Improved U-Shaped Convolutional Neural Network with Convolutional Block Attention Module and Feature Fusion for Automated Segmentation of Fine Roots in Field Rhizotron Imagery.

Accurate segmentation of fine roots in field rhizotron imagery is essential for high-throughput root system analysis but remains challenging due to limitations of traditional methods. Traditional methods for root quantification (e.g.

Diverse Impacts of Microplastic-derived Dissolved Organic Matter at Environmentally Relevant Concentrations on Soil Dissolved Organic Matter Transformation.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is critical to soil ecosystems, with its dynamics influenced by exogenous substances like microplastics (MPs)-derived dissolved organic matter (MPs-DOM) from agricultural mulches. However, the impacts of MPs-DOM, especially at environmentally relevant concentrations, on soil DOM dynamics remain unclear. Here, we examined DOM transformation in yellow (YS) and black (BS) soils upon the addition of MPs-DOM, leached from biodegradable and nonbiodegradable mulches under ultraviolet irradiation (UV-MPs-DOM) and dark conditions (D-MPs-DOM), at environmentally relevant concentrations (3 mg C/kg).

Serum metabolic profiling in patients with hypothyroidism in pregnancy.

Objective: To explore the potential metabolic markers related to gestational hypothyroidism in early diagnosis, to find new intervention targets, and to provide metabolic pathway information for elucidating the pathogenesis of gestational hypothyroidism.

Methods: Sixteen patients with gestational hypothyroidism treated in a tertiary hospital of China were enrolled. 20 normal pregnant women and 20 healthy women of childbearing age were also selected as control groups.

Mapping the coupling between tract reachability and cortical geometry of the human brain.

The study of cortical geometry and connectivity is prevalent in human brain research. However, these two aspects of brain structure are usually examined separately, leaving the essential connections between the brain's folding patterns and white matter connectivity unexplored. In this study, we aim to elucidate the fundamental links between cortical geometry and white matter tract connectivity.

Complications of Median arcuate ligament syndrome: age-independent but linked to celiac axis narrowing severity.

Purpose: Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome (MALS) is often underdiagnosed due to nonspecific symptoms. This study proposes a CT-based grading system that evaluate the association between grade and the incidence of celiac or superior mesenteric artery aneurysms.

Methods: From January 2021 to July 2023, patients exhibiting the characteristic hooked appearance on sagittal contrast-enhanced CT, indicative of MALS, were included in the study.

Harnessing artificial intelligence of things for cardiac sensing: current advances and network-based perspectives.

Background: With the rapid advancements in science and technology, artificial intelligence (AI) has become increasingly integral to various medical applications, including medical devices and assistive healthcare tools. Extensive research highlights the significant potential of AI in the development of Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled medical devices, particularly in the field of cardiac sensing.

Methods: This study explores and synthesizes current advancements and future directions of AI-driven IoT applications in cardiac sensing, highlighting their significance.

Iterative prior-guided parcellation (iPGP) for capturing inter-subject and inter-nuclei variability in thalamic mapping.

The thalamus, a critical relay station in the brain, consists of multiple nuclei that play essential roles in various brain circuits. Identifying these nuclei is crucial for understanding how thalamic structures influence cognitive functions. However, genetic and environmental factors introduce substantial variability in thalamic parcellation patterns, posing both challenges and opportunities for individualized mapping of thalamic function.

Aldolase A accelerates hepatocarcinogenesis by refactoring c-Jun transcription.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) expresses abundant glycolytic enzymes and displays comprehensive glucose metabolism reprogramming. Aldolase A (ALDOA) plays a prominent role in glycolysis; however, little is known about its role in HCC development. In the present study, we aim to explore how ALDOA is involved in HCC proliferation.

Imbalance between skeletal muscle and intermuscular fat predicts treatment failure in Crohn's disease: an imaging biomarker for risk stratification.

Background: Sarcopenia is prevalent in Crohn's disease (CD) patients, but the prognostic value of skeletal muscle-to-intermuscular adipose tissue (IMAT) balance in penetrating CD remains unexplored.

Objective: To determine whether skeletal muscle-IMAT imbalance predicts non-surgical treatment failure in CD.

Methods: This retrospective study included CD patients undergoing computed tomography enterography (CTE, 2013-2022), stratified by disease behavior (penetrating vs.

Evolutionary Convergence of the Arcuate Fasciculus in Marmosets and Humans.

The marmoset is a highly vocal platyrrhine monkey that shares key anatomical and functional features with humans, offering insights into the evolution of brain connectivity. Although similarities in vocalization features with humans have been reported, it remains unclear whether marmosets possess an arcuate fasciculus (af) homolog. This study delineated white matter tracts in marmosets, establishing homologies with those observed in other primates, including macaques, chimpanzees, and humans.

Structural connectivity of hippocampus is not altered in patients with type 2 diabetes and without peripheral microangiopathy.

Functional hyper-connectivity in hippocampus has been recently observed in patients with an early stage of type 2 diabetes, however, the structural connectivity between hippocampus and other regions of the brain and its effects on neuropsychological performance are still unknown. Participants (82 patients with type 2 diabetes and without peripheral microvascular complications; 75 healthy controls) underwent detailed cognitive assessment and diffusion MRI. Probabilistic tractography based on a multifiber model was performed to investigate the fiber connections between hippocampus and other regions of the brain.

F-Doped CoFe Bimetallic Heterostructure Electrocatalyst with Ultra-Low Impedance for High-Current-Density Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution.

The electrolysis of water for hydrogen production has gained increasing attention as a sustainable and efficient method to obtain high-purity green hydrogen. The development of efficient catalysts for hydrogen evolution is crucial in order to achieve this target under industrial conditions. The objective of this work is to synthesize a highly efficient F-CoFe(PO)/IF catalyst with ultra-low impedance for hydrogen evolution in electrolytic water by incorporating metal phosphatides into metal oxide nanoclusters through a controlled two-step process involving melting and electrodeposition.

ReS/MoSe Van der Waals Heterostructure Photodetectors for Polarization Imaging and Polarization-Encoded Optical Communication.

Two dimensional (2D) materials with anisotropic optoelectronic properties provide a feasible solution for polarization photodetectors, however, it is challenging to achieve simultaneous high responsivity, fast photoresponse, and good anisotropic ratio of the photocurrent (I/I). In this work, a polarization-sensitive photodetector based on ReS/MoSe van der Waals heterostructures is constructed for type-II energy band alignment with a clean contact interface. Under 532 nm laser irradiation, the photodetector has both high responsivity (89.

Deciphering the composition and degradation of dissolved organic matter in a large subtropical river using optical indices and high-resolution FT-ICR-MS.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is very important in aquatic environments, yet it is challenging to characterize DOM as a highly complex mixture of thousands of molecules, and the knowledge of the effects of different degradation processes on different molecules remains limited. This study examined the distribution and degradation of DOM in a large subtropical river using optical techniques and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS). At the molecular level, DOM was mainly composed of CHO and lignin-like compounds, which was related to the dominance of forestland in the watershed and resulted in a low biological lability index (MLB).

Boosting responsivity and speed in 2D material based vertical p-i-n photodiodes with excellent self-powered ability.

Vertical p-i-n junctions are key components for optoelectronics to achieve fast response speed. However, a critical bottleneck lies in the complex fabrication techniques and the performance tradeoff between high responsivity and fast speed, especially under self-powered mode. Here, we illustrate the superiority of 2D materials-based vertical p-i-n photodiodes with maximized optical absorption in intrinsic layer (high responsivity), the efficient photocarrier separation (self-power ability), and the high-field drift velocity (fast speed).

Effects of nitrogen deposition on microbial communities in grassland ecosystems: Pronounced responses of archaea.

Nitrogen deposition is a crucial component of the global nitrogen cycle and a significant driver of global change. However, current research remains relatively limited regarding the effects of nitrogen deposition on soil properties and microbial communities in grassland ecosystems following long-term natural recovery. Therefore, a simulated nitrogen deposition experiment was conducted in Yunwu Mountain to explore the effects of nitrogen deposition on soil properties and microbial communities.

An ultra-stiff and tough glassy eutectogel.

Current eutectogels still exhibit shortcomings, including weak mechanical strength and toughness. Here, a new class of eutectogels is facilely prepared by leveraging abundant noncovalent crosslinks between deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and polymer chains. The eutectogels with more than 60 wt% liquid exhibit an enormous Young's modulus (655 MPa), fracture strength (16 MPa) and toughness (46 MJ m).

The impact of chiglitazar, a pan-PPAR agonist, on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease in patients with type 2 diabetes: a real-world study.

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of chiglitazar, a novel pan-PPAR agonist, on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in a real-world clinical setting.

Materials And Methods: This prospective cohort study included T2D patients with MASLD who received either chiglitazar or other glucose-lowering medications over a 24-week period. To minimize selection bias, 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM) was implemented.

Biomimetic Ginsenoside Rb1 and Probucol Co-Assembled Nanoparticles for Targeted Atherosclerosis Therapy via Inhibition of Oxidative Stress, Inflammation, and Lipid Deposition.

To overcome the limitations of conventional oral drugs and nanocarrier-dependent delivery systems in atherosclerosis (AS) therapy, our work proposes an "integration of Chinese and Western medicine" approach to develop a new biomimetic traditional Chinese and Western medicine components coassembled nanoparticles (NPs), termed as MMVs/RPNPs, for targeted AS therapy. In this work, we demonstrated that ginsenoside Rb1 can coassemble with probucol without excipients to form stable carrier-free NPs, termed RPNPs. To impart the specific targeting property to atherosclerotic sites, macrophage microvesicles (MMVs) were utilized to coat the RPNPs to obtain the MMVs/RPNPs.

A polymerized probucol nanoformulation with neutrophil extracellular vesicle camouflage for cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury therapy.

This study leverages the unique advantages of polyprodrug systems and biomimetic technology to develop a novel biomimetic nanoformulation, in which neutrophil extracellular vesicles (NEVs) are coated onto reactive oxygen species (ROS)-sensitive probucol-based polyprodrug nanoparticles (NPPBNPs). This NEV-camouflaged biomimetic nanoformulation holds significant potential for the effective treatment of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI), offering multifaceted therapeutic effects, such as ROS elimination, inhibition of oxidative stress-induced neuronal apoptosis, attenuation of glial hyperactivation, and suppression of pro-inflammatory mediator secretion. In a murine CIRI model, NPPBNPs markedly enhanced neuronal viability, ameliorated the ischemic penumbra, restored behavioral functions, and exhibited an acceptable safety profile.

Cumulative blood pressure load as a predictor of arterial stiffness progression and incident diabetic kidney disease: a multicenter longitudinal study.

Background: Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a key contributor to the progression of arterial stiffness and the incidence of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Cumulative BP load enables the evaluation of long-term BP exposure, but the BP targets used to calculate it vary across studies. This study aimed to compare the predictive performance of cumulative BP load calculated using different clinically recommended BP targets.

Evaluating the environmental impact of polylactic acid plastics in agriculture: Microbial degradation and plant interaction insights.

In the last decade, non-degradable plastics have been increasingly replaced by biodegradable alternatives like polylactic acid (PLA), particularly in agriculture. However, the feasibility of microbial degradation of PLA plastics in agricultural soils still needs to be confirmed. In addition, it remains unclear whether the degradation process of PLA affects plant growth.

Prostate Cancer Specialist Nursing Program: A Social Return on Investment Analysis Value for Money of the Prostate Cancer Specialist Nursing Program.

Background: In Australia, Prostate cancer (PCa) has a high survival rate (96%) meaning men with PCa may live with the impact of the disease for many years, even decades. The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) manages two Prostate Cancer Specialist Nursing (PCSN) programs: (1) A health service-based program and (2) A telenursing service. There is a paucity of economic evidence regarding the benefits of these programs so Social Return on Investment (SROI) methodology was used to determine social value and return on investment.

Modulating the Immunosuppressive Tumor Microenvironment and Inhibiting Growth in Mutp53-Driven CRPC via STAT3 Pathway Blockade.

Mutations in , particularly the p.R248Q variant, contribute to the progression of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) by reshaping the tumor microenvironment (TME). This study examined the impact of p.