Wheat Source-Sink Metabolic Network Dynamics during Grain Filling under Drought-Heat Combined Stress.

Abiotic stresses such as drought (DS), heat (HS), and drought-heat combined stress (HD) frequently occur during wheat grain filling, significantly impacting yield and quality. This study investigated the response of a widely cultivated high-quality, strong-gluten wheat variety (Xinong 979) to DS, HS, and HD at the morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular levels during grain filling. Results indicated that abscisic acid (ABA) accumulation ability and proline accumulation were significantly enhanced under HD, with significant reductions in photosynthetic capacity, grain dimensions, and thousand kernel weight (TKW).

Comprehensive analysis of the multifaceted role of ITGAV in digestive system cancer progression and immune infiltration.

Background: Digestive system cancers are among the most common malignancies, exhibiting consistently high incidence and mortality rates, yet effective detection and treatment targets remain limited. Integrin αv (ITGAV, CD51) is a significant member of the integrin family, widely recognized for its role in mediating interactions between cells and the extracellular matrix, as well as intracellular signaling. In recent years, ITGAV has been found to have significantly elevated expression in multiple tumors, such as prostate cancer, breast cancer, and osteosarcoma, and was considered to be a key component in various stages of tumor progression.

SnHPO: A Layered Tin(II) Phosphate with Enhanced Birefringence.

As promising optoelectronic functional materials in the short-wavelength spectral region, such as ultraviolet (UV) and deep UV, phosphates have recently received increased attention. However, phosphate materials commonly suffer from limited birefringence owing to the highly symmetrical PO tetrahedra. We herein report a layered tin(II) phosphate with improved birefringence.

The functions of DNA methyltransferases during the feeding and development of Haemaphysalis longicornis are potentially associated with lysosome pathways.

Background: DNA methylation is an epigenetic modification that plays an important role in animal and plant development. Among the diverse types of DNA methylation modifications, methylation of cytosines catalyzed by DNA cytosine methyltransferases (DNMTs) is the most common. Recently, we characterized DNA methyltransferase genes including HlDnmt1 and HlDnmt from the Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis.

Dynamic Reorganization Patterns of Brain Modules after Stroke Reflecting Motor Function.

Objective: Advancements in neuroimaging technologies have significantly deepened our understanding of the neural physiopathology associated with stroke. Nevertheless, the majority of studies ignored the characteristics of dynamic changes in brain networks. The relationship between dynamic changes in brain networks and the severity of motor dysfunction after stroke needs further investigation.

Magnetically Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Reaction in Mild Alkaline Electrolytes by Building Catalysts on Magnetic Frame.

Under large current densities, the excessive hydroxide ion (OH) consumption hampers alkaline water splitting involving the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). High OH concentration (≈30 wt.%) is often used to enhance the catalytic activity of OER, but it also leads to higher corrosion in practical systems.

Role of AplaeA in the regulation of spore production and poly(malic acid) synthesis in Aureobasidium pullulans.

Poly(malic acid) (PMLA) as one of the important metabolites in Aureobasidium pullulans has great application in a variety of fields. LaeA, a global regulator capable of controlling fungal secondary metabolites, has been identified in A. pullulans.

Neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy improves clinical outcomes of patients with esophageal cancer by mediating anti-tumor immunity of CD8+ T (Tc1) and CD16+ NK cells.

Background: Esophageal cancer (ESCA) is one of the most common tumors in the world, and treatment using neoadjuvant therapy (NT) based on radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy has still unsatisfactory results. Neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy (NICT) has also become an effective treatment strategy nowadays. However, its impact on the tumor microenvironment (TME) and regulatory mechanisms on T cells and NK cells needs to be further elucidated.

High modularity, more flexible of brain networks in patients with mild to moderate motor impairments after stroke.

Stroke is recognized as a network communication disorder. Advances in neuroimaging technologies have enhanced our comprehension of dynamic cerebral alterations. However, different levels of motor function impairment after stroke may have different patterns of brain reorganization.

High internal phase double emulsions stabilized by modified pea protein-alginate complexes: Application for co-encapsulation of riboflavin and β-carotene.

The application of many hydrophilic and hydrophobic nutraceuticals is limited by their poor solubility, chemical stability, and/or bioaccessibility. In this study, a novel Pickering high internal phase double emulsion co-stabilized by modified pea protein isolate (PPI) and sodium alginate (SA) was developed for the co-encapsulation of model hydrophilic (riboflavin) and hydrophobic (β-carotene) nutraceuticals. Initially, the effect of emulsifier type in the external water phase on emulsion formation and stability was examined, including commercial PPI (C-PPI), C-PPI-SA complex, homogenized and ultrasonicated PPI (HU-PPI), and HU-PPI-SA complex.

Synergistic Effect of Ni/Ni(OH) Core-Shell Catalyst Boosts Tandem Nitrate Reduction for Ampere-Level Ammonia Production.

Electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate to ammonia provides a green alternate to the Haber-Bosch method, yet it suffers from sluggish kinetics and a low yield rate. The nitrate reduction follows a tandem reaction of nitrate reduction to nitrite and subsequent nitrite hydrogenation to generate ammonia, and the ammonia Faraday efficiency (FE) is limited by the competitive hydrogen evolution reaction. Herein, we design a heterostructure catalyst to remedy the above issues, which consists of Ni nanosphere core and Ni(OH) nanosheet shell (Ni/Ni(OH)).

Transcriptome Identification and Analysis of Fatty Acid Desaturase Gene Expression at Different Temperatures in 6A7.

6A7 is a low-temperature yeast strain that can produce lipases. Yeast, which is made up of chassis cells, is an important part of synthetic biology, and the use of the lipase-producing properties of 6A7 for the production of fatty acids provides a new pathway for targeted synthesis in yeast cell factories. In this study, we performed RNA-seq on lipase-producing 6A7 at different temperatures (15 °C, 20 °C, 20 °C without corn oil, and 25 °C).

Synthesis of Calcium Carbonate Hollow Microspheres and the Pelletization Mechanism by Electrostatic Attraction of PEG-SDS.

Calcium carbonate is a common natural mineral with a wide range of applications. In this study, hollow calcite microspheres were successfully synthesized by using calcium chloride and sodium carbonate as raw materials in an SDS-PEG system. The results suggested that the appropriate concentration of SDS is necessary during the spherical crystallization of calcium carbonate.

Constructing P2/O3 biphasic structure of Fe/Mn-based layered oxide cathode for high-performance sodium-ion batteries.

Fe/Mn-based layered oxide cathode is regarded as a competitive candidate for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) because of its high theoretical capacity, earth abundance and low cost. However, its poor cycling stability still remains a major bottleneck. Herein, P2/O3 biphasic NaFeMnCuO layered oxide is successfully synthesized via a sol-gel method.

Quantitative proteomics based bioactive proteins discovery and quality control of medicinal leeches.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Leech, a classical traditional Chinese medicine for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, is mainly used in the clinical treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The discovery of activity proteins or peptides in the dead and dried medicinal leech is an important task with great challenges.

Aim Of The Study: The aim of this study was to provide a basic proteome profile and help further discover active proteins and quality control for medicinal leeches, which would also provide insight into the research of animal medicines.

Thangka Image Captioning Based on Semantic Concept Prompt and Multimodal Feature Optimization.

Thangka images exhibit a high level of diversity and richness, and the existing deep learning-based image captioning methods generate poor accuracy and richness of Chinese captions for Thangka images. To address this issue, this paper proposes a Semantic Concept Prompt and Multimodal Feature Optimization network (SCAMF-Net). The Semantic Concept Prompt (SCP) module is introduced in the text encoding stage to obtain more semantic information about the Thangka by introducing contextual prompts, thus enhancing the richness of the description content.

Acupuncture Alters Brain's Dynamic Functional Network Connectivity in Stroke Patients with Motor Dysfunction: A Randomised Controlled Neuroimaging Trial.

Objectives: Neuroimaging studies have confirmed that acupuncture can promote static functional reorganization in poststroke patients with motor dysfunction. But its effect on dynamic brain networks remains unclear. This study is aimed at investigating how acupuncture affected the brain's dynamic functional network connectivity (dFNC) after ischemic stroke.

"Carbon in Metal" Anode with High Processability for Sodium Metal Batteries.

Sodium metal batteries are ideal candidates for next-generation grid-level energy storage systems. However, severe obstacles pertain with regard to the usage of metallic Na, including poor processability, dendrite growth, and violent side reactions. Herein, we design a "carbon in metal" anode (denoted as CiM) via a facile method by rolling a controllable amount of mesoporous carbon powder into the Na metal.

Mesoporous TiO Coatings Regulate ZnO Nanoparticle Loading and Zn Release on Titanium Dental Implants for Sustained Osteogenic and Antibacterial Activity.

Two major issues are currently hindering the clinical practice of titanium dental implants for the lack of biological activities: immediate/early loading risks and peri-implantitis. To solve these issues, it is urgent to develop multifunctional implants modified with effective osteogenic and antibacterial properties. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) possess superior antibacterial activity; however, they can rapidly release Zn, causing cytotoxicity.

The phytochemical and pharmacological profile of taraxasterol.

Taraxasterol is one of the bioactive triterpenoids found in dandelion, a member of the family Asteraceae. In the animal or cellular models of several ailments, including liver damage, gastritis, colitis, arthritis, pneumonia, tumors, and immune system diseases, taraxasterol has been shown to have significant preventive and therapeutic effects. This review aims to evaluate the current state of research and provide an overview of the possible applications of taraxasterol in various diseases.

Metabolic profiling of lysophosphatidylcholines in chlorpromazine hydrochloride- and -acetyl--amino-phenoltriptolide-induced liver injured rats based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Chlorpromazine hydrochloride (CH) and -acetyl--amino-phenoltriptolide (APAP) are typical acentral dopamine receptor antagonists and antipyretic analgesics in clinical applications, respectively. However, it has been reported that these 2 drugs could cause liver damage. Lysophosphatidylcholines (LPCs) have multiple physiological functions and are metabolized primarily in the liver, where it undergoes significant changes when the liver is damaged.

Comparative Study of Heat- and Enzyme-Induced Emulsion Gels Formed by Gelatin and Whey Protein Isolate: Physical Properties and Formation Mechanism.

Emulsion gels have received increasing attention due to their unique physicochemical properties. In this paper, gelatin and whey protein isolate (WPI) were used to construct emulsion-filled gels by heat-induced or enzyme-induced methods, and their rheology, texture properties and microstructure were explored and compared. The effect of the preparation methods, emulsion droplet characteristics and gel matrix concentration on the elastic modulus and hardness of the gels were firstly investigated, then the key control factors were picked out by calculating the Pearson correlation index, and the design principle was constructed by combining these factors flexibly for emulsion gels with adjustable texture.

New insights into physicochemical properties of different particulate size-fractions and dissolved organic matter derived from biochars and their sorption capacity for phenanthrene.

To improve the knowledge of the heterogeneity and sorption behavior of biochars on hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs), pristine biochars (PBCs, 400 and 700 °C) were fractionated into four particulate fractions (SBCs) and dissolved organic matter derived from biochars (DBC), then the sorption capacities of them towards phenanthrene were examined. Results showed that the OC-normalized sorption distribution coefficients (K) of PBCs were generally at intermediate levels among that of SBCs and DBCs. The logK values of SBCs increased as particle sizes decreased.

Concurrent anaerobic chromate bio-reduction and pentachlorophenol bio-degradation in a synthetic aquifer.

Chromate [Cr(VI)] and pentachlorophenol (PCP) coexist widely in the environment and are highly toxic to public health. However, whether Cr(VI) bio-reduction is accompanied by PCP bio-degradation and how microbial communities can keep long-term stability to mediate these bioprocesses in aquifer remain elusive. Herein, we conducted a 365-day continuous column experiment, during which the concurrent removals of Cr(VI) and PCP were realized under anaerobic condition.

Identification of fragments binding to SARS-CoV-2 nsp10 reveals ligand-binding sites in conserved interfaces between nsp10 and nsp14/nsp16.

Since the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in 2019, Covid-19 has developed into a serious threat to our health, social and economic systems. Although vaccines have been developed in a tour-de-force and are now increasingly available, repurposing of existing drugs has been less successful. There is a clear need to develop new drugs against SARS-CoV-2 that can also be used against future coronavirus infections.