Browse Articles

Potential use of saliva infrared spectra and machine learning for a minimally invasive screening test for congenital syphilis in infants

Adherence challenges to therapeutic footwear among high risk diabetic foot populations in urban Southwest China

Abstract Diabetic foot ulcers [DFUs] are severe complications of diabetes, and therapeutic footwear plays a crucial role in their prevention. However the factors influencing adherence to therapeutic among high-risk individuals in urban areas remain poorly understood. With increasing urbanization and migrant workers, this study aims to explore the challenges of adherence to therapeutic footwear among high-risk diabetic foot patients in urban area. This study employed a qualitative descriptive design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions, and analyzed using a thematic approach. A total of 25 participants (20 patients and 5 healthcare providers) were recruited through purposive sampling. Two key challenges of footwear adherence were identified: (1) inadequacy of consistent and reliable health resources, and (2) appearance-related barriers to footwear adherence: professionalism, fashion, and social perception. Participants reported inconsistent and unreliable health information, including confusion from online sources and varied hospital guidance, which reduced their confidence in wearing therapeutic footwear. Additionally, appearance-related barriers—such as workplace dress codes, fashion preferences, and fear of social judgment—discouraged use of therapeutic footwear in both professional and social settings. This study highlights the need to integrate social and functional elements into the design of therapeutic footwear. Nursing professionals play a critical role in enhancing communication and coordination around foot care. Enhancing access to reliable health information is essential for promoting DFU prevention, particularly among urban migrant populations.

Investigating the thermodynamics properties of water confined in carbon nanotubes using molecular dynamics simulations

Compound Odontoma in the Anterior Mandible: Diagnostic Challenges and Surgical Management of a Rare Presentation

Background: Odontomas are the most common odontogenic tumours and are usually detected during the first two decades of life. They are considered hamartomas rather than true neoplasms and are broadly classified into compound and complex types. Compound odontomas commonly occur in the anterior maxilla and are often associated with delayed eruption or impaction of teeth. In contrast, osteomas are benign osteogenic lesions that differ from odontomas in their histogenesis and clinical behaviour. The occurrence of compound odontomas in the anterior mandible is uncommon. Case presentation: A 27-year-old female presented with delayed eruption of tooth 33 and displacement of adjacent teeth. Clinical examination revealed a hard swelling in the left anterior mandible. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) revealed multiple radiopaque structures consistent with a compound odontoma. Tooth 32 was found to be impacted near the lesion. Surgical excision of the odontoma and extraction of the affected tooth were performed under local anaesthesia. Histopathological analysis confirmed the diagnosis of a compound odontoma, excluding the possibilities of odontoameloblastoma and ameloblastic fibroodontoma. Conclusion: This case was notable for the unusual anterior mandibular location of the compound odontoma, deviating from the typical anterior maxillary presentation. There was no history of trauma, infection, or familial predisposition. CBCT played a crucial role in defining the extent of the lesion and its relationship with adjacent structures. Early detection and surgical management facilitated future orthodontic planning for tooth 33. This case highlights the importance of considering compound odontoma in atypical locations when evaluating eruption disturbances. Accurate diagnosis relies on advanced imaging and histopathological confirmation. Prompt intervention prevents developmental complications and supports favourable outcomes.

Regulation and function of insulin and insulin-like growth factor receptor signalling

Sensory population activity reveals downstream confidence computations in the primate visual system

Perception is fallible. Humans know this, and so do some nonhuman animals like macaque monkeys. When monkeys report more confidence in a perceptual decision, that decision is more likely to be correct. It is not known how neural circuits in the primate brain assess the quality of perceptual decisions. Here, we test two hypotheses. First, that decision confidence is related to the structure of population activity in the sensory cortex. And second, that this relation differs from the one between sensory activity and decision content. We trained macaque monkeys to judge the orientation of ambiguous stimuli and additionally report their confidence in these judgments. We recorded population activity in the primary visual cortex and used decoders to expose the relationship between this activity and the choice-confidence reports. Our analysis validated both hypotheses and suggests that perceptual decisions arise from a neural computation downstream of visual cortex that estimates the most likely interpretation of a sensory response, while decision confidence instead reflects a computation that evaluates whether this sensory response will produce a reliable decision. Our work establishes a direct link between neural population activity in the sensory cortex and the metacognitive ability to introspect about the quality of perceptual decisions.

RFC1 regulates the expansion of neural progenitors in the developing zebrafish cerebellum

Self-organizing glycolytic waves tune cellular metabolic states and fuel cancer progression

Abstract Although glycolysis is traditionally considered a cytosolic reaction, here we show that glycolytic enzymes propagate as self-organized waves on the membrane/cortex of human cells. Altering these waves led to corresponding changes in glycolytic activity, ATP production, and dynamic cell behaviors, impacting energy-intensive processes such as macropinocytosis and protein synthesis. Mitochondria were absent from the waves, and inhibiting oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) had minimal effect on ATP levels or cellular dynamics. Synthetic membrane recruitment of individual glycolytic enzymes increased cell motility and co-recruited additional enzymes, suggesting assembly of glycolytic multi-enzyme complexes in the waves. Remarkably, wave activity and glycolytic ATP levels increased in parallel across human mammary epithelial and other cancer cell lines with higher metastatic potential. Cells with stronger wave activity relied more on glycolysis than on OXPHOS for ATP. These results reveal a distinct subcellular compartment for enriched local glycolysis at the cell periphery and suggest a mechanism that coordinates energy production with cellular state, potentially explaining the Warburg effect.

Cost-effectiveness of the ReDIRECT/counterweight-plus weight management programme to alleviate symptoms of long COVID

Abstract Long-term effects of COVID-19 infection, termed Long COVID (LC), are associated with reduced quality of life. Symptoms associated with overweight/obesity overlap with and may aggravate those of LC. This paper reports the economic evaluation alongside the ReDIRECT Trial, which evaluated the impact of an evidence-based, remotely-delivered weight management programme on self-reported symptoms of LC in those living with overweight/obesity in the United Kingdom. Recruited participants (n = 234) were randomly allocated to the intervention group (weight management) or control group (usual care). Incremental costs and Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) were calculated using intervention cost, healthcare resource use and EQ-5D-5L data collected at baseline, three and 6 months. In this work, we show that the ReDIRECT intervention is likely cost-effective in improving LC symptoms from an NHS/PSS perspective, compared to usual care (Incremental Cost-Effectiveness Ratio of £14,754/QALY). Adopting a broader societal perspective, the intervention becomes potentially cost saving compared to usual care.

A novel deep learning approach to field-road semantic segmentation

Intelligent classification and prediction of students’ mental health in online learning environments using boosting algorithm and LIWC features

Calibration and establishment for the discrete element simulation parameters of pepper stem during harvest period

The analysis of artificial intelligence-based mobile learning in students’ open teaching recommendation system based on deep learning

Prospective association between plasma amino acids and three Multimorbidity patterns in older adults

Abstract The role of metabolomic profiling on different multimorbidity patterns remains unknown. This study aims to assess the prospective relationship between plasma concentrations of amino acids and three different multimorbidity patterns: musculoskeletal and mental multimorbidity, cardiometabolic multimorbidity, and cardiopulmonary multimorbidity. The study comprised a total of 1488 older adults from the Seniors-ENRICA 2 Spanish cohort. Plasma concentrations of alanine, glutamine, glycine, histidine, branched-chain amino acids, and aromatic amino acids were measured. Generalized estimating equation models were used to assess the prospective association between amino acids and multimorbidity patterns. Higher plasma concentrations of branched-chain amino acids as leucine [Odds Ratio (OR) per 1-SD increment = 1.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.01–1.08)], isoleucine (OR = 1.05, 95% CI = 1.01–1.08), and valine (OR = 1.04, 95% CI = 1.01–1.08) were related to cardiometabolic multimorbidity, while lower concentrations of glycine (OR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.91–0.99) and tyrosine (OR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.93–0.98) were also associated with the same multimorbidity pattern. On the other hand, higher plasma concentrations of glutamine (OR = 1.18, 95% CI = 1.03–1.34) were related to cardiopulmonary multimorbidity. In conclusion, branched-chain amino acids may serve as risk markers of cardiometabolic multimorbidity in older adults. Plasma concentrations of other amino acid species such as glycine, tyrosine, and glutamine could also help to identify cardiometabolic and cardiopulmonary multimorbidity patterns.

Superior fulcrum reconstruction improve tendon-to-bone healing in irreparable massive rotator cuff tears compared with superior capsule reconstruction

Speech recognition in noise across the life span with cognition and hearing sensitivity as mediators of age effects

Assessment of pit viper associated subclinical myocardial injury by speckle tracking imaging

Institutional Cross-Sectional Study on Student Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Blue Light Filters and Eye Health

Introduction: The common usage of blue light-emitting devices has caused tremendous concern over their impact on eye health and sleep quality, particularly among college students. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) about blue light exposure and use of filters among students of Srinivas College of Pharmacy, Mangalore. Methods: An institutional cross-sectional study was done among 200 students with the help of a structured questionnaire. Information gathered included screen time, knowledge of the effect of blue light, use of preventive strategies such as blue light filters and the 20-20-20 rule, and the prevalence of eye strain and sleep disturbance. Results: The majority of students (63.6%, 95% CI: 56.8–70.0%) had no knowledge of the health effects of blue light. Notwithstanding this, 44.3% (95% CI: 37.3–51.5%) had more than 7 hours of daily screen exposure. Eye strain was complained of by 64.7% (95% CI: 57.8–71.1%), and 70% (95% CI: 63.3–76.0%) had sleep problems. Blue light filters were used by only 20% (95% CI: 14.8–26.3%), and 38% (95% CI: 31.4–45.0%) followed the 20-20-20 rule. Although 73.6% (95% CI: 67.0–79.4%) were concerned about blue light, the uptake of preventive behaviors was low. Conclusion: The research identified a wide gap between concern and actual preventive behavior towards blue light exposure among students. There is a critical need for educational interventions to create awareness and promote healthier digital device use habits to safeguard eye health and enhance sleep quality.

Roughness-dependent scaling of the contact area and separation gap with pressure for glassy polymers

The contact between two rough surfaces has been a topic of significant interest since early studies on Coulombic friction and remains crucial for numerous technological applications. However, theoretical progress has outpaced experiments due to the challenges in measuring contact areas across scales ranging from subnanometers to macroscopic dimensions. Here, we demonstrate the use of commonly available infrared-based (IR) spectroscopy in combination with finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) optical simulations to measure separation gaps and contact areas for glassy polymers ranging in roughness over two orders in magnitude. With the combined IR and FDTD simulations, we can overcome the optical diffraction limits and take advantage of the chemical specificity of IR spectroscopy to overcome limitations due to scattering. The scaling of the contact area ratio as a function of pressure illustrated the limitations of using pure elastic or plastic deformation in explaining the results. At both low and high pressures, the contact area ratios scale linearly with pressure as expected for purely elastic deformations at low pressures or plastic deformations at high pressures. However, if analyzed over a broad range of pressure, the power laws we observe are much larger than 1, exemplifying the need to consider elastoplastic models in explaining results for softer polymer contacts compared to other brittle, glassy materials. In comparison, the separation gaps scale exponentially with pressure, as expected. These results have important implications for the interpretation of properties such as friction, adhesion, and conductivity for softer, glassy contact interfaces.

Observation of cavity-tunable topological phases of polaritons

Abstract Topological polaritons characterized by light-matter interactions have become a pivotal platform for exploring new topological phases of matter. Recent theoretical advances unveiled a novel mechanism for tuning the topological phases of polaritons by modifying the surrounding photonic environment (light-matter interactions) without altering the lattice structure. Here, by embedding a dimerized chain of microwave helical resonators within a metallic cavity, we report the experimental observation of tunable topological phases of polaritons by varying the cavity width, which governs the strength of light-matter interactions. Moreover, we experimentally verified a previously predicted new type of topological phase transition, including three noncoincident critical points in the parameter space: the closure of the polaritonic bandgap, the transition of the Zak phase, and the hybridization of the topological edge states with the bulk states. Our experimental results reveal some unobserved properties of topological phases of matter when strongly coupled to light and provide a new design principle for tunable topological photonic devices.