Organic matter content, source, and composition varying with seasons and anthropogenic activities regulate methylmercury dynamics in the Yellow River.

Organic matter (OM) in rivers, influenced by natural and anthropogenic events, plays a critical role in regulating methylmercury (MeHg) dynamics. This study investigated the spatial-temporal patterns of MeHg and OM in the Yellow River, through collecting water and sediment samples within the dry and wet seasons and human-induced water-sediment regulation scheme (WSRS) event. During the wet season, the river water was characterized by terrigenous OM, high unfiltered MeHg (UMeHg) concentration (206 ± 83.

Retrospective Analysis of the Impact of a Collaborative Multidisciplinary Care Model on the Efficiency of Emergency Care and Neurological Function and Prognosis of Comatose Patients With Emergency Cerebral Hemorrhage.

Background And Aims: Cerebral hemorrhage is often accompanied by severe neurological function damage. The collaborative multidisciplinary care means multidisciplinary medical personnel work together. This study investigated the effects of a collaborative multidisciplinary care model on the prognosis of comatose patients with cerebral hemorrhage in emergency medicine.

One-step colorimetric immunosensing of foodborne bacteria using static magnet driven magnetophoretic separation and dual noble metal decorated magnetic nanobeads.

Background: Immunomagnetic separation is essential for screening pathogenic bacteria to prevent food poisoning. However, free immunomagnetic nanobeads (IMNBs) coexist with IMNB-bacteria conjugates (IBCs) after traditional immunomagnetic separation resulting in the infeasibility for IMNBs on IBCs to further act as signal label in bacterial detection. Although we have demonstrated that magnetophoretic separation at a high flowrate could separate IBCs from IMNBs, partial IMNBs were still found with IBCs due to chaotic flows and resulted in inevitable interferences.

Quantitative analysis of ureteral jets with dynamic magnetic resonance imaging and a deep-learning approach.

Objective: To develop dynamic MRU protocol that focuses on the bladder to capture ureteral jets and to automatically estimate frequency and duration of ureteral jets from the dynamic images.

Methods: Between February and July 2023, we collected 51 sets of dynamic MRU data from 5 healthy subjects. To capture the entire longitudinal trajectory of ureteral jets, we optimized orientation and thickness of the imaging slice for dynamic MRU, and developed a deep-learning method to automatically estimate frequency and duration of ureteral jets from the dynamic images.

The relationship between nutrient intake, lifestyle, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: Results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys 2007-2018.

Objective: More than half of the individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are accompanied by Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study aimed to explore the relationship between nutrient intake, lifestyle, and the risk NAFLD in patients with T2DM.

Methods: This study comprised 2110 adult patients with diabetes from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2007 to 2018.

Unveiling in situ methylmercury production and degradation in aquaculture sediments: Transformation rates, functional genes and microbial methylators.

Methylmercury (MeHg) is recognized as a deleterious neurotoxin with the traits of biomagnification through the food chain and accumulation in edible aquatic products. However, the in situ production of MeHg in aquaculture environments has not been well understood. Herein, the sediments were collected from aquaculture ponds with different rearing operations.

Quantification of tissue stiffness with magnetic resonance elastography and finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulation-based spatiotemporal neural network.

Quantification of tissue stiffness with magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is an inverse problem that is sensitive to noise. Conventional methods for the purpose include direct inversion (DI) and local frequency estimation (LFE). In this study, we propose to train a spatiotemporal neural network using MRE data simulated by the Finite Difference Time Domain method (FDTDNet), and to use the trained network to estimate tissue stiffness from MRE data.

Development of low-allergenicity algal oil microcapsules with high encapsulation efficiency using extensively hydrolyzed whey protein.

Algal oil is rich in docosahexaenoic acid, which is beneficial for infant development, but its susceptibility to oxidation necessitates microencapsulation. This study investigated the effects of incorporating varying ratios of octenyl succinic anhydride-modified starch (OSA-MS) into a base wall system comprising extensively hydrolyzed whey protein (eWPH) and maltodextrin (MD) to produce algal oil microcapsules with reduced allergenicity and high nutritional value, replacing whey protein isolate (WPI). The residual antigenicity of α-lactalbumin and β-lactoglobulin in eWPH was 3.

Isolation of an endophytic yeast for improving the antibacterial activity of water chestnut Jiaosu: Focus on variation of microbial communities.

Recent years have seen an increase in the development of functional Jiaosu products, including eco-friendly Jiaosu and antimicrobial healthcare fermentation products. As a result, research on the antibacterial activity of Jiaosu has attracted attention. In the present study, the endophytic yeast WCF016, which exhibits antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, was isolated from the peel of water chestnut and identified as Candida sake via morphological and phylogenetic analyses based on 26S rDNA D1/D2 region sequencing.

Lignin fractionation and condensation in aromatic-additive-assisted acidic pretreatment and their influence on lignin's effect on the enzymatic hydrolysis.

Factors influencing inhibition of lignin on the enzymatic hydrolysis have not been fully elucidated. This study aims to elucidate the effects of lignin fractionation and condensation on its inhibition on enzymatic hydrolysis in aromatic-additive-assisted acidic pretreatment using 2-naphthol (2 N), 2-naphthol-7-sulfonate (NS), and resorcinol (RS). Through simulation reactions of pretreatment and physiochemical analyses of ethanol-extractable lignins (ELs) and cellulolytic enzyme lignins (CELs) from pretreatment, it was observed that 2 N addition in the acidic pretreatment could suppress lignin condensation.

The screening of priority pollutants in the Bohai Sea based on ecological risk assessment.

The Bohai Sea (BS) is a semi-enclosed inland sea and China's most polluted coastal sea. With the rapid economic development of the circum-Bohai Sea region, large amounts of pollutants have been discharged into the BS, posing a significant threat to human health and the ecosystem. Great efforts have been made on investigating the levels of various pollutants in the BS; however, the priority pollutants which are required for the implementation of suitable environmental management and remediation measures in this system remain unclear.

Probing methylmercury photodegradation by different fractions of natural organic matter in water: Degradation kinetics and mercury isotope fractionation characteristics.

Recent advancements in mercury (Hg) isotopic fractionation research have evolved from conceptual demonstrations to practical applications. However, few studies have focused on revealing fractionation fingerprinting for aqueous methylmercury (MeHg) photodegradation due to its sensitivity to natural organic matter (NOM). Here, the impact of NOM fractions with varying chemical properties on MeHg photodegradation kinetics and Hg isotope fractionation characteristics was investigated.

A press-actuated slidable microfluidic colorimetric biosensor for Salmonella detection utilizing nickel mesh sheet and MIL-88@Pd/Pt nanoparticles.

A press-actuated slidable microfluidic colorimetric biosensor was designed for rapid, sensitive and multi-channel detection of Salmonella. The nickel mesh sheet (NMS) modified with capture antibodies was employed for capturing target bacteria, and metal organic frameworks decorated with palladium (Pd) and platinum (Pt) nanoparticles (MIL-88@Pd/Pt NPs) modified with detection antibodies were used for amplifying colorimetric signals. The capture efficiency of the immune NMS reached 83 %, and the detection limit of this colorimetric biosensor was 35 CFU/mL in 20 min.

Electrostatic spraying encapsulation of probiotic-loaded W/O/W emulsion in sodium alginate microspheres to enhance probiotic survival stability.

Water-oil-water (W/O/W) double emulsions have been widely studied and applied in probiotic encapsulation. However, challenges remain in enhancing emulsion stability, protecting encapsulated probiotics from adverse environmental conditions, and improving their viability. This study aimed to optimize the functional components of each phase of the W/O/W emulsion to address these issues.

Open-window MSR Design with Active Magnetic Compensation Coil based on COMSOL Multiphysics.

Magnetic shielding room (MSR) is one of the necessary equipment for measuring magnetocardiography (MCG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG). The traditional closed MSR only focuses on the indicators of the shielded magnetic field, and ignores the patient's feelings within the MSR. In this paper, an open-window MSR is proposed to solve the problem that patients have difficulty in communicating with the outside of closed MSR and have closed fear.

Therapeutic potential of natural coumarins in autoimmune diseases with underlying mechanisms.

Autoimmune diseases encompass a wide range of disorders characterized by disturbed immunoregulation leading to the development of specific autoantibodies, which cause inflammation and multiple organ involvement. However, its pathogenesis remains unelucidated. Furthermore, the cumulative medical and economic burden of autoimmune diseases is on the rise, making these diseases a ubiquitous global phenomenon that is predicted to further increase in the coming decades.

System efficiency of methylmercury production, an important indicator for evaluating the long-term risk of mercury: From a case study in the Jiaozhou Bay to global coastal seas.

With the implementation of the Minamata Convention, total Hg (THg) in coastal seas are expected to be reduced. However, methylmercury (MeHg) levels in aquatic environments depend not only on THg, but also the system efficiency of MeHg production (represented by MeHg/THg ratio in seawater) whose variations with time remain unclear. By choosing the Jiaozhou Bay (JZB) as a typical coastal system, combined with the published data from the global coastal systems, system efficiency of MeHg production in coastal seas were investigated.

Distinct effects of dilute acid prehydrolysate inhibitors on enzymatic hydrolysis and yeast fermentation.

The effects of dilute acid prehydrolysate from poplar were investigated and compared in the enzymatic hydrolysis, fermentation, and simultaneous saccharification fermentation (SSF) in this study. The improvement of enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation with resin adsorption and surfactant addition has also been represented. A total of 16 phenolic alcohols, aldehydes, acids and 3 furan derivatives in the prehydrolysates were identified and quantified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS).

Multifactorial Analysis of the Effect of Applied Gamma-Polyglutamic Acid on Soil Infiltration Characteristics.

To investigate the mechanism and influence of applying gamma-polyglutamic acid (γ-PGA) on soil water infiltration, laboratory experiments and numerical simulations were conducted using Hydrus-1D. These studies assessed the impact of various application rates of γ-PGA on soil water characteristic parameters. Orthogonal simulation experiments on soil bulk density, γ-PGA application rates, and burial depths were performed utilizing predefined soil water characteristic values (twelve groups: nine groups of numerical simulation experiments and three groups of laboratory verification tests), and the soil infiltration characteristics were analyzed.

Geometric mechanics of kiri-origami-based bifurcated mechanical metamaterials.

We explore a new design strategy of leveraging kinematic bifurcation in creating origami/kirigami-based three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical, reconfigurable, mechanical metamaterials with tunable mechanical responses. We start from constructing three basic, thick, panel-based structural units composed of 4, 6 and 8 rigidly rotatable cubes in close-looped connections. They are modelled, respectively, as 4R, 6R and 8R (R stands for revolute joint) spatial looped kinematic mechanisms, and are used to create a library of reconfigurable hierarchical building blocks that exhibit kinematic bifurcations.

Multi-stage tomato fruit recognition method based on improved YOLOv8.

Introduction: In the field of facility agriculture, the accurate identification of tomatoes at multiple stages has become a significant area of research. However, accurately identifying and localizing tomatoes in complex environments is a formidable challenge. Complex working conditions can impair the performance of conventional detection techniques, underscoring the necessity for more robust methods.

A rare case of acute meningitis caused by Moraxella osloensis.

Meningitis caused by Moraxella osloensis is rare and easily misdiagnosed clinically. Here, we report the first case of meningitis caused by M. osloensis in China by taking advantage of the metagenomic next-generation sequencing technology in cerebrospinal fluid for pathogen screening.

Electrified -Freezing of Electrocatalytic CO Reduction Cells for Cryogenic Electron Microscopy.

The ability to freeze and stabilize reaction intermediates in their metastable states and obtain their structural and chemical information with high spatial resolution is critical to advance materials technologies such as catalysis and batteries. Here, we develop an electrified -freezing methodology to preserve these metastable states under electrochemical reaction conditions for cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) imaging and spectroscopy. Using Cu catalysts for CO reduction as a model system, we observe restructuring of the Cu catalyst in a CO atmosphere while the same catalyst remains intact in air at the nanometer scale.