Functional Behavior Research Articles

Ultrastrong magnon-magnon coupling and chiral spin-texture control in a dipolar 3D multilayered artificial spin-vortex ice

Strongly-interacting nanomagnetic arrays are ideal systems for exploring reconfigurable magnonics. They provide huge microstate spaces and integrated solutions for storage and neuromorphic computing alongside GHz functionality. These systems may be broadly assessed by their range of reliably accessible states and the strength of magnon coupling phenomena and nonlinearities. Increasingly, nanomagnetic systems are expanding into three-dimensional architectures. This has enhanced the range of available magnetic microstates and functional behaviours, but engineering control over 3D states and dynamics remains challenging. Here, we introduce a 3D magnonic metamaterial composed from multilayered artificial spin ice nanoarrays. Comprising two magnetic layers separated by a non-magnetic spacer, each nanoisland may assume four macrospin or vortex states per magnetic layer. This creates a system with a rich 16N microstate space and intense static and dynamic dipolar magnetic coupling. The system exhibits a broad range of emergent phenomena driven by the strong inter-layer dipolar interaction, including ultrastrong magnon-magnon coupling with normalised coupling rates of Δfν=0.57\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\frac{\\Delta f}{\ u }=0.57$$\\end{document}, GHz mode shifts in zero applied field and chirality-control of magnetic vortex microstates with corresponding magnonic spectra.

Building sustainable organizations online: How leaders embed sustainability into organizational culture in virtual contexts

AbstractBusiness organizations may provide significant contributions toward sustainable development, and their leaders have a critical responsibility in incorporating sustainability into their organizational cultures. However, virtual collaboration creates specific challenges in this task. Although existing literature explores how sustainability is integrated into corporate culture in onsite contexts, a gap exists regarding this process in online teams. As such, this study explores how leaders embed sustainability into organizational culture in virtual contexts. Using thematic analysis on data gathered from interviews with 12 participants, this study suggests that leaders exhibit particular behaviors in this undertaking, including recognizing challenges, engaging employees, role modeling, crafting strategy and planning, monitoring and assessing performance, developing partnerships and activating internal communities, and aligning personal and organizational values. These may be further categorized into intrapersonal, interpersonal and functional leader behaviors, which remain salient in the new normal as organizations balance their virtual and face‐to‐face modes of interaction.

Experiment and simulation study on the functional fatigue of shape memory alloy beam actuators

Abstract The functional fatigue behavior of shape memory alloy (SMA) beam actuators is gaining importance as their utilization in engineering applications becomes more widespread. However, research on the functional fatigue behavior of SMA beam actuators under bending conditions is not as extensive as that on SMA wires. In this paper, an experimental study and theoretical analysis of the functional fatigue behavior of SMA beam actuators were conducted. A measuring method for bending deflection and an automatic thermal cyclic test bench was designed. A series of functional fatigue tests were conducted on SMA beam actuators under different bias load conditions and the functional fatigue patterns were obtained. The material damage factor is defined and calculated through specimen tests. By incorporating the damage factor to modify the existing constitutive model, a model considering functional fatigue and tension-compression asymmetry is obtained. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is performed based on this modified model to simulate the actuating performance of SMA beam actuators and to compute the deflection at different numbers of cycles. Additionally, a small parameter study on the actuator shape is conducted using FEA. By comparing the FEA results with functional fatigue experimental data, the effectiveness of the modified model is validated, demonstrating its capability to describe functional fatigue and predict actuator lifespan.

Enhancing core–periphery robustness of networks against link-based attacks with imprecise information

Core-Periphery structure, as a critical mesoscale structure, is commonly found in diverse real-world networks, in which nodes are endogenously categorized as core or peripheral nodes by the underlying interconnection patterns. It plays an important role in sustaining the intrinsic order and functional behavior of networked systems. However, despite the study on inherent core–periphery vulnerabilities to node removals, little is known on the core–periphery robustness when networks are suffering from the attacks that happen on links between nodes, especially for the more practical situations where attackers have limited ability to obtain precise network information. In this paper, a novel index is proposed for measuring the capacity of the core–periphery structure to resist link-based attacks. By introducing an attack precision parameter, we establish a unified evaluation framework for link-based attacks with imprecise information, which divides attack behaviors into localized attacks and non-localized attacks, and treats the usual random attacks and targeted attacks as the two special situations of our non-localized case. Several enhancing algorithms guided by our index with local search strategy are exquisitely devised, and experimental results are provided to demonstrate the efficacy of our framework and algorithms that remarkably improve the core–periphery robustness against link-based attacks with imprecise information.

A Network Pharmacology-Based Method to Explore the Therapeutic Effect of Honokiol on Diabetes with Comorbid Depression in Mice

The effective treatment of diabetes with comorbid depression is a big challenge so far. Honokiol, a bioactive compound from the dietary supplement Magnolia officinalis extract, possesses multiple health benefits. The present study aims to propose a network pharmacology-based method to elucidate potential targets of honokiol in treating diabetes with comorbid depression and related mechanisms. The antidepressant-like efficacy of honokiol was evaluated in high-fat diet (HFD) induced diabetic mice using animal behavior testing, immuno-staining and western blotting assay. Through network pharmacology analysis, retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRα) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) were identified as potential targets related to diabetes and depression. The stable binding conformation between honokiol and RXR/VDR was determined by molecular docking simulation. Moreover, hononkiol effectively alleviated depression-like behaviors in HFD diabetic mice, presented anti-diabetic and anti-neuroinflammatory functions, and protected the hippocampal neuroplasticity. Importantly, honokiol could activate RXR/VDR heterodimer in vivo. The beneficial effects of honokiol on HFD mice were significantly suppressed by UVI3003 (a RXR antagonist), while enhanced by calcitriol (a VDR agonist). Additionally, the disruption of autophagy in the hippocampus of HFD mice was ameliorated by honokiol, which was attenuated by UVI3003 but strengthened by calcitriol. Taken together, the data provide new evidence that honokiol exerts the antidepressant-like effect in HFD diabetic mice via activating RXR/VDR heterodimer to restore the balance of autophagy. Our findings indicate that the RXR/VDR-mediated signaling might be a potential target for treating diabetes with comorbid depression.

The critical importance of conditions: Reconciling GPCR functionality and biophysical findings

G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) activation relies on conformational sampling, a nuanced but functionally key behavior well suited to elucidation by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. In this issue of Structure, Thakur etal.1 demonstrate that judicious choice of experimental conditions for 19F NMR studies of a GPCR enables rationalization of functional and pharmacological behavior, leading to testable hypotheses correlating structure, dynamics, and function.

Damage accumulation and its effect during thermal- and stress-induced cycling martensite transformation of laser powder bed fused (LPBF) NiTi alloy

Nitinol (NiTi) alloys produced via laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) exhibit promising potential across diverse applications, yet their suitability for devices necessitating repetitive actuation confronts uncertainties regarding microstructural evolution and functional fatigue behavior during cyclic operation. Our investigation unveils that damage accumulation during thermal cycling stems from geometrically necessary dislocations formed through finite-scale incoherent interface motion, contrasting earlier hypotheses attributing LPBF-induced dislocation activity as the primary contributor. Damage accumulation during mechanical cycling is characterized by notable multiplication of cyclic dislocations via dislocation twinning interactions, rather than severe martensitic plasticity. These newborn cycling dislocations inherit martensite's crystallographic characteristics, exerting a distinct influence mechanism on martensite transformation and deformation behavior, diverging from conventional studies on function fatigue in traditional NiTi alloys. This study sheds light on the distinctive damage accumulation traits observed during thermal/mechanical cycling of LPBF-fabricated NiTi alloys, offering valuable insights for probing their functional fatigue mechanisms.

Biocompatability chitosan /Aloe barbadensis miller loaded moxifloxacin composite film: A multifunctional bio-platform for the treatment of breast cancer

Binary biodegradable polymers exhibit excellent functional behaviour but the limited mechanical integrity for regulating drug release within the polymeric matrix, hence it needs modification in the polymer network to overcome the limitations. The compatibility of bipolymer blends with incorporation of drugs within their matrices to enhance physicochemical properties and drug delivery kinetics have garnered significant attention in recent research. Herein, we examine the influence of the film produced by the casting technique, which consists of chitosan (CS) and Aloe barbadensis miller (ABM) gel, embedded with moxifloxacin (MoF), on attenuating the breast cancer (MCF-7) cell line. Firstly, spectroscopy confirmed the intermolecular interactions between the matrixes and the grafting of components. Notably, the addition of ABM produces significant changes in the film properties, such as decreased elongation. The pivotal moment resulted in the generation of more stable films that displayed enhanced stability at temperatures below 200°C, as confirmed by TGA analysis. Additionally, film surfaces exhibiting strong water affinity were found to be more favorable for cell adhesion, subsequently hindering the proliferation of compromised cells. Remarkably, the In vitro cytotoxicity study showed the antibiotic-grafted CS-ABM/MoF scaffolds exhibited high cell adhesion and improved the rate of cell death was higher compared to other films. The antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli results strongly suggests the enhanced antibiotic ability of the polymeric CS- ABM/MoF film. These results findings indicated that the CS- ABM/MoF scaffolds' hydrophilic surface significantly contributes to the improved cell adhesion efficiently used for biomedical applications.

Effect of retarded friction and added mass on the swimming speed of a vibrating two-sphere

A theoretical expression is derived for the mechanical contribution to the mean swimming speed of a vibrating two-sphere, consisting of two spheres connected by an elastic spring, and immersed in a viscous incompressible fluid. The spring provides a harmonic potential for oscillations about a mean distance between centers. The system is made to oscillate at a chosen frequency by activating forces which sum to zero. The mechanical contribution to the resulting mean swimming velocity is calculated from the mechanical equations of motion and the corresponding impedance matrix of linear response. The frequency-dependent pair friction coefficients are found from approximate expressions derived earlier. The mechanical contribution is calculated to second order in the amplitude of stroke as a function of the scaling number, a dimensionless combination of size, frequency, and kinematic viscosity. Retarded friction and added mass determine the functional behavior.

Optical trapping-enhanced probes designed by a deep learning approach

Realizing optical trapping enhancement is crucial in biomedicine, fundamental physics, and precision measurement. Taking the metamaterials with artificially engineered permittivity as photonic force probes in optical tweezers will offer unprecedented opportunities for optical trap enhancement. However, it usually involves multi-parameter optimization and requires lengthy calculations; thereby few studies remain despite decades of research on optical tweezers. Here, we introduce a deep learning (DL) model to attack this problem. The DL model can efficiently predict the maximum axial optical stiffness of Si/Si3N4 (SSN) multilayer metamaterial nanoparticles and reduce the design duration by about one order of magnitude. We experimentally demonstrate that the designed SSN nanoparticles show more than twofold and fivefold improvement in the lateral (k x and k y ) and the axial (k z ) optical trap stiffness on the high refractive index amorphous TiO2 microsphere. Incorporating the DL model in optical manipulation systems will expedite the design and optimization processes, providing a means for developing various photonic force probes with specialized functional behaviors.

Determinism of Multirelations

Binary multirelations allow modelling alternating nondeterminism, for instance, in games or nondeterministically evolving systems interacting with an environment. Such systems can show partial or total functional behaviour at both levels of alternation, so that nondeterministic behaviour may occur only at one level or both levels, or not at all. We study classes of inner and outer partial and total functional multirelations in a multirelational language based on relation algebra and power allegories. While it is known that general multirelations do not form a category, we show in the multirelational language that the classes of deterministic multirelations mentioned form categories with respect to Peleg composition from concurrent dynamic logic, and sometimes quantaloids. Some of these categories are isomorphic to the category of binary relations. We also introduce determinisation maps that approximate multirelations either by binary relations or by deterministic multirelations. Such maps are useful for defining modal operators on multirelations.

Colon impairments and inflammation driven by an altered gut microbiota leads to social behavior deficits rescued by hyaluronic acid and celecoxib.

The exact mechanisms linking the gut microbiota and social behavior are still under investigation. We aimed to explore the role of the gut microbiota in shaping social behavior deficits using selectively bred mice possessing dominant (Dom) or submissive (Sub) behavior features. Sub mice exhibit asocial, depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, as well as systemic inflammation, all of which are shaped by their impaired gut microbiota composition. An age-dependent comparative analysis of the gut microbiota composition of Dom and Sub mice was performed using 16S rRNA sequencing, from early infancy to adulthood. Dom and Sub gastrointestinal (GI) tract anatomy, function, and immune profiling analyses were performed using histology, RT-PCR, flow cytometry, cytokine array, and dextran-FITC permeability assays. Short chain fatty acids (SCFA) levels in the colons of Dom and Sub mice were quantified using targeted metabolomics. To support our findings, adult Sub mice were orally treatedwith hyaluronic acid (HA) (30 mg/kg) or with the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent celecoxib (16 mg/kg). We demonstrate that from early infancy the Sub mouse gut microbiota lacks essential bacteria for immune maturation, including Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium genera. Furthermore, from birth, Sub mice possess a thicker colon mucin layer, and from early adulthood, they exhibit shorter colonic length, altered colon integrity with increased gut permeability, reduced SCFA levels and decreased regulatory T-cells, compared to Dom mice. Therapeutic intervention in adult Sub mice treated with HA, celecoxib, or both agents, rescued Sub mice phenotypes. HA treatment reduced Sub mouse gut permeability, increased colon length, and improved mouse social behavior deficits. Treatment with celecoxib increased sociability, reduced depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, and increased colon length, and a combined treatment resulted in similar effects as celecoxib administered as a single agent. Overall, our data suggest that treating colon inflammation and decreasing gut permeability can restore gut physiology and prevent social deficits later in life. These findings provide critical insights into the importance of early life gut microbiota in shaping gut immunity, functionality, and social behavior, and may be beneficial for the development of future therapeutic strategies.

Molecular electrostatic potential (MEP), thermodynamic properties and spectral analysis of methyl orange doped L–lysine sulfate (MLLS) semi organic crystals

AbstractSemi organic compounds enable several structural and bonding methods for the molecular engineering of novel materials. The optical analysis, methyl orange doped L‐lysine sulfate (MLLS) is an innovative NLO material enabling the rate of frequency up change for stronger systems with lasers in the UV range with clear absorption. With this experimental studies the theoretical studies of the L‐lysine sulfate and its molecules were studied using Gaussian09w software. X‐ray analysis, UV, FTIR, NMR, Mulliken Charges, HOMO‐LUMO, MEP and some related thermodynamic properties were studied. The chosen nucleophilic site is symbolized by the color red, the more popular electrophilic site has been highlighted during MEP mapping. Spectroscopical and thermodynamical properties related to functional behavior of molecules were also discussed with obtained results.

Features of functional behavior of TiNi shape memory alloy after uniaxial high speed magnetic pulse tension

This study investigates the influence of high strain rate on the functional properties of TiNi shape memory alloys. Specimens were deformed in tensile mode using a magnetic pulse loading setup equipped with an optical system to measure the loading time. The technique allows to obtain different strain rates without changing the working part of the specimens, i.e. the residual strains remained the same. The results show that the shape memory effect decreases by 10–25% with increasing strain rate. However, a high strain rate has a positive effect on the two-way shape memory, which increases by 10–25%.

Mechanical Behaviour of Glass Fibre-Reinforced Polymer/Polyvinyl Chloride Foam Cored Sandwich Structures

This study focuses on the fabrication and analysis of the mechanical behaviour of unidirectional (UD) glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP) facesheet and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foam core sandwich structures fabricated by a vacuum-assisted resin infusion method (VARIM). These sandwich structures are commonly used in marine and wind turbine blade applications. To date, relatively little knowledge about the functional behaviour of UD GFRP compared to composites reinforced with bidirectional mats is available for day-to-day applications. The effects of the facesheet orientation, facesheet thickness, and core thickness on the mechanical behaviour of the specimens were examined. The UD fibres were oriented in cross-ply (0/90), angle-ply (+45/−45), and quasi-isotropic orientations. Various mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural, flatwise compression, and edgewise compression tests were examined. Characterization of the tensile properties of the facesheet showed that the cross-ply orientation had a higher strength than the angle-ply and quasi-isotropic orientations. The flexural load-carrying capacity of the cross-ply facesheet orientation was superior to the other orientations. The increase in the core thickness changed the flexural failure mode from face yield and core shear to core indentation. Flatwise compression (FWC) was tested to determine the core characteristics of the sandwich structure, and the peak loads of 4.90, 1.81, and 3.90 kN were obtained for 10-, 15-, and 20 mm core thicknesses, respectively. Edgewise compression (EWC) exhibited stable end crushing for thinner facesheet, whereas thicker facesheet showed core crushing and buckling. When the facesheet thickness was increased from 1.5 mm to 3 mm in the EWC, the buckling load increase ranged from 2.53% to 44.83% for core thicknesses 10-, 15-, and 20 mm, respectively.

Social connectedness matters: a functional analytic overview of Jeffrey Dahmer’s Netflix Series

This article examines Dahmer’s life according to the Netflix TV series based on Functional Analytic Behavior Psychotherapy (FAP) principles, focusing on his relationship with his father, mother, and stepmother. The causes of abnormal behavior can be understood utilizing behavior analysis and FAP’s principles, as we demonstrate that its causes can be founded in the person-context relationship history and not necessarily in a specific trauma or physical/brain disorder. To examine these behaviors, we identified and systematized 18 dialogues between Dahmer and his relatives during the Netflix TV series and analyzed the dialogues during the episode. As presented in this article, Dahmer’s life shows how social connectedness matters and highlights how the FAP principles are important as psychotherapy and a way of life. Several other aspects of Dahmer’s dialogues and life can be (and must be) analyzed to understand his behavior.

TET2 Is Downregulated in Early Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Promotes Esophageal Squamous Cell Malignant Behaviors.

To explore the expression of the ten eleven translocation (TET) 2 protein in early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (EESCC), precancerous lesions, and cell lines and to evaluate the effect of TET2 on the functional behavior of EC109 esophageal cancer cells. Thirty-one samples of EESCC and precancerous lesions collected via endoscopic submucosal dissection at Taihe Hospital, Shiyan, from February 1, 2017, to February 1, 2019, were analyzed. The study involved evaluating TET2 expression levels in lesion tissue and adjacent normal epithelium, correlating these with clinical pathological features. Techniques including 3-(4,5-dimethythiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide, cell scratch assays, flow cytometry for propidium iodide (PI) staining, Hoechst 333258/PI double staining, and nude mouse tumorigenesis experiments were employed to assess the effect of TET2 on the proliferation, migration, cell cycle, apoptosis, and tumorigenic ability of esophageal cancer cells. TET2 expression was notably reduced in early esophageal cancer tissue and correlated with tumor invasion depth (P < 0.05). Overexpression of TET2 enhanced the proliferation and migration of esophageal cancer cells, increased the cell population in the G0 phase, decreased it in the S phase, and intensified cell necrosis (P < 0.05). There was a partial increase in tumorigenic ability (P = 0.087). TET2 downregulation in ESCC potentially influences the necrosis, cell cycle, and tumorigenic ability of esophageal cancer cells, suggesting a role in the onset and progression of esophageal cancer.

Sharp conditions for the validity of the Bourgain–Brezis–Mironescu formula

Following the seminal paper by Bourgain, Brezis, and Mironescu, we focus on the asymptotic behaviour of some nonlocal functionals that, for each $u\in L^2(\mathbb {R}^N)$ , are defined as the double integrals of weighted, squared difference quotients of $u$ . Given a family of weights $\{\rho _{\varepsilon} \}$ , $\varepsilon \in (0,\,1)$ , we devise sufficient and necessary conditions on $\{\rho _{\varepsilon} \}$ for the associated nonlocal functionals to converge as $\varepsilon \to 0$ to a variant of the Dirichlet integral. Finally, some comparison between our result and the existing literature is provided.

Using a micro-device with a deformable ceiling to probe stiffness heterogeneities within 3D cell aggregates

Recent advances in the field of mechanobiology have led to the development of methods to characterise single-cell or monolayer mechanical properties and link them to their functional behaviour. However, there remains a strong need to establish this link for three-dimensional (3D) multicellular aggregates, which better mimic tissue function. Here we present a platform to actuate and observe many such aggregates within one deformable micro-device. The platform consists of a single polydimethylsiloxane piece cast on a 3D-printed mould and bonded to a glass slide or coverslip. It consists of a chamber containing cell spheroids, which is adjacent to air cavities that are fluidically independent. Controlling the air pressure in these air cavities leads to a vertical displacement of the chamber’s ceiling. The device can be used in static or dynamic modes over time scales of seconds to hours, with displacement amplitudes from a few µm to several tens of microns. Further, we show how the compression protocols can be used to obtain measurements of stiffness heterogeneities within individual co-culture spheroids, by comparing image correlations of spheroids at different levels of compression with finite element simulations. The labelling of the cells and their cytoskeleton is combined with image correlation methods to relate the structure of the co-culture spheroid with its mechanical properties at different locations. The device is compatible with various microscopy techniques, including confocal microscopy, which can be used to observe the displacements and rearrangements of single cells and neighbourhoods within the aggregate. The complete experimental and imaging platform can now be used to provide multi-scale measurements that link single-cell behaviour with the global mechanical response of the aggregates.

Photorefraction Simulates Well the Plasticity of Neural Synaptic Connections.

In recent years, the need for systems capable of achieving the dynamic learning and information storage efficiency of the biological brain has led to the emergence of neuromorphic research. In particular, neuromorphic optics was born with the idea of reproducing the functional and structural properties of the biological brain. In this context, solitonic neuromorphic research has demonstrated the ability to reproduce dynamic and plastic structures capable of learning and storing through conformational changes in the network. In this paper, we demonstrate that solitonic neural networks are capable of mimicking the functional behaviour of biological neural tissue, in terms of synaptic formation procedures and dynamic reinforcement.