One of the most destructive natural hazards, tropical cyclone (TC)-induced coastal flooding, will worsen under climate change. Here we conduct climatology-hydrodynamic modeling to quantify the ...effects of sea level rise (SLR) and TC climatology change (under RCP 8.5) on late 21st century flood hazards at the county level along the US Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. We find that, under the compound effects of SLR and TC climatology change, the historical 100-year flood level would occur annually in New England and mid-Atlantic regions and every 1-30 years in southeast Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico regions in the late 21st century. The relative effect of TC climatology change increases continuously from New England, mid-Atlantic, southeast Atlantic, to the Gulf of Mexico, and the effect of TC climatology change is likely to be larger than the effect of SLR for over 40% of coastal counties in the Gulf of Mexico.
Body circumference and testosterone levels have been reported as associated with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) risk. However, whether body circumference and ...testosterone levels play a role in the development of MAFLD remains inconclusive.
Using a large database of genome-wide association studies, genetic loci that are independent of each other and strongly associated with body circumference and testosterone levels were selected as instrumental variables, the causal relationship between body circumference and testosterone and risk of MAFLD was investigated by two-sample Mendelian randomization methods such as inverse variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger regression, and weighted median estimator (WME), using the odds ratios (ORs) as evaluation indicators.
A total of 344 SNPs were included as instrumental variables in this study, including 180 for waist circumference, 29 for waist-to-hip ratio, and 135 for testosterone levels. Using the above two-sample Mendelian Randomization method to derive the causal association between exposure and outcome. The results of this study showed that three exposure factors were causally associated with the risk of MAFLD. Waist circumference obtained three statistically significant results for IVW, WME and Weighted mode (IVW: OR = 3.53, 95%CI: 2.23-5.57, P < 0.001; WME: OR = 3.88, 95%CI: 1.81-8.29, P < 0.001; Weighted mode: OR = 3.58, 95%CI: 1.05-12.16, P = 0.043). Waist-to-hip ratio obtained one statistically significant result for IVW (OR = 2.29, 95%CI: 1.12-4.66, P = 0.022). Testosterone levels obtained one statistically significant result for IVW (OR = 1.93, 95%CI: 1.30-2.87, P = 0.001). Waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio and testosterone level were considered as risk factors for MAFLD. The Cochran Q test for IVW and MR-Egger method indicated that there was no intergenic heterogeneity in SNPs. The test for pleiotropy indicated that the possibility of pleiotropy in the causal analysis was weak.
The results of the two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis showed that waist circumference was the exact risk factor for MAFLD, waist-to-hip ratio and testosterone levels were potential risk factors for MAFLD, the risk of developing MAFLD increases with these three exposure factors.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Impressive mechanical properties and reinforcing capability make cellulose nanocrystal (CN) a promising candidate as biomass nanofiller for the development of polymer-based nanocomposites. With the ...recent announcement of large-scale CN production, the use of industrial processing techniques for the preparation of CN-reinforced nanocomposites, such as extrusion, is highly required. However, low thermal stability of sulfuric acid-prepared CN limits the processing since most polymeric matrices are processed at temperatures close to 200 °C or above. It has been proved that surface adsorption of polymers on CN as compatibilizer, such as hydrophilic polyoxyethylene (PEO), can improve its thermal stability due to the shielding and wrapping of PEO. However, the weak combination between CN and PEO allows the free movement of surface polymer, which can induce the self-aggregation of CN and microphase separation in composites especially during melt processing. Using carboxylation–amidation reaction, short chains poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) can be first grafted on the surface of the nanocrystals, and immobilize long PEO chains on modified nanocrystals through physical adsorption and entanglement. Two polymeric layers should further improve the thermal stability of CNs, and surface polymeric chains should provide significant dispersibility and compatibilization for extruded nanocomposites. Rheological analysis showed better PEO adsorption for PEG-grafted nanocrystals than pristine CN. Results from AFM and SEM revealed homogeneous dispersion and good compatibility of modified nanocrystals in PS matrix. Finally, the thermal, mechanical, and barrier properties of ensuing nanocomposites have been investigated to study the effect of physically and/or chemically modified nanocrystals.
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IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
The employment of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) untargeted and targeted metabolomics has led to the discovery of novel biomarkers and improved the understanding of various disease ...mechanisms. Numerous strategies have been reported to expand the metabolite coverage in LC-MS-untargeted and targeted metabolomics. To improve the sensitivity of low-abundance or poor-ionized metabolites for reducing the amount of clinical sample, chemical derivatization methods are used to target different functional groups. Proper sample preparation is beneficial for reducing the matrix effect, maintaining the stability of the LC-MS system, and increasing the metabolite coverage. Machine learning has recently been integrated into the workflow of LC-MS metabolomics to accelerate metabolite identification and data-processing automation, and increase the accuracy of disease classification and clinical outcome prediction. Due to the rapidly growing utility of LC-MS metabolomics in discovering disease markers, this review will address the recent advances in the field and offer perspectives on various strategies for expanding metabolite coverage, chemical derivatization, sample preparation, clinical disease markers, and machining learning for disease modeling.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
When grafted β-cyclodextrin is used as targeting sites, Pluronic polymers have been introduced on the surface of cellulose nanocrystals by means of inclusion interaction between β-cyclodextrin and ...hydrophobic segment of the polymer. Because of the steric stabilization effect, surface poly(ethylene glycol) chains facilitate the dispersion and compatibility of nanocrystals, which also enhance the loading levels of nanocrystals in the hydrogel system. Meanwhile, uncovered poly(ethylene glycol) segments render the participating inclusion of α-cyclodextrin for the architecture of in situ hydrogels. Surface grafting and inclusion reactions were proved by solid 13C NMR and FTIR. Grafting efficiency of β-cyclodextrin and inclusion efficiency of Pluronic on the surface of nanocrystals were confirmed by UV spectroscopy and elemental analysis. A significant enhancement of the structural and thermal stability of in situ hydrogels with high loading levels of modified nanocrystals (>5.77 wt %) was observed by rheological analysis. Further study reveals the performance and behavior of hydrogels under a different pH environment. Finally, in situ hydrogels were used as drug carrier for in vitro release of doxorubicin and exhibit the behavior of prolonged drug release with special release kinetics.
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IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
Intensive exploration and research in the past few decades on polysaccharide nanocrystals, the highly crystalline nanoscale materials derived from natural resources, mainly focused originally on ...their use as a reinforcing nanophase in nanocomposites. However, these investigations have led to the emergence of more diverse potential applications exploiting the functionality of these nanomaterials. Based on the construction strategies of functional nanomaterials, this article critically and comprehensively reviews the emerging polysaccharide nanocrystal-based functional nanomaterials with special applications, such as biomedical materials, biomimetic optical nanomaterials, bio-inspired mechanically adaptive nanomaterials, permselective nanostructured membranes, template for synthesizing inorganic nanoparticles, polymer electrolytes, emulsion nano-stabilizer and decontamination of organic pollutants. We focus on the preparation, unique properties and performances of the different polysaccharide nanocrystal materials. At the same time, the advantages, physicochemical properties and chemical modifications of polysaccharide nanocrystals are also comparatively discussed in view of materials development. Finally, the perspective and current challenges of polysaccharide nanocrystals in future functional nanomaterials are outlined.
Based on their physicochemical properties and chemical modifications, special applications of diverse polysaccharide nanocrystal based functional nanomaterials are systematically discussed.
A knowledge of permeability evolution with stress is important for the enhancement of coalbed methane production. In this study, a series of compaction-permeability tests with in-situ nuclear ...magnetic resonance (NMR) measurement were conducted by using a designed NMR testing system equipped with a loading device. Based on the NMR results, the permeability variation mechanism is investigated during the complete stress-strain process. The stress damage and its influence on permeability are analyzed. Experimental results illustrate that the permeability curve shows a slow decrease first, followed by a stable change, then a slow increase, and finally a sharp rise during the complete stress-strain process. Permeability evolution is closely related to coal pores. Adsorption pores have little contribution to the coal permeability while seepage pores contribute over 99% to the permeability. The permeability growth is found to lag behind the coal pores growth due to the poor connection of new pores. With the increase of damage, coal permeability increases nonlinearly. A power function can be used to describe the relationship for the tested samples.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Against the backdrop of increasingly mature intelligent driving assistance systems, effective monitoring of driver alertness during long-distance driving becomes especially crucial. This study ...introduces a novel method for driver fatigue detection aimed at enhancing the safety and reliability of intelligent driving assistance systems. The core of this method lies in the integration of advanced facial recognition technology using deep convolutional neural networks (CNN), particularly suited for varying lighting conditions in real-world scenarios, significantly improving the robustness of fatigue detection. Innovatively, the method incorporates emotion state analysis, providing a multi-dimensional perspective for assessing driver fatigue. It adeptly identifies subtle signs of fatigue in rapidly changing lighting and other complex environmental conditions, thereby strengthening traditional facial recognition techniques. Validation on two independent experimental datasets, specifically the Yawn and YawDDR datasets, reveals that our proposed method achieves a higher detection accuracy, with an impressive 95.3% on the YawDDR dataset, compared to 90.1% without the implementation of Algorithm 2. Additionally, our analysis highlights the method’s adaptability to varying brightness levels, improving detection accuracy by up to 0.05% in optimal lighting conditions. Such results underscore the effectiveness of our advanced data preprocessing and dynamic brightness adaptation techniques in enhancing the accuracy and computational efficiency of fatigue detection systems. These achievements not only showcase the potential application of advanced facial recognition technology combined with emotional analysis in autonomous driving systems but also pave new avenues for enhancing road safety and driver welfare.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of diabetes to dementia and its subtypes such as Alzheimer disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VD) among the Chinese elderly population.
among 8,213 ...Chinese people aged 65 years and older, 1,109 subjects with type 2 diabetes millitus (T2DM) were ascertained by interview and direct glucose testing. All diabetic subjects were initially screened with the "DSM-IV criteria" for dementia and its subtypes. We compared the prevalence of dementia in diabetic patients with that in ordinary subjects, and analyzed the association of the status of diabetes with dementia including AD and VD. Logistic regression was used to assess OR of dementia and its subtypes with T2DM.
after a comprehensive geriatric and cognitive assessment, 132 diabetic subjects were diagnosed with all-cause dementia. The prevalence rate for dementia with T2DM was 1.61%. Of demented subjects, 37 subjects had AD, 30 subjects had VD. The prevalence rates for AD with T2DM and VD with T2DM were 4.51% and 3.65%, respectively. In the univariate analyses, among all diabetic subjects, compared with cognitive intactly subjects, the demented subjects, including AD and VD subjects, were older, more female had higher percentage of current smoking, had a greater duration of diabetes, took more frequent use of diabetes medications, and stronger effect of APOE ε4 status. In multivariate logistic regression analyses, variables including age, APOE ε4 allele, duration from onset of diabetes, using oral hypoglycemic agents, HMG-CoA reductase (statins) were significantly associated with increased risk for dementia with T2DM (all P < 0.05).
the present study shows that T2DM is associated with dementia and its subtypes amongst elderly people in the Chinese population.
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