Impact of c-JUN deficiency on thalamus development in mice and human neural models.

Background: c-Jun is a key regulator of gene expression. Through the formation of homo- or heterodimers, c-JUN binds to DNA and regulates gene transcription. While c-Jun plays a crucial role in embryonic development, its impact on nervous system development in higher mammals, especially for some deep structures, for example, thalamus in diencephalon, remains unclear.

Global Meta-Analysis of Individual and Combined Nitrogen Inhibitors: Enhancing Plant Productivity and Reducing Environmental Losses.

Nitrogen (N) transformation inhibitors have been widely recognized as a promising strategy to enhance crop productivity and mitigate N losses. However, the effectiveness of individual or combined inhibitors can vary significantly across different agroecosystems. Using meta-analysis and cost-benefit analysis (CBA), we synthesized findings from 41 peer-reviewed studies (285 observations) globally to evaluate the efficacy of urease inhibitors (UIs), nitrification inhibitors (NIs), and combined inhibitors (UINIs).

BRD8 Guards the Pluripotent State by Sensing and Maintaining Histone Acetylation.

Epigenetic control of cell fates is a critical determinant to maintain cell type stability and permit differentiation during embryonic development. However, the epigenetic control mechanisms are not well understood. Here, it is shown that the histone acetyltransferase reader protein BRD8 impairs the conversion of primed mouse EpiSCs (epiblast stem cells) to naive mouse ESCs (embryonic stem cells).

Quantitative investigation and intelligent forecasting of thermal conductivity in lime-modified red clay.

This paper delves into the engineering applications of lime-stabilized red clay, a highly water-sensitive material, particularly in the context of the climatic conditions prevalent in the Dalian region. We systematically investigate the impact of water content, dry density, and freeze-thaw cycles (with a freezing temperature set at -10°C) on the thermal conductivity of stabilized soil, a crucial parameter for analyzing soil temperature fields that is influenced by numerous factors. By developing and validating both empirical and machine learning prediction models, we unravel the evolution of thermal conductivity in response to these factors: within the range of influencing variables, thermal conductivity exhibits an exponential or linear increase with rising water content and dry density, while it decreases exponentially with increasing freeze-thaw cycles.

Endogenous retroviral ERVH48-1 promotes human urine cell reprogramming.

Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), once thought to be mere remnants of ancient viral integrations in the mammalian genome, are now recognized for their critical roles in various physiological processes, including embryonic development, innate immunity, and tumorigenesis. Their impact on host organisms is significant driver of evolutionary changes, offering insight into evolutionary mechanisms. In our study, we explored the functionality of ERVs by examining single-cell transcriptomic profiles from human embryonic stem cells and urine cells.

Transcranial photobiomodulation on the left inferior frontal gyrus enhances Mandarin Chinese L1 and L2 complex sentence processing performances.

This study investigated the causal enhancing effect of transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) over the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) on syntactically complex Mandarin Chinese first language (L1) and second language (L2) sentence processing performances. Two (L1 and L2) groups of participants (thirty per group) were recruited to receive the double-blind, sham-controlled tPBM intervention via LIFG, followed by the sentence processing, the verbal working memory (WM), and the visual WM tasks. Results revealed a consistent pattern for both groups: (a) tPBM enhanced sentence processing performance but not verbal WM for linear processing of unstructured sequences and visual WM performances; (b) Participants with lower sentence processing performances under sham tPBM benefited more from active tPBM.

Experimental study on deformation characteristics of seasonal subgrade soil under dynamic load.

In Northwest China, the highway infrastructure often faces challenges due to the widespread presence of subgrade soil. This soil undergoes significant changes in performance under cyclic loading and freeze-thaw cycles. To effectively design and construct highways in these regions, it is crucial to understand the impact of various factors on the deformation characteristics and mechanical properties of subgrade soil.

Experimental and numerical study on the model of hybrid fiber phase change concrete frozen shaft wall.

In this study, phase change materials (PCMs) were innovatively incorporated into hybrid fiber concrete. The properties of PCMs, which absorb and release heat during phase transitions, enable the concrete to actively respond to complex and varying temperature environments. This integration reduces the internal temperature differentials within the concrete, thereby preventing temperature-induced cracks in deep wellbore structures.

The proactive and reactive mechanisms of learned spatial suppression.

Selection history refers to the notion that previous allocations of attention or suppression have the potential to elicit lingering and enduring selection biases that are isolated from goal-driven or stimulus-driven attention. However, in the singleton detection mode task, manipulating the selection history of distractors cannot give rise to pure proactive inhibition. Therefore, we employed a combination of a working memory task and a feature search mode task, simultaneously recording cortical activity using EEG, to investigate the mechanisms of suppression guided by selection history.

Intelligent and biocompatible cellulose aerogels featured with high-elastic and fast-hemostatic for epistaxis and wound healing.

Nasal tamponade is a commonly employed and highly effective treatment method for preventing nasal bleeding. However, the current nasal packing hemostatic materials exhibit some limitations, such as low hemostatic efficiency, the potential for causing secondary injury when removed from the nasal cavity, limited intelligence in their design, and an inability to promote the healing of nasal mucosa wounds. Herein, we report the fabrication of a smart cellulose aerogel through the covalent cross-linking of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) macromolecules, while incorporating one-dimensional cellulose nanofibers (CNF) and two-dimensional MXene as reinforcing network scaffolds and conductive fillers.

Spatial heterogeneity plays a vital role in shaping the structure and function of estuarine carbon-fixing bacterial communities.

Carbon-fixing bacterial communities are essential drivers of carbon fixation in estuarine ecosystems that critically affect the global carbon cycle. This study compared the abundances of the Calvin cycle functional genes cbbL and cbbM and Reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle gene aclB, as well as compared carbon-fixing bacterial community features in the two estuaries, predicted potential ecological functions of carbon-fixation bacteria, and analyzed their symbiosis strategies in two estuaries having different geographical distributions. Gammaproteobacteria was the dominant carbon-fixing bacterial community in the two estuaries.

Auditory change detection and visual selective attention: association between MMN and N2pc.

While the auditory and visual systems each provide distinct information to our brain, they also work together to process and prioritize input to address ever-changing conditions. Previous studies highlighted the trade-off between auditory change detection and visual selective attention; however, the relationship between them is still unclear. Here, we recorded electroencephalography signals from 106 healthy adults in three experiments.

Identification of 10 differentially expressed and cuproptosis-related genes in immune infiltration and prognosis of thyroid carcinoma.

The association between the cuproptosis-related genes and the immune infiltration and their prognostic value in thyroid carcinoma is still unexplored. Bioinformatics analyses were performed with data obtained from the TCGA dataset. The aberrantly expressed genes were selected.

Numerical simulation study on distinguishing nonlinear propagation regimes of femtosecond pulses in fused silica.

We perform numerical simulations to investigate the nonlinear propagation dynamics of femtosecond Gaussian and vortex beams in fused silica. By analyzing the extent of spectral broadening, we are able to distinguish between the linear, self-focusing, and filamentation regimes. Additionally, the maximum intensity and fluence distribution within the cross-section of the vortex beams are analyzed for different incident laser energies.

Clinical pharmacology strategies to accelerate the development of polatuzumab vedotin and summary of key findings.

The favorable benefit-risk profile of polatuzumab vedotin, as demonstrated in a pivotal Phase Ib/II randomized study (GO29365; NCT02257567), coupled with the need for effective therapies in relapsed/refractory (R/R) diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), prompted the need to accelerate polatuzumab vedotin development. An integrated, fit-for-purpose clinical pharmacology package was designed to support regulatory approval. To address key clinical pharmacology questions without dedicated clinical pharmacology studies, we leveraged non-clinical and clinical data for polatuzumab vedotin, published clinical data for brentuximab vedotin, a similar antibody-drug conjugate, and physiologically based pharmacokinetic and population pharmacokinetic modeling approaches.

Polarization of the third harmonic emission from the filamentation of femtosecond cylindrical vector beams.

We experimentally generate a third harmonic (TH) vector optical field in deep ultraviolet wavelength range using femtosecond vector laser beams. The generated TH beams are characterized by analyzing the Stokes parameters with different input laser energies. The results show that the TH predominantly preserves the vector polarization distribution of the fundamental frequency beam.

Research on the environmental stability performance of chromite ore processing residue solidified products.

Chromite ore processing residue (COPR) is a hazardous waste because of leachable chromium, especially Cr(vi). Therefore, ascorbic acid (AA) and blast furnace slag (BFS) have been used to detoxify and solidify COPR. On this basis, environmental stability experiments with high temperature and freeze-thaw cycles were carried out to explore the stability performance of a solidified body with 40% COPR.

Soil salinity is the main factor influencing the soil bacterial community assembly process under long-term drip irrigation in Xinjiang, China.

Identifying the potential factors associated with the impact of long-term drip irrigation (DI) on soil ecosystems is essential for responding to the environmental changes induced by extensive application of DI technology in arid regions. Herein, we examined the effects of the length of time that DI lasts in years (N) on soil bacterial diversity as well as the soil bacterial community assembly process and the factors influencing it. The results showed that long-term DI substantially reduced soil salinity and increased soil bacterial diversity while affecting the soil bacterial community structure distinctly.

Atomic-Scale Quantitative Evidence of Plastic Activities Resulting in Reparable Deformation in Ultrasmall-Sized Ag Nanocrystals.

Permanent structural changes in pure metals that are caused by plastic activity are normally irreparable after unloading. Because of the lack of experimental evidence, it is unclear whether the plastic activity can be repaired as the size of the pure metals decreases to several nanometers; it is also unclear how the metals accommodate the plastic deformation. In this study, the atomic-scale loading and unloading of ∼2 nm Ag nanocrystals was investigated, and three modes of plastic deformation were observed: (i) the phase transition from the face-centered cubic (fcc) phase to the hexagonal close-packed (hcp) phase, (ii) stacking faults, and (iii) deformation twin nucleation.

Distinguishing the nonlinear propagation regimes of vortex femtosecond pulses in fused silica by evaluating the broadened spectrum.

The nonlinear propagation dynamics of vortex femtosecond laser pulses in optical media is a topic with significant importance in various fields, such as nonlinear optics, micromachining, light bullet generation, vortex air lasing, air waveguide and supercontinuum generation. However, how to distinguish the various regimes of nonlinear propagation of vortex femtosecond pulses remains challenging. This study presents a simple method for distinguishing the regimes of nonlinear propagation of femtosecond pulses in fused silica by evaluating the broadening of the laser spectrum as the input pulse power gradually increases.

Effects of environmental factors on avian communities in urban parks in small- to medium-sized city: a case study of Fuyang City, Anhui, China.

With a worldwide expansion of urbanization, the conservation of urban biodiversity is attracting growing attention; it is important to study the relationship between wildlife and urban green spaces. In this study, we selected 31 parks in the urban area of Fuyang City in the North China Plain. A total of 8795 individual birds from 69 species were recorded.