Artificial Synapse Based on a δ-FAPbI3/Atomic-Layer-Deposited SnO2 Bilayer Memristor.

Halide perovskite-based resistive switching memory (memristor) has potential in an artificial synapse. However, an abrupt switch behavior observed for a formamidinium lead triiodide (FAPbI3)-based memristor is undesirable for an artificial synapse. Here, we report on the δ-FAPbI3/atomic-layer-deposited (ALD)-SnO2 bilayer memristor for gradual analogue resistive switching. In comparison to a single-layer δ-FAPbI3 memristor, the heterojunction δ-FAPbI3/ALD-SnO2 bilayer effectively reduces the current level in the high-resistance state. The analog resistive switching characteristics of δ-FAPbI3/ALD-SnO2 demonstrate exceptional linearity and potentiation/depression performance, resembling an artificial synapse for neuromorphic computing. The nonlinearity of long-term potentiation and long-term depression is notably decreased from 12.26 to 0.60 and from -8.79 to -3.47, respectively. Moreover, the δ-FAPbI3/ALD-SnO2 bilayer achieves a recognition rate of ≤94.04% based on the modified National Institute of Standards and Technology database (MNIST), establishing its potential in an efficient artificial synapse.

Climate change belief systems across political groups in the United States.

Beliefs and attitudes form the core of public opinion about climate change. Network analysis can reveal the structural configuration of these beliefs and attitudes. In this research, we utilize a belief system framework to identify key psychological elements, track change in the density of these belief systems over time and across political groups, and analyze the structural heterogeneity of belief systems within and between political groups in the United States. Drawing on fifteen waves of nationally representative survey data from 2010 to 2021 (N = 16,742), our findings indicate that worry about climate change is the most central psychological element. Interestingly, we find that among politically unaffiliated individuals, the connections between psychological elements have strengthened over time, implying an increase in the consistency of belief systems within this group. Despite the political polarization in beliefs about climate change between Republicans and Democrats, our findings reveal that the ways these two groups organize and structure climate change beliefs systems are not markedly different compared to those of other groups. These findings provide theoretical and practical insights for climate change experts and communicators.

The Role of Collective Group Orientation and Social Norms on Physical Distancing Behaviors for Disease Prevention.

To reduce the impact of communicable diseases like COVID-19, collective action is required and likely to be susceptible to normative influence as well as whether people are more or less collectively oriented. We extend the theory of normative social behavior (TNSB) to account for group orientation and predict the relationships between social norms and physical distancing behaviors. Using a rolling cross-sectional design during 17 weeks of the pandemic, a national sample of US residents from 20 states (N = 8,778) participated in the study. The findings show that perceived descriptive norms, injunctive norms, and group orientation are significantly associated with physical distancing. The descriptive norm-behavior relationship and injunctive norm-behavior relationship are moderated by group orientation and the other predicted moderators in the TNSB. The findings extend the TNSB and highlight the need to understand social norms and group orientation in formative research for health communication campaigns designed to promote prevention behaviors.

Comparison of in-situ release and submuscular anterior transposition of ulnar nerve for refractory cubital tunnel syndrome, previously treated with subfascial anterior transfer-A retrospective study of 24 cases.

BACKGROUND: Although cubital tunnel syndrome is the second most common type of compressive neuropathy in the upper extremities, the indication and optimal surgical method for recurrent or refractory cubital tunnel syndrome remains controversial. This study evaluates the functional outcomes of revision surgery for cubital tunnel syndrome. MATERIAL & METHODS: This study was a retrospective observational multicenter single-institution study including 660 patients who underwent surgery for cubital tunnel syndrome from 2010 to 2019. Among the 660 patients, 42(6.4%) received revision surgery due to remaining or recurrent symptoms confirmed with electromyography(EMG). After excluding those with concurrent elbow fracture, dislocation, osteoarthritis and wound infection, a total of 24 patients were included in the study. The patients were evaluated of disease severity, revision surgical method, time interval to recurrence, underlying diseases and postoperative functional outcomes. RESULTS: All patients received ulnar nerve subfascial anterior transposition for the initial cubital tunnel syndrome surgery. Among the 24 patients (3.7%) who received revision surgery, nine received in situ neurolysis, 12 received submuscular transposition, and three received subcutaneous transfer. 21 patients (88%) reported improved mean VAS score of 4.3, while three patients complained of remaining symptoms that did not improve even after revision surgery. The patients with remaining symptoms all had underlying diabetes mellitus and were treated with subcutaneous transfer. The difference of surgical outcomes between the in situ neurolysis group and the nerve transfer groups were non-significant (p = 0.23). The most common cause of recurrent or persistent symptoms was adhesion and fibrosis at sling area. The mean follow up period before revision surgery was 26.3 months and postoperative follow up period after revision surgery was 8.5 months. CONCLUSION: The outcomes of this study imply that in-situ neurolysis may be as effective as anterior submuscular transfer of ulnar nerve for refractory cubital tunnel syndrome after anterior subfascial transfer.

A plasma-based pressure pulse generator for simulating pellet-cladding mechanical interaction during reactivity-initiated accident.

This paper describes the characteristics of a plasma-based pressure pulse generator and its potential use as a simulator for studying pellet-cladding mechanical interaction (PCMI) during reactivity-initiated accidents (RIAs). In this device, a transient pressure pulse is generated by rapid heating and expansion of hot, dense plasma inside a nuclear fuel cladding. Thus, the parameters of a pressure pulse, such as peak pressure and pressure rise-rate, can be controlled by modifying the electrical parameters of a pulse discharge circuit. The pulse discharge circuit utilizes a capacitor bank comprising several energy storage capacitors connected in parallel and a high-power solid-state switch. A pressure loading system is attached as a load to the pulse discharge circuit. The power and energy delivered to the load are calculated by measuring the voltage and current waveforms at one end of the loading system. A piezoelectric sensor is connected at the other end of the loading system to simultaneously measure the pressure pulse inside the cladding tube. Preliminary experiments are carried out with a stainless-steel tube to characterize the performance of the device as well as with a pre-hydrided ZIRLO™ cladding tube to demonstrate the potential of the device as a simulator for studying the failure characteristics of the cladding as a result of an RIA. The high pressurization rate of the device is expected to offer unique advantages for studying the PCMI mechanism.

Enhanced Resistance of atnigr1 against Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato Suggests Negative Regulation of Plant Basal Defense and Systemic Acquired Resistance by AtNIGR1 Encoding NAD(P)-Binding Rossmann-Fold in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Nitric oxide (NO) regulates several biological and physiological processes in plants. This study investigated the role of Arabidopsis thaliana Negative Immune and Growth Regulator 1 (AtNIGR1), encoding an NAD(P)-binding Rossmann-fold superfamily, in the growth and immunity of Arabidopsis thaliana. AtNIGR1 was pooled from the CySNO transcriptome as a NO-responsive gene. Seeds of the knockout (atnigr1) and overexpression plants were evaluated for their response to oxidative [(hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and methyl viologen (MV)] or nitro-oxidative [(S-nitroso-L-cysteine (CySNO) and S-nitroso glutathione (GSNO)] stress. Results showed that the root and shoot growth of atnigr1 (KO) and AtNIGR1 (OE) exhibited differential phenotypic responses under oxidative and nitro-oxidative stress and normal growth conditions. To investigate the role of the target gene in plant immunity, the biotrophic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 virulent (Pst DC3000 vir) was used to assess the basal defense, while the Pst DC3000 avirulent (avrB) strain was used to investigate R-gene-mediated resistance and systemic acquired resistance (SAR). Data revealed that AtNIGR1 negatively regulated basal defense, R-gene-mediated resistance, and SAR. Furthermore, the Arabidopsis eFP browser indicated that the expression of AtNIGR1 is detected in several plant organs, with the highest expression observed in germinating seeds. All results put together suggest that AtNIGR1 could be involved in plant growth, as well as basal defense and SAR, in response to bacterial pathogens in Arabidopsis.

A Novel Source/Drain Extension Scheme with Laser-Spike Annealing for Nanosheet Field-Effect Transistors in 3D ICs.

This study proposed a novel source/drain (S/D) extension scheme to increase the stress in nanosheet (NS) field-effect transistors (NSFETs) and investigated the scheme by using technology-computer-aided-design simulations. In three-dimensional integrated circuits, transistors in the bottom tier were exposed to subsequent processes; therefore, selective annealing, such as laser-spike annealing (LSA), should be applied. However, the application of the LSA process to NSFETs significantly decreased the on-state current (Ion) owing to diffusionless S/D dopants. Furthermore, the barrier height below the inner spacer was not lowered even under on-state bias conditions because ultra-shallow junctions between the NS and S/D were formed far from the gate metal. However, the proposed S/D extension scheme overcame these Ion reduction issues by adding an NS-channel-etching process before S/D formation. A larger S/D volume induced a larger stress in the NS channels; thus, the stress was boosted by over 25%. Additionally, an increase in carrier concentrations in the NS channels improved Ion. Therefore, Ion increased by approximately 21.7% (37.4%) in NFETs (PFETs) compared with NSFETs without the proposed scheme. Additionally, the RC delay was improved by 2.03% (9.27%) in NFETs (PFETs) compared with NSFETs using rapid thermal annealing. Therefore, the S/D extension scheme overcame the Ion reduction issues encountered in LSA and significantly enhanced the AC/DC performance.

Atomic layer deposition of SnO2 using hydrogen peroxide improves the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells.

Low-temperature processed SnO2 is a promising electron transporting layer in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to its optoelectronic advantage. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is suitable for forming a conformal SnO2 layer on a high-haze substrate. However, oxygen vacancy formed by the conventional ALD process using H2O might have a detrimental effect on the efficiency and stability of PSCs. Here, we report on the photovoltaic performance and stability of PSCs based on the ALD-SnO2 layer with low oxygen vacancies fabricated via H2O2. Compared to the ALD-SnO2 layer formed using H2O vapors, the ALD-SnO2 layer prepared via H2O2 shows better electron extraction due to a reduced oxygen vacancy associated with the highly oxidizing nature of H2O2. As a result, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) is enhanced from 21.42% for H2O to 22.34% for H2O2 mainly due to an enhanced open-circuit voltage. Operational stability is simultaneously improved, where 89.3% of the initial PCE is maintained after 1000 h under an ambient condition for the H2O2-derived ALD SnO2 as compared to the control device maintaining 72.5% of the initial PCE.

Low Transcondylar Fractures of the Distal Humerus: A Multicenter Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the demographic characteristics and clinical and radiologic results of low transcondylar fractures and compare them with those of other types of distal humerus fractures using multicenter data and to suggest an optimal method for their treatment. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Tertiary-care university hospital. PATIENTS: Between 2009 and 2019, 581 patients who underwent surgery for distal humerus fractures (OTA/AO classification A1 to C3) were enrolled at 7 university-affiliated hospitals. INTERVENTION: Internal fixation of low transcondylar fractures. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Demographic characteristics, including sex, age, mechanism of injury, fixation methods, and complications, were compared between low transcondylar (group A) and other distal humerus (group B) fractures. Clinical outcomes assessed included pain, stability, and range of motion. Radiographs obtained at the latest follow-up were assessed for union, delayed union, nonunion, and implant failure. RESULTS: Mean age was 62.1 ± 19.1 (range, 20-95) years, and it was higher in group A (n = 100) than in group B (n = 376). Patients in group A were predominantly women. Low-energy trauma, such as that from a simple fall, was the most common cause of fracture in group A. Both column fixation, including parallel and orthogonal double plating, was performed more commonly in group A than in group B (87.4% vs. 66.4%, P < 0.001). The nonunion rate was higher in group A, but the difference was not significant. The incidence of ulnar nerve-related symptoms was higher in group A after surgery (6.3% vs. 2.0%, P = 0.003). No significant difference in clinical outcomes was found between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Low transcondylar fractures occurred more frequently than other distal humerus fractures in older female patients and accounted for 21% of distal humerus fractures. The incidence of ulnar nerve-related symptoms was higher in patients with low transcondylar fractures after surgery. Clinical outcomes were not inferior in patients with low transcondylar fractures. The nonunion rate in patients with low transcondylar fractures treated with double plating was 3.6%. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Prognostic Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Sensitivity of Inner Spacer Thickness Variations for Sub-3-nm Node Silicon Nanosheet Field-Effect Transistors.

The inner spacer thickness (TIS) variations in sub-3-nm, node 3-stacked, nanosheet field-effect transistors (NSFETs) were investigated using computer-aided design simulation technology. Inner spacer formation requires a high selectivity of SiGe to Si, which causes inevitable TIS variation (ΔTIS). The gate length (LG) depends on the TIS. Thus, the DC/AC performance is significantly affected by ΔTIS. Because the effects of ΔTIS on the performance depend on which inner spacer is varied, the sensitivities of the performance to the top, middle, and bottom (T, M, and B, respectively) ΔTIS should be studied separately. In addition, the source/drain (S/D) recess process variation that forms the parasitic bottom transistor (trpbt) should be considered with ΔTIS because the gate controllability over trpbt is significantly dependent on ΔTIS,B. If the S/D recess depth (TSD) variation cannot be completely eliminated, reducing ΔTIS,B is crucial for suppressing the effects of trpbt. It is noteworthy that reducing ΔTIS,B is the most important factor when the TSD variation occurs, whereas reducing ΔTIS,T and ΔTIS,M is crucial in the absence of TSD variation to minimize the DC performance variation. As the TIS increases, the gate capacitance (Cgg) decreases owing to the reduction in both parasitic and intrinsic capacitance, but the sensitivity of Cgg to each ΔTIS is almost the same. Therefore, the difference in performance sensitivity related to AC response is also strongly affected by the DC characteristics. In particular, since TSD of 5 nm increases the off-state current (Ioff) sensitivity to ΔTIS,B by a factor of 22.5 in NFETs, the ΔTIS,B below 1 nm is essential for further scaling and yield enhancement.

Prevalence of Vitamin D Deficiency in Children with Fractures: Before and during the COVID-19 Outbreak.

Background: Although it is generally agreed that vitamin D is important for bone health, the role of vitamin D in preventing fractures in children and adolescents remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency in healthy Korean children with fractures. Our secondary aim was to compare serum vitamin D levels before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Methods: We evaluated 334 patients with fractures who were surgically treated at our institution between 2018 and 2019 before the onset of COVID-19 (group I). In addition, we collected data on the serum 25(OH)D levels of 210 patients who visited our pediatric department for evaluation of short stature (group II) and the serum 25(OH)D levels of the patients with fractures during the COVID-19 pandemic period (group III). A serum 25(OH)D level of <20 ng/mL was considered deficient, between 20 and 32 ng/mL was insufficient, and ≥32 ng/mL was considered sufficient. Results: The mean age was 8.1 ± 3.5 years in group I, 8.2 ± 3.7 years in group II, and 8.6 ± 3.5 years in group III. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency was 53.0% in group I and 32.9% in group II. The mean serum 25(OH)D level was lower in group I than in group II (20.0 ± 7.3 ng/ml vs. 23.2 ± 6.9 ng/ml, p < 0.001). The mean serum 25(OH)D level of younger patients (<10 years) in group III was lower than that of the younger patients in the prepandemic period (21.4 ± 7.2 ng/mL vs. 19.2 ± 6.8 ng/mL, p=0.037). Conclusions: We observed a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in children with fractures who required surgical treatment. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the serum vitamin D levels became even lower, especially in younger children.

Medial Epicondyle Fracture in Children and Its Association with Increased Carrying Angle.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the injury mechanism of medial epicondylar fractures in children and adolescents and its association with increased carrying angle (CA) as a predisposing factor. Materials and Methods: We evaluated 37 patients with medial epicondylar fractures who were surgically treated at our institution. Medical records and plain radiographs were reviewed to determine the mechanism of injury and the humerus-elbow-wrist angle (HEWA) and CA of the uninjured arm. To evaluate the effect of coronal alignment on specific fracture type, we compared the CA and HEWA of the 23 patients with medial epicondylar fracture who were injured by falling onto an outstretched hand (group I) with age- and sex-matched controls of 23 patients who had sustained extension-type supracondylar fractures (group II). Results: The mean age at injury was 11.7 ± 2.8 years (range, 5 to 16 years). Of the 37 patients, 23 (62.2%) recalled the injury mechanism as falling onto an outstretched hand and 10 patients (27.0%) were injured while arm wrestling, and in one patient (2.7%), the injury was associated with elbow dislocation. In the case-matched analysis, the mean HEWA of group I was 13.1 ± 2.8° (range, 7.1° to 19.8°) and the mean CA was 17.7 ± 2.7° (range, 13.0° to 22.2°). These angles were significantly increased in group I (p=0.003 and p=0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Falling onto an outstretched hand is the most common injury mechanism in patients with medial epicondylar fractures, and these fractures are associated with an increased CA.

Detecting Sentiment toward Emerging Infectious Diseases on Social Media: A Validity Evaluation of Dictionary-Based Sentiment Analysis.

Despite the popularity and efficiency of dictionary-based sentiment analysis (DSA) for public health research, limited empirical evidence has been produced about the validity of DSA and potential harms to the validity of DSA. A random sample of a second-hand Ebola tweet dataset was used to evaluate the validity of DSA compared to the manual coding approach and examine the influences of textual features on the validity of DSA. The results revealed substantial inconsistency between DSA and the manual coding approach. The presence of certain textual features such as negation can partially account for the inconsistency between DSA and manual coding. The findings imply that scholars should be careful and critical about findings in disease-related public health research that use DSA. Certain textual features should be more carefully addressed in DSA.

Novel Modeling Approach to Analyze Threshold Voltage Variability in Short Gate-Length (15-22 nm) Nanowire FETs with Various Channel Diameters.

In this study, threshold voltage (Vth) variability was investigated in silicon nanowire field-effect transistors (SNWFETs) with short gate-lengths of 15-22 nm and various channel diameters (DNW) of 7, 9, and 12 nm. Linear slope and nonzero y-intercept were observed in a Pelgrom plot of the standard deviation of Vth (σVth), which originated from random and process variations. Interestingly, the slope and y-intercept differed for each DNW, and σVth was the smallest at a median DNW of 9 nm. To analyze the observed DNW tendency of σVth, a novel modeling approach based on the error propagation law was proposed. The contribution of gate-metal work function, channel dopant concentration (Nch), and DNW variations (WFV, ∆Nch, and ∆DNW) to σVth were evaluated by directly fitting the developed model to measured σVth. As a result, WFV induced by metal gate granularity increased as channel area increases, and the slope of WFV in Pelgrom plot is similar to that of σVth. As DNW decreased, SNWFETs became robust to ∆Nch but vulnerable to ∆DNW. Consequently, the contribution of ∆DNW, WFV, and ∆Nch is dominant at DNW of 7 nm, 9 nm, and 12, respectively. The proposed model enables the quantifying of the contribution of various variation sources of Vth variation, and it is applicable to all SNWFETs with various LG and DNW.

Association between benign prostatic hyperplasia and suicide in South Korea: A nationwide retrospective cohort study.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia is a commonly diagnosed disease in elderly men, but elderly men with benign prostatic hyperplasia are more likely to have a lower quality of life and depressive symptoms. This study aims to examine the association benign prostatic hyperplasia patients with suicide death relative to a control group comprising individuals without benign prostatic hyperplasia. We used the Korean National Health Insurance Service-National Sample Cohort from 2006 to 2015 comprising of 193,785 Korean adults ≥40 years old, and followed-up for suicide death during the 8.7 years period. Cox-proportional hazard model was used to estimate hazard ratios for suicide among patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia. From 2006 to 2010, a total of 32,215 people were newly diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia. The suicide rate of people without benign prostatic hyperplasia was 61.6 per 100,000 person-years, whereas that of patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia was 97.3 per 100,000 person-years, 1.58 times higher than the control group (p<0.01). After adjusting for covariates, the hazard ratio for suicide among patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia was 1.47 (95% C.I. = 1.21 to 1.78; p<0.01) compared to people without benign prostatic hyperplasia. For men without mental disorders, the hazard ratio for suicide among patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia was 1.36 (95% CI = 1.05 to 1.76) compared to control group after adjusting for multiple covariates. Our study suggests that men with benign prostatic hyperplasia had a higher probability of suicide compared to men without benign prostatic hyperplasia in South Korea. This study suggests that physicians may be aware that men newly diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia had high probability of suicide.

A Comprehensive Evaluation of Possible RNSS Signals in the S-Band for the KPS.

Recently, the Korean government has announced a plan to develop a satellite-based navigation system called the Korean Positioning System (KPS). When designing a new Radio Navigation Satellite Service (RNSS) signal, the use of the S-band has emerged as an alternative to avoiding signal congestion in the L-bands, and South Korea is considering using the S-band with the L-bands. Therefore, this study proposed possible S-band signal candidates and evaluated their performance, such as the radio frequency (RF) compatibility, spectral efficiency, ranging performance, and receiver complexity. Several figures-of-merit (FoMs) were introduced for quantitative performance evaluation for each candidate. Each FoM was calculated using an analytical equation by considering the signal design parameters, such as the center frequency, modulation scheme, and chip rate. The results showed that the outstanding candidate signal was different depending on the signal performance of interest and the reception environments. Therefore, we discuss and summarize the signal performance analysis results considering the whole FoMs together. Under the assumptions given in this paper, the binary phase shift keying (BPSK)(1), sine-phased binary offset carrier (BOCs)(5,2), and BPSK signals were superior for the spectral efficiency, ranging performance, and receiver complexity, respectively.

Effects of lubricant-fuel mixing on particle emissions in a single cylinder direct injection spark ignition engine.

Gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines emit less carbon dioxide (CO2) than port fuel injection (PFI) engines when fossil fuel conditions are the same. However, GDI engines emit more ultrafine particulate matter, which can have negative health effects, leading to particulate emission regulations. To satisfy these regulations, various studies have been done to reduce particulate matter, and several studies focused on lubricants. This study focuses on the influence of lubricant on the formation of particulate matter and its effect on particulate emissions in GDI engines. An instrumented, combustion and optical singe-cylinder GDI engine fueled by four different lubricant-gasoline blends was used with various injection conditions. Combustion experiments were used to determine combustion characteristics, and gaseous emissions indicated that the lubricant did not influence mixture homogeneity but had an impact on unburned fuels. Optical experiments showed that the lubricant did not influence spray but did influence wall film formation during the injection period, which is a major factor affecting particulate matter generation. Particulate emissions indicated that lubricant included in the wall film significantly affected PN emissions depending on injection conditions. Additionally, the wall film influenced by the lubricant affected the overall particle size and its distribution.

The impact of acute fracture on interpretation of bone turnover marker measurements for patients starting anti-resorptive therapies.

INTRODUCTION: Bone turnover markers (BTM) are used in evaluating patients' response to anti-resorptive agents (ARA). Fracture and its healing process, however, can influence the measurements, which might make their interpretation difficult in patients with a recent fracture. We aimed to evaluate the effect of oral ARA on changes in BTM levels in patients with a recent distal radius fracture (DRF). METHODS: In 143 women who had a new DRF and then received oral ARA including selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM, n = 101), and bisphosphonate (n = 42), we measured serum cross-linked C-telopeptides of type I collagen (CTXI) and osteocalcin, at baseline and six months, as well as lumbar and total hip bone mineral density (BMD) at baseline and one year after fracture. We determined the predictive value of BTM at six months in determining one-year responses in BMD. RESULTS: Both BTM levels decreased significantly at six months, with the average decrease of 27 ± 63% for CTX-I and 11% ± 37% for osteocalcin. The percent changes of BTM at six months were independent predictors of the BMD change. Cutoff points of 50.0% CTX-I decrease and 23.5% for osteocalcin decrease had the highest sensitivities and specificities for detecting BMD responders for bisphosphonate users, but cutoffs could not be found for SERM users. CONCLUSION: Although a fresh fracture can influence BTM, ARA therapy significantly reduced their levels and their percent change at six months could predict BMD improvement at one year. However, adjusted cutoff points can be necessary to increase sensitivity for detecting patients responsive to ARA treatment after a new DRF.

Drought Stress-Mediated Transcriptome Profile Reveals NCED as a Key Player Modulating Drought Tolerance in Populus davidiana.

Populus trichocarpa has been studied as a model poplar species through biomolecular approaches and was the first tree species to be genome sequenced. In this study, we employed a high throughput RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) mediated leaf transcriptome analysis to investigate the response of four different Populus davidiana cultivars to drought stress. Following the RNA-seq, we compared the transcriptome profiles and identified two differentially expressed genes (DEGs) with contrasting expression patterns in the drought-sensitive and tolerant groups, i.e., upregulated in the drought-tolerant P. davidiana groups but downregulated in the sensitive group. Both these genes encode a 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED), a key enzyme required for abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis. The high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) measurements showed a significantly higher ABA accumulation in the cultivars of the drought-tolerant group following dehydration. The Arabidopsis nced3 loss-of-function mutants showed a significantly higher sensitivity to drought stress, ~90% of these plants died after 9 days of drought stress treatment. The real-time PCR analysis of several key genes indicated a strict regulation of drought stress at the transcriptional level in the P. davidiana drought-tolerant cultivars. The transgenic P. davidiana NCED3 overexpressing (OE) plants were significantly more tolerant to drought stress as compared with the NCED knock-down RNA interference (RNAi) lines. Further, the NCED OE plants accumulated a significantly higher quantity of ABA and exhibited strict regulation of drought stress at the transcriptional level. Furthermore, we identified several key differences in the amino acid sequence, predicted structure, and co-factor/ligand binding activity of NCED3 between drought-tolerant and susceptible P. davidiana cultivars. Here, we presented the first evidence of the significant role of NCED genes in regulating ABA-dependent drought stress responses in the forest tree P. davidiana and uncovered the molecular basis of NCED3 evolution associated with increased drought tolerance.

Too stringent or too Lenient: Antecedents and consequences of perceived stringency of COVID-19 policies in the United States.

In the United States, federal and local governments have attempted to contain the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) by implementing a variety of policies such as stay-at-home orders and mask mandates. Perceptions can influence behaviors; therefore, it is important to understand how people perceive the stringency of COVID-19 policies, what factors shape perceived policy stringency, and whether and how policy perceptions impact the practice of prevention behaviors. With rolling-cross sectional survey data collected in the US from June to October 2020 and other external sources of data, the study examines the impact of objective risk of the pandemic, information seeking, and political ideology at the individual and the state levels on perceived policy stringency, and the impact of perceived policy stringency on prevention behaviors such as mask wearing and social distancing. The findings reveal that objective risk and political ideology are significantly associated with perceived policy stringency. The perceived policy stringency has negative associations with prevention behaviors. The findings provide important implications for the development process of compulsory public health policies during the pandemic.