Spatial assessment of drinking water flavor in China: Revealing regional disparities and underlying drivers.

Drinking water flavor, a critical water quality metric, exhibits substantial regional variations across China, influenced by local geology and chemistry. Despite growing consumer concerns about water flavor, a spatial assessment of the determinants of water flavor in China has been notably lacking. This study bridges this gap by conducting a spatially comprehensive analysis of 78 tap water samples throughout China.

A deep learning identification method of tight sandstone lithofacies integrating multilayer perceptron and multivariate time series.

Lithofacies classification and identification are of great significance in the exploration and evaluation of tight sandstone reservoirs. Existing methods of lithofacies identification in tight sandstone reservoirs face issues such as lengthy manual classification, strong subjectivity of identification, and insufficient sample datasets, which make it challenging to analyze the lithofacies characteristics of these reservoirs during oil and gas exploration. In this paper, the Fuyu oil formation in the Songliao Basin is selected as the target area, and an intelligent method for recognizing the lithophysics reservoirs in tight sandstone based on hybrid multilayer perceptron (MLP) and multivariate time series (MTS-Mixers) is proposed.

Mediating role of immune cells in association between volatile organic compounds and periodontitis: NHANES 2011-2014.

Background: The relationship between humans and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a persistent concern due to their widespread sources and high evaporation rates. However, there is currently limited direct evidence linking VOC exposure to the development of periodontitis.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed 1525 participants and 21 urinary VOCs in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2011 to 2014, aiming to investigate the relationship between periodontitis risk, assessed by attachment loss (AL) and probing depth (PD) and individual VOCs using logistic regression, quantile regression, and subgroup analysis.

Synchronous control of nitrogen and phosphorus release from sediments in shallow lakes under wind disturbance by modified zeolite and Ca/Al-based sludge combination.

To inhibit eutrophication caused by endogenous pollutants release, the experiment explored the efficiency and mechanism of the synchronous control of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) release from sediments in shallow lakes under wind disturbance by modified Ca/Al-based sludge (MS) and modified zeolite (MZ). High-temperature calcination and NaCl impregnation increased the pore volume of MS and Na content of MZ, and the adsorption capacity of MS for PO-P and MZ for NH-N was as high as 42.01 and 20.

Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies the Serine/Threonine Kinase ClSIK1 for Low Nitrogen Tolerance in Watermelon Species.

Plants have evolved multiple complex mechanisms enabling them to adapt to low nitrogen (LN) stress via increased nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) as nitrogen deficiency in soil is a major factor limiting plant growth and development. However, the adaptive process and evolutionary roles of LN tolerance-related genes in plants remain largely unknown. In this study, we resequenced 191 watermelon accessions and examined their phenotypic differences related to LN tolerance.

Crosstalk between non-coding RNA and apoptotic signaling in diabetic nephropathy.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a leading cause of end-stage renal disease in diabetes mellitus. It is also a significant contributor to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in diabetic patients Thereby, Innovative therapeutic approaches are needed to retard the initiation and advancement of DN. Hyperglycemia can induce apoptosis, a regulated form of cell death, in multiple renal cell types, such as podocytes, mesangial cells, and proximal tubule epithelial cells, ultimately contributing to the pathogenesis of DN.

Epileptic encephalopathy linked to a DALRD3 missense variant that impairs tRNA modification.

Epileptic encephalopathies are severe epilepsy syndromes characterized by early onset and progressive cerebral dysfunction. A nonsense variant in the DALR anticodon binding domain containing 3 (DALRD3) gene has been implicated in epileptic encephalopathy, but no other disease-associated variants in DALRD3 have been described. In human cells, the DALRD3 protein forms a complex with the METTL2 methyltransferase to generate the 3-methylcytosine (m3C) modification in specific arginine tRNAs.

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Targeting purine metabolism-related enzymes for therapeutic intervention: A review from molecular mechanism to therapeutic breakthrough.

Purines are ancient metabolites with established and emerging metabolic and non-metabolic signaling attributes. The expression of purine metabolism-related genes is frequently activated in human malignancies, correlating with increased cancer aggressiveness and chemoresistance. Importantly, under certain stimulating conditions, the purine biosynthetic enzymes can assemble into a metabolon called "purinosomes" to enhance purine flux.

Synchronous and efficient removal of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from actual rural sewage by composite wetlands enhanced with functional fillers.

A composite wetland (CECW) was constructed by introducing P-adsorption filler (EPAF) and activated sludge into traditional wetlands for treating actual sewage. The results showed that EPAF improved P removal through physico-chemical adsorption, and it could be stably regenerated after adsorption saturation without potential risks. Meanwhile, zeolite promoted NH-N reduction in sewage by cation exchange.

Increased peripheral leukocyte aggravates brain injury and leads to poor outcome in stroke patients receiving intravenous thrombolysis: A study based on clinical evidence.

Whether the dynamic development of peripheral inflammation aggravates brain injury and leads to poor outcome in stroke patients receiving intravenous thrombolysis (IVT), remains unclear and warrants further study. In this study, total of 1034 patients with acute ischemic stroke who underwent IVT were enrolled. Serum leukocyte variation (whether increase from baseline to 24 h after IVT), National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), infarct volume, early neurologic deterioration (END), the unfavorable outcome at 3-month (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] score ≥3) and mortality were recorded.

A New Semi-Quantum Two-Way Authentication Protocol between Control Centers and Neighborhood Gateways in Smart Grids.

To address the potential threat to the power grid industry posed by quantum computers and ensure the security of bidirectional communication in smart grids, it is imperative to develop quantum-safe authentication protocols. This paper proposes a semi-quantum bidirectional authentication protocol between a control center (CC) and a neighboring gateway (NG). This method uses single photons to facilitate communication between the CC and the NG.

Research on the generation and annotation method of thin section images of tight oil reservoir based on deep learning.

The cast thin sections of tight oil reservoirs contain important parameters such as rock mineral composition and content, porosity, permeability and stratigraphic characteristics, which are of great significance for reservoir evaluation. The use of deep learning technology for intelligent identification of thin section images is a development trend of mineral identification. However, the difficulty of making cast thin sections, the complexity of the making process and the high cost of thin section annotation have led to a lack of cast thin section images, which cannot meet the training requirements of deep learning image recognition models.

Turbulent flow field in maglev centrifugal blood pumps of CH-VAD and HeartMate III: secondary flow and its effects on pump performance.

Secondary flow path is one of the crucial aspects during the design of centrifugal blood pumps. Small clearance size increases stress level and blood damage, while large clearance size can improve blood washout and reduce stress level. Nonetheless, large clearance also leads to strong secondary flows, causing further blood damage.

Proteolytic cleavage and inactivation of the TRMT1 tRNA modification enzyme by SARS-CoV-2 main protease.

Nonstructural protein 5 (Nsp5) is the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 that cleaves viral polyproteins into individual polypeptides necessary for viral replication. Here, we show that Nsp5 binds and cleaves human tRNA methyltransferase 1 (TRMT1), a host enzyme required for a prevalent post-transcriptional modification in tRNAs. Human cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 exhibit a decrease in TRMT1 protein levels and TRMT1-catalyzed tRNA modifications, consistent with TRMT1 cleavage and inactivation by Nsp5.

Retinoic acid tiers mitochondrial metabolism to Sertoli Cell-Mediated efferocytosis via a non-RAR-dependent mechanism.

Efferocytosis of massive non-viable germ cells by Sertoli cells (SCs), the specialized phagocytes, is essential for maintaining testis homeostasis. What elusive is the contribution of mitochondrial metabolism to this energy-consuming process, as SC has a preference of aerobic glycolysis. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA, hereafter referred to as RA) is a well-known morphogen that primarily acts through the nuclear RA receptor (RAR).

Cerebral autoregulation: A reliable predictor of prognosis in patients receiving intravenous thrombolysis.

Aims: To investigate the characteristics of dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) after intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) and assess the relationship between dCA and prognosis.

Methods: Patients with unilateral acute ischemic stroke receiving IVT were prospectively enrolled; those who did not were selected as controls. All patients underwent dCA measurements, by quantifying the phase difference (PD) and gain, at 1-3 and 7-10 days after stroke onset.

Promoter variations of ClERF1 gene determines flesh firmness in watermelon.

Background: Flesh firmness is a critical factor that influences fruit storability, shelf-life and consumer's preference as well. However, less is known about the key genetic factors that are associated with flesh firmness in fresh fruits like watermelon.

Results: In this study, through bulk segregant analysis (BSA-seq), we identified a quantitative trait locus (QTL) that influenced variations in flesh firmness among recombinant inbred lines (RIL) developed from cross between the Citrullus mucosospermus accession ZJU152 with hard-flesh and Citrullus lanatus accession ZJU163 with soft-flesh.

Future in the past: paternal reprogramming of offspring phenotype and the epigenetic mechanisms.

That certain preconceptual paternal exposures reprogram the developmental phenotypic plasticity in future generation(s) has conceptualized the "paternal programming of offspring health" hypothesis. This transgenerational effect is transmitted primarily through sperm epigenetic mechanisms-DNA methylation, non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) and associated RNA modifications, and histone modifications-and potentially through non-sperm-specific mechanisms-seminal plasma and circulating factors-that create 'imprinted' memory of ancestral information. The epigenetic landscape in sperm is highly responsive to environmental cues, due to, in part, the soma-to-germline communication mediated by epididymosomes.

Bioinformatics-based identification of key candidate genes and signaling pathways in patients with Parkinson's disease and obstructive sleep apnea.

Objectives: Existing evidence exhibits that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a potential consequence of Parkinson's disease (PD) or a contributor to PD progression. This investigation aimed to detect potential critical genes and molecular mechanisms underlying interactions between PD and OSA through bioinformatics analyses.

Methods: The Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was employed to obtain the expression profiles GSE20163 and GSE135917.

A hemodynamic analysis of energy loss in abdominal aortic aneurysm using three-dimension idealized model.

The aim of this study is to perform specific hemodynamic simulations of idealized abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) models with different diameters, curvatures and eccentricities and evaluate the risk of thrombosis and aneurysm rupture. Nine idealized AAA models with different diameters (3 cm or 5 cm), curvatures (0° or 30°) and eccentricities (centered on or tangent to the aorta), as well as a normal model, were constructed using commercial software (Solidworks; Dassault Systemes S.A, Suresnes, France).

A comprehensive review on signaling attributes of serine and serine metabolism in health and disease.

Serine is a metabolite with ever-expanding metabolic and non-metabolic signaling attributes. By providing one‑carbon units for macromolecule biosynthesis and functional modifications, serine and serine metabolism largely impinge on cellular survival and function. Cancer cells frequently have a preference for serine metabolic reprogramming to create a conducive metabolic state for survival and aggressiveness, making intervention of cancer-associated rewiring of serine metabolism a promising therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment.