Search Results (390)

Purpose: Host metabolic status may affect outcomes in lung cancer, but longitudinal changes in body composition and systemic metabolism remain incompletely understood. We examined whether paired ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT-derived host features were associated with progression-free survival (PFS) during systemic therapy. Methods: Fifty-three patients with confirmed lung cancer who underwent baseline and post-treatment ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT were retrospectively included. Tumor metabolic burden, body composition, organ metabolism, and brain metabolism were quantified. Delta values were defined as post-treatment minus baseline measurements. Associations with PFS were assessed using Kaplan–Meier analysis, adjusted Cox regression and exploratory metabolic network analysis. Results: During follow-up, 31 patients experienced disease progression, and median PFS was 7 months. SM volume (p = 0.001) decreased, and MedF volume (p < 0.001) increased at follow-up after FDR adjustment, whereas the numerical increases in SAT and TF volumes did not remain statistically significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Higher delta torso fat (TF) volume was associated with a lower risk of progression after adjustment (HR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.43–0.97, p = 0.033). In the temporally aligned analysis of 29 patients whose follow-up PET/CT preceded progression, delta TF volume was not associated with subsequent PFS (HR, 1.84; 95% CI, 0.91–3.68; p = 0.087). Total network perturbation strength decreased after treatment (p = 0.002) but was not associated with PFS. Conclusions: Paired ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT characterized longitudinal changes in body composition during systemic therapy. Delta TF volume showed an adjusted association with PFS in the exploratory full-cohort model, but its prognostic relevance requires further validation. Full article

Meeting growing construction demand with materials that can be emissions-free in the near future is a critical part of decarbonisation, but given the finite nature of land and biomass, this requires careful planning of resources and land use. Straw is a promising example of this, since it is an agricultural co-product, can be used in load-bearing strawbale and prefabricated straw construction, avoids competition with arable land, and is compatible with zero-emissions production. However, the resource availability and implications of scaling-up the use of straw for construction in the UK have not been quantified. Here, we estimate the quantities of straw currently produced and used in different applications. Scenario and sensitivity analysis show that it is feasible to supply 300,000 low-rise dwellings with straw for load-bearing construction demand in the UK, meeting house-building targets with little impact on other sectors. UK straw supply and demand vary spatially and temporally, with surpluses in eastern regions and deficits in urban centres, alongside year-to-year production fluctuations. Even at the lower bound of these variations, the results indicate that the key limitation is not resource availability, but rather the need for improved supply chain coordination, certification and regulatory acceptance, greater economic efficiency of strawbale construction comparable to prefabricated systems, and alignment with land use and agricultural policy. This study provides a framework that can be applied to other materials to assess resource availability. Full article

This paper investigated the lubricant stability and anti-biofouling performance on slippery liquid-infused nanostructured surfaces (SLIPSs) using thermodynamic and interfacial energy analyses. ZnO nanorods were synthesized on indium tin oxide substrates with and without a ZnO seed layer by electrochemical deposition and subsequently infused with PDMS-based silicone oil. The seed-layer-assisted growth produced densely packed and vertically aligned ZnO nanorods. Interfacial energy analysis showed that the resulting SLIPSs satisfied the criterion for resistance to water-induced lubricant displacement (ΔE₂ = 64.14 mJ·m⁻²), indicating effective lubricant retention, whereas non-seeded surfaces exhibited reduced lubricant stability. Consistent with this prediction, the seed-layer-assisted SLIPSs retained droplet mobility following spin testing at 2500 rpm, although the reduced sliding velocity indicated a decline in slippery performance. Anti-biofouling evaluation using Escherichia coli (XL1-Blue) revealed that the SLIPSs effectively suppressed bacterial attachment, reducing surface coverage to below 0.3% after 24 h of incubation. In comparison, the pristine ITO and ZnO nanorods exhibited values of 50.8% and 54.6%, respectively. Subsequent surface free energy analysis demonstrated that lubricant infusion reduced the work of adhesion to 77.92 mJ·m⁻². These findings provide insight into the interfacial interactions governing lubricant retention and bacterial attachment on SLIPSs. Full article

Here, (CH₃NH₃)₂CoCl₄ and (CH₃NH₃)₂CoBr₄ were prepared via a solvent-free mechanochemical route and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, magnetic susceptibility, and thermal analysis. Both compounds crystallize in the monoclinic P2₁/c space group and exhibit paramagnetic behavior consistent with isolated high-spin Co²⁺ tetrahedra and negligible inter-site exchange. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy yielded optical band gaps of 1.65 and 1.60 eV for the chloride and bromide, respectively. Valence-band XPS and cyclic voltammetry provided consistent experimental band-edge positions, confirming favorable alignment with TiO₂ and Spiro-OMeTAD in an n-i-p architecture. SCAPS-1D simulations using experimentally determined optical and electronic parameters predicted power conversion efficiencies of 6.63% and 4.86%, at an optimum absorber thickness of 1.28 μm. Defect density was identified as the dominant performance-limiting parameter, while the parity-forbidden Co²⁺ d-d transitions intrinsically constrain the attainable photocurrent. These results provide the first experimental grounded photovoltaic assessment of hybrid halocobaltates, combining measured optical and electronic parameters with SCAPS-1D device simulations, and establish design parameters for future device optimization. Full article

Cacao swollen shoot disease (CSSD) remains a major viral threat to cacao production in West Africa and is associated with a genetically diverse complex of badnaviruses. We combined alignment-free whole-genome distances with circular sliding-window mosaic barcodes to characterize global divergence and local compositional modularity across 48 full-length CSSD-associated badnavirus genomes, hereafter termed the cacao swollen shoot virus (CSSV) complex. Whole-genome tetranucleotide cosine distance clusters matched published species assignments exactly (adjusted Rand index = 1.00; normalized mutual information = 1.00; silhouette = 0.703) and were strongly concordant with an alignment-based distance derived from open reading frame 3 (ORF3) proteins (Spearman ρ ≈ 0.951; permutation p ≈ 0.0002). A three-component mosaic-complexity score summarized low dominant-label purity, barcode entropy normalized by log₂(K), and circular switch rate; ORF–mosaic agreement was retained as a separate diagnostic and did not contribute to the ranking. Threshold sensitivity showed that barcode switchpoints were enriched within ±100 and ±200 bp of predicted ORF boundaries, but not within ±400 bp. The ten highest-scoring genomes showed slightly higher mean local nucleotide entropy but lower entropy variance and dispersion than the remaining genomes, indicating more uniformly distributed compositional complexity rather than isolated local spikes. These analyses provide a transparent framework for post-sequencing classification, comparison, and prioritization of complete viral genomes. The barcode and score outputs are exploratory summaries and are not direct field diagnostic assays or nucleotide-resolution recombination tests. Full article

This study develops a game-theoretic model of a platform-led supply chain in which a manufacturer invests in green innovation under a cap-and-trade regulation. We examine how three information-sharing strategies—no sharing (NI), free sharing (FI), and paid sharing (TI)—affect the manufacturer’s green innovation level, both firms’ profits, and total supply chain carbon emissions. Our analysis reveals that the effect of information sharing is state-dependent: when the realized market potential exceeds its prior expectation, sharing stimulates green innovation, raises platform profit, and reduces emissions; when demand falls below expectations, the opposite holds. For the platform, paid sharing delivers the highest expected profit by extracting the full value of demand information. Furthermore, the emission-reducing effect of information sharing outweighs the demand expansion effect under favorable demand conditions, leading to a net decrease in total carbon emissions. These results underscore the governance role of demand information in aligning economic and environmental goals in platform supply chains, and they offer actionable guidance for managers and policymakers. Full article

Pulsed Electric Fields (PEF) offer significant potential to enhance energy efficiency and reduce reliance on SO₂ and other chemical preservatives, aligning with current sustainability and health demands. This work evaluates PEF industrial viability for wine stabilisation through a multidisciplinary pilot-scale approach (108 L/h). A sulfur-free comparative trial evaluated four sequential bipolar PEF treatments (20–23 kV/cm; 19–34 kJ/kg) against stabilisation with a commercial chitosan–glucan complex. PEF caused significant effects on microbial kinetics: B. bruxellensis was successfully maintained below the detection limit and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were undetected by the end of the trial. Standard oenological parameters showed no relevant changes, except for lactic acid dynamics, corroborating LAB knockdown. Regarding metal ion migration into the food matrix, Fe, Ni, and Cr were assessed. No significant variations were found for Fe and Ni compared to the control group; all elements presented residual concentrations compatible with international regulatory guidelines. Sensory analysis revealed that PEF-treated wines exhibited lower perceived bitterness and higher colour intensity, driven by B. bruxellensis proliferation in control wines. In total, 75% of panellists preferred PEF wines. OPEX analysis demonstrates industrial competitiveness for medium-to-large scale, reducing consumable costs over 10-fold (0.6064 vs. 6.50 €/hL), excluding initial CAPEX. These findings validate multi-stage, pilot-scale PEF as a competitive and electrochemically safe technology to transition toward sustainable reduced-SO₂ or SO₂-free winemaking. Full article

Large language model-enabled virtual patients may expand access to clinical skills practice by supporting explicitly defined practice tasks. This program evaluation examined medical students’ awareness, use, and perceptions of the McMaster Virtual SP Tool, a custom generative artificial intelligence tool developed to supplement clinical skills practice. We conducted an anonymous, single-institution cross-sectional survey of students across three cohorts at McMaster University. Quantitative responses were summarized descriptively, and free-text responses were analyzed using qualitative content analysis informed by task-aligned fidelity, deliberate practice, learner-centred feedback, and simulation instructional design. Thirty-five students responded; 23 (65.7%) were aware of the tool and 16 (45.7%) had used it. Among the 16 users, 15/16 (93.8%) found the tool at least somewhat easy to navigate; 13 (81.3%) would use it again; and 13 (81.3%) would recommend it. Across all respondents, 14/35 (40.0%) reported using AI-enabled virtual patients for OSCE preparation. Users valued its accessibility, independent low-stakes rehearsal, and usefulness for focused history-taking, question wording, and clinical reasoning. Perceived limitations included reduced human connection, nonverbal and emotional realism, physical examination practice, and feedback specificity. AI-enabled virtual patients may therefore be considered as adjuncts for selected cognitive and structural rehearsal tasks. Objective educational outcomes were not assessed. Full article

Porous Ti-6Al-4V lattice implants combine high specific strength, osseointegrative porosity, and compatibility with additive manufacturing, but conventional stiffness tuning through porosity, pore size, or unit-cell topology compromises biological pore requirements. This study presents a computational design framework in which structural kurtosis, the normalized interlayer offset between neighboring layers of a periodic cubic lattice, regulates elastic response at fixed global porosity. Closed-form expressions for the effective modulus are derived from first principles: the aligned configuration from the axial load-bearing area fraction, and the interlayer-shifted configuration from Euler–Bernoulli beam theory for guided-end connecting members. The derivations reproduce the Gibson–Ashby exponents n = 1 and n = 2, replacing the previously asserted power law, and a calibrated one-parameter interpolation bridges intermediate offsets. At 65% porosity, the effective modulus falls from 16.5 GPa in the aligned lattice to 2.64 GPa in the shifted lattice. A local-yield analysis based on peak bending curvature gives recoverable elastic strains of 1.37% at 89% porosity and 0.68% at 65%; the compliance-based values of 20.5% and 5.12% are kinematic upper bounds that neglect plastic hinging. A prefactor-free benchmark shows that obtaining the same 6.25-fold reduction by increased porosity alone would require 85.9–94.4% porosity and 0.17–0.28 mm struts, outside the osseointegration window and the resolution of selective laser melting. A GAN-CAD-FEA workflow reproduced the analytical moduli to within 7% across six design cases. All results are analytical and numerical; no specimens were fabricated or tested, and experimental validation remains required. Full article

Background/Objectives: Skin lesion classification remains challenging in real clinical settings because diagnostically relevant information is distributed across different imaging modalities, class imbalance is often severe, and overall performance alone may conceal important weaknesses in model behavior. In this study, a dual-view meta-aware model, termed DVM-SLC was developed for multi-class skin lesion classification on the MILK10k dataset. Methods: The model jointly processes paired clinical and dermoscopic images and incorporates patient-level contextual information through a dedicated metadata branch. Cross-view information is integrated by a gated fusion mechanism to preserve modality-specific representations while allowing adaptive interaction between the two views. The model was evaluated not only in terms of comparative classification performance, but also with respect to calibration, robustness under common image corruptions, and expert-supported explainability. Results: Among the configurations evaluated using pooled out-of-fold predictions, the gated DVM-SLC achieved the highest Accuracy (0.7002) and the highest observed Macro-AUC (0.8774), whereas the gate-free dual-view model with metadata achieved the highest Macro F1-score (0.4174). The accuracy difference between the gated model and the dermoscopic-only baseline, which provided the highest non-proposed Accuracy, was statistically significant, whereas the observed Macro-AUC difference was not statistically significant. These findings indicated a metric-dependent trade-off rather than uniform superiority of a single fusion strategy. The raw confidence estimates were already reasonably aligned with empirical correctness, and temperature scaling provided only a modest, fold-dependent improvement in aggregate calibration. In robustness analysis, the strongest degradation was observed under Gaussian noise, while the model remained comparatively stable under blur, JPEG compression, brightness variation, contrast variation, and color shift. The explainability analysis was complemented by a structured dermatologist review. Gradient-weighted Class Activation Mapping (Grad-CAM) outputs from the clinical and dermoscopic branches were examined to determine whether the highlighted regions localized the lesion and corresponded to clinically meaningful morphological or dermoscopic features. This assessment was qualitative and was not intended as quantitative localization validation. Conclusions: Overall, the findings present DVM-SLC as a broadly evaluated approach with metric-dependent strengths and clear limitations, particularly in minority-class recognition. Its contribution lies in combining comparative performance analysis with calibration, robustness, and structured qualitative explainability assessment. Full article

Hashir Hill, also known as Gravity Hill or magnetic hill in Salalah, Oman, is an iconic landmark where vehicles appear to roll uphill on their own. This unusual effect has drawn scientific interest for years. In this study, topographic and gravity measurements were conducted to explore the causes of this phenomenon. Measurements with a Topcon OS-105 compact total station showed that the road actually slopes downward by about 10.5 m over 350 m. Gravity readings from a Scintrex CG-5 gravimeter showed a gradual increase of about 3.17 mGal, which aligns with the free-air gravity correction for the elevation model. No gravity anomalies were found along the route, which suggests the area is in isostatic balance. A physical analysis employing algebraic inequalities related to gravitational potential energy and Newtonian gravity was involved to validate the findings. The results demonstrate that the perceived uphill movement at Hashir Hill is an optical illusion arising from the local landscape’s visual features, rather than from any unusual physical forces. Full article

Background: Active surveillance (AS) represents a cornerstone of personalized medicine in uro-oncology, offering an individualized management strategy for low- and selected favourable intermediate-risk prostate cancer that aligns treatment intensity with patient-specific risk profiles; however, real-world adherence data from southern European academic centres remain scarce. This study aimed to evaluate AS discontinuation rates, reasons for transition to active treatment, and quality of life (QoL) in a single-centre Greek university hospital cohort. Methods: This is an observational retropective cohort study of patients enrolled in an AS protocol at the First Department of Urology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, between October 2016 and July 2022. Treatment-free survival (TFS) was estimated using Kaplan–Meier analysis. Associations between AS discontinuation and age at diagnosis, PSA level, and Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) were explored using univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression. QoL, erectile function, and anxiety were assessed cross-sectionally in patients remaining on AS using SF-12, IIEF-6, STAI-6, and MAX-PC. Results: Thirty-six patients were included (32 low-risk; 4 favourable intermediate-risk), with a median age of 69.5 years, median PSA of 6.92 ng/mL, and median CCI of 3. After a median follow-up of 24 months (IQR 21–45), 19 patients (52.8%) transitioned to active treatment; the median time to treatment was 21 months (IQR 17–34). Among the 10 patients with a known reason for discontinuation, 6 (31.6% of all discontinued) showed histopathological or clinical disease progression, 3 (15.8%) had a PSA increase alone, and 1 (5.3%) transitioned due to urinary symptoms; the reason was unknown in 9 cases (47.4%). In exploratory Cox regression, PSA ≥ 7.0 ng/mL was the only factor with complete documented output significantly associated with transition to active treatment (univariable HR 3.70, 95% CI 1.35–10.1, p = 0.011; multivariable HR 3.93, 95% CI 1.42–10.9, p = 0.008). Cross-sectional QoL assessment in 10 patients remaining on AS demonstrated median scores above established population norms for SF-12 and below clinical anxiety thresholds on STAI-6 and MAX-PC. Conclusions: In this single-centre cohort, AS discontinuation occurred early and at a rate higher than that of established international programmes, consistent with the institution’s initial AS experience. Higher PSA at diagnosis was the only factor with complete analytical documentation to be significantly associated with earlier transition. Full article

The growing complexity of urban mobility requires datasets that integrate dynamic traffic observations with meteorological, geometric, and urban-context information. This study presents MUTra-CDMX, a multisource urban traffic dataset covering a 14.72 km section of the Insurgentes Sur corridor in Mexico City. Traffic data were obtained from TomTom at five-minute intervals for 20 consecutive road segments from 1 November 2024 to 28 February 2025. Hourly meteorological data were retrieved from Meteosource, while segment-level geometry, topology, signalized locations, and nearby points of interest were derived from TomTom metadata and OpenStreetMap. The primary analytical file contains 691,200 segment–timestamp records and 12 variables describing traffic and free-flow conditions, meteorological information, derived operational indicators, and reconstruction status. Of these records, 682,264 are original observations and 8936 are reconstructed segment–timestamp combinations, identified by the Boolean variable is_imputed. Technical validation confirmed complete temporal coverage, preservation of original traffic observations, consistent weather alignment, and reconstruction performance through artificial masking. Predictive utility was evaluated through chronological travel-time forecasting under a leakage-controlled protocol. At the 30 min horizon, XGBoost achieved a mean absolute error of 12.84 s, a root mean squared error of 37.91 s, and a coefficient of determination ($R^2$) of 0.771, outperforming a persistence baseline. MUTra-CDMX supports congestion analysis, imputation studies, spatiotemporal modeling, and travel-time forecasting. Full article

The optoelectronic properties of the lead-free perovskite CsSn_0.5Ge_0.5I₃ are investigated by first-principles calculations and numerical simulations using SCAPS-1D. The energy-level alignment between transport layers and the perovskite layer is evaluated, resulting in the establishment of the PCBM/CsSn_0.5Ge_0.5I₃/PEDOT:PSS structure. Key parameters, including bulk defect density, layer thickness, and electrode materials, are optimised, and the effects of resistance, illumination intensity, thermal stability, and carrier generation-recombination rates on device performance are analysed. The optimal device structure FTO/PCBM/CsSn_0.5Ge_0.5I₃/PEDOT:PSS/C achieves a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 24.50% and a fill factor (FF) of 80.01%. Machine learning (ML) algorithms are applied to predict photovoltaic parameters, with Random Forest (RF) exhibiting the highest accuracy. SHAP analysis identifies absorber layer thickness as the dominant factor influencing efficiency, providing guidance for experimental optimisation. This integrated approach offers a practical pathway for designing high-performance, stable, and environmentally sustainable perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Full article

Background: The treatment paradigm for relapsed/refractory (R/R) large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL) has undergone significant change with the advent of CD19-directed chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapies and CD20 × CD3 bispecific antibodies (BsAbs). Although both approaches have shown high response rates in single-arm studies, the absence of prospective randomized head-to-head comparisons has resulted in true clinical equipoise. Methods: A narrative synthesis was conducted, incorporating pivotal and updated phase 2 and 3 trial data, real-world evidence, and published meta-analyses. Results: In the second-line setting, CAR-T therapy demonstrates superior event-free survival, progression-free survival, and overall survival compared to standard-of-care chemo-transplant regimens. In the third-line setting, a pooled meta-analysis indicates significantly higher complete response rates for CAR-T compared with BsAbs, as well as superior 12-month progression-free survival. BsAbs provide immediate availability, greater accessibility, more favorable neurotoxicity profiles, and are feasible for frail or elderly patients. Real-world data show that BsAb complete response rates are consistently lower than those observed in clinical trials, whereas CAR-T real-world effectiveness closely aligns with pivotal trial outcomes. Emerging phase 3 data on fixed-duration and monotherapy bispecific regimens suggest that a genuine, if less mature, curative fraction may also be achievable among BsAb-treated complete responders. Conclusions: CAR-T therapy remains the standard of care for fit, eligible patients with R/R LBCL in second- and third-line settings with curative intent, providing superior depth and durability of response and a growing potential for long-term cure. BsAbs constitute a critical therapeutic alternative for patients ineligible for CAR-T, those with rapidly progressive disease, frail or elderly individuals, and as bridging strategies. A patient-centered, scenario-specific clinical decision framework is recommended. Full article