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Liquid metal (LM) droplets show the superiority in coalescing into integral liquid conductors applicable in flexible and deformable electronics. However, the large surface tension, oxide shells and poor compatibility with most other materials may prevent spontaneous coalescence of LM droplets and/or hybridisation into composites, unless external interventions (e.g., shear and laser) are applied. Here, we show that biological nanofibrils (NFs; including cellulose, silk fibroin and amyloid) enable evaporation-induced sintering of LM droplets under ambient conditions into conductive coating on diverse substrates and free-standing films. The resultants possess an insulating NFs-rich layer and a conductive LM-rich layer, offering flexibility, high reflectivity, stretchable conductivity, electromagnetic shielding, degradability and rapid actuating behaviours. Thus this sintering approach not only extends fundamental knowledge about sintering LM droplets, but also starts a new scenario of producing flexible coating and free-standing composites with flexibility, conductivity, sustainability and degradability, and applicable in microcircuits, wearable electronics and soft robotics. Providing mechanical sintering of liquid metal droplets under ambient conditions for flexible electronics remains elusive. Here, they propose biological nanofibrils for enabling evaporation-induced sintering of EGaIn droplets into conductive coating on diverse substrates and free-standing films.

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) are mechanical energy harvesters characterized by high sensitivity and simple structure and are currently being widely developed for use in human body motion sensing. Among them, fiber-based TENGs (FTENG) are particularly suitable for wearable human motion sensors due to their unique structure, which offers flexibility, high durability, and comfort. However, studies involving doping to further modify the electrical output characteristics of FTENGs are very limited. Here, we propose an innovative approach that combines graphite (GP) doping with fiber-based TENG fabrication, successfully developing a graphite-doped polyester fiber-based TENG (GP@PET-TENG). Proper graphite doping can increase the amount of transferred charge and thus improve the output electrical performance of TENG, but this method has rarely been explored in FTENG. With the incorporation of 3%wt graphite, the open-circuit voltage of the GP@PET-TENG increased from 103.3 V to 202.1 V, and the short-circuit current increased from 60.7 μA to 105.1 μA, compared to the pure polyester fiber based TENG (PET-TENG). The device achieved a maximum output power of 4.15 mW (2.59 W/m2), demonstrates the capability to charge various capacitors, and successfully lit up 200 LEDs. By attaching the GP@PET tribo-layer to human skin, a single-electrode mode TENG can be formed, which captures the subject’s motion signals through skin contact and separation, converting them into voltage outputs. In fist-clenching and wrist-bending tests, motion-induced voltage signals up to 0.6 V were recorded, demonstrating the potential applications in rehabilitation assistance and mechanical control.

Mechanical energy harvesters including piezoelectric nanogenerators, electromagnetic generators and triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) used to convert the mechanical motion into electricity are more and more important in the recent decades. Specifically, the fiber-based TENG (FTENG) has gained considerable favors due to its flexibility, light weight, and high environmental tolerance for the wearable devices. The traditional FTENGs made of Teflon result in better performance but are not suitable for long-term wear in person. Here, we propose a novel FTENG using a flexible micro-needle-structured polydimethylsiloxane (MN-PDMS) together with the comfortable commercially available 2D-polyester fibers, and electroless nickel-plated cotton cloth of which two are widely used in human daily life. The MN-PDMS is formed by a laser engraved mold for improving its output performance of FTENG compared to the flat-PDMS. The open-circuit voltage (Voc) and the short-circuit current (Isc) of MN-FTENG increased to 73.6 V and 36 μA, respectively, which are 34% and 37% higher than the flat-FTENG. In terms of power, the performance of MN-FTENG reaches 1.296 mW which is 89% higher than that of flat-TENG and it can also light up 90 LEDs. For application, human motion at the joints can be detected and collected with various signals that are used for the human–machine interface (HMI) through the cooperation of components for the Internet of Things (IoT). It can light up the LED bulb through MN-FTENG to potentially develop IoT HMI systems for human motion control of robot in the future.

Purpose How does university-firm collaboration affect the performance of both universities and firms? The purpose of this paper is to evaluate university-firm collaborations aimed at expanding the treatment effects of collaboration ambition on university academic performance as well as collaboration ambition focused on the firm’s production of innovation and financial performance for the top 110 US universities and the top 200 US R&D performing firms. Design/methodology/approach “Two studies, based on the three archival data sets (National Bureau of Economic Research-Rensselaer Scientific Papers Database and the Harvard Dataverse Network (DVN) US Patent Citations database and Compustat database), are undertaken in the top 110 US universities and the top 200 US R&D performing firms.” The study introduces a theoretical model that explicitly addresses collaboration diversity, number of collaborations, knowledge stock and the endogeneity problem that is generated by self-selection of collaboration ambition in university and firm’s performance. Findings The results suggest that the effects of adopting proactive collaboration decision on academic performance are insignificant in the firm subsample. However, more interestingly, the authors find supporting evidence of the negative impact of collaboration on university groups. The authors also find that collaboration diversity, knowledge stock and collaboration ambition lead to stronger firm performance but the number of collaborations is smaller on firm performance. Furthermore, the authors find that collaboration ambition moderates the positive effect of the number of collaborations on firm performance. Practical implications University-firm collaboration is a multifaceted relationship, suggesting that the empirical analysis can be interpreted through the university and the firm view to enhance the understanding of the collaboration for performance creation. This study articulates the positive role of collaboration diversity, knowledge stock and collaboration ambition and the negative role of the number of collaborations on university-firm collaboration in terms of university and firm performance. Moreover, proactive collaboration ambition has the positive effect of a higher number of collaborations on firm performance. The authors conclude that policy should refrain from overly focusing on collaboration diversity, number of collaborations, knowledge stock and collaboration ambition, and the authors consider the interactions between the number of collaborations and collaboration ambition on university-firm collaboration when discussing their effects on mutual performance. Originality/value This study demonstrates the effects of university-firm collaboration on academic performance. In addition, the authors discuss the factors that influence collaboration to help the firm to increase its innovation and financial performance. Therefore, it would be interesting to see simultaneously how university-firm collaboration affects the performance of both partners.

Histone modifications affect gene expression level. Several studies have shown that they may play key roles in regulating gene expression in plants under abiotic stress, but genome-wide surveys of such stress-related modifications are very limited, especially for crops. By using ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq, we investigated the genome-wide distribution pattern of histone H3 lysine4 tri-methylation (H3K4me3) and the pattern’s association with whole genome expression profiles of rice ( Oryza sativa L.) under drought stress, one of the major and representative abiotic stresses. We detected 51.1 and 48 % of annotated genes with H3K4me3 modification in rice seedlings under normal growth (control) and drought stress conditions, respectively. By RNA-Seq, 76.7 and 79 % of annotated genes were detected with expression in rice seedlings under the control and drought stress conditions, respectively. Furthermore, 4,837 genes were differentially H3K4me3-modified (H3M), (3,927 genes with increased H3M; 910 genes with decreased H3M) and 5,866 genes were differentially expressed (2,145 up-regulated; 3,721 down-regulated) in drought stress. Differential H3K4me3 methylation only affects a small proportion of stress-responsive genes, and the H3K4me3 modification level was significantly and positively correlated with transcript level only for a subset of genes showing changes both in modification and expression with drought stress. Moreover, for the H3K4me3-regulated stress-related genes, the H3K4me3 modification level was mainly increased in genes with low expression and decreased in genes with high expression under drought stress. The comprehensive data of H3K4me3 and gene expression profiles in rice under drought stress provide a useful resource for future epigenomic regulation studies in plants under abiotic stresses.

Asthma is a prevalent chronic disease characterized by airflow obstruction, causing breathing difficulties and wheezing. This study investigates the association between the C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CAR) and asthma prevalence, as well as all-cause and respiratory mortality among asthma patients, using data from the 2001–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We included participants aged 20 years and older with complete CAR data, excluding those who were pregnant or lost to follow-up. The analysis employed weighted logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards models with stepwise adjustment, restricted cubic spline analysis for nonlinear relationships, and time-dependent ROC curves for predictive accuracy. Results showed that the highest CAR quartile significantly increased the risk of asthma (OR 1.56, 95% CI 1.38–1.78), all-cause mortality (HR 2.20, 95% CI 1.67–2.89), and respiratory mortality (HR 2.56, 95% CI 1.30–5.38). The impact of CAR on all-cause mortality was particularly significant in hypertensive patients. These findings highlight CAR’s potential as a valuable biomarker for predicting asthma prevalence and mortality, underscoring its role in asthma management and prognostication.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to aggregate previous research that adopts the resource-based view (RBV) to examine whether information technology (IT) and organizational resources have significant effect on firm performance.Design methodology approach - A framework that includes direct and indirect-effect models is proposed. A meta-analysis was conducted on 42 published empirical studies to examine how different factors in the RBV affect firm performance.Findings - First, it was found that the mediated model that includes organizational capabilities as mediators between organizational resources and firm performance can better explain the value of IT than the direct-effect model without organizational capabilities. Second, technology resources can improve efficiency performance but may not enhance financial performance directly. Third, internal capabilities affect performance but it is external capabilities that affect financial performance.Research limitations implications - The limitation of meta-analysis is that findings are based on prior research conducted on different sources at different times. This may cause observation biases. Nonetheless, the large sample size can also increase the robust of the findings.Practical implications - The findings indicate that companies should focus on how IT resources can be used to enhance their capabilities, which will result in better performance.Social implications - The findings provide strong evidence that IT has contributed to both financial performance and organizational efficiency through strengthening organizational capabilities. The IT has been effectively used so far and the suspected productivity paradox does not exist.Originality value - The paper contributes to information management by increasing the theoretical and practical understanding of how IT resources affect organizational capabilities and firm performance. The findings provide valuable guidelines for future research on IT investment and firm performance.

A new species of the genus Leptobrachella , L. guinanensis sp. nov. , is described in this study based on morphological, molecular, and bioacoustic data. The species was discovered in the Shiwandashan National Nature Reserve in Shangsi County, Guangxi, China. Phylogenetically, L. guinanensis sp. nov. is closely related to L. ventripunctata . However, there are distinct morphological differences between L. guinanensis sp. nov. and L. ventripunctata , as well as three other sympatric species ( L. shangsiensis , L. shiwandashanensis , and L. sungi ). These differences include body size (SVL 30.5–32.5 mm in males; 38.7–41.8 mm in females in the new species vs 25.5–28.0 mm in males, 31.5–35.0 mm in females in L. ventripunctata ), the absence of brown spots on the ventral surface (vs chest and belly creamy white with many scattered brown spots in L. ventripunctata ), 1/3 toe webbing and wide toe lateral fringes (vs no toe webbing and no lateral fringes in L. ventripunctata ), and distinct dermal ridges under toes (vs absent in L. ventripunctata ). Furthermore, the dominant vocal frequencies of the new species range from 7.3 to 8.3 kHz, which is unique compared to other Leptobrachella species and represents the highest dominant frequencies ever recorded. The Shiwandashan National Nature Reserve is now home to four known sympatric species of Leptobrachella .

Background This study aimed to explore variations in prenatal care, delivery methods, influencing factors, and neonatal outcomes among Rh-negative pregnant women, so as to improve pregnancy healthcare for this demographic, raise the quality of maternal–fetal management, and safeguard the health of both mother and infant. Methods This study included 200 women who received routine prenatal care, exhibited no other pregnancy complications, and were admitted for delivery. They were divided into an observation group (100 Rh-negative blood type) and a control group (100 Rh-positive blood type). The study examined differences in pregnancy management, clinical characteristics and pregnancy outcomes between the two groups. Results The results indicated that singleton pregnancies in Rh-negative mothers are associated with significantly higher rates of postpartum blood loss (305.1 ± 183.8 vs. 246.1 ± 84.9 mL, P  = 0.004), neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (39% vs. 23%, P  = 0.014), low birth weight (11% vs. 2%, P  = 0.01), and NICU admission (30% vs. 18%, P  = 0.046) compared to the control group. Among Rh-negative mothers, subgroup analysis by ethnicity revealed a higher incidence of fetal distress in the other ethnic groups compared to the Han and Zhuang groups (16.7%, 0, 6.5%, respectively, P  = 0.025). Subgroup analysis based on ABO blood type within Rh-negative mothers did not show any statistical significance in various outcomes (all P  > 0.05). Infants with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia born to Rh-negative mothers experienced a quicker resolution of hyperbilirubinemia compared to those whose mothers did not receive intramuscular anti-D immunoglobulin [1.0 (1.0, 1.5) vs. 5.0 (1.5, 10.0), P  = 0.002]. Conclusions The Rh-negative blood type is linked to higher risks of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia, low birth weight, and increased postpartum hemorrhage, resulting in detrimental pregnancy outcomes. Administering anti-D immunoglobulin speeds up the resolution of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Thus, prudent and efficient use of anti-D immunoglobulin can mitigate adverse outcomes for both mothers and newborns.

Microvascular damage is a key pathological change in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Using a rat model of myocardial I/R, our current study has provided the first evidence that nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) administration can significantly attenuate myocardial I/R-induced microvascular damage, including reduced regional blood perfusion, decreased microvessel density and integrity, and coronary microvascular endothelial cells (CMECs) injury. In studies with primary cultured CMECs under hypoxia/reoxygenation (HR) and a rat model of I/R, our results suggested that the protective effect of NAD+ on CMECs exposed to HR or I/R is at least partially mediated by the NAD+-induced restoration of autophagic flux, especially lysosomal autophagy: NAD+ treatment markedly induced transcription factor EB (TFEB) activation and attenuated lysosomal dysfunction in the I/R or HR-exposed cells. Collectively, our study has provided the first in vivo and in vitro evidence that NAD+ significantly rescued the impaired autophagic flux and cell apoptosis that was induced by I/R in rat CMECs, which is mediated in part through the action of TFEB-mediated lysosomal autophagy.