A Novel Adaptive Superb Fairy-Wren () Optimization Algorithm for Solving Numerical Optimization Problems.

Superb Fairy-wren Optimization Algorithm (SFOA) is an animal-based meta-heuristic algorithm derived from Fairy-wren's behavior of growing, feeding, and avoiding natural enemies. The SFOA has some shortcomings when facing complex environments. Its switching mechanism is not enough to adapt to complex optimization problems, and it faces a weakening of population diversity in the late stage of optimization, leading to a higher possibility of falling into local optima.

First Measurement of ν_{e} and ν[over ¯]_{e} Charged-Current Single Charged-Pion Production Differential Cross Sections on Argon Using the MicroBooNE Detector.

Understanding electron neutrino interactions is crucial for measurements of neutrino oscillations and searches for new physics in neutrino experiments. We present the first measurement of the flux-averaged ν_{e}+ν[over ¯]_{e} charged-current single charged-pion production cross section on argon using the MicroBooNE detector and data from the NuMI neutrino beam. The total cross section is measured to be [0.

Education Is Positively and Causally Linked With Spatial Navigation Ability Across the Lifespan.

There is consistent evidence for a positive association between education and a wide range of cognitive abilities. In particular, spatial abilities have been shown to be strongly related to academic achievement. However, studying this association is complex as both education and spatial abilities are modulated by multivariate sociodemographic factors, likely to vary across countries.

Light-responsive coumarin-functionalised nanogels for metformin delivery.

Corneal neovascularization is one of the most severe ocular diseases. Current therapy is limited to repeated subconjunctival injections of antiangiogenic drugs, associated with significant side effects including infection, bleeding and erosive changes in the conjunctiva and sclera. Here, we describe the design of light-responsive nanogel-based drug delivery system using photocleavable coumarin-metformin conjugates.

FcRn inhibitors for myasthenia gravis.

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To evaluate the benefits and harms of FcRn inhibitors for the maintenance treatment of myasthenia gravis in adult participants compared with control treatment (placebo, standard-of-care therapy, an alternative FcRn inhibitor, or an alternative immunomodulatory therapy). We will evaluate the efficacy of the treatment by the effect on disease severity and functional impairment, as assessed using a measurement tool validated for use in myasthenia gravis.

Coming to a hard stop? Effect of tapered tocilizumab after weekly tocilizumab cessation for giant cell arteritis: a multicentre evaluation.

Objectives: In England, there is a "hard stop" to weekly tocilizumab (qwTCZ) therapy for GCA; this is currently 12 months but was extended during the COVID-19 pandemic subject to certain criteria for GCA relapse risk. Taking advantage of variation in practice, we aimed to compare outcomes of GCA patients who tapered TCZ vs those who stopped abruptly (non-taper patients).

Methods: Secondary analysis of an English multicentre service evaluation of relapse after stopping qwTCZ for GCA.

Forest Age Rivals Climate to Explain Reproductive Allocation Patterns in Forest Ecosystems Globally.

Forest allocation of net primary productivity (NPP) to reproduction (carbon required for flowers, fruits, and seeds) is poorly quantified globally, despite its critical role in forest regeneration and a well-supported trade-off with allocation to growth. Here, we present the first global synthesis of a biometric proxy for forest reproductive allocation (RA) across environmental and stand age gradients from a compiled dataset of 824 observations across 393 sites. We find that ecosystem-scale RA increases ~60% from boreal to tropical forests.

A qualitative study to explore the lived experiences of people who are tilted 'wubao' within 'three no's' category in government-funded care homes in China.

Background: There are limited studies explored the lived experience of older people without children who titled 'Wubao' in China. This study aims to understand the lived experience of the older people who titled 'Wubao' and fit in the 'Three No's' category in government-funded care homes in China.

Methods: The phenomenological qualitative approach was used for this study.

Understanding the experience of prescription charges in people living with parkinson's disease: a focus group study.

Background: In England, people aged > 60 are typically required to pay for their prescriptions. Whilst exemption criteria enable people living with specified long-term health conditions to receive free prescriptions, Parkinson's disease is omitted from this list. People with Parkinson's are often reliant upon medications, and evidence suggests that medical fees can reduce quality of life and medicine adherence.

Raman spectroscopy identified fingernail compositional differences between sexes and age-related changes but not handedness or fingers in a healthy cohort.

Background: Nail properties and appearances can indicate a person's underlying systemic diseases. Raman spectroscopy is an established laboratory technique and has been applied to nails, identifying spectral differences between healthy individuals and patient populations.

Objective: We aim to explore the importance of potential spectral or chemical variations in nails between sexes, age groups, hands, and fingers.

A simple and reliable PCR-based method to differentiate between XX and XY sex genotypes in Cannabis sativa.

Cannabis sativa is a mainly dioecious plant, which means that female and male flowers develop on separate individuals, which is controlled by an XY sex determination system: females have two X chromosomes and male plants carry an X and a Y chromosome. C. sativa is a crop that has a wide variety of applications, some of which depend on the sex of the plant.

Assessing an eHealth Intervention on Quality of Life in Patients With Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Myelodysplastic Syndromes: The MyPal Randomized Controlled Trial.

Purpose: The MyPal study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04370457) is a randomized controlled clinical trial assessing an eHealth intervention on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS).

Methods: Patients who were receiving or had previously received treatment for CLL or MDS were randomly assigned (1:1) to access the MyPal digital health platform versus standard of care.

Exploring the effects of a multicomponent phytoceutical health product in a Drosophila melanogaster ageing and repetitive concussion model.

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the long-term effects of multiple concussions on physical function and oxidative stress, as well as the potential protective effects of a novel phytoceutical product (CONKA1) on ageing and brain health of Drosophila melanogaster.

Methods: Adult female D. melanogaster flies were exposed to repeated concussive events using a high-impact trauma (HIT) device.

Developing Compassionate Community: Insights from the International Standards for Community Development.

Aging populations have increased demand for hospice palliative care and support for dying persons. More broadly, community support is also becoming an increasingly important aspect of public health intervention. Compassionate communities advocate active bottom-up community participation to strengthen communities' assets around death and dying.

Elaborating PFAS characteristics for Chinese electroplating industry by target and nontarget analysis.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been extensively used in the electroplating globally, yet the source characterization remains inadequately quantified. This study provides a high-resolution characterization of PFAS for the Chinese electroplating industry by combining target and nontarget analysis of samples, including chrome mist suppressants, plating bath solutions, wastewater, and sludge. A total of 91 PFAS homologues, spanning 14 classes, were identified by nontarget analysis.

Understanding the environmental fate and risks of organophosphate esters: Challenges in linking precursors, parent compounds, and derivatives.

Organophosphate esters (OPEs) have emerged as a global environmental and health concern due to their persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) properties. Recently, their precursors-organophosphite antioxidants (OPAs)-and transformation products, which may exhibit greater persistence and toxicity, have gained attention as critical contributors to OPE-related contamination. This critical review examines the transformation mechanisms of "OPAs → OPEs → OPE derivatives" across environments, sources and emission inventory methodologies, and the environmental occurrence, persistence, and toxicity of these chemicals.

Slow-wave sleep as a key player in offline memory processing: insights from human EEG studies.

Slow-wave sleep (SWS) plays a pivotal role in memory consolidation, and electroencephalography (EEG) has provided critical insights into the neural mechanisms underlying these processes. In this mini-review, we discuss how SWS supports the processing of both declarative and procedural memory, in addition to higher cognitive functioning. We focus on the latest evidence from human EEG studies that examine temporal regularities alongside those that have demonstrated the coordinated interplay between slow oscillations, sleep spindles, and hippocampal ripples.

Preconditioned microbial communities in electrochemical sensing: initial assessment of detection capabilities and durability.

This study explores the role of pre-colonized microbial cultures in enhancing the long-term effectiveness of microbial electrochemical sensors for water quality monitoring. Microbial electrochemical sensors rely on specific functional microorganisms to detect and signal changes in environmental water quality. Pre-colonization of these cultures on the sensor's electrode can promote sustained detection sensitivity.

Polythiophene functionalized TiCT-TiO nanorods composite based electrochemical sensing platform for the detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa DMC-27b.

Due to its ability to form antibiotic-resistant biofilms, Pseudomonas aeruginosa can cause serious, long-lasting infections, especially in individuals with weakened immune systems; therefore, its rapid detection is crucial for effective treatment. Herein, a polythiophene-functionalized TiCT-TiO nanorods (NRs) based electrochemical capacitive biosensor is proposed for the determination of Pseudomonas aeruginosa DMC-27b. The capacitive characteristics of the modified electrode were evaluated using a combination of electrochemical methods, such as electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic discharge, and self-discharging.

Adolescent Anxiety During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Systematic Review of Risk and Protective Factors.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted adolescents' lives, leading to increased stress and anxiety rates globally. Although existing research highlights the necessity of understanding the increased rates of anxiety in adolescents during and after the pandemic, it offers little insight into the risk and protective factors for the development of adolescent anxiety at this time. To more deeply understand how the pandemic impacted anxiety in adolescents around the world, the current study adopted a qualitative approach to synthesising the global evidence on adolescents' lived experiences of anxiety during the pandemic.

Eliciting initial programme theories for a health research capacity strengthening initiative targeting African universities: A realist synthesis.

There is a growing call for theory-driven evaluation approaches to health research capacity strengthening (HRCS) interventions. Specifically, realist evaluation has gained wide attention given its response to the question: How does an intervention work, why, for whom and under what conditions? In realist evaluation, initial programme theories (IPTs) are first elicited before they are tested and refined. This article describes the IPTs of an HRCS programme aimed at strengthening the research capacity of African universities.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal association regulates global root-seed coordination.

Terrestrial plants exhibit immense variation in their form and function among species. Coordination between resource acquisition by roots and reproduction through seeds could promote the fitness of plant populations. How root and seed traits covary has remained unclear until our analysis of the largest-ever compiled joint global dataset of root traits and seed mass.

Forest Topsoil Organic Carbon Declines Under Ash Dieback.

Tree diseases are increasingly affecting woodland ecosystems across the world. However, the impact of these diseases upon the soil, and in particular soil carbon, is still poorly understood. Here we present the results of a field survey of ~100 woodlands across Great Britain measured in 1971, 2001 and 2022 and evaluate the fifty-year trend in topsoil (0-15 cm) carbon based upon measurements of soil organic matter (SOM) and the impact of Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (ash dieback).

Doing philosophy and the future of the 'good doctor' paradigm.

The author argues for the substantive doing of philosophy (as opposed to learning about it) as part of medical training. The paper presents a view of medical education as diminishing the critical thinking skills and humanistic values of future clinicians in favour of fact-recall and pattern recognition. This is due to increasingly assessment-driven curriculums and the need to meet extremely high, and rigorous, institutional and industry/sector standards.