High-pressure treatment unlocks the emulsification potential of Desmodesmus protein extract for stable high internal phase emulsions.

Saltmarshes provide key ecosystem services, including atmospheric CO2 sequestration and nitrogen burial in sediments. In recent decades, these blue carbon ecosystems have faced significant degradation from natural and anthropogenic stressors. In this study, rewilding of a desiccated saltmarsh in Cadiz Bay (SW Spain) was assessed as a nature-based solution to restore carbon (Corg) and nitrogen (NT) storage. The rewilding process began in 2004 after breaching an external tidal wall. We evaluated changes in vegetated and unvegetated areas using Landsat satellite imagery (1994-2024) and quantified Corg and NT stocks and burial rates in wild and rewilded sediments, including vegetated saltmarsh (Sarcocornia sp.) and bare sediments colonized by microphytobenthos (MPB). Vegetated saltmarsh cover increased by 85% over 20 years, at an average recovery rate of 5hay-1, concurrent with a decrease in unvegetated tidal flats. Average Corg stocks in the top 1m ranged from 32 to 57t Corg ha-1, with higher values in vegetated sediments. However, only 5-12% of Corg was stored during the rewilding period. Corg burial rates averaged 69g Corg m-2 y-1, and NT stocks were 55% higher in rewilded sediments than in wild ones (3.6 vs. 1.6t NT ha-1). Despite vegetation recovery, burial rates of Corg and NT did not increase clearly, suggesting that long-term storage may be influenced by factors beyond rewilding. Less than 8% of sedimentary Corg originated from saltmarsh vegetation, indicating the dominance of allochthonous sources. These findings highlight the complexity of biogeochemical recovery in rewilded saltmarshes and underscore the need for long-term monitoring to determine how much time is truly required for Corg and NT recovery.

Dynamics of leaf litter decomposition and nutrient release in mangroves under different control conditions: Highlighting the litter quality, decomposer and mixing effect.

Thermochemical energy storage: bridging the gap between solar energy and long-term energy storage

Optimising production and long-term bulk storage of hydrogen from offshore wind in subsurface salt caverns

Ultrasonic microreactor-mediated fabrication of stable W1/O/W2 double emulsions for efficient vitamin C encapsulation.

Rapid urbanization and growing traffic congestion have made it increasingly difficult for ambulances to reach patients on time. In many cases, poor coordination between emergency responders, hospitals, and traffic authorities further delays medical assistance. Such delays can be life-threatening, particularly during the critical “Golden Hour,” when timely treatment greatly increases a patient’s chances of survival. This research presents the design and implementation of a Real-Time Ambulance Tracking System (ATS) aimed at reducing these delays through continuous and reliable location monitoring. The system uses GPS technology and persistent WebSocket communication to provide instant location updates. A dual-database architecture combining MongoDB and Redis ensures both secure long-term data storage and high-speed in-memory processing for real-time operations. A cross-platform mobile application developed using Flutter allows ambulance drivers and traffic police to access live updates and alerts. The backend, built with Node.js and Socket.IO, enables seamless bidirectional communication between users and the server. Experimental testing shows improvements in communication speed, operational visibility, and coordination efficiency. Overall, the proposed system offers a scalable, cost-effective solution that can support smarter emergency response systems and contribute to the development of modern smart- city infrastructure.

Effects of air availability and straw amendment on swine manure phosphorus runoff potential.

Extreme drought drives contrasting fates of labile and recalcitrant mangrove soil organic matter.

Post-harvest algae biomass is prone to degradation, resulting in mass loss and compositional changes, and preservation is vital to economic viability of algal products. Effective storage solutions are needed to mitigate for seasonal productivity variations (long-term storage) and to keep post-harvest biomass stable until processing. Ensiling has emerged as a long-term storage solution capable of preserving biomass up to six months with little loss without the energy demands of drying. Organic acids produced during ensiling lower biomass pH and prevent growth of degradative bacteria such as Clostridia. However, losses are front-loaded with a majority occurring within the first week before organic acids can accumulate. Currently, there is no information on the stability of algae biomass within the first 24 hours post-harvest or methods available to ensure stability during this period. Freshly harvested Tetradesmus obliquus UTEX 393 biomass was stored in three conditions: ambient atmosphere, anaerobic atmosphere without treatment, and anaerobic atmosphere with citric acid amendment. Citric acid treatment limited mass loss to 1% after 28 days, while untreated biomass experienced 4% mass loss after just 4 hours and 18% mass loss after 4 weeks. The carbohydrate fraction was most affected, with minimal changes to the elemental composition of biomass across treatments. Bacilli bacteria, including lactic acid bacteria, increased in abundance under all storage conditions. Untreated biomass showed a rise in Clostridia, but none were found in citric acid-treated biomass. After 28 days, organic acid composition differed significantly among treatments, with succinic acid being accumulated to 30% of dry cellular weight in citric acid treated UTEX 393 biomass. Citric acid treatment effectively mitigates biomass loss and, surprisingly, promotes substantial production of succinic acid. The unexpected autofermentation of UTEX 393 biomass to a versatile intermediate chemical such as succinic acid at high titers with minimal energy input could contribute to the economic viability of algae cultivation for fuels and chemicals.

The capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus), a critically endangered species, faces significant challenges due to habitat loss and population decline. Assisted reproductive technologies, including semen preservation and artificial insemination (AI), are vital for conservation efforts. Although the results are controversial, it has been reported that antioxidants, such as catalase, play an important role in protecting against oxidative damage caused by reactive oxygen species during short- and long-term sperm storage. This study evaluated the protective effects of catalase (200 IU/mL) on stored/frozen-thawed capercaillie sperm. The possible protective or harmful effect of catalase on fertilizing ability was assessed after AI with fresh and stored semen. Results indicated that catalase had no significant effect on sperm motility, viability, or DNA integrity after liquid storage or freezing/thawing. Fertility rates decreased sharply after semen storage for 6 h at 5°C even in the presence of catalase. Catalase-treated samples maintained similar fertility rates to controls. The study also provided the first evidence of sperm storage duration within female capercaillies, which lasted up to 21 days. These findings underscore the challenges of semen preservation in wild species and highlight the need for further exploration of alternative antioxidants to optimize storage media.

The storage and retrieval of wave spectra for boundary conditions in nested wave modeling are computationally intensive due to the substantial storage requirements of each spectrum. A recently developed method (Jiang et al., 2023) addresses this by representing two-dimensional wave spectra using a set of Reconstruction Parameters (RPs), enabling efficient long-term and large-scale wave spectrum storage. This study presents an RP dataset for the China-adjacent seas, derived from 165,590 grid points at a 1⁄ 12° × 1⁄ 12° resolution and hourly intervals from 2000 to 2024, supporting the reconstruction of spectra with up to six spectral partitions. Validation against independent buoy and satellite observations shows strong agreement with wave parameters derived from the simulated spectra. Moreover, comparative analysis reveals remarkably close consistency between characteristics obtained from the original simulated spectra and their reconstructed counterparts, with the reconstruction accuracy exceeding the inherent uncertainties of the original numerical simulations. Additional nested modeling experiments further affirm the dataset's exceptional utility for wave hindcasting and forecasting applications in the China-adjacent seas.

Bacteria can deteriorate spermatozoal quality during semen cryopreservation, compromising artificial insemination (AI) success. Antibiotics are included in extenders to reduce the harmful effects of bacterial contamination. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate antibiotics in ring-necked pheasant semen cryopreservation. This study was designed to assess the efficiency of antibiotics (gentamicin, streptomycin, penicillin) on sperm quality and total aerobic bacterial count (TABC) of cryopreserved ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) semen. Semen from eight males (40 ejaculates) was pooled, diluted with Red Fowl Extender, and divided into five treatments including a control; experiments were repeated five times. Samples were cryopreserved using 10% glycerol and stored at -196°C. Sperm quality was assessed at multiple stages postdilution, postcooling, postequilibration, and post-thaw, along with fertility outcomes via AI. TABC was determined by culturing thawed samples at 37°C. All antibiotic treatments significantly improved semen quality compared with the control, with the streptomycin-penicillin (SP) combination yielding the best results across all stages. The SP group exhibited higher acrosome integrity and sperm livability (p < 0.01). Fertility trials showed higher fertilization and hatch rates in the postdilution group compared with the post-thaw group. TABC was below the detectable limits (<1.0 × 104 colony-forming units [CFU]/mL) in all the antibiotic-treated extenders compared with 1.1 × 104 CFU/mL in the control. This study supports the use of antibiotic-enriched extenders to reduce bacterial contamination and enhance reproductive outcomes in avian AI programs, with potential benefits for conservation. Further work is recommended to elucidate mechanisms and optimize antibiotic concentration for long-term storage.

As the volume of digital data continues to grow exponentially, DNA has emerged as a promising medium for long-term data storage due to its high density and durability. For enabling data retrieval via DNA's biochemical reactions, the encoding strategy plays a critical role. This paper proposes a training framework for a DNA encoder that improves both accuracy and training efficiency in content-based image retrieval by incorporating deep metric learning. In addition, we introduce loss functions that enforce biological constraints, specifically homopolymer length and GC content, thereby improving the biochemical stability of the generated DNA sequences. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conduct quantitative assessments based on image classification performance. Simulations on the CIFAR- 10 and CIFAR-100 datasets demonstrate that our method achieves classification accuracy comparable to CNN-based baselines and a 20- fold speedup over the training time of the existing method. Moreover, the generated DNA sequences enable strict control of homopolymer length and maintain GC content within the optimal 40-60 improving biological feasibility compared to baseline methods. The source code is publicly available at GitHub.

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is a major source of affordable, high-quality dietary protein that complements maize (Zea mays L.)-based diets. Traditional storage of these seeds in sacks and glass jars without treatment often leads to infestation by insect pests, such as Acanthoscelides obtectus and Sitophilus zeamais, causing significant grain losses. This study evaluated grain damage and weight loss after mixing biosilica with maize and common bean seeds, which were stored in various containers (glass jars, polyethylene, and polypropylene bags) over a six-month period, during which seed viability was also assessed. Although the initial moisture level (≤ 13%) was favourable for storage for both grain species, about half of the common bean cultivars (FEB 190 and NUV6) and two-thirds of the maize cultivars (CMS 8501 and CMS 8704) were adversely affected after prolonged storage without treatment for six months. As concerns the effects of the storage receptacle on the biosilica-treated seeds, the polyethylene bags and glass jars were more effective for common beans than for maize seeds after five months of storage. However, by the sixth month, the biosilica-containing jars were characterized by low insect perforation indices (≤ 50%) and rather high seed viability (> 80%) for both maize and common beans after six months of storage, highlighting the protective effect and storage loss reduction capacity of the biosilica. Hence, their application could help farmers improve safe grain storage over prolonged periods and eventually enhance their livelihoods and incomes.

Self-layered fruit preservation coating based on chitosan and curcumin.

MXene-based fluorescent aptasensors detect targets through MXene-mediated adsorption of labeled aptamer probes and subsequent target-induced release of the probe signals, providing a promising programmable detection approach. However, their sensitivity is limited by the low signal output per aptamer or the incomplete quenching of the ultrabright aptamer probes by MXene. This study proposes an advanced MXene-based detection platform that addresses these challenges through material engineering and innovative sensing strategies. Polydopamine-mediated interface engineering endows monolayer MXene nanosheets (p-MXene) with excellent nanocolloidal stability and dynamic reversible internanosheet networks. While concentrated, it exhibits complete self-settling and adhesion behavior with a tendency toward spontaneous solid-liquid separation. This characteristic enhances the adhesion of the p-MXene/aptamer nanocomposites during mild centrifugal precipitation without compromising the target-induced aptasensing capability of these nanocomposites. Free from incomplete quenching concerns, the platform leverages ratio-controlled click chemistry to synthesize red fluorescence quantum dot-aptamer conjugates (RQDs@APT) for maximum signal per aptamer. The p-MXene/RQDs@APT achieves near-zero-background specific detection of aflatoxin B1 with a high signal-to-noise ratio and outstanding reproducibility. It shows a linear range of 0.90-35 μg/kg and a detection limit of 0.27 μg/kg in real food samples, while supporting visual detection. The aptasensor is easy to rapidly assemble, and each module has long-term storage stability. The azide-modified aptamer lyophilized powders can be stored and replaced separately, enabling the platform to be easily expanded to detect other targets. The platform has demonstrated satisfactory performance in detecting deoxynivalenol, ochratoxin A, zearalenone, and fumonisin B1. This sensitive, robust, and universal technology shows great potential for various detection applications.

In the region of Inzersdorf ob der Traisen in Lower Austria, 273 cremation graves from the late Bronze Age (ca. 1300–800 BC) were recovered. Also, various bronze artefacts were found in some graves, including a button which was analyzed by metallography. It should be determined how the button was manufactured, for example by casting or soldering, and microstructural changes can be detected due to temperature effects by cremation. The button is made of bronze whose composition was determined by XRF: 87 wt.% Cu, 9 wt.% Sn and 1 wt.% Pb. The microstructure of the bronze clearly shows a temperature influence during cremation. The bronze microstructure is recrystallized as well as parts were melted, causing oxidation at the grain boundaries. Also, some areas of the bronze show small shrink holes. Further corrosion took place during long-term storage of the button in the soil.

Conventional computing architectures typically rely on separate devices to achieve dynamic sensing and long-term storage, leading to low integration density, high energy consumption, and significant data movement bottlenecks. Here, a biomimetic dual-function memristor based on an Sb2S3/HfO2 heterostructure is proposed, in which synergistic regulation of ion migration and electronic transport enables the materials-assisted decoupling and coordinated integration of short-term memory (STM) and long-term memory (LTM) functions within a single device. The device successfully emulates various biological synaptic behaviors, including paired-pulse facilitation/depression, tunable excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs), and highly linear long-term potentiation/depression. Subsequently, utilizing the LTM characteristics of the device, a nonvolatile synaptic array is built to implement a fully connected neural network, achieving 94.5% accuracy. Meanwhile, a physical reservoir computing system is constructed using the STM dynamics to directly encode and recognize spatiotemporal features in iris image sequences, achieving 98% accuracy. Through coordinated innovation in materials, devices, and architecture, this work advances memristors from single-function memory elements toward multifunctional, all-electrical intelligent processing units.

DNA as a data storage medium.