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With the help of quantum key distribution (QKD), two distant peers are able to share information-theoretical secure key bits. Increasing the key rate is ultimately significant for the applications of QKD in the lossy channel. However, it has been proven that there is a fundamental rate-distance limit, called the linear bound, which restricts the performance of all existing repeaterless protocols and realizations. Surprisingly, a recently proposed protocol, called twin-field (TF) QKD, can beat the linear bound with no need for quantum repeaters. Here, we present one of the first implementations of the TF-QKD protocol and demonstrate its advantage of beating the linear bound at a channel distance of 300 km. In our experiment, a modified TF-QKD protocol that does not assume phase postselection is considered, and thus a higher key rate than the original one is expected. After controlling the phase evolution of the twin fields traveling through hundreds of kilometers of optical fibers, the implemented system achieves high-visibility single-photon interference and allows stable and high-rate measurement-device-independent QKD. Our experimental demonstration and results confirm the feasibility of the TF-QKD protocol and its prominent superiority in long-distance key distribution services.

Accurate and imperceptible monitoring of electrophysiological signals is of primary importance for wearable healthcare. Stiff and bulky pregelled electrodes are now commonly used in clinical diagnosis, causing severe discomfort to users for long-time using as well as artifact signals in motion. Here, we report a ~100 nm ultra-thin dry epidermal electrode that is able to conformably adhere to skin and accurately measure electrophysiological signals. It showed low sheet resistance (~24 Ω/sq, 4142 S/cm), high transparency, and mechano-electrical stability. The enhanced optoelectronic performance was due to the synergistic effect between graphene and poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), which induced a high degree of molecular ordering on PEDOT and charge transfer on graphene by strong π-π interaction. Together with ultra-thin nature, this dry epidermal electrode is able to accurately monitor electrophysiological signals such as facial skin and brain activity with low-motion artifact, enabling human-machine interfacing and long-time mental/physical health monitoring. Novel dry electrodes with enhanced mechano-electrical stability and conformability are attractive for long-time electrophysiological signal monitoring. Here, the authors report polymer-covered CVD-grown graphene with enhanced optoelectronic performance for biopotential monitoring.

Energy consumption prediction in buildings is crucial for optimizing energy management. The latest research faces three critical challenges: (1) Insufficient temporal correlation extraction and prediction accuracy, hindering widespread adoption and application; (2) The positive impact of timestamp embedding in time series prediction under multi-mode decomposition; and (3) The issue of adaptive coupling with multi-source data. To overcome these issues, the study proposes Twin Time-Series Networks (T2SNET), which incorporates a time-embedding layer and a Temporal Convolutional Network (TCN) to extract patterns from Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with Adaptive Noise (CEEMDAN), along with an adaptive fusion gate to combine energy consumption and meteorological data. The model was evaluated on datasets from university dormitories, office buildings, and school classrooms, showing significant improvements over the optimal baseline method. For instance, on the university classroom dataset, T2SNET reduced MAE by 4.56%, RMSE by 9.45%, and MAPE by 3.16% compared to the CEEMDAN-RF-LSTM model. These results highlight T2SNET’s effectiveness in predicting building energy consumption, providing a robust solution for energy management systems. The proposed method, along with baseline model code and data, has been updated and is available at https://github.com/HaileiYuan/T2SNET-Pro.git .

Fast radio bursts (FRBs), a class of millisecond-scale, highly energetic phenomena with unknown progenitors and radiation mechanisms, require proper statistical analysis as a key method for uncovering their mysteries. In this research, we build on the bias correction method using pulse injections for the first Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment/FRB catalog, to include correlations between properties and to analyze the FRB population spectrum. This model includes six FRB properties: dispersion measure (DM), pulse width, scattering timescale, spectral index, spectral running, and fluence. By applying the multidimensional weight function calculated by the model, we update the corrected distributions, suggesting that more low-DM, short- and long-width, and short-scattering timescale events may exist. Using one-off events and the first bursts from repeaters, the derived intrinsic population spectrum has a best-fit power law of F(ν) ∝ να, where α = −2.29 ± 0.29. This confirms previous indications that FRBs are brighter or more numerous at low frequencies. Analyzing nonrepeaters only, we find α = −2.50 ± 0.43, while including all bursts from repeaters produces α = −1.91 ± 0.20. This hints that active repeaters, low-rate repeaters, and nonrepeaters may have different progenitors, mechanisms, or evolutionary stages.

The cell division cycle associated 8 (CDCA8) is a crucial component of the chromosome passenger complex (CPC). It has been implicated in the regulation of cell dynamic localization during mitosis. However, its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is not clearly known. In this study, data of 374 patients with HCC were retrieved from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Pan analysis of Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) database was performed to profile the mRNA expression of CDCA8 in HCC. Then, the Kaplan‐Meier plotter database was analysed to determine the prognostic value of CDCA8 in HCC. In addition, samples of tumour and adjacent normal tissues were collected from 88 HCC patients to perform immunohistochemistry (IHC), reverse transcription‐quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR) and Western blotting. The results obtained from bioinformatic analyses were validated through CCK‐8 assay, EdU assay, colony formation assay, cell cycle assays and Western blotting experiments. Analysis of the Kaplan‐Meier plotter database showed that high expression of CDCA8 may lead to poor overall survival (OS, p = 4.06e‐05) in patients with HCC. For the 88 patients with HCC, we found that stages and grades appeared to be strongly linked with CDCA8 expression. Furthermore, the high expression of CDCA8 was found to be correlated with poor OS (p = 0.0054) and progression‐free survival (PFS, p = 0.0009). In vitro experiments revealed that inhibition of CDCA8 slowed cell proliferation and blocked the cell cycle at the G0/G1 phase. In vivo experiments demonstrated that inhibition of CDCA8 inhibited tumour growth. Finally, blockade of CDCA8 reduced the expression levels of cyclin A2, cyclin D1, CDK4, CDK6, Ki67 and PCNA. And, there is an interaction between CDCA8 and E2F1. In conclusion, this research demonstrates that CDCA8 may serve as a biomarker for early diagnosis and prognosis prediction of HCC patients. In addition, CDCA8 could be an effective therapeutic target in HCC.

Background Patients who recover from acute kidney injury (AKI) have a 25% increase in the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and a 50% increase in mortality after a follow-up of approximately 10 years. Circulating FGF-23 increases significantly early in the development of AKI, is significantly elevated in patients with CKD and has become a major biomarker of poor clinical prognosis in CKD. However, the potential link between fibroblast growth factor-23 levels and the progression of AKI to CKD remains unclear. Method Serum FGF-23 levels in AKI patients and ischaemia‒reperfusion injury (IRI) mice were detected with ELISA. Cultured HK2 cells were incubated with FGF-23 and PD173074, a blocker of FGFR, and then TGFβ/Smad and Wnt/β-catenin were examined with immunofluorescence and immunoblotting. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the expression of COL1A1 and COL4A1. Histologic staining confirmed renal fibrosis. Results The level of serum FGF-23 was significantly different between AKI patients and healthy controls ( P < 0.01 ). Moreover, serum FGF-23 levels in the CKD progression group were significantly higher than those in the non-CKD progression group of AKI patients ( P < 0.01 ). In the AKI-CKD mouse model, serum FGF-23 levels were increased, and renal fibrosis occurred; moreover, the protein expression of β-catenin and p-Smad3 was upregulated. PD173074 downregulated the expression of β-catenin and p-Smad3 and reduced fibrosis in both mice and HK2 cells. Conclusion The increase in FGF-23 may be associated with the progression of AKI to CKD and may mediate renal fibrosis via TGF-β and Wnt/β-catenin activation.

Leaf and cambium phenologies are both important aspects of tree environmental adaptation in temperate areas. Temperate tree species with non-porous, diffuse-porous and ring-porous woods diverge substantially in the strategy of coping with freezing-induced hydraulic dysfunction, which can be closely associated with the timing of both leaf phenology and xylogenesis. Nevertheless, we still know little about the potential differences in the intra-annual process of xylogenesis among species of the three functional groups as well as its association with leaf phenology. Here, we monitored leaf phenology and xylogenesis in a non-porous ( Pinus ), a diffuse-porous ( Populus ), and a ring-porous ( Ulmus ) temperate tree species in a common garden. The results showed clear divergences in leaf and cambium phenologies and their chronological orders among the three species. The two hardwood species exhibited earlier bud burst and leaf unfolding than the conifer. The cambial activity of the ring-porous species began earlier than the diffuse-porous species, although the leaf phenology of the diffuse-porous species was earlier. The conifer species showed the latest bud break but the initiation of cambium activity was the earliest, which can be attributed to its strong resistance to freezing-induced embolism in the tracheid-based xylem. The leaf phenology preceded the onset of cambial activity in the Populus species, which was permitted by the ability of diffuse-porous species in largely retaining the stem hydraulic function over the winter. In contrast, the Ulmus species with ring-porous wood had to restore its severely hampered stem hydraulic function by winter embolism before leaf flush. The results revealed that leaf and cambium phenologies are closely interconnected due to the coordination between xylem water transport and leaf water demand. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the divergent adaptive strategies of temperate trees with different wood types.

Thiosulfate oxidation by microbes has a major impact on global sulfur cycling. Here, we provide evidence that bacteria within various Roseobacter lineages are important for thiosulfate oxidation in marine biofilms. We isolate and sequence the genomes of 54 biofilm-associated Roseobacter strains, finding conserved sox gene clusters for thiosulfate oxidation and plasmids, pointing to a niche-specific lifestyle. Analysis of global ocean metagenomic data suggests that Roseobacter strains are abundant in biofilms and mats on various substrates, including stones, artificial surfaces, plant roots, and hydrothermal vent chimneys. Metatranscriptomic analysis indicates that the majority of active sox genes in biofilms belong to Roseobacter strains. Furthermore, we show that Roseobacter strains can grow and oxidize thiosulfate to sulfate under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Transcriptomic and membrane proteomic analyses of biofilms formed by a representative strain indicate that thiosulfate induces sox gene expression and alterations in cell membrane protein composition, and promotes biofilm formation and anaerobic respiration. We propose that bacteria of the Roseobacter group are major thiosulfate-oxidizers in marine biofilms, where anaerobic thiosulfate metabolism is preferred. Thiosulfate oxidation by microbes has a major impact on global sulfur cycling. Here, Ding et al. provide evidence that bacteria of the Roseobacter group are major thiosulfate-oxidizers in marine biofilms, where anaerobic thiosulfate metabolism is preferred.

Members of the genus Phaeobacter are widely distributed in the marine environment and are known for their ability to produce tropodithietic acid (TDA). Studies investigating the genomic and metabolic features of Phaeobacter strains from marine biofilms are sparse. Here, we analyze the complete genomes of 18 Phaeobacter strains isolated from biofilms on subtidal stones, with the aim of determining their potential to synthesize secondary metabolites. Based on whole-genome comparison and average nucleotide identity calculation, the isolated bacteria are classified as novel strains of Phaeobacter inhibens. Further analysis reveals a total of 153 biosynthetic gene clusters, which are assigned to 32 gene cluster families with low similarity to previously published ones. Complete TDA clusters are identified in 14 of the 18 strains, while in the other 4 strains the TDA clusters are rather incomplete and scattered across different chromosome and plasmid locations. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that their presence or absence may be potentially attributed to horizontal gene transfer. High-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis demonstrates the production of TDA in all the examined strains. Furthermore, the Phaeobacter strains have strong antibacterial activity against the pathogenic strain Vibrio owensii ems001, which is associated with acute hepatopancreatic necrosis in South American white shrimp. Altogether, this study ameliorates our knowledge of marine biofilm-associated Phaeobacter and offers new avenues for exploiting marine antimicrobial agents.

Background Despite advances in early diagnosis and treatment, cancer remains the leading cause of mortality worldwide. The insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA binding protein (IGF2BP) family has been reported to be involved in a variety of human malignant tumours. However, little is known about their expression and prognostic value in human pancreatic cancer. Therefore, we performed a detailed cancer versus normal differential analysis. Methods The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) databases were used to analyse the mRNA expression levels of the IGF2BP family in various cancers, including pancreatic cancer. Then, the LinkedOmics and GEPIA databases were used to assess the relation between the expression levels of IGF2BPs and overall survival (OS). Then, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed, and subgroups based on grade and stage were analysed. The signalling pathways associated with IGF2BP2 and IGF2BP3 were then investigated via gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). Results IGF2BP2 and IGF2BP3 were associated with each subset of OS based on grade and stage. Further clinical correlation analysis of IGF2BP2 and IGF2BP3 confirmed that IGF2BP2 and IGF2BP3 are fundamental factors in promoting pancreatic cancer progression. Conclusion IGF2BP2 and IGF2BP3 are key factors in promoting the progression of pancreatic cancer and are closely related to overall survival.