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The origin of dramatic slowing down of dynamics in metallic glass-forming liquids toward their glass transition temperatures is a fundamental but unresolved issue. Through extensive molecular dynamics simulations, here we show that, contrary to the previous beliefs, it is not local geometrical orderings extracted from instantaneous configurations but the intrinsic correlation between configurations that captures the structural origin governing slow dynamics. More significantly, it is demonstrated by scaling analyses that it is the correlation length extracted from configuration correlation rather than dynamic correlation lengths that is the key to determine the drastic slowdown of supercooled metallic liquids. The key role of the configuration correlation established here sheds important light on the structural origin of the mysterious glass transition and provides an essential piece of the puzzle for the development of a universal theoretical understanding of glass transition in glasses.

Compared with individuals with hearing loss, tinnitus patients without hearing loss have more psychological or emotional problems. Tinnitus is closely associated to abnormal metabolism and function of the limbic system, a key brain region for emotion experience, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unknown. Using whole‐brain microvasculature dynamics imaging, the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is identified as a key brain region of limbic system involve in the onset of salicylate‐induced tinnitus in mice. In the tinnitus group, there is enhanced purine metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, and a distinct pattern of phosphorylation in glutamatergic synaptic pathway according to the metabolome profiles, quantitative proteomic, and phosphoproteomic data of mice ACC tissue. Electroencephalogram in tinnitus patients with normal hearing thresholds show that the functional connectivity between pregenual anterior cingulate cortex and the primary auditory cortex is significantly increased for high‐gamma frequency band, which is positively correlated with the serum glutamate level. These findings indicate that ACC plays an important role in the pathophysiology of tinnitus by interacting with the primary auditory cortex and provide potential molecular targets in the ACC for tinnitus treatment. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is a brain region of limbic system. There is enhanced metabolism and a distinct pattern of phosphorylation in glutamatergic synaptic pathway in ACC tissue of tinnitus mice. Electroencephalogram in tinnitus patients show increased functional connectivity between ACC and the primary auditory cortex. These findings indicate that ACC involves in the pathophysiology of tinnitus by interacting with the primary auditory cortex.

Background The interaction between the karyoplast and cytoplast plays an important role in the efficiency of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. It is generally accepted that in nuclear transfer embryos, the reprogramming of gene expression is induced by epigenetic mechanisms and does not involve modifications of DNA sequences. In cattle, oocytes with various mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes usually have different ATP content and can further affect the efficiency of in vitro production of embryos. As mtDNA comes from the recipient oocyte during SCNT and is regulated by genes in the donor nucleus, it is a perfect model to investigate the interaction between donor nuclei and host oocytes in SCNT. Results We investigated whether the in vitro development of reconstructed bovine embryos produced by SCNT would be influenced by mtDNA haplotype compatibility between the oocytes and donor cells. Embryos from homotype A-A or B-B showed significantly higher developmental ability at blastocyst stages than the heterotype A-B or B-A combinations. Post-implantation development ability, pregnancy rate up to day 90 of gestation, as well as percent of term births were higher in the homotype SCNT groups than in the heterotype groups. In addition, homotype and heterotype SCNT embryos showed different methylation patterns of histone 3-lysine 9 (H3K9) genome-wide and at pluripotency-related genes ( Oct-4, Sox-2, Nanog ). Conclusion Both histone and DNA methylation show that homotype SCNT blastocysts have a more successful epigenetic asymmetry pattern than heterotype SCNT blastocysts, which indicates more complete nuclear reprogramming. This may result from variability in their epigenetic patterns and responses to nuclear reprogramming. This suggests that the compatibility of mtDNA haplotypes between donor cells and host oocytes can significantly affect the developmental competence of reconstructed embryos in SCNT, and may include an epigenetic mechanism.

The structural and electronic properties of the M 13 Pt 42 (M = Al, Ga, In, Mg, Ca, Sr) clusters, in which the core–shell icosahedral M 13 substructures are non-transition metal (TM) elements, are investigated by using first-principles method. Our calculations show that Mg 13 Pt 42 , Al 13 Pt 42 , Ga 13 Pt 42 acted as oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts is stable while considering both the core–shell interaction energy (E cs ) and the potential energy (U diss ). By analyzing the partial density of state, we find that it is more favorable to form p – d hybridization than to form d – d hybridization when p -block element cores interact with Pt shell. The absorption energies of O atom show that the adsorption energy of surface is closely related to the charge that the surface gains. Our work may find out new Pt-alloy catalysts for enhancing the ORR activity.

Tuning anisotropy in bulk metallic glasses, ideally isotropic, is of practical interest in optimizing properties and of fundamental interest in understanding the amorphous structure and its instability. By employing the quasi-elastic asymmetric mechanical cycling method, we effectively induce the mechanical polarity of a model bulk metallic glass, without damaging the sample or introducing significant annealing or rejuvenation effects. Moreover, the polarized anelastic limit can be well controlled by regulating the amplitude of mechanical cycling. Through the atomic-level analysis of nonaffine displacement, we find that only plastic atomic rearranged events corresponding to the training direction can be exhausted by asymmetric cycling and the survived anelastic events dominate the directional anelastic limit. The polarized distribution of local yield stress reveals that the mechanical polarity is attributed to the plastic-event-healing induced asymmetry of local potential energy surface, rather than frozen-in anelastic strain. Furthermore, the healing of plastic events associated with the redistribution of local residual stress indicates the origin of polarity induced by asymmetric cycling. Our study is of fundamental importance, which furthers our understanding of the mechanical deformation of metallic glasses and shed some light on the prospects for improved properties through induced anisotropy.

Foodborne diseases caused by pathogenic bacteria pose a serious threat to human health. Early and rapid detection of foodborne pathogens is an urgent task for preventing disease outbreaks. Microfluidic devices are simple, automatic, and portable miniaturized systems. Compared with traditional techniques, microfluidic devices have attracted much attention because of their high efficiency and convenience in the concentration and detection of foodborne pathogens. This article firstly reviews the bio-recognition elements integrated on microfluidic chips in recent years and the progress of microfluidic chip development for pathogen pretreatment. Furthermore, the research progress of microfluidic technology based on optical and electrochemical sensors for the detection of foodborne pathogenic bacteria is summarized and discussed. Finally, the future prospects for the application and challenges of microfluidic chips based on biosensors are presented.

This investigation seeks to dissect coronary artery disease molecular target candidates along with its underlying molecular mechanisms. Data on patients with CAD across three separate array data sets, GSE66360, GSE19339 and GSE97320 were extracted. The gene expression profiles were obtained by normalizing and removing the differences between the three data sets, and important modules linked to coronary heart disease were identified using weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA). Gene Ontology (GO) functional and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were applied in order to identify statistically significant genetic modules with the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) online tool (version 6.8; http://david.abcc.ncifcrf.gov ). The online STRING tool was used to construct a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network, followed by the use of Molecular Complex Detection (MCODE) plug-ins in Cytoscape software to identify hub genes. Two significant modules (green-yellow and magenta) were identified in the CAD samples. Genes in the magenta module were noted to be involved in inflammatory and immune-related pathways, based on GO and KEGG enrichment analyses. After the MCODE analysis, two different MCODE complexes were identified in the magenta module, and four hub genes ( ITGAM , degree = 39; CAMP , degree = 37; TYROBP , degree = 28; ICAM1 , degree = 18) were uncovered to be critical players in mediating CAD. Independent verification data as well as our RT-qPCR results were highly consistent with the above finding. ITGAM , CAMP , TYROBP and ICAM1 are potential targets in CAD. The underlying mechanism may be related to the transendothelial migration of leukocytes and the immune response.

Highlights This review delves into the mechanism of the state-of-the-art lithium–sulfur batteries from a novel perspective of cathode–electrolyte interface. It provides extensive strategies to construct a stable cathode–electrolyte interphase layer and improve the uneven deposition of Li 2 S, enhancing the stability of the interface structure. It proposes an in-depth and comprehensive research on how to inhibit the shuttle effect at the cathode–electrolyte interface with regard to distinct reaction pathways. Global interest in lithium–sulfur batteries as one of the most promising energy storage technologies has been sparked by their low sulfur cathode cost, high gravimetric, volumetric energy densities, abundant resources, and environmental friendliness. However, their practical application is significantly impeded by several serious issues that arise at the cathode–electrolyte interface, such as interface structure degradation including the uneven deposition of Li 2 S, unstable cathode–electrolyte interphase (CEI) layer and intermediate polysulfide shuttle effect. Thus, an optimized cathode–electrolyte interface along with optimized electrodes is required for overall improvement. Herein, we comprehensively outline the challenges and corresponding strategies, including electrolyte optimization to create a dense CEI layer, regulating the Li 2 S deposition pattern, and inhibiting the shuttle effect with regard to the solid–liquid–solid pathway, the transformation from solid–liquid–solid to solid–solid pathway, and solid–solid pathway at the cathode–electrolyte interface. In order to spur more perceptive research and hasten the widespread use of lithium–sulfur batteries, viewpoints on designing a stable interface with a deep comprehension are also put forth.

The industrial implementation of coupled electrochemical hydrogen production systems necessitates high power density and high product selectivity for economic viability and safety. However, for organic nucleophiles (e.g., methanol, urea, and amine) electrooxidation in the anode, most catalytic materials undergo unavoidable reconstruction to generate high-valent metal sites under harsh operation conditions, resulting in competition with oxygen evolution reaction. Here, we present unique Ni(II) sites in Prussian blue analogue (NiFe-sc-PBA) that serve as stable, efficient and selective active sites for ethylene glycol (EG) electrooxidation to formic acid, particularly at ampere-level current densities. Our in situ/operando characterizations demonstrate the robustness of Ni(II) sites during EG electrooxidation. Molecular dynamics simulations further illustrate that EG molecule tends to accumulate on the NiFe-sc-PBA surface, preventing hydroxyl-induced reconstruction in alkaline solutions. The stable Ni(II) sites in NiFe-sc-PBA anodes exhibit efficient and selective EG electrooxidation performance in a coupled electrochemical hydrogen production flow cell, producing high-value formic acid compared to traditional alkaline water splitting. The coupled system can continuously operate at stepwise ampere-level current densities (switchable 1.0 or 1.5 A cm −2 ) for over 500 hours without performance degradation. Hydrogen production coupled with electrochemical oxidation of organic nucleophiles is often limited by catalyst’s reconstruction at the anode. Here, the authors developed the stable Ni(II) active sites in Prussian Blue analogue for fast, selective ethylene glycol electrooxidation and constructed an effective coupled electrochemical hydrogen production flow cell.

Lactate is widely used as a biomarker of tissue hypoperfusion and illness severity in critically ill patients with heart failure (HF). While static lactate levels have prognostic value, dynamic changes in lactate over time may offer deeper insights into metabolic stress and clinical outcomes. However, the prognostic utility of lactate trajectories remains poorly defined in HF populations. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the MIMIC-IV ( n  = 5,261) and MIMIC-III ( n  = 906) databases to identify distinct early arterial lactate trajectories in ICU-admitted HF patients. Latent class mixed model were used to categorize 72-hour lactate patterns, and association with in-hospital, 28-day, and 1-year mortality were assessed using multivariable logistic and Cox regression models. External validation was performed in the MIMIC-III cohort. Three distinct lactate trajectory classes were identified: low-stable (Class 1, 86.4%), early rise with delayed decline (Class 2, 4.1%), and early decline followed by re-elevation (Class 3, 9.6%). Compared with Class 1, Class 2 had higher in-hospital mortality (OR 6.88, 95% CI 4.86–9.74), 28-day mortality (HR 3.88, 95% CI 3.17–4.75), and 1-year mortality (HR 3.16, 95% CI 2.65–3.78; all P  < 0.001). Class 3 also showed higher risks versus Class 1 (OR 3.03, 95% CI 2.32–3.98; 28-day HR 2.20, 95% CI 1.83–2.66; 1-year HR 1.83, 95% CI 1.56–2.15; all P  < 0.001). Risks showed a consistent gradient (Class 2 > Class 3 > Class 1) across cohorts. Findings were consistent in the validation cohort. Sensitivity and subgroup analyses confirmed the robustness of these associations. Early arterial lactate trajectories were independently associated with both mortality in critically ill patients with HF. Trajectory-based profiling provides more nuanced prognostic insight than initial lactate values alone and may inform early risk stratification and ICU decision-making.