Immune Dysregulation and Cellular Composition in Lichen Sclerosus Revealed by Integrative Epigenetic Analysis with Cell Type Deconvolution.

Background: Lichen sclerosus (LS) is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting skin and mucosal tissues, particularly external genitalia, with a risk of cancer. Its etiology is unknown, possibly involving immune dysregulation and inflammation.

Methods: Study used DNA methylation (DNAme) and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to compare LS with normal skin.

A Novel Dynamic Growth Rod Inducing Spinal Growth Modulation for the Correction of Spinal Deformities.

Background: Growth rods are the gold standard for treating early-onset scoliosis (EOS). However, current treatments with growth rods do not optimize spinal growth in EOS patients, and frequent distraction surgeries significantly increase complications, imposing considerable economic and psychological burdens on patients. An improved growth rod is urgently required to address the need for dynamic growth and external regulation.

Sacrificial Layer for Sintering Enhancements of Ceramic, Semiconductor, and Metal Films: A Universal Strategy.

The manufacturing of thin films through selective laser sintering of micro/nanoparticles is an emerging technology that has been developing rapidly over the last two decades owing to its digitization, efficiency, and good adaptability to various materials. However, high-quality laser sintering of different materials remains a challenge: ceramic particles are difficult to be sintered due to low absorbance; metallic particles are prone to oxidation; semiconductor particles are difficult to process for performance enhancement due to high stress. In this work, a new approach is proposed that employs an additional Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) sacrificial layer to assist laser sintering of different functional materials, which detaches after sintering without contaminating the target material.

Emission Reduction Characteristics of Heavy-Fuel Aircraft Piston Engine Fueled with 100% HEFA Sustainable Aviation Fuel.

With the projected expansion of the general aviation sector and recent breakthroughs in sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), accurately measuring emissions from novel aircraft engines powered by SAF is paramount for evaluating the role of aviation industry in emission reduction trends and environmental consequences. Current SAF research primarily centers on low blend ratios, neglecting data on 100% SAF. This study bridges this gap by experimentally determining emissions indices for gaseous pollutants (CO, CO, HC, NOx), total particulate matter (PM) counts and sizes, and non-volatile particulate matter (nvPM) number and mass concentrations from a heavy-fuel aircraft piston engines (HF-APE) using hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids-derived SAF (HEFA-SAF), adhering to airworthiness-standard sampling and measurement protocols.

Focal volume reduction in transcranial focused ultrasound using spherical wave expansions.

Transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) has been gaining increased attention as a non-invasive modality for treating brain diseases. However, accurately focusing on brain structures remains a challenge as the ultrasound is severely distorted by the presence of the skull. In this article, we propose a promising distortion correction method based on spherical wave expansions.

Atomic Gap-State Engineering of MoS for Alkaline Water and Seawater Splitting.

Transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), such as molybdenum disulfide (MoS), have emerged as a generation of nonprecious catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), largely due to their theoretical hydrogen adsorption energy close to that of platinum. However, efforts to activate the basal planes of TMDs have primarily centered around strategies such as introducing numerous atomic vacancies, creating vacancy-heteroatom complexes, or applying significant strain, especially for acidic media. These approaches, while potentially effective, present substantial challenges in practical large-scale deployment.

Amorphous/Crystalline Urchin-Like TiO SERS Platform for Selective Recognition and Efficient Identification of Glutathione.

Glutathione serves as a common biomarkers in tumor diagnosis and treatment. The levels of its intracellular concentration permit detailed investigation of the tumor microenvironment. However, low polarization and weak Raman scattering cross-section make direct and indirect Raman detection challenging.

The Circle Pure Rolling Method for Point Cloud Boundary Extraction.

We introduce a circle rolling method (CRM) for boundary extraction from 2D point clouds. The core idea is to create a circle that performs pure rolling on the perimeter of the point cloud to obtain the boundary. For a 3D point cloud, a plane adsorbs points on both sides to create a 2D point cloud, and the CRM is used to extract the boundary points and map them back into space to obtain 3D boundary points.

Influence of Different Spot Pattern Lasers on Cleaning Effect of TC4 Titanium Alloy.

This study employed different spot pattern lasers to clean the oxide film on the surface of a TC4 titanium alloy. The variation in temperature field and ablation depth during the laser cleaning process was simulated by establishing a finite element model. The effects of various laser processing parameters on the micromorphology, elemental composition, and surface roughness of the TC4 titanium alloy were analyzed.

Numerical Simulation of Galvanic Corrosion and Electrical Insulation for TC4/304 Galvanic Couple.

The galvanic corrosion and electrical insulation between TC4 Ti-alloy and 304 stainless steel coupled in pipe joints were investigated using the finite element method. The results obtained from polarization were applied as boundary conditions. The simulation incorporated secondary current distribution with chemical species transport and laminar flow.

Unravelling the complex influence of dissolved organic matter on microbial diversity in a salinized lake.

Ecosystems in cold and arid regions, such as Dai Lake - a typical inland, salinized lake in the semi-arid region of northern China - face severe environmental challenges, including salinization and biodiversity loss. This study investigates the chemical composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and the structure of microbial communities in lake water and sediments, offering novel insights into the ecosystem's dynamics. In winter, DOM in the lake water is primarily derived from decaying plant and animal matter, while sediment DOM is predominantly associated with microbial activity.

Dobutamine-induced alterations in internal carotid artery blood flow and cerebral blood flow in healthy adults.

Purpose: Dobutamine, a sympathomimetic agent, is widely used clinically, influencing cardiac output, heart rate (HR), and blood pressure (BP), which may impact cerebral blood flow (CBF), critical for brain metabolism. However, the effects of dobutamine on CBF and internal carotid artery (ICA) blood flow remain unclear, with contradictory reported in both clinical and animal studies. It is necessary to investigate the effects of dobutamine on cervical and cerebral hemodynamics.

Revealing sources for synergistic control of PM, O, and CO in China: Based on social costs of air pollution and climate impact.

China is concurrently facing the dual challenges of air pollution and climate change. Here, we established a coupled modeling framework that integrated a chemical transport model with a health impact assessment model and the human capital method, to quantify the contributions of 150 emission sources (five sectors in 30 provinces) to the CO emissions, and the mortality burdens attributed to O and PM. We found that, in 2019, the estimated premature deaths in China attributed to PM and O pollution were 1,499,073 and 143,420, respectively.

Harmonized technical standard test methods for quality evaluation of medical fluorescence endoscopic imaging systems.

Fluorescence endoscopy technology utilizes a light source of a specific wavelength to excite the fluorescence signals of biological tissues. This capability is extremely valuable for the early detection and precise diagnosis of pathological changes. Identifying a suitable experimental approach and metric for objectively and quantitatively assessing the imaging quality of fluorescence endoscopy is imperative to enhance the image evaluation criteria of fluorescence imaging technology.

Inequitable distribution of risks associated with occupational heat exposure driven by trade.

The exposure to extreme heat at workplaces poses substantial threat to human effort and manual labour. This becomes more prominent due to the global dispersion of labour-intensive production activities via trade. We combine a climate model with an input-output model to quantify the risks associated with trade-related occupational extreme heat exposure.

Realizing an Energy-Dense Potassium Metal Battery at -40 °C via an Integrated Anode-Free and Dual-Ion Strategy.

Potassium (K)-based batteries hold great promise for cryogenic applications owing to the small Stokes radius and weak Lewis acidity of K. Nevertheless, energy-dense (>200 W h kg) K batteries under subzero conditions have seldom been reported. Here, an over 400 W h kg K battery is realized at -40 °C via an anode-free and dual-ion strategy, surpassing these state-of-the-art K batteries and even most Li/Na batteries at low temperatures (LTs).

Dynamic Peptide Nanoframework-Guided Protein Coassembly: Advancing Adhesion Performance with Hierarchical Structures.

Hierarchical structures are essential in natural adhesion systems. Replicating these in synthetic adhesives is challenging due to intricate molecular mechanisms and multiscale processes. Here, we report three phosphorylated peptides featuring a hydrophobic self-assembly motif linked to a hydrophilic phosphorylated sequence (pSGSS), forming peptide fibril nanoframeworks.

Quadruple-band synglisis enables high thermoelectric efficiency in earth-abundant tin sulfide crystals.

Thermoelectrics have been limited by the scarcity of their constituent elements, especially telluride. The earth-abundant, wide-bandgap ( ≈ 46 ) tin sulfide (SnS) has shown promising performance in its crystal form. We improved the thermoelectric efficiency in SnS crystals by promoting the convergence of energy and momentum of four valance bands, termed quadruple-band synglisis.

Linguistically informed ChatGPT prompts to enhance Japanese-Chinese machine translation: A case study on attributive clauses.

In the field of Japanese-Chinese translation linguistics, the issue of correctly translating attributive clauses has persistently proven to be challenging. Present-day machine translation tools often fail to accurately translate attributive clauses from Japanese to Chinese. In light of this, this paper investigates the linguistic problem underlying such difficulties, namely how does the semantic role of the modified noun affect the selection of translation patterns for attributive clauses, from a linguistic perspective.

La Doped Nickel-Manganese Oxide as High-Capacity Cathode for Sodium-Ion Batteries Guided by Bayesian Optimization.

In sodium-ion batteries, the layered transition metal oxides used as cathode often experience interlayer sliding of interlayer spacing and lattice variations during charge/discharge, leading to structural damage and capacity degradation. To address this challenge, a La doping strategy guided by Bayesian optimization has been employed to prepare the high-performance O3-NaNiMnCuLaO (NMCL) cathode material. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the O 2p orbital overlaps with the t orbital of transition metals in NMCL, facilitating the formation of Na-O-La bonds and promoting the oxygen redox reaction kinetics.

[Expert consensus on ethical requirements for artificial intelligence (AI) processing medical data].

As artificial intelligence technology rapidly advances, its deployment within the medical sector presents substantial ethical challenges. Consequently, it becomes crucial to create a standardized, transparent, and secure framework for processing medical data. This includes setting the ethical boundaries for medical artificial intelligence and safeguarding both patient rights and data integrity.

Dynamic biomechanical effects of medial meniscus tears on the knee joint: a finite element analysis.

Background: Meniscus tears can change the biomechanical environment of the knee joint and might accelerate the development of osteoarthritis. The aim of this study was to investigate the dynamic biomechanical effects of different medial meniscus tear positions and tear gaps on the knee during walking.

Methods: Seven finite element models of the knee joint were constructed, including the intact medial meniscus (IMM), radial stable tears in the anterior, middle, and posterior one-third regions of the medial meniscus (RSTA, RSTM, RSTP), and the corresponding unstable tears (RUTA, RUTM, RUTP).

LiZrF-based electrolytes for durable lithium metal batteries.

Lithium (Li) metal batteries (LMBs) are promising for high-energy-density rechargeable batteries. However, Li dendrites formed by the reaction between highly active Li and non-aqueous electrolytes lead to safety concerns and rapid capacity decay. Developing a reliable solid-electrolyte interphase is critical for realizing high-rate and long-life LMBs, but remains technically challenging.

Repairbads: An automatic and adaptive method to repair bad channels and segments for OPM-MEG.

The optically pumped magnetometer (OPM) based magnetoencephalography (MEG) system offers advantages such as flexible layout and wearability. However, the position instability or jitter of OPM sensors can result in bad channels and segments, which significantly impede subsequent preprocessing and analysis. Most common methods directly reject or interpolate to repair these bad channels and segments.