Advancements in Cartilage Tissue Engineering: A Focused Review.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent joint disorder that is characterized by the degeneration of articular cartilage in synovial joints. Most of the current treatment options for this disorder tend to focus on symptom management rather than addressing the underlying progression of the disease. Cartilage tissue engineering has emerged as a promising approach to address the limitations of current OA treatments, aiming to regenerate cartilage and restore the natural function of affected joints.

Injury-on-a-chip for modelling microvascular trauma-induced coagulation.

Blood coagulation is a highly regulated injury response that features polymerization of fibrin fibers to prevent the passage of blood from a damaged vascular endothelium. A growing body of research seeks to monitor coagulation in microfluidic systems but fails to capture coagulation as a response to disruption of the vascular endothelium. Here we present a device that allows compression injury of a defined segment of a microfluidic vascular endothelium and the assessment of coagulation at the injury site.

A new disease symptomology observed in wheat is associated with high levels of Triticum mosaic virus transcripts.

Wheat is an important cereal crop globally and in the United States, and is the largest crop grown by acreage in Colorado. In June 2023, we observed wheat fields displaying severe yellowing and virus-like disease symptoms in plants across seven eastern Colorado counties (Yuma, Prowers, Kit Carson, Washington, Sedgewick, Morgan, and Weld). Symptomatic plants were prominent in fields and appeared bright yellow, with ringspots, mosaic patterning, and streaking on leaves.

Virulence Characterization and Population Structure of f. sp. in Henan Province, China.

Wheat stripe rust, caused by f. sp. (), poses a significant threat to wheat production, particularly in Henan province, which produces more than 36 million tons of wheat grain every year, the highest production among all provinces in China.

Behavioral intention to receive self-financed and fully-subsidized herpes zoster vaccines among community-living older adults in Hong Kong: A random telephone survey.

Herpes zoster (HZ) among older adults has consistently been a concern. Despite the availability of vaccines, HZ vaccination remains underutilized globally. This study investigated the behavioral intention of older adults in Hong Kong to receive self-financed or fully subsidized HZ vaccines.

Parenting Concerns, Psychological Distress, and Relationship Adjustment Among Patients With Cancer and Their Partners: A Longitudinal Study.

Objective: Studies have found that cancer patients with dependent children exhibit high symptoms of anxiety, depression, and worry. Patients' parenting concerns can negatively impact their own and their family's adjustment to the cancer experience. However, relatively little is known about parenting concerns of partners of cancer patients, or associations between parenting concerns and couples' relationship adjustment.

Associations Between Food Restriction, Alcohol and Marijuana Use and Co-Use, and Consequences Among College Students.

Background: Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use (SAM) and food restriction on days students intend to drink are associated with an increased risk of substance use-related consequences. However, these negative outcomes have been studied mostly in alcohol-only use contexts. Little is known about the combination of alcohol, marijuana, SAM, and food restriction.

Ni-Catalyzed Regioselective Alkylarylation of Unactivated Alkenes in Amines Enabled by Cooperative Ligand Effects of Nitriles and Electron-Deficient Alkenes.

We report a Ni-catalyzed vicinal alkylarylation of unactivated alkenes in γ,δ- and δ,ε-alkenylamines with aryl halides and alkylzinc reagents. The reaction is enabled by amine coordination and can use all primary, secondary, and tertiary amines. The reaction constructs two new C(sp)-C(sp) and C(sp)-C(sp) bonds and produces δ- and ε-arylamines with C(sp)-branching at the γ- and δ-positions.

Antioxidant activity, phytochemical composition, and antitumor capacity of Amazonian fruits taperebá (Spondias mombin) and murici (Byrsonima crassifolia).

The Amazon rainforest is renowned for its biodiversity and as a reservoir of edible and medicinal plants. The phytochemicals in murici and taperebá fruits serve as natural antioxidants, contributing to cultural preservation, ecosystem protection, and economic opportunities. However, limited scientific research on their composition and health benefits hinders their recognition as functional foods.

Factors and Outcomes Associated With Using Scratch-Cooked, Organic, and Locally Grown Foods in School Meals in California.

Background: Incorporating scratch-cooked, organic, and locally grown foods into school meal programs can enhance meal quality and support local food systems.

Methods: 430 California school food authorities were surveyed to (1) evaluate their use of scratch-cooked, organic, and locally grown foods in their programs; (2) identify demographic and operational characteristics related to this use; and (3) analyze the relationship between serving more of these foods and perceived barriers to student meal participation. Poisson and logistic regression models, adjusted for SFAs' demographic characteristics, were used.

Supporting implementation of universal prevention initiatives in K-12 schools: impacts on fidelity through organizational readiness and team functioning in a cluster-randomized trial.

Background: Rural School Support Strategies (RS3) is a bundle of implementation supports (including training, technical assistance, and a virtual learning collaborative) designed for the scale-up of universal prevention initiatives. This study addresses mechanisms of action, exploring whether positive effects of RS3 on implementation fidelity are attributable to improvements in functioning of school implementation teams, and increases in organizational readiness.

Methods: Data are from a cluster-randomized hybrid Type 3 implementation-effectiveness trial of RS3 among rural Idaho schools implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS).

Comparative genomics analyses of Actinobacteriota identify Golgi phosphoprotein 3 (GPP34) as a widespread ancient protein family associated with sponge symbiosis.

Background: Sponges harbor microbial communities that play crucial roles in host health and ecology. However, the genetic adaptations that enable these symbiotic microorganisms to thrive within the sponge environment are still being elucidated. To understand these genetic adaptations, we conducted a comparative genomics analysis on 350 genomes of Actinobacteriota, a phylum commonly associated with sponges.

Optimizing transcutaneous spinal stimulation: excitability of evoked spinal reflexes is dependent on electrode montage.

Background: There is growing interest in use of transcutaneous spinal stimulation (TSS) for people with neurologic conditions both to augment volitional control (by facilitating motoneuron excitability), and to decrease spasticity (by activating inhibitory networks). Various electrode montages are used during TSS, with little understanding of how electrode position influences spinal circuit activation. We sought to identify the thoracolumbar electrode montage associated with the most robust activation of spinal circuits by comparing posterior root-muscle reflexes (PRM reflexes) elicited by 6 montages.

Preliminary study on unlocking growth and yield potential of USDA foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.) lines with NPK fertilization.

Foxtail millet (Setaria italica L.) is nutritionally superior to other cereals of the family Poaceae, with the potential to perform better in marginal environments. In the present context of climate change, ecologically sound and low-input foxtail millet varieties can be chosen for agricultural sustainability.

Activation of Microglia and Astroglia in Unilateral Focal Traumatic Brain Injury in Rats.

The number of microglia cells and astrocytes in layer V of the cerebral cortex was estimated on day 7 after damage caused by a unilateral focal traumatic brain injury of the left hemisphere sensorimotor cortex. Quantitative assessment was performed by counting immunocytochemically stained microglia cells (Iba1 marker) and activated astrocytes (GFAP) at different distances from the lesion site. Activation of microglial and astroglial cells was observed not only in the marginal zone of the lesion of the left hemisphere, but also in the intact hemisphere.

Theoretical and Practical Aspects of the Nonlinear Dynamics' Methods of Heart Rate Variability Analyses in Tachyarrhythmia Patients Underwent Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation.

Purpose: This study explores the use of heart rate variability (HRV) analysis, a noninvasive technique for assessing the autonomic nervous system, by applying nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory to detect chaotic behavior in RR intervals and assess cardiovascular health.

Methods: Employing the "System Analysis of Heart Rate Dynamics" (SADR) program, this research combines chaos analysis with the short-time Fourier transform to assess nonlinear dynamic parameters in HRV. It includes constructing phase portraits in Takens space and calculating measures of chaos to identify deterministic chaos indicators.

Microbial and chemically induced reductive dechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls in the environment.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants and are emitted during e-waste activities. Once they enter into the environment, PCBs could pose toxic effects to environmental compartments and public health. Reductive dechlorination offers a sustainable solution to manage the PCBs-contaminated environment.

Overcoming the conversion reaction limitation at three-phase interfaces using mixed conductors towards energy-dense solid-state Li-S batteries.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) hold great promise for next-generation safe, durable and energy-dense battery technology. However, solid-state sulfur conversion reactions are kinetically sluggish and primarily constrained to the restricted three-phase boundary area of sulfur, carbon and solid electrolytes, making it challenging to achieve high sulfur utilization. Here we develop and implement mixed ionic-electronic conductors (MIECs) in sulfur cathodes to replace conventional solid electrolytes and invoke conversion reactions at sulfur-MIEC interfaces in addition to traditional three-phase boundaries.

Mucosal-adapted bacteriophages as a preventive strategy for a lethal Pseudomonas aeruginosa challenge in mice.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an emergent threat due to the antimicrobial resistance crisis. Bacteriophages (phages) are promising agents for phage therapy approaches against P. aeruginosa.

Computational modeling design of novel NMDAR agonist for the treatment of Schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia (SZ) is a complex, chronic mental disorder characterized by positive symptoms (such as delusions and hallucinations), negative symptoms (including anhedonia, alogia, avolition, and social withdrawal), and cognitive deficits (affecting attention, processing speed, verbal and visuospatial learning, problem-solving, working memory, and mental flexibility). Extensive animal and clinical studies have emphasized the NMDAR hypofunction hypothesis of SZ. Glycine plays a crucial role as an agonist of NMDAR, enhancing the receptor's affinity for glutamate and supporting normal synaptic function and plasticity, that is, signal transmission between neurons.

Timing of pre-retrieval warnings matters in reducing memory errors in a repeated testing misinformation study.

Individuals are often exposed to information regarding previously witnessed events. The misinformation effect occurs when inaccurate post-event information impairs accuracy on a subsequent test of memory for the original event. The misinformation effect is increased when a test is given prior to exposure to post-event information, a phenomenon termed Retrieval Enhanced Suggestibility (RES).

Differential physiological and yield responses of selected mung bean (Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek) genotypes to various high-temperature stress regimes.

The increasing frequency of heat stress events due to climate change disrupts all stages of plant growth, significantly reducing yields, especially in crops like mung bean (Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek).

Factors governing formation from methyl halogens and pseudohalogens.

The formation of following the double ionization of small organic compounds via a roaming mechanism, which involves the generation of H and subsequent proton abstraction, has recently garnered significant attention. Nonetheless, a cohesive model explaining trends in the yield of characterizing these unimolecular reactions is yet to be established. We report yield and femtosecond time-resolved measurements following the strong-field double ionization of CHX molecules, where X = OD, Cl, NCS, CN, SCN, and I.