Hydroxymethylfurfural as an Intermediate of Cellulose Carbonization.

Hydrogen bond donor solvents such as aromatic solvents inhibit the secondary degradation of cellulose-derived primary pyrolysis products. In a previous study, we found that the formation of solid carbonized products was completely inhibited during cellulose pyrolysis in aromatic solvents, with 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) recovered in certain yields instead. This indicated that 5-HMF is an intermediate in cellulose carbonization.

Copper(i)-iodide cluster structures as functional and processable platform materials.

The combination of the copper(i)-iodide entity with organic ligands gives rise to a large variety of CuI polynuclear structures in the form of molecular complexes or extended structures. An appropriate selection of these components allows the preparation of materials showing interesting physicochemical properties and potential applications, mainly focused on organic light-emitting diodes and optical sensors. The most prominent physical feature of these materials is their emission, which can be modulated using the chemical structure and composition.

COVID-19 case fatality risk by age and gender in a high testing setting in Latin America: Chile, March-August 2020.

Background: Early severity estimates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are critically needed to assess the potential impact of the ongoing pandemic in different demographic groups. Here we estimate the real-time delay-adjusted case fatality rate across nine age groups by gender in Chile, the country with the highest testing rate for COVID-19 in Latin America.

Methods: We used a publicly available real-time daily series of age-stratified COVID-19 cases and deaths reported by the Ministry of Health in Chile from the beginning of the epidemic in March through August 31, 2020.

Stillbirth Risk during the 1918 Influenza Pandemic in Arizona, USA.

The 1918 influenza pandemic, the deadliest pandemic on record, affected approximately 1/3rd of the population worldwide. The impact of this pandemic on stillbirth risk has not been studied in depth. In this study, we assessed the stillbirth risk during the 1918 influenza pandemic in Arizona, USA.

soft X-ray absorption spectroscopic study on microporous carbon-supported sulfur cathodes.

Sulfur is a promising material for next-generation cathodes, owing to its high energy and low cost. However, sulfur cathodes have the disadvantage of serious cyclability issues due to the dissolution of polysulfides that form as intermediate products during discharge/charge cycling. Filling sulfur into the micropores of porous carbon is an effective method to suppress its dissolution.

Nucleosomes and Epigenetics from a Chemical Perspective.

Nucleosomes, which are the fundamental building blocks of chromatin, are highly dynamic, they play vital roles in the formation of higher-order chromatin structures and orchestrate gene regulation. Nucleosome structures, histone modifications, nucleosome-binding proteins, and their functions are being gradually unravelled with the development of epigenetics. With the continuous development of research approaches such as cryo-EM, FRET and next-generation sequencing for genome-wide analysis of nucleosomes, the understanding of nucleosomes is getting wider and deeper.

Risk of death by age and gender from CoVID-19 in Peru, March-May, 2020.

Peru implemented strict social distancing measures during the early phase of the epidemic and is now experiencing one of the largest CoVID-19 epidemics in Latin America. Estimates of disease severity are an essential indicator to inform policy decisions about the intensity and duration of interventions needed to mitigate the outbreak. Here we derive delay-adjusted case fatality risks (aCFR) of CoVID-19 in a middle-income country in South America.

Early epidemiological assessment of the transmission potential and virulence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan City, China, January-February, 2020.

Background: Since the first cluster of cases was identified in Wuhan City, China, in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) rapidly spreads globally. Scientists have made strides in estimating key transmission and epidemiological parameters. In particular, accumulating evidence points to a substantial fraction of asymptomatic or subclinical infections, which influences our understanding of the transmission potential and severity of this emerging disease.

Dynamic Stabilization of DNA Assembly by Using Pyrrole-Imidazole Polyamide.

We used N-methylpyrrole (Py)-N-methylimidazole-(Im) polyamide as an exogenous agent to modulate the formation of DNA assemblies at specific double-stranded sequences. The concept was demonstrated on the hybridization chain reaction that forms linear DNA. Through a series of melting curve analyses, we demonstrated that the binding of Py-Im polyamide positively influenced both the HCR initiation and elongation steps.

The high-resolution crystal structure of lobster hemocyanin shows its enzymatic capability as a phenoloxidase.

Hemocyanin (Hc) and phenoloxidase (PO) are members of the type 3 copper protein family. Although arthropod Hc and PO exhibit similar three-dimensional structures of the copper-containing active site, Hc functions as an oxygen transport protein, showing minimal or no phenoloxidase activity. Here, we present the crystal structure of the oxy form of Hc from Panulirus japonicus (PjHc) at 1.

Multi-step hydration/dehydration mechanisms of rhombohedral Y(SO): a candidate material for low-temperature thermochemical heat storage.

To evaluate rhombohedral Y(SO) as a new potential material for low-temperature thermochemical energy storage, its thermal behavior, phase changes, and hydration/dehydration reaction mechanisms are investigated. Rhombohedral Y(SO) exhibits reversible hydration/dehydration below 130 °C with relatively small thermal hysteresis (less than 50 °C). The reactions proceed two reaction steps in approximately 0.

Coordination polymer glass from a protic ionic liquid: proton conductivity and mechanical properties as an electrolyte.

High proton conducting electrolytes with mechanical moldability are a key material for energy devices. We propose an approach for creating a coordination polymer (CP) glass from a protic ionic liquid for a solid-state anhydrous proton conductor. A protic ionic liquid (dema)(HPO), with components which also act as bridging ligands, was applied to construct a CP glass (dema)[Zn(HPO)(HPO)].

Transmission potential of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) onboard the diamond Princess Cruises Ship, 2020.

An outbreak of COVID-19 developed aboard the Princess Cruises Ship during January-February 2020. Using mathematical modeling and time-series incidence data describing the trajectory of the outbreak among passengers and crew members, we characterize how the transmission potential varied over the course of the outbreak. Our estimate of the mean reproduction number in the confined setting reached values as high as ~11, which is higher than mean estimates reported from community-level transmission dynamics in China and Singapore (approximate range: 1.

Estimating the asymptomatic proportion of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship, Yokohama, Japan, 2020.

On 5 February 2020, in Yokohama, Japan, a cruise ship hosting 3,711 people underwent a 2-week quarantine after a former passenger was found with COVID-19 post-disembarking. As at 20 February, 634 persons on board tested positive for the causative virus. We conducted statistical modelling to derive the delay-adjusted asymptomatic proportion of infections, along with the infections' timeline.

Histidine-conjugated DNA as a biomolecular depot for metal ions.

Histidine is a versatile amino acid residue that plays a critical role in the active sites of many metalloenzymes. DNA is an attractive biomolecular scaffold owing to its chemical and thermal stability and easy accessibility. Herein, we report histidine-conjugated DNA oligonucleotides, which were synthesized by combining DNA alphabets and natural metal-binding amino acids, as novel biohybrid materials and demonstrate their use as molecular depots for various metal ions.

Carbonization of cellulose cell wall evaluated with ultraviolet microscopy.

This is the first study of cellulose carbonization in the interior of cell walls. Cotton cellulose was pyrolyzed under nitrogen or in aromatic solvents (benzophenone, diphenyl sulfide, and 1,3-diphenoxybenzene) at 280 °C, and cross sections of the cell walls were examined using ultraviolet (UV) microscopy. After pyrolysis under nitrogen, UV absorption caused by carbonization appeared inside the cell walls.

The role of lattice vibration in the terahertz region for proton conduction in 2D metal-organic frameworks.

We studied the relationship between proton conductivity and the terahertz-regime vibrations of two-dimensional MOFs. The results of spectroscopy studies clarified the essential role played by the collective motions in the terahertz region in 2D layers for efficient H conduction. calculations suggested the collective motion to be predominantly determined by the valence electronic structure, depending on the identity of the metal ion.

Interaction Among Influenza Viruses A/H1N1, A/H3N2, and B in Japan.

Seasonal influenza epidemics occur each winter season in temperate zones, involving up to 650,000 deaths each year globally. A published study demonstrated that the circulation of one influenza virus type during early influenza season in the United States interferes with the activity of other influenza virus types. However, this finding has yet to be validated in other settings.

Spatial variability in the reproduction number of Ebola virus disease, Democratic Republic of the Congo, January-September 2019.

The ongoing Ebola virus disease epidemic (August 2018─October 2019) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has been exacerbated by deliberate attacks on healthcare workers despite vaccination efforts. Using a mathematical/statistical modelling framework, we present the quantified effective reproduction number ( at national and regional levels as at 29 September. The weekly trend in displays fluctuations while our recent national-level falls slightly above 1.

Vapor-Phase Linker Exchange of the Metal-Organic Framework ZIF-8: A Solvent-Free Approach to Post-synthetic Modification.

Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) are a sub-class of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). Although generally stable, ZIFs can undergo post-synthetic linker exchange (PSLE) in solution under mild conditions. Herein, we present a novel, solvent-free approach to post-synthetic linker exchange through exposure to linker vapor.

Development and characterization of EST-SSR markers for var. (Saxifragaceae).

Premise: (Saxifragaceae) includes several infraspecific taxa that are ecologically and morphologically distinct. To investigate the evolutionary history of phenotypic polymorphisms in this species, we developed expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeat (EST-SSR) markers for . .

Assessing reporting delays and the effective reproduction number: The Ebola epidemic in DRC, May 2018-January 2019.

On August 1, 2018, the Democratic Republic of Congo declared its 10th and largest outbreak of Ebola inflicting North Khivu and Ituri provinces. The spread of Ebola to Congolese urban centers along with deliberate attacks on the health care workers has hindered epidemiological surveillance activities, leading to substantial reporting delays. Reporting delays distort the epidemic incidence pattern misrepresenting estimates of epidemic potential and the outbreak trajectory.

Edar is a downstream target of beta-catenin and drives collagen accumulation in the mouse prostate.

Beta-catenin (CTNNB1) directs ectodermal appendage spacing by activating ectodysplasin A receptor (EDAR) transcription, but whether CTNNB1 acts by a similar mechanism in the prostate, an endoderm-derived tissue, is unclear. Here we examined the expression, function, and CTNNB1 dependence of the EDAR pathway during prostate development. hybridization studies reveal EDAR pathway components including in the developing prostate and localize these factors to prostatic bud epithelium where CTNNB1 target genes are co-expressed.

Comparison of surgical and conservative treatment outcomes for type a aortic dissection in elderly patients.

Background: In recent years, surgical outcomes have improved, and positive reports on surgery for type A aortic dissection (AAD) in the elderly are increasing. However, the difference between surgical and conservative treatments in the elderly remains unclear. Therefore, we conducted this study to determine whether surgery should be performed for Stanford (AAD) in elderly patients.