bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Catalytic Activity of a de novo Enzyme in a Coacervate Phase
Authors: Kluczka Eugénie , Rinaldo Valentin , Coutable‐Pennarun Angélique , Stines‐Chaumeil Claire , Anderson J. L. Ross , Martin Nicolas
Published: May 2024

Biomolecular condensates are membraneless organelles that orchestrate various metabolic pathways in living cells. Understanding how these crowded structures regulate enzyme reactions remains yet challenging due to their dynamic and intricate nature. Coacervate microdroplets formed by associative liquid‐liquid phase separation of oppositely charged polyions have emerged as relevant condensate models to study enzyme catalysis. Enzyme reactions within these droplets show altered kinetics, influenced by factors such as enzyme and substrate partitioning, crowding, and interactions with coacervate components; it is often challenging to disentangle the contributions of each. Here, we investigate the peroxidase activity of a de novo enzyme within polysaccharide‐based coacervates. By comparing the reaction kinetics in buffer, in a suspension of coacervates and in the bulk coacervate phase collected after centrifugation of the droplets, we show that the coacervate phase significantly increases the enzyme catalytic efficiency. We demonstrate that the main origin of this enhanced activity lies in macromolecular crowding coupled to changes in the conformational dynamics of the enzyme within the coacervate environment. Altogether, these findings underline the crucial role of the coacervate matrix in enzyme catalysis, beyond simple partitioning effects. The observed boost in enzyme activity within the coacervate phase provides insights for designing biocatalytically active synthetic organelles.
UoC‐7: A Bimetallic K‐Zn‐MOF with an Anionic Framework Based on Fluorinated Trimesate Ligands Exhibiting a Large CO2 Uptake
Authors: Wenzel Susanna , Cammiade Aimée E. L. , Christoffels Ronja K. , Sebastian Sean S. , Mattick Tim , Ruschewitz Uwe
Published: May 2024

In solvothermal reactions of Zn(NO3)2×6H2O with K(H2mF‐BTC) or K(H2dF‐BTC) in DMF/ethanol or DMA/ethanol solvent mixtures, single crystals of the MOFs UoC‐7(1F) and UoC‐7(2F) were obtained crystallizing in the hexagonal space group P63/m (no. 176) (H3BTC: 1,3,5‐benzenetricarboxylic acid; mF‐/dF: mono‐/difluoro; DMF: N,N‐dimethylformamide; DMA: N,N‐dimethylacetamide; UoC: University of Cologne). According to the general composition [(CH3)2NH2][K2Zn3(mF‐/dF‐BTC)3(H2O)]×solvent, UoC‐7 consists of an anionic bimetallic framework. The charge is compensated by a (CH3)2NH2+ cation stemming from the (partial) hydrolysis of the solvent. The crystal structure shows large channels along the hexagonal [001] direction, which accommodate the cations as well as solvent molecules. Surface areas (SBET) of 2740 m2/g (UoC‐7(1F)) and 1643 m2/g (UoC‐7(2F)) were obtained from N2 sorption measurements. UoC‐7 shows structural similarities to the MOF NKU‐521 with a 5‐(1H‐tetrazol‐5‐yl)isophthalate linker. Both MOFs exhibit a 4,7,8T14 topology. Despite smaller channels in UoC‐7 compared to NKU‐521, the CO2 uptake is considerably higher (~164 cm3/g at 1 bar/293 K) being one of the highest CO2 uptakes observed up to now.
Mixed Tin Valence in the Tin(II/IV)‐Nitridophosphate Sn3P8N16
Authors: Ambach Sebastian J. , Koldemir Aylin , Witthaut Kristian , Kreiner Sandra , Bräuniger Thomas , Pöttgen Rainer , Schnick Wolfgang
Published: May 2024

Sn3P8N16 combines the structural versatility of nitridophosphates and Sn within one compound. It was synthesized as dark gray powder in a high‐pressure high‐temperature reaction at 800 °C and 6 GPa from Sn3N4 and P3N5. The crystal structure was elucidated from single‐crystal diffraction data (space group C2/m (no. 12), a=12.9664(4), b=10.7886(4), c=4.8238(2) Å, β=109.624(1)°) and shows a 3D‐network of PN4 tetrahedra, incorporating Sn in oxidation states +II and +IV. The Sn cations are located within eight‐membered rings of vertex‐sharing PN4 tetrahedra, stacked along the [001] direction. A combination of solid‐state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, 119Sn Mössbauer spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations was used to confirm the mixed oxidation of Sn. Temperature‐dependent powder X‐ray diffraction measurements reveal a low thermal expansion of 3.6 ppm/K up to 750 °C, beyond which Sn3P8N16 starts to decompose.
Telescoped Flow Synthesis of Azacyclic Scaffolds Exploiting the Chromoselective Photolysis of Vinyl Azides and Azirines
Authors: Crawford Ruairi , Baumann Marcus
Published: May 2024

An efficient chromoselective photochemical process is presented for the synthesis of 2H‐azirines and 1,3‐diazabicylo[3.1.0]hex‐3‐enes from readily available vinyl azides. The method exploits continuous flow photochemistry to enable the safe consumption of the hazardous azide group and provides uniform irradiation using high‐power LEDs at 365–450 nm. Additionally, a scaled telescoped process has been developed providing access to drug‐like 1,6‐dihydropyrimidines and pyrimidines via integrated ring‐expansion and oxidation reactions. Given the prevalence of various azacyclic targets in pharmaceutical, agrochemical and materials applications it is anticipated that this methodology will enable further exploitations of these important scaffolds.
Visible‐Light‐Driven Germyl Radical Generation via EDA‐Catalyzed ET–HAT Process
Authors: Yoshizawa Kaito , Li Bi‐Xiao , Matsuyama Taro , Wang Chao , Uchiyama Masanobu
Published: May 2024

We have established a facile and efficient protocol for the generation of germyl radicals by employing photo‐excited electron transfer (ET) in an electron donor‐acceptor (EDA) complex to drive hydrogen‐atom transfer (HAT) from germyl hydride (R3GeH). Using a catalytic amount of EDA complex of commercially available thiol and benzophenone derivatives, the ET‐HAT cycle smoothly proceeds simply upon blue‐light irradiation without any transition metal or photocatalyst. This protocol also affords silyl radical from silyl hydride.
Effect of Hybridization on the Photoluminescence Properties of Atomically Precise Silver Nanoclusters
Authors: Becker Charline , Graf Sebastian , Mews Alf , Parak Wolfgang J. , Chakraborty Indranath
Published: May 2024

The Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) is a widely used mechanism harnessed for sensing applications. For temporal stability of the energy transfer between donor and acceptor molecules their photostability and maintenance of the coupling geometry are important. A donor‐acceptor system was created from silicon nanoclusters (Si NCs) and silver nanoclusters (dihydrolopic acid (DHLA)‐protected Ag29 NCs). Optical spectroscopy and lifetime measurements helped to understand the energy transfer process between the Si NCs and Ag29 NCs. Compared with donor‐acceptor pairs based on gold nanocluster and organic dyes, the FRET pair formed between Si NCs and Ag29 (DHLA)12 NCs reaches a coequal efficiency of 60 %. A fine‐tuning of the system‘s parameters opens the door to investigating the sensitivity of the two nanocluster FRET system to various species and incorporating highly photostable moieties in a process relying on photoluminescence.
PMRNA: Parameter matching of realtime and non‐realtime applications for resource provisioning in fog‐integrated cloud
Authors: Singh Satveer , Vidyarthi Deo Prakash
Published: May 2024

Fog computing, an emerging technology, extends Cloud computing services to the network's edge in the proximity of the application request. This extension yields improvement in Bandwidth (BW) utilization, faster responses to Real‐Time (RT) and Internet of Things (IoT) requests, and the provision of the heterogeneous resource services. While extensive work has been conducted on resource allocation for RT and Non‐Real‐Time (NRT) requests separately in Fog as well as Cloud computing, there is limited focus on resource provisioning for mixed RT and NRT requests in the Fog‐integrated Cloud (FiC) environment. Moreover, the majority of the existing provisioning methods primarily consider parameters from the system's perspective, overlooking crucial user aspects such as deadline and request size. To address the gap, this work introduces a resource provisioning method named “Parameter Matching of Realtime and Non‐Realtime Applications (PMRNA),” which considers user parameters and resource information, gathered by the broker. The performance evaluation of the proposed model is done in CloudSim, using various combinations of RT and NRT requests along with diverse Fog and Cloud resource configurations. Evaluation metric includes average Execution Time (ET), average Waiting Time (WT), average Turn Around Time (TAT), and resource utilization. The experimental results demonstrate a significant reduction in both average WT and average TAT for the diverse pool of RT and NRT requests in the FiC compared to the Cloud‐only environment.
Novel Transmission Electron Microscopic Method to Quantify Protein Clustering on the Cell Surface
Authors: Kormos József , Daróczi Lajos , Szöllősi János , Mátyus László , Jenei Attila
Published: May 2024

The cell surface distribution patterns (clustering) of membrane proteins have been widely investigated in cell biology. Here we describe a novel transmission electron microscopic (TEM) protocol designed to improve the quality of information obtained about the protein distribution patterns detected. This novel method makes it possible to study the clustering of all transmembrane proteins on one half of the cytoplasmic membrane of a whole cell. To achieve better imaging, we combine various methods, including critical‐point drying, fixation of gold beads with a carbon layer, and a newly developed chemical thinning method. In addition, in our image‐processing algorithm, we implemented pair correlation and pair cross‐correlation functions, providing more details and better quantitative accuracy in characterizing the size and numbers of possible protein clusters. © 2024 The Authors. Current Protocols published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

Basic Protocol 1: Sample preparation and transmission electron micrography

Alternate Protocol: Direct cell labeling for transmission electron micrography

Basic Protocol 2: Analysis of TEM images to detect immunogold‐labeled proteins
Selective Covalent Basal Plane Modification as a Probe of Hydroxide Ion Conduction Pathways in Magnesium Aluminum Layered Double Hydroxides
Authors: Dillenburger Jarrett D. , Schulte Leanna , Suleiman Mohammed , Sheehan Colton J. , Mallouk Thomas E.
Published: May 2024

Understanding ionic conduction in layered double hydroxides (LDHs) is a crucial step towards utilizing them as solid, hydroxide ion‐conducting electrolytes in energy conversion applications. We selectively modified the interlayer and external surfaces of MgAl LDHs with tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (TRIS) ligands. By adjusting the concentration of the TRIS surface modifier, the LDH basal plane surfaces could be functionalized everywhere (internally and externally) or only externally. External modification resulted in loss of OH‐conductivity compared to pristine LDHs, confirming that external platelet surfaces are the primary ion conduction pathway.
Experimental study on the damage characteristics of cyclic disturbance and acoustic emission characteristics of different types of sandstones under high stress in deep mines
Authors: Jiang Yujing , Liang Bin , Wang Dong , Dong Ling , Luan Hengjie , Wang Changsheng , Liu Jiankang
Published: May 2024

Three sandstone specimens common in rock engineering were selected to study the differences in the mechanical properties of rocks with different lithologies. The development and expansion of the internal cracks in the specimens were observed by combining the simulation system with the acoustic emission system. Through the combination of dynamic and static stresses, the deformation and damage of rocks under deep rock excavation and blasting were simulated. As the results show, the acoustic emission events of specimens with different lithologies under combined static and dynamic cyclic loading can be roughly divided into three phases: weakening, stabilizing, and surging periods. In addition, the acoustic emission characteristics of specimens with different lithologies show general consistency in different compression phases. The degree of fragmentation of specimens increases with the applied stress level; therefore, the stress level is one of the important factors influencing the damage pattern of specimens. The acoustic emission system was used to simulate the deformation and damage of rocks subjected to deep rock body excavation and engineering blasting. Cyclic dynamic perturbations under sinusoidal waves with a frequency of 5 Hz, a loading rate of 0.1 mm/min, a cyclic amplitude of 5 MPa, and a loading rate of 0.1 mm/min were applied to the three rock samples during the experiments. Among them, the fine‐grained sandstones are the most sensitive to the sinusoidal cyclic perturbation, followed by the muddy siltstone and the medium‐grained sandstones. On this basis, the acoustic emission energy release characteristics were analyzed, and the waveform characteristics in the damage evolution of the specimen under dynamic perturbation were studied by extracting the key points and searching for the main frequency eigenvalues.
Tirzepatide Reduces Fat Mass and Provides Good Glycaemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Patients Undergoing Haemodialysis: A Single‐Centre Retrospective Study
Authors: Mima Akira , Horii Yasuhiro
Published: May 2024

Objective

Tirzepatide is an injectable peptide approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Its weight‐loss effect primarily targets fat reduction; however, such effect on patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) undergoing haemodialysis (HD) has not been reported.

Methods

Nine patients with CKD undergoing HD received weekly tirzepatide doses (2.5–7.5 mg) once a week. Evaluations encompassed tirzepatide's impact on dry weight (DW) and body composition assessed at baseline and study conclusion using bioelectrical impedance analysis. This longitudinal study included nine patients, with a median age of 53 years and median HD duration of 4 years.

Results

Tirzepatide treatment significantly decreased glycated albumin compared with the value at baseline (22.7 ± 5.4 vs. 18.3 ± 2.5%, p = 0.028, respectively). Significant reductions were observed in DW (−1.0 kg, p = 0.024) and body mass index (−0.6 kg/m2, p = 0.050) following tirzepatide administration. Total fat mass was also reduced, but not significantly (− 2.51% from baseline, p = 0.214). In contrast, skeletal muscle mass was not decreased (−1.02% from baseline, p = 0.722). No serious side effects other than nausea were observed during the study period.

Conclusion

Tirzepatide effectively provides good glycaemic control in T2DM patients undergoing HD, decreasing DW by reducing body fat mass without increasing frailty risk.
Assessment of the genotoxicity of tert‐butyl alcohol in an in vivo thyroid comet assay
Authors: Thompson Chad M. , Dewhurst Nicole , Moundous Dmitri , Borghoff Susan J. , Haws Laurie C. , Vasquez Marie Z.
Published: May 2024

Chronic exposure to high (20,000 ppm) concentrations of tert‐butyl alcohol (TBA) in drinking water, equivalent to ~2100 mg/kg bodyweight per day, is associated with slight increases in the incidence of thyroid follicular cell adenomas and carcinomas in mice, with no other indications of carcinogenicity. In a recent toxicological review of TBA, the U.S. EPA determined that the genotoxic potential of TBA was inconclusive, largely based on non‐standard studies such as in vitro comet assays. As such, the potential role of genotoxicity in the mode of action of thyroid tumors and therefore human relevance was considered uncertain. To address the potential role of genotoxicity in TBA‐associated thyroid tumor formation, CD‐1 mice were exposed up to a maximum tolerated dose of 1500 mg/kg‐day via oral gavage for two consecutive days and DNA damage was assessed with the comet assay in the thyroid. Blood TBA levels were analyzed by headspace GC–MS to confirm systemic tissue exposure. At study termination, no significant increases (DNA breakage) or decreases (DNA crosslinks) in %DNA tail were observed in TBA exposed mice. In contrast, oral gavage of the positive control ethyl methanesulfonate significantly increased %DNA tail in the thyroid. These findings are consistent with most genotoxicity studies on TBA and provide mechanistic support for non‐linear, threshold toxicity criteria for TBA. While the mode of action for the thyroid tumors remains unclear, linear low dose extrapolation methods for TBA appear more a matter of policy than science.
Hydrovoltaic Materials and Devices: From Synthetic Materials, Macroscopic Biomaterials, to Micro Biomaterials
Authors: Gao Jiaxing , Wei Zeliang , Nie Riming
Published: May 2024

Much progress has been made in hydrovoltaic materials and devices. However, the power conversion efficiency of hydrovoltaic devices is still low. One of the main factors that determine the efficiency is the properties of hydrovoltaic materials. Herein, the research status of hydrovoltaic materials is summarized from the perspectives of synthetic materials, macroscopic biomaterials, and micro biomaterials, as well as the hydrovoltaic devices based on these materials.
High‐Throughput Indirect Gravure Printing Applied to Low‐Temperature Metallization of Silicon‐Based High‐Efficiency Solar Cells
Authors: Schube Jörg , Klawitter Markus , Linse Michael , Schleuniger Jürg , Kegel Isabell , Toguem Fokoua Stéphane , Mäser Michael , Mürdter Oliver , Engisch Lutz , Clement Florian , Lorenz Andreas
Published: May 2024

Herein, this work is dedicated to a both exotic and promising printing technique in silicon (Si) photovoltaics (PV). Indirect gravure printing is investigated as a metallization technique focusing on low‐temperature applications, such as Si heterojunction (SHJ) and perovskite Si tandem solar cells. One advantage of this rotary printing technique is that its components are very durable. From graphical industry, it is known that gravure cylinders show almost no wearing during multiple printing. Additionally, rotary printing techniques offer great throughput. Therefore, indirect gravure printing can reduce costs significantly in PV production. In this work, short process cycle times of 0.9 s cell−1 for industrial wafers (edge length of 156.75 mm) are demonstrated. Using an appropriate production platform even enables cycle times of down to 0.5 s cell−1. Busbarless SHJ half cells with non‐optimized gravure‐printed front grids reach a mean photoconversion efficiency that is (1.7 ± 0.5) %abs lower compared to screen‐printed reference samples, however, cycle time is reduced. The metal contacts exhibit a mean shading width of (65 ± 16) μm and an average height of (5 ± 1) μm. Applied to SHJ solar cells’ rear, such metallization can replace screen‐printed contacts with 0.1%abs efficiency loss only, as device simulations reveal.
Unraveling the Genetic Basis of Combined Deafness and Male Infertility Phenotypes through High‐Throughput Sequencing in a Unique Cohort from South India
Authors: Justin Margret Jeffrey , Jayasankaran Chandru , Amritkumar Pavithra , Azaiez Hela , Srisailapathy C. R. Srikumari
Published: May 2024

The co‐occurrence of sensorineural hearing loss and male infertility has been reported in several instances, suggesting potential shared genetic underpinnings. One such example is the contiguous gene deletion of CATSPER2 and STRC genes, previously associated with deafness‐infertility syndrome (DIS) in males. Fifteen males with both hearing loss and infertility from southern India after exclusion for the DIS contiguous gene deletion and the FOXI1 gene mutations are subjected to exome sequencing. This resolves the genetic etiology in four probands for both the phenotypes; In the remaining 11 probands, two each conclusively accounted for deafness and male infertility etiologies. Genetic heterogeneity is well reflected in both phenotypes. Four recessive (TRIOBP, SLC26A4, GJB2, COL4A3) and one dominant (SOX10) for the deafness; six recessive genes (LRGUK, DNAH9, ARMC4, DNAH2, RSPH6A, and ACE) for male infertility can be conclusively ascribed. LRGUK and RSPH6A genes are implicated earlier only in mice models, while the ARMC4 gene is implicated in chronic destructive airway diseases due to primary ciliary dyskinesia. This study would be the first to document the role of these genes in the male infertility phenotype in humans. The result suggests that deafness and infertility are independent events and do not segregate together among the probands.
Intestinal parasitic infections and predisposing factors among prison inmates in Southern Ghana: A cross‐sectional study
Authors: Abaka‐Yawson Albert , Squire Daniel S. , Tawiah Benedict Osei , Arko‐Mensah John
Published: May 2024

Background and Aims

The environment within prisons, such as overcrowding, lack of access to portable water, poor sanitation, and hygiene predisposes inmates to infections, including intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs). This study therefore determined the prevalence and associated factors of IPIs among prison inmates in Southern Ghana.

Methods

A cross‐sectional study using the stratified sampling technique was employed. The study recruited 461 prison inmates across three notable prisons, with 50 inmates from Ho Central, 357 inmates from Nsawam Medium Security, and 54 inmates from Sekondi Central Prisons all in Southern Ghana. A structured closed‐ended questionnaire was administered to collect data on sociodemographics, lifestyle/behavioral characteristics, and signs and symptoms of IPIs. In addition, stool samples were collected and analyzed for the presence of various stages of intestinal parasites (trophozoites, cysts, ova, and larva) using formol‐ether concentration, and the modified Ziehl–Neelsen techniques.

Results

The prevalence of IPIs among inmates of the three selected prisons was 38.2% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 33.72%–42.79%). The prevalence of IPIs among inmates of the three prisons, the Ho Central, Nsawam Medium Security, and Sekondi Central were 46% (95% CI: 31.82%–60.68%), 37.5% (95% CI: 32.49%–42.79%), and 35.2% (95% CI: 22.68%–49.38%), respectively. After adjusting for confounders, the following factors; handwashing after defecation (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 0.05 [0.00–0.67];p = 0.024), trimmed fingernails (AOR: 0.32 [0.13–0.76];p = 0.011), itchy skin (AOR [95% CI]: 5.99 [3.43–10.43];p < 0.001), anal itching (AOR [95% CI]: 0.35 [0.19–0.62];p < 0.001), nausea (AOR [95% CI]: 5.57 [3.22–9.65];p < 0.001), and worm expulsion (AOR [95% CI]: 3.80 [1.42–10.18];p = 0.008) were found to be associated with intestinal parasitic infections.

Conclusion

The study revealed that the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among prisons in Southern Ghana is high and is therefore an important public health concern. The Public Health Department of Ghana Health Service should therefore embark on health promotion and deworming exercise in all prisons in Ghana.
Autophagy in glioblastoma: A mechanistic perspective
Authors: Meena Durgesh , Jha Sushmita
Published: May 2024

Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the most lethal malignancies in humans. Even after surgical resection and aggressive radio‐ or chemotherapies, patients with GBM can survive for less than 14 months. Extreme inter‐tumor and intra‐tumor heterogeneity of GBM poses a challenge for resolving recalcitrant GBM pathophysiology. GBM tumor microenvironment (TME) exhibits diverse heterogeneity in cellular composition and processes contributing to tumor progression and therapeutic resistance. Autophagy is such a cellular process; that demonstrates a cell‐specific and TME context‐dependent role in GBM progression, leading to either the promotion or suppression of GBM progression. Autophagy can regulate GBM cell function directly via regulation of survival, migration, and invasion, or indirectly by affecting GBM TME composition such as immune cell population, tumor metabolism, and glioma stem cells. This review comprehensively investigates the role of autophagy in GBM pathophysiology.
New results on large sets of orthogonal arrays and orthogonal arrays
Authors: Chen Guangzhou , Niu Xiaodong , Shi Jiufeng
Published: May 2024

Orthogonal array and a large set of orthogonal arrays are important research objects in combinatorial design theory, and they are widely applied to statistics, computer science, coding theory, and cryptography. In this paper, some new series of large sets of orthogonal arrays are given by direct construction, juxtaposition construction, Hadamard construction, finite field construction, and difference matrix construction. Subsequently, many new infinite classes of orthogonal arrays are obtained by using these large sets of orthogonal arrays and Kronecker product.
Raman spectroscopy, phase transitions, microstructures, and mechano‐luminescence in Ca‐Sr feldspars (CaAl2Si2O8‐SrAl2Si2O8)
Authors: Curetti Nadia , Bernasconi Davide , Tribaudino Mario
Published: May 2024

The Raman spectra of Ca1‐xSrxAl2Si2O8 (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) feldspars have been measured, to investigate at a short‐range scale the effect of changing composition on the P
 ➔ I
and I
 ➔ I2/c phase transitions and how phase transitions affect the mechano‐luminescence found in these feldspars. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) were done on the same samples, to pinpoint the transitions, by the analysis of selected area diffraction patterns (SAED) and of the spontaneous strain. Natural anorthite (CaAl2Si2O8) shows a large number of well‐resolved peaks, together with sharp h + k even, l odd diffractions (c‐type) in SAED patterns, indicative of a P
symmetry. In synthetic anorthite, the Raman spectrum is similar to that of natural anorthite, but the peaks are broader, and c‐type reflections are elongated. As Sr increases, the c‐type reflections become more diffuse and elongated, as the Raman peaks do. At x > 0.6, new peaks appear in Raman spectra, and other peaks show a change in their wavenumber. Moreover, the c‐type reflections disappear completely, and the lattice becomes I‐centred. Between x ~ 0.6 and x = 0.86(3), the XRD patterns prompt for a triclinic structure, with S.G. I
. The transition to the monoclinic I2/c structure is well constrained by the ferroelastic strain, whereas the Raman spectra are more similar between the monoclinic and triclinic I
and I2/c than between I
and P
. The absence of mechano‐luminescence in triclinic I
compositions suggests that this property is enhanced in local P
configurations at conditions close to the P
to I
transition. A possible mechanism for mechano‐luminescence involving a compression induced P
to I
transition in local Eu2+ bearing P
configurations is proposed.
The impact of new digital infrastructure construction on substantive green innovation
Authors: Han Dongri , Zhu Yue , Diao Yanxia , Liu Min , Shi Ziyi
Published: May 2024

The new digital infrastructure is the cornerstone of the digital transformation of the regional innovation ecosystem and the key engine driving green, low‐carbon, and intelligent development in the era of the digital economy. The findings demonstrate that substantive green innovation is significantly positively impacted by the new digital infrastructure, and its effect shows a “Central > Eastern > Western.” New digital infrastructure construction can indirectly enhance substantive green innovation by improving the level of digital finance, entrepreneurial activity, and informatization index. Based on the characteristics of regional heterogeneity, new digital infrastructure construction has different threshold effects on substantive green innovation.
Efficient global sensitivity analysis method for dynamic models in high dimensions
Authors: Li Luyi , Papaioannou Iason , Straub Daniel
Published: May 2024

Dynamic models generating time‐dependent model predictions are typically associated with high‐dimensional input spaces and high‐dimensional output spaces, in particular if time is discretized. It is computationally prohibitive to apply traditional global sensitivity analysis (SA) separately on each time output, as is common in the literature on multivariate SA. As an alternative, we propose a novel method for efficient global SA of dynamic models with high‐dimensional inputs by combining a new polynomial chaos expansion (PCE)‐driven partial least squares (PLS) algorithm with the analysis of variance. PLS is used to simultaneously reduce the dimensionality of the input and output variables spaces, by identifying the input and output latent variables that account for most of their joint variability. PCE is incorporated into the PLS algorithm to capture the non‐linear behavior of the physical system. We derive the sensitivity indices associated with each output latent variable, based on which we propose generalized sensitivity indices that synthesize the influence of each input on the variance of entire output time series. All sensitivities can be computed analytically by post‐processing the coefficients of the PLS‐PCE representation. Hence, the computational cost of global SA for dynamic models essentially reduces to the cost for estimating these coefficients. We numerically compare the proposed method with existing methods by several dynamic models with high‐dimensional inputs. The results show that the PLS‐PCE method can obtain accurate sensitivity indices at low computational cost, even for models with strong interaction among the inputs.
Gender Bias in Artificial Intelligence‐Written Letters of Reference
Authors: Farlow Janice L. , Abouyared Marianne , Rettig Eleni M. , Kejner Alexandra , Patel Rusha , Edwards Heather A.
Published: May 2024

Objective

Letters of reference (LORs) play an important role in postgraduate residency applications. Human‐written LORs have been shown to carry implicit gender bias, such as using more agentic versus communal words for men, and more frequent doubt‐raisers and references to appearance and personal life for women. This can result in inequitable access to residency opportunities for women. Given the known gendered language often unconsciously inserted into human‐written LORs, we sought to identify whether LORs generated by artificial intelligence exhibit gender bias.

Study Design

Observational study.

Setting

Multicenter academic collaboration.

Methods

Prompts describing identical men and women applying for Otolaryngology residency positions were created and provided to ChatGPT to generate LORs. These letters were analyzed using a gender‐bias calculator which assesses the proportion of male‐ versus female‐associated words.

Results

Regardless of the gender, school, research, or other activities, all LORs generated by ChatGPT showed a bias toward male‐associated words. There was no significant difference between the percentage of male‐biased words in letters written for women versus men (39.15 vs 37.85, P = .77). There were significant differences in gender bias found by each of the other discrete variables (school, research, and other activities) chosen.

Conclusion

While ChatGPT‐generated LORs all showed a male bias in the language used, there was no gender bias difference in letters produced using traditionally masculine versus feminine names and pronouns. Other variables did induce gendered language, however. ChatGPT is a promising tool for LOR drafting, but users must be aware of potential biases introduced or propagated through these technologies.
A comparative mixed‐methods study of in‐service teachers' ethical judgment about student assessment practices
Authors: Liu Jin , Bon Susan , Fan Xumei , Hardie Suzy , Ding Ruyi
Published: May 2024

Few studies have been conducted to investigate the ethical perspectives of in‐service teachers on assessment issues cross‐culturally. The purpose of the study was to investigate the ethical judgment by in‐service teachers in the United States and China on twenty scenarios of student assessment practices. In the spring of 2020, 130 American teachers and 161 Chinese teachers completed a survey questionnaire on these assessment scenarios. The quantitative and qualitative results indicated that respondents had different ethical decisions in 9 out of 20 scenarios. Further analysis indicated that there was a high degree of similarities in ethical reasoning, and 10 scenarios with mixed reasoning indicated that certain sub‐themes were different. This study reveals that cultural differences are likely reflected in their ethical judgment when presented with certain assessment scenarios. The awareness of such differences should be raised by considering assessment, teaching, and learning together.
Nonreciprocal Unconventional Photon Blockade with Kerr Magnons
Authors: Fan Xiao‐Hong , Zhang Yi‐Ning , Yu Jun‐Po , Liu Ming‐Yue , He Wen‐Di , Li Hai‐Chao , Xiong Wei
Published: May 2024

Nonreciprocal devices, allowing to manipulate one‐way signals, are crucial to quantum information processing and quantum networks. Here a nonlinear cavity‐magnon system is proposed, consisting of a microwave cavity coupled to one or two yttrium–iron–garnet (YIG) spheres supporting magnons with Kerr nonlinearity, to investigate nonreciprocal unconventional photon blockade. The nonreciprocity originates from the direction‐dependent Kerr effect, distinctly different from previous proposals with spinning cavities and dissipative couplings. For a single sphere case, nonreciprocal unconventional photon blockade can be realized by manipulating the nonreciprocal destructive interference between two active paths, via varying the Kerr coefficient from positive to negative, or vice versa. By optimizing the system parameters, the perfect and well‐tuned nonreciprocal unconventional photon blockade can be predicted. For the case of two spheres with opposite Kerr effects, only reciprocal unconventional photon blockade can be observed when two cavity‐magnon coupling strengths Kerr strengths are symmetric. However, when coupling strengths or Kerr strengths become asymmetric, nonreciprocal unconventional photon blockade appears. This implies that two‐sphere nonlinear cavity‐magnon systems can be used to switch the transition between reciprocal and nonreciprocal unconventional photon blockades. This study offers a potential platform for investigating the nonreciprocal photon blockade effect in nonlinear cavity magnonics.
Morphokinetic features in human embryos: Analysis by our original high‐resolution time‐lapse cinematography—Summary of the past two decades
Authors: Mio Yasuyuki , Yumoto Keitaro , Sugishima Minako , Nakaoka Minori , Shimura Toko , Tsounapi Panagiota
Published: May 2024

Background

The pioneering work by Dr. Payne et al. in time‐lapse cinematography for observation of the morphokinetic features of human embryos inspired us to develop a new in vitro culture system with high‐resolution time‐lapse cinematography (hR‐TLC) back in 2001.

Methods

This in vitro culture system was capable of maintaining stable culture and was constructed on an inverted microscope stage. Embryos were observed and photographed noninvasively for an extended period, up to 7 days. The obtained images were displayed at a speed of 30 frames per second and individually analyzed.

Results

Using hR‐TLC, human fertilization and subsequent embryonic development were visualized, revealing the time course of phenomena and many unusual dynamics.

Conclusion

In this review, we summarize the results of our hR‐TLC analysis of early human embryonic development over the past 20 years. In the near future, it is expected that the vast amount of information obtained by hR‐TLC will be integrated into the AI system for further analysis and to provide feedback that will have the potential to improve clinical practice. In the era of SDGs and environmental awareness, we should be cautious about the direction in which AI can be utilized to avoid any further harm to the planet.
Ge‐Doped Hematite with FeCoNi‐Bi as Cocatalyst for High‐Performing Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting
Authors: Wang Yueyang , Cui Shibo , Tian Zhenyu , Han Meisheng , Zhao Tianshou , Li Wenjia
Published: May 2024

Hematite is a promising photoanode material for photoelectrochemical water‐splitting technology. However, the low current density associated with the low conductivity, low charge carrier mobility, and poor oxygen evolution catalytic activity is a challenging issue for the material. In this study, the challenge is addressed by introducing Germanium (Ge) doping, coupled with the use of FeCoNi‐Bi as a co‐catalyst. Ge doping not only increases the conductivity and charge carrier concentration of the hematite photoanode, but also induces nanopores, thereby expanding its electrochemical reactive surface area to facilitate the oxygen evolution reaction. In the meantime, the FeCoNi‐Bi cocatalyst electrodeposited onto the surface of Ge‐doped hematite, improves the oxygen evolution reaction performance. As a result, the obtained photoanode achieves a photocurrent density of 2.31 mA cm−2 at 1.23 VRHE, which is three times higher than that of hematite (0.72 mA cm−2). Moreover, a new analytical method is introduced to scrutinize both the positive and negative effects of Ge doping and FeCoNi‐Bi cocatalyst on the photoanode performance by decoupling the photoelectrochemical process steps. Overall, this study not only enhances the performance of hematite photoanodes but also guides their rational design and systematic assessment.
Pressure Tuning and Sn Particle Size Optimization for Enhanced Performance in PbSnF4‐Based All‐Solid‐State Fluoride Ion Batteries
Authors: Wei Chaochao , Liu Chen , Xiao Yujie , Li Yadong , Jiang Ziling , Liang Xinmiao , Cao Kecheng , Cheng Shijie , Huang Yining , Yu Chuang
Published: May 2024

All‐solid‐state fluoride ion batteries (ASSFIBs) show remarkable potential as energy storage devices due to their low cost, superior safety, and high energy density. However, the poor ionic conductivity of F− conductor, large volume expansion, and the lack of a suitable anode inhibit their development. In this work, PbSnF4 solid electrolytes in different phases (β‐ and γ‐PbSnF4) are successfully synthesized and characterized. The ASSFIBs composed of β‐PbSnF4 electrolytes, a BiF3 cathode, and micrometer/nanometer size (µ‐/n‐) Sn anodes, exhibit substantial capacities. Compared to the μ‐Sn anode, the n‐Sn anode with nanostructure exhibits superior battery performance in the BiF3/β‐PbSnF4/Sn battery. The optimized battery delivers a high initial discharge capacity of 181.3 mAh g−1 at 8 mA g−1 and can be reversibly cycled at 40 mA g−1 with a high discharge capacity of over 100.0 mAh g−1 after 120 cycles at room temperature. Additionally, it displays high discharge capacities over 90.0 mAh g−1 with excellent cyclability over 100 cycles under ‐20 °C. Detailed characterization has confirmed that reducing Sn particle size and boosting external pressure are crucial for achieving good defluorination/fluorination behaviors in the Sn anode. These findings pave the way to designing ASSFIBs with high capacities and superior cyclability under different operating temperatures.
Pickering Emulsions Biocatalysis: Recent Developments and Emerging Trends
Authors: Sun Zhiyong , Wu Changzhu
Published: May 2024

Biocatalysis within biphasic systems is gaining significant attention in the field of synthetic chemistry, primarily for its ability to solve the problem of incompatible solubilities between biocatalysts and organic compounds. By forming an emulsion from these two‐phase systems, a larger surface area is created, which greatly improves the mass transfer of substrates to the biocatalysts. Among the various types of emulsions, Pickering emulsions stand out due to their excellent stability, compatibility with biological substances, and the ease with which they can be formed and separated. This makes them ideal for reusing both the emulsifiers and the biocatalysts. This review explores the latest developments in biocatalysis using Pickering emulsions. It covers the structural features, methods of creation, innovations in flow biocatalysis, and the role of interfaces in these processes. Additionally, the challenges and future directions are discussed in combining chemical and biological catalysts within Pickering emulsion frameworks to advance synthetic methodologies.
A Wax Interface‐Enabled One‐Pot Multiplexed Nucleic Acid Testing Platform for Rapid and Sensitive Detection of Viruses and Variants
Authors: Liu Jiajia , Li Nan , Zhang Li , Lu Ying , Shen Minjie , Zhang Yuanyue , Feng Li , Jing Juhui , Cheng Jing , Xu Youchun
Published: May 2024

High‐quality, low‐cost, and rapid detection is essential for the society to reopen the economy during the critical period of transition from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic response to pandemic control. In addition to performing sustainable and target‐driven tracking of SARS‐CoV‐2, conducting comprehensive surveillance of variants and multiple respiratory pathogens is also critical due to the frequency of reinfections, mutation immune escape, and the growing prevalence of the cocirculation of multiple viruses. By utilizing a 0.05 cents wax interface, a Stable Interface assisted Multiplex Pathogenesis Locating Estimation in Onepot (SIMPLEone) using nested RPA and CRISPR/Cas12a enzymatic reporting system is successfully developed. This smartphone‐based SIMPLEone system achieves highly sensitive one‐pot detection of SARS‐CoV‐2 and its variants, or multiple respiratory viruses, in 40 min. A total of 89 clinical samples, 14 environmental samples, and 20 cat swab samples are analyzed by SIMPLEone, demonstrating its excellent sensitivity (3–6 copies/reaction for non‐extraction detection of swab and 100–150 copies/mL for RNA extraction‐based assay), accuracy (>97.7%), and specificity (100%). Furthermore, a high percentage (44.2%) of co‐infection cases are detected in SARS‐CoV‐2‐infected patients using SIMPLEone's multiplex detection capability.
Near‐infrared reflectance spectroscopy phenomic prediction can perform similarly to genomic prediction of maize agronomic traits across environments
Authors: DeSalvio Aaron J. , Adak Alper , Murray Seth C. , Jarquín Diego , Winans Noah D. , Crozier Daniel , Rooney William L.
Published: May 2024

For nearly two decades, genomic prediction and selection have supported efforts to increase genetic gains in plant and animal improvement programs. However, novel phenomic strategies for predicting complex traits in maize have recently proven beneficial when integrated into across‐environment sparse genomic prediction models. One phenomic data modality is whole grain near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), which records reflectance values of biological samples (e.g., maize kernels) based on chemical composition. Predictions of hybrid maize grain yield (GY) and 500‐kernel weight (KW) across 2 years (2011–2012) and two management conditions (water‐stressed and well‐watered) were conducted using combinations of reflectance data obtained from high‐throughput, F2 whole‐kernel scans and genomic data obtained from genotyping‐by‐sequencing within four different cross‐validation (CV) schemes (CV2, CV1, CV0, and CV00). When predicting the performance of untested genotypes in characterized (CV1) environments, genomic data were better than phenomic data for GY (0.689 ± 0.024—genomic vs. 0.612 ± 0.045—phenomic), but phenomic data were better than genomic data for KW (0.535 ± 0.034—genomic vs. 0.617 ± 0.145—phenomic). Multi‐kernel models (combinations of phenomic and genomic relationship matrices) did not surpass single‐kernel models for GY prediction in CV1 or CV00 (prediction of untested genotypes in uncharacterized environments); however, these models did outperform the single‐kernel models for prediction of KW in these same CVs. Lasso regression applied to the NIRS data set selected a subset of 216 NIRS bands that achieved comparable prediction abilities to the full phenomic data set of 3112 bands predicting GY and KW under CV1 and CV00.
Gravitational bound waveforms from amplitudes
Authors: Adamo Tim , Gonzo Riccardo , Ilderton Anton
Published: May 2024

Abstract

With the aim of computing bound waveforms from scattering amplitudes, we explore gravitational two-body dynamics using the Schwinger-Dyson equations and Bethe-Salpeter recursion. We show that the tree-level scattering waveform admits a natural analytic continuation, in rapidity, to the bound waveform, which we confirm from an independent calculation, in the Post-Newtonian expansion, of the time-domain multipoles at large eccentricity. We demonstrate consistency of this scattering-to-bound map with the Damour-Deruelle prescription for orbital elements in the quasi-Keplerian parametrization (which enters into the evaluation of the multipoles) and with the analytic continuation, in the binding energy, of radiated energy and angular momentum at 3PM.
Universal predictions of Siegel modular invariant theories near the fixed points
Authors: Ding Gui-Jun , Feruglio Ferruccio , Liu Xiang-Gan
Published: May 2024

Abstract

We analyze a general class of locally supersymmetric, CP and modular invariant models of lepton masses depending on two complex moduli taking values in the vicinity of a fixed point, where the theory enjoys a residual symmetry under a finite group. Like in models that depend on a single modulus, we find that all physical quantities exhibit a universal scaling with the distance from the fixed point. There is no dependence on the level of the construction, the weights of matter multiplets and their representations, with the only restriction that electroweak lepton doublets transform as irreducible triplets of the finite modular group. Also the form of the kinetic terms, which here are assumed to be neither minimal nor flavor blind, is irrelevant to the outcome. The result is remarkably simple and the whole class of examined theories gives rise to five independent patterns of neutrino mass matrices. Only in one of them, the predicted scaling agrees with the observed neutrino mass ratios and lepton mixing angles, exactly as in single modulus theories living close to τ = i.
Entanglement asymmetry in CFT and its relation to non-topological defects
Authors: Fossati Michele , Ares Filiberto , Dubail Jérôme , Calabrese Pasquale
Published: May 2024

Abstract

The entanglement asymmetry is an information based observable that quantifies the degree of symmetry breaking in a region of an extended quantum system. We investigate this measure in the ground state of one dimensional critical systems described by a CFT. Employing the correspondence between global symmetries and defects, the analysis of the entanglement asymmetry can be formulated in terms of partition functions on Riemann surfaces with multiple non-topological defect lines inserted at their branch cuts. For large subsystems, these partition functions are determined by the scaling dimension of the defects. This leads to our first main observation: at criticality, the entanglement asymmetry acquires a subleading contribution scaling as log ℓ/ℓ for large subsystem length ℓ. Then, as an illustrative example, we consider the XY spin chain, which has a critical line described by the massless Majorana fermion theory and explicitly breaks the U(1) symmetry associated with rotations about the z-axis. In this situation the corresponding defect is marginal. Leveraging conformal invariance, we relate the scaling dimension of these defects to the ground state energy of the massless Majorana fermion on a circle with equally-spaced point defects. We exploit this mapping to derive our second main result: the exact expression for the scaling dimension associated with n defects of arbitrary strengths. Our result generalizes a known formula for the n = 1 case derived in several previous works. We then use this exact scaling dimension to derive our third main result: the exact prefactor of the log ℓ/ℓ term in the asymmetry of the critical XY chain.