Biolinguistic graph fusion model for circRNA-miRNA association prediction.

Emerging clinical evidence suggests that sophisticated associations with circular ribonucleic acids (RNAs) (circRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) are a critical regulatory factor of various pathological processes and play a critical role in most intricate human diseases. Nonetheless, the above correlations via wet experiments are error-prone and labor-intensive, and the underlying novel circRNA-miRNA association (CMA) has been validated by numerous existing computational methods that rely only on single correlation data. Considering the inadequacy of existing machine learning models, we propose a new model named BGF-CMAP, which combines the gradient boosting decision tree with natural language processing and graph embedding methods to infer associations between circRNAs and miRNAs. Specifically, BGF-CMAP extracts sequence attribute features and interaction behavior features by Word2vec and two homogeneous graph embedding algorithms, large-scale information network embedding and graph factorization, respectively. Multitudinous comprehensive experimental analysis revealed that BGF-CMAP successfully predicted the complex relationship between circRNAs and miRNAs with an accuracy of 82.90% and an area under receiver operating characteristic of 0.9075. Furthermore, 23 of the top 30 miRNA-associated circRNAs of the studies on data were confirmed in relevant experiences, showing that the BGF-CMAP model is superior to others. BGF-CMAP can serve as a helpful model to provide a scientific theoretical basis for the study of CMA prediction.

Likelihood-based feature representation learning combined with neighborhood information for predicting circRNA-miRNA associations.

Connections between circular RNAs (circRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) assume a pivotal position in the onset, evolution, diagnosis and treatment of diseases and tumors. Selecting the most potential circRNA-related miRNAs and taking advantage of them as the biological markers or drug targets could be conducive to dealing with complex human diseases through preventive strategies, diagnostic procedures and therapeutic approaches. Compared to traditional biological experiments, leveraging computational models to integrate diverse biological data in order to infer potential associations proves to be a more efficient and cost-effective approach. This paper developed a model of Convolutional Autoencoder for CircRNA-MiRNA Associations (CA-CMA) prediction. Initially, this model merged the natural language characteristics of the circRNA and miRNA sequence with the features of circRNA-miRNA interactions. Subsequently, it utilized all circRNA-miRNA pairs to construct a molecular association network, which was then fine-tuned by labeled samples to optimize the network parameters. Finally, the prediction outcome is obtained by utilizing the deep neural networks classifier. This model innovatively combines the likelihood objective that preserves the neighborhood through optimization, to learn the continuous feature representation of words and preserve the spatial information of two-dimensional signals. During the process of 5-fold cross-validation, CA-CMA exhibited exceptional performance compared to numerous prior computational approaches, as evidenced by its mean area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.9138 and a minimal SD of 0.0024. Furthermore, recent literature has confirmed the accuracy of 25 out of the top 30 circRNA-miRNA pairs identified with the highest CA-CMA scores during case studies. The results of these experiments highlight the robustness and versatility of our model.

Selective Orbital Coupling: An Adsorption Mechanism in Single-Atom Catalysis.

Quantitative understanding of the chemisorption on single-atom catalysts (SACs) by their electronic properties is crucial for the catalyst design. However, the physical mechanism is still under debate. Here, the CO catalytic oxidation on single transition metal (i.e., Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) dopants is used as a theoretical model to explore the correlations between the characteristics of electronic structures and the chemisorption on SACs. For these metal dopants, their atomic d orbitals form several nondegenerate and localized electronic states that are found to be selectively coupled with the π* orbital of the adsorbed O2, which we defined as selective orbital coupling. Based on the selective orbital coupling, we find that the alignment between the selected d state and the π* state determines the bond strength, regardless of the electron occupation number of the selected d states; the electron transfer to form M-O bonding can be provided by the support. Such electron transfer can be related with the electronic metal-support interaction. We attribute the origin of the chemisorption mechanism to the coexistence of the localized orbital of the single transition metal and the continuous energy band of the Au support. Finally, we illustrate how this mechanism dominates the variation trend of the reaction barriers. Our results unravel a fundamental adsorption mechanism in SAC systems.

Analysis of endophytic bacterial diversity in seeds of different genotypes of cotton and the suppression of Verticillium wilt pathogen infection by a synthetic microbial community.

BACKGROUND: In agricultural production, fungal diseases significantly impact the yield and quality of cotton (Gossypium spp.) with Verticillium wilt posing a particularly severe threat. RESULTS: This study is focused on investigating the effectiveness of endophytic microbial communities present in the seeds of disease-resistant cotton genotypes in the control of cotton Verticillium wilt. The technique of 16S ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) amplicon sequencing identified a significant enrichment of the Bacillus genus in the resistant genotype Xinluzao 78, which differed from the endophytic bacterial community structure in the susceptible genotype Xinluzao 63. Specific enriched strains were isolated and screened from the seeds of Xinluzao 78 to further explore the biological functions of seed endophytes. A synthetic microbial community (SynCom) was constructed using the broken-rod model, and seeds of the susceptible genotype Xinluzao 63 in this community that had been soaked with the SynCom were found to significantly control the occurrence of Verticillium wilt and regulate the growth of cotton plants. Antibiotic screening techniques were used to preliminarily identify the colonization of strains in the community. These techniques revealed that the strains can colonize plant tissues and occupy ecological niches in cotton tissues through a priority effect, which prevents infection by pathogens. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the key role of seed endophytes in driving plant disease defense and provides a theoretical basis for the future application of SynComs in agriculture.

Aridity creates global thresholds in soil nitrogen retention and availability.

Identifying tipping points in the relationship between aridity and gross nitrogen (N) cycling rates could show critical vulnerabilities of terrestrial ecosystems to climate change. Yet, the global pattern of gross N cycling response to aridity across terrestrial ecosystems remains unknown. Here, we collected 14,144 observations from 451 15 N-labeled studies and used segmented regression to identify the global threshold responses of soil gross N cycling rates and soil process-related variables to aridity index (AI), which decreases as aridity increases. We found on a global scale that increasing aridity reduced soil gross nitrate consumption but increased soil nitrification capacity, mainly due to reduced soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and N (MBN) and increased soil pH. Threshold response of gross N production and retention to aridity was observed across terrestrial ecosystems. In croplands, gross nitrification and extractable nitrate were inhibited with increasing aridity below the threshold AI ~0.8-0.9 due to inhibited ammonia-oxidizing archaea and bacteria, while the opposite was favored above this threshold. In grasslands, gross N mineralization and immobilization decreased with increasing aridity below the threshold AI ~0.5 due to decreased MBN, but the opposite was true above this threshold. In forests, increased aridity stimulated nitrate immobilization below the threshold AI ~1.0 due to increased soil C/N ratio, but inhibited ammonium immobilization above the threshold AI ~1.3 due to decreased soil total N and increased MBC/MBN ratio. Soil dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium decreased with increasing aridity globally and in forests when the threshold AI ~1.4 was passed. Overall, we suggest that any projected increase in aridity in response to climate change is likely to reduce plant N availability in arid regions while enhancing it in humid regions, affecting the provision of ecosystem services and functions.

High sensitivity humidity sensor based on the U-shaped tapered no-core fiber coated with MXene.

Ti3C2Tx MXene is an emerging two-dimensional material that has good potential in relative humidity (RH) measurement because of its unique layer structure, strong hydrophilic nature, and large specific surface area. Here, a high-performance RH sensor integrating Ti3C2TX MXene nanosheets and U-shaped tapered no-core fiber (UTNCF) is proposed. The sensing principle is based on mode interference. The change of ambient RH leads to the change of the refractive index (RI) of Ti3C2Tx MXene, which eventually leads to the shift of the transmission spectrum of the sensing probe. The average sensitivity is 1.11 nm/%RH in the RH range of 45% to 80%, and the response time is 25 ms. The proposed micro-nano fiber RH sensor has the advantages of high sensitivity, fast response, good repeatability, and stability. In addition, the proposed sensor has a broad application prospect in human respiratory monitoring, industrial and agricultural production, and environmental monitoring.

Self-Catalyzed Synthesis of Length-Controlled One-Dimensional Nickel Oxide@N-Doped Porous Carbon Nanostructures from Metal Ion Modified Nitrogen Heterocycles for Efficient Lithium Storage.

Transition metal oxides with the merits of high theoretical capacities, natural abundance, low cost, and environmental benignity have been regarded as a promising anodic material for lithium ion batteries (LIBs). However, the severe volume expansion upon cycling and poor conductivity limit their cycling stability and rate capability. To address this issue, NiO embedded and N-doped porous carbon nanorods (NiO@NCNR) and nanotubes (NiO@NCNT) are synthesized by the metal-catalyzed graphitization and nitridization of monocrystalline Ni(II)-triazole coordinated framework and Ni(II)/melamine mixture, respectively, and the following oxidation in air. When applied as an anodic material for LIBs, the NiO@NCNR and NiO@NCNT hybrids exhibit a decent capacity of 895/832 mA h g-1 at 100 mA g-1, high rate capability of 484/467 mA h g-1 at 5.0 A g-1, and good long-term cycling stability of 663/634 mA h g-1 at 600th cycle at 1 A g-1, which are much better than those of NiO@carbon black (CB) control sample (701, 214, and 223 mA h g-1). The remarkable electrochemical properties benefit from the advanced nanoarchitecture of NiO@NCNR and NiO@NCNT, which offers a length-controlled one-dimensional porous carbon nanoarchitecture for effective e-/Li+ transport, affords a flexible carbon skeleton for spatial confinement, and forms abundant nanocavities for stress buffering and structure reinforcement during discharge/charging processes. The rational structural design and synthesis may pave a way for exploring advanced metal oxide based anodic materials for next-generation LIBs.

Insight into the Feasibility of Fatty Acyl Chlorides with 10-18 Carbons for the Ball-Milling Synthesis of Thermoplastic Cellulose Esters.

Fatty acid cellulose esters (FACE) are common cellulose-based thermoplastics, and their thermoplasticity is determined by both the contents and the lengths of the side chains. Herein, various FACE were synthesized by the ball-milling esterification of cellulose and fatty acyl chlorides containing 10-18 carbons, and their structures and thermoplasticity were thoroughly studied. The results showed that FACE with high degrees of substitution (DS) and low melting flow temperatures (Tf) were achieved as the chain lengths of the fatty acyl chlorides were reduced. In particular, a cellulose decanoate with a DS of 1.85 and a Tf of 186 °C was achieved by feeding 3 mol of decanoyl chloride per mole anhydroglucose units of cellulose. However, cellulose stearate (DS = 1.53) synthesized by the same protocols cannot melt even at 250 °C. More interestingly, the fatty acyl chlorides with 10 and 12 carbons resulted in FACE with superior toughness (elongation at break up to 94.4%). In contrast, due to their potential crystallization of the fatty acyl groups with 14-18 carbons, the corresponding FACE showed higher tensile strength and Young's modulus than the others. This study provides some theoretical basis for the mechanochemical synthesis of thermoplastic FACE with designated properties.

Land Use Change from Natural Tropical Forests to Managed Ecosystems Reduces Gross Nitrogen Production Rates and Increases the Soil Microbial Nitrogen Limitation.

Understanding the underlying mechanisms of soil microbial nitrogen (N) utilization under land use change is critical to evaluating soil N availability or limitation and its environmental consequences. A combination of soil gross N production and ecoenzymatic stoichiometry provides a promising avenue for nutrient limitation assessment in soil microbial metabolism. Gross N production via 15N tracing and ecoenzymatic stoichiometry through the vector and threshold element ratio (Vector-TER) model were quantified to evaluate the soil microbial N limitation in response to land use changes. We used tropical soil samples from a natural forest ecosystem and three managed ecosystems (paddy, rubber, and eucalyptus sites). Soil extracellular enzyme activities were significantly lower in managed ecosystems than in a natural forest. The Vector-TER model results indicated microbial carbon (C) and N limitations in the natural forest soil, and land use change from the natural forest to managed ecosystems increased the soil microbial N limitation. The soil microbial N limitation was positively related to gross N mineralization (GNM) and nitrification (GN) rates. The decrease in microbial biomass C and N as well as hydrolyzable ammonium N in managed ecosystems led to the decrease in N-acquiring enzymes, inhibiting GNM and GN rates and ultimately increasing the microbial N limitation. Soil GNM was also positively correlated with leucine aminopeptidase and ß-N-acetylglucosaminidase. The results highlight that converting tropical natural forests to managed ecosystems can increase the soil microbial N limitation through reducing the soil microbial biomass and gross N production.

Hypertension and cardiac damage in pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma patients: a large-scale single-center cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension (HT) is one of the most common manifestations in patients with catecholamine-secreting neuroendocrine tumors. Although the cardiovascular manifestations of these tumors have been described, there have been no large-scale investigations of the profile of HT and changes in cardiac structure and function that occur in patients with pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PPGL). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, we investigated the prevalence of HT and left ventricular remodeling (LVR) in a cohort of 598 patients who underwent surgery for PPGL at our center between January 2001 and April 2022. Information on demographics, reason for hospitalization, medical history, biochemical parameters, findings on echocardiography, and tumor characteristics were recorded. The LVR index was compared according to whether or not there was a history of HT. RESULTS: The average age was 47.07 ± 15.07 years, and 277 (46.32%) of the patients were male. A history of HT was found in 423 (70.74%) of the 598 patients. Paraganglioma was significantly more common in the group with HT (26.00% vs. 17.71%, P = 0.030) and significantly less likely to be found incidentally during a health check-up in this group (22.93% vs. 59.43%, P < 0.001). Among 365 patients with complete echocardiography data, left ventricular mass index (86.58 ± 26.70 vs. 75.80 ± 17.26, P < 0.001) and relative wall thickness (0.43 ± 0. 08 vs. 0.41 ± 0.06, P = 0.012) were significantly higher in patients with PPGL and a history of HT. The proportions with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) (19.40% vs. 8.25%, P = 0.011) and LVR (53.73% vs. 39.18%, P = 0.014) were also higher when there was a history of HT. After adjusting for age, gender, body mass index, alcohol consumption, smoking status, diabetes, stroke, creatinine level, tumor location, and tumor size, a history of HT was significantly correlated with LVH (odds ratio 2.71, 95% confidence interval 1.18-6.19; P = 0.018) and LVR (odds ratio 1.83, 95% confidence interval 1.11-3.03; P = 0.018). CONCLUSION: HT is common in patients with PPGL (70.74% in this cohort). PPGL without a history of HT is more likely to be found incidentally (59.43% in our cohort). HT is associated with LVR in PPGL patients with complete echocardiography data. These patients should be observed carefully for cardiac damage, especially those with a history of HT.

Twelve-year conversion of rice paddy to wetland does not alter SOC content but decreases C decomposition and N mineralization in Japan.

Land-use change worldwide has been driven by anthropogenic activities, which profoundly regulates terrestrial C and N cycles. However, it remains unclear how the dynamics and decomposition of soil organic C (SOC) and N respond to long-term conversion of rice paddy to wetland. Here, soil samples from five soil depths (0-25 cm, 5 cm/depth) were collected from a continuous rice paddy and an adjacent wetland (a rice paddy abandoned for 12 years) on Shonai Plain in northeastern Japan. A four-week anaerobic incubation experiment was conducted to investigate soil C decomposition and N mineralization. Our results showed that SOC in the wetland and rice paddy decreased with soil depth, from 31.02 to 19.66 g kg-1 and from 30.26 to 18.86 g kg-1, respectively. There was no significant difference in SOC content between wetland and rice paddy at any depth. Soil total nitrogen (TN) content in the wetland (2.61-1.49 g kg-1) and rice paddy (2.91-1.78 g kg-1) showed decreasing trend with depth; TN was significantly greater in the rice paddy than in the wetland at all depths except 20-25 cm. Paddy soil had significantly lower C/N ratios but significantly larger decomposed C (Dec-C, CO2 and CH4 production) and mineralized N (Min-N, net NH4+-N production) than wetland soil across all depths. Moreover, the Dec-C/Min-N ratio was significantly larger in wetland than in rice paddy across all depths. Rice paddy had higher exponential correlation between Dec-C and SOC, Min-N and TN than wetland. Although SOC did not change, TN decreased by 14.1% after the land-use conversion. The Dec-C and Min-N were decreased by 32.7% and 42.2%, respectively, after the12-year abandonment of rice paddy. Conclusively, long-term conversion of rice paddy to wetland did not distinctly alter SOC content but increased C/N ratio, and decreased C decomposition and N mineralization in 0-25 cm soil depth.

Efficacy of a mouthwash containing ε-poly-L-lysine, funme peptides and domiphen in reducing halitosis and supragingival plaque: a randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the antibacterial effectiveness of a combination of ε-poly-L-lysine (ε-PL), funme peptide (FP) as well as domiphen against oral pathogens, and assess the efficacy of a BOP® mouthwash supplemented with this combination in reducing halitosis and supragingival plaque in a clinical trial. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the compound against Fusobacterium nucleatum, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Streptococcus mutans, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were determined by the gradient dilution method. Subsequently, the CCK-8 assay was used to detect the toxicity of mouthwash on human gingival fibroblastst, and the effectiveness in reducing halitosis and supragingival plaque of the mouthwash supplemented with the combination was analyzed by a randomized, double-blind, parallel-controlled clinical trial. RESULTS: The combination exhibited significant inhibitory effects on tested oral pathogens with the MIC < 1.56% (v/v) and the MBC < 3.13% (v/v), and the mouthwash containing this combination did not inhibit the viability of human gingival fibroblasts at the test concentrations. The clinical trial showed that the test group displayed notably lower volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) at 0, 10, 24 h, and 7 d post-mouthwash (P < 0.05), compared with the baseline. After 7 days, the VSC levels of the and control groups were reduced by 50.27% and 32.12%, respectively, and notably cutting severe halitosis by 57.03% in the test group. Additionally, the Plaque Index (PLI) of the test and control group decreased by 54.55% and 8.38%, respectively, and there was a significant difference in PLI between the two groups after 7 days (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The combination of ε-PL, FP and domiphen demonstrated potent inhibitory and bactericidal effects against the tested oral pathogens, and the newly formulated mouthwash added with the combination exhibited anti-dental plaque and anti-halitosis properties in a clinical trial and was safe. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The randomized controlled clinical trial was registered on Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (No. ChiCTR2300073816, Date: 21/07/2023).

Different doses of atorvastatin in the treatment of patients with cardiorenal syndrome Type-2: A retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To assess the cardiorenal protective effects of different doses of atorvastatin in patients with cardiorenal syndrome (CRS) Type-2. Methods: Medical records of 113 patients with CRS Type-2, admitted to First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University from August 2021 to August 2022 and treated with atorvastatin, were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were retrospectively grouped based on the dosage of atorvastatin. A total of 38 patients who received 10mg/day atorvastatin were selected as a Low-dose group, 36 patients who received 20mg/day atorvastatin comprised a Medium-dose group, and 39 patients who received 40mg/day atorvastatin comprised a High-dose group. Cardiac function indicators (Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension [LVEDD], left ventricular end-stage systole diameter [LVESD], and left ventricular ejection fraction [LVEF]), renal function indicators (creatinine [SCr], serum uric acid [SUA], heme oxygenase-1 [HO-1], urinary albumin [UALB]), and inflammatory factors (Serum interleukin-6 [IL-6], hypersensitive C-reactive protein [hs-CRP], and tumor necrosis factor -α [TNF-α]) were compared between the three groups. Results: After the treatment, levels of renal and cardiac function indicators, and inflammatory factor indicators of the three groups were significantly improved compared to the before-treatment levels. The degree of improvement in the Medium-dose and the High-dose groups was significantly higher than in the Low-dose group (p<0.05). There were no significant differences in all cardiorenal function indicators and inflammatory factors between the Medium-dose and the High-dose groups after the treatment. During the treatment process, no adverse events were reported in all three groups. Conclusions: In the treatment of patients with CRS Type-2, medium dose (20mg/day) atorvastatin can have the same therapeutic effect as the high dose (40mg/day) treatment. Medium dose has a good protective effect on the heart and kidneys of the patients, and helps to reduce inflammatory reactions and improve heart and kidney function.

Localized Oxidation Embellishing Strategy Enables High-Performance Perovskite Solar Cells.

Perovskite solar cell (pero-SC) has attracted extensive studies as a promising photovoltaic technology, wherein the electron extraction and transfer exhibit pivotal effect to the device performance. The planar SnO2 electron transport layer (ETL) has contributed the recent record power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the pero-SCs, yet still suffers from surface defects of SnO2 nanoparticles which brings energy loss and phase instability. Herein, we report a localized oxidation embellishing (LOE) strategy by applying (NH4 )2 CrO4 on the SnO2 ETL. The LOE strategy builds up plentiful nano-heterojunctions of p-Cr2 O3 /n-SnO2 and the nano-heterojunctions compensate the surface defects and realize benign energy alignment, which reduces surface non-radiative recombination and voltage loss of the pero-SCs. Meanwhile, the decrease of lattice mismatch released the lattice distortion and eliminated tensile stress, contributing to better stability of the devices. The pero-SCs based on α-FAPbI3 with the SnO2 ETL treated by the LOE strategy realized a PCE of 25.72 % (certified as 25.41 %), along with eminent stability performance of T90 >700 h. This work provides a brand-new view for defect modification of SnO2 electron transport layer.

Tailoring the Position of Ester Group on N-Alkyl Chains of Benzotriazole-based Small Molecule Acceptors for High-Performance Organic Solar Cells.

Side chain engineering plays a vital role in exploring high-performance small molecule acceptors (SMAs) for organic solar cells (OSCs). In this work, we designed and synthesized a series of A-DA'D-A type SMAs by introducing different N-substituted alkyl and ester alkyl side chains on benzotriazole (BZ) central unit and aimed to investigate the effect of different ester substitution positions on photovoltaic performances. All the new SMAs with ester groups exhibit lower the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy levels and more blue-shifted absorption, but relatively higher absorption coefficients than alkyl chain counterpart. After blending with the donor PM6, the ester side chain-based devices demonstrate enhanced charge mobility, reduced amorphous intermixing domain size and long-lived charge transfer state compared to the alkyl chain counterpart, which are beneficial to achieve higher short-circuit current density (Jsc ) and fill factor (FF), simultaneously. Thereinto, the PM6 : BZ-E31 based device achieves a higher power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.33 %, which is the highest PCE among the OSCs based on the SMAs with BZ-core. Our work demonstrated the strategy of ester substituted side chain is a feasible and effective approach to develop more efficient SMAs for OSCs.

AlzRiskMR database: an online database for the impact of exposure factors on Alzheimer's disease.

In view of great difficulties in the pathogenesis analysis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) presently, profiling the modifiable risk factors is crucial for early detection and intervention of AD. However, the causal associations among them have yet to be identified, and the effective integration and application of these data also remain considerable challenges due to the lack of efficient collection and analysis procedures. To address this issue, we performed comprehensive analyses by two-sample Mendelian randomization (2SMR) and established the AlzRiskMR database (https://github.com/SDBMC/RiskFactors2AD). Four 2SMR analysis methods, including inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger, weighted median, and weighted mode, were used for the complementary calculation to test the reliability of the results. The database currently comprises 1870 sets of data of Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) from the MR-Base and NHGRI-EBI GWAS Catalog database. AlzRiskMR database not only estimates causal associations between modifiable risk factors and AD but also offers a useful and timely resource for early intervention of AD development incidence.

Targeting oxidative stress as a preventive and therapeutic approach for cardiovascular disease.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) continue to exert a significant impact on global mortality rates, encompassing conditions like pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), atherosclerosis (AS), and myocardial infarction (MI). Oxidative stress (OS) plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis and advancement of CVDs, highlighting its significance as a contributing factor. Maintaining an equilibrium between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidant systems not only aids in mitigating oxidative stress but also confers protective benefits on cardiac health. Herbal monomers can inhibit OS in CVDs by activating multiple signaling pathways, such as increasing the activity of endogenous antioxidant systems and decreasing the level of ROS expression. Given the actions of herbal monomers to significantly protect the normal function of the heart and reduce the damage caused by OS to the organism. Hence, it is imperative to recognize the significance of herbal monomers as prospective therapeutic interventions for mitigating oxidative damage in CVDs. This paper aims to comprehensively review the origins and mechanisms underlying OS, elucidate the intricate association between CVDs and OS, and explore the therapeutic potential of antioxidant treatment utilizing herbal monomers. Furthermore, particular emphasis will be placed on examining the cardioprotective effects of herbal monomers by evaluating their impact on cardiac signaling pathways subsequent to treatment.

Adults in Northwest China experienced the largest outbreak of Japanese encephalitis in history 10 years after the Japanese encephalitis vaccine was included in the national immunization program: A retrospective epidemiological study.

Mainland China included Japanese encephalitis (JE) vaccine in the national immunization program in 2008 to control the JE epidemic. However, Gansu province in Western China experienced the largest JE outbreak since 1958 in 2018. We conducted a retrospective epidemiological study to explore the causes of this outbreak. We found that adults aged ≥20 years (especially those in rural areas) were the main JE cases in Gansu Province, with a significant increase in the JE incidence in older adults aged ≥60 years in 2017 and 2018. In addition, JE outbreaks in Gansu Province were mainly located in the southeastern region, while the temperature and precipitation in Gansu Province were gradually increasing in recent years, which made the JE epidemic areas in Gansu Province gradually spread to the western of Gansu Province. We also found that adults aged ≥20 years in Gansu Province had lower JE antibody positivity than children and infants, and the antibody positivity rate decreased with age. In the summer of 2017 and 2018, the density of mosquitoes (mainly the Culex tritaeniorhynchus) in Gansu Province was significantly higher than in other years, and the genotype of JEV was mainly Genotype-G1. Therefore, in the future JE control in Gansu Province, we need to strengthen JE vaccination for adults. Moreover, strengthening mosquito surveillance can provide early warning of JE outbreaks and the spread of epidemic areas in Gansu Province. At the same time, strengthening JE antibody surveillance is also necessary for JE control.

Ultra-high thermal stability InAs/GaAs quantum dot lasers grown on on-axis Si (001) with a record-high continuous-wave operating temperature of 150 °C.

Direct epitaxial growth of group III-V light sources with excellently thermal performance on silicon photonics chips promises low-cost, low-power-consumption, high-performance photonic integrated circuits. Here, we report on the achievement of ultra-high thermal stability 1.3 µm InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD) lasers directly grown on an on-axis Si (001) with a record-high continuous-wave (CW) operating temperature of 150 °C. A GaAs buffer layer with a low threading dislocation density (TDD) of 4.3 × 106 cm-2 was first deposited using an optimized three-step growth method by molecular beam epitaxy. Then, an eight-layer QD laser structure with p-type modulation doping to enhance the temperature stability of the device was subsequently grown on the low TDD Si-based GaAs buffer layer. It is shown that the QD laser exhibits the ultra-high temperature stability with a characteristic temperature T0=∞ and T1=∞ in the wide temperature range of 10-75 °C and 10-140 °C, respectively. Moreover, a maximum CW operating temperature of up to 150 °C and a pulsed operating temperature of up to 160 °C are achieved for the QD laser. In addition, the QD laser shows a high CW saturation power of 50 mW at 85 °C and 19 mW at 125 °C, respectively.

Significantly enhanced performance of InAs/GaAs quantum dot lasers on Si(001) via spatially separated co-doping.

We report the significantly enhanced performance of InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD) lasers on Si(001) by spatially separated co-doping, including n-doping in the QDs and p-doping in the barrier layers simultaneously. The QD lasers are a ridge waveguide of 6 × 1000 µm2 containing five InAs QD layers. Compared with p-doped alone laser, the co-doped laser exhibits a large reduction in threshold current of 30.3% and an increase in maximum output power of 25.5% at room temperature. In the range of 15°C-115°C (under 1% pulse mode), the co-doped laser shows better temperature stability with higher characteristic temperatures of threshold current (T0) and slope efficiency (T1). Furthermore, the co-doped laser can maintain stable continuous-wave ground-state lasing up to a high temperature of 115°C. These results prove the great potential of co-doping technique for enhancing silicon-based QD laser performances towards lower power consumption, higher temperature stability, and higher operating temperature, to boost the development of high-performance silicon photonic chips.