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In this study, the high-density SiC/SiO 2 core–shell nanowires were synthesized on the nickel coated SiO 2 (100 nm)/Si substrate by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method with ferrocene precursor at temperature 1000 °C compared to previous studies (1300–1600 °C). The present work provides an efficient strategy for the production of SiC/SiO 2 nanowires with uniform morphology and good optical properties, where the Ni layer plays important roles for this fabrication at low temperature which reduces the decomposition temperature of hydrocarbon gases and improves the growth quality of SiC nanowires. The as-synthesized SiC/SiO 2 nanowires consist of single crystal 3C structures as well as 3C structures with defects along [111] direction. In the photoluminescence (PL) spectrum, the SiC/SiO 2 core–shell nanowires revealed an obvious blueshift. The blueshift is due to the formation of nanoscale silicon carbide polytypism caused by the stacking faults in 3C–SiC and the nanoscale polytypism also caused the transition from indirect to direct bandgap which explains why the stacking faults percentage in SiC confirmed from X-ray diffraction (XRD) is 19%, but ultimately makes the strongest emission intensity. Finally, the PL characteristics are further improved by changing the diameter of the SiC nanowire and etching and an approximate model followed by the vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) mechanism was proposed to explain the possible growth mechanism of the SiC/SiO 2 nanowires.

Dengue fever is a vector-borne disease that has become a serious global public health problem over the past decade. An essential aspect of controlling and preventing mosquito-borne diseases is reduction of mosquito density. Through the process of urbanization, sewers (ditches) have become easy breeding sources of vector mosquitoes. In this study, we, for the first time, used unmanned ground vehicle systems (UGVs) to enter ditches in urban areas to observe vector mosquito ecology. We found traces of vector mosquitoes in ~20.7% of inspected ditches, suggesting that these constitute viable breeding sources of vector mosquitoes in urban areas. We also analyzed the average gravitrap catch of five administrative districts in Kaohsiung city from May to August 2018. The gravitrap indices of Nanzi and Fengshan districts were above the expected average (3.26), indicating that the vector mosquitoes density in these areas is high. Using the UGVs to detect positive ditches within the five districts followed by insecticide application generally yielded good control results. Further improving the high-resolution digital camera and spraying system of the UGVs may be able to effectively and instantly monitor vector mosquitoes and implement spraying controls. This approach may be suitable to solve the complex and difficult task of detecting mosquito breeding sources in urban ditches.

The optical properties of topological photonics have attracted much interest recently because its potential applications for robust unidirectional transmission that are immune to scattering at disorder. However, researches on topological series coupled ring resonators (T-SCRR) have been much less discussed. The existence of topological interface-states (TIS) in the T-SCRR is described for the first time in this article. An approach has been developed to achieve this goal via the band structure of dielectric binary ring resonators and the Zak phase of each bandgap. It is found that an ultra-high-Q with complete transmission is obtained by the conjugated topological series coupled ring resonators due to the excitation of conjugated topological interface-states, which is different from those in conventional TIS. Furthermore, the problem of transmission decreases resulting from high-Q increases in the traditional photonic system is significantly improved by this approach. These findings could pave a novel path for developing advanced high-Q filters, optical sensors, switches, resonators, communications and quantum information processors.

Background Pretreatment of biomass to maximize the recovery of fermentable sugars as well as to minimize the amount of enzyme inhibitors formed during the pretreatment is a challenge in biofuel process. We develop a modified Fenton pretreatment in a mixed solvent (water/DMSO) to combine the advantages of organosolv and Fenton pretreatments. The hemicellulose and cellulose in corncob were effectively degraded into xylose, glucose, and soluble glucose oligomers in a few hours. This saccharide solution, separated from the solid lignin simply by filtration, can be directly applied to the subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation. Results After the pretreatment, 94% carbohydrates were recovered as soluble monosaccharide (xylose and glucose) and glucose oligomers in the filtrates, and 87% of solid lignin was recovered as the filter residue. The filtrates were directly applied to enzymatic hydrolysis, and 92% of raw corncob glucose was recovered. The hydrolysates containing the glucose and xylose from the enzymatic hydrolysis were directly applied to ethanol fermentation with ethanol yield equals 79% of theoretical yield. The pretreatment conditions (130 °C, 1.5 bar; 30 min to 4 h) are mild, and the pretreatment reagents (H2O2, FeCl3, and solvent) had low impact to environment. Using ferrimagnetic Fe3O4 resulted in similar pretreatment efficiency and Fe3O4 could be removed by filtration. Conclusions A modified Fenton pretreatment of corncob in DMSO/water was developed. Up to 94% of the carbohydrate content of corncob was recovered as a saccharide solution simply by filtration. Such filtrate was directly applied to the subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis and where 92% of the corncob glucose content was obtained. The hydrolysate so obtained was directly applied to ethanol fermentation with good fermentability. The pretreatment method is simple, and the additives and solvents used have a low impact to the environment. This method provides the opportunity to substantially maximize the carbohydrate and solid lignin recovery of biomass with a comparatively green process, such that the efficiency of biorefinery as well as the bioethanol production process can be improved. The pretreatment is still relatively energy intensive and expensive, and further optimization of the process is required in large-scale operation.

To analyze the status of binocular visual functions, the relationship between binocular visual function and computer vision-related symptoms in the high-tech industry group. The study sample was comprised of 33 participants aged between 20 and 40 years of age. After completing basic information and the Computer Vision Symptom Scale (CVSS-17) questionnaire, the participants underwent a comprehensive examination of binocular visual function. All data were statistically analyzed with SPSS V26.0 software. The value of the binocular vision function of the Taiwan high-tech industry group was significantly different compared with the Scheiman and Morgan standard value. Study subjects were generally found to exhibit larger exophoric at distance, which in turn might lead to a lower ability to maintain binocular fusion to a single image, or recover from fusional disruption at distance. Subjects also experienced accommodation and convergence problems at near at the same time. Age, gender, and refractive errors had no significant impact on CVSS-17 scores, only the duration of computer usage showed a significant effect, particularly for internal symptom factor (ISF) dimensions. In addition, the interaction between the ISF and external symptom factor resulted in more severe visual symptoms. Long-term use of electronic devices may lead to an imbalance in binocular vision function, thereby increasing or exacerbating visual symptoms. If the use of electronic devices is an unchangeable trend, interventions in prescription, visual training or the visual design of electronic products become worthwhile topics for development.

Background This study combines a nationally representative sample from Taiwan with four years of National Health Insurance (NHI) data to explore the distinctive impact of emotional and social loneliness on health service utilization, including outpatient visits for mental health, general outpatient visits, emergency room (ER) visits, and hospitalization. Methods Data were drawn from the 2015 Taiwan Longitudinal Survey on Aging (TLSA) and merged with participants’ NHI records from 2015 to 2018. The analysis used logistic regression for binary outcomes and negative binomial regression for counts. Results Results show that higher emotional loneliness in 2015 was associated with increased outpatient mental health visits over time and more general outpatient visits within the same year. Conversely, higher social loneliness in 2015 reduced the likelihood of seeking ER care in 2015. Conclusions By merging national data and distinguishing emotional from social loneliness, this study offers insights into their differential impacts on healthcare utilization among older adults in Taiwan. It emphasizes the importance of addressing loneliness to improve physical and mental well-being and optimize the effective utilization of healthcare resources.

The gut microbiome supports immune health and influences gut and heart functions through the gut-heart axis. Synbiotics (SBT), combining probiotics and prebiotics, help restore microbiome balance. Chemotherapy often disrupts this balance, leading to adverse effects on the gut and heart. This study explores the potential of SBT supplementation in reducing heart and gut inflammation caused by doxorubicin (DOX) chemotherapy. The gut microbiome plays a vital role in immune health, and metabolites produced by gut bacteria contribute to physiological functions through the gut-heart axis. Chemotherapy drugs often disrupt these processes, leading to adverse effects on internal organs. Using 24 ICR male mice divided into four groups, the experiment assessed the impact of SBT on DOX-induced damage. Results indicated that DOX treatment significantly worsened survival rates, physical performance, heart function, and gut microbiome stability. However, co-treatment with SBT improved these markers, suggesting that SBT may help mitigate chemotherapy-induced side effects in cancer patients.

Dengue fever is one of the most severe viral diseases transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, with traditional approaches of disease control proving insufficient to prevent significant disease burden. Release of Wolbachia -transinfected mosquitoes offers a promising alternative control methodologies; Wolbachia -transinfected female Aedes aegypti demonstrate reduced dengue virus transmission, whilst Wolbachia -transinfected males cause zygotic lethality when crossed with uninfected females, providing a method for suppressing mosquito populations. Although highly promising, the delicate nature of population control strategies and differences between local species populations means that controlled releases of Wolbachia -transinfected mosquitoes cannot be performed without extensive testing on specific local Ae . aegypti populations. In order to investigate the potential for using Wolbachia to suppress local Ae . aegypti populations in Taiwan, we performed lab-based and semi-field fitness trials. We first transinfected the Wolbachia strain w AlbB into a local Ae . aegypti population ( w AlbB-Tw) and found no significant changes in lifespan, fecundity and fertility when compared to controls. In the laboratory, we found that as the proportion of released male mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia was increased, population suppression could reach up to 100%. Equivalent experiments in semi-field experiments found suppression rates of up to 70%. The release of different ratios of wAlbB-Tw males in the semi-field system provided an estimate of the optimal size of male releases. Our results indicate that w AlbB-Tw has significant potential for use in vector control strategies aimed at Ae . aegypti population suppression in Taiwan. Open field release trials are now necessary to confirm that w AlbB-Tw mediated suppression is feasible in natural environments.

Global trade and climate change are driving the geographic expansion of dengue vectors, contributing to the global spread of dengue. Conventional vector control measures have proven insufficient to prevent substantial disease burdens, highlighting the need for innovative and sustainable strategies. The release of Wolbachia -infected mosquitoes offers a promising alternative for dengue suppression. Here, we developed a locally derived Ae. aegypti line carrying the w AlbB strain ( w AlbB-Tw-Kao) and systematically evaluated its fitness, viral interference, and potential for vector population control. The strain was generated through embryonic microinjection of cytoplasm containing the intact w AlbB endosymbiont from field-collected Ae. albopictus in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, resulting in a stably infected mosquito line with 100% maternal transmission. Whole-genome sequencing confirmed a high similarity to the reference w AlbB genome. Cross-mating experiments demonstrated complete cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI, 0% egg hatch) when w AlbB-Tw-Kao males were mated with uninfected females. Antiviral assays against dengue virus serotype 2 (DENV-2) and Zika virus showed significant reductions in viral titers in the midgut, salivary glands, and saliva. In cage experiments, increasing release ratios of w AlbB-Tw-Kao males led to significant suppression of wild-type populations, achieving up to approximately 90% reduction in egg hatch. These findings demonstrate the successful development of a locally derived w AlbB-infected Ae. aegypti line with strong CI, stable maternal transmission, and effective DENV and ZIKV blocking. These properties provide a foundation for future field-relevant evaluation under both suppression and replacement deployment frameworks.

An essential aspect of controlling and preventing mosquito-borne diseases is to reduce mosquitoes that carry viruses. We designed a smart mosquito trap system to reduce the density of mosquito vectors and the spread of mosquito-borne diseases. This smart trap uses computer vision technology and deep learning networks to identify features of live Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus in real-time. A unique mechanical design based on the rotation concept is also proposed and implemented to capture specific living mosquitoes into the corresponding chambers successfully. Moreover, this system is equipped with sensors to detect environmental data, such as CO 2 concentration, temperature, and humidity. We successfully demonstrated the implementation of such a tool and paired it with a reliable capture mechanism for live mosquitos without destroying important morphological features. The neural network achieved 91.57% accuracy with test set images. When the trap prototype was applied in a tent, the accuracy rate in distinguishing live Ae. aegypti was 92%, with a capture rate reaching 44%. When the prototype was placed into a BG trap to produce a smart mosquito trap, it achieved a 97% recognition rate and a 67% catch rate when placed in the tent. In a simulated living room, the recognition and capture rates were 90% and 49%, respectively. This smart trap correctly differentiated between Cx. quinquefasciatus and Ae. aegypti mosquitoes, and may also help control mosquito-borne diseases and predict their possible outbreak.