Predicting fall parameters from infant skull fractures using machine learning.

When infants are admitted to the hospital with skull fractures, providers must distinguish between cases of accidental and abusive head trauma. Limited information about the incident is available in such cases, and witness statements are not always reliable. In this study, we introduce a novel, data-driven approach to predict fall parameters that lead to skull fractures in infants in order to aid in determinations of abusive head trauma.

Feline Aural Inflammatory Polyps.

Feline aural inflammatory polyps originate from the tympanic bulla and less frequently from the auditory tube, representing the most common benign tumor of the feline ear. Clinical signs may be compatible with otitis externa, media, and/or interna with rare occurrences involving meningoencephalitis or abscessation of periauricular tissue. Traction and avulsion is an effective treatment procedure with a relatively low recurrence rate, especially when systemic glucocorticoids are given after polyp removal.

Synthesis of [Fe[(μ-SeCH)NH](CN)(CO)] and Related Iron Selenoates.

The dianion [Fe[(μ-SeCH)NH](CN)(CO)] ([]) is of interest for the preparation of the selenide analog of the active site of the [FeFe]-hydrogenases. The obvious route for its synthesis by cyanation of Fe[(μ-SeCH)NH](CO) () fails for reasons that this paper explains and resolves. We show that CN cleaves Se-C bonds in .

Green coal and lubricant via hydrogen-free hydrothermal liquefaction of biomass.

Biocrude derived from biomass via hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a sustainable substitute for petroleum to obtain energy and biochemicals. Upgrading biocrude inevitably faces the trade-off between consuming large amounts of hydrogen via hydrotreating and high yield of solid residue without additional hydrogen. In this work, we report a non-hydrogenated refinery paradigm for nearly complete valorization (~90%), via co-generating green coal and bio-lubricant.

Transformation-Guided Genome Mining Provides Access to Brominated Lanthipeptides.

Natural product biosynthesis is nature's tinkering ground for developing new enzymes that can achieve chemical transformations that are outside the purview of traditional chemical catalysis. Herein we describe a genome mining approach that leads to the discovery of a halogenase that regioselectively brominates a tryptophan side chain indole for a macrocyclic peptide substrate, enabling downstream chemical arylation by Suzuki-Miyaura coupling. The halogenase was found to prefer a macrocyclic peptide substrate over a linear peptide.

Social associations across species during nocturnal bird migration.

An emerging frontier in ecology explores how organisms integrate social information into movement behavior and the extent to which information exchange occurs across species boundaries. Most migratory landbirds are thought to undertake nocturnal migratory flights independently, guided by endogenous programs and individual experience. Little research has addressed the potential for social information exchange aloft during nocturnal migration, but social influences that aid navigation, orientation, or survival could be valuable during high-risk migration periods.

Can ecosystem services supply match local residents' perception: Linking macro-ESs and micro-individual perceptions in the Yellow River Basin.

Residents' satisfaction perceptions of ecosystem services (ESs) are essential for the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin (YRB). Existing studies lacks large-scale survey of local residents' satisfaction perception at urban scale within river basins, and has not effectively explored the matching relationship between the ESs supply and the perceptions of local residents. To address this gap, this study develops a database on nine ESs supply and individual perceptions of the YRB, constructs a comprehensive framework to quantify the matching of ESs supply and local residents' satisfaction perceptions, and proposes targeted strategy.

Using harmonicity to facilitate binaural fusion.

Harmonicity is an organizing principle in the auditory system, facilitating auditory object formation. The goal of the current study is to determine if harmonicity also facilitates binaural fusion. Participants listened to pairs of two-tone harmonic complex tones that were harmonically or inharmonically related to each other.

Ecological Drivers of Evolution of Swine Influenza in the United States: A Review.

Influenza A viruses (IAVs) pose a major public health threat due to their wide host range and pandemic potential. Pigs have been proposed as "mixing vessels" for avian, swine, and human IAVs, significantly contributing to influenza ecology. In the United States, IAVs are enzootic in commercial swine farming operations, with numerous genetic and antigenic IAV variants having emerged in the past two decades.

Cadherins and Growth Factor Receptors: ligand selective mechano-switches at cadherin junctions.

This study investigated possible mechanisms underlying differences between heterophilic and homophilic cadherin adhesions that influence intercellular mechanics and multicellular organization. Results suggest that homophilic cadherin ligation selectively activates force-transduction, such that resulting signaling and mechano-transduction amplitudes are independent of cadherin binding affinities. Epithelial (E-) and neural (N-) cadherin cooperate with distinct growth factors to mechanically activate force-transduction cascades.

BiomedRAG: A retrieval augmented large language model for biomedicine.

Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) involves a solution by retrieving knowledge from an established database to enhance the performance of large language models (LLM). , these models retrieve information at the sentence or paragraph level, potentially introducing noise and affecting the generation quality. To address these issues, we propose a novel BiomedRAG framework that directly feeds automatically retrieved chunk-based documents into the LLM.

Neurophysiological Markers of Regulation Success in Everyday Life in Depression.

Background: Self-regulation often is disrupted in depression and is characterized by negative affect and inflexible parasympathetic responses. Yet, our understanding of brain mechanisms of self-regulatory processes largely has been limited to laboratory contexts. Measuring individual differences in self-regulatory processes in everyday life - and their neural correlates - could inform our understanding of depression phenotypes and reveal novel intervention targets that impact everyday functioning.

The Relationship between Body Mass Index and Level of Response to Alcohol Across the Spectrum of Alcohol Use: Total Body Water and Beyond.

Background: A low level of response (LR) to alcohol is a known risk factor for alcohol use disorder (AUD). Although higher total body water (TBW) is associated with lower blood alcohol concentrations and reduced responses following alcohol consumption, the relationship between morphometric measures such as body mass index (BMI) and LR is less clear. This study aimed to examine the relationship between BMI and LR to alcohol, and the contribution of TBW to this relationship.

Enhancing quality of life in individuals with cerebral palsy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of physiotherapy interventions.

Purpose: This systematic review examined studies that addressed physiotherapy intervention approaches to the Quality of Life (QoL) of people with Cerebral Palsy (CP).

Materials And Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search strategy in five databases (PEDro, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar) until 12 February 2024. We assessed the included studies' methodological quality and statistical description using the PEDro scale.

Honoring Hartmut Karl Lichtenthaler, innovative pioneer of photosynthesis, on his 90 birthday.

We honor Professor Hartmut Karl Lichtenthaler, a versatile pioneer of photosynthesis research, plant physiology, isoprenoid biochemistry, and stress physiology of plants, for his groundbreaking and creative contributions to plant science. His innovative research on the chemical composition, ultrastructure, and function of chloroplasts and his detection of the major methylerythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) isoprenoid biosynthetic pathway in plants is key to our current understanding of the physiology and biochemistry of photosynthesis systems. His ingenious use of the powerful laser-induced chlorophyll fluorescence imaging has helped us better understand the stress response processes in plant leaves.

Co-targeting of metabolism using dietary and pharmacologic approaches reduces breast cancer metastatic burden.

Patients with metastatic breast cancer face reduced quality of life and increased mortality rates, necessitating more effective anti-cancer strategies. Building on previous research that identified metastatic-niche-specific metabolic vulnerabilities, we investigated how a ketogenic diet enhances estrogen receptor (ER)-positive liver metastatic breast cancer's response to Fulvestrant (Fulv) treatment. Using in vitro cell lines and in vivo xenograft metastasis mouse models, we examined the molecular mechanisms of combining ER targeting with a ketogenic diet.

Italian Vocal Fatigue Index: Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Validation.

Background: Vocal fatigue involves self-perceived vocal symptoms and reduced physiological capacity. This study aimed to adapt and validate the Vocal Fatigue Index (VFI), a tool originally designed to distinguish between patients with vocal fatigue and vocally healthy individuals, for Italian speakers.

Method: A four-step translation and validation process was employed.

Strong legacies of emerging trends in winter precipitation on the carbon-climate feedback from Arctic tundra.

Changes in winter precipitation accompanying emerging climate trends lead to a major carbon-climate feedback from Arctic tundra. However, the mechanisms driving the direction, magnitude, and form (CO and CH) of C fluxes and derived climate forcing (i.e.

Spectroscopic Methods for Detecting Conformational Changes During Sec18-Lipid Interactions.

Vacuole fusion is driven by SNARE proteins that require activation-or priming-by the AAA+ protein Sec18 (NSF) before they can bring membranes together and trigger the merger of two bilayers into a continuous membrane. Sec18 resides on vacuoles prior to engaging inactive cis-SNARE complexes through its interaction with the regulatory lipid phosphatidic acid (PA). Binding PA causes Sec18 to undergo large conformational changes that keeps it bound to the membrane, thus precluding its interactions with SNAREs.

Use of Bio-Layer Interferometry (BLI) to Measure Binding Affinities of SNAREs and Phosphoinositides.

Bio-Layer Interferometry (BLI) is a technique that uses optical biosensing to analyze interactions between molecules. The analysis of molecular interactions is measured in real-time and does not require fluorescent tags. BLI uses disposable biosensors that come in a variety of formats to bind different ligands including biotin, hexahistidine, GST, and the Fc portion of antibodies.

Molecular Dynamics Simulation for Membrane Fusion.

The soluble N-ethylmaleimide sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) protein complex drives membrane fusion, and this process is further aided by accessory proteins, including complexin and α-synuclein. To understand the molecular mechanism underlying membrane fusion, we introduce an all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulation method. This method is used to understand and predict the conformations of protein and lipids, membrane geometry, and their interaction at femtosecond precision, by describing complex chemical systems with atomic models.

Unlocking the phosphorus circularity potential of corn belt watersheds with biorefinery phosphorus recovery incentives.

As global phosphorus (P) stores rapidly decline, P fed algal blooms continue to threaten critical freshwater resources across the globe. In the Midwestern United States (US), particularly the Corn Belt, biorefineries could play a key role in addressing this issue. By recovering P from the byproducts of ethanol production these facilities could reduce the P content of distillers grain feed, thereby reducing P excreted in manures.

Structure and catalytic mechanism of exogenous fatty acid recycling by AasS, a versatile acyl-ACP synthetase.

Fatty acids (FAs) are essential building blocks for all the domains of life, of which bacterial de novo synthesis, called type II FA synthesis (FAS II), is energetically expensive. The recycling of exogenous FAs (eFAs) partially relieves the FAS II demand and, therefore, compromises the efficacy of FAS II-directed antimicrobials. The versatile acyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) synthetase, AasS, enables bacterial channeling of diverse eFA nutrients through holo-ACP, an activated form of ACP.