A Real-Time Mature Hawthorn Detection Network Based on Lightweight Hybrid Convolutions for Harvesting Robots.

Accurate real-time detection of hawthorn by vision systems is a fundamental prerequisite for automated harvesting. This study addresses the challenges in hawthorn orchards-including target overlap, leaf occlusion, and environmental variations-which lead to compromised detection accuracy, high computational resource demands, and poor real-time performance in existing methods. To overcome these limitations, we propose YOLO-DCL (group shuffling convolution and coordinate attention integrated with a lightweight head based on YOLOv8n), a novel lightweight hawthorn detection model.

Association of disrupted circadian rhythms with self-reported periodontal diseases: Insights from 94,305 UK biobank participants.

Background: This study investigates the association of circadian rhythmicity, physical activity, and chronotype with periodontal diseases, focusing on both the independent and combined effects.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 94,305 participants from the UK Biobank. Circadian rhythmicity, measured by relative amplitude from the accelerometer, was the primary exposure, with physical activity and chronotype (morning/evening preference) as secondary exposures.

A Recognition Method for Marigold Picking Points Based on the Lightweight SCS-YOLO-Seg Model.

Accurate identification of picking points remains a critical challenge for automated marigold harvesting, primarily due to complex backgrounds and significant pose variations of the flowers. To overcome this challenge, this study proposes SCS-YOLO-Seg, a novel method based on a lightweight segmentation model. The approach enhances the baseline YOLOv8n-seg architecture by replacing its backbone with StarNet and introducing C2f-Star, a novel lightweight feature extraction module.

Effect of Quicklime Substitution for Cement on the Physical and Mechanical Properties of Autoclaved Fly Ash Aggregates via Hydrothermal Synthesis.

Herein, we synthesized fly ash aggregates (FAAs) through a hydrothermal synthesis process utilizing fly ash, quicklime, and cement under saturated steam conditions at 180 °C. We systematically investigated the influence and mechanisms governing the physical and mechanical properties of autoclaved FAAs by incrementally replacing cement with quicklime in 5% equal mass intervals. Our results revealed that the substitution of cement with quicklime yielded lightweight aggregates (LWAs) exhibiting water absorption ranging from 1.

[Three-dimensional positioning and trajectory tracking of pigeons in large indoor spaces].

Animal localization and trajectory tracking are of great value for the study of brain spatial cognition and navigation neural mechanisms. However, traditional optical lens video positioning techniques are limited in their scope due to factors such as camera perspective. For pigeons with excellent spatial cognition and navigation abilities, based on the beacon positioning technology, a three-dimensional (3D) trajectory positioning and tracking method suitable for large indoor spaces was proposed, and the corresponding positioning principle and hardware structure were provided.

Inhibition of PKC-δ retards kidney fibrosis via inhibiting cGAS-STING signaling pathway in mice.

Kidney fibrosis is considered to be the ultimate aggregation pathway of chronic kidney disease (CKD), but its underlying mechanism remains elusive. Protein kinase C-delta (PKC-δ) plays critical roles in the control of growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. In this study, we found that PKC-δ was highly upregulated in human biopsy samples and mouse kidneys with fibrosis.

MicroRNA-204-5p Ameliorates Renal Injury via Regulating Keap1/Nrf2 Pathway in Diabetic Kidney Disease.

Background: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is characterized by renal fibrosis, and the pathogenesis of renal fibrosis is still not definitely confirmed. MiR-204-5p plays an important role in the regulation of fibrosis, autophagy and oxidative stress. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of miR-204-5p on renal damage in diabetic kidneys and the underlying mechanisms involved.

Association between periodontal diseases and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Evidence from sequential cross-sectional and prospective cohort studies based on UK Biobank.

Aim: To investigate the association between periodontal diseases, airflow limitation and incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a large-scale prospective UK Biobank cohort.

Materials And Methods: Our approach comprised a cross-sectional study and a prospective cohort. Periodontal diseases were determined based on the participants' self-reported dental symptoms, including painful gums, bleeding gums and loose teeth.

Composite polymer electrolytes with ionic liquid grafted-Laponite for dendrite-free all-solid-state lithium metal batteries.

Composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs) with high ionic conductivity and favorable electrolyte/electrode interfacial compatibility are promising alternatives to liquid electrolytes. However, severe parasitic reactions in the Li/electrolyte interface and the air-unstable inorganic fillers have hindered their industrial applications. Herein, surface-edge opposite charged Laponite (LAP) multilayer particles with high air stability were grafted with imidazole ionic liquid (IL-TFSI) to enhance the thermal, mechanical, and electrochemical performances of polyethylene oxide (PEO)-based CPEs.

Coating 3D-Printed Bioceramics with Histatin Promotes Adhesion and Osteogenesis of Stem Cells.

Mesenchymal stem cell and 3D printing-based bone tissue engineering present a promising technique to repair large-volume bone defects. Its success is highly dependent on cell attachment, spreading, osteogenic differentiation, and survival of stem cells on 3D-printed scaffolds. In this study, we applied human salivary histatin-1 (Hst1) to enhance the interactions of human adipose-derived stem cells (hASCs) on 3D-printed β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) bioceramic scaffolds.

Laponite-Supported Gel Polymer Electrolyte with Multiple Lithium-Ion Transport Channels for Stable Lithium Metal Batteries.

Lithium metal batteries have emerged as a promising candidate for next-generation power systems. However, the high reactivity of lithium metal with liquid electrolytes has resulted in decreased battery safety and stability, which poses a significant challenge. Herein, we present a modified laponite-supported gel polymer electrolyte (LAP@PDOL GPE) that was fabricated using in situ polymerization initiated by a redox-initiating system at ambient temperature.

[Development of a flexible embedded neurostimulator for animal robots].

The neural stimulator is a core component of animal robots. While the control effect of animal robots is influenced by various factors, the performance of the neural stimulator plays a decisive role in regulating animal robots. In order to optimize animal robots, embedded neural stimulators had been developed using flexible printed circuit board technology.

Changes in the structural characteristics of EfOM during coagulation by aluminum chloride and the effect on the formation of disinfection byproducts.

The effects of coagulation on the removal efficiency of different fractions of effluent organic matter (EfOM) from wastewater treatment plants were investigated to identify changes in their structural characteristics and the influences on trihalomethane formation potential (THMFP) and haloacetic acid formation potential (HAAFP). The results indicated that coagulation performed better for the removal of hydrophobic base (HOB) and hydrophobic neutral (HON) fractions than hydrophilic (HI) and hydrophobic acid (HOA) fractions. The removal efficiency was higher under neutral than under acidic conditions for all fractions.

Recent Advances in Animal Models, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Temporomandibular Joint Osteoarthritis.

Temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA) is a gradual degenerative jaw joint condition. Until recent years, TMJOA is still relatively unrecognized and ineffective to be treated. Appropriate animal models with reliable detection methods can help researchers understand the pathophysiology of TMJOA and find therapeutic options.

Sestrin2 attenuates renal damage by regulating Hippo pathway in diabetic nephropathy.

Glomerular mesangial cell proliferation and extracellular matrix accumulation contribute to the progression of diabetic nephropathy (DN). As a conserved stress-inducible protein, sestrin2 (Sesn2) plays critical role in the regulation of oxidative stress, inflammation, autophagy, metabolism, and endoplasmic reticulum stress. In this study, we investigated the role of Sesn2 on renal damage in diabetic kidney using transgenic mice overexpressing Sesn2 and the effect of Sesn2 on mesangial cell proliferation and extracellular matrix accumulation in diabetic conditions and the possible molecular mechanisms involved.

Fermentation of soymilk by Lactobacillus acidipiscis isolated from Chinese stinky tofu capable of efficiently biotransforming isoflavone glucosides to dihydrodaidzein and dihydrogenistein.

Background: The soy isoflavone microbial metabolites dihydrodaidzein (DHD), dihydrogenistein (DHG), equol and 5-hydroxy-equol are generally more biologically active than their precursors daidzein and genistein. Bacteria responsible for isoflavone metabolism have been isolated and identified. Fermented soymilk is a potential functional food; however, there are few lactic acid bacteria capable of metabolizing soy isoflavones.

Bifunctional Solid-State Copolymer Electrolyte with Stabilized Interphase for High-Performance Lithium Metal Battery in a Wide Temperature Range.

Solid-state polymer electrolytes (SPEs) are expected to guarantee safe and durable operations of lithium metal batteries (LMBs). Herein, inspired by the salutary poly(vinyl ethylene carbonate) (PVEC) component in the solid electrolyte interphase, cross-linking vinyl ethylene carbonate and ionic liquid copolymers were synthesized by in-situ polymerization to serve as polymer electrolyte for LMBs. On one hand, due to rich ester bonds of PVEC, Li could transfer by coupling/decoupling with oxygen atoms.

Microstructure, Microhardness and Tribological Properties of Bronze-Steel Bimetallic Composite Produced by Vacuum Diffusion Welding.

In this paper, a lead-bronze/steel bimetal composite was produced by vacuum diffusion welding technology. The microstructure, hardness and tribological properties under the dry sliding condition of the bimetal structured material were investigated and compared with two reference samples, i.e.

Avian nidopallium caudolaterale mediates decision-making during goal-directed navigation.

Previous work demonstrates that nidopallium caudolaterale, which is considered to be an analog of the mammalian prefrontal cortex, participates in goal-directed navigation in pigeons. However, its role remains unclear. To clarify its role, two goal-directed navigation tasks in plus-maze were designed, in which the goal location of one is random, and the other is fixed, i.

Notoginsenoside R1 attenuates oxidative stress-induced osteoblast dysfunction through JNK signalling pathway.

Oxidative stress (OS)-induced mitochondrial damage and the subsequent osteoblast dysfunction contributes to the initiation and progression of osteoporosis. Notoginsenoside R1 (NGR1), isolated from Panax notoginseng, has potent antioxidant effects and has been widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. This study aimed to investigate the protective property and mechanism of NGR1 on oxidative-damaged osteoblast.

Analysis of chemosensory genes in Semiothisa cinerearia reveals sex-specific contributions for type-II sex pheromone chemosensation.

Insects employ a sensitive chemosensory system to accurately recognize external odorants, which help them to make a behavioral response quickly. Semiothisa cinerearia has caused serious damages to Sophora japonica L. in recent years, and there is still a lack of effective strategy to control the pest.

[Design and verification of microelectrode twisting machine].

As an interface between external electronic devices and internal neural nuclei, microelectrodes play an important role in many fields, such as animal robots, deep brain stimulation and neural prostheses. Aiming at the problem of high price and complicated fabrication process of microelectrode, a microelectrode twisting machine based on open source electronic prototyping platform (Arduino) and three-dimensional printing technology was proposed, and its microelectrode fabrication performance and neural stimulation performance were verified. The results show that during the fabrication of microelectrodes, the number of positive twisting turns of the electrode wire should generally be set to about 1.

A dual functional bone-defect-filling material with sequential antibacterial and osteoinductive properties for infected bone defect repair.

Infected bone defect healing is hindered by infection and compromised bone regenerative capacity. In this study, we designed a dual functional bone-defect-filling material with a sequential release system, that is, a burst release of a potent antibacterial agent, hydroxypropyltrimethyl ammonium chloride chitosan (HACC), followed by a controlled release of osteoinductive bone morphogenic protein (BMP2) to repair the infected bone defect. Minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of HACC against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was 40 μg/mL.