Improving mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Al-Cu-Mg matrix composites by GNPs and sc additions.

To enhance the mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Al-Cu-Mg-based composites, aluminum matrix composites containing scandium (Sc) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) were fabricated by means of stepwise ball milling, vacuum hot pressing sintering, and hot rolling techniques. When Sc and GNPs were incorporated at concentrations of 0.1 wt% and 0.

Enhanced sensing of dinotefuran in foods based on BC/ZnCo MOF@PBA nano-enzyme induced MIECL sensor.

Natural enzymes can increase the signal of electrochemiluminescence. However, they are expensive and environmentally demanding. Here, the hollow prussian blue analogues decorated and biomass-derived carbon doped ZnCo metal-organic framework nano-enzyme was designed via self-assembly method.

Left Ventricular 3-Dimensional Global Longitudinal Strain Predicts All-Cause Mortality in Patients With Heart Transplant.

Background: The prognostic value of 3-dimensional (3D)-left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LVGLS) in recipients of heart transplant (HT) reremains unknown. This study aimed to determine whether 3D-LVGLS was the more powerful predictor of poor outcomes in recipients of HT compared with 2-dimensional (2D)-LVGLS.

Methods And Results: All consecutive adult patients who received HT and underwent at least 1 comprehensive 2D and 3D transthoracic echocardiographic examination for clinical surveillance were retrospectively enrolled.

Enhanced detection and molecular modeling of adaptive mutations in SARS-CoV-2 coding and non-coding regions using the c/µ test.

Accurately identifying mutations under beneficial selection in viral genomes is crucial for understanding their molecular evolution and pathogenicity. Traditional methods like the Ka/Ks test, which assesses non-synonymous (Ka) versus synonymous (Ks) substitution rates, assume that synonymous substitutions at synonymous sites are neutral and thus is equal to the mutation rate (µ). Yet, evidence suggests that synonymous sites in translated regions (TRs) and untranslated regions (UTRs) can be under strong beneficial selection (Ks > µ) and strongly conserved (Ks ≈ 0), leading to false predictions of adaptive mutations from codon-by-codon Ka/Ks analysis.

An iridium(III) complex-based luminogenic probe for high-throughput screening of hydrogen sulfide donors in living cells.

The scarcity of suitable high-throughput screening technology for hydrogen sulfide (HS) donors has hampered the discovery of HS donors. In this study, a long-lived cyclometalated iridium complex was rationally designed as a mitochondria-targeted HS probe to monitor the real-time dynamic change of HS. By using the time-resolved emission spectroscopy (TRES) technique, an anti-interference high-throughput screening system was developed to monitor HS in living cells with decreased false negative results.

Identification of TRIM52 as a potential biomarker in mortality risk assessment in patients with sepsis.

Introduction: Sepsis is one of the most common causes of death among hospitalized patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). It is particularly difficult to diagnose in this setting because of the multiple comorbidities and underlying diseases that these patients present. In the clinical diagnosis, the current recommendation for identifying both sepsis and septic shock is the use of the SOFA score (sequential organ failure assessment score).

Revealing the structural influence mechanism of intrinsic potassium/calcium elements on bio-waste-derived hard carbon for sodium-ion batteries.

Waste gourd shells enriched with ash-forming elements are selected as raw materials in this paper, discovering that the K and Ca compounds in the precursor not only exhibit the ability of self-forming pores, but also demonstrate catalytic graphitization of the hard carbon during the pyrolysis procedure.

Computational analysis of natural compounds as potential phosphodiesterase type 5A inhibitors.

Phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) is a cyclic nucleotide-hydrolyzing enzyme that plays essential roles in the regulation of second messenger cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) produced in response to various stimuli. Pharmacological inhibition of PDE5 has been shown to have several therapeutic uses, including treating cardiovascular diseases and erectile dysfunction. In search of PDE5A inhibitors with safer pharmacokinetic properties, computational analyses of the binding propensity of fifty natural compounds comprising flavonoids, polyphenols, and glycosides were conducted.

Binding Mechanism of the Active Form of Molnupiravir to RdRp of SARS-CoV-2 and Designing Potential Analogues: Insights from Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Molnupiravir, an FDA-approved nucleoside prodrug for treating COVID-19, converts into N4-hydroxycytidine triphosphate (NHC-TP), which integrates into SARS-CoV-2 RNA by its RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) causing lethal mutations in viral proteins. Due to the risk of RdRp-mediated drug resistance and potential off-target effects on host polymerases (e.g.

Molten Salt-Assisted Synthesis of Ferric Oxide/M-N-C Nanosheet Electrocatalysts for Efficient Oxygen Reduction Reaction.

Efficient, stable, and low-cost oxygen reduction catalysts are the key to the large-scale application of metal-air batteries. Herein, high-dispersive FeO nanoparticles (NPs) with abundant oxygen vacancies uniformly are anchored on lignin-derived metal-nitrogen-carbon (M-N-C) hierarchical porous nanosheets as efficient oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts (FeO/M-N-C, M═Cu, Mn, W, Mo) based on a general and economical KCl molten salt-assisted method. The combination of Fe with the highly electronegative O induces charge redistribution through the Fe-O-M structure, thereby reducing the adsorption energy of oxygen-containing substances.

Homogeneous Deposition of Zinc on N-Doped Carbon Fibers Interconnected with Sn Nanoparticles for Advanced Aqueous Zinc Batteries.

Currently, inhomogeneous distribution of Zn on the surface of the Zn anode is still the essential reason for dendrite formation and unsatisfactory stability of zinc ion batteries. Given the merits of strong interaction between Sn and Zn, as well as a low nucleation barrier during Zn deposition, the combination of metallic Sn with carbon material is expected to improve the deposition of zinc ions and inhibit the growth of zinc dendrites by guiding the homogeneous plating/stripping of zinc on the electrode surface. In this article, zincophilic Sn nanoparticles with low nucleation barriers and strong interaction with Zn were embedded into 3D N-doped carbon nanofibers using a simple electrostatic spinning technique.

Hydroxychloroquine and risk of osteoporosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: A population-based retrospective study of 6408 patients.

Aim: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at a higher risk of osteoporotic fractures. Studies have shown that patients with Sjogren's syndrome (SS) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) experienced an increase in bone mineral density (BMD) after receiving hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) treatment, indicating a potential protective effect against osteoporosis. Therefore, this study is to examine the relationship between HCQ usage and the risk of osteoporosis in patients diagnosed with RA.

Oncogenic and telomeric G-quadruplexes: Targets for porphyrin-triphenylphosphonium conjugates.

DNA chains with sequential guanine (G) repeats can lead to the formation of G-quadruplexes (G4), which are found in functional DNA and RNA regions like telomeres and oncogene promoters. The development of molecules with adequate structural features to selectively stabilize G4 structures can counteract cell immortality, highly described for cancer cells, and also downregulate transcription events underlying cell apoptosis and/or senescence processes. We describe here, the efficiency of four highly charged porphyrins-phosphonium conjugates to act as G4 stabilizing agents.

Design and fabrication of intermetallic NiCo electrocatalysts for the alkaline HER.

The design and fabrication of highly efficient electrocatalysts are crucial for reducing energy consumption, improving hydrogen production rates, and prolonging the service life of alkaline electrolyzers. In this study, intermetallic 1-NiCo electrocatalysts were designed using DFT calculations and fabricated through a one-step solid-state reaction method. The DFT calculations indicated that 1-NiCo presented a lower H adsorption Gibbs free energy and a moderate HO dissociation barrier compared to the commonly used Ni catalyst and disordered NiCo alloy.

Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy Combined with Lenvatinib and PD-1 Inhibitors for Managing Arterioportal Shunt in Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Portal Vein Tumor Thrombus: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of combining hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) with lenvatinib (LEN) and PD-1 inhibitors in treating arterioportal shunt (APS) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT).

Patients And Methods: Conducted retrospectively, the study enrolled 54 HCC patients with APS and PVTT treated with HAIC, LEN, and PD-1 inhibitors at our center between January 2021 and October 2023. APS improvement, APS recanalization, tumor response, PVTT response rate, overall survival (OS), intrahepatic progression-free survival (InPFS), and adverse events were evaluated.

Hypersensitivity of the vimentin cytoskeleton to net-charge states and Coulomb repulsion.

As with most intermediate filament systems, the hierarchical self-assembly of vimentin into nonpolar filaments requires no nucleators or energy input. Utilizing a set of live-cell, single-molecule, and super-resolution microscopy tools, here we show that in mammalian cells, the assembly and disassembly of the vimentin cytoskeleton is highly sensitive to the protein net charge state. Starting with the intriguing observation that the vimentin cytoskeleton fully disassembles under hypotonic stress yet reassembles within seconds upon osmotic pressure recovery, we pinpoint ionic strength as its underlying driving factor.

A real-world study of foreign body aspiration in children with 4227 cases in Western China.

The early diagnosis and treatment of foreign body aspiration (FBA) can significantly improve the overall prognosis of children. There are significant differences in the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of FBA in different regions. Therefore, we conducted a real-world study in the western region of China with over 4000 patients.

Assessment of left ventricular ejection fraction in artificial intelligence based on left ventricular opacification.

Background: Left ventricular opacification (LVO) improves the accuracy of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) by enhancing the visualization of the endocardium. Manual delineation of the endocardium by sonographers has observer variability. Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to improve the reproducibility of LVO to assess LVEF.

Clinical presentation and treatment of four children with pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma.

Primary lung cancer in childhood is extremely rare, with an incidence rate of less than 2/100,0000, and pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma (PMEC), is even rarer. Their symptoms are usually not specific, and there are no guidelines for their management, which makes their clinical management a challenge for pediatricians. The purpose of this report is to discuss the clinical presentation, positive signs, examinations, pathological characteristics, surgical modalities, chemotherapy regimens, and prognosis in children.

Deep learning assisted logic gates for real-time identification of natural tetracycline antibiotics.

The overuse and misuse of tetracycline (TCs) antibiotics, including tetracycline (TTC), oxytetracycline (OTC), doxycycline (DC), and chlortetracycline (CTC), pose a serious threat to human health. However, current rapid sensing platforms for tetracyclines can only quantify the total amount of TCs mixture, lacking real-time identification of individual components. To address this challenge, we integrated a deep learning strategy with fluorescence and colorimetry-based multi-mode logic gates in our self-designed smartphone-integrated toolbox for the real-time identification of natural TCs.

Transarterial Chemoembolization (TACE) Combined with Lenvatinib versus TACE Alone in Intermediate-Stage Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients Beyond Up-To-Seven Criteria: A Retrospective, Propensity Score-Matched Analysis.

Rationale And Objectives: To compare the treatment efficacy and safety of transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) combined with lenvatinib versus TACE alone in patients with intermediate-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) beyond up-to-seven criteria.

Materials And Methods: A total of 107 newly diagnosed HCC patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage B HCC beyond up-to-seven criteria were included in this retrospective cohort study. These patients were divided into two groups: TACE-Lenv group and TACE alone group.

LncRNA SNHG14 silencing attenuates the progression of diabetic nephropathy via the miR-30e-5p/SOX4 axis.

Background: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a diabetic complication. LncRNAs are reported to participate in the pathophysiology of DN. Here, the function and mechanism of lncRNA small nucleolar RNA host gene 14 (SNHG14) in DN were explored.