Browse Articles

EIF4A3 enhances the viability, invasion and osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs via the USP53/SMAD5 pathway

Nationwide association between ambient ozone and sudden cardiac arrests in South Korea

Machine learning method based on radiomics help differentiate posterior pituitary tumors from pituitary neuroendocrine tumors and craniopharyngioma

Abstract Posterior pituitary tumors (PPTs) are rare neoplasms, but easily misdiagnosed as pituitary neuroendocrine tumor (PitNET) and craniopharyngioma. This study aimed to differentiate PPTs from PitNET and craniopharyngioma using a machine learning method based on radiomics. The cohort used for training and testing contained 33 PPTs and 99 non-posterior pituitary tumors (NPPTs). The validation cohort consisted of prospectively included patients (9 PPTs and 33 NPPTs). Radiomics features based on T1-weighted images and contrast-enhanced (CE) T1-weighted images were extracted, or both. Data of training and testing cohort were input to a nested 10-fold to build models, which were independently validated in the validation cohort. A least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) was used for dimensionality reduction and random forest was used as classifier. Predictive models were successfully established, and models based on CE features had the best performance with an accuracy of 0.786, precision of 0.929, specificity of 0.778, sensitivity of 0.788, and area under the curve of 0.818 in validation. Nine features selected by more than 75% of the models based on CE features were identified as the most predictive features. We established a group of machine learning models to noninvasively differentiate PPTs from NPPTs before surgery, which may improve the surgical plan of PPTs to better complete resection of the tumors and protection of important structures around the tumors.

Author Correction: Impact of behavioral and psychological symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease on caregiver outcomes

Correction: Analyzing cardiovascular disease hospitalization risks due to cold and heat waves in Dezful

Impacts of soil physical and mechanical behaviors under different tillage depths for agrotechnical operation in Bukito, Sidama, Ethiopia

An on-chip deformability checker demonstrates that the severity of iron deficiency is associated with increased deformability of red blood cells

Abstract The deformability of red blood cells (RBCs) is essential for peripheral circulation and RBC survival and is reportedly altered in several diseases. However, its detail in iron-deficiency (ID) anemia remains poorly understood. We investigated the association between ID and RBC deformability in 120 participants classified into four groups according to their ferritin and hemoglobin levels: non-ID/non-anemia (n = 61), ID/non-anemia (n = 32), ID/anemia (n = 15), and non-ID/anemia (n = 12). In the analysis using the established on-chip deformability checker, the normalized transit velocity of RBCs through the peripheral-vessel constriction models was significantly higher in the ID/anemia group than in the other groups. The RBC deformability index (RDI), derived from the normalized transit velocity and degree of RBC deformation, was highest in the ID/anemia group, followed by the ID/non-anemia group. The RDI was negatively correlated with log10 ferritin levels (r = -0.66, p < 0.01), even after adjusting for hemoglobin levels. Lower log10 ferritin levels correlated with thinner, more oval-shaped RBCs and lower internal viscosity. These RBC characteristics were significantly associated with a higher RDI. These results suggest that, among several known determinants of RBC deformability, RBC morphology and internal viscosity are altered in ID, resulting in higher deformability.

Impact of addition of polyvinyl chloride on the properties of clayey soil using experimental approach and optimization for geotechnical engineering applications

Dual rare earth-doped Pt–Sn/Al2O3 catalysts with synergistic Ce and Sm effects on high-efficiency aromatization and coke suppression in naphtha reforming

The ratio of chloride to bicarbonate is a predictor of advanced metabolic acidosis in CKD stages G4 and G5

Identification and functional study of a novel FOXC1 missense mutation in a Chinese family with Axenfeld–Rieger syndrome

Abstract Axenfeld–Rieger syndrome (ARS) is an uncommon manifestation of anterior segment development dysregulation. We recruited a two-generation Chinese family with hereditary ARS, which manifested as posterior embryotoxon, corneal leucoplakia, ectopic pupil, and extensive iris stromal atrophy with iridocorneal adhesion. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was utilized for the initial screening, followed by Sanger sequencing to identify pathogenic gene mutations. A novel missense variant in FOXC1 (c.382C > T, p.H128Y) was identified. The FOXC1 protein is highly evolutionarily conserved. The potential effects of this mutation on protein structure were studied using 3D modelling and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation techniques. 3D modelling revealed that the mutation altered the conformation of the FOXC1 protein. The MD results suggested that the mutation could reduce the stability of the protein structure. Western blotting revealed that the expression of the mutant FOXC1 (c.382C > T, p.H128Y) was lower than that of the wild type. In summary, a novel FOXC1 variant was discovered within a Chinese family with ARS, broadening the spectrum of ARS mutations. This study also elucidated the underlying mechanisms by which FOXC1 gene deficiency causes ARS.

Analysis and risk assessment of nitrosamines in sartans using GC-MS and Monte Carlo simulation

Lunar cycle and moonlight intensity influence nocturnal migration patterns in a small songbird

Abstract Lunar cycle and moonlight exposure have significant impacts on animal behaviour and physiology. The presence or absence of moonlight, along with predictable changes in brightness throughout the lunar cycle, can shape reproduction, foraging, communication, and other aspects of an animal’s world. While it has been shown that invertebrates use the moonlight for orientation, little is known on the effect of the lunar cycle on migratory birds. We found that the lunar cycle affected the nocturnal migration activity of a diurnal songbird species, the Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis. The occurrence of birds increased with moon fraction, moonlight intensity and duration, while abundance correlated positively with increasing moonlight intensity. Our findings of increased migration activity in bright nights around full moon contradict previous assumptions that small bird migrants would avoid such nights due to increased predation pressure and decreased visibility of stars for orientation. We argue that migrants relying on visual cues for orientation might favour moonlit nights, while future studies should also test whether the position of the moon can be used for navigation by birds.

Refining centromedian nucleus stimulation for generalized epilepsy with targeting and mechanistic insights from intraoperative electrophysiology

Identification of immune-associated genes and single-cell sequencing analysis in diagnosing Behçet’s disease

Distinct neural population code and causal roles of primate caudate nucleus in multimodal decision-making

Music informer as an efficient model for music generation

Abstract Music Transformer has been extensively employed in music generation, however, the self-attention mechanism consumes significant memory due to its complexity. To address this issue, Music Informer is proposed, drawing inspiration from the widely-used Informer model in fields like time series forecasting, weather prediction, etc. Music Informer primarily utilizes the ProbSparse self-attention mechanism, relative local attention mechanism, and LSTM structure. Objective results indicate that Music Informer conserves 21.73%, 31.87%, and 41.33% of computational resources compared to Music Transformer, Performance RNN, and Multi-Track Music Transformer under identical experimental conditions. Additionally, music samples generated by Music Informer outperform those from the three baselines in the metrics of Pitch Class Entropy, Number of Pitch Classes, Pitch Entropy, Number of Pitches, Average Inter-Onset Interval. Furthermore, Music Informer demonstrates higher Overlap Area values in the features Number of Pitches, Pitch Class Entropy, Average Inter-Onset Interval, Groove Consistency, and Pitch Entropy, as well as lower Kullback–Leibler Divergence in Average Inter-Onset Interval and Groove Consistency, highlighting a strong alignment with the feature distribution of the real dataset for these specific characteristics. Subjective results suggest that listeners prefer music generated by Music Informer over the baselines due to its improved coherence and overall quality.

Pd/C promotes C–H bond activation and oxidation of p-hydroxybenzoate during hydrogenolysis of poplar

Fitness exercise evaluation system based on improved DTW algorithm

Low-force pulse switching of ferroelectric polarization enabled by imprint field

Abstract Beyond conventional electrical modulation, flexoelectricity enables mechanical control of ferroelectric polarizations, offering a pathway for tactile-responsive ferroelectric systems. However, mechanical polarization switching typically requires substantial static threshold forces to overcome the significant energy barrier, resulting in material fatigue and slow response that compromises reliability and hinders practical applications. In this work, we address these challenges by introducing an imprint field through asymmetric electrostatic boundary design with distinct work functions. This built-in electric field stabilizes the energy landscape, effectively lowering the polarization switching barrier. Subsequently, nonvolatile polarization switching with a low threshold force of 12 nN·nm−1 is achieved in CuInP2S6 without material damage. Surpassing the limitations of slow static force controls, our work marks the first experimental demonstration of fast mechanical control of polarization switching with 4 millisecond-long low force pulses. To further highlight the potential of this rapid, low-force mechanical control, we propose a van der Waals heterostructured mechanically gated transistor with asymmetric electrostatic boundary, which exhibits gate force pulses-controlled multi-level, nonvolatile conductance states. Our findings establish a paradigm for next-generation ferroelectric electronics that integrate responsiveness to mechanical stimuli.