Browse Articles

Multi-objective optimization of energy, view, daylight and thermal comfort for building’s fenestration and shading system in hot-humid climates

Well-designed building envelope components are essential in addressing global warming. Fenestration and shading system (F&SS) not only promote energy conservation and emission reduction but also enhance occupant satisfaction by improving indoor environments. However, existing research often prioritizes energy use, daylight, and thermal comfort while neglecting view quality, a factor closely tied to mental health and productivity. This study employs multi-objective optimization (MOO) to balance energy consumption, view quality, daylight, and thermal comfort in office buildings located in hot-humid climates. By optimizing variables such as window-to-wall ratio (WWR) and shading device dimensions, the research integrates random forest models with SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis to quantify the influence of design parameters on optimization goals. Results indicate maximum improvements of 25.62% in energy use intensity (EUI), 23.18% in thermal comfort percentage (TCP), and 37.96% in useful daylight illuminance (UDI), highlighting the substantial potential of the proposed framework. This research refines the MOO framework for F&SS design, offering new insights into view quality considerations. Recommended values, such as a WWR of 0.6, provide practical guidance for architects in balancing energy efficiency and occupant comfort.

Electrochromic Rutile with Dynamically Tailored Surfaces in Formaldehyde-Mediated Hydroxylamine Electrosynthesis

Mortality and admissions for cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases after the Accumoli-Amatrice 2016 earthquake

Objective The aim of this study is to evaluate if the mortality and hospital admissions for cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases (CCVDs), with a specific focus on acute myocardial infarction (AMI), significantly increased within 12 months after the 2016 Accumoli-Amatrice earthquake in the 17 most hit municipalities. Methods A diff-in-diff regression model was applied to the annual occurrences to assess the differences in the mortality and hospitalization for selected CCVDs before and after the Earthquake in the area most hit by the earthquake compared to a surrounding area. A focus analysis on acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was performed. Results The analysis of mortality showed a significant increase in the death rate for AMI in the year immediately following the earthquake with +1.7 cases per 10,000 (95% CI: 1.53–1.87). A significantly increased number of hospital admissions and deaths for AMI was also noticed. Conclusions Evaluating the epidemiology of CCVDs events related to natural disasters, might contribute to provide information for the population dealing with future events and can be used to improve preparedness in rescue and life-saving medical interventions during and after the earthquake.

β-Thioglycosylation from Unactivated Carbohydrates

Budding metaphors: Input-output effects in metaphor production

This paper presents a longitudinal analysis of input-output effects in the production of metaphoric expressions by children aged two to five. The group case-study design adopted in this project involved longitudinally sampled corpora of naturalistic conversations between six English- and five Polish-speaking children and their primary caregivers, analysed by means of a usage-based approach to metaphor identification in child speech (UBAMICS) recently developed for English and adapted for Polish. Overall, 146,103 expressions were traced back to underlying metaphorical mappings in the densely sampled English corpora, and 22,909 in the less densely sampled Polish corpora. The data demonstrate clear input-output effects in the acquisition of conventional metaphoric expressions, both for primary conceptual metaphors that bring abstract domains closer to our embodied experience (e.g., Your gran is such a warm person) and for resemblance metaphors that map properties of familiar concepts onto those of less familiar ones based on their physical or behavioral resemblance (e.g., You’re my treasure). They are discussed in the context of two leading theories: Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Pragmatic Theory, highlighting to what extent they can account for our findings. A novel Usage-Based account is proposed to explain those findings which are problematic or when viewed through the lens of the current accounts of metaphor acquisition.

Cation-Assisted Water Oxidation with Crown Ether-Based Covalent Organic Frameworks

Effect of irrigation on rural transformation and income at the district level in Bangladesh

The study assesses the effect of investment in irrigation on rural transformation (RT) and rural income in Bangladesh. The analysis utilizes panel data from four rounds of nationally representative Household Income and Expenditure Surveys from 2000 to 2016. The share of irrigated land serves as an indicator of the level of irrigation investment in irrigation infrastructure. The study employs both ordinary least squares and fixed effects regression models. The findings indicate that the share of irrigated land has a positive effect on RT, particularly on the share of high-value agriculture and the share of rural non-farm employment. Additionally, the share of irrigated land positively affects rural income. Moreover, the study reveals that the effect of irrigation is positive at all stages of RT, especially for the share of high-value agricultural commodities. However, the impact of irrigation on the share of rural non-farm employment and rural income is inconclusive across different stages of RT. Overall, our results underscore the importance of prioritizing the construction of irrigation infrastructure by the government and encouraging the private sector to invest in irrigation.

A specific negatively charged sequence confers intramolecular regulation on Munc13-1 function in synaptic exocytosis

Munc13 family proteins are crucial for the secretion of neurotransmitters and hormones necessary for cell communication. They share a conserved C-terminal region that includes C 2 and the MUN domains, which facilitate membrane interactions and the assembly of soluble N-ethylmaleimide sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) complexes. Neuronal isoforms of Munc13 possess a variable N-terminal region that is essential for neurotransmitter release and short-term plasticity, although the precise functions of this region remain not fully understood. Here, we identified a negatively charged sequence within the N terminus of Munc13-1, termed polyE, which is specific to Munc13-1 among all Munc13 isoforms and potentially derived from a common ancestor of homeotherms. We found that polyE binds significantly to the MUN domain through charge–charge interactions, inhibiting MUN activity in promoting SNARE complex assembly. Disrupting the polyE–MUN interaction by introducing pseudophosphorylated mutations in the MUN domain alleviates this inhibition, thereby enhancing neurotransmitter release. Strikingly, Ca 2+ ions exhibit significant binding to polyE. We found that 40 μM of Ca 2+ adequately competes with the polyE–MUN interaction to reduce polyE inhibition. This concentration is comparable to presynaptic local [Ca 2+ ] i triggered by a single action potential. Taken together, these results indicate an autoinhibition conformation of Munc13-1 mediated by the polyE–MUN interaction. In addition, the relief of this autoinhibition conformation of Munc13-1 by presynaptic Ca 2+ influx and/or posttranslational modifications in the MUN domain may underlie Munc13-1 function in neurotransmitter release and short-term plasticity.

Subfossil bald cypress trees suggest localized, enduring effects of major climatic episodes on the Southeast Atlantic Coast of the United States

Bald cypress ( Taxodium distichum ) is the longest-lived tree species in Eastern North America, but coastal cypress forests are vulnerable to a range of environmental factors [D. W. Stahle et al ., Q. Sci. Rev. 34 , 1–15 (2012)]. Here, we present analyses of bald cypress trees from a subfossil deposit at the mouth of the Altamaha River on the Georgia Coast, United States. Shifts in tree lifespans and growth rates correspond temporally to the onset of the Vandal Minimum environmental downturn, c. 500 CE. Trees that sprouted after c. 500 CE had significantly shorter lifespans on average (<200 y) than those that sprouted before this point in time (>470 y). Trees sprouting after c. 500 CE also grew significantly faster than those that sprouted before this point. Bald cypress lifespans at the Altamaha River mouth never recovered to pre-Vandal Minimum levels and, in fact, continued to decrease significantly over time. The last long-lived trees retrieved from the deposit died at the beginning of the Little Ice Age, another major climatic shift. This study suggests the enduring, localized impacts of climatic downturns and indicates the vulnerability to climate change of coastal cypress forests of the Southeast. These conclusions pertain to this location and, perhaps, other near-coastal forests. In remaining pockets of old-growth forest with bald cypress in the Southeast, 800 to 2600-y-old trees are still proven to be alive [D. W. Stahle et al ., Q. Sci. Rev . 34 , 1–15 (2012); D. W. Stahle et al ., Environ. Res. Commun. 1 , 1002 (2019)].

Route of fire: Pregame rituals and emotional synchrony among Brazilian football fans

Sporting events are powerful social phenomena that extend beyond the game itself, offering a unique lens to study collective emotional dynamics. We examine emotional alignment among football fans during a high-stakes match in Brazil, focusing on both the game and the preceding Rua de Fogo, a pregame ritual marked by chants, flares, and collective anticipation. Using wearable electrocardiographic (ECG) sensors to monitor heart rate patterns, we apply multidimensional recurrence quantification analysis to track group synchrony over time. We find that the Rua de Fogo, driven by its sensory-rich and ritualized interactions, elicited the highest levels of emotional synchrony, surpassing even key moments of the game. This synchrony was sustained across participants, including the driver of the team delegation bus, who was not physically engaged in the ritual. Our results demonstrate the importance of pregame rituals in enhancing shared emotional experiences, underscoring the broader appeal of sports as a cultural phenomenon. By identifying the mechanisms underlying emotional alignment, this work contributes to understanding how collective gatherings promote unity and shared identities, with implications extending to other domains, such as religious ceremonies, political rallies, and public celebrations.

Eradication efforts catalyze rapid evolution in an invasive predatory fish

Species invasions spur costly and labor-intensive control efforts, yet even local eradication is seldom achieved. When control measures are initially effective, they may drive evolutionary adaptation that prevents full eradication, as has been documented for some chemical and biocontrol approaches. Although the intensity, directionality, and persistence of selection required to increase the frequency of resistant genotypes in complex natural ecosystems remains an open question, theory predicts that high mortality can cause life-history evolution even in the absence of a strong selective agent. Here, we use annually collected ecological and genetic data to show that rapid evolution of introduced smallmouth bass has undermined a 20-y manual suppression effort in a mid-sized lake. Despite nearly doubling annual mortality, our intensive control program produced a larger bass population dominated by young and early-maturing fish. These shifts were accompanied by large allele frequency changes in three genomic regions associated with earlier maturation and increased somatic growth. Our findings bear out the theoretical prediction that high mortality can drive evolutionary adaptation in target species. Controlling species invasions are worldwide practices that typically remove a substantial proportion of a population during each of many successive generations, hence life history adaptation may be commonplace. Such evolutionary responses could be salient in explaining the widespread failure of invasion control efforts. Genetic and phenotypic monitoring to detect cryptic adaptation and preemptive design of invader eradication programs to deliberately disrupt directional selection for resistance could improve invasion control outcomes.

Protein kinase A signaling regulates immune evasion by shaving and concealing fungal β-1,3-glucan

Fungal pathogens infect billions and kill millions of people each year. Many of these pathogens have evolved strategies to evade our antifungal immune defenses. Candida albicans, for example, masks the proinflammatory pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) β-1,3-glucan, in response to specific host signals such as lactate. In C. albicans , most β-1,3-glucan lies in the inner cell wall shielded, by the outer mannan layer, from recognition by certain immune cells such as macrophages. β-1,3-glucan that becomes exposed at the cell surface can be shaved off by secreted enzymes. By integrating mathematical modeling with experimentation, we show that the dynamics of this shaving, together with the dynamics of β-1,3-glucan exposure during growth, can account for a range of β-1,3-glucan masking phenotypes. The mathematical model accurately simulates the dynamics of β-1,3-glucan exposure during growth and predicts levels of β-1,3-glucan shaving under a variety of conditions, revealing how subtle differences in growth contribute to observed variabilities in lactate-induced β-1,3-glucan masking. For example, clinical isolates previously thought to display minimal lactate-induced masking are shown to mask robustly. Using a range of C. albicans mutants, we confirm the importance of Gpr1/Gpa2-protein kinase A signaling for lactate-induced β-1,3-glucan shaving and define the contributions of the Xog1 and Eng1 glucanases to this shaving. Furthermore, examination of a shielding-defective C. albicans mnn2 x6 mutant confirms that both β-1,3-glucan shaving and shielding contribute to the dynamism of β-1,3-glucan masking at the fungal cell surface. Dynamism in PAMP masking is likely to be relevant to other fungal pathogens of humans.

Cross-species modeling of plant genomes at single-nucleotide resolution using a pretrained DNA language model

Interpreting function and fitness effects in diverse plant genomes requires transferable models. Language models (LMs) pretrained on large-scale biological sequences can capture evolutionary conservation and offer cross-species prediction better than supervised models through fine-tuning limited labeled data. We introduce PlantCaduceus, a plant DNA LM that learns evolutionary conservation patterns in 16 angiosperm genomes by modeling both DNA strands simultaneously. When fine-tuned on a small set of labeled Arabidopsis data for tasks such as predicting translation initiation/termination sites and splice donor/acceptor sites, PlantCaduceus demonstrated remarkable transferability to maize, which diverged 160 Mya. The model outperformed the best existing DNA language model by 1.45-fold in maize splice donor prediction and 7.23-fold in maize translation initiation site prediction. In variant effect prediction, PlantCaduceus showed performance comparative to state-of-the-art protein LMs. Mutations predicted to be deleterious by PlantCaduceus showed threefold lower average minor allele frequencies compared to those identified by multiple sequence alignment-based methods. Additionally, PlantCaduceus successfully identifies well-known causal variants in both Arabidopsis and maize. Overall, PlantCaduceus is a versatile DNA LM that can accelerate plant genomics and crop breeding applications.

China’s SO ₂ emission reductions enhance atmospheric ozone–driven sulfate aerosol production in East Asia

Reduction of China’s SO 2 emissions has been found to nonlinearly decrease the atmospheric sulfate (SO 4 2− ) aerosol concentrations in East Asia. Compared to Europe and North America, the lower effectiveness of SO 4 2− reduction in East Asia suggested much effects of “acidity-sensitive” feedback mechanisms in this high anthropogenic emission region, which have not been yet examined. In this work, we investigated these feedback mechanisms in East Asia through long-term measurements of the mass-independent oxygen-17 anomaly (Δ 17 O) in sulfate aerosols, machine learning and Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. As China’s emissions reduced, the atmospheric acidity decreased, enhancing the ozone-driven oxidation of S(IV) and production efficiency of sulfate formation. This explained the weaker declining SO 4 2− concentrations than SO 2 emissions. By the evidence from observed Δ 17 O in non-sea-salt sulfate (Δ 17 O-nss-SO 4 2− ) and CMAQ simulations, the highly enhanced contributions of S(IV)+O 3 to sulfate driven by reduced SO 2 emissions explained the low effectiveness of SO 4 2− reduction in East Asia. Additionally, the decreases of acidity by substantial NH 3 emissions are projected to continue until 2050, limiting SO 4 2− reduction effectiveness. Thus, we highlighted that global control of both SO 2 and NH 3 emissions are needed to efficiently mitigate the sulfate-related climate and pollution, especially in high NH 3 emission region, such as East Asia.

Conformation-specific synthetic intrabodies modulate mTOR signaling with subcellular spatial resolution

Subcellular compartmentalization is integral to the spatial regulation of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling. However, the biological outputs associated with location-specific mTOR signaling events are poorly understood and challenging to decouple. Here, we engineered synthetic intracellular antibodies (intrabodies) that are capable of modulating mTOR signaling with genetically programmable spatial resolution. Epitope-directed phage display was exploited to generate high affinity synthetic antibody fragments (Fabs) against the FKBP12–Rapamycin binding site of mTOR (mTOR FRB ). We determined high-resolution crystal structures of two unique Fabs that discriminate distinct conformational states of mTOR FRB through recognition of its substrate recruitment interface. By leveraging these conformation-specific binders as intracellular probes, we uncovered the structural basis for an allosteric mechanism governing mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) stability mediated by subtle structural adjustments within mTOR FRB . Furthermore, our results demonstrated that synthetic binders emulate natural substrates by employing divergent yet complementary hydrophobic residues at defined positions, underscoring the broad molecular recognition capability of mTOR FRB . Intracellular signaling studies showed differential time-dependent inhibition of S6 kinase 1 and Akt phosphorylation by genetically encoded intrabodies, thus supporting a mechanism of inhibition analogous to the natural product rapamycin. Finally, we implemented a feasible approach to selectively modulate mTOR signaling in the nucleus through spatially programmed intrabody expression. These findings establish intrabodies as versatile tools for dissecting the conformational regulation of mTORC1 and should be useful to explore how location-specific mTOR signaling influences disease progression.

Prospects for cereal self-sufficiency in sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has the world’s largest projected increase in demand for food. Increased dependence on imports makes SSA vulnerable to geopolitical and economic risks, while further expansion of agricultural land is environmentally harmful. Cereals, in particular, maize, millet, rice, sorghum, and wheat, take nearly 50% of the cropland and 43% of the calories and proteins consumed in the region. Demand is projected to double until 2050. Here, we assess recent developments in cereal self-sufficiency and provide outlooks until 2050 under different intensification, area expansion, and climate change scenarios. We use detailed data for ten countries. Cereal self-sufficiency increased between 2010 and 2020 from 84 to 92% despite the 29% population increase. The production increase was achieved by increased yields per hectare (44%), area expansion (34%), and a shift from millet to the higher yielding maize (22%). Outlooks for 2050 are less pessimistic than earlier assessments because of the larger 2020 baseline area, higher shares of maize and somewhat less steep projected population increase. Yet, to halt further area expansion, a drastic trend change in annual yield increase from the present 20 to 58 kg ha −1 y −1 is needed to achieve cereal self-sufficiency. While such yield increases have been achieved elsewhere and are feasible given the yield potentials in SSA, they require structural changes and substantial agronomic, socioeconomic, and political investments. We estimate that amounts of added nitrogen need to at least triple to achieve such yield improvements, but it is essential that this comes with improved context-specific agronomy.

Global health and climate benefits from walking and cycling infrastructure

We use a globally consistent dataset—Google Environmental Insights Explorer—to quantify how urban form and transport infrastructure affect walking and cycling rates in 11,587 cities from 121 countries across six continents. At the city level, population density has the largest effect on walk mode share and has a positive impact on cycling too, as higher densities bring destinations within feasible walk and cycle distances. Density has the strongest effects in wealthier countries where travelers often have more travel choices, while in lower-income places, walking and cycling may be primarily driven by financial constraints. We also find positive effects of bicycle lanes (proxying for a wider array of street design practices) on both walking and cycling. In the median city, each new km of bicycle lanes is associated with ~13,400 additional km yr -1 of bicycle travel. If every city increased the extent of its bicycle network to the level of Copenhagen, Denmark, our simulations indicate reductions in private vehicle emissions of ~6% and health benefits of ~US$435 billion per year.

Sleep deficiency exacerbates periodontal inflammation via trigeminal TRPV1 neurons

Periodontitis, a prevalent chronic inflammatory disease, profoundly impacts both quality of life and overall health. Clinical studies have suggested a correlation between periodontitis and sleep deficiency, but the underlying mechanisms involved remain elusive. Here, we observed an elevated risk of periodontitis in individuals with sleep deficiency, as demonstrated in both clinical subjects and mouse models. Retrograde tracing from the periodontium revealed a neural connection from trigeminal TRPV1 neurons, which may mediate the aggravating effects of sleep deficiency on periodontitis. The ablation of TRPV1 neurons effectively mitigated the aggravating effects of sleep deficiency on periodontitis. Under periodontitis, sleep restriction increased the secretion of substance P from trigeminal neurons in the periodontium, enhancing vasodilation and vascular permeability, which in turn promoted the infiltration of proinflammatory immune cells. Blocking substance P signaling via a Neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist or knocking down Tacr1 in vascular endothelial cells alleviated these detrimental effects. Our findings unveil a critical neuron-vessel-immune axis that exacerbates periodontitis during sleep deficiency and suggest potential therapeutic strategies targeting this axis for managing periodontitis in individuals suffering from sleep deficiency.

Correction: National assessment on the frequency of pain medication prescribed for intrauterine device insertion procedures within the Veterans Affairs Health Care System

Motor-driven microtubule diffusion in a photobleached dynamical coordinate system

A hallmark feature of active matter systems is the ability of individual elements to interact and organize over length scales exceeding that of the constituent molecular players. However, the nature of internal redistribution that occurs in the bulk of the collective is less clear. Using light-dimerizable kinesin motors to spatially control the formation and contraction of a microtubule network, we deliberately photobleach a grid pattern onto the filament network serving as a transient and dynamic coordinate system to observe the deformation and translation of the remaining fluorescent squares of microtubules. We find that the network contracts at a rate set by motor speed but is accompanied by a diffusive-like spread throughout the bulk of the contracting network with effective diffusion constant two orders of magnitude lower than that for freely diffusing microtubules. We further find that on micron scales, the diffusive timescale is only a factor of ≈3 slower than that of advection regardless of conditions, showing that the global contraction and long-time relaxation from this diffusive behavior are both motor-driven but exhibit local competition within the network bulk.