Sulfur chains glass formed by fast compression.

Due to the sulfur's atoms' propensity to form molecules and/or polymeric chains of various sizes and configuration, elemental sulfur possesses more allotropes and polymorphs than any other element at ambient conditions. This variability of the starting building blocks is partially responsible for its rich and fascinating phase diagram, with pressure and temperature changing the states of sulfur from insulating molecular rings and chains to semiconducting low- and high-density amorphous configurations to incommensurate superconducting metallic atomic phase. Here, using a fast compression technique, we demonstrate that the rapid pressurisation of liquid sulfur can effectively break the molecular ring structure, forming a glassy polymeric state of pure-chain molecules (Am-S).

Receptor binding and structural basis of raccoon dog ACE2 binding to SARS-CoV-2 prototype and its variants.

Raccoon dog was proposed as a potential host of SARS-CoV-2, but no evidence support such a notion. In our study, we investigated the binding affinities of raccoon dog ACE2 (rdACE2) to the spike (S) protein receptor binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2 prototype (PT) and its variants. It revealed that the binding affinities of RBD from SARS-CoV-2 variants were generally lower than that of the PT RBD.

The impact of processing voltage of wire electric discharge machining on the performance of Mo doped V-VO based Archimedean micro-supercapacitors.

Vanadium oxide-based electrode materials have attracted increasing attention owing to their extraordinary capacitance and prolonged lifespan, excellent conductivity and outstanding electrochemical reversibility. However, the development of vanadium oxide-based integrated electrodes with outstanding capacitive performance is an enduring challenge. This research reports a facile method for structuring 3D Archimedean micro-supercapacitors (AMSCs) composed of Mo doped V-VO (Mo@V-VO) based integrated electrodes with designable geometric shape, using computer-aided wire electric discharge machining (WEDM).

Rapid start-up of mainstream partial denitrification /anammox and enhanced nitrogen removal through inoculation of precultured biofilm for treating low-strength municipal sewage.

This study investigated the rapid start-up of mainstream partial denitrification coupled with anammox (PD/A) and nitrogen removal performance by inoculating precultured PD/A biofilm. The results showed mainstream PD/A in the anaerobic-anoxic-aerobic (AO) process was rapidly established within 30 days. Nitrogen removal efficiency (NRE) improved by 23.

Spike structures, receptor binding, and immune escape of recently circulating SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2.86, JN.1, EG.5, EG.5.1, and HV.1 sub-variants.

The recently emerged BA.2.86, JN.

Integrated Single-cell and Transcriptome Sequencing Analyses Identified PREX1 as an Immune-related Prognostic Biomarker for Liver Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

PtdIns (3,4,5) P3-dependent Rac exchanger 1 (PREX1), also known as PREX1, a member of the Rac guanine nucleotide exchange factors (Rac-GEF) family. Studies have suggested that PREX1 plays a role in mediating oncogenic pathway activation and controlling various biological mechanisms in different types of cancer, including liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC). However, the function of PREX1 in the pathogenesis of LIHC and its potential role on immunological regulation is not clearly elucidated.

Key mechanistic features of the trade-off between antibody escape and host cell binding in the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant spike proteins.

Since SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant emerged, it is constantly evolving into multiple sub-variants, including BF.7, BQ.1, BQ.

Expanding the Pressure Frontier in Grüneisen Parameter Measurement: Study of Sodium Chloride.

The Grüneisen parameter (γ) is crucial for determining many thermal properties, including the anharmonic effect, thermostatistics, and equation of state of materials. However, the isentropic adiabatic compression conditions required to measure the Grüneisen parameter under high pressure are difficult to achieve. Thus, direct experimental Grüneisen parameter data in a wide range of pressures is sparse.

Analytical study of integrating downhole thermoelectric power generation with a coaxial borehole heat exchanger in geothermal wells.

Geothermal power generation employing Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) technology is a widely acknowledged and conventional approach for harnessing geothermal energy. In an innovative advancement, we propose a novel design integrating downhole thermoelectric power generation with a coaxial borehole heat exchanger. This design aims to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of geothermal energy utilization.

Structural basis of increased binding affinities of spikes from SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants to rabbit and hare ACE2s reveals the expanding host tendency.

The potential host range of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been expanding alongside its evolution during the pandemic, with rabbits and hares being considered important potential hosts, supported by a report of rabbit sero-prevalence in nature. We measured the binding affinities of rabbit and hare angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) with receptor-binding domains (RBDs) from SARS-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, and its variants and found that rabbit and hare ACE2s had broad variant tropism, with significantly enhanced affinities to Omicron BA.4/5 and its subsequent-emerged sub-variants (>10 fold).

Solvothermal Synthesis and Pyrolysis Toward Heteroatom-Doped Carbon Microspheres for Zinc-Ion Hybrid Capacitors.

Heteroatom-doped porous carbon materials have investigated to promote the energy density of zinc-ion hybrid capacitors (ZICs). Yet, the quest for high-performance carbon materials or cathodes brings to light the question of which dopants facilitate fast energy storage kinetics and various types of pseudocapacitive reactions. Investigation of carbon materials with precise quantitative dopants as the key variable represents an effective appropriate approach to comprehending the intricate role of dopants in energy storage areas.

Fabrication of Fe-FeO based 3D coplanar microsupercapacitors by electric discharge rusting of pure iron substrates.

Iron oxides with advanced functional properties show great potential for applications in the fields of water splitting, drug delivery, sensors, batteries and supercapacitors. However, it is challenging to develop a simple and efficient strategy for fabricating patterned iron oxide based electrodes for supercapacitor applications. Herein, a facile, simple, scalable, binder-free, surfactant-free and conductive additive-free electric discharge rusting (EDR) technique is proposed to directly synthesize FeO oxide layer on a pure iron substrate.

Exopolysaccharide-producing bacteria enhanced Pb immobilization and influenced the microbiome composition in rhizosphere soil of pakchoi ( L.).

Lead (Pb) contamination of planting soils is increasingly serious, leading to harmful effects on soil microflora and food safety. Exopolysaccharides (EPSs) are carbohydrate polymers produced and secreted by microorganisms, which are efficient biosorbent materials and has been widely used in wastewater treatment to remove heavy metals. However, the effects and underlying mechanism of EPS-producing marine bacteria on soil metal immobilization, plant growth and health remain unclear.

Directional Ion Transport Enabled by Self-Luminous Framework for High-Performance Quasi-Solid-State Lithium Metal Batteries.

Composite gel polymer electrolyte (CGPE), derived from ceramic fillers has emerged as one of the most promising candidates to improve the safety and cycling stability of lithium metal batteries. However, the poor interface compatibility between the ceramic phase and polymer phase in CGPE severely deteriorates lithium-ion pathways and cell performances. In this work, a fluorescent ceramic nanowire network that can palliate the energy barrier of photoinitiators and contribute to preferential nucleation and growth of polymer monomers is developed, thus inducing polymer segment orderly arrangement and tightly combination.

Clinical evaluation of malignancy diagnosis of rare thyroid carcinomas by an artificial intelligent automatic diagnosis system.

Purpose: To evaluate the application value of a generally trained artificial intelligence (AI) automatic diagnosis system in the malignancy diagnosis of rare thyroid carcinomas, such as follicular thyroid carcinoma, medullary thyroid carcinoma, primary thyroid lymphoma and anaplastic thyroid carcinoma and compare the diagnostic performance with radiologists of different experience levels.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 342 patients with 378 thyroid nodules that included 196 rare malignant nodules by using postoperative pathology as the gold standard, and compared the diagnostic performances of three radiologists (one junior, one mid-level, one senior) and that of AI automatic diagnosis system.

Results: The accuracy of the AI system in malignancy diagnosis was 0.

Discovery of carbon-based strongest and hardest amorphous material.

Carbon is one of the most fascinating elements due to its structurally diverse allotropic forms stemming from its bonding varieties (, and ). Exploring new forms of carbon has been the eternal theme of scientific research. Herein, we report on amorphous (AM) carbon materials with a high fraction of bonding recovered from compression of fullerene C under high pressure and high temperature, previously unexplored.

Low-Temperature Synthesis of Amorphous FePO@rGO Composites for Cost-Effective Sodium-Ion Batteries.

The dramatic growth of the sodium-ion battery market evokes a high demand for high-performance cathodes. In this work, a nanosized amorphous FePO@rGO composite is developed using coprecipitation combined with low-temperature hydrothermal synthesis, which registered a surface area of 179.43 m g.

Ethical issues of smart home-based elderly care: A scoping review.

Aim: To explore current research on the ethics of smart home technologies including artificial intelligence and information technologies for elderly care by conducting a scoping review.

Background: The development of smart home technologies for care of the older adults provides potential solutions to reduce the caregiver burden within families where they are urgently needed. Building an ethical system to support the application of these technical products should be explored.

AI detection of mild COVID-19 pneumonia from chest CT scans.

Objectives: An artificial intelligence model was adopted to identify mild COVID-19 pneumonia from computed tomography (CT) volumes, and its diagnostic performance was then evaluated.

Methods: In this retrospective multicenter study, an atrous convolution-based deep learning model was established for the computer-assisted diagnosis of mild COVID-19 pneumonia. The dataset included 2087 chest CT exams collected from four hospitals between 1 January 2019 and 31 May 2020.

Extraction of Lithium from Single-Crystalline Lithium Manganese Oxide Nanotubes Using Ammonium Peroxodisulfate.

In this work, a spinel single-crystalline LiMnO has been successfully synthesized using β-MnO nanotubes as the self-sacrifice template. The tubular morphology was retained through solid-state reactions, attributed to a minimal structural reorganization from tetragonal β-MnO to spinel LiMnO. The materials were investigated as sorbents for lithium recovery from LiCl solutions, recycled using HSO and (NH)SO.

Ultrasonic identification and regression analysis of 294 thyroid follicular tumors.

Context: We analyzed the clinical features and ultrasound image features of follicular thyroid carcinoma (FTC) and follicular thyroid adenoma (FTA).

Aims: This study aimed to identify ultrasonographic differences and correlations between FTC and FTA. Meanwhile, ultrasonographic manifestations of thyroid follicular tumor were also retrospectively analyzed.

Methodology of dose calculation for external beam radiation combined with high dose rate brachytherapy in the era of 3-dimensional treatment planning system.

Intracavitary application of brachytherapy (BT) sources followed by external beam radiation is essential for the local treatment of carcinoma of the cervix, postate, and nasopharynx. Dose distribution of external beam radiation plus BT can be challenging for the planning system because of their dose calculation by 2 different treatment planning system (TPS). The aims of this study were to introduce a novel iterative method of dose calculation preformed in the Pinnacle plan and evaluate a combined dose distribution for external beam radiation and BT.

Survival without concurrent chemotherapy for locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with induction chemotherapy plus intensity-modulated radiotherapy: Single-center experience from an endemic area.

Although induction chemotherapy (IC) combined with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) plus concurrent chemotherapy (CC) is the new standard treatment option in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), many patients fail to receive CC. The aim of this study was to investigate long-term survival outcomes and toxicities in these patients who are treated with IC before IMRT without CC.We retrospectively reviewed 332 untreated, newly diagnosed locoregionally advanced NPC patients who received IC before IMRT alone at our institution from May 2008 through April 2014.