The investigation of the interaction of warangalone with transferrin as a therapeutic biological macromolecule and the formation of a protein-ligand nanocomplex with superior anticancer activity against lung cancer cells.

Though warangalone has shown anticancer properties against breast cancer cells, its colloidal stability and therapeutic index ought to be improved using a potential strategy, especially via protein-based (nano)carriers. In this research, transferrin was used as a plasma protein for the development of the warangalone-transferrin NPs. To investigate the mechanism underlying the formation of this complex, the interaction between warangalone and transferrin, as well as transferrin NPs, was analyzed using spectroscopic methods.

Rabies knowledge and prevention practices in Gombe state, Nigeria: a community-based comparative cross-sectional study of rabies hotspot and non-hotspot areas.

Background: Rabies remains a significant public health concern in Nigeria, particularly in rural areas with limited awareness and resources. Gombe State is recognized as a rabies hotspot, facing challenges in controlling the spread of the disease. This study aimed to assess and compare the knowledge and prevention practices related to rabies among community members in hotspot and non-hotspot areas of Gombe State.

Biomechanical simulation of bed turning post-acetabular fracture fixation.

Before patients begin out-of-bed exercises following internal fixation surgery for acetabular fractures, turning over in bed serves as a crucial intervention to mitigate complications associated with prolonged bed rest. However, data on the safety of this maneuver post-surgery are limited, and the biomechanical evidence remains unclear. This study aims to introduce a novel loading protocol designed to preliminarily simulate the action of turning over in bed and to compare the biomechanical properties of two fixation methods for acetabular fractures under this new protocol.

Proposing the DN(C)-model of material evidence for well-calibrated claims about past cultures.

Stibbard-Hawkes presents a much-needed case for distinguishing between different types of evidence for cognition in past cultures. However, he does not outline an applicable approach for moving forward in making claims about the cognition of past cultures. We present an initial model for calibrating both absolute and comparative claims about past cultures' cognition and other traits.

A truncated variant of the ribosome-associated trigger factor specifically contributes to plant chloroplast ribosome biogenesis.

Molecular chaperones are essential throughout a protein's life and act already during protein synthesis. Bacteria and chloroplasts of plant cells share the ribosome-associated chaperone trigger factor (Tig1 in plastids), facilitating maturation of emerging nascent polypeptides. While typical trigger factor chaperones employ three domains for their task, the here described truncated form, Tig2, contains just the ribosome binding domain.

Associations of personality trait level and change with mortality risk in 11 longitudinal studies.

People who are higher in conscientiousness, extraversion, and agreeableness and lower in neuroticism tend to live longer. The present research tested the hypothesis that personality trait change in middle and older adulthood would also be associated with mortality risk, above and beyond personality trait level. Personality trait change may causally influence mortality risk through corresponding changes in health behaviors, social processes, and stress experience.

The dynamics of self-esteem and depressive symptoms across days, months, and years.

Self-esteem and depressive symptoms are important predictors of a range of societally relevant outcomes and are theorized to influence each other reciprocally over time. However, existing research offers only a limited understanding of how their dynamics unfold across different timescales. Using three data sets with different temporal resolutions, we aimed to advance our understanding of the temporal unfolding of the reciprocal dynamics between self-esteem and depressive symptoms.

Land carbon sink function variation across bedrock types in Southwest China.

Terrestrial ecosystem carbon sinks are a natural deposit that absorbs carbon from the atmosphere. A stable land carbon sink facilitates more reliable predictions of carbon sequestration under changing climate conditions. In contrast, a highly variable land carbon sink will introduce significant uncertainty into model predictions.

One-quarter of freshwater fauna threatened with extinction.

Freshwater ecosystems are highly biodiverse and important for livelihoods and economic development, but are under substantial stress. To date, comprehensive global assessments of extinction risk have not included any speciose groups primarily living in freshwaters. Consequently, data from predominantly terrestrial tetrapods are used to guide environmental policy and conservation prioritization, whereas recent proposals for target setting in freshwaters use abiotic factors.

Physical embodiment and anthropomorphism of AI tutors and their role in student enjoyment and performance.

Rising interest in artificial intelligence in education reinforces the demand for evidence-based implementation. This study investigates how tutor agents' physical embodiment and anthropomorphism (student-reported sociability, animacy, agency, and disturbance) relate to affective (on-task enjoyment) and cognitive (task performance) learning within an intelligent tutoring system (ITS). Data from 56 students (M = 17.

Training and validating a treatment recommender with partial verification evidence.

Background: Current clinical decision support systems (DSS) are trained and validated on observational data from the clinic in which the DSS is going to be applied. This is problematic for treatments that have already been validated in a randomized clinical trial (RCT), but have not yet been introduced in any clinic. In this work, we report on a method for training and validating the DSS core before introduction to a clinic, using the RCT data themselves.

Reaction of Lactone-Containing Poly(benzofuran--arylacetic acid) with Diamines to Cross-Linked Products of Improved Thermal Conductivity.

The recently developed phenoplast-related polymer, poly(benzofuran--arylacetic acid), presents a versatile molecular structure containing lactone and carboxylic acid functionalities that offer significant flexibility in creating cured materials with tailored properties for diverse applications, wherein also the thermal conductivity is an important factor. This study analyses the possibility of forming amide moieties of poly(benzofuran--arylacetic acid) with diamines resulting in cross-linked products in order to control its thermal properties. The cross-linking process is achieved by utilizing three distinct diamines, 1,6-diaminohexane, -xylylenediamine, and 4,7,10-trioxa-1,13-tridecanediamine, each possessing different degrees of polarity, flexibility, and reactivity.

Sex-associated differences in incentive salience and drinking behaviour in a rodent model of alcohol relapse.

The ability of environmental cues to trigger alcohol-seeking behaviours is thought to facilitate problematic alcohol use. Individuals' tendency to attribute incentive salience to cues may increase the risk of addiction. We sought to study the relationship between incentive salience and alcohol addiction using non-preferring rats to model the heterogeneity of human alcohol consumption, investigating both males and females.

The helmeted hornbill casque is reinforced by a bundle of exceptionally thick, rod-like trabeculae.

Among hornbill birds, the critically endangered helmeted hornbill (Rhinoplax vigil) is notable for its casque (a bulbous beak protrusion) being filled with trabeculae and fronted by a very thick keratin layer. Casque function is debated but appears central to aerial jousting, where birds (typically males) collide casques at high speeds in a mid-flight display that is audible for more than 100 m. We characterized the structural relationship between the skull and casque anatomy using X-ray microtomography and quantitative trabecular network analysis to examine how the casque sustains extreme impact.

A multi-omics approach to unravel the interaction between heat and drought stress in the holobiont.

The impact of combined heat and drought stress was investigated in and compared to individual stresses to reveal additive effects and interactions. A combination of plant metabolomics and root and rhizosphere bacterial metabarcoding were used to unravel effects at the plant holobiont level. Hierarchical cluster analysis of metabolomics signatures pointed out two main clusters, one including heat and combined heat and drought, and the second cluster that included the control and drought treatments.

Extraction of parameters of a stochastic integrate-and-fire model with adaptation from voltage recordings.

Integrate-and-fire models are an important class of phenomenological neuronal models that are frequently used in computational studies of single neural activity, population activity, and recurrent neural networks. If these models are used to understand and interpret electrophysiological data, it is important to reliably estimate the values of the model's parameters. However, there are no standard methods for the parameter estimation of Integrate-and-fire models.

Configurational Field Analysis: a new approach to global field dynamics.

This paper advances the theory of Configurational Field Analysis (CFA) as a reconfiguration of Pierre Bourdieu's field theory, aiming to address the limitations of Global Field Theory in analyzing the complexities of global and transnational phenomena. While the concept of the Global Field extended Bourdieu's ideas to transnational and global arenas, it has been critiqued for its structural determinism, Eurocentrism, and its inability to fully capture the fluid, indeterminate, and contingent nature of global social dynamics. In response, this paper introduces social configurations as dynamic, relational constructs that emerge from specific historical and contextual conditions, rather than as fixed and universal structures.

Earth's most needed uncultivated aquatic prokaryotes.

Aquatic ecosystems house a significant fraction of Earth's biosphere, yet most prokaryotes inhabiting these environments remain uncultivated. While recently developed genome-resolved metagenomics and single-cell genomics techniques have underscored the immense genetic breadth and metabolic potential residing in uncultivated Bacteria and Archaea, cultivation of these microorganisms is required to study their physiology via genetic systems, confirm predicted biochemical pathways, exploit biotechnological potential, and accurately appraise nutrient turnover. Over the past two decades, the limitations of culture-independent investigations highlighted the importance of cultivation in bridging this vast knowledge gap.

Europe-wide distribution and bat-host specific lineages in the malarial parasite Polychromophilus murinus revealed through genetic screening of bat flies.

Malaria parasites of the genus Polychromophilus commonly infect vespertilionid and miniopterid bats, and are transmitted by bat flies (Nycteribiidae). While Polychromophilus murinus has been recorded sporadically in Europe, its host range, distribution and phylogeographic structure have not been explored. Here we investigate the prevalence and genetic diversity of P.

Romantic Relationships Matter More to Men than to Women.

Women are often viewed as more romantic than men, and romantic relationships are assumed to be more central to the lives of women than to those of men. Despite the prevalence of these beliefs, some recent research paints a different picture. Using principles and insights based on the interdisciplinary literature on mixed-gender relationships, we advance a set of four propositions relevant to differences between men and women and their romantic relationships.

Synchronization cluster bursting in adaptive oscillator networks.

Adaptive dynamical networks are ubiquitous in real-world systems. This paper aims to explore the synchronization dynamics in networks of adaptive oscillators based on a paradigmatic system of adaptively coupled phase oscillators. Our numerical observations reveal the emergence of synchronization cluster bursting, characterized by periodic transitions between cluster synchronization and global synchronization.

Non-cadaveric spine surgery simulator training in neurosurgical residency.

Background: Spine surgical training faces increasing challenges due to restricted working hours and greater sub specialization. Modern simulators offer a promising approach to teaching both simple and complex spinal procedures. This study evaluated the acceptance and efficacy of spine simulator training using a lumbar herniated disc model tested by 16 neurosurgical residents (PGY-1-6), and compared 3D and 2D teaching methods.

Dynamic associations between daily acting with awareness and emotion regulation in individuals living with the effects of a stroke.

One often-overlooked consequence of stroke is a deficit in emotion regulation. Acting with awareness in everyday life has been found to support emotion regulation but it is an open question whether such associations generalize to stroke populations. Factors associated with emotion regulation in stroke survivors are key to inform rehabilitation efforts.