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Using panel data from 38 leading agricultural and forestry universities in China from 2018 to 2023, this study employs a difference-in-differences (DID) model to assess the impact of the second round of the “Double First-Class” initiative on the research performance of sectoral (Agricultural and Forestry) universities. The empirical results show that the policy significantly improves research performance. Following its implementation, the Category Normalized Citation Impact (CNCI), the number of ESI-indexed publications, and total citation counts increased by approximately 9.5%, 49.9%, and 74.6%, respectively. This indicates that the “Double First-Class” initiative has achieved notable gains in terms of research output quantity, quality, and international academic impact. These findings are robust to a series of sensitivity checks. Further heterogeneity analysis shows that the policy promotes the publication of TOP papers in universities jointly sponsored by central ministries and provincial governments, raises citation counts in non–jointly sponsored universities, and significantly increases both citation frequencies and CNCI scores for agricultural and forestry universities in both northern and southern China. Based on these findings, we put forward policy recommendations for the next phase of the “Double First-Class” initiative.

Hydrologic soil groups (HSGs) are a fundamental component of the USDA curve-number (CN) method for estimation of rainfall runoff; yet these data are not readily available in a format or spatial-resolution suitable for regional- and global-scale modeling applications. We developed a globally consistent, gridded dataset defining HSGs from soil texture, bedrock depth, and groundwater. The resulting data product--HYSOGs250m--represents runoff potential at 250 m spatial resolution. Our analysis indicates that the global distribution of soil is dominated by moderately high runoff potential, followed by moderately low, high, and low runoff potential. Low runoff potential, sandy soils are found primarily in parts of the Sahara and Arabian Deserts. High runoff potential soils occur predominantly within tropical and sub-tropical regions. No clear pattern could be discerned for moderately low runoff potential soils, as they occur in arid and humid environments and at both high and low elevations. Potential applications of this data include CN-based runoff modeling, flood risk assessment, and as a covariate for biogeographical analysis of vegetation distributions.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) represents a significant health and economic burden in China. Despite extensive research on CVD management in primary care, the cost-effectiveness of current practices remains suboptimal. The overall aim of this study is to test the efficacy of an integrated, cost-effectiveness-oriented management (CEOM) intervention to improve CVD risk and harm management in primary healthcare settings in Anhui, China. This open-label, multi-centre, cluster-randomised controlled trial will be conducted in 32 village clinics in Anhui Province, China. Clinics will be randomised (1:1) to the CEOM intervention or usual care. The CEOM intervention integrates a prospective cost-effectiveness analysis from a societal perspective into the clinical workflow. It assesses patient eligibility and prioritises intervention themes and specific items based on predicted incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICER), guiding clinicians to deliver tailored management procedures. Implementation is supported by standardised training, automated performance feedback and peer support. Participants (n=1920) are permanent residents aged ≥35 years with diagnosed hypertension, diabetes and/or CVD. The primary outcome is the ICER, using Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) as the primary effect measure. The ICER will be evaluated based on cumulative QALYs and direct and indirect costs assessed at 12 and 24 months. Secondary outcomes include changes in knowledge, attitudes and practices, major adverse cardiovascular events, QALYs as estimated using the EQ-5D-5L ratings and direct and indirect costs. Data will be analysed using linear mixed models and generalised estimating equations following intention-to-treat principle. The study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Anhui Medical University (83230358). Results will be disseminated via peer-reviewed journals, conferences and policy briefs. ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN87887485. Registered on 28 January 2026.

Africa’s ecosystems have an important role in global carbon dynamics, yet consensus is lacking regarding the amount of carbon stored in woody vegetation and the potential impacts to carbon storage in response to changes in climate, land use and other Anthropocene risks. In this study, we explore the socioenvironmental conditions that have shaped the contemporary distribution of woody vegetation across sub-Saharan Africa and evaluate ecosystem response to multiple scenarios of climate change, anthropogenic pressures and fire disturbance. Our projections suggest climate change will have a small but negative effect on above-ground woody biomass at the continental scale, and the compounding effects of population growth, increasing human pressures and socioclimatic-driven changes in fire behaviour further exacerbate climate-driven trends. Relatively modest continental-scale trends obscure much larger regional perturbations, with climatic and anthropogenic factors leading to increased carbon storage potential in East Africa, offset by large deficits in West, Central and Southern Africa.The amount of carbon stored in African ecosystems and how climate change will affect this is uncertain. Projections indicate that carbon storage will increase in East Africa, climate change will have an overall negative impact on woody biomass and that other human pressures will amplify the trend.

Background Post-infarction cardiovascular remodeling and heart failure are the leading cause of myocardial infarction (MI)-driven death during the past decades. Experimental observations have involved intestinal microbiota in the susceptibility to MI in mice; however, in humans, identifying whether translocation of gut bacteria to systemic circulation contributes to cardiovascular events post-MI remains a major challenge. Results Here, we carried out a metagenomic analysis to characterize the systemic bacteria in a cohort of 49 healthy control individuals, 50 stable coronary heart disease (CHD) subjects, and 100 ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients. We report for the first time higher microbial richness and diversity in the systemic microbiome of STEMI patients. More than 12% of post-STEMI blood bacteria were dominated by intestinal microbiota ( Lactobacillus , Bacteroides , and Streptococcus ). The significantly increased product of gut bacterial translocation (LPS and d -lactate) was correlated with systemic inflammation and predicted adverse cardiovascular events. Following experimental MI, compromised left ventricle (LV) function and intestinal hypoperfusion drove gut permeability elevation through tight junction protein suppression and intestinal mucosal injury. Upon abrogation of gut bacterial translocation by antibiotic treatment, both systemic inflammation and cardiomyocyte injury in MI mice were alleviated. Conclusions Our results provide the first evidence that cardiovascular outcomes post-MI are driven by intestinal microbiota translocation into systemic circulation. New therapeutic strategies targeting to protect the gut barrier and eliminate gut bacteria translocation may reduce or even prevent cardiovascular events post-MI.

Solitons—solitary waves that maintain their shape as they propagate—occur as water waves in narrow canals, as light pulses in optical fibres and as quantum mechanical matter waves in superfluids and superconductors. Their highly nonlinear and localized nature makes them very sensitive probes of the medium in which they propagate. Here we create long-lived solitons in a strongly interacting superfluid of fermionic atoms and directly observe their motion. As the interactions are tuned from the regime of Bose–Einstein condensation of tightly bound molecules towards the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer limit of long-range Cooper pairs, the solitons’ effective mass increases markedly, to more than 200 times their bare mass, signalling strong quantum fluctuations. This mass enhancement is more than 50 times larger than the theoretically predicted value. Our work provides a benchmark for theories of non-equilibrium dynamics of strongly interacting fermions. Solitons — solitary waves that maintain their shape as they propagate — in a strongly interacting superfluid of fermionic lithium atoms are found to have an effective mass more than 50 times larger than the theoretically predicted value, a sign of strong quantum fluctuations. Solitons in a superfluid Fermi gas Solitons — solitary waves that maintain their shape as they propagate — occur in nonlinear systems ranging from shallow waterways to DNA and act as exquisite probes of the medium in which they propagate. These authors create long-lived solitons in a strongly interacting superfluid of fermionic lithium atoms and directly observe their motion. As the interactions are tuned, the effective mass of the solitons increases by a factor of at least 200, more than fifty times greater than the theoretically predicted value. The observed mass enhancement is a sign of strong quantum fluctuations and provides an important benchmark for theories on non-equilibrium dynamics of strongly interacting fermions.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have emerged as efficient tools in disaster-stricken areas, facilitating efficient data dissemination for post-disaster rescue operations. However, the limited onboard energy of UAVs imposes significant constraints on their operational lifespan, thereby presenting substantial challenges for efficient data dissemination. Therefore, this work investigates a data dissemination scheme to enhance the UAVs’ bandwidth efficiency in multi-UAV-enabled Internet of Vehicles, thereby reducing UAVs’ energy consumption and improving overall system performance when UAVs hover along designated flight trajectories for data dissemination. Specifically, first, we present a software-defined network-based framework for data dissemination in multi-UAV-enabled IoV. According to this framework, we formulate a problem called C2BS (Coding-based Cooperative Broadcast Scheduling) that focuses on optimizing the UAVs’ bandwidth efficiency by leveraging the combined benefits of coding and caching. Furthermore, we demonstrate the NP-hardness of the C2BS problem by employing a polynomial time reduction technique on the simultaneous matrix completion problem. Then, inspired by the benefits offered by genetic algorithms, we propose a novel approach called the Genetic algorithm-based Cooperative Scheduling (GCS) algorithm to address the C2BS problem. This approach encompasses a coding scheme for representing individuals, a fitness function for assessing individuals, operators (i.e., crossover and mutation) for generating offspring, a local search technique to enhance search performance, and a repair operator employed to rectify infeasible solutions. Additionally, we present an analysis of the time complexity for the GCS algorithm. Finally, we present a simulation model to evaluate the performance. Experimental findings provide evidence of the excellence of the proposed scheme.

Tricuspid valve repair, particularly with annuloplasty rings, is increasingly recognized as an effective treatment. PM-AR-T is a semi-rigid annuloplasty ring based on a nickel-titanium alloy which has made progress in animal models, however, studies on PM-AR-T's performance in patients with tricuspid regurgitation (TR) are lacking. This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of the PM-AR-T with the Edwards MC3 ring for the TR treatment. A non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial was conducted in 20 centers across China, enrolling patients with tricuspid valve disease requiring surgical repair. Patients were randomized to receive either PM-AR-T or Edwards MC3 ring. The primary endpoint was the success rate of valve repair at 6 months. A total of 164 patients underwent valve annuloplasty, 83 and 81 in the PM-AR-T and Edwards MC3 groups. Valve repair success rates were 92.8% and 93.8% in the PM-AR-T and Edwards MC3 groups, demonstrating non-inferiority with a difference of -1.1% (95% confidence interval [CI]: -9.5 to 7.4), which was less than the pre-specified non-inferiority margin of -10%. No significant intergroup differences were found in valve regurgitation, echocardiographic parameters, and New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional classification at any postoperative time point. At 12 months, the proportions of patients without regurgitation were comparable, 30.4% and 27.8% in the PM-AR-T and Edwards MC3 groups (P = 0.705). Improvement to NYHA functional class I status was detected in 46.2% and 45.6% of the two groups by 12 months (P = 0.893). Both rings exhibited comparable safety profiles, with no device-related serious adverse events, cardiovascular deaths, major bleeding events, severe structural damage, infective endocarditis, or thromboembolic events. The PM-AR-T tricuspid valve semi-rigid ring is effective in improving TR, demonstrating non-inferiority to the Edwards MC3 ring, with a favorable safety profile. Clinical Trial Registration: This study was registered at Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2100043007).

Spinal cord injury (SCI) frequently disrupts the autonomic nervous system (ANS), impairing cardiovascular function and affecting cerebrovascular and cognitive functions. While high-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) is known to improve cardiovascular and cognitive functions in non-injured populations, its impact on these functions in individuals with SCI, especially those with high-level injuries, is not well-documented. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the acute effects of a single bout of HIIE on ANS related-cardiovascular (ANS-CV) function in individuals with chronic SCI at or above T6. The secondary aims are to examine the acute effects of the same HIIE bout on cerebrovascular dynamics and cognitive performance in this population. In this prospective case-control study, 15 individuals with SCI at T6 or above and 15 age- and sex-matched uninjured controls will be assessed. Measures include heart rate, heart rate variability, blood pressure, systolic blood pressure variability, cerebral blood flow velocities, and cognitive performance, analyzed pre- and post-HIIE. The sit-up test and face-cooling test will be used to activate the ANS-CV system. Post-exercise assessments will begin 5 minutes after completing the HIIE session. Cardiovascular testing will be conducted first and is expected to last 36 minutes. Cerebrovascular and cognitive testing will follow, starting approximately 41 minutes after the HIIE session. Covariates such as physical activity levels, pre-morbid intelligence, and psychological distress will be considered. This study has been approved by the University at Buffalo Institutional Review Board (IRB) (Approval Number: MOD00013354) and registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (Registration Number: NCT06274658). We hypothesize that HIIE will improve cardiovascular and cerebrovascular functions and enhance cognitive performance in the SCI group. Data will be analyzed using linear mixed-effects models to evaluate the interaction effects of group and exercise. This study is expected to fill the knowledge gap regarding the impact of HIIE on cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and cognitive functions in individuals with SCI at or above T6. The findings will provide crucial insights into immediate physiological responses while establishing foundational evidence for developing targeted, long-term exercise interventions to improve health outcomes in this population.

Self-assembled molecule (SAM) layers have significantly enhanced the efficiency of inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, SAM aggregation leads to non-uniform interfacial contact, limiting further improvements in efficiency and stability. Here we employ perfluoro-2-propoxypropanoic acid (PFA) to construct a molecular confinement structure on the surface of the NiO x substrate. This confinement structure enables uniform embedding of SAMs within the PFA sub-monolayer and prevents their vertical stacking. Together, PFA and SAM form a complete interlayer that enhances the interface contact and reduces defects between NiO x and perovskite. Moreover, PFA molecules in the confinement structure interact with the buried perovskite interface via hydrogen bonding and dipolar interaction, further stabilizing the structure. These enhancements enable PSCs to achieve an efficiency of 26.84% (certified value of 26.79%) with a high fill factor of 86.61%. And the device exhibits excellent operational stability, retaining 94.6% of its initial efficiency after 800 hours of 1-sun maximum power point tracking under the ISOS-L-1 protocol. Yang et al. report a molecular confinement strategy that regulates self-assembled monolayer packing and stabilizes buried interfaces in inverted perovskite solar cells, enabling a power conversion efficiency of 26.84% with an 86.6% fill factor.