Highly Deformable Van der Waals Chalcogenides with Superior Thermoelectric Performance from Interpretable Machine Learning.

Van der Waals (vdW) chalcogenide-based flexible thermoelectric devices hold great promise for wearable electronics. However, intrinsic vdW chalcogenides that combine high flexibility with superior thermoelectric figures of merit (ZT) remain extremely rare. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop methods capable of high-throughput screening to identify potential vdW chalcogenides with both robust flexibility and favorable ZT value.

Sustainable pest management using plant secondary metabolites regulated azadirachtin nano-assemblies.

Biopesticides have emerged as a global trend to minimize the risks associated with synthetic agrochemicals. However, their stability and efficacies remain challenges for widespread application. Herein, co-assembled nanoparticles (AT NPs or AP NPs) based on azadirachtin (AZA) and tannic acid (TA) or phenylalanine (PA) are constructed in aqueous solution through self-assembly technology.

Pressure-dependent optoelectronic properties of antiperovskite derivatives XAsCl (X = Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba): a first-principles study.

The success of halide perovskites in the field of optoelectronics has sparked extensive exploration of perovskite-type compounds, including antiperovskites and perovskite derivatives. Recently, a class of antiperovskite derivatives, XMA, has been proposed as potential photovoltaic absorbers. These antiperovskite derivatives share a similar crystal structure with perovskites, featuring a corner-sharing octahedral framework.

Robotic vs. laparoscopic gastrectomy for patients with locally advanced gastric cancer: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and propensity-score-matched studies.

Background: The role of robotic surgery for the treatment of locally advanced gastric cancer remains controversial. This meta-analysis aimed to compare the short-term outcomes between robotic gastrectomy (RG) and laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) for patients with locally advanced gastric cancer using data collected from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and propensity score-matched (PSM) studies.

Materials And Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases for RCTs and PSM studies comparing RG and LG.

Prodrug Self-Assemblies Based on Plant Volatile Aldehydes with Improved Stability and Antimicrobial Activity Against Plant Pathogens.

Plant volatile aldehydes (PVAs) such as cinnamaldehyde (Cin), citral (Cit), citronellal (Citr), and perillaldehyde (Per) have broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity and show great potential in agricultural sustainable production. However, most PVAs not only have very high volatility but also are easily degradable in environment, which seriously restricts their wide application. To address the inherent problems with PVAs, four prodrugs based on PVAs are fabricated by conjugating individually Cin, Cit, Citr, and Per to sodium bisulfite (Sod) through a simple addition reaction and subsequently self-assembled into nanoparticles (prodrug self-assemblies) in aqueous solutions.

Postoperative complications and surgical outcomes of robotic versus laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy: a meta-analysis of propensity-score-matched studies.

Background: Robotic pancreaticoduodenectomy (RPD) is used more commonly, but high-level evidence is still scarce. This meta-analysis aimed to compare the short-term outcomes between RPD and laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) using data collected from propensity score-matched (PSM) studies.

Materials And Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Web of Science databases for PSM studies comparing RPD and LPD.

Two new species of the comb-footed spider genus Lasaeola Simon, 1881 (Araneae: Theridiidae) from China.

Two new species of the spider genus Lasaeola Simon, 1881 are described from China based on both sexes: Lasaeola pinna n. sp., and Lasaeola tengchongensis n.

Bonding Optimization Strategies for Flexibly Preparing Multi-Component Piezoelectric Crystals.

Flexible films with optimal piezoelectric performance and water-triggered dissolution behavior are fabricated using the co-dissolution-evaporation method by mixing trimethylchloromethyl ammonium chloride (TMCM-Cl), CdCl, and polyethylene oxide (PEO, a water-soluble polymer). The resultant TMCM trichlorocadmium (TMCM-CdCl) crystal/PEO film exhibited the highest piezoelectric coefficient (d) compared to the films employing other polymers because PEO lacks electrophilic or nucleophilic side-chain groups and therefore exhibits relatively weaker and fewer bonding interactions with the crystal components. Furthermore, upon slightly increasing the amount of one precursor of TMCM-CdCl during co-dissolution, this component gained an advantage in the competition against PEO for bonding with the other precursor.

Physicians and hospital pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards polypharmacy in older patients with chronic diseases.

This web-based cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of physicians and hospital pharmacists towards polypharmacy in older adult patients with chronic diseases in China. This study enrolled 374 physicians and pharmacists (270 females, 92 physicians) in 20 Chinese provinces between December 2022 and March 2023. The knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were 12.

Benefits of laparoscopic liver resection for liver tumors in obese patients: a meta-analysis.

Objective: The superiority of laparoscopic liver resection (LLR) and open liver resection (OLR) in obese patients remains controversial. The study aims to assess the available literature and compare the perioperative outcomes of LLR and OLR for liver tumors in obese patients.

Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Web of Science databases for studies comparing LLR and OLR.

Description of two new species of the genus L. Koch, 1872 and the male of Jin, Yin & Zhang, 2017 from China (Araneae, Trachelidae).

Two new spider species of the genus L. Koch, 1872 are described from China: (♀) and (♀). The male of Jin, Yin & Zhang, 2017 is described for the first time.

Amphiphilic Cationic Carbon Dots for Efficient Delivery of Light-Dependent Herbicide.

The inefficient delivery of herbicides causes unpleasant side effects on the ecological environment. Protoporphyrinogen oxidase (PPO)-inhibiting herbicides rely on the presence of external light to exert the activities and thus their performance in the field is extremely susceptible to the light environment. Here, taking acifluorfen (ACI) as a model PPO-inhibiting herbicide to enhance efficacy by boosting the utilization rate of sunlight, amphiphilic cationic CDs (CPC-CDs) from cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) as a precursor, is first prepared as a supplementary light source generator, and subsequently co-assembled with ACI through non-covalent bond interactions to obtain the stable fluorescent nanoparticles (ACI@CPC-CDs).

Designing antiperovskite derivatives atomic-position splitting for photovoltaic applications.

Due to the success of halide perovskites in the photovoltaic field, halide perovskite-derived semiconductors have also been widely studied for optoelectronic applications. However, the photovoltaic performance of these perovskite derivatives still lags significantly behind their perovskite counterparts, mainly due to deficiencies at the B-site or X-site of the derivatives, which disrupt the connectivity of the key [BX] octahedra units. Herein, we developed a class of antiperovskite-derived materials with the formula , achieved by splitting the A anion, originally at the corner site of the cubic antiperovskite structure, into three edge-centered sites.

Efficacy and safety of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor agonists for the treatment of primary biliary cholangitis: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) agonists are recognised as a promising treatment for primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). However, the effects and safety of these agonists on PBC remain unexplored. Our study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of PPAR agonists in treating PBC.

Fabrication of ionic liquid self-assemblies based on dicamba with improved herbicidal activity and reduced environmental risks.

The off-target loss of pesticide formulations caused by volatilization and leaching has reduced effective utilization and increased risks to the ecological environment and human health. Self-assembly of pesticides has been widely concerned due to the improved bioactivity and environmental compatibility. Herbicidal ionic liquids (HILs) could effectively decrease off-target loss and increase efficacy and environmental safety by improving the physicochemical properties of herbicides.

Preoperative in-hospital delay increases postoperative morbidity and mortality in patients with acute appendicitis: a meta-analysis.

Background: Complicated appendicitis is associated with high morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. However, the relationship of preoperative in-hospital delay >24 h with complicated appendicitis and postoperative morbidity remains unclear. This meta-analysis investigated the effects of preoperative in-hospital delay on complicated appendicitis and postoperative morbidity in patients with acute appendicitis.

Comparison of short-term outcomes of robotic versus open pancreaticoduodenectomy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and propensity-score-matched studies.

Background: Robotic pancreaticoduodenectomy (RPD) is used more commonly, but this surge is mostly based on observational data. This meta-analysis aimed to compare the short-term outcomes between RPD and open pancreaticoduodenectomy (OPD) using data collected from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and propensity-score-matched (PSM) studies.

Methods: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Web of Science databases for RCTs and PSM studies comparing RPD and OPD.

Carrier-free self-assembled nanoparticles based on prochloraz and fenhexamid for reducing toxicity to aquatic organism.

Nanoformulations of pesticides are an effective way to increase utilization efficiency and alleviate the adverse impacts on the environments caused by conventional pesticide formulations. However, the complex preparation process, high cost, and potential environmental risk of nanocarriers severely restricted practical applications of carrier-based pesticide nanoformulations in agriculture. Herein, carrier-free self-assembled nanoparticles (FHA-PRO NPs) based on fenhexamid (FHA) and prochloraz (PRO) were developed by a facile co-assembly strategy to improve utilization efficiency and reduce toxicity to aquatic organism of pesticides.