MMP-3 and TIMP-1 as prognostic biomarkers in VZV-induced retinal necrosis.

Objective: Acute retinal necrosis (ARN) caused by varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is associated with changes in specific proteins in the eye's fluid, particularly matrix metalloproteinase-3 (MMP-3), an enzyme that breaks down tissue structures, and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1), which regulates MMP activity. This study aims to investigate how these proteins correlate with the progression of ARN.

Methods: We analyzed aqueous humor samples from 33 patients with ARN and 23 control patients with virus-negative uveitis.

Rapid Flame Synthesis of Highly Efficient CuO-CuBiO Heterojunction Photocathode for Improved Charge Separation and Light Capture Efficiency.

The rapid flame annealing (FA) method has the advantages of convenience and rapidity with an instantaneous temperature rise and fall process. In this work, the influence of flame annealing duration on the front side and back side of CuBiO-based photocathodes was investigated, and photoelectrodes with variable compositions were obtained. A highly efficient CuO@CuO/CuBiO photoelectrode was successfully obtained via a two-step FA method within a few seconds.

Reconstructing a new hippocampal engram for systems reconsolidation and remote memory updating.

Recalling systems-consolidated neocortex-dependent remote memories re-engages the hippocampus in a process called systems reconsolidation. However, underlying mechanisms, particularly for the origin of the reinstated hippocampal memory engram, remain elusive. By developing a triple-event labeling tool and employing two-photon imaging, we trace hippocampal engram ensembles from memory acquisition to systems reconsolidation and find that remote recall recruits a new engram ensemble in the hippocampus for subsequent memory retrieval.

Unlocking Photosynthetic Potential: Harnessing Derived Carbon Dots as Nanofertilizers for Enhanced Plant Growth.

The synthesis of nanomaterials from renewable resources has emerged as an environmentally friendly alternative. This approach helps to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers in agricultural production, further reducing the potential harm to the ecosystem and effectively reducing the burden on the environment. In this work, we synthesized derived carbon dots (CDs) using the microwave hydrothermal method (RR-CDs) and the electrolytic oxidation method (GRR-CDs), and the results showed that RR-CDs had a wider ultraviolet absorption range and emitted blue fluorescence.

Effects of Systematic Oral Hygiene Guidance on Plaque Control Among Periodontal Patients.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of systematic oral hygiene instruction in improving oral hygiene knowledge and to practice and control oral plaque, among periodontal patients.

Methods: A total of 407 patients were recruited, with 205 in the experimental group and 202 in the control group. Participants in the experimental group received professional dental examination, cleaning tools and instruction of oral hygiene practices.

A recombinant L-threonine aldolase with high catalytic efficiency for the asymmetric synthesis of L-threo-phenylserine and L-threo-4-fluorophenylserine.

Objectives: To develop robust variants of L-threonine aldolases (L-TAs), potent catalysts for synthesizing asymmetric β-hydroxy-α-amino acids, it is necessary to identify critical residues beyond the known active site residues.

Results: Through virtual screening, a neglected residue Asn305, was identified as critical for catalytic efficiency. Subsequent site-saturation mutagenesis led to a potent variant N305R which exhibited excellent conversions of 88% (87%) and 80% (94%) for the synthesis of L-threo-phenylserine and L-threo-4-fluorophenylserine respectively.

Host-derived Bacillus antagonistic novel duck reovirus infection by regulating gut microbiota-mediated immune responses.

The Novel Duck Reovirus (NDRV) infection poses a significant health risk to ducks, primarily attributed to the absence of efficacious preventive measures. This research aimed to investigate whether the administration of isolated Bacillus could protect antagonistic NDRV infection in a Cherry Valley duck model. Four indigenous Bacillus strains from the feces of healthy ducks demonstrated promising biosafety profiles.

Pediatric Uveitis in a Tertiary Referral Center in East China: Clinical Patterns and Visual Outcomes.

To describe the clinical patterns and visual outcomes of pediatric uveitis at a tertiary referral center in East China. Retrospective case series. Clinical records of patients with pediatric uveitis who presented between January 2014 and July 2021 were reviewed.

Comparative study of machine learning techniques for post-combustion carbon capture systems.

Computational analysis of countercurrent flows in packed absorption columns, often used in solvent-based post-combustion carbon capture systems (CCSs), is challenging. Typically, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approaches are used to simulate the interactions between a solvent, gas, and column's packing geometry while accounting for the thermodynamics, kinetics, heat, and mass transfer effects of the absorption process. These simulations can then be used explain a column's hydrodynamic characteristics and evaluate its CO-capture efficiency.

Impact of glyphosate on soil bacterial communities and degradation mechanisms in large-leaf tea plantations.

This study investigated the impact of glyphosate on bacterial communities and their degradation mechanisms in large-leaf tea soil, through exposure microcosm and enrichment culture experiments. Soils from three tea gardens in Yunnan, China, were used: two glyphosate-free (JM and KL) for microcosm study and one long-term exposed (G2) for enrichment culture experiment. The results revealed a two-phase degradation process with half-lives of 12.

Overexpression of the inwardly rectifying potassium channel Kir4.1 or Kir4.1 Tyr9 Asp in Müller cells exerts neuroprotective effects in an experimental glaucoma model.

Downregulation of the inwardly rectifying potassium channel Kir4.1 is a key step for inducing retinal Müller cell activation and interaction with other glial cells, which is involved in retinal ganglion cell apoptosis in glaucoma. Modulation of Kir4.

Advanced Thermoactive Nanomaterials for Thermomedical Tissue Regeneration: Opportunities and Challenges.

Nanomaterials usually possess remarkable properties, including excellent biocompatibility, unique physical and chemical characteristics, and bionic attributes, which make them highly promising for applications in tissue regeneration. Thermal therapy has emerged as a versatile approach for wound healing, nerve repair, bone regeneration, tumor therapy, and antibacterial tissue regeneration. By combining nanomaterials with thermal therapy, multifunctional nanomaterials with thermogenic effects and tissue regeneration capabilities can be engineered to achieve enhanced therapeutic outcomes.

Flexible Piezoelectric Sensor Enhanced by Ordered Piezoelectric Composite Material for Three-Dimensional Force Detection.

With the rapid development of intelligent devices, the demand for high-performance flexible sensors with three-dimensional force perception capabilities has become increasingly prominent. In this study, we utilized dielectrophoresis regulation to achieve an ordered arrangement of lead zirconate titanate particles in piezoelectric composite films, enhancing the pressure sensitivity by approximately 4.06 times compared to randomly distributed composite films.

A pH-triggered self-releasing humic acid hydrogel loaded with porcine interferon α/γ achieves anti-pseudorabies virus effects by oral administration.

Interferon α (IFNα) and interferon γ (IFNγ) play pivotal roles in mediating crucial biological functions, including antiviral activity and immune regulation. However, the efficacy of monomeric IFN is limited, and its administration relies solely on injection. To address this issue, we successfully expressed and purified a recombinant porcine IFNα and IFNγ fusion protein (rPoIFNα/γ).

Applicable Descriptors under Weak Metal-Oxygen d-p Interaction for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) plays a crucial role in water electrolysis and renewable energy conversion processes. Descriptors are utilized to elucidate the structure-performance relationships of OER catalytic materials, yet each descriptor exhibits specificity to particular systems. Currently, there is a lack of effective descriptors to describe the relationship between electronic structure and OER performance in ionic systems.

The incidence and clinical significance of monoclonal and oligoclonal protein bands in multiple myeloma patients after BCMA-CAR-T cell therapy: A retrospective study based on LEGEND-2.

The emergence of abnormal protein bands (APBs), also known as oligoclonal protein bands, has been documented in patients with multiple myeloma (MM) post hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. However, the incidence rate and clinical significance of APBs remain contentious. Few studies have explored the occurrence and prognostic implications of APBs in patients with MM treated with B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-specific chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T therapy.

Performance of ChatGPT in Ophthalmic Registration and Clinical Diagnosis: Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots such as ChatGPT are expected to impact vision health care significantly. Their potential to optimize the consultation process and diagnostic capabilities across range of ophthalmic subspecialties have yet to be fully explored.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the performance of AI chatbots in recommending ophthalmic outpatient registration and diagnosing eye diseases within clinical case profiles.

Self-supervised Multi-scale Multi-modal Graph Pool Transformer for Sellar Region Tumor Diagnosis.

The sellar region tumor is a brain tumor that only exists in the brain sellar, which affects the central nervous system. The early diagnosis of the sellar region tumor subtypes helps clinicians better understand the best treatment and recovery of pa-tients. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has proven to be an effective tool for the early detection of sellar region tumors.

Carbon dots based cascading nanozymes mitigate phytotoxicity in lettuces under imidacloprid stress.

Improper pesticide use induces oxidative stress and disrupts detoxification systems in plants. We synthesized CDs with cascading nanozyme activities to mitigate phytotoxicity in lettuces under imidacloprid (IMI) stress. CDs exhibit superoxide dismutase-like (SOD-like) and peroxidase-like (POD-like) activities.

FAMF-Net: Feature Alignment Mutual Attention Fusion with Region Awareness for Breast Cancer Diagnosis via Imbalanced Data.

Automatic and accurate classification of breast cancer in multimodal ultrasound images is crucial to improve patients' diagnosis and treatment effect and save medical resources. Methodologically, the fusion of multimodal ultrasound images often encounters challenges such as misalignment, limited utilization of complementary information, poor interpretability in feature fusion, and imbalances in sample categories. To solve these problems, we propose a feature alignment mutual attention fusion method (FAMF-Net), which consists of a region awareness alignment (RAA) block, a mutual attention fusion (MAF) block, and a reinforcement learning-based dynamic optimization strategy(RDO).

The disturbance of intestinal microbiome caused by the novel duck reovirus infection in Cherry Valley ducklings can induce intestinal damage.

Novel duck reovirus disease is an infectious disease mainly caused by novel duck reovirus (NDRV), which is characterized by spleen necrosis and persistent diarrhea in ducks. However, the pathogenic mechanism of NDRV infection in Cherry Valley ducks remains unclear. To investigate the distribution of NDRV in the intestines of Cherry Valley ducks, intestinal morphogenesis, intestinal permeability, inflammatory cytokines, and the expression of tight junction proteins (TJPs), we introduced NDRV via intramuscular infection.