The influence of autoinjector applied force and shield size on abdominal skin and subcutaneous tissue deformation - An in-vivo ultrasound and digital image correlation study.

Background: Shield-triggered autoinjectors (AIs) aim to reduce needle phobia and accidental needlestick injuries and improve usability. However, they may cause deeper injections due to tissue compression. This study investigates the mechanical response of AI application into abdominal tissue in-vivo.

Quantitative mapping of smooth topographic landscapes generated using thermal scanning-probe lithography.

Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) is a powerful technique for mapping nanoscale surface properties through tip-sample interactions. Thermal scanning-probe lithography (tSPL) is an advanced SPM variant that uses a silicon tip on a heated cantilever to sculpt and measure the topography of polymer films with nanometer precision. The surfaces produced by tSPL-smooth topographic landscapes-allow mathematically defined contours to be fabricated on the nanoscale, enabling sophisticated functionalities for photonic, electronic, chemical and biological technologies.

Gut microbial production of imidazole propionate drives Parkinson's pathologies.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by the selective degeneration of midbrain dopaminergic neurons and aggregation of α-synuclein. Emerging evidence implicates the gut microbiome in PD, with microbial metabolites proposed as potential pathological mediators. However, the specific microbes and metabolites involved, and whether gut-derived metabolites can reach the brain to directly induce neurodegeneration, remain unclear.

Unravelling the mechanism of enzymatic resistance in different high amylose starch granules.

This study investigates the phenomenon that, in contrast to amylopectin-rich starch granules, high amylose starch (HAS) granules typically exhibit high hydrolytic resistance manifested as low density of enzyme attack sites on the starch granule surface. However, among the various types of examined HAS granules, we identified differences in enzymatic resistance. We associated this effect as a result of variations in specific rate of the enzymatic reaction, with intermediate affinity leading to the highest enzymatic efficacy characteristic for the Sabatier principle.

Design and establishment of a biofilter for treatment of manure methane emissions.

During the storage of livestock manure in tanks, anaerobic degradation of organic material results in the production and emission of CH. This study tested a biofilter designed for CH oxidation as a potential technology for mitigating CH emissions from covered manure storage tanks. A full-scale biofilter (400 m) was built next to a pig manure tank (4.

Perioperative Collagen IV-Targeted Ac2-26 Nanoparticles Enhance Anastomotic Healing in Acute Crohn's Disease-Like Colitis: A Preclinical Study on Systemic, Oral, and Rectal Delivery Routes.

Objective: This preclinical study investigates a novel targeted collagen type IV nanoparticle formulation, Ac2-26 coated with chitosan and pectin ((pc)-Col-IV-Ac2-26-NPs), to promote anastomotic healing in a model of acute Crohn's disease (CD) with distal colo-colonic anastomosis, using intraperitoneal, oral and rectal delivery to optimize therapeutic effects while minimizing systemic immunosuppression.

Summary Background Data: Surgery remains critical for CD-patients due to irreversible tissue damage, with anti-inflammatory therapies increasing the risk of postoperative complications like anastomotic leaks.

Method: Female BALB/c mice (n=152) with CD-like colitis (2,4,6-Trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid) were randomized to receive (pc)-Col-IV-Ac2-26-NPs or scrambled NPs intraperitoneally, orally, or rectally every 3.

Image quality assessment of photon-counting CT for patients with prostate cancer receiving radiotherapy.

Background And Purpose: Photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) offers enhanced image quality, including improvements in contrast, spatial resolution, and noise reduction. In radiotherapy (RT), optimal image quality is critical for accurate tumor and organ-at-risk delineation. However, reconstruction parameter selection often relies on subjective assessment.

Mutations in the circadian cycle drive adaptive plasticity in cyanobacteria.

Circadian clocks allow organisms to anticipate daily fluctuations in light and temperature, but how this anticipatory role promotes adaptation to different environments remains poorly understood. Here, we subjected the cyanobacterium PCC 7942 to a long-term evolution experiment under high light, high temperature, and elevated CO levels. After 1,200 generations, we obtained a strain exhibiting a 600% increase in growth rate.

A data-driven two-microphone method for in situ sound absorption measurements of porous materialsa).

This work presents a data-driven approach to estimating the sound absorption coefficient of an infinite porous slab using a neural network and a two-microphone measurement on a finite porous sample. A one-dimensional-convolutional network predicts the sound absorption coefficient from the complex-valued transfer function between the sound pressure measured at the two microphone positions. The network is trained and validated with numerical data generated by a boundary element model using the Delany-Bazley-Miki model, demonstrating accurate predictions for various numerical samples.

Optical Chopper for Longitudinal-Detected Electron Paramagnetic Resonance at 188 GHz/6.7 T.

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) hyperpolarization technique that mediates polarization transfer from unpaired electrons to nuclear spins. DNP performance can vary significantly depending on the types of polarizing agents employed, and the criteria for optimum DNP efficiency are not fully understood. Thus, a better understanding of the structure, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) line widths, and relaxation properties would aid in designing more efficient DNP polarizing agents.

Enhancing dairy-like aromas and reducing beany flavours in mould-ripened soy cheeses.

Plant-based cheese alternatives often lack desirable cheese-like flavours characteristics of traditional dairy cheeses. This study aimed to develop soy-based cheeses with flavour profiles comparable to blue and white mould-ripened dairy cheeses, such as Roquefort and Camembert. Volatile compound profiles were analysed from soymilk fermented with Penicillium roqueforti or Penicillium camemberti.

3D/4D imaging of complex and deformed microstructures with pink-beam dark field X-ray microscopy.

Dark Field X-ray Microscopy (DFXM) has advanced 3D non-destructive, high-resolution imaging of strain and orientation in crystalline materials, enabling the study of embedded structures in bulk. However, the photon-hungry nature of monochromatic DFXM limits its applicability for studying highly deformed or weakly crystalline structures, and constrains time-resolved studies in industrially relevant materials. Here, we present pink-beam DFXM (pDFXM) at the ID03 beamline of ESRF, achieving a 27-fold increase in diffracted intensity while maintaining 100 nm spatial resolution.

Functionalized Silk Fibroin and Mucin Hybrid Material for Targeted EGF and Papain Delivery in Wound Healing.

Silk fibroin (SF) and mucin are extensively recognized as promising biomaterials for wound dressings due to their outstanding biocompatibility, biodegradability, and ability to support cell growth and tissue regeneration. In this study, we developed a hybrid SF/mucin wound dressing (HYB) using tetrazine and norbornene click chemistry to enhance its structural and functional properties. The robust assembly resulted in a dual-phase material with a dense SF membrane and a porous mucin hydrogel (MH).

Large-scale generation of in silico based spectral libraries to annotate dark chemical space features in non-target analysis.

In this study, we develop and present an open-access LC-electrospray-HRMS/MS forward in silico fragmentation spectral library, based on the NORMAN Suspect List Exchange containing 120,514 chemicals, that can be used for level 3 annotations to support elucidation of the dark molecular features detected in environmental, exposomic, food safety, and forensic investigations. Using these forward generated in silico spectral libraries, several pollutants previously unreported in non-targeted workflows were discovered in groundwater for the first time through retrospective non-targeted screening analysis. Among these are xenobiotics such as hexafluoroacetone, hexazinone metabolites A, B, and C, and transformation products of triflusulfuron, fluazifop-butyl, triallate, and propiconazole.

SBMLtoOdin and menelmacar: Interactive visualisation of systems biology models for expert and non-expert audiences.

Summary: Computational models in biology can increase our understanding of biological systems, be used to answer research questions, and make predictions. Accessibility and reusability of computational models is limited and often restricted to experts in programming and mathematics. This is due to the need to implement entire models and solvers from the mathematical notation models are normally presented as.

Shake-Down Spectroscopy as State- and Site-Specific Probe of Ultrafast Chemical Dynamics.

Tracking the multifarious ultrafast electronic and structural changes occurring in a molecule during a photochemical transformation is a challenging endeavor that benefits from recent experimental and computational progress in time-resolved techniques. Measurements of valence electronic states, which provide a global picture of the bonding structure of the molecule, and core electronic states, which provide insight into the local environment, traditionally require different approaches and are often studied separately. Here, we demonstrate that X-ray pulses from a seeded free-electron laser (FEL) enable the measurement of high-resolution, time-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) that capture weak satellite states resulting from shake-down processes in a valence-excited molecule.

Green gutter as a Nature-based Solution for mitigation and adaptation strategy in urban environments.

The goal of this paper is to conduct an experimental study to evaluate the efficiency of an innovative green infrastructure named green gutter made of mineral wool as a prospective green wall to delay stormwater. The pilot is formed by an unplanted prismatic vertical column of metal filled with mineral wool with 4 meters in height, width 0,6 m, and depth 0,15 m. Along its elevation, 8 moisture sensors divided in 2 lines of 4 are embedded within the filling material to assess saturation levels, flow meters are installed in the inlet and outlet of the system.

4f-intermediate valence in an ytterbium-bipyridine coordination solid.

We report the first structurally characterised coordination solids based on decamethylytterbocene, using bipyridine linkers to form YbCp*2(bipy) and YbCp*2(Me2bipy). Analogous to their mononuclear cousins known for intermediate valence, spectroscopic evidence suggests that YbCp*2(bipy) features a multiconfigurational ground state, composed of a superposition of an open-shell ligand non-innocent 4f(π*) state and a closed-shell 4f state. Our findings mark a first step toward increasing electronic correlations in lanthanide-organic frameworks, with the aim of realising materials with coexisting electronic transport and emergent magnetic properties.

Decoupling geographical constraints from human mobility.

Driven by access to large volumes of movement data, the study of human mobility has grown rapidly over the past few decades. The field has shown that human mobility is scale-free, proposed models to generate scale-free moving distance distributions and explained how the scale-free distribution arises. It has not, however, explicitly addressed how mobility is structured by geographical constraints, such as how mobility relates to the outlines of landmasses, lakes and rivers and the placement of buildings, roadways and cities.

Unveiling the spatiotemporal dynamics and sectoral nexus of urban carbon metabolism: Insights from community-level analysis.

Urban communities are fundamental units in addressing carbon mitigation, yet the patterns of carbon metabolism remain largely unexplored due to limited data and less-integrated methods. This study unveils the carbon metabolism dynamics of a Chinese mixed-function community from 2013 to 2022 by integrating bottom-up carbon accounting, spatiotemporal analysis, and ecological network analysis (ENA). We investigate carbon stocks and flows, sectoral characteristics, and intersectoral interactions at a refined spatial level in the 1.

AOP report: Adverse Outcome Pathway Network for Developmental Androgen Signalling-Inhibition Leading to Short Anogenital Distance in Male Offspring.

This report outlines an adverse outcome pathway network (AOPN) linking reduced androgen signalling during the fetal masculinization programming window to shortened anogenital distance (AGD) at birth. In mammals such as mice, rats, and humans, the AGD is approximately twice as long in males as in females, driven by androgen-dependent differentiation of the male phenotype. Impaired androgen signalling during fetal development can lead to a significantly shorter AGD in male offspring, a sexually dimorphic feature widely used in rodent toxicity studies and human epidemiological research to assess exposure to anti-androgenic substances.

Astatine-211-Towards In Vivo Stable Astatine-211 Labeled Radiopharmaceuticals and Their (Pre)Clinical Applications.

Targeted radioligand therapy has emerged as a promising treatment option for eradicating advanced cancer forms. α-Emitters are considered particularly promising as they can obliterate (micro)-metastases. The α-emitter astatine-211 (At) has experienced increased interest due to its favorable decay properties.

Mapping marine plankton abundance along ecological gradients in the South Brazilian Shelf.

Plankton communities form the foundation of marine food webs, determining the ecosystem carrying capacity and the services they provide. Their spatial distribution patterns are highly dynamic, influenced by ocean stratification, mixed layer depth, and nutrient availability. In this study, we combined an advanced imaging system with a machine learning model to explore how environmental factors shape plankton distribution on the South Brazilian Shelf.

Unveiling the Local Effects of PTL Passivation in PEM Electrolyzers through Gas and Current Mapping Using Operando Neutron Radiography and Polarized Neutron Imaging.

Anodic Ti-based porous transport layers (PTLs) are paramount for advancing high-efficiency proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWEs). One of the major challenges with the development of PEMWE is the PTL/catalyst layer interface passivation, which is commonly alleviated by coating precious metals such as Pt. Herein, we report, for the first time, the usage of polarized neutron imaging (PNI) on a half-half PTL approach to investigate current distribution inside the PTL layer under the influence of Ti passivation under PEMWE operando condition.