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In this study, a wood fiber/polylactic acid composite (WPC) filament was used as feedstock to print the WPC part by means of fused deposition modeling (FDM). The morphology and mechanical properties of WPC parts printed at different speeds (30, 50, and 70 mm/s) were determined. The results show that the density of the printed WPC part increased as the printing speed decreased, while its surface color became darker than that of parts printed at a high speed. The printing time decreased with an increasing printing speed; however, there was a small difference in the time saving percentage without regard to the dimensions of the printed WPC part at a given printing speed. Additionally, the tensile and flexural properties of the printed WPC part were not significantly influenced by the printing speed, whereas the compressive strength and modulus of the FDM-printed part significantly decreased by 34.3% and 14.6%, respectively, when the printing speed was increased from 30 to 70 mm/s. Furthermore, scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) illustrated that the FDM process at a high printing speed produced an uneven surface of the part with a narrower width of printed layers, and pull-outs of wood fibers were more often observed on the fracture surface of the tensile sample. These results show that FDM manufacturing at different printing speeds has a substantial effect on the surface color, surface roughness, density, and compressive properties of the FDM-printed WPC part.

Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC) are characterized by heterogeneous impairments of social reciprocity and sensory processing. Voices, similar to faces, convey socially relevant information. Whether voice processing is selectively impaired remains undetermined. This study involved recording mismatch negativity (MMN) while presenting emotionally spoken syllables dada and acoustically matched nonvocal sounds to 20 subjects with ASC and 20 healthy matched controls. The people with ASC exhibited no MMN response to emotional syllables and reduced MMN to nonvocal sounds, indicating general impairments of affective voice and acoustic discrimination. Weaker angry MMN amplitudes were associated with more autistic traits. Receiver operator characteristic analysis revealed that angry MMN amplitudes yielded a value of 0.88 (p<.001). The results suggest that people with ASC may process emotional voices in an atypical fashion already at the automatic stage. This processing abnormality can facilitate diagnosing ASC and enable social deficits in people with ASC to be predicted.

This invited concise review was written for the special issue of Cell Transplantation to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the American Society for Neural Therapy and Repair (ASNTR). I aimed to present a succinct summary of two interweaved lines of research work carried out by my team members and collaborators over the past decade. Since the middle of the 20th century, biomedical research has been driven overwhelmingly by molecular technology-based focal endeavors. Our investigative undertakings, however, were orchestrated to define and propose novel theoretical frameworks to enhance the field’s ability to overcome complex neurological disorders. The effort has engendered two important academic concepts: Functional Multipotency of Stem Cells, and Recovery Neurobiology of Injured Spinal Cords. Establishing these theories was facilitated by academic insight gleaned from stem cell-based multimodal cross-examination studies using tactics of material science, systems neurobiology, glial biology, and neural oncology. It should be emphasized that the collegial environment cultivated by the mission of the ASNTR greatly promoted the efficacy of inter-laboratory collaborations. Notably, our findings have shed new light on fundamentals of stem cell biology and adult mammalian spinal cord neurobiology. Moreover, the novel academic leads have enabled determination of potential therapeutic targets to restore function for spinal cord injury and neurodegenerative diseases.

Past historical events and experimental research have shown that complying with orders from an authority has a strong impact on harming/destructive behavior, but no one has ever looked into the potential intervention and its neural underpinning to reveal the toll of coercion. We used a paradigm of virtual obedience to authority, in which an experimenter ordered a volunteer to press a handheld button to initiate actions that carried different consequences, including harming or helping others. In this study, we scanned the brain with functional neuroimaging and applied transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to modulate the activation of the right temporoparietal junction (rTPJ) in healthy volunteers in a single‐blinded, sham‐controlled, crossover trial with anodal, cathodal, and sham stimulation. We observed that cathodal stimulation, compared to anodal and sham stimulation, significantly reduced reaction times (RTs) to initiating harming actions. The effect of tDCS on the rTPJ, orbitofrontal cortex, and anterior cingulate cortex had opposite directions depending on coercive harming or helping actions. Cathodal tDCS‐induced changes in the strength of the functional connectivity between the rTPJ and amygdala predicted the effect of cathodal tDCS on harming RTs. The findings provide evidence supporting the rTPJ having a role in coercion‐induced changes in the sense of agency. Neuromodulation with tDCS might help in unveiling the power of authority and assisting in the emergence of prosocial behavior, thus shedding light on coping strategies against coercion beyond merely examining its effects. Cathodal stimulation, compared to anodal and sham stimulation, significantly reduced reaction times to initiating harming actions and the strength of functional connectivity between the rTPJ and amygdala. Our findings provide the first evidence supporting that the rTPJ has a role in the coercion‐induced change in the sense of agency. Neuromodulation with tDCS might help in unveiling the power of authority and assist in the emergence of prosocial behavior, thus, shedding light on coping strategies against coercion beyond merely examining its effects.

Aquaponic nutrient studies often use various types of water containing high levels of mineral nutrients for water supply, making it difficult to accurately determine deficient nutrients limiting crop yield and quality across the systems. To avoid interference with background nutrients, we used reverse osmosis water in this study. The objectives were to identify critical nutrients that affect the yield and quality of cherry tomato-, basil-, and lettuce by characterizing nutrient composition and concentration in aquaponic systems in comparison to hydroponic systems. Daily release rate (mg L−1) of macronutrients derived from fish feed (41% protein, 1.1% phosphorus, 1% fish weight) was in decreasing order of SO4–S (16) > PO4–P (2.4) > NO3–N (1.0) > K (0.8) > Cl (0.5) > NH4–N (0.4) > Ca (0.2) > NO2–N (0.13) > Na (0.11) > Mg (0.02), in which daily inputs of Mg and Ca in aquaponics were found to be only 1–2% and 4–6%, respectively, of those in hydroponics. Subsequently, the average concentrations of all nutrients were significantly lower in aquaponics than in hydroponics during a 3-month production except for Cl, NH4–N, NO2–N, and Na. The concentration of Mg remained below 5 mg L−1 in all aquaponic systems, while the concentration of Ca rapidly decreased in tomato-based aquaponics, especially during fruiting. SPAD value (chlorophyll content) was associated with concentrations of leaf N, Mg, and/or Ca. Specifically, lower SPAD value was correlated with lower leaf Mg and Ca for tomato and lower leaf Mg for basil but neither Mg nor Ca for lettuce. The aquaponic solution contained nearly six-times higher Na than the hydroponic solution, resulting in three-times higher Na concentration in the edible portion of the crops. Compared to a lettuce-based aquaponic system, tomato- and basil-based systems retained more desirable water quality parameters (i.e., stable pH, lower temperature), had lower electrical conductivity (EC) via greater biomass production and, therefore, more efficient nutrient removal, and had lower feed conversion rate and higher fish biomass increment. Regardless of crop species, vegetative shoot biomass was significantly reduced in aquaponics than in hydroponics. However, the marketable yield of tomatoes was similar between aquaponics and hydroponics, while those of basil and lettuce were reduced in aquaponics by 56% and 67%, respectively, in comparison to hydroponics. Our results highlighted potential solutions to design proper nutrient management practices essential for the development of successful aquaponic production systems. Considering that ingested fish feed does not provide sufficient levels of Mg and/or Ca for crop production, it is suggested to supplement Mg before crop transplanting and Ca before fruiting of fruity crops to improve crop growth and quality in aquaponic systems, especially when high-quality water is used for water supply.

Background Infective endocarditis caused by Actinomyces spp. is extremely rare. However, cases by new species of Actinomyces have been increasingly reported due to advances in laboratory techniques, and many of these species do not cause classic presentations of actinomycosis. Actinomyces neuii is reported to have a tendency to cause endovascular infection. The course of infective endocarditis caused by Actinomyces spp. is usually indolent. Case presentation A 61-year-old man with history of infective endocarditis, end stage renal disease, and monoclonal gammopathy was admitted for an abrupt fever, confusion, dysarthria, and facial droop after hemodialysis. Echocardiogram showed vegetations on both the aortic and mitral valves. Two sets of blood culture grew A. neuii . Brain MRI showed multiple bilateral cerebral infarcts consistent with septic emboli. The patient recovered after valvular surgery and prolonged intravenous and oral antibiotic therapy. Conclusions This case illustrates an unusually acute presentation of A. neuii infective endocarditis. As with other Gram-positive bacilli, Actinomyces spp. isolates are often regarded as a result of contamination. One should keep it in mind as a cause of infective endocarditis in vulnerable patient populations.

Lack of empathy is a hallmark of social impairments in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the concept empathy encompasses several socio-emotional and behavioral components underpinned by interacting brain circuits. This study examined empathic arousal and social understanding in individuals with ASD and matched controls by combining pressure pain thresholds (PPT) with functional magnetic resonance imaging (study 1) and electroencephalography/event-related potentials and eye-tracking responses (study 2) to empathy-eliciting stimuli depicting physical bodily injuries. Results indicate that participants with ASD had lower PPT than controls. When viewing body parts being accidentally injured, increased hemodynamic responses in the somatosensory cortex (SI/SII) but decreased responses in the anterior mid-cingulate and anterior insula as well as heightened N2 but preserved late-positive potentials (LPP) were detected in ASD participants. When viewing a person intentionally hurting another, decreased hemodynamic responses in the medial prefrontal cortex and reduced LPP were observed in the ASD group. PPT was a mediator for the SI/SII response in predicting subjective unpleasantness ratings to others’ pain. Both ASD and control groups had comparable mu suppression, indicative of typical sensorimotor resonance. The findings demonstrate that, in addition to reduced pain thresholds, individuals with ASD exhibit heightened empathic arousal but impaired social understanding when perceiving others’ distress.

The high rates of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnoses encountered in recent years by the United States Veterans Affairs Healthcare System have increased public awareness and research investigation into these conditions. In this review, we analyze the neural mechanisms underlying the TBI/PTSD comorbidity. TBI and PTSD present with common neuropsychiatric symptoms including anxiety, irritability, insomnia, personality changes, and memory problems, and this overlap complicates diagnostic differentiation. Interestingly, both TBI and PTSD can be produced by overlapping pathophysiological changes that disrupt neural connections termed the “connectome.” The neural disruptions shared by PTSD and TBI and the comorbid condition include asymmetrical white matter tract abnormalities and gray matter changes in the basolateral amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. These neural circuitry dysfunctions result in behavioral changes that include executive function and memory impairments, fear retention, fear extinction deficiencies, and other disturbances. Pathophysiological etiologies can be identified using experimental models of TBI, such as fluid percussion or blast injuries, and for PTSD, using models of fear conditioning, retention, and extinction. In both TBI and PTSD, there are discernible signs of neuroinflammation, excitotoxicity, and oxidative damage. These disturbances produce neuronal death and degeneration, axonal injury, and dendritic spine dysregulation and changes in neuronal morphology. In laboratory studies, various forms of pharmacological or psychological treatments are capable of reversing these detrimental processes and promoting axonal repair, dendritic remodeling, and neurocircuitry reorganization, resulting in behavioral and cognitive functional enhancements. Based on these mechanisms, novel neurorestorative therapeutics using anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticonvulsant agents may promote better outcomes for comorbid TBI and PTSD.

As an increasing demand of advanced nuclear fission reactors and fusion facilities, the key requirements for the materials used in advanced nuclear systems should encompass superior high temperature property, good behavior in corrosive environment, and high irradiation resistance, etc. Recently, it was found that some selected high entropy alloys (HEAs) possess excellent mechanical properties at high temperature, high corrosion resistance, and no grain coarsening and self-healing ability under irradiation, especially, the exceptional structural stability and lower irradiation-induced volume swelling, compared with other conventional materials. Thus, HEAs have been considered as the potential nuclear materials used for future fission or fusion reactors, which are designed to operate at higher temperatures and higher radiation doses up to several hundreds of displacement per atom (dpa). An insight into the irradiation behavior of HEAs was given, including fundamental researches to investigate the irradiation-induced phase crystal structure change and volume swelling in HEAs. In summary, a brief overview of the irradiation behavior in HEAs was made and the irradiation-induced structural change in HEAs may be relatively insensitive because of their special structures.

Coercive power has different effects on individuals, and which were unable to be fully addressed in Milgram’s famous studies on obedience to authority. While some individuals exhibited high levels of guilt-related anxiety and refused orders to harm, others followed coercive orders throughout the whole event. The lack of guilt is a well-known characteristic of psychopathy, and recent evidence portrays psychopathic personalities on a continuum of clustered traits, while being pervasive in a significant proportion in the population. To investigate whether psychopathic traits better explain discrepancies in antisocial behavior under coercion, we applied a virtual obedience paradigm, in which an experimenter ordered subjects to press a handheld button to initiate successive actions that carry different moral consequences, during fMRI scanning. Psychopathic traits modulated the association between harming actions and guilt feelings on both behavioral and brain levels. This study sheds light on the individual variability in response to coercive power.