Functional Analysis of NPC2 in Alarm Pheromone Recognition by the Red Imported Fire Ant, (Formicidae: ).

The red imported fire ant () is a dangerous invasive insect. These ants rely on releasing an alarm pheromone, mainly composed of 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylptrazine (EDMP), to warn nestmates of danger and trigger group defense or escape behaviors. This study found two NPC2 proteins in the ant antennae: SinvNPC2a and SinvNPC2b.

Towards scalable memristive hardware for spiking neural networks.

Spiking neural networks (SNNs) represent a promising frontier in artificial intelligence (AI), offering event-driven, energy-efficient computation that mimics rich neural dynamics in the brain. However, running large-scale SNNs on mainstream computing hardware faces significant challenges to efficiently emulate these dynamical processes using synchronized and logical chips. Memristor based systems have recently demonstrated great potential for AI acceleration, sparking speculations and explorations of using these emerging devices for SNN tasks.

Solid pseudopapillary neoplasms of the pancreas (SPNs): diagnostic accuracy of CT and CT imaging features.

Purpose: To summarize the abdominal computed tomography (CT) imaging and clinicopathological data of patients with SPNs of the pancreas and analyze the accuracy of preoperative CT diagnosis and features.

Materials And Methods: Between June 2006 and June 2023, CT images of 120 histopathologically proven SPNs in the pancreas were retrospectively reviewed. Fifteen features, including age, sex, and CT-determined features, were included in a multiple stepwise regression analysis.

Accelerated marine carbon cycling forced by tectonic degassing over the Miocene Climate Optimum.

Global warming during the Miocene Climate Optimum (MCO, ∼17-14 million years ago) is associated with massive carbon emissions sourced from the flood basalt volcanism and ocean crustal production. However, the perturbation of tectonic carbon degassing on the interaction between climate change and carbon cycle remains unclear. Here, through time-evolutive phase analysis of new and published high-resolution benthic foraminiferal oxygen (δO) and carbon (δC) isotope records from the global ocean, we find that variations in the marine carbon cycle lead the climate-cryosphere system (δC-lead-δO) on 405,000-year eccentricity timescales during the MCO.

Comparative Analyses of Reproductive Caste Types Reveal Vitellogenin Genes Involved in Queen Fertility in .

The red imported fire ant ( Buren) is a social pest species with a robust reproductive ability that causes extensive damage. Identification of the genes involved in queen fertility is critical in order to better understand the reproductive biology and screening for the potential molecular targets in . Here, we used the mRNA deep sequencing (RNA-seq) approach to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the transcriptomes of three reproductive caste types of , including queen (QA) and winged female (FA) and male (MA) ants.

Open-loop analog programmable electrochemical memory array.

Emerging memories have been developed as new physical infrastructures for hosting neural networks owing to their low-power analog computing characteristics. However, accurately and efficiently programming devices in an analog-valued array is still largely limited by the intrinsic physical non-idealities of the devices, thus hampering their applications in in-situ training of neural networks. Here, we demonstrate a passive electrochemical memory (ECRAM) array with many important characteristics necessary for accurate analog programming.

Impact of Red Imported Fire Ant Nest-Building on Soil Properties and Bacterial Communities in Different Habitats.

The red imported fire ant ( Buren) is a highly adaptable invasive species that can nest and reproduce in different habitat soils. We aimed to explore the adaptability of red imported fire ants in different habitats by analyzing changes in the physicochemical properties of nest soils and bacterial communities. Five habitat types (forest, tea plantation, rice field, lawn, and brassica field) were selected.

Inhibition of matrix stiffness relating integrin β1 signaling pathway inhibits tumor growth in vitro and in hepatocellular cancer xenografts.

Background: Cancer development is strictly correlated to composition and physical properties of the extracellular matrix. Particularly, a higher matrix stiffness has been demonstrated to promote tumor sustained growth. Our purpose was to explore the role of matrix stiffness in liver cancer development.

Targeting HMGB1-TLR4 signaling by miR-216a-5p elevation alleviates the inflammatory behavioral hypersensitivity.

Neuroinflammation induced by microglial activation has a critical role in inflammatory pain. In this study, we detected the function of miR-216a-5p in the progression of inflammatory behavioral hypersensitivity. Here, decreases of miR-216a-5p and up-regulation of high-mobility group box1 (HMGB1) were observed in complete freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced inflammatory pain model in mice and LSP-activated BV2 microglia.

Preoperative Computed Tomography Imaging of the Pancreas Identifying Predictive Factors for the Progression of Grade A, or Biochemical Leak, to Grade B Postoperative Pancreatic Fistula Following Pancreaticoduodenectomy: A Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND This retrospective study aimed to identify the predictive factors for the progression of grade A, or early biochemical leak, to grade B postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) following pancreaticoduodenectomy using preoperative computed tomography (CT) imaging of the pancreas. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 156 patients were analyzed retrospectively. Biochemical leakage occurred in 60 patients, who were divided into POPF progression and non-POPF progression groups.