Mastering the Copolymerization Behavior of Ethyl Cyanoacrylate as Gel Polymer Electrolyte for Lithium-metal Battery Application.

Polymers with strong electron-withdrawing groups (e.g., cyano-containing polymers) are attractive for a wide range of applications due to their high dielectric constant and outstanding electrochemical stability.

Biomarkers.

Background: Underrepresented racial and ethnic groups have higher rates of clinical dementia symptoms and are given clinical diagnoses of Alzheimer's disease without confirmatory AD biomarkers.

Method: We compared amyloid PET positivity in cohort of all rural and suburban Southeastern participants from a single clinical practice who met appropriate-use criteria for amyloid PET imaging between January 2020-December 2024. We used a paired nominal date test McNemar test to compare amyloid PET positivity proportions between matched racial and ethnic groups and multivariable logistic regression to assess the odds of having a positive amyloid PET scan.

Alzheimer's Imaging Consortium.

Background: Underrepresented racial and ethnic groups have higher rates of clinical dementia symptoms and are given clinical diagnoses of Alzheimer's disease without confirmatory AD biomarkers.

Method: We compared amyloid PET positivity in cohort of all rural and suburban Southeastern participants from a single clinical practice who met appropriate-use criteria for amyloid PET imaging between January 2020-December 2024. We used a paired nominal date test McNemar test to compare amyloid PET positivity proportions between matched racial and ethnic groups and multivariable logistic regression to assess the odds of having a positive amyloid PET scan.

Dementia Care Research and Psychosocial Factors.

Background: Our previous work has found that sexual and gender minority (SGM) or LGBTQIA+ caregivers of people living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) experience higher levels of stigma, depressive symptoms, and stress than non-SGM caregivers and that these outcomes are associated with experiences of microaggressions related to their SGM identities. Guided by the Health Equity Promotion Model, we sought to explore the impact of the environmental context on psychosocial outcomes among SGM caregivers of people living with ADRD.

Methods: Data from a cross-sectional online survey using a non-probabilistic sample of SGM caregivers of people with ADRD recruited via social media (n = 284) were combined with publicly available data reporting composite equity climate index scores across five domains: legal/non-discrimination protections, youth/family support, political/religious attitudes, health access/safety, and work environment/employment.

The Association of HIV Criminalization Law and Disparities in Transplant Education among People with HIV.

While people with HIV (PWH) experience high rates of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), they were historically denied kidney transplantation and prohibited from organ donation, both elements of treating ESKD. It remains unknown to what extent such HIV criminalization laws correlate with the provision of transplantation education to PWH. We conducted this study to elucidate the relationship between these structural-level policies and individual-level outcomes.

Metagenomics reveals spatial variation in cyanobacterial composition, function, and biosynthetic potential in the Winam Gulf, Lake Victoria, Kenya.

The Winam Gulf in the Kenyan region of Lake Victoria experiences prolific, year-round cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs) which pose threats to human, livestock, and ecosystem health. To our knowledge, there is limited molecular research on the gulf's cyanoHABs, and thus, the strategies employed for survival and proliferation by toxigenic cyanobacteria in this region remain largely unexplored. Here, we used metagenomics to analyze the Winam Gulf's cyanobacterial composition, function, and biosynthetic potential.

A Preliminary Investigation of Thermally Stable Schiff Base Metal Complexes for Hyperthermia: Synthesis and Biological Evaluation.

A novel Schiff base ligand (L), bearing NO donor sites, was derived from the condensation of 5-chloromethylisophthaldehyde and phenylpropanolamine (PPA). Mononuclear Co(II), Cu(II), and Zn(II) complexes were synthesized and were characterized by FTIR, UV-Vis, H NMR, ESI-mass spectroscopy, molar conductance, and thermal and electrochemical studies. The thermal investigation revealed that the complexes were stable up to 150-250 °C and began to degrade in stages, resulting in the development of respective metal oxides.

Sub-5 Ångstrom Porosity Tuning in Calixarene-Derived Porous Liquids via Supramolecular Complexation Construction.

Precise sub-Ångstrom-level porosity engineering, which is appealing in gas separations, has been demonstrated in solid carbon, polymer, and framework materials but rarely achieved in the liquid phase. In this work, a gas molecular sieving effect in the liquid phase at sub-5 Ångstrom scale is created via sophisticated porosity tuning in calixarene-derived porous liquids (PLs). Type II PLs are constructed via supramolecular complexation between the sodium salts of calixarene derivatives and crown ether solvents.

Morpho-physiological and transcriptomic responses of field pennycress to waterlogging.

Field pennycress () is a new biofuel winter annual crop with extreme cold hardiness and a short life cycle, enabling off-season integration into corn and soybean rotations across the U.S. Midwest.

Geographic risk assessment of Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans invasion in Costa Rica as a means of informing emergence management and mitigation.

Remotely-sensed risk assessments of emerging, invasive pathogens are key to targeted surveillance and outbreak responses. The recent emergence and spread of the fungal pathogen, Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal), in Europe has negatively impacted multiple salamander species. Scholars and practitioners are increasingly concerned about the potential consequences of this lethal pathogen in the Americas, where salamander biodiversity is higher than anywhere else in the world.

An examination of commingled first tarsometatarsal and atlantoaxial joints by deviation analysis.

This study follows up on previous research conducted by Litavec (J Forensic Sci., 68, 2023, 1780) on sorting commingled sacroiliac joints using deviation analysis. In the present report, the results of this technique are expanded to separating commingled first tarsometatarsal and atlantoaxial joints.

Cell membranes sustain phospholipid imbalance via cholesterol asymmetry.

Membranes are molecular interfaces that compartmentalize cells to control the flow of nutrients and information. These functions are facilitated by diverse collections of lipids, nearly all of which are distributed asymmetrically between the two bilayer leaflets. Most models of biomembrane structure and function often include the implicit assumption that these leaflets have similar abundances of phospholipids.

Palaearctic flea beetle (Curtis) (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae), herbivore of (garlic mustard), new to North America.

Background: The univoltine leaf beetle (Curtis, 1837b) is native to the Palaearctic Region from Japan to western Europe.This species was previously evaluated as a potential biological control agent against invasive populations of the woodland weed (Bieb.) Cavara & Grande (Brassicaceae) in North America, but rejected because it could harm native and at-risk populations of Brassicaceae.

Correlates of Formal Service Use and Help-Seeking Among Caregivers of Older Adults.

Informal caregiving plays a critical role in affecting older adults' quality of life. Utilizing organized and effective formal support helps mitigate caregiver burdens and meet caregiving demands. This study examined the correlates of formal service use and help-seeking in a nationally representative sample of caregivers of older adults, drawing on data from 2017 National Study of Caregiving.

Validation of a Brief Physical Activity Assessment Tool for Adults With Limited Resources.

Objective: To validate a Brief Physical Activity Assessment Tool for the Expanded Food and Nutrition Program (EFNEP).

Design: Phase 1: test-retest reliability based on 2 survey administrations; Phase 2: concurrent validity triangulated with accelerometer data; Phase 3: sensitivity to change and responsiveness and secondary analysis of EFNEP national dataset.

Setting: Community centers and/or EFNEP classes across the US.

Risk Factors for Consensual and Coercive Sexual Hookup Behaviors among College Men: A Daily Diary Study.

Objective: Hookup behaviors (HUBs; i.e., sexual activity outside an exclusive relationship with no mutual expectation of romantic commitment) are prevalent on college campuses and are linked with alcohol use and sexual assault.

Tough and circular glass fiber composites a tailored dynamic boronic ester interface.

Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites are valued for their strength and cost-effectiveness. However, traditional GFRPs often face challenges for end-of-life recycling due to their non-depolymerizable thermoset matrices, and long-term performance due to inadequate interfacial adhesion, which can lead to fiber-matrix delamination. Here, we have designed dynamic fiber-matrix interfaces to allow tough and closed-loop recyclable GFRPs by utilizing a vitrimer, derived from upcycled polystyrene--poly(ethylene--butylene)--polystyrene (SEBS) with boronic ester (S-Bpin) and amine-based diol crosslinker.

Thoughts About Stressors: A Neuman Systems Model Perspective.

In this essay, we discuss the definition and interpretation of stressors from the perspective of the Neuman Systems Model. A distinctive aspect is the emphasis on the client system's perception of each stressor as beneficial (positive), noxious (negative), or both beneficial and noxious. The client system's perceptions of the stressors determine the wellness goals that are needed and guide the selection of necessary prevention-as-intervention strategies for achieving those goals.

Major facilitator family transporters specifically enhance caffeyl alcohol uptake during C-lignin biosynthesis.

The mode of transport of lignin monomers to the sites of polymerization in the apoplast remains controversial. C-Lignin is a recently discovered form of lignin found in some seed coats that is composed exclusively of units derived from caffeyl alcohol. RNA-seq and proteome analyses identified a number of transporters co-expressed with C-lignin deposition in the seed coat of Cleome hassleriana.

Both Environmental Conditions and Intra- and Interspecific Interactions Influence the Movements of a Marine Predator.

Animal movements are typically influenced by multiple environmental factors simultaneously, and individuals vary in their response to this environmental heterogeneity. Therefore, understanding how environmental aspects, including biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic factors, influence the movements of wild animals is an important focus of wildlife research and conservation. We apply Exponential Random Graph Models (ERGMs) to analyze movement networks of a bull shark population in a network of acoustic receivers and identify the effects of environmental, social, or other types of covariates on their movements.

Multi-omic network analysis identifies dysregulated neurobiological pathways in opioid addiction.

Background: Opioid addiction is a worldwide public health crisis. In the United States, for example, opioids cause more drug overdose deaths than any other substance. Yet, opioid addiction treatments have limited efficacy, meaning that additional treatments are needed.

Molecular investigation of harmful cyanobacteria reveals hidden risks and niche partitioning in Kenyan Lakes.

Despite the global expansion of cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs), research is biased to temperate systems within the global north, such as the Laurentian Great Lakes. This lack of diversity represents a significant gap in the field and jeopardizes the health of those who reside along at-risk watersheds in the global south. The African Great Lake, Lake Victoria, is understudied despite serving as the second largest lake by surface area and demonstrating year-round cHABs.

Model-based inference of a dual role for HOPS in regulating guard cell vacuole fusion.

Guard cell movements depend, in part, on the remodelling of vacuoles from a highly fragmented state to a fused morphology during stomata opening. Indeed, full opening of plant stomata requires vacuole fusion to occur. Fusion of vacuole membranes is a highly conserved process in eukaryotes, with key roles played by two multi-subunit complexes: HOPS (homotypic fusion and vacuolar protein sorting) and SNARE (soluble NSF attachment protein receptor).