neural networks (ResNet-50v2, ResNet-101v2, InceptionResNet-v2) pre-trained on ImageNet to discriminate between EFB and viral infections. Our proof-of-concept models achieved 73–88% accuracy on the training/validation sets. When tested on an independent dataset from Illinois containing additional viral pathogens not present in training data, the models showed higher accuracy for EFB (72–88%) than viral infections (28–68%), highlighting both the promise and current limitations of this approach. Implementing AI-based diagnostic tools can reduce unnecessary antibiotic treatments and help maintain the microbiome integrity critical to colony health. However, expanding training datasets to include all major pathogens, healthy larvae, and diverse geographic regions will be essential for developing field-ready diagnostic tools.

DEM simulation study on the mechanical and micro-fracture characteristics of jointed coal under direct tensile conditions

Author Correction: Persistent transcriptional programmes are associated with remote memory

The impact of sports event brand experience on spectator loyalty: mediating roles of attitude and subjective norms

Abstract Sports events play a vital role in driving mass fitness, competitive sports, and the sports industry. Grounded in the Theory of Reasoned Action, this study surveyed 1,009 Chinese sports event spectators to examine how brand experience influences spectator loyalty, focusing on the mediating roles of attitude and subjective norms and the moderating effect of gender. Structural equation modeling revealed that brand experience has a significant direct effect on loyalty. Subjective norms partially mediate this relationship, while attitude alone does not show significant mediation. The chain mediation through both attitude and subjective norms is partially significant. Gender moderates the pathway from brand experience to subjective norms, with women being more influenced than men. The findings suggest that in collective consumption contexts, subjective norms play a more critical role than attitude in mediating loyalty. This study extends the application of the Theory of Reasoned Action in sports tourism and provides insights for differentiated event brand management and destination promotion strategies.

Cephalopod body size and macroecology through deep time

Abstract As actively swimming predators, cephalopods have played a key role regulating and engineering marine ecosystems for more than 500 million years and continue to do so. For the first time, we portray fluctuations of cephalopod body size including species from the Cambrian to today. For comparability, we determined the maximum body volumes of each species using various proxies, because classical measures like mantle length cannot be applied homologously to all groups. We separately examined Cephalopoda with orthoconic conchs (without ammonoids and coleoids), Nautilida, Ammonoida (without heteromorphs), and Neocoleoida (squids, octopuses and their ancestors). The long-term trajectories of these groups differ in their overall trends. Each of these groups reacted in other ways to the mass extinctions. All groups except the nautilids evolved species exceeding one meter in size, which belong to the marine megafauna. Nautilids and orthocones share a threshold volume of about 100 litres, while in ammonoids and neocoleoids, the limit lies closer to 500 litres.

Axial strength of back to back cold formed steel short channel sections with unstiffened and stiffened web holes

Abstract The increasing adoption of back-to-back built-up cold-formed steel (CFS) channel columns in construction is attributed to their lightweight nature, versatility in shape fabrication, ease of transportation, cost efficiency, and enhanced load-bearing capacity. Additionally, the incorporation of web openings facilitates the integration of electrical, plumbing, and heating systems. These built-up sections are widely utilized in wall studs, truss elements, and floor joists, with intermediate screw fasteners strategically positioned at regular intervals to prevent the independent buckling of channels. Based on 18 experimental tests, this study demonstrates an excellent correlation between finite element analysis and the experimental results, confirming the accuracy of geometrically and materially nonlinear finite element modeling in predicting the axial buckling strength of built-up short columns. Furthermore, the design standards of the American Iron and Steel Institute and Australian/New Zealand Standards were found to underestimate the axial load capacity by approximately 12.5%. The primary objective of this research is to investigate the influence of various hole configurations, both with and without stiffeners, on the axial performance of built-up short CFS channel columns. A total of 180 finite element models were developed, examining four different unstiffened and edge-stiffened hole configurations, validated against experimental results from plain webs. The findings reveal that web holes and edge stiffeners significantly impact axial load-bearing capacity, while the specific shape of the openings has a negligible effect. Specifically, introducing a hole at the centroid of each web results in an approximate 8.5% reduction in axial load capacity in the absence of edge stiffening. However, the incorporation of stiffeners around the perforations mitigates this reduction and enhances both structural efficiency and load-bearing capacity. These results highlight the critical role of edge stiffening in optimizing the structural performance of perforated built-up CFS columns.

Sustainable cement-based mortar with shredded material recycled from end-of-life wind turbine blades

Thermoeconomic optimization of a hybrid power and cooling facility using waste heat recovery from a marine diesel engine

Variability of environmental, contextual and individual factors in human-shark interactions in New Caledonia, 1980–2022, with some comparisons to Reunion Island

Violet light could improve sleep quality and blood glucose levels in healthy individuals: A pilot study

Light is perceived through the retina, the light-sensing tissue layer of the eye, and can directly influence the brain. Light exposure triggers various biological responses that improve sleep quality and stabilize mood. Recently, violet light, exhibiting a unique wavelength of 360–400 nm, has garnered significant attention due to its perception through a specific receptor, marking a novel research area. Herein, we used “violet light glasses” that directly emit violet light into the human eye and investigated their effects on healthy humans in real-life settings. This study demonstrated that two hours of violet light exposure in the morning enhanced sleep quality in approximately 20% of the healthy participants and was also associated with improved blood glucose levels. Although this was a pilot study due to its small sample size, our findings indicate that violet light could potentially promote health benefits in humans.

Future Atlantification of the European Arctic limited under sustained global warming

From protection of sacrificial self to critical turning points and growth: Redeployed nurses’ experiences on the frontline during the COVID-19 pandemic

The mental health and wellbeing of nurses has been a concern, long before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. Working on the frontline under such challenging circumstances, for extended periods of time, has resulted in negative psychological responses. The current study aims to examine redeployed nurses’ resilience in acute hospitals in Ireland, during a period of adversity (pandemic). The impact on their personal and professional identity, and their perception of meaningful supports and coping will be explored. An interpretative phenomenological analysis was carried out to gain insight into how nurses adapted to the changing work environment during the pandemic. Online semi-structured interviews were carried out with six experienced female nurses, who were redeployed to the frontline from their own roles. Three experiential themes representing the nurses’ journey were generated: Protection of Sacrificial Self; The Fortifying Effect of Us, and Critical Turning Points & Growth. Nurses made significant sacrifices and had to find ways to detach to cope. They revitalized themselves by creating a sense of ‘us’ to help them face a harsh climate against others, which enabled critical turning points and growth. This study has strongly highlighted the emotional effects on nurses due to feeling isolated, undervalued, and excluded during redeployment to the frontline. It has also featured how well redeployed nurses coped while faced with an existential crisis. It has given voice to all nurses who faced this pandemic, despite exposure to a risk of burnout and threats to their mental health and wellbeing. This study has further enriched our understanding of personal growth and trauma in adverse work conditions by including an exploration of what sacrificial commitment adds to our understanding of physical and moral courage. Future provision of supports for nurses must be ongoing both during and after crisis events.