Denoising complex-valued diffusion MR images using a two-step, nonlocal principal component analysis approach.

Purpose: To propose a two-step, nonlocal principal component analysis (PCA) method and demonstrate its utility for denoising complex diffusion MR images with a few diffusion directions.

Methods: A two-step denoising pipeline was implemented to ensure accurate patch selection even with high noise levels and was coupled with data preprocessing for g-factor normalization and phase stabilization before data denoising with a nonlocal PCA algorithm. At the heart of our proposed pipeline was the use of a data-driven optimal shrinkage algorithm to manipulate the singular values in a way that would optimally estimate the noise-free signal.

Near-infrared luminescent materials: a review of their practical applications and prospective advancements.

Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy has the characteristics of invisible human eyes, strong ability to penetrate biological tissues, fast response speed, non-destructive testing, and avoidance of autofluorescence interference. Therefore, NIR luminescent materials are widely used in various fields, including food monitoring, night vision supplementation, face recognition, imaging, biological analysis, safety monitoring, autonomous driving, and agricultural lighting. However, the lack of NIR luminescent materials with high quantum efficiency, wide bandwidth, and weak thermal quenching still hinders the development of NIR spectroscopy technology.

Thermally Stable Broadband Cr-Doped RbAlPO Phosphor for Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Applications.

The research on near-infrared (NIR) phosphors has become a trending topic, as their optical properties directly impact the performance of the NIR phosphor-converted light-emitting diode (pc-LED). NIR pc-LED has emerged as a multifunctional light source across various fields due to its unique advantages of high penetration and invisibility. Herein, a peculiar broadband NIR-emitting phosphor is presented, RbAlPO: Cr (RAPO: Cr), with an NIR emission range from 650 to 1000 nm and peaking at ∼785 nm with a full-width at half-maximum (fwhm) of ∼1900 cm.

Anti-Inflammatory Resveratrol Protects Mice From Early Mortality After Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

The occurrence of inflammation subsequent to haematopoietic stem cell transplantation is associated with an elevated risk of transplant-related mortality (TRM). However, the duration of inflammation and the potential efficacy of anti-inflammatory agents in reducing TRM remain uncertain. We performed a comprehensive investigation to examine the post-transplantation alterations of inflammatory mediators and to ascertain the correlation between inflammation level and TRM through the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, ELISAs and cytometric bead array.

An adaptive and lightweight YOLOv5 detection model for lung tumor in PET/CT images.

Multi-modal medical images are important in tumor lesion detection. However, the existing detection models only use single-modal to detect lesions, a multi-modal semantic correlation is not enough to consider and lacks ability to express the shape, size, and contrast degree features of lesions. A Cross Modal YOLOv5 model (CMYOLOv5) is proposed.

Denoising complex-valued diffusion MR images using a two-step non-local principal component analysis approach.

Purpose: to propose a two-step non-local principal component analysis (PCA) method and demonstrate its utility for denoising diffusion tensor MRI (DTI) with a few diffusion directions.

Methods: A two-step denoising pipeline was implemented to ensure accurate patch selection even with high noise levels and was coupled with data preprocessing for g-factor normalization and phase stabilization before data denoising with a non-local PCA algorithm. At the heart of our proposed pipeline was the use of a data-driven optimal shrinkage algorithm to manipulate the singular values in a way that would optimally estimate the noise-free signal.

Further exploitation of metabolic potential for catechol biodegradation of Klebsiella sp. CD33.

Microbial-mediated degradation of phenolic pollutants (e.g., catechol) has been a critical concern for sewage treatment, while exploiting the strain resources and fully characterizing the metabolic potential of functional microbes for toxic refractory catechol are the key and study-worthy issues.

Systematical investigations on the influence of Stark splitting of Er on the potential wavelength-tunable of laser and optical amplification in several glasses.

Er-doped glasses and fibers with broadband near infrared (NIR) emission have been widely applied in EDFA. Limited by optical gain band of Er-doped glasses and fibers, it was hardly meet to the demands of broadband amplification in the C + L band. In this work, six glass matrixes were employed for discussing the influence of glass matrix on the Stark splitting of Er and the wavelength of laser output and amplification.

The Cytochalasins and Polyketides from a Mangrove Endophytic Fungus QYF.

Twelve compounds, including four undescribed cytochalasins, xylariachalasins A-D (-), four undescribed polyketides (-), and four known cytochalasins (-), were isolated from the mangrove endophytic fungus QYF. Their structures and absolute configurations were established by extensive spectroscopic analyses (1D and 2D NMR, HRESIMS), electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculations, C NMR calculation and DP4+ analysis, single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and the modified Mosher ester method. Compounds and are rare cytochalasin hydroperoxides.

Patient voices and student insights into LGBTQ+ healthcare: a call for equitable healthcare through medical education.

Purpose: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender diverse (LGBTQ+) individuals have health needs specific to their identities. However, they face discrimination and cis-heteronormativity in most patient-provider interactions, which often translate into poor healthcare. Evidence suggests doctors are inadequately trained to care for LGBTQ+ patients.

Femtosecond laser direct writing large-area fiber Bragg grating based on diaphragm shaping.

We propose and demonstrate a new method of direct writing large-area fiber Bragg grating by femtosecond laser through the coating. By adding an adjustable diaphragm before the focusing objective, we can precisely control the length of the refractive index modulation line along the femtosecond laser incident direction up to 29.1 µm.

Lipid availability influences ferroptosis sensitivity in cancer cells by regulating polyunsaturated fatty acid trafficking.

Ferroptosis is a form of cell death caused by lipid peroxidation that is emerging as a target for cancer therapy, highlighting the need to identify factors that govern ferroptosis susceptibility. Lipid peroxidation occurs primarily on phospholipids containing polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Here, we show that even though extracellular lipid limitation reduces cellular PUFA levels, lipid-starved cancer cells are paradoxically more sensitive to ferroptosis.

Physiological temperature drives TRPM4 ligand recognition and gating.

Temperature profoundly affects macromolecular function, particularly in proteins with temperature sensitivity. However, its impact is often overlooked in biophysical studies that are typically performed at non-physiological temperatures, potentially leading to inaccurate mechanistic and pharmacological insights. Here we demonstrate temperature-dependent changes in the structure and function of TRPM4, a temperature-sensitive Ca-activated ion channel.

Potential biomarkers of acute myocardial infarction based on the composition of the blood microbiome.

Background: It is difficult to distinguish between acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and unstable angina (UA) due to their similar clinical features. In recent years, studies have shown that microbiomes have great potential in distinguishing diseases. The purpose of this study is to describe the composition of serum microbiome in the AMI and UA by 16S rDNA sequencing.

Raman suppression in high-power fiber oscillators by femtosecond-written chirped and tilted fiber Bragg gratings.

Realizing stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) suppression is a key topic for high-power fiber lasers. Here, we report an effective and simple strategy for SRS suppression using chirped and tilted fiber Bragg gratings (CTFBGs) in high-power fiber oscillators while maintaining the compactness and stability of the system. The CTFBG is inserted on the side of a cavity mirror FBG without cutting the gain fiber.

Nanoscale Investigation into Dynamics of Thin Liquid Films during Bouncing and Attachment of Rising Air Bubbles on Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Surfaces.

Investigations on bouncing and attachment of free-rising air bubbles on hydrophobic surfaces have been limited to side-view, high-speed photography of the bubble-plate attachment process. In this work, an investigation of the dynamics as well as stability of thin liquid films (TLFs) between free-rising air bubbles and quartz surfaces was performed using a newly developed multiple-wavelength synchronized reflection interferometry microscopy (SRIM) technique. The effect of surface hydrophobicity on both the stability and critical rupture thickness of TLFs was investigated.

Near-infrared light responsive intensified multiphoton ultraviolet upconversion in nanostructures towards efficient reactive oxygen species generation.

Near-infrared-to-ultraviolet (NIR-to-UV) multiphoton upconversion has recently received increasing attention owing to its promising frontier applications in the fields of biomedicine and nanophotonics. However, the realization of high-efficiency NIR-to-UV upconversion remains a dispiriting challenge due to weak excitation light harvesting and photo-conversion efficiency. Herein, we propose a mechanistic strategy to achieve intensified UV upconversion by manipulating the injected excitation energy flux.

Medical students' perceptions of LGBTQ+ healthcare in Singapore and the United Kingdom.

Introduction: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) individuals have an increased scope of healthcare needs and face many barriers to accessing healthcare. However, LGBTQ+ healthcare education remains scarce, and students' understanding of LGBTQ+ healthcare remains largely uncharacterised. This study investigated the knowledge of and attitudes toward LGBTQ+ healthcare among medical students in Singapore and the United Kingdom (UK), two culturally different countries.

CCGL-YOLOV5:A cross-modal cross-scale global-local attention YOLOV5 lung tumor detection model.

Background: Multimodal medical image detection is a key technology in medical image analysis, which plays an important role in tumor diagnosis. There are different sizes lesions and different shapes lesions in multimodal lung tumor images, which makes it difficult to effectively extract key features of lung tumor lesions.

Methods: A Cross-modal Cross-scale Clobal-Local Attention YOLOV5 Lung Tumor Detection Model (CCGL-YOLOV5) is proposed in this paper.

An efficient LiSrGaF:Cr fluoride phosphor with broadband NIR emission towards sunlight-like full-spectrum lighting.

Sunlight-like full-spectrum phosphor-converted light-emitting diodes (pc-LEDs) require near-infrared (NIR) emission bands to fill the spectrum gap and consequently propel their widespread applications. Although fluoride NIR phosphors have been increasingly investigated, balancing high quantum efficiency (QE), high thermal stability, and wideband NIR emission to obtain excellent overall performance in a single system is still a challenge for Cr-doped fluoride NIR phosphor and is significant for direct utilization. Herein, a high-efficiency and thermally stable broadband NIR emission was realized in a novel LiSrGaF:Cr fluoride phosphor benefitting from a relatively weak crystal field and electron-phonon coupling effect.

Robust femtosecond-written chirped and tilted fiber Bragg gratings for Raman filtering in multi-kW fiber lasers.

We present a robust chirped and tilted fiber Bragg grating (CTFBG) in a large-mode-area double-cladding fiber (LMA-DCF) written by a femtosecond (fs) laser. By implementing the fs-CTFBG into the output end of a high-power fiber laser for Raman filtering, a power handling capability of 4 kW is achieved with a Raman filtering ratio of ∼13 dB. To the best of our knowledge, this is the maximum handling power of a CTFBG for Raman filtering.

Femtosecond laser fabrication of chirped and tilted fiber Bragg gratings for stimulated Raman scattering suppression in kilowatt-level fiber lasers.

Chirped and tilted fiber Bragg gratings (CTFBGs) are important all-fiber filtering components in high-power fiber lasers for stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) suppression. The fabrication of CTFBGs in large-mode-area double-cladding fibers (LMA-DCFs) by femtosecond (fs) laser is reported for the first time to the best of our knowledge. The chirped and tilted grating structure is obtained by scanning the fiber obliquely and moving the fs-laser beam relative to the chirped phase mask at the same time.

Myeloid-like tumor hybrid cells in bone marrow promote progression of prostate cancer bone metastasis.

Background: Bone metastasis is the leading cause of death in patients with prostate cancer (PCa) and currently has no effective treatment. Disseminated tumor cells in bone marrow often obtain new characteristics to cause therapy resistance and tumor recurrence. Thus, understanding the status of disseminated prostate cancer cells in bone marrow is crucial for developing a new treatment.

Novel broadband NIR phosphors YMgGaSiO:Cr for NIR LED applications.

The Cr-doped near-infrared (NIR) phosphors have been extensively investigated owing to their promising applications in biomedicine, food safety detection, and night vision surveillance. However, achieving broadband (FWHM > 160 nm) NIR emission is still challenging. In this paper, novel YMgGaSiO:Cr (YMGS:Cr, = 0.