Sperm activation for fertilization requires robust activity of the TAT-5 lipid flippase.

During fertilization, sperm and egg membranes signal and fuse to form a zygote and begin embryonic development. As lipids participate in signaling and membrane fusion, we investigated the role of lipid asymmetry in gametogenesis, fertilization, and embryogenesis. We show that the lipid flippase TAT-5, an essential P4-ATPase that maintains phosphatidylethanolamine asymmetry, is required for both oocyte formation and sperm activation, albeit at different levels of flippase activity.

Neonatal striatal volume is associated with infant anhedonia.

Anhedonia is increasingly recognized as a transdiagnostic risk factor for psychopathology. New evidence demonstrates that anhedonia is present in infancy and early childhood. Structural variability in striatal regions involved in reward processing and pleasure seeking is concurrently linked to anhedonia, yet few studies have examined whether striatal differences presage anhedonia, and none have examined prospective associations before middle childhood.

An optimized fluorescent reporter enables rapid and cost-effective quantification of regulated secretion from neuroendocrine cells.

The ability to quantify protein secretion is critical for studying the secretory pathway. This is particularly important in endocrine cells where dysregulated hormone secretion is associated with the development of diseases such as type 2 diabetes. To measure protein secretion, researchers have previously relied on techniques such as ELISA, RIA and Western blot, which all present limitations, including cost and time consumption.

The Influence of Neighborhood on Infant Parasympathetic Nervous System Development.

The adaptive calibration model (ACM) asserts that the stress response system, including the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), conditionally adapts to one's environment. In infancy, the proximal context of parental influences (e.g.

Electron paramagnetic resonance detection of superoxide in a murine model of acute lung injury.

Unlabelled: Superoxide (O ) production in an acute lung injury (ALI) murine model was detected by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and imaging. Lung injury was induced in wild-type (WT) mice and transgenic (Tg) mice with lung-specific EC-SOD overexpression by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administered intraperitoneally (IP) at a dose of 10 mg/kg. At 24 h after LPS treatment, mice were treated intraperitoneally and subcutaneously with the cyclic hydroxylamine probe, CMH, for superoxide measurements in the blood, or via intratracheal delivery (IT) with the cyclic hydroxylamine probes, CPH or DCP-AM-H, for lung cellular and mitochondrial superoxide detection.

Validating subject-specific knee models from measurements.

Despite the documented consequences of modeling decisions on the performance of computational models in orthopaedics and biomechanics, the influence of the input data has largely been ignored. Modeling the living knee is limited by methods to measure the quantities needed for ligament calibration; yet, this may be possible with new devices focused on non-invasive measurement of knee laxity. These devices offer measurements similar to those commonly obtained from cadaveric specimens but are limited by what can be practically and safely obtained from a living subject.

Navigating Relationships with Birth Family After Aging Out of Foster Care: Experiences of Young People.

As young people age out of foster care, many seek out their birth parents and extended families, but little is known about how these connections are navigated given past separations. Drawing from data previously collected from young people who aged out of foster care in a metropolitan area of one Western state (=57), this study analyzed the responses from 53 young adults between the ages of 18 and 22 who answered two open ended questions about (1) re-connecting with birth families after foster care, and (2) the degree to which relationships were formed with birth parents. A three-step analytic process searched for themes in the data and distilled three groups: (1) Reconnected & navigating a relationship (n=36; 68%), (2) Always connected & in a relationship (n=8; 15%), and (3) Not connected & not interested in a relationship (n=9; 17%).

Hurt, loss, joy, and forgiveness: Foster care-experienced young adults' relationships with their birth parents.

Objective: This article explores young adults' relationships with their birth parents following separation from their parents during childhood due to placement in foster care.

Background: Parent-child relationships often change through childhood, adolescence, and into adulthood, from dependency toward more independence and then mutuality, with much variation. Less is known about these relationships for young adults who spent some of their childhood in foster care.

China's Legal Protection System for Pangolins: Past, Present, and Future.

This article examines the historical evolution, contemporary dynamics, and future trajectory of China's legal and judicial framework for pangolin protection. By reviewing over seventy years of regulatory changes, case law, and policy implementation, it outlines three distinct phases: the early emphasis on pangolins as medicinal and export resources (1949-1989); the phase of conflicted protection and utilization under regulatory expansion (1989-2020); and the post-2020 shift toward judicial activism and ecological civil litigation. We then highlight the long-standing contradiction between legislative protection and continued medicinal use, particularly the centuries-old use of pangolins and their derivatives in traditional Chinese medicine, a practice still acknowledged within certain state policies and regulatory frameworks, showing how these inconsistencies enabled persistent illegal exploitation despite regulatory controls.

Photosynthetic capacity is reduced by warming but unaffected by elevated CO2 in seedlings of five boreal tree species.

Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations fuel global warming, with boreal regions warming at a faster rate than many other areas. Boreal forests are an important component of the global carbon cycle, yet we have little data on photosynthetic responses of boreal trees to elevated CO2 (EC) and warming. We grew seedlings of five widespread North American boreal tree species (from Betula, Larix, Picea, and Pinus) under current (410 ppm) or elevated (750 ppm) CO2 and either ambient (+0 °C) or increased (+4 °C or +8 °C) temperature, then measured photosynthetic traits over a range of leaf temperatures.

Emerging Concepts in Diagnosis, Pathologic Features, and Treatment of Limbic-Predominant Amnestic Neurodegenerative Syndrome (LANS): A Narrative Review.

Introduction: Neurodegenerative disorders (NDs) are characterized by progressive loss of function and destruction of the central and peripheral nervous systems. These disorders result in devastating irreversible cognitive decline and affect millions of people worldwide. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common cause of dementia that increases in incidence with increasing age.

Addressing Weight-Related Bullying in Schools: Youth Perspectives on School Policies and Interventions.

Background: Weight-related bullying is linked to negative mental health outcomes. However, anti-bullying policies targeting weight-based bullying remain limited. This study aimed to gather youth perspectives on weight-related bullying and potential school interventions.

Have We Been Teaching Continuous Wave EPR Correctly?

This tutorial presents a new unified view of electron paramagnetic resonance applied to continuous wave (CW), rapid scan, and pulsed EPR in terms of spin turning angle.

Social buffering by siblings in childhood and adolescence.

Although positive sibling relationships are associated with better developmental outcomes for children and adolescents, it is unknown whether siblings may be effective social buffers of physiological stress. In addition, there is little research on whether depressive symptoms may moderate the effectiveness of social buffering. The current study examined (1) whether siblings, compared to strangers, buffered the cortisol response to a social evaluative stressor in children and adolescents, (2) whether depressive symptoms moderated this effect, and (3) whether self-reported sibling relationship quality influenced sibling buffering effectiveness.

Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasties Performed with and without Computer Navigation: Prospective 11 Year Postoperative Evaluation.

Introduction: Computer navigation has been used in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in an attempt to improve component alignment and clinical outcomes, although few studies directly compare computer navigation to traditional instrumentation in the same patient.

Methods: Bilateral TKAs performed during the same surgical intervention utilizing computer navigation in one knee and traditional instrumentation in the contralateral knee were prospectively collected and followed. Reoperations and adverse events were documented.

Unplanned pregnancy and perinatal depression: secondary exploratory analyses from a racially and ethnically diverse, low-income sample of birthing people in the United States.

Background: The association between unplanned pregnancy and perinatal depression is understudied in racially and ethnically diverse and low-income populations. The present study was compromised of a secondary analysis of data from a low-income and 70% racially and ethnically minoritized sample to examine associations between unplanned pregnancy and perinatal depressive symptoms and to explore potential moderation by social factors.

Methods: Pregnant individuals (n = 808) were enrolled in a larger study evaluating the effectiveness of a preventative intervention for postpartum depression, and self-reported depressive symptoms were collected prenatally and at 12 weeks postpartum using the 16-item Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology.

Impact of Vascular Network Structure Heterogeneity on Retinal Tissue Oxygenation.

A theoretical model of the human retina is simulated using two distinct vascular network geometries to predict the impact of heterogeneity in vascular network structure on retinal tissue oxygenation. Each vascular network is modeled as a combined heterogeneous representation of retinal arterioles and compartmental representation of capillaries, small venules, and large venules. A Green's function method is used to model oxygen transport in the arterioles, and a Krogh cylinder model is used in the capillaries and venules.

Mental health and substance use shape the processes of romantic relationship formation for same-gender couples.

Bidirectional links between mental health and substance use and romantic relationship dynamics are well-established, though most of this research has focused on different-gender (presumed heterosexual) couples in established, committed relationships or marriages. Given the high prevalence of mental health and substance use disparities among sexual minority adults, more research is needed on how these factors might influence them and not just in committed relationships, but early romantic relationship development, a time that can be especially turbulent for all couples. The present study used qualitative data from 60 cisgender, same-gender couples (50% female) collected during a semistructured conversation couples had regarding their relationship formation and early history.

Cultural opportunities involving spiritual, existential, religious, or theological (SERT) themes: Three practical approaches.

This article applies the multicultural orientation framework (D. E. Davis et al.

Measurement and control of magnetic thin films and devices using thermal gradients applied via suspended Si-N membranes.

Magnetic thin films and nanostructures present a unique challenge for a range of thermal measurements, with important consequences for both fundamental physics and material science and applications. This paper reviews the unique capabilities for measurement and control of these systems using thermal gradients applied using micro- and nanofabricated silicon-nitride membrane platforms. Supporting a thin film or nanostructure removes bulk heat sinks from the tiny structure, enabling otherwise challenging or impossible measurements including thermal conductivity, Seebeck coefficient, Peltier coefficient, magnon drag, both the anomalous and planar Nernst effect, specific heat, and novel manifestations of thermally assisted spin transport.

Compact 1 GHz electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer and imager.

A 1 GHz preclinical electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer and imager has been developed to study low concentrations of radicals using rapid-scan detection. The design focuses on minimizing the losses between the resonator and the first-stage low-noise amplifier. The adjustable-frequency source with the lowest available noise was selected and the output was amplified to provide sufficient power for experiments with relatively rapidly relaxing nitroxide radicals.

'Family doesn't have to be mom and dad': an exploration of the meaning of family for care-experienced young people.

Young people who experience out-of-home care have typically encountered difficult and / or disrupted family relationships. This article reports on a survey undertaken in the USA with 215 young adults (aged 18 and 22) who experienced out-of-home care starting in preadolescence. The paper examines responses to an open-ended interview question, "How do you define family?".

Improving health and housing outcomes through a simulation and economic model: an evidence-based protocol of a group model building approach to develop an agent-based model.

Introduction: Homelessness in the United States increased every year since 2016, with a 38% increase from 2023 to 2024. Much of the increase is attributable to rising home and rent costs, economic hardship caused by the recent pandemic, and the ending of protective legislation. Notably, people who experience homelessness have an increased risk of substance use disorders, HIV infection and poorer HIV outcomes than people who are stably housed.

Barriers to Mental Health Support and Recommendations for Improvement From the Perspectives of LGBTQ+ Youth.

Purpose: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual plus (LGBTQ+) youth face significant barriers to mental health care, ranging from a lack of access to therapists, months-long waitlists, and lack of insurance coverage to receiving incompetent care from non-affirming providers. The current study sought to understand the experiences of LGBTQ+ youth when accessing mental health care.

Methods: The current study utilized a fixed, embedded mixed methods design with 808 LGBTQ+ youth in the United States.