Search Results (42,772)

All four dengue virus serotypes (DENV-1 to DENV-4) can cause severe and potentially fatal disease. Understanding the interplay between host immune responses and viral genetic diversity is particularly crucial in hyperendemic regions, where serotype shifts frequently occur during outbreaks. In this cross-sectional, surveillance-based study, we analyzed 350 patients with confirmed secondary dengue infection in Lao PDR, with samples collected between 2022 and 2023. Of these, 80 were successfully serotyped by RT-PCR and included in the serotype-specific analyses. Viral genotyping was performed using envelope (E) gene sequencing, and neutralizing antibody (nAb) titers and antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) activities against all four DENV serotypes were assessed using single-round infectious particles in both FcγRIIA-negative and FcγRIIA-positive BHK-21 cells. The nAb titers were highest against DENV-2, followed by DENV-1, DENV-4, and DENV-3. Nevertheless, DENV-2 exhibited the highest ADE activity, suggesting that high nAb titers may not necessarily prevent ADE. We also documented the co-circulation of DENV-2 Cosmopolitan and Asian I genotypes. Our findings highlight the complex interplay between neutralizing and enhancing antibody responses during secondary infection, particularly in the context of DENV-2 infection. Our results emphasize the need to understand the dynamics of DENV transmission in hyperendemic settings and may inform future vaccine development and evaluation strategies. Full article

Radiotherapy for head and neck cancer must balance disease control against normal-tissue injury. Artificial intelligence (AI), multi-omics, and multimodal analysis offer complementary ways to characterize tumor and host heterogeneity, but their relevance to treatment decisions depends on how measurements, outcomes, and validation are linked. This narrative review examines these approaches across head and neck cancers, with evidence concentrated in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Literature was identified through Web of Science and PubMed searches with targeted supplementary searches and reference-list screening, and selected for relevance to radiotherapy biology, clinical outcomes, and methodological or clinical validation. We distinguish joint molecular or multimodal inputs from parallel analyses and post hoc biological annotation, and assess findings according to population, treatment setting, sampling time, and analytical unit. Genomic, proteogenomic, single-cell, and spatial studies identify candidate phenotypes involving deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) repair, viral regulation, immunity, and metabolism. Clinical studies examine response, recurrence and survival stratification, molecular surveillance, and toxicity prediction. However, associations with outcomes under observed treatment do not establish differential treatment benefit, and improved discrimination does not demonstrate that model-guided care improves patient outcomes. Small patient cohorts, incomplete assay availability, potential data leakage, and limited independent validation further constrain interpretation. Translation requires reproducible measurements, patient-level validation of complete analytical pipelines, calibrated risk estimates, and evaluation within the intended treatment context. Prospective evaluation should prioritize predefined model-guided strategies and assess disease control, patient-relevant harm, and practical implementation together. Full article

Recurrent neural networks (RNNs) are widely used in reservoir operation because they can represent temporal dependencies, but their performance depends strongly on hyperparameter selection. This study compares eight evolutionary strategies—genetic algorithm (GA), particle swarm optimization (PSO), simulated annealing (SA), differential evolution (DE), ant colony optimization (ACO), artificial electric field algorithm (AEFA), slime mould algorithm (SMA), and white shark optimization (WSO)—for optimizing the hidden-node number and initial learning rate of long short-term memory (LSTM) and gated recurrent unit (GRU) models. Under common experimental settings, ACO required the shortest computation time in all reported dataset–architecture blocks, whereas the most accurate strategy depended on the dataset, architecture, and metric. For the total dataset, ACO–LSTM and AEFA–GRU produced the lowest reported MAEs (609.876 and 582.942 m³/s, respectively); WSO–LSTM was best for flood-season MAE (948.326 m³/s), and GA–GRU was best for non-flood-season MAE (516.088 m³/s). An independent chronological holdout experiment further verifies the search boundaries and validation-fitness procedure and shows that the fitness response also varies with hydrological period and RNN architecture. The results support objective- and dataset-specific optimizer selection, subject to the limitations of a single-reservoir case study and a restricted two-variable search. Full article

This study examines how global shocks shape the ability of national innovation systems to convert innovation inputs into measurable outputs. Using an unbalanced panel of 150 economies and 1735 economy-year observations from the Global Innovation Index over 2013–2025, we construct Innovation Conversion Performance (ICP) as the residual from a two-way fixed-effects benchmark relating innovation output to innovation inputs. ICP reflects conversion performance rather than resilience itself; resilience is assessed through ICP’s dynamic response to three global shocks, pandemic uncertainty, geoeconomic fragmentation, and economic uncertainty, interacted with country exposure ranks and decomposed into escalation and normalization phases. The empirical strategy combines calendar-safe lags; economy and year fixed effects; economy-clustered and Driscoll–Kraay inference; exposure-specific trends; and distributed-lag, prior-escalation, placebo, and pre-trend diagnostics. The most robust finding concerns pandemic normalization: ICP remains depressed as pandemic pressure recedes, with a significant negative cumulative effect over horizons h = 0 to h = 2, whereas escalation is not significant; the pre-pandemic trend and placebo tests show no anticipatory differentials. The evidence for economic uncertainty is weaker, suggesting short-run adjustment followed by partial recovery, while the fragmentation effects remain exploratory and imprecise. The findings are consistent with delayed post-shock adjustment, not symmetric recovery, but do not by themselves establish hysteresis. Full article

The accurate prediction of effluent water quality is essential for monitoring the operational status of wastewater treatment plants and supporting process regulation. To enhance feature representation and prediction accuracy in data-driven effluent quality modeling, this paper proposes an adaptive sparse deep belief network with stochastic configuration learning (ASDBN-SCL). First, an adaptive learning-rate strategy based on gradient-direction consistency is introduced during restricted Boltzmann machine pretraining to dynamically regulate the parameter-update step size. Second, a sparsity constraint based on the average activation probability of hidden neurons is incorporated to suppress redundant feature responses and promote compact representations. Third, stochastic configuration learning is employed as the supervised output module, in which hidden nodes are incrementally generated under a supervisory constraint and the output weights are analytically determined using least squares. The proposed method was evaluated using hourly monitoring data collected from a municipal wastewater treatment plant in Huai’an, China. After data preprocessing, 4500 valid samples were retained and chronologically partitioned into training, validation, and independent test sets. For effluent chemical oxygen demand prediction, the proposed method achieved a test RMSE of $0.3868\pm 0.0174$, an MAE of $0.3037\pm 0.0142$, and an $R^2$ of $0.9954\pm 0.0004$. For effluent total nitrogen prediction, the corresponding values were $0.2239\pm 0.0094$, $0.1756\pm 0.0082$, and $0.9849\pm 0.0013$, respectively. These results indicate that the proposed framework provides accurate and reliable effluent water quality predictions for the investigated wastewater treatment process. Full article

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic autoimmune disorder characterized by persistent synovitis, progressive joint destruction, and significant morbidity. Despite advances in targeted therapies, achieving sustained remission remains challenging, necessitating the exploration of novel, multi-targeted therapeutic strategies. This study investigates the therapeutic potential of a self-emulsifying nanoformulation, quercetin-loaded pumpkin seed oil nanoemulsion (Qu-PSONE), in a complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA)-induced RA rat model, focusing on elucidating its integrated molecular mechanisms. Methods: Adult male Wistar rats (n = 50) were divided into a normal control group (n = 10) and an RA-induced rat model (n = 40), with the latter being further subdivided into four experimental groups: RA control, free quercetin (Qu), pumpkin seed oil nanoemulsion (PSONE), and Qu-PSONE-treated groups. We performed comprehensive analyses, including physicochemical characterization of the nanoformulations and quantification of synovial protein levels of key mediators (IL-17, TLR-4, NF-κBp65, Nrf2, OPG, RANKL, JAK1, and STAT3) via ELISA. In parallel, synovial gene expression of GSDMD and miRNA-146a was assessed using RT-qPCR. Treatment efficacy was further evaluated through paw thickness measurements, clinical arthritis scoring, radiographic assessment of joint erosion, and histopathological examination, alongside immunohistochemical staining for TNF-α and MMP-9. Results: Our findings demonstrate that Qu-PSONE exerts a superior nutrigenomic inhibitory effect on the inflammatory cascade and joint deformity associated with CFA-induced adjuvant arthritis. The Qu-PSONE significantly modulated miRNA-146a expression, serving as a sensitive indicator of attenuated synoviocyte activation. This treatment concurrently increased Nrf2 synovial level, suppressed synovial NF-κBp65, TLR-4, and IL-17 levels, which in turn downstream-inhibited the JAK/STAT pathway, balanced RANKL/OPG signaling, and downregulated transcriptional priming of the pyroptotic marker GSDMD. Together, these findings demonstrate that Qu-PSONE effectively breaks the inflammatory cascade in adjuvant arthritis. These palliative effects of Qu-PSONE were robustly correlated with reduced paw edema, improved arthritis scores, mitigated radiographic joint damage, and diminished synovial infiltration and MMP-9 expression, as confirmed by histological and immunohistochemical analyses. Conclusions: Qu-PSONE halts arthritic progression and curtails joint damage through multitarget suppression of the NF-κBp65/TLR-4/IL-17 inflammatory axis at the synovial level. This response is accompanied by reduced JAK1 and STAT3 protein expression, re-established RANKL/OPG homeostasis to mitigate bone destruction, and attenuated GSDMD transcript levels, with miRNA-146a serving as a responsive biomarker of disease resolution. Full article

This study presents a life cycle assessment (LCA) of an ephemeral architectural installation developed for the Festival of Fruits and Flowers (FFF), a major cultural tourism event held in Ambato, Ecuador. Unlike previous LCA studies of temporary structures that primarily focus on construction performance, reusable buildings, or event infrastructure, this research examines a temporary cultural installation as part of an urban tourism and cultural heritage system. The study assessed the carbon footprint (CFP) across raw material extraction, manufacturing, transportation, construction, use, and end-of-life stages. Total emissions reached 408.46 kg CO₂e, with the construction phase contributing the largest share (272.00 kg CO₂e), followed by transportation (85.00 kg CO₂e) and raw material extraction (43.96 kg CO₂e). The use phase showed negligible emissions because the structure’s passive, while the end-of-life stage accounted for 7.50 kg CO₂e. The results show that embodied carbon is the dominant environmental burden of the analyzed installation and highlight the value of integrating LCA into early design and planning for temporary cultural infrastructure. By linking quantitative carbon assessment with cultural tourism, place identity, and ephemeral heritage, this study provides a case-specific methodological reference for developing low-carbon strategies for temporary cultural installations and environmentally responsible urban events. Full article

Foundational algorithm instruction at the elementary level has centered on understanding control structures and reproducing given procedures; opportunities for learners to generate strategies and judge efficiency under varying data conditions remain limited. This article presents an instructional design framework for elementary algorithm education that adapts selected principles of Algorithm Engineering and Data-Driven Algorithm Design, with algorithmic complexity as a cross-cutting criterion, and reports how a formative expert evaluation informed its refinement. The framework was derived through a focused reconstruction of artifacts from a design and development study: principles were selected using three criteria, traceably mapped to design requirements, and the expert evaluation was re-examined. The reconstruction yielded five design requirements, six design principles, five operating principles, and a four-phase model: Recognizing Problems in Context, Exploring Analytical Solution Strategies, Implementing Condition-Responsive Procedures, and Reflective Evaluation and Optimization; formal proof and asymptotic analysis lie outside its scope. Nine of ten expert-rated items met the original study’s content validity criterion, and expert feedback led to concrete learner-level activities, collaboration across all phases, and delayed presentation of canonical algorithms. The contribution is an explicit, traceable account of how professional practice principles were selected, bounded, adapted, and organized for efficiency-centered elementary algorithm instruction. Full article

Vibrio alginolyticus is a major aquaculture pathogen whose virulence is largely mediated by the type II secretion system (T2SS). However, the functions of key T2SS components, including gspJ, gspL, and gspM, remain unclear. Earlier research indicated that a Scutellaria baicalensis extract at 8 mg/mL markedly suppressed the growth, motility, and biofilm-forming capacity of V. alginolyticus ND-01 (OD600 = 0.5) following 12 h of treatment, with the resulting stress substantially altering the expression of multiple genes, including gspJ, gspL, and gspM. The gspJ-RNAi, gspL-RNAi, and gspM-RNAi strains were constructed using RNAi. Biological functional assays demonstrated that stable silencing of gspJ, gspL, and gspM markedly decreased biofilm formation ability (84.01%, 24.99%, and 78.26%, respectively) and host cell adhesion (73.57%, 75.65%, and 79.61%, respectively); gspJ and gspM silencing reduced motility (54.82% and 57.42%, respectively), whereas gspL silencing enhanced motility by 38.49%, indicating their essential roles in virulence-associated phenotypes. Notably, in vivo infection of Epinephelus coioides revealed that gspL-RNAi significantly attenuated pathogenicity, as evidenced by reduced host mortality (50%) and decreased bacterial colonization in liver and spleen tissues, compared with the wild-type group. Consistently, Label-Free Proteomic Analysis of the gspL-RNAi strain identified 189 differentially expressed proteins in the gspL-silenced strain, with enrichment in two-component signaling, ABC transport systems, and amino acid metabolism. Network analysis further positioned gspL as a central regulatory hub linking T2SS activity to signal transduction, transport, and metabolic pathways. In addition, the expression of gspJ-RNAi, gspL-RNAi, and gspM-RNAi exhibited distinct responses to environmental stresses, including pH and temperature variation. Collectively, our findings highlight that gspJ, gspL, and gspM are critical regulators of virulence in V. alginolyticus, with gspL playing a central role in coordinating T2SS function with global regulatory networks. This study advances our understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms of V. alginolyticus and provides potential targets for the development of anti-virulence aquaculture strategies. Full article

Objective: This study mainly focused on evaluating the efficacy and safety of drug-eluting beads bronchial arterial chemoembolization (DEB-BACE) in treating advanced refractory non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, with an exploratory investigation of whether combining DEB-BACE with anlotinib could bring additional benefits and identification of key prognostic factors. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 104 eligible patients, including 64 who received DEB-BACE monotherapy and 40 who received DEB-BACE combined with anlotinib. Kaplan–Meier method, log-rank test, and Cox proportional hazard model were used for survival and prognostic analyses. Primary endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS); secondary endpoints included objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), and adverse events (AEs). Results: The entire cohort had a median PFS of 13.9 months and median OS of 17.0 months, suggesting a potential survival benefit of DEB-BACE in advanced NSCLC. As an exploratory analysis, the combination group showed numerical advantages in PFS (13.9 vs. 10.6 months), OS (20.3 vs. 14.0 months), and ORR, without significant differences (all p > 0.05). ECOG 2 was an independent poor prognostic factor for PFS (HR = 2.602, p = 0.020) and tended to affect OS (HR = 2.259, p = 0.050). No grade 4 AEs or treatment-related deaths occurred; the 5.8% grade 3 AEs were all manageable. Conclusions: DEB-BACE may be effective and safe as a treatment option for advanced NSCLC patients, although prospective controlled studies are needed to confirm these findings. The combination of DEB-BACE with anlotinib, as an exploratory strategy, shows numerical benefits but no significant superiority. Full article

White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) remains a major factor limiting the sustainable development of crustacean aquaculture, creating an urgent need to develop comprehensive antiviral strategies with multiple protective functions. Natural bioactive compounds with antiviral, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant activities hold great potential for application; however, their poor stability and low bioavailability limit their practical use. In this study, self-assembled nanosystem (CE SA) composed of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and curcumin (Cur) was constructed based on noncovalent interactions, and its protective effects against WSSV-infected Procambarus clarkii were systematically evaluated. The results indicate that CE SA exhibits good stability, sustained-release properties, and biosafety. Compared with Cur, EGCG, and their physical mixture (CE), CE SA significantly improved the survival rate of infected shrimp and reduced viral copy numbers as well as the expression levels of key viral genes such as IE1, DNApol, and VP28. At the same time, CE SA significantly promoted the expression of relevant genes such as Dorsal, Relish, SOD, and CAT, increased SOD and CAT enzyme activities and hematopoietic cell viability, and effectively alleviated damage to the hepatopancreas and intestinal tissues. Furthermore, metabolomic analysis indicated that CE SA regulates key metabolic processes such as amino acid metabolism, inflammation-related metabolism, nucleotide metabolism, and redox homeostasis, further elucidating its potential mechanism for enhancing the host’s antiviral capacity. In summary, by enhancing the stability and utilization efficiency of natural bioactive components, CE SA achieves superior anti-WSSV efficacy compared to individual components. Its protective effects are closely related to the inhibition of viral replication, enhancement of the immune response, improvement of antioxidant defenses, and regulation of host metabolic homeostasis. This study provides a promising, self-assembling nanostructure strategy for the green prevention and control of viral diseases in aquatic animals. Full article

Layered transition-metal oxides (Na_xTMO₂) are among the most promising cathode candidates for sodium-ion batteries, yet their interfacial degradation under high voltage, deep desodiation, and humid environments remains the central bottleneck to commercialization. Here we argue that interfacial failure of layered cathodes is not a collection of isolated events but a coupled failure cascade in which chemical, structural, and mechanical factors amplify one another along a causal chain—surface residual alkali and oxygen release, heterogeneous phase transitions and surface reconstruction, stress concentration and crack propagation, and finally electrolyte infiltration with self-catalyzed formation of fresh interfaces. Starting from this cascade, we extract the corresponding modulation targets and, organized along the atomic–nano–micro length scale, survey single-axis strategies that include pillar-ion pinning, in situ conversion of residual alkali, gradient and epitaxial coatings, intergrown heterointerfaces, multifunctional coatings, and concentration-gradient particles. We then synthesize cross-scale synergistic paradigms—coating-plus-doping cascades, mechano-electrochemical coupling, dynamically stable interfaces under wide-temperature and high-voltage operation, and cathode–electrolyte interphase (CEI) engineering—and show that interface modulation is shifting from passive isolation toward active regulation. We close by distilling actionable design principles and outlining prospects for responsive interfaces and rational design. Full article

Dietary polyphenols, abundant in fruits, vegetables, tea, coffee, cocoa, and wine, have been widely investigated for their potential relevance to cardiovascular health. Their proposed protective effects extend beyond classical antioxidant activity, encompassing regulation of redox-sensitive signaling, attenuation of inflammation, improvement in endothelial function, modulation of lipid metabolism, and mitochondrial protection. Yet, their biological impact is strongly dependent on bioavailability and metabolic fate, as most compounds undergo extensive conjugation and gut microbiota-dependent transformation. Conjugated metabolites and microbial derivatives increasingly appear as key mediators of systemic vascular responses. Epidemiological studies associate polyphenol-rich dietary patterns with reduced cardiovascular risk, while clinical trials report modest and variable effects on intermediate outcomes such as vascular function, blood pressure, and plasma lipids. However, heterogeneity in study design, dosing, and compound source contributes to inconsistent outcomes and limits translation into practice. This review integrates current knowledge on classification, dietary sources, metabolism, and molecular mechanisms of polyphenols, emphasizing the interplay between host and microbiota in shaping cardioprotective responses. By bridging mechanistic insights with clinical observations, we highlight both the therapeutic promise and the translational challenges of polyphenols. Standardized intervention protocols, physiologically relevant dosing strategies, and precision nutrition approaches are essential to fully realize their potential in cardiovascular prevention. Full article

Paralipsa gularis (Zeller) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is a storage pest native to Southeast Asia that has now become a major agricultural pest affecting maize during the late growth stage in the border regions of southern Yunnan, China, adjacent to Southeast Asia. The typical tropical monsoon climate of this region defines distinct rainy and dry seasons with marked differences in ambient humidity; however, the effects of ambient humidity on the growth and development of P. gularis remain unclear. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of five relative humidity (RH) levels on the development, survival, and reproduction of P. gularis under controlled laboratory conditions. The results indicated that RH significantly affected parameters such as the developmental duration of P. gularis at various life stages and the reproductive capacity of adults. Specifically, the response to RH on the developmental duration of P. gularis was stage-specific. Within the range of 45–90% RH, the larval developmental duration gradually shortened, with the shortest duration of 15.48 days observed at 90% RH. The developmental durations of the pupa and adult increased as RH rose. At 90% RH, the developmental durations of the pupa and adult were longest, at 6.68 days and 8.58 days, respectively. The pupation rate and pupal eclosion rate of P. gularis initially increased and then decreased as RH rose, but they did not differ significantly among RH levels. At 75% RH, the pupation rate, pupal eclosion rate, and the weights of fifth-instar larvae and pupae were numerically highest. In addition, unmated females showed the highest observed fecundity at 90% RH. Overall, P. gularis exhibited better developmental status and higher egg-laying capacity in intermediate-to-high RH (75–90%). Our results may help optimize laboratory rearing conditions for P. gularis, provide parameters for future population models, and improve integrated management strategies for this pest. Full article

The increasing penetration of renewable energy requires coal-fired power plants to operate with greater flexibility, while deep load reduction and frequent load variations challenge combustion stability, efficiency, and equipment reliability. High-temperature solid-particle thermal energy storage (TES) offers a promising approach to decouple boiler heat supply from turbine power demand. This review compares particle heating, discharging, transport, and system-integration strategies and relates reported findings to key design and operational constraints. Solid-particle storage media can operate over a wide temperature range of approximately 200–1200 °C; silica sand can withstand temperatures up to about 1200 °C and alumina approximately 1100–1200 °C, substantially exceeding the typical operating range of nitrate molten salts (<600 °C). This broad temperature tolerance provides favorable thermal matching with high-temperature boiler flue gas. Direct flue-gas heating shortens the heat-transfer pathway and reduces intermediate heat-transfer stages, although its effects on boiler heat distribution and downstream heating surfaces require careful evaluation. Moving-bed discharging can provide continuous thermal output, while gravity-driven high-temperature transport combined with mechanical lifting after particle cooling can reduce the demand for high-temperature moving components. Based on these findings, a conceptual configuration integrating direct flue-gas heating, particle sensible-heat storage, moving-bed discharging, and temperature-segmented circulation is proposed. Future studies should focus on system-level efficiency, dynamic response, and load-following capability. Preliminary calculations for a 600 MW subcritical unit at 30% THA load show that particle-storage integration increases the boiler outlet flue-gas temperature by only about 1 °C, indicating no apparent increase in low-temperature corrosion risk under the investigated condition. Full article