Nanoscopic Titanium Dioxide Overlayers Improve the Durability of Porphyrin Molecular Electrocatalysts while Maintaining Molecular Structure and Redox Activity.

Molecular catalysts, such as metalated porphyrins, are attractive cocatalysts for photocatalytic water splitting owing to their potential to simultaneously catalyze target reactions at their metal center, extend charge-separated-state lifetimes, and accumulate the requisite charge for product formation. However, porphyrin catalysts, like most molecular catalysts, are often limited by poor stability associated with demetalation, inactivation by undesired bonding (e.g.

Wider Than the Sky: An Alternative to "Mapping" the World Onto the Brain.

This paper reevaluates the conventional topographic model of brain function, stressing the critical role of philosophical inquiry in neuroscience. Since the 1930s, pioneering studies by Penfield and subsequent advancements in visual neuroscience by Hubel and Wiesel have popularized the concept of cortical maps as representations of external and internal states. Yet contemporary research in various sensory systems, including visual cortices in certain animals, questions the universal applicability of this model.

Fluorination Modulates Solid-State Reactivity and Guest Confinement in Organoboronic Ester Adducts.

Fluorination of organoboronic ester adducts via B ← N coordination enables the formation of photoactive solids capable of [2 + 2]-photodimerization, or confinement of a hydrocarbon guest (i.e., benzene).

Biodiversity effects on seedling growth are modified by light environment across functional groups.

Numerous studies have shown that biodiversity influences the functioning of ecosystems over space and time. The sensitivity of such biodiversity-ecosystem effects to environmental heterogeneity, however, remains poorly understood. In forests, seedling recruitment is a critical phase of forest dynamics, and this phase is highly sensitive to environmental heterogeneity and biotic interactions with surrounding plants.

Meta-Learning for Fast Adaptation in Intent Inferral on a Robotic Hand Orthosis for Stroke.

We propose MetaEMG, a meta-learning approach for fast adaptation in intent inferral on a robotic hand orthosis for stroke. One key challenge in machine learning for assistive and rehabilitative robotics with disabled-bodied subjects is the difficulty of collecting labeled training data. Muscle tone and spasticity often vary significantly among stroke subjects, and hand function can even change across different use sessions of the device for the same subject.

Patterns of late Holocene and historical extinctions on Madagascar.

Around 1000 years ago, Madagascar experienced the collapse of populations of large vertebrates that ultimately resulted in many species going extinct. The factors that led to this collapse appear to have differed regionally, but in some ways, key processes were similar across the island. This review evaluates four hypotheses that have been proposed to explain the loss of large vertebrates on Madagascar: Overkill, aridification, synergy, and subsistence shift.

Sculptors of cerebellar fissures and their potential as therapeutic targets for cerebellar dysfunction.

The cerebellum plays an important role in both motor control and cognition. The cerebellar cortex is neuron-rich and composed of characteristic folia and fissures. Defective cerebellar development leads to movement disorders and developmental delay.

Circadian activity predicts breeding phenology in the Asian burying beetle .

Climate change continues to alter breeding phenology in a range of plant and animal species across the globe. Traditional methods for assessing when organisms reproduce often rely on time-intensive field observations or destructive sampling, creating an urgent need for efficient, non-invasive approaches to assess reproductive timing. Here, we examined three populations of the Asian burying beetle from subtropical Okinawa, Japan (500 m) and Taiwan (1100-3200 m) that were reared under contrasting photoperiods in order to develop a predictive framework linking circadian activity to breeding phenology.

Multi-center evaluation of radiomics and deep learning to stratify malignancy risk of IPMNs.

Distinguishing high-risk intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs), pancreatic cysts requiring surgery, from low-risk lesions remains a clinical challenge, often resulting in unnecessary procedures due to limited specificity of current methods. While radiomics and deep learning (DL) have been explored for pancreatic cancer, cyst-level malignancy risk stratification of IPMNs remains untapped. We conducted a multi-institutional study (seven centers, 359 T2W MRI images) to assess the feasibility of AI for predicting IPMN dysplasia grade using cyst-level image features.

Remote automated delivery of mechanical stimuli coupled to brain recordings in behaving mice.

The canonical framework for testing pain and mechanical sensitivity in rodents is manual delivery of stimuli to the paw. However, this approach is time consuming, produces variability in results, requires significant training, and is ergonomically unfavorable to the experimenter. To circumvent limitations in manual delivery of stimuli, we have created a device called the ARM (Automated Reproducible Mechano-stimulator).

Allosteric amyloid catalysis by coiled coil fibrils.

Amyloid-mediated catalysis of key biological reactions has recently attracted significant interest as this phenomenon may portend new functions for physiological and synthetic amyloid proteins. Here, we report an allosteric mechanism of catalytic amyloids, mediated via an unconventional coiled-coil fibril organization, facilitating hydrolysis of β-lactam antibiotics. Specifically, the hydrolysis reaction was catalyzed by a fibrillar peptide comprising alternating lysine/phenylalanine β-sheet-forming sequence.

COVID-19 prevention training with video-based feedback in nursing homes: impact on staff safety behaviors.

Objective: Evaluate impact of COVID-19 prevention training with video-based feedback on nursing home (NH) staff safety behaviors.

Design: Public health intervention.

Setting & Participants: Twelve NHs in Orange County, California, 6/2020-4/2022.

Light-Induced Disruption of 1D Wire-Like Arrays of Monoatomic Ag(I) Ions: Single-Crystal Reaction with Crystal Softening.

The exploitation of noncovalent bonding in the solid state is attractive to generate one-dimensional (1D) wire-like assemblies of metals and uncover dynamic and physical properties of such intriguing structures. Herein, we describe a metal-organic crystal based on Ag(I) ions that assemble to be organized into 1D wire-like assemblies maintained by argentophilic interactions. UV-light irradiation of the crystal composed of the 1D structures results in a single-crystal-to-single-crystal (SCSC) photodimerization that transforms the 1D periodic metal arrays to isolated metal dimers.

Supramolecular Matter Through Crystal Engineering: Covalent Bond Formation to Postsynthetic Modification.

Supramolecular chemistry can transform organic synthesis by revealing that crystalline materials are not static but rather dynamic environments for controlled covalent bond formations and manipulations. This review focuses on how supramolecular chemistry can be developed to direct molecular synthesis in the organic solid state, directing reliable C─C bond formations to enable transformations difficult or impossible in solution. Special attention is given to postsynthetic modifications that serve to broaden the functional scope of solid-state reactivity allowing organic crystals to be developed as molecular flasks and a form of supramolecular matter.

Temporal interactions between neural proxies for memory recall, negative affect, and emotion regulation in major depression.

Dysfunction in emotion regulation (ER) and autobiographical memory are components of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, little is known about how they mechanistically interact with mood disturbances in real time. Using machine learning-based neural signatures, we can quantify negative affect (NA), ER, and memory continuously to evaluate how these processes dynamically interact in MDD.

Algae Biomass Hydrogels for Enhanced Removal of Heavy Metal Ions.

Heavy metal ion pollution in aquatic environments is a critical global issue, damaging ecosystems and threatening human health via bioaccumulation in the food chain. Despite promising progress with biosorbents, the development of environmentally friendly and stable heavy metal adsorbents requires further exploration. In this study, we present an algae-loaded alginate hydrogel as a composite adsorbent for heavy metals.

Association of insight with stigma and its moderating factors among patients with stable schizophrenia.

Stigma is prevalent among patients with schizophrenia, and its impact can be profound. Improving insight is a critical aspect of treating schizophrenia, but it is often accompanied by increased stigma. This study aims to explore how trait mindfulness and perceived social support moderate the relationship between insight and stigma in patients with stable schizophrenia.

What Are My Friends Really Like? How We Change Our Perceptions of Familiar Others' Traits and Actions.

In everyday life, our perceptions of others' traits are influenced by a combination of their actions and our relationship with them. We enrolled 142 participants in a virtual escape room to examine (a) whether an unfamiliar task changed perceptions of friends' traits, (b) which types of prior relationships influenced trait perceptions, and (c) the relative importance of perceptions of actions in assessing traits. Higher pregame similarity ratings led to increases in perceptions of competence, while higher pregame liking ratings led to increases in perceptions of sociability.

The impact of in utero tobacco exposure on smoking behaviors, cardiovascular disease risk and all-cause mortality in adulthood: A UK Biobank study.

The knowledge regarding the negative impacts of in utero tobacco exposure (IUTE) on cardiovascular disease (CVD) was incomplete. This study aims to assess the association between IUTE and the risks of CVD incidence and all-cause mortality, discuss the inter-group difference based on genetic susceptibility and smoking behaviors after birth, and explore the potential mediating factors. Utilizing a total of 375,024 participants from the UK Biobank, the outcomes include myocardial infarction, stroke, chronic ischemic heart disease, nonrheumatic aortic valve disorders, cardiomyopathy, heart failure, atherosclerosis, aortic aneurysm and dissection, and all-cause mortality.

Room-Temperature Decomposition of the Ethaline Deep Eutectic Solvent.

Environmentally benign, nontoxic electrolytes with combinatorial design spaces are excellent candidates for green solvents, green leaching agents, and carbon capture sources. We examine ethaline, a 2:1 molar ratio of ethylene glycol and choline chloride. Despite its touted green credentials, we find partial decomposition of ethaline into toxic chloromethane and dimethylaminoethanol at room temperature, limiting its sustainable advantage.

Prevalence and relationship with health of off-label and contraindicated drug use in the United States: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Off-label and contraindicated prescription drug use can result in adverse health outcomes. Despite concerns, the extent and characteristics of such usage patterns remain underexplored in the American population. We conducted a cross-sectional study analysing outpatient prescription data between 2016 and 2021 to determine the prevalence of off-label and contraindicated drug use.

Visual mental imagery in typical imagers and in aphantasia: A millimeter-scale 7-T fMRI study.

Most of us effortlessly describe visual objects, whether seen or remembered. Yet, around 4% of people report congenital aphantasia: they struggle to visualize objects despite being able to describe their visual appearance. What neural mechanisms create this disparity between subjective experience and objective performance? Aphantasia can provide novel insights into conscious processing and awareness.

Understanding the development of a functional brain circuit: reward processing as an illustration.

Aberrant reward processing is common in psychiatric disorders that begin during development. However, our understanding of the early reward system is limited, due to few studies assessing reward engagement across development. Moreover, the interpretation of these findings is based primarily on our understanding of the adult reward system.