Browse Articles

Artificial intelligence based automatic classification, annotation, and measurement of the fetal heart using HeartAssist

Cryo-EM of human P-glycoprotein reveals an intermediate occluded conformation during active drug transport

New U-Pb constraints and geochemistry of the East Kirkton Quarry, Scotland: Implications for early tetrapod evolution in the Carboniferous

The transition of vertebrates from aquatic to terrestrial environments during the late Devonian to early Carboniferous marks a crucial evolutionary milestone. However, this transition remains poorly understood due to a scarcity of early tetrapod fossils during the late Devonian to early Mississippian, creating a gap in the fossil record known as Romer’s Gap (~360–345 Ma). Recent discoveries have narrowed this gap, providing critical insights into early tetrapod evolution. The East Kirkton Quarry in Scotland’s Midland Valley, has yielded tetrapod fossils considered early stem amphibians and amniotes. They have been proposed to be Mississippian (early Carboniferous) in age, yet data to inform their precise ages remain limited. Here, zircon grains from two tuffaceous clastic limestones and shales were dated using Laser Ablation-Inductively Couple Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The study presents detrital zircon U-Pb dates, which refine the current biostratigraphy ages assigned to Westlothiana lizziae, Silvanerpeton miripedes, Balanerpeton woodi, Ophiderpeton kirktonense, Eucritta melanolimnetes, and Kirktonecta milnerae to a maximum depositional age (MDA) of 341 ± 3 Ma (±2σ, n= 7 dates), placing them in the middle-lower Visean (Holkerian-Arundian) rather than the previous assigned upper Visean (Brigantian). This revised maximum depositional age places the East Kirkton Quarry fossils within the older, critical interval of Romer’s Gap, bridging a significant evolutionary time interval in the Mississippian fossil record, and allows for refining future tetrapod time trees. X-ray Fluorescence and X-ray Diffraction analyses reveal heterogeneity in the lower East Kirkton Limestone of the East Kirkton Quarry, with variations in elemental and mineralogical compositions, reflecting episodic volcanic and detrital inputs and hydrothermal activity.

Developing a decision support system for sustainable urban planning using machine learning-based scenario modeling

A modular artificial intelligence framework to facilitate fluorophore design

A comparison of fit, heat stress, oxygen saturation and comfort between a novel reusable mask and disposable N95 respirator

The effectiveness of face masks in infection prevention depends not only on filtration technology but also on user compliance. However, existing masks suffer from limitations impacting comfort, ease of use, and communication, leading to reduced compliance, especially during prolonged use in healthcare settings. Innovations in mask design are needed to address these issues to ensure effective protection. To provide insights into novel face mask design aimed at enhancing infection prevention in healthcare settings and to introduce new evaluation methods for novel face masks, a fit and usability study was conducted with 22 volunteers, comparing a novel reusable mask, Altus Hero 1 (Hero), to N95 respirators. Subjects performed Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)-accepted quantitative fit test and usability test, and completed a post-test survey. The survey assessed communication, breathability, humidity retention, eyeglasses fitting, and long-term wear preference. Face temperature and blood oxygen levels were recorded during testing. Hero showed significantly reduced heat retention (p<0.05) compared to N95, aligning with survey responses indicating Hero felt cooler. No significant differences were found in blood oxygen levels between masks. Despite needing design refinements, most subjects preferred Hero for comfort and usability. This study discusses enhancements in design, fit, comfort, and materials to better meet users’ needs and ensure compliance. It highlights critical and universal design considerations for future face masks and introduces methodological innovations for evaluating mask fit and usability. The findings offer valuable insights for advancing personal protective equipment for preventing infections and future pandemics.

E-cigarette usage and mental health among undergraduate medical and health sciences students

Elevated mitochondrial membrane potential is a therapeutic vulnerability in Dnmt3a-mutant clonal hematopoiesis

Abstract The competitive advantage of mutant hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) underlies clonal hematopoiesis (CH). Drivers of CH include aging and inflammation; however, how CH-mutant cells gain a selective advantage in these contexts is an unresolved question. Using a murine model of CH (Dnmt3a R878H/+), we discover that mutant HSPCs sustain elevated mitochondrial respiration which is associated with their resistance to aging-related changes in the bone marrow microenvironment. Mutant HSPCs have DNA hypomethylation and increased expression of oxidative phosphorylation gene signatures, increased functional oxidative phosphorylation capacity, high mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm), and greater dependence on mitochondrial respiration compared to wild-type HSPCs. Exploiting the elevated Δψm of mutant HSPCs, long-chain alkyl-TPP molecules (MitoQ, d-TPP) selectively accumulate in the mitochondria and cause reduced mitochondrial respiration, mitochondrial-driven apoptosis and ablate the competitive advantage of HSPCs ex vivo and in vivo in aged recipient mice. Further, MitoQ targets elevated mitochondrial respiration and the selective advantage of human DNMT3A-knockdown HSPCs, supporting species conservation. These data suggest that mitochondrial activity is a targetable mechanism by which CH-mutant HSPCs gain a selective advantage over wild-type HSPCs.

A novel decision ensemble framework: Attention-customized BiLSTM and XGBoost for speculative stock price forecasting

Forecasting speculative stock prices is essential for effective investment risk management and requires innovative algorithms. However, the speculative nature, volatility, and complex sequential dependencies within financial markets present inherent challenges that necessitate advanced techniques. In this regard, a novel framework, ACB-XDE (Attention-Customized BiLSTM-XGB Decision Ensemble), is proposed for predicting the daily closing price of speculative stock Bitcoin-USD (BTC-USD). The proposed ACB-XDE framework integrates the learning capabilities of a customized Bi-directional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) model with a novel attention mechanism and the XGBoost algorithm. The customized BiLSTM leverages its learning capabilities to capture complex sequential dependencies and speculative market trends. Meanwhile, the new attention mechanism dynamically assigns weights to influential features based on volatility patterns, thereby enhancing interpretability and optimizing effective cost measures and volatility forecasting. Moreover, XGBoost handles nonlinear relationships and contributes to the proposed ACB-XDE framework’s robustness. Furthermore, the error reciprocal method improves predictions by iteratively adjusting model weights based on the difference between theoretical expectations and actual errors in the individual attention-customized BiLSTM and XGBoost models. Finally, the predictions from both the XGBoost and attention-customized BiLSTM models are concatenated to create a varied prediction space, which is then fed into the ensemble regression framework to improve the generalization capabilities of the proposed ACB-XDE framework. Empirical validation of the proposed ACB-XDE framework involves its application to the volatile Bitcoin market, utilizing a dataset sourced from Yahoo Finance (Bitcoin-USD, 10/01/2014 to 01/08/2023). The proposed ACB-XDE framework outperforms state-of-the-art models with a MAPE of 0.37%, MAE of 84.40, and RMSE of 106.14. This represents improvements of approximately 27.45%, 53.32%, and 38.59% in MAPE, MAE, and RMSE respectively, over the best-performing attention-BiLSTM. The proposed ACB-XDE framework presents a technique for informed decision-making in dynamic financial landscapes and demonstrates effectiveness in handling the complexities of BTC-USD data.

A case-control study on the role of carbonic anhydrase autoantibodies in the pathogenesis and diagnosis of fibromyalgia

Mouse MRE11-RAD50-NBS1 is needed to start and extend meiotic DNA end resection

Abstract Nucleolytic resection of DNA ends is critical for homologous recombination, but its mechanism is not fully understood, particularly in mammalian meiosis. Here we examine roles of the conserved MRN complex (MRE11, RAD50, and NBS1) through genome-wide analysis of meiotic resection during spermatogenesis in mice with various MRN mutations, including several that cause chromosomal instability in humans. Meiotic DSBs form at elevated levels but remain unresected if Mre11 is conditionally deleted, thus MRN is required for both resection initiation and regulation of DSB numbers. Resection lengths are reduced to varying degrees in MRN hypomorphs or if MRE11 nuclease activity is attenuated in a conditional nuclease-dead Mre11 model. These findings unexpectedly establish that MRN is needed for longer-range extension of resection beyond that carried out by the orthologous proteins in budding yeast meiosis. Finally, resection defects are additively worsened by combining MRN and Exo1 mutations, and mice that are unable to initiate resection or have greatly curtailed resection lengths experience catastrophic spermatogenic failure. Our results elucidate MRN roles in meiotic DSB end processing and establish the importance of resection for mammalian meiosis.

Experimental study on the effect of Ivermectin on cattle dung faunas in Eastern Ethiopia

An experimental investigation was conducted from December 2023 to June 2024 at the beef farm of Haramaya University. The bulls were divided into two groups: one group received ivermectin treatment, while the other acted as a control. The SUMIVER brand of ivermectin was administered subcutaneously at 1 ml per 50 kg of body weight. Dung samples from both groups were collected and prepared for analysis at five-day intervals during the eighth sampling period. The results were measured, documented, and analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. All data were entered and analyzed using an independent t-test with the STATA-14 software. In the qualitative assessment, no dipteran larvae or pupae were detected in the dung samples, except during the eighth round. However, various species of invertebrates were attracted to the freshly managed dung, resulting in a higher visitation rate in the control group compared to the experimental group. In the initial weeks of the study, the presence of ivermectin residues affected the dung beetle population. Conversely, the treated dung showed a significant infestation of termites. After several weeks, both groups of dung pats were invaded by ants, with the control group experiencing infestation first. These findings suggest that ivermectin residues released into the environment through cattle dung can influence negatively plant germination, dung fauna, and soil fertility. Therefore, it is crucial for veterinarians to be knowledgeable about the environmental side effects of ivermectin and to offer guidance to livestock owners.

A stress-tolerant strain Rhodococcus sp. WH103 was isolated and co-immobilized to more efficiently degrade phenazine-1-carboxylic acid

Trivalent Phospha-Brook rearrangement enabled practical deoxygenative phosphonylation of carbonyls

Optimal control analysis for the transmission of Nipah infection with imperfect vaccination

This paper presents an innovative mathematical model for assessing the dynamics and optimal control of Nipah virus (NiV) with imperfect vaccination. The model formulation considers transmissions through contaminated food and human-to-human contacts. It also incorporates the potential virus transmission through contact with a deceased body infected with NiV. Initially, the NiV model is assessed theoretically, identifying three distinct equilibrium states: the NiV-endemic equilibrium state, the NiV-free equilibrium state, and the equilibrium state involving infected flying foxes. Furthermore, the stability results of the model in the case of constant controls are thoroughly analyzed at the NiV-free equilibrium. Some of the parameters of the model are estimated based on the infected cases documented in Bangladesh from 2001 to 2017. We further perform sensitivity analysis to determine the most influential parameters and formulate effective time-dependent controls. Numerical simulations indicate the optimal course of action for eradicating the disease and provide a comparative analysis of controlling the infection under constant and time-varying interventions. The simulation confirms that the implementation of time-varying interventions is effective in minimizing disease incidence.

BiAttentionNet: a dual-branch automatic driving image segmentation network integrating spatial and channel attention mechanisms

Fluorescent pyridine phosphonium salts via transmutation of metallabenzenes

Factors associated with the survival of adults with COVID-19 using a high-flow nasal cannula in a tertiary hospital in northern Peru during the second wave of the pandemic

Objectives To identify factors associated with survival in patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) for COVID-19 who used high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) in a tertiary hospital in northern Peru during March to May 2021. Methodology A retrospective observational cohort study was carried out, including medical records selected according to established inclusion criteria. The dependent variable was survival, measured in days from admission to hospital discharge or death. Factors associated with survival related to demographic, clinical, laboratory, and imaging characteristics were investigated, as well as treatment-related parameters and variables associated with the use of HFNC. Hazard ratios (HR) were estimated to identify independent risk factors associated with survival. Results Of 154 patients, the mean age was 58.29 years. The most frequent comorbidities were arterial hypertension (29.2%), diabetes mellitus (20.6%), and obesity (17.4%). The median time of HFNC use was 5 days (interquartile range: 3–9 days). It was found that 32.2% of the patients required mechanical ventilation, and 51.6% died. The mean time of mechanical ventilation use was 15.1 ± 13.3 days. Survival was 97.5% at 48 hours, 85% at 7 days, 62% at 14 days, and 16.3% at the end of the study. Variables decreasing survival in patients with COVID-19 who were users of NFVC were age ≥ 60 years (HR = 2.23; 95% CI: 1.21–4.08), presence of arterial hypertension (HR = 1.87; 95% CI: 1.01–3.45), increased work of breathing on hospital admission (HR = 2.38; 95% CI: 1.31–4.35), and a ROX index (iROX) < 3.85 (HR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.01–2.93). Conclusions Factors associated with survival were arterial hypertension and iROX < 3.85 with a mortality hazard of 1.5 times, age older than 60 years, and respiratory effort scale at admission WOB ≥ 4 points with more than twice the mortality hazard. The results of this study highlight the importance of early and accurate assessment of risk factors in patients with COVID-19 who use HFNC. Identifying these factors can help clinicians make more informed decisions and prioritize interventions that could potentially improve survival in this group of patients.

Defect detection method based on sparse scanning with laser ultrasonics

Inflammatory conditions shape phenotypic and functional characteristics of lung-resident memory T cells in mice

Abstract Lung tissue-resident memory T cells (TRM) are critical for the local control of respiratory tract infections caused by influenza A viruses (IAV). Here we compare TRM populations induced by intranasal adenoviral vector vaccines encoding hemagglutinin and nucleoprotein (NP) with those induced by an H1N1 infection in BALB/c mice. While vaccine-induced TRM express high levels of CD103 and persist longer in the lung parenchyma, short-lived, H1N1-induced TRM have a transcriptome associated with higher cytotoxic potential and distinct transcriptional profile as shown by single-cell RNA sequencing. In both the vaccine and H1N1 groups, NP-specific CD8+ T cells expand during heterologous influenza virus infection and protect the mice from disease. Meanwhile, lung inflammation in response to an infection with unrelated respiratory syncytial virus do not influence the fate of pre-existing TRM. Our preclinical work thus confirms that inflammatory conditions in the tissue shape the phenotypic and functional characteristics of TRM to serve relevant informations for optimizing mucosal vaccines.