Epitaxy Orientation and Kinetics Diagnosis for Zinc Electrodeposition.

An accurate assessment of the electrodeposition mechanism is essential for evaluating the electrochemical stability and reversibility of the metal anodes. Multiple strategies aimed at uniform Zn deposition have been extensively reported, yet it is challenging to clarify the Zn crystal growth regularity and activity due to the obscured physicochemical properties of as-deposited Zn. Herein, we present a protocol for elucidating the controlled epitaxial growth process of Zn crystals and quantifying their surface electrochemical activity using scanning electrochemical microscopy.

Plant Architecture Optimizes the Trait-Based Description and Classification of Vegetation.

Trait-based approaches offer valuable perspectives for vegetation classification, but functional traits struggle to capture resource allocation among competing plants, showing limitations across scales. This study aimed to introduce plant architecture to enhance trait-based vegetation classification. Based on a forest transect survey along China's eastern coast from 2021 to 2023, data from 32 plots of coastal dwarf forests (CDF), characterized primarily by reduced plant height, and normal noncoastal dwarf forests (NCDF) were obtained.

Metabonomics analysis of decidual tissue in patients with recurrent spontaneous abortion.

Objective: This study aimed to delineate the metabolic differences and identify enriched pathways in the decidual tissue of patients with recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) compared to normal pregnant women.

Methods: A cohort of 25 RSA patients and 25 normal pregnant women was recruited for the study. Non-targeted metabolomic analysis of decidual tissue was conducted using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS).

Strain-Mediated Second Harmonic Generation Enhancement of Bimetallic Metal-Organic Frameworks.

Triggered by the demand of developing practical metal-organic framework (MOF) based nonlinear optical (NLO) devices, there is a surge of research interest in the regulation of NLO properties of MOFs. Strain engineering provides a new opportunity to regulate the optoelectronic properties of materials and device performance at the interface. Here we introduce the induction of the strain field in structures by constructing bimetallic Zn/Cu-MOFs.

Pre-Grafting Exposure to Root-Promoting Compounds Improves Top-Grafting Performance of Citrus Trees.

Top grafting is an efficient and practical technique for the renewal and rejuvenation of citrus trees in old orchards. However, root death after top grafting restricts plant growth and canopy reconstruction. Thus, applications of rooting promotion substances before citrus top grafting may increase the amount and activity of roots, thereby enhancing top-grafted plant performance.

Microfluidic channel of dual grating structures for directional fluorescence emission enhancement.

One-dimensional (1D) gratings can control the intensity and direction of fluorescence emission, which are widely applied in biological detection. However, they are limited in bio-detection due to the small region for light-matter interaction. In this work, we propose a microfluidic channel with a dual-grating structure, which, as shown by numerical simulations, has excellent directional fluorescence enhancement, with an enhancement of more than 100-fold.

Research on Plant Genomics and Breeding: 2023.

Over the past two decades, the rapid progress made in plant breeding has been significantly driven by the integration of knowledge in the fields of plant genomics and genetics, and by the application of state-of-the-art biotechnologies [...

The tea cultivar 'Chungui' with jasmine-like aroma: From genome and epigenome to quality.

'Chungui' is a newly promoted tea cultivar in China, renowned for producing oolong tea with a distinctive jasmine-like aroma. However, the genetic basis of this unique aroma remains unclear. In this study, the 'Chungui' genome, one of the most complete and well-annotated tea genomes, was assembled using PacBio HiFi reads and Hi-C sequencing.

Enhanced continuous atmospheric water harvesting with scalable hygroscopic gel driven by natural sunlight and wind.

Sorption-based atmospheric water harvesting (SAWH) has received unprecedented attention as a future water and energy platform. However, the water productivity of SAWH systems is still constrained by the slow sorption kinetics at material and component levels and inefficient condensation. Here, we report a facile method to prepare hygroscopic interconnected porous gel (HIPG) with fast sorption-desorption kinetics, high scalability and stability, and strong adhesion property for highly efficient SAWH.

Predicting Pathological Characteristics of HER2-Positive Breast Cancer from Ultrasound Images: a Deep Ensemble Approach.

The objective is to evaluate the feasibility of utilizing ultrasound images in identifying critical prognostic biomarkers for HER2-positive breast cancer (HER2 + BC). This study enrolled 512 female patients diagnosed with HER2-positive breast cancer through pathological validation at our institution from January 2016 to December 2021. Five distinct deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) and a deep ensemble (DE) approach were trained to classify axillary lymph node involvement (ALNM), lymphovascular invasion (LVI), and histological grade (HG).

Bacterial outer membrane vesicles increase polymyxin resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa while inhibiting its quorum sensing.

The persistent emergence of multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogens is leading to a decline in the therapeutic efficacy of antibiotics, with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) emerging as a notable threat. We investigated the antibiotic resistance and quorum sensing (QS) system of P.

Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs) in China Over the Past Half-Century: Stocks, Flows, Fates, and Ecological Risks.

China is a significant producer and consumer of various brominated flame retardants (BFRs), raising environmental concerns due to their widespread presence and potential threats to ecosystems and organisms. This study adopts a life cycle perspective, combining material flow analysis, multimedia environmental modeling, and ecological risk assessment to systematically analyze the substance metabolism and ecological risks of six BFR types in China from 1970 to 2021. The findings reveal that China's cumulative BFR consumption reached 3.

An injectable and coagulation-independent Tetra-PEG hydrogel bioadhesive for post-extraction hemostasis and alveolar bone regeneration.

Effective control of post-extraction hemorrhage and alveolar bone resorption is critical for successful extraction socket treatment, which remains an unmet clinical challenge. Herein, an injectable Tetra-PEG hydrogel that possesses rapid gelation, firm tissue adhesion, high mechanical strength, suitable degradability, and excellent biocompatibility is developed as a sutureless and coagulation-independent bioadhesive for the management of extraction sockets. Our results demonstrate that the rapid and robust adhesive sealing of the extraction socket by the Tetra-PEG hydrogel can provide reliable protection for the underlying wound and stabilize blood clots to facilitate tissue healing.

Role of TAP1 in the identification of immune-hot tumor microenvironment and its prognostic significance for immunotherapeutic efficacy in gastric carcinoma.

Background: Gastric cancer (GC), a multifaceted gastrointestinal malignancy, is the fourth most prevalent contributor to cancer-related fatalities globally. As a member of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) family, transporter associated with antigen processing 1 (TAP1) is crucial for conveying antigen peptides from the cytoplasm to the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum and subsequently loading them onto the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules. Recent studies have established the biological significance of TAP1 in upholding tumor survival and facilitating immune evasion by remodeling the tumor microenvironment (TME) and orchestrating immune infiltration.

Personalized drug screening using patient-derived organoid and its clinical relevance in gastric cancer.

The efficacy of chemotherapy varies significantly among patients with gastric cancer (GC), and there is currently no effective strategy to predict chemotherapeutic outcomes. In this study, we successfully establish 57 GC patient-derived organoids (PDOs) from 73 patients with GC (78%). These organoids retain histological characteristics of their corresponding primary GC tissues.

MRI radiomics enhances radiologists' ability for characterizing intestinal fibrosis in patients with Crohn's disease.

Objectives: We aimed to develop MRI-based radiomic models (RMs) to improve the diagnostic accuracy of radiologists in characterizing intestinal fibrosis in patients with Crohn's disease (CD).

Methods: This retrospective study included patients with refractory CD who underwent MR before surgery from November 2013 to September 2021. Resected bowel segments were histologically classified as none-mild or moderate-severe fibrosis.