The aim of this research was to select apple varieties suitable for allergy sufferers and diabetics. We first conducted a comprehensive analysis of several apple varieties. The total polyphenol content, sugar content, acidity, and antioxidant activity of the apple fruit juices were determined using spectrophotometric techniques. We also measured the amounts of polyphenols in the apple skins and their antioxidant potential, as well as the allergenic content in the apple juices. The strength of sensitization was assessed using the ELISA method. The lowest amounts of Bet v 1 homologues were found in the varieties Kosztela (4.21 ± 0.71 µg/g), Koksa Pomarańczowa (4.24 ± 0.08 µg/g), and Reneta z Brownlee (4.86 ± 0.18 µg/g). Low values for profilin were observed for Renet Harbert (1.74 ± 0.22 ng/g) and Schieblers Taubenapfel (2.26 ± 0.12 ng/g). The highest values for profilins and Bet v 1 homologues were found in the Złotka Kwidzyńska variety (12.40 µg/g), followed by Malinowa Oberlandzka (9.86 µg/g) and Jakub Lebel (8.87 µg/g). The varieties richest in profilin were Reneta Blenheimska (8.81 ng/g), Szara Reneta (7.88 ng/g), Pepina Ribston (7.67 ng/g), and Reneta z Brownlee (7 .63 ng/g). Given their minimal content of both profilins and Bet v 1 homologues, Koksa Pomarańczowa (4.24 ± 0.08 µg/g Bet v 1 and 4.49 ± 0.82 ng/g profilins) and Książę Albrecht Pruski (5.57 µg/g Bet v 1 and 3.34 ng/g profilins) were identified as suitable for people with allergies. For diabetics, the most suitable apple variety was found to be Jakub Lebel, providing large doses of antioxidants and polyphenols (41.1 ± 2.0 and 5.16 ± 0.42, respectively) and a relatively low sugar content (9.06). Similar results were measured for Kingfish, with 10.2 sugars, 5.68 ± 0.49 antioxi-dants, and 46.2 ± 1.5 polyphenols. The Galowany Pipping variety was found to have a low sugar content (9.71), corresponding to a perceived sweetness of 2.5. Prince Albert of Prussia apples had high antioxidant potential (5.70 ± 0.77) and a low sugar content (11.09). The James Grieve apple variety provided a high polyphenol content of 63.3 ± 1.1 with a high antioxidant level of 5.34 ± 0.45. Grochówka offers a combination of a high polyphenol content (48.6 ± 1.9), a high level of antiox-idant protection (5.50 ± 0.34), and a very low perceived sweetness (from 3.0).

This review provides insight into the role that obesity, but especially mediators of the adipose tissue, have in both renal disease and transplantation. In particular, we focus on the functions of leptin and adiponectin, inflammatory mediators with widely known clinical implications, as well as on the role of arachidonic acid-derived eicosanoid metabolites. These latter compounds, epoxyeicosatrienoic (EETs) and hydroxyeicosatetraenoic (HETEs) acids, which modulate the liberation of cytokines in the adipose tissue, are generated in the epoxygenase pathway of arachidonic biotransformation via CYP450 enzymes. There is accumulating evidence suggesting that EETs and HETEs may have a critical role in the onset and outcome of chronic kidney disease and renal transplantation. Finally, we also discuss the reported effect that the presence of genetic variants in leptin, adiponectin, EETs and HETEs-related genes may cause in renal patients and recipients. The levels of cytokines of the adipose tissue and related compounds play a remarkable role in both renal disease and transplant. Accordingly, novel therapeutic strategies are being developed based on the modulation of their concentrations in patients with various diseases.

Births occurring before thirty-seven weeks of gestation are referred to as preterm births (PTBs), which is the primary cause of neonatal mortality and long-term disabilities. The unknown mechanism behind PTB makes diagnosis difficult, yet early detection is necessary for controlling and averting related consequences. The primary focus of this work is to provide an overview of the known risk factors associated with preterm labor and the conventional and advanced procedures for early detection of PTB, including multi-omics and artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML)-based approaches. It also discusses the principles of detecting various proteomic biomarkers based on lateral flow immunoassay and microfluidic chips, along with the commercially available point-of-care testing (POCT) devices and associated challenges. After briefing the therapeutic and preventive measures of PTB, the review summarizes with an outlook.

In the past decade, it has been discovered that intestinal flora can influence various organ-specific cancers by altering the body's energy balance, increasing obesity, synthesizing genetic toxins and small signaling molecules, initiating and modulating immune responses, and metabolizing indigestible dietary components, exogenous substances, and drugs. In this review, we will focus on elucidating the role of gut flora based on its molecular mechanisms and its potential therapeutic implications in head and neck tumors in the near future.

Nutrition and calorie intake are associated with subtle changes of thyroid function tests in subjects with intact Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Thyroid axis. Iodine deficiency and extreme fluctuations in calorie intake, such as those occurring during periods of starvation or overfeeding could lead to alterations of thyroid hormones. The dietary macronutrient composition could also influence the thyroid function. Recently, Low-Glycemic Load (LGL) diets are very popular and effective in the treatment and/or prevention of several medical conditions, including diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and epilepsy. In this review, we report the available data from the literature regarding the association between LGL diets and thyroid function or dysfunction. Unfortunately, there are only a few studies in this field, with inconsistent findings.

In recent years, green and healthy foods have attracted much attention. Plant-based foods have become a new trend to replace animal-derived foods. In this study, we used walnut and purple rice as the primary raw materials to produce yogurt. The process included boiling, mixing, grinding, inoculation, fermentation, and sterilization. We then analyzed the similarities and differences between the resulting walnut purple rice yogurt and unfermented walnut purple rice milk, as well as dairy-based yogurt, in terms of physical chemistry, flavor, and sensory characteristics. We also examined the similarities and differences between fermented walnut purple rice milk and conventional warm yogurt. The study results revealed that walnut purple rice yogurt exhibited greater viscosity than walnut purple rice milk and conventional dairy-based yogurt. Additionally, the former displayed enhanced stability and recovery ability. Notably, distinguishable differences were observed between the three types of yogurts in terms of the presence of unknown volatiles and the umami signal as indicated by electronic nose/tongue and GC-IMS analyses. The umami flavour of walnut purple rice yogurt surpasses that of traditional dairy-based yogurt, whilst its salty taste is lower than that of walnut purple rice milk. Despite possessing a weaker aroma than dairy-based yogurt, it is more potent than walnut purple rice milk. Additionally, its relative abundance of olefins, ketones, and alcohols enhances its unique flavour profile, surpassing both other options. Based on sensory analysis, it can be deduced that walnut purple rice yogurt has the highest overall acceptance rate.

Silica nanoparticles synthesized solely from organosilanes naturally possess a greater number of organic functionalities than silica nanoparticles surface modified with organosilanes. We report the synthesis of organically modified silica (ORMOSIL) nanoparticles with mesoporous and surface rough morphology and with high surface area, made solely from vinyltrimethoxy silane. We chemically modified these vinyl silica nanoparticles using bromination and hydroboration, and demonstrated the high accessibility and reactivity of the vinyl groups with an ~85% conversion of the functional groups for bromination of both particle types, a ~60% conversion of the functional groups for hydroboration of surface rough particles and a 90% conversion of the functional groups for hydroboration of mesoporous particles. We determined that the mesoporous vinyl silica nanopar-ticles, while having a surface area that lies between the non-porous and surface rough vinyl silica nanoparticles, provide the greatest accessibility to the vinyl groups for boronation and allow in-corporating up to 3.1 × 106 B atoms per particle, making the resulting materials attractive for boron neutron capture therapy.

Abstract: Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are short peptides, usually made up of less than 100 amino acid residues. They are found in many living organisms and are an important factor in their innate immune systems. AMPs can be extracted from various living sources including bacteria, plants, animals and even humans. They are usually cationic peptides with an amphiphilic structure, which allows them to easily bind and interact with the cellular membranes of viruses, bacteria, fungi and other pathogens. They can act against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens and have various modes of action against them. Some attack the pathogens membrane, while others target their intracellular organelles as well as their nucleic acids, proteins and metabolic pathways. A crucial area of use of AMPs is in their ability to help with emerging antibiotic resistance: some AMPs are active against resistant strains and are susceptible to peptide engineering. This review considers AMPs from three key sources: plants, animals and humans, as well as their modes of action and some AMPs sequences.

Carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations in wildfire plumes are easily measured from satellites. This gas can be used as a proxy for carbon dioxide. Forest fires play an important role in the carbon balance and in particular the CO balance. The most likely causes of mega-fires of 2003, 2012, 2021, and 2023 in the Northern hemisphere are heat waves and severe droughts associated with changes in general circulation. Here we analyze satellite data obtained by two different sounders, AIRS and TROPOMI. Different sensitivity to the lowest troposphere allows obtaining information about anthropogenic or pyrogenic contamination of the boundary layer. Shapes of areas polluted by mega-fires in 2019-2020 (Southeastern Australia) and 2021 (Central Siberia) coincide with the areas occupied by coal deposits. The Siberian Lena and Tunguska coal basins are the two largest coal fields in the world. In 2021, their combined area accounted for 90% of fire CO emission from the entire Russian Federation. So strong fires have not observed in this area before. Under- and sub-ground coal combustion may be included into the list of wildfire fuels, at least their role for ignition should be admitted. Further research is needed to assess the importance of coal fires to global climate.

Abstract: Considering the significance of postural balance in shooting ability, and consequently soldiers’ occupational performance and survivability, it is of importance to promote the use of balance training programs to improve shooters' efficiency. This study explored how a balance training program affects shooting performance. Twenty participants were divided into two equal groups. They all performed 60 shots in a shooting simulator while standing. The participants went through this process twice, before and after a 4-week balance training program. The shoot-ing was done under four different conditions: without load on a stable surface, with load on a stable surface, without load on an unstable surface, and with load on an unstable surface. The training program had a significant impact on the experimental group, improving their balance by 76 ± 9% (p < 0.01). Additionally, in the experimental group, shooting score increased by 47% and the % center of gravity by 20% (p < 0.01). The stability of the shots, measured by holding time in the target, doubled from 2.2 to 4.5 seconds (p < 0.01). These improvements were more pronounced when participants had a load and/or were on an unstable surface. In conclusion, a balance training program can be beneficial for improving shooting performance.

Nano-drugs and nano-delivery systems are rapidly evolving, with new strategies emerging in the current practices. The evolution of these technologies began with modifying the chemical structure, progressing to supramolecular ionic complexes, and culminating in elegant ad hoc delivery systems. Nanoparticles have numerous benefits as a carrier system for delivering therapeutic agents to intra-arterial sites. These benefits include their subcellular size, targeted surfaces, good suspensibility, and uniform dispersity, making them an ideal choice for catheter-based delivery. Despite the advancements made in the field of nano-drugs and nano-delivery systems, there are still some hurdles to overcome in terms of their commercial availability.The current review presents an updated summary of recent advancements in nano-drugs and nano-delivery systems, including their commercial availability. We aim to discuss the present challenges and prospects of commercially available nano-drugs and nano-delivery systems. Here, we provide a precise and informative overview of the current state of these technologies and underscore the potential they hold for future developments. Further, we have categorized commercially available modifications, name, parent company and their main applications in nano-drugs.

Knowing that biomolecules, such as β-amyrin and α-amyrin, have some pharmacological effects, the aim of this study was directed towards exploring the protective effect of a Tomato Peel and Seed Extract (TPSE) for its soothing function but also for its capacity to modulate the adrenal axis, involved in stress response. Ex vivo tests were carried out on skin explants to evaluate the effectiveness of TPSE formulated at 0.5% on Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide (CGRP) and IL-10 release, Kappa Opioid Receptor (KOR) and Caspase 14 expression. An in vivo study combined a clinical evaluation of skin homogeneity, psychological parameter as well as analysis of salivary cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone concentrations. All measurements were carried out at the beginning and after 28 days of applying a TPSE face cream. TPSE regulated not only the release of CGRP and Il-10, reflecting an anti-neurogenic and anti-inflammatory properties, but also modulated KORs. Twenty height days of TPSE application induced a significant decrease in intensity and extent erythrosis, a lower output of salivary cortisol and a significant increase in pleasant emotions when compared to placebo. These results provide encouragement to continue exploring the impact of cosmetic ingredient on psychophysiological parameters to improve skin health and well-being.

Alena Tensor is a recently discovered class of energy-momentum tensors that provides mathematical framework in which, as demonstrated in previous publications, the description of a physical system in curved spacetime and its description in flat spacetime with fields are equivalent. The description of a system with electromagnetic field based on Alena Tensor can be used to reconcile physical descriptions. 1) In curvilinear description, Einstein Field Equations were obtained with Cosmological Constant related to the invariant of the electromagnetic field tensor, which can be interpreted as negative pressure of vacuum, filled with electromagnetic field. 2) In classical description for flat spacetime, three densities of four-forces were obtained: electromagnetic, gravity, and the force responsible for the Abraham-Lorentz effect (radiation reaction force). Obtained connection of Einstein tensor with gravity and radiation reaction force, after transition to curvilinear description, excludes black hole singularities. There was obtained Lagrangian density and generalized canonical four-momentum, containing electromagnetic four-potential and a term responsible for other two forces. In this description charged particles cannot remain at complete rest and should have spin, their energy results from the existence of the energy of the magnetic moment and the density of this energy is part of the Poyting four-vector. The distribution of charged matter was expressed as polarization-magnetization stress-energy tensor, what may explain why gravity is invisible in QED. 3) In quantum picture, QED Lagrangian density simplification was obtained, and the Dirac, Schrödinger and Klein-Gordon equations may be considered as approximations of the obtained quantum solution. Farther use of Alena Tensor in unification applications was also discussed.

The characteristics of response to stressful situations depend on a complex of factors such as personality traits, emotional regulation, health state, features of the nervous system, motor functions and proprioception. In cases of disruption of the brain's dopamine system due to disease or chemotherapy, hormone discharge due to stress, changes in emotions and proprioception may occur. The aim of our study was to find the relationship of stress resilence in verbal test and individual differences performed in proprioceptive test in onco-patients, sportsmen and group of control; as well as to observe the differences between these groups in the verbal stress resistance and individual differences proprioceptive tests. The results showed that onco-patients were less resistant as per verbal stress resistance outcomes for a major part of variables compared to other groups. The sportsmen were superior in verbal Risk and Control dimensions compared to other groups; but less in Positive Affectiveness. The proprioceptive test perfomance revealed the only statistically significant difference in performance in the dimension related to Mood, showing more Pessimism in the sportsmen group, but more Optimism in the oncopatients at temperamental (or intrisinc) level. The obtained results can be used by psychologists, therapists, coach and healthcare when needed to attend the specific needs of public, being pateints or sportsmen, etc.

Background: We screened key genes involved in the dedifferentiation process of thyroid cancer by analyzing differentially expressed genes in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) using Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Methods: We analyzed differentially expressed genes in ATC from GEO database and constructed a co-expression network using Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) . Cytoscape was used to calculate top ten key genes based on their gene scores. DEPDC1 was selected as interest gene for further validation, including examination of its prognostic relationship with thyroid cancer, correlation analysis with thyroid differentiation markers, immune cell infiltration, and tumor microenvironment. The impact of DEPDC1 on cancer cell migration, invasion, and proliferation was validated through downregulation and overexpression of DEPDC1 gene in thyroid cancer cell lines c643 and BCPAP. Results: We identified top 10 key genes in ATC: AURKA, TPX2, RACGAP1, MELK, DLGAP5, DEPDC1, KIF2C, NCAPG, CCNB1, and PBK. DEPDC1 showed a strong correlation with the prognosis of thyroid cancer. The odds ratio (OR) for overall survival was 3.5 (P=0.016) in individuals with high DEPDC1 expression, and the OR for disease-free survival was 2.6 (P=0.003). Additionally, the analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between the expression of DEPDC1 and thyroid differentiation markers. Gene Ontology enrichment analysis demonstrated that DEPDC1 co-expressed genes were enriched in cellular processes, cell cycle pathways, and dynamic protein groups. Matrix and immune scoring indicated tumor microenvironment and immune scores were associated with DEPDC1 expression. TIMER2.0 online analysis revealed a strong correlation between DEPDC1 expression and immune cell infiltration in papillary thyroid carcinoma. After downregulation of DEPDC1 expression, the invasion, migration, and proliferation abilities of tumor cells were significantly reduced. Conversely, overexpression of DEPDC1 exhibited the opposite effect. Conclusion: DEPDC1, a newly identified dedifferentiation gene in thyroid cancer, inversely correlated with the degree of differentiation. High expression of DEPDC1 promotes cancer progression and leads to poor prognosis in thyroid cancer.

Meat loss and waste are estimated at each stage along the food chain, but the methods used are complex and the data needed often fragmented. We, therefore, evaluated the feasibility of estimating meat loss and waste using a simpler method comparing meat availability and consumption, using Swiss meat consumption according to a national nutrition survey and Swiss meat availability according to food balance sheets. As availability is reported at the fresh meat level and consumption as consumed, items of the latter were converted to fresh meat equivalents before comparing consumption with availability. Consumed unprocessed meat was directly converted to fresh meat equivalents and consumed meat products after having identified their meat ingredients. Meat availability, meat consumption as consumed and as fresh meat equivalent were 138.4 g/d, 105.5 g/d, and 112.1 g/d, respectively. The resulting total meat loss and waste was 19% and varied from −36% to 38% for the different meat types. Estimating meat loss and waste based on meat availability and consumption derived from a national nutrition survey yielded results varying to such an extent that the evaluated method to estimate meat loss and waste cannot be recommended.

High concentrations of sodium (Na+), chloride (Cl-), calcium (Ca2+), and sulphate (SO42-) are fre-quently found in saline soils. Crop plants cannot successfully develop and produce because salt stress impairs the uptake of calcium, potassium, and water into plant cells. Different intracellular and extracellular ionic concentration changes by salinity, including those of calcium, potassium, and protons. These cations serve as stress signaling molecules in addition to being essential for ionic homeostasis and nutrition. Maintaining an appropriate K+: Na+ ratio is one crucial plant mechanism for salt tolerance, which is a complicated trait. Another important mechanism is the ability for fast extrusion of Na+ from the cytosol. Calcium is established as a ubiquitous secondary messenger, which transmits various stress signals into metabolic alterations that cause adaptive responses. When plants are under stress, the cytosolic-free Ca2+ concentration can rise to 10 times or more from its resting level of 50-100 nanomolar. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are linked to the calcium alterations, and are produced by stress. Depending on the type, frequency and intensity of the stress, the cytosolic calcium signals oscillate, are transient, or persist for a longer period and exhibit specific "signatures". Both the input and efflux of Ca2+ from the cytosol affect the length and amplitude of the signal. According to several reports, under stress calcium alterations can occur not only in the cytoplasm of the cell but also in the cell walls, nucleus and other cell organelles and the calcium waves propagate through the whole plant. Here, we will focus on how wheat and other important crops absorb Na+, K+ and Cl- when plants are under salt stress, as well as how calcium, potassium, and pH cause intracellular signaling and homeostasis. Similar mechanisms in the model plant Arabidopsis will also be considered.

The new Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union (EU) (2023-2027) envisages a stronger Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System (AKIS) that will unite all relevant ac-tors in a co-creation process to ensure knowledge flows within and across Member States. A sig-nificant and increasing body of literature focuses on the strategy and processes of strengthening AKIS. However, there is a relative gap in research related to the role of AKIS in achieving sus-tainability in the farming sector. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the advancements so far of AKIS across the EU when it comes to facilitating the sustainable management of natural resources (SMNR). The paper builds upon a comprehensive review of rel-evant literature during the last 15 years covering all 28 EU countries (including the United King-dom until 2019). We conclude that AKIS architecture in most EU countries lacks a comprehensive structure promoting SMNR. Based on the results we identify countries with relatively high inten-sity of research and development projects linking AKIS to SMNR and where SMNR is better in-tegrated to AKIS. Our results can be of interest to the design of stronger AKIS during the new programming period.

Biocomposite membranes based on polylactic acid (PLA) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were developed using a scientific approach. Dicumyl peroxide (DCP) was used as a polymerization ini-tiator, while tin octoate (Sn(Oct)2) and triphenylphosphane (P(C6H5)3) were used as catalysts. A torque rheometer was used to mix the components of the biocomposite, and thin films was prepared by solvent casting. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed the coupling between the PLA and CNCs. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) showed that the CNCs were well-dispersed in the PLA matrix with an unimodal particle size distribution and a maximum particle size of around 200 nm. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calo-rimetry (DSC) analysis demonstrated good thermal stability and improved biodegradability of the biocomposite membrane compared to pure PLA. Mechanical characterization showed a Young's modulus of 1.65 GPa, which is comparable to that of other composite materials, and a maximum tensile strength of 20.31 MPa, which is higher than that of pure PLA. These results suggest that the developed biocomposite membrane has potential applications in water filtration, food packaging, and biomedical devices.

Increasing evidence indicates that the cultivation of mindful eating, adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle, and the development of psychological resilience may contribute to the enhancement of overall health and well-being. The purpose of this study was to explore the association between mindful eating and the Mediterranean lifestyle in relation to psychological resilience and the maintenance of a healthy weight. In a framework of a cross-sectional study, 288 individuals voluntarily took part in an online research survey conducted in Greece. Results showed that both mindful eating and the Mediterranean diet were significantly correlated (p<0.001) with psychological resilience. Multiple regression models identified mindful eating and the Mediterranean diet as predictive factors of psychological resilience (p<0.001). There was a statistically significant (p<0.05) intercorrelation between mindful eating, the Mediterranean diet and psychological resilience. Following the application of multiple regression model, mindful eating and Mediterranean diet were identified as predictive factors of psychological resilience (p<0.0001). Individuals with a normal Body Mass Index (BMI) displayed stronger adherence to mindful eating and the Mediterranean lifestyle, in contrast to those classified in the overweight and obesity BMI groups. People with higher mindful eating scores had 14% better odds maintaining their weight loss after a weight reducing diet, than those with a lower mindful eating score (OR: 1.142, 95% CI: 1.084, 1.204, p <0.0001). In summary, the integration of mindful eating and the Mediterranean lifestyle may represent a feasible approach to bolstering psychological resilience, overall health, and well-being.

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors like Transitional Metal Dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have attracted strong research interest in the last decade. Unlike the more celebrated 2D material graphene, TMDCs like molybdenum disulfide(MoS₂) possess bandgap. The number of layers critically depends on the band structure of MoS₂. For example, it is indirect for bulk MoS₂. However, it becomes direct bandgap material for a monolayer MoS₂. Monolayer MoS₂, therefore, becomes an important material for photoelectronic devices. An essential aspect of such devices is the metal-semiconductor junction. Metal-TMDC junction is, therefore, a well-studied interface due to its importance for 2D materials-based photoelectronic devices. Most importantly, it can be flexible, stretchable to it’s length, and bent to a large angle. We used metals like Au and Al to interface with TMDs like MoS₂. We used silicon and PDMS as substrates. So, we have to focus on investigating the relative properties of various TMDCs. We see change in band energy and vibrational modes via Photoluminiscence and Raman spectroscopy as shown in the article. However, certain aspects are yet to be explored, for example, how this interface behaves in the presence of strain.

This comprehensive review delves into the intricate relationship between Sodium-GlucoseCo-Transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors and AF, highlighting the multifaceted actions of thesedrugs and their significant cardiovascular benefits. Mechanisms: SGLT2 inhibitors inducesubstantial hemodynamic changes, impacting blood pressure, adipose tissue function, andinflammation. They enhance glycemic control while potentially reducing oxidative stress andinflammation, and they modulate atrial electrophysiology, collectively contributing to the reductionof AF risk. Clinical Evidence: This review synthesizes a wealth of clinical evidence,drawing from observational studies and randomized controlled trials, consistently demonstratinga correlation between SGLT2 inhibitors, particularly dapagliflozin and empagliflozin, anda decreased risk of AF. This protective effect is most pronounced in patients with type 2 diabetesand heart failure, underscoring their potential as therapeutic agents for high-risk populations.Potential Benefits: SGLT2 inhibitors offer a spectrum of potential benefits, includingsubstantial reductions in AF risk, particularly in patients with type 2 diabetes and heart failure.These drugs have consistently demonstrated benefits in reducing heart failure hospitalizations,cardiovascular mortality, and stroke risk, which indirectly contribute to better AF management.Furthermore, SGLT2 inhibitors exhibit renoprotective properties by slowing theprogression of chronic kidney disease and reducing albuminuria, offering substantial benefitsfor AF patients with comorbid kidney disease. Metabolic improvements involving weight loss,blood pressure reduction, and favorable changes in lipid profiles contribute to enhanced cardiovascular health and reduced AF risk. Originally designed for diabetes management, thesemedications offer a holistic approach to AF risk reduction, particularly in patients with type 2diabetes and heart failure.

Chitin/chitosan and collagen are two of the most important bioactive compounds with applications in the pharmaceutical, veterinary, nutraceutical, cosmetic, biomaterials, and other industries. When extracted from fish and shellfish non-edible parts, by-catches, and invasive species, their use contributes to a more sustainable and circular economy. The present article reviews the scientific knowledge and publication trends along the marine chitin/chitosan and collagen value-chains and assesses how researchers, industry players, and end-users can bridge the gap between scientific understanding and industrial applications. Overall, research on chitin/chitosan remains focused on the compound itself rather than its market applications. Still, chitin/chitosan use is expected to increase in food and biomedical applications, while that of collagen is expected to increase in biomedical, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and nutritional applications. Sustainable practices, such as the reuse of waste materials, contribute to strengthen both value-chains; the identified weaknesses include the lack of studies considering market trends, social sustainability, and profitability, as well as insufficient examination of intellectual property rights. Government regulations, market demand, consumer preferences, technological advancements, environmental challenges, and legal frameworks play significant roles in shaping both value-chains. Addressing these factors is crucial for seizing opportunities, fostering sustainability, complying with regulations, and maintaining competitiveness in these constantly evolving value-chains.

Due to its distinctive chemical and biological properties, pectin has recently drawn much attention in biomedical and tissue engineering applications. Polymers like pectin with cell-instructive properties are attractive natural biomaterials for tissue repair and regeneration. Besides, bioactive pectin and pectin-based composites exhibit improved characteristics to deliver active molecules. Pectin and pectin-based composites serve as interactive matrices or scaffolds by stimulating cell adhesion and cell proliferation and enhancing tissue remodeling by forming an extracellular matrix in vivo. Several bioactive properties, such as immunoregulatory, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, and antioxidant activities, contribute to the pectin's and pectin-based composite's enhanced applications in tissue engineering and drug delivery systems.This paper reviews the promising characteristics of pectin or pectic polysaccharides and highlights its potential applications in drug delivery and tissue engineering. Tissue engineering scaffolds containing pectin and pectin-based conjugates or composites demonstrate essential features such as non-toxicity, tunable mechanical properties, biodegradability, and suitable surface properties. The design and fabrication of pectic composites are versatile for tissue engineering and drug delivery applications.

Despite the extensive research conducted on ruminal methanogens and anti-methanogenic intervention strategies over the last 50 years, most of the currently researched enteric CH4 abatement approaches have shown limited efficacy. This is largely because of the complex nature of animal production and the ruminal environment, host genetic variability of CH4 production, and an incomplete understanding of the role of the ruminal microbiome in enteric CH4 emissions. Recent sequencing-based studies suggest the presence of methanogenic archaea in extra-gastrointestinal tract tissues, including respiratory and reproductive tracts of cattle. While these sequencing data require further verification by culture-dependent methods, the consistent identification of methanogens with relatively greater frequency in the airway and urogenital tract of cattle plus increasing appreciation of the microbiome-gut-organ axis highlight the potential interactions between ruminal and extra-gastrointestinal methanogenic communities. Thus, a traditional singular focus on ruminal methanogens may not be sufficient, and a holistic approach which takes into consideration of the transfer of methanogens between ruminal, extra-gastrointestinal, and environmental microbial communities is of necessity to develop more efficient and long-term ruminal CH4 mitigation strategies. In the present review, we provide a holistic survey of the methanogenic archaea present in different anatomical sites of cattle and discuss potential seeding sources of the ruminal methanogens.

ABSTRACT: Iodixanol is an iso-osmolar nonionic dimeric hydrophilic contrast agent with a higher viscosity than the monomeric agents. It is the only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)approved isoosmolar agent in the United States, and it is the only contrast agent with an FDA-approved indication for use in cardiac computed tomographic angiography (CCTA), to assist in the diagnostic evaluation of patients with suspected coronary artery disease. In clinical studies, it has been noted to have fewer side effects and similar image quality when compared to low osmolar contrast media. This can be attributed to the pharmacological properties of iodixanol. In the field of cardiology, iodixanol among other intravenous contrast media is used for coronary computed tomography angiography and cardiac catheterization. In this article, the use, tolerability and efficacy of iodixanol in the field of cardiology are reviewed, specifically evaluating the use for CCTA and coronary angiography, including outcome studies, randomized trials and comparisons to other contrast agents.

It has been more than three decades since the discovery of multifunctional factors, Non-POU Domain-Containing Octamer-Binding Protein, NonO and Splicing Factor, Proline-and Glutamine-Rich, SFPQ. Some of their functions, including their participations in transcriptional and posttranscriptional regulation as well as their contribution to paraspeckle subnuclear body organization have been well-documented. In this review, we focus on the roles of NonO and SFPQ in cell cycle with particular attention to their participation in nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ) and homologous recombination (HR) of DNA damage responses induced by irradiation. In these contexts, absence or malfunction of either or both lead to genome instability and ultimately to apoptosis, cellular senescence, and tumor development. This review also will shed light on NonO and SFPQ function in DNA/RNA/protein binding and their association with Ku heterodimer of the NHEJ pathway required for repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs).

There is a growing interest in the endocannabinoid system and the gut microbiota. Both areas have been suggested to play a role in endometriosis, however this is yet to be studied comprehensively. The purpose of this narrative review is to identify the gaps in endometriosis research in the context of these two areas. It underscores the limited knowledge regarding the involvement of the endocannabinoid system and gut microbiota in endometriosis. Further research in these areas is essential to unlock the therapeutic potential of cannabis and enhance the understanding of endometriosis pathogenesis.

The use of plant-based and microorganism-based biological inputs is a sustainable agricultural practice, promoting a suitable and better utilization of non-renewable resources in the environment. The benefits of using microorganisms are associated with both direct and indirect mechanisms, primarily related to improvements in nutrient absorption and availability, as well as plant growth. The main benefits of using biochemical pesticides are the promotion of sustainability and the management of resistance. Although the use of microorganisms and botanical metabolites is a promising agricultural alternative, it is still primarily concentrated in grain crops. However, due to the wide range of mechanisms of action of plant-based and microorganism-based biological inputs, there is an opportunity to expand their use in agriculture. In the Brazilian biological inputs market, various terminologies have been used to characterize biological-based products, with many of these terms being employed incorrectly and sometimes conflicting with the country’s legislation. Therefore, this review presents the classes of biological inputs and the application and evolution of the plant-based and microbiological-based product market in different crops in Brazil.

Fosmidomycin (FOS) is a naturally occurring compound active against the enzyme DXR in the MEP pathway, and using it as a template for lead structure design is an effective strategy in developing new active compounds. In this work, by replacing the hydroxamate unit of FOS with pyrazole, isoxazole and the related heterocycles that also have the metal ion binding affinity, while retaining the monophosphonic acid in FOS or replacing it with a bisphosphonic acid group, heterocycle-containing mono- and bisphosphonic acid compounds as FOS analogs were designed. The key steps involved in the facile synthesis of these FOS analogs include the Michael addition of diethyl vinylphosphonate or tetraethyl vinylidenebisphosphonate to β-dicarbonyl compounds and the subsequent cyclic condensation with hydrazine or hydroxylamine. Two additional isoxazolinone-bearing FOS analogs were synthesized by the Michaelis-Becker reaction with diethyl phosphite as a key step. The bioactivity evaluation on model plants demonstrated that several compounds have better herbicidal activities compared to FOS, with the most active compound showing a 3.7-fold inhibitory activity on Arabidopsis thaliana, while on the root and stalk of Brassica napus L. and Echinochloa crus-galli in pre-emergence inhibitory activity test, the activities of this compound were found to be 3.2- and 14.3-, 5.4- and 9.4-fold, respectively, and in post-emergency activity test on Amaranthus retroflexus and Echinochloa crus-galli, 2.2- and 2.0-fold inhibition activities were displayed. Despite the significant herbicidal activity, this compound exhibited a DXR inhibitory activity lower than that of FOS but comparable to that of other non-hydroxamate DXR inhibitors, and the dimethylallyl pyrophosphate rescue assay gave no statistical significance, suggesting a different target might be involved in the inhibiting process. This work demonstrates that using bioisosteric replacement can be considered a valuable strategy for discovering new FOS analogs that may have high herbicidal activity.

A long time has passed since COVID-19 was discovered and widely disseminated. Both machine learning and deep learning have moved towards the research of diagnosing COVID-19. Compared to deep learning, traditional machine learning-based methods can also achieve good diagnostic results if they are improved based on innovative points. And deep learning remains a more popular research object. Based on the deep neural network in the field of deep learning, the convolutional neural network, recurrent neural network, long and short-term memory network, and Transformer model have been extended. These models improve the performance and processing power of neural networks by introducing new structures and algorithms. This paper will introduce the basic concepts of machine learning and deep learning, as well as the details of using the relevant methods of both to help diagnose COVID-19.

Abstract: Theoretical and non-dimensional investigations have been performed to study the vibration control potential of approaches that can be based on viscoelastic but also on endochronic elements. The latter are known from the endochronic theory of plasticity and provide the possibility to establish rate-independent schemes for vibration control. The main question that has to be answered is: Can rate-independent damping be efficiently used to reduce mechanical vibrations? To answer this question non-dimensional models for dynamical systems are derived and analyzed numerically in time-domain as well as in frequency-domain. The results are used to compare the performance of an optimally tuned endochronic absorber to the performance of an optimally tuned dynamic absorber with viscoelastic damping. Based on a novel closed form representation for non-linear systems with endochronic elements, it has been possible to prove that rate-independent control of vibration results in an overall control profit that is close to the control profit obtained by the application of well-established approaches. It has also been found that the new concept is advantageous if anti-resonances have to be considered in broadband vibration control. Based on these novel findings, a practical realization in the context of active vibration control is proposed in which the rate-independent control law is implemented on an appropriate signal processing hardware.

A global existential and interlocking environmental, climate and cooperation/equity polycrisis is being faced, which increasingly impacts and is impacted by water and land systems. As a result, transformations in response are gaining increasing traction. Advances in approaches to visualising and communicating how innovations and changes in landscape features enable shifts, transformations and transitions are more crucial than ever before. Visions help focus actions, collaboration and alignment of multiple actors in working towards a common purpose, whilst also entering people’s consciousness at the deep level of values, transforming beliefs and consequently, thinking and action. They give direction on effort and pull on transformational innovation. The evidence-based ‘Water Visions Visualisation Platform’ presents an innovative and accessible way to illustrate, communicate and support future water visioning and strategizing at the landscape scale based on composite paradigms, scenarios, horizons and concepts. Plausible visions of the future are envisioned, illustrated, narratively described and qualitatively assessed, as well as connected with real-world examples and resources through the interactive Platform. This paper outlines the co-creation methodology, the architecture and the co-development of the Platform, as well as a preliminary evaluation through literature-based criteria and the sharing of the Platform with a number of audiences.

At this time, nanoparticles used to been considered for various biomedical applications due to their particular properties[1, 2]. It is already known that one of the major advances in the relative application of nanoparticles is the recognition of the steric stabilization which can increase the particle stability in the biological environment and provide the opportunities of the application of nanoparticles in the development of drug delivery systems (DDSs) for achieving drug targeting and controlled drug release. Nano crystalline silver particles (AgNPs) have major applications in biomolecular recognition of highly sensitive, anti-microbial treatment, catalysis and manufacture sensors [3-7]. The NPs for various applications medical like image quality, medicine, tissue, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of targeting tissues and cells styles. This is particularly the case of AgNPs significantly encompasses the whole a wide range of industrial and medical applications. In this study, we have been synthesized incorporated omeprazole and omeprazole sulfide drugs with AgNPs and the results was investigated with TEM, FT-IR, DRS and XRD. The particle size has been seen in imaging TEM about 80 nm. Moreover either Omeprazole@AgNPs or omeprazole sulfide@AgNPs are able to excrete bacteria. In this study, the antibacterial properties of drugs with silver nanoparticles also increased.

Ice-binding proteins are crucial for adaptation of various organisms to low temperatures. Some of these, called antifreeze proteins, are usually thought to inhibit growth and/or recrystallization of ice crystals. However, prior to these events, ice must somehow appear in the organism, either coming from outside or forming inside through the nucleation process. Unlike most other works, our paper is focused on ice nucleation rather than the behavior of the already existing ice. The nucleation kinetics is studied both theoretically, with special attention paid to ice nucleation on ice-binding surfaces, and experimentally. For experimental studies, we use the ice-binding protein mIBP83, a previously constructed mutant of a spruce budworm Choristoneura fumiferana antifreeze protein. We show that mIBP83 does not affect the ice nucleation temperature in the buffer in test tubes, but hinders the impact of potent ice nucleators of various chemical natures, namely CuO powder and ice-nucleating bacteria Pseudomonas syringae. Additional experiments on human cells show that mIBP83 is concentrated in some regions, but only in cooled cells. Thus, the antifreeze protein not only binds to ice, but also blocks various sites that act or can act as ice nucleators. Such ice-preventing binding may be the crucial biological task of antifreeze proteins.

In the continued battle against one of the oldest enemies known to mankind, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), the emergence of drug resistance among children poses multiple challenges for early detection and treatment. Molecular diagnostics and newer drugs like bedaquiline and delamanid have strengthened the armamentarium and helped design convenient, safe and child-friendly therapeutic regimens against drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB). Preventive strategies like treatment of TB infection among children living in close contact with patients with drug-resistant TB and effective vaccines against TB are currently in the investigative stages of development and implementation. In addition to the implementation of recent novel diagnostics and treatment modalities, effective psychosocial and nutritional support, as well as dedicated monitoring for compliance and adverse effects, are crucial determinants for successful treatment outcomes in these children.

Microcystis aeruginosa is a common cyanobacteria found in water blooms and often causes ecological harm. Antibiotics are also increasingly used for the prevention and treatment of bacterial infections in aquaculture. However, since most antibiotics cannot be fully metabolized, they enter the water environment and cause ecological impacts. In this paper, the effects of the two quinolone antibiotics (enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin) on the population density and microcystins (MCs) production of Microcystis aeruginosa were studied. It is of great significance for the ecological risk assessment of antibiotics to the water environment. The results showed that the 96h EC50 values of enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin to Microcystis aeruginosa were 56.10mg/L and 49.80mg/L respectively, and the toxicity of ciprofloxacin to Microcystis aeruginosa was slightly stronger than that of enrofloxacin. With the increase of the two quinolone antibiotic concentration, the growth inhibition rate (IR) increased, but when the concentration reached a certain height, the IR would reach its threshold. Long-term exposure to low concentrations of these two quinolone antibiotics is not only more likely to lead to the outbreak of Microcystis aeruginosa, but also increase its toxin production capacity. The highest contents of MCs in enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin groups were 95.539 μg/g and 93.720 μg/g, respectively. The MCs value of these three enrofloxacin treatment groups was more than above 51.8 times that of control group (CK) on the 4th day; from 8th day to 14th day, the MCs value of these three enrofloxacin treatment groups was more than above 3.2 times that of CK group. For another ciprofloxacin, the MCs value of the treatment group was more than 64.98 times that of the CK group on the 4th day, and from 8th day to 14th day, the MCs value of the treatment group was more than 2.7 times that of the CK group. These findings provide crucial management rationale.

Technology is in the way to reach in its climax but the basic understanding of science in many phenomena is still awaited even though the nature witnesses it. Scientific research reveals strong analogy between photon and electron. When an atom deals neutral state, it levitates electron of outer ring from the back surface while placing the bit-energy at front surface. Gravitation behavior of that electron starts at the centre of relaxation point by including the force of side pole where the pulling force of nearby unfilled state of that atom from the front surface results into depict forcing energy shape like Gaussian distribution symbol with both ends turned called unit photon. The inertia is being involved at each stage of changing direction of that electron by introducing the disappearances of forces of two poles against the appearances of forces of two opposite poles during rest to motion and motion to rest in the first half-cycle. The same is the case in the second half-cycle of that electron during rest to motion and motion to rest but it is under different introduction of the disappearances of forces against appearances of forces. However, at stage of levitating or gravitating period of electron, only one force is being involved at one time where the opposite force is disappeared. The uninterrupted confined inter-state electron-dynamics of atom under the availability of several bits of bit-energy results into generate forcing energy shape like a wave. Two bits of bit-energy where shape of bit for first half-cycle is like integral symbol and second half-cycle is like opposite integral symbol which are being placed along the configuring trajectory of inter-state electron-dynamics during forward-direction cycle and two bits of bit-energy shape in opposite order are being placed along the trajectory of inter-state electron-dynamics during back-direction cycle. Generating forcing energy of unit photon in each cycle is pushing to the rear side by remaining connected till the electron is not restoring the state of rest. Silicon atom is considered as a model system under neutral state. Uninterrupted confined inter-state electron-dynamics result into generate forcing energy that can travel immeasurable length and unavailability of necessitating bit-energy at any interrupted stage result into generate an overt photon. Inter-state electron-dynamics for at least two cycles generate an overt photon –a photon length twice to unit photon. Under certain interaction of unit photon, it divides equally into two bits of bit-energy instead of dividing into tits and bits of heat. The mechanism of generating photon characteristic current by the electron of neutral state atom validates that atoms are four-dimensional discs at centre of dealing no force. An isolated electron is being grounded under directed forcing energy to impinge a neutral state atom where the gained instantaneous velocity under merged energy resulting into distort atom at that point. Matter changes the role of energy and force under various sorts of interactions. Here, heat energy and photon energy explore matter at atomic and electron levels, thus, devise basis of science to describe.

Modification of Scots pine sapwood (Pinus sylvestris L.) with heterocyclic compounds, imidazole and succinimide, was investigated. Pressure-impregnation with aqueous solutions containing imidazole, imidazole + citric acid, succinimide, succinimide + citric acid, and citric acid + sorbitol (CIOL®) at 5%, 10%, and 15% solid content was followed by oven-curing at 220 °C for 1 hour. Mass changes during treatment steps, bending properties, and anti-swelling efficiency (ASE) were examined. Results indicate that solid concentrations within the range of 5% to 10% were optimal. Results seem to show there are two differing mechanisms in the modification of imidazole and succinimide, respectively. Mass loss due to the heat treatment was highest in imidazole-treated specimens, whereas it remained low and concentration-independent in succinimide-treated specimens. ASE after three cycles reached 31% for imidazole-treated specimens and improved to 38% with the addition of citric acid. For succinimide, ASE increased from 17% to 41%. Bending properties generally showed improvement, except for succinimide + citric acid and CIOL®, which displayed a reduced modulus of rupture. Chemical analyses are warranted to fully understand the reaction mechanisms of the treatments. Imidazole treatment's positive effects are suggested to stem from a thermal reaction between the chemical and wood, indicated by substantial mass loss during leaching and specimen darkening. Succinimide and citric acid might exhibit polymerization with each other and wood components, akin to the CIOL® process. Further research should delve into reaction mechanisms and the impact of imidazole and succinimide on biological durability.

In coastal areas around the world, seagrass meadows play a crucial ecological and economic role. A large amount of seagrass beds dominates primary production and contributes to the high secondary productivity of this ecosystem. The microbial loop (consuming bacterial biomass by grazers and using seagrass-derived detritus by bacteria) may be an important mechanism for transferring seagrass-derived organic matter to the aquatic food chain. This study aims to improve our understanding of how bacterial growth and mortality (grazing and viral lysis rates) differ in seagrass and adjacent unvegetated meadow habitats. We found that viral lysis and grazing caused similar mortality rates of bacteria in a seagrass environment during the summer. It has been found, however, that bacterial production is controlled by the availability of resources (bottom-up control) and is cycled within the bacteria-virus-DOC loop in adjacent unvegetated waters. Our study region may be affected by this shift in organic matter fate and cycling.

Agriculture uses a lot of fuel, fertilizers, pesticides and other substances, while emitting large amounts of GHGs. It is important to optimize these inputs and outputs. One such way is increas-ing crop biodiversity. For this reason, single crops and mixtures of maize, hemp and faba bean as binary and ternary crops were investigated at the Experimental Station of Vytautas Magnus Uni-versity, Lithuania. Results showed that consumption of diesel fuel was by the 31-46% higher than in single and 22-35% higher than in binary cultivations was found in a ternary crop. This influenced on the highest energy input or near twice higher than in maize and hemp single crops and maize+hemp binary crop, but similar with binary crops with faba bean. Despite this, the productivity of the trinary crop and, at the same time, the energy output were 2-5 times higher than in other treat-ments. This compensated for higher energy inputs and the energy efficiency ratio. In ternary crop, energy productivity was from 1.1 to 2.8 times higher and net energy was by 1.9-5.3 times higher than in other tested cultivations. The highest total GHG emissions were obtained in binary maize+hemp and maize+faba bean cultivations (1729.84 and 2067.33 CO2eq ha-1). Ternary cultiva-tion with the highest energy inputs initiated average GHG emission - 1541.90 kg ha-1 CO2eq. For higher efficiency, ternary crop could be sown and harvested in one machine pass. Faba beans should be included in the ter-nary crops, as their biomass takes a significant part of the total biomass produced. We recommend to review the inter-cropped faba bean seeding rates as faba bean seeds have a high energy input equivalent.

The study was conducted to prepare juice blend by using Orange, Carrot and Tiger-nut juices. Fully mature raw Orange, Tiger-nut and Carrot were processed into juice forms and combined in different ratios which were analyzed for their composition and Consumer’s acceptability. The analysis showed that the juice with higher Orange juice content had higher levels of acidity. This implies that they would last longer as they are not susceptible to spoilage by most organisms. The Juice with higher orange juice content was also found to be very rich in Vitamin C, due to inherent high amount of Vitamin C in raw Orange Fruit. However, it scored lowest in terms of general acceptability because the raw fruit was purchased separately and there’s a likelihood some of the Orange used in the Juice preparation were sour. This led to a sour taste in this Juice blend. The Juice blend that contained equal proportions of all three juices was the most acceptable to the consumers in terms of color, taste and Nutritional composition. It gave equal amounts of the unique properties of each fruit and provided a unique color and taste that was very appealing to the panelists. This product makes it possible to properly utilize these fruits, reduce post harvest losses, cater to different health needs of the consumers and ensure food security. It is recommended that further work should be done on antioxidant properties, other fruit blends and storage stability of the beverage to determine the shelf-life.

Distributions with bounded support show considerable sparsity over those with unbounded support, despite the fact that there are a number of real-world contexts where observations take values from a bounded range (proportions, percentages, and fractions are typical examples). For proportion modelling, a flexible family of two-parameter distribution functions associated with the exponential distribution is proposed here. Mathematical and statistical properties of the novel distribution are examined, including quantiles, mode, moments, hazard rate function, and its characterization. The parameter estimation procedure using the maximum likelihood method was carried out, and applications to environmental and engineering data were also considered. To this end, various statistical tests are used, along with some other information criterion indicators to determine how well the model fits the data. The proposed model is found to be the most efficient plan in most cases for the datasets considered.

Purpose: When it comes to improving citizen service delivery standard and processes, or broadly, management in government (MIG), many reform programs and improvement efforts are ongoing across different ministries, departments, and agencies. This paper is part of a larger empirical research where we are interested to know what those programs and projects are, and how they are doing, and what the gaps are. Design/methodology/approach: Analyzing the publicly available data on the government portal and donors’ website, this article provides an overall idea of current reforms in various places of government. In parallel, field research was conducted through visiting agency offices, observing office environment and mechanisms, and interviewing public managers who are working at district and sub-district level offices of directorates or agencies.Findings: As a trend, state-led development process and the traditional mode of administration have moved to New Public Management based quality and performance approach. All donors have their own strategy framework document like ‘Country Assistance strategy’, ‘Country Operations and Business Plan’, Logical Framework Document, Focus or Priority Streams, etc. Many of the projects are sectoral and agency or ministry specific and have an inherent limitations, due to ‘cadre’ based organizational structural arrangement. So, it is common ‘not to own the projects’, rather ‘using the fund as much as possible anyway within the given project duration’. When the fund ends, implementing units, either government or NGOs, abandon the projects. That is why many projects are actually half done without significant and sustained direction.Originality/value: We can conclude that the typical ‘top-down’ or ‘trickle down’ conception is still dominant in design and implementation of reforms programs and service quality efforts. So, how to reach systemically at the bottom where public managers provide services to citizens, needs even more deliberation.

Roller milling of sorghum and quinoa seeds into flour fractions (course, middle, and fine) was investigated, chemically analysed and applied in the baking of gluten-free sourdough bread. Gap settings were adjusted to 0, 5, 8 and 10 for quinoa and 3, 5, and 7 for sorghum. The fine fractions reached values of up to about 41% (gap 8) for quinoa and around 20% for sorghum (gap 5). SEM pictographs illustrated clear separation of each fraction with chemical analysis showing high contents of protein, TDF (total dietary fibre) and IDF (insoluble dietary fibre) in the course fraction. Up to 77% starch content was obtained in the fine fraction with significant amounts of SDF (soluble dietary fibre) which has good health benefits. Increasing the dough moisture up to 90% helped in decreasing the bread crumb firmness, while low Avrami parameters and RVA pasting behaviour indicated slow bread staling rate for both sourdough breads.

Sulfur, peroxide and combined sulfur and peroxide curing systems were applied for cross-linking of unfilled and carbon black filled rubber compounds based on ethylene-propylene-diene-monomer rubber. The results revealed that the type of curing system influenced the course and shape of curing isotherms. This resulted in the change of curing kinetics of rubber compounds. The cross-link density of vulcanizates cured with combined vulcanization systems was lower than that for vulcanizates cured only in the presence of sulfur or peroxide system. The results revealed good correlation between the cross-link density as well as the structure of the formed cross-links and physical-mechanical characteristics of the materials. It can be stated that by proper combination of vulcanization systems it is possible to modify tensile behavior of vulcanizates in targeted manner. On the other side, dynamical-mechanical properties were found not be significantly influenced by the composition of curing system.

Thalassemia is one of the most prevalent genetic disorders worldwide which has been previously found to have an association with several physiological and organ complications. Several studies found both its positive and inverse correlation with glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Therefore, in this meta-analysis, we tried to assess the accurate correlation of thalassemia with GFR. We searched in Google Scholar, PubMed, and ScienceDirect, and from the initial 96 articles we finally could include 15 studies. The quality and publication bias assessment confirmed that all the studies were of high to moderate quality with no publication bias. The main outcome of the mean difference (MD) was -6.45, 95%CI: -18.50, 5.60 (P<0.00001), which indicated a negative correlation of GFR with thalassemia. The sensitivity analyses found one study as a slight outlier and reanalyzing the data excluding that study MD was achieved as -13.90, 95%CI: -24.22, -3.59 (P<0.00001) which even strongly supports our main outcome. Our result determined that the GFR is generally higher in healthy people as compared to thalassemia patients.

Studying and understanding the behavior of people and vehicles on public roads can be of utmost importance for supporting the activities of many institutional stakeholders. It may allow automated supervision of the ongoing situation in a given place, with warnings or alarms raised in case of anomalies. It may be used to plan their interventions on road and town organization. It may provide them with advanced support to decision-making. The number of involved entities and places to manage makes it infeasible to manually handle all the traffic-related tasks. Moreover, the complexity of the tasks to be carried out requires the adoption of advanced approaches. Many AI solutions are nowadays mature to support these requirements. In some cases, the motivations and objectives of traffic management require the AI outcomes to be understandable, interpretable and explainable. In this paper, we propose TrAnSIT (TRaffic ANalysis Supervision and Interpretation Tool), an AI-based framework that combines several modules, each aimed at tackling a specific traffic-related task, so as to cover a wide landscape of traffic-related issues, from overall urban or suburban traffic management to surveying specific road segments that fall under the scope of one camera. Most of these modules are based on AI techniques that support a human-level understanding of the outcomes.

This paper deals with the viscoelastic behavior during crystallization and melting of semicrystalline polymers with the aim of later modeling the residual stresses after processing in case where crystallization occurs in quasi static conditions (in additive manufacturing for example). Despite of an abundant literature on polymer crystallization, the current state of scientific knowledge does not yet allow ab initio modeling. Therefore, an alternative and pragmatic way has been explored to propose a first approximation of the impact of crystallization and melting on the storage and the loss moduli during crystallization-melting-crystallization cycle. An experimental approach, combining DSC, optical microscopy and oscillatory shear rheology was used to define macroscopic parameters related to the microstructure. These parameters have been integrated into a phenomenological model. Isothermal measurements were used to describe the general framework, and crystallization at a constant cooling rate was used to evaluate the feasibility of a general approach. It can be concluded that relying solely on the crystalline fraction is inadequate to model the rheology. Instead accounting for the microstructure at the spherulitic level could be more useful. Additionally, the results obtained from the experiments help to enhance our understanding of the correlations between crystallization kinetics and its mechanical effects.

This scholarly article provides an overview of the present and future issues and trends in social work on a global scale. Drawing upon recent bibliographic references and a review of the literature, this article explores the challenges faced by social workers in various regions and highlights emerging trends that are reshaping the field. The analysis incorporates insights from renowned authors and researchers to provide a comprehensive understanding of the current state and anticipated future of social work practice, education, and research worldwide.

The use of phosphate-solubilizing fungi in coffee cultivation is an alternative with which to reduce the use of fertilizers. The objective of this study was to analyze the mechanisms involved in the phosphorus solubilization of the fungal strains and to evaluate the effect of a phosphate-solubilizing strain on the coffee plants. For this, phosphorus-solubilizing fungal strains were selected for evaluation of their solubilization potential and phosphatase activity. Coffee plants were inoculated in the field with a phosphate solubilizing strain, and soil and foliar soluble phosphorus, as well as coffee bean yield, were quantified. Of the 151 strains analyzed, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium waksmanii, and Penicillium brevicompactum showed the highest solubilization. Aspergillus niger and P. waksmanii presented the highest soluble phosphorus values; however, P. brevicompactum showed the highest phosphatase activity. The P. brevicompactum strain inoculated on the coffee plants did not favor foliar phosphorus content but increased the soil soluble phosphorus content in two of the coffee plantations. The plants inoculated with the phosphate solubilizing strain showed an increase in coffee bean weight on all plantations, although this increase was only significant in two of the three selected coffee plantations.

DEXTER (Detection of EXplosives and firearms to counter TERrorism) is a project funded by NATO’s Science for Peace and Security (SPS) program with the goal of developing an integrated system capable of remotely and accurately detecting explosives and firearms in public places without impeding the flow of pedestrians. The active microwave component of the DEXTER project is referred to as MIC (Microwave Imaging Curtain), supported by the French SGDSN (General Secretariat of Defense and National Security), and utilizes a radar system capable of generating 3D images in real time to address non-checkpoint detection of explosives and fire-arms. The project, led by the ONERA (France), is based on a radar imaging system developed by the Fraunhofer FHR institute, using a MIMO architecture with an Ultra Wide-Band waveform. Although high-resolution 3D microwave imaging is already being used in expensive body scanners to detect firearms concealed under clothing, MIC's innovative approach lies in utilizing a high-resolution 3D imaging device that can detect larger dangerous objects carried by moving individuals at a longer range, in addition to providing discrete detection in pedestrian flow. Automatic detection and classification of these dangerous objects is carried out on 3D radar im-ages using a deep-learning network. This paper will outline the project's objectives and constraints, as well as the design, architecture, and performance of the final system. Additionally, it will present real-time imaging results ob-tained during a live demonstration in a relevant environment.

Biosensors are analytical devices that utilize biological interactions to detect and quantify clinical biomarkers, contaminants, allergens, and microorganisms. They combine different disciplines including analytical chemistry, molecular biology, and electrical engineering. Biosensors operate by coupling a bioreceptor, such as nucleic acid or proteins, with a transducer that converts the biological interaction into an electrical signal. Electrochemical and optical transduction are commonly used approaches due to their high detection capability and compatibility with miniaturization. Biosensors provide both high specificity and sensitivity and can be integrated into low-cost microfluidic platforms for rapid and point-of-care applications. These attributes make these devices valuable tools in analytical chemistry, particularly for early diagnostic applications. However, conventional biosensors face challenges related to the immobilization of biorecognition elements on the transducer surface, leading to issues like lost of sensitivity and selectivity. To address these problems, the introduction of nanomaterials, particularly magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and magnetic beads (MBs), has been implemented. MNPs combine their magnetic properties with other interesting characteristics such as small size, high surface-to-volume ratio, and excellent biocompatibility. They can be tailored for specific applications and have been extensively used in various fields, including biosensing and clinical diagnosis. Furthermore, MNPs simplify sample preparation by isolating target analytes through magnetic separation, thus improving sensitivity, and reducing analysis time and interference phenomena. The synthesis and modification of MNPs play a crucial role in adjusting their properties for different applications. This review presents an overview of the synthesis and surface modifications of magnetic nanoparticles, their role in the development of biosensors and bioassays, and their applications across various scientific areas.

Introduction: In the recent years alternate day dosing has been recommended in iron deficieny treatment. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy and side effects of oral iron treatments given daily 1x1, alternate day 1x1 and 2x1 alternate day dosing in iron deficieny anemia patients. Methods: A total of 52 patients with a diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia with serum ferritin level of 25 µg/L or less were included in this retrospective study. Statistical analyzes were done with SPSS V.25. Results: The patients included in our study were between the ages of 18-51. All of the patients included in the study were female. A statistically significant increase was found between 0-14 days(p<0.001), 14-28 days(p<0.001) and 0-28 days(p<0.001) hemoglobin values in all patients. There was no statistically significant difference between 0-14 days (p=0.397) and 0-28 days(p=0.310) ferritin values in all patients. A statistically significant difference was found between 14-28 days(p<0.001) ferritin values. When the rate of change of hemoglobin and ferritin values between the groups was compared and no statistically significant difference was observed between the groups. The rate of change of ferritin values for 14-28 days was significant (p=0.012). There was no significant difference in the frequency of symptoms in the 14th day and 28th day controls for each group (p>0.05). The incidence of metallic taste and bloating symptoms was found to be statistically significant in the third control in the group with 2x1 drug use alternate day (p=0.094). Discussion: The only difference in efficacy was observed in ferritin values between 14th and 28th days. The increase in ferritin values was higher in the group that used 1x1 oral iron every day. However, since no difference was observed between the groups in terms of ferritin and hemoglobin values on days 0 and 28, all three groups were considered equally efficient. Side effects were mainly gastrointestinal side effects. Since the group that received 2x1 oral treatment alternate day had a statistically significantly higher rate of side effects, the patients’ treatment tolerance will be lower compared to the other groups. In conlusion, there is no difference in efficacy and side effects between the patient groups receiving 1x1 daily and 1x1 alternate day oral iron therapy, so 1x1 use alternate day is the most appropriate treatment method for oral iron therapy in terms of patient tolerance, adherence to treatment and pharmacoeconomics.

This paper explores the integration of multiple intelligences and artificial intelligence (AI) in language learning, focusing on its potential to enhance personalization and engagement. Drawing from existing research and studies conducted in various contexts, including the Philippines, this study aims to contribute to the understanding of the benefits, challenges, and effectiveness of this integration. The paper begins with an introduction that highlights the background and significance of integrating multiple intelligences and AI in language learning, identifying research gaps, objectives, research questions, and the theoretical framework. A literature review provides an overview of multiple intelligences theory by Howard Gardner, the role of AI in language learning, and identifies gaps in the existing literature. The methodology section outlines the research design and approach, participant selection, data collection methods, validity and reliability measures, and ethical considerations. Findings and results are presented through the analysis of qualitative data, exploring emergent themes and patterns. The discussion section critically examines the identified research gaps, discusses the validity and reliability of the study, addresses the scope and limitations, and explores the implications of the findings for theory, practice, and future research. The conclusion summarizes the key findings and contributions of the study, reflects on the achievement of research objectives, offers recommendations for further research, and provides final remarks tying together the main points of the study. This paper contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing insights into the integration of multiple intelligences and AI in language learning and its impact on personalization, engagement, and language learning outcomes.

In Brazil, the production of corn and soybeans has been growing significantly in recent years. Considering that the strategies for investing in the production of these crops are conditioned by production costs and risk, the objective of this article is to propose a simulation model that indicates the trend of production costs for these commodities, considering the dispersion and correlation of selected key variable prices and corn and soybean production costs practiced between the years of 2018 and 2022. Fifty specialized companies in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil, provided data for this study, and Monte Carlo simulations showed that the total cost of corn production/ha is between USD 600.00 and USD 1150.00, with a level of certainty of 84.7%, and soybeans are in the range of USD 260.00 to USD 420.00, with a level of certainty of 86.4%. The model evidenced a trend of decreasing production costs for the crops for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 harvests, as the input with the greatest impact (fertilizer) is showing a downward trend. On the other hand, costs related to labor, soybean seed, and fungicides are showing an upward trend, while dolomitic limestone corrective remains stable.

Cryptosporidiosis is a widespread disease caused by the parasitic protozoan Cryptosporidium spp., which infects various vertebrate species, including humans. Once unknown as a gastroenteritis-causing agent, Cryptosporidium spp. is now recognized as a pathogen causing life-threatening disease, especially in immunocompromised individuals such as AIDS patients. Advances in diagnostic methods and increased awareness have led to a significant shift in the perception of Cryptosporidium spp. as a pathogen. Nowadays, genomic and proteomic studies have played a main role in understanding the molecular biology of this complex-life-cycle parasite. Genomics has enabled the identification of numerous genes involved in the parasite's development and interaction with hosts. Proteomics has allowed for the identification of protein interactions, their function, structure, and cellular activity. The combination of these two approaches has significantly contributed to the development of new diagnostic tools, vaccines, and drugs for cryptosporidiosis. In this review, we summarize the major accomplishments in the field of Cryptosporidium research using genomics and proteomics.

Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by recurrent erythema, flushing, telangiectasia, papules, pustules, and phymatous changes in the central area of the face. Patients with this condition often experience a significant negative impact on their quality of life, self-esteem, and overall well-being. Despite its prevalence, the pathogenesis of rosacea is not yet fully understood. Recent research advances are reshaping our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of rosacea, and treatment options based on the pathophysiological perspective hold promise to improve patient outcomes and reduce incidence. In this comprehensive review, we investigate the pathogenesis of rosacea in-depth, with a focus on emerging and novel mechanisms, and provide an up-to-date overview of therapeutic strategies that target the diverse pathogenic mechanisms of rosacea. Lastly, we discuss potential future research directions aimed at enhancing our understanding of the condition and developing effective treatments.

Response of tomato and eggplant to continuous lighting (CL) and abnormal light/dark (L/D) cycles was studied to elucidate the role of the absence of the dark period in the diurnal cycle in the development of leaf injuries under CL. Four light treatments were set: 16/8 h (control), 24/0 h (CL), 6/6 h, and 24/24 h (abnormal L/D cycles). These light treatments provided average daily light integrals of 17.3, 25.9, 13.0 and 13.0 mol m-2 day-1, respectively. Results of this work have shown that in both tomato and eggplant abnormal L/D cycles caused photoinhibition and leaf injuries similar to those in CL-grown plants. Induced defense mechanisms were not strong enough to contend against oxidative stress caused by light treatments that provided plants with even smaller DLI than 16/8 h photoperiod did. Half time during abnormal L/D cycles were dark periods. Despite these facts, abnormal L/D cycles were injurious. It is concluded that photooxidative stress induced by CL can not be attributed to excessive DLI or the continuity of light itself (the absence of dark periods). Therefore, we believe that the hypothesis suggesting circadian asynchrony to be the main triggering factor of CL-induced leaf injuries is the most plausible among many others proposed.

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) affect millions of people worldwide, and to date Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease are the most common NDs. The risk of developing NDs increases dra-matically with age, and genetic and environmental factors can be crucial in their progression. The main feature of NDs is the abnormal presence of specific proteins that can lead to neuronal death, proteotoxic stress, and alteration of catabolic systems, which are major players in the processes of neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation. Despite research efforts to date, the therapies cur-rently in use for the treatment of NDs provide marginal therapeutic benefit, so the focus is now being direct toward the search of natural products that could be a valuable aid in combating these diseases, including the natural compound Andrographis paniculata (Ap) and especially its main constituent Andrographolide (Andro). Preclinical studies have shown that the aqueous extract of Ap is capable to modulate neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative responses, determining a reduction in inflammatory markers and oxidative stress in various NDs. Therefore, in this review we will focus on the molecular mechanisms through which Ap and Andro are able to modulate the processes of neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation that are major causes of neuronal death and cognitive decline.

Genes encoding retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4), follicle stimulating hormone subunit beta (FSHB) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) have been proposed as candidate genes for reproduction traits in pigs. The study presented in this paper aimed to find associations between variants of these genes and reproduction traits in pigs reared in Poland. Investigation included Polish Large White x Polish Landrace (n=288) and Yorkshire (n=195) sows. Individual genotypes were determined by means of PCR-RFLP (single nucleotide polymorphism in RBP4, FSHB) or PCR (insertion/deletion in EGF) methods. Obtained result showed that RBP4 variants were related to total number born (TNB) and number born alive (NBA) in 1st, 2nd and 5th parities, FSHB to TNB and NBA in first two parities, however EGF with both traits in all parities (P≤0.05 or P≤0.01). In case of RBP4 gene, heterozygous genotype (AB) was favorable for analyzed traits, however in case of FSHB and EGF homozygous genotype, AA and BB respectively. Obtained results indicate that polymorphism in three analyzed genes is associated with important reproductive traits of pigs kept in Poland.

Imidacloprid is the first-generation neonicotinoid insecticide. But, the long-term use of im-idacloprid as a pesticide has caused severe water pollution. Recently, the toxicity of imidacloprid to aquatic organisms has received increasing attention. This study aimed to investigate the ab-sorption and distribution of imidacloprid in various tissues (gills, intestine, liver, muscle, brain, and gonads) of goldfish through short-term and continuous exposure tests for 28 days. The re-sults of short-term exposure indicated that the concentration of imidacloprid and its metabolites in tissues at the transfer stage decreased steadily after 1 day of 40 mg/l imidacloprid water treatment and was below the detection limit after 3 days. Continuous exposure for 28 days at various treatment concentrations showed that the concentrations of imidacloprid and its metab-olites differed significantly among the different tissues of the goldfish. In the 20 mg/l treatment group (S1), the highest concentration of imidacloprid was found in the liver (12.04 μg /gtissue), followed by the intestine (9.91 μg /gtissue), muscle (6.20 μg /gtissue), gill (6.11 μg /gtissue), gonads (5.22 μg /gtissue), and brain (2.87 μg /gtissue). In the 40 mg/l treatment group (S2), the order of tissue concentrations was similar to that of the S1 group, with the highest concentration observed in the liver (12.04 μg/gtissue), followed by the intestine (9.91 μg/gtissue), muscle (6.20 μg/gtissue), gill (6.11 μg/gtissue), gonads (5.22 μg/gtissue), and brain (2.87 μg/gtissue). Fur-thermore, the study detected 5-hydroxyimidacloprid, imidacloprid urea, and 6-chloronicotinic acid in imidacloprid metabolites in all tissues, while imidacloprid was detected only in the intes-tine and liver. Overall, the results of this study contribute to a better understanding of the met-abolic behavior of imidacloprid in organisms and provide new data to support the assessment of imidacloprid toxicity in fish.

Rivaroxaban and aspirin are commonly used antithrombotic agents that are used in combination for the prevention of coronary artery disease (CAD) and atherothrombotic events in adult patients after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) with elevated cardiac biomarkers, or with coronary artery disease (CAD) or symptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD) in high-risk patients. The recommended dosage is 2.5 mg Rivaroxaban twice daily with 75–100 mg aspirin daily. This study aimed to develop a fixed-dose combination tablet of rivaroxaban (2.5 mg) and aspirin (50 mg) to decrease the patient's pill burden and enhance medication adherence. The product formula was developed based on compatibility studies among the active ingredients and the active ingredients' compatibility studies. The formula and the manufacturing procedure were chosen based on the risk assessment for each active substance, wet granulation with both actives intragranular was found to have faster dissolution than direct mix formulae. Furthermore, a validated reverse-phase HPLC stability indicator method was developed to detect APIs and their possible degradants in the formula.

Protons are gaining increasing attention as neurotransmitters due to their extraordinary abilities to rapidly transfer electrical charge, mobilize cellular calcium and modulate ion channels. How all this is possible is currently the subject of in-depth studies and discussions concerning not only neurophysiology, but also biological materials for artificial intelligence. In this short review, some biochemical mechanisms are described by which protons, in combination with calcium, can initiate firing in sensory neurons and transmit impulse across synapses. Furthermore, mechanisms are put forward concerning how three neurotransmitters, glutamate, gamma-aminobutyric acid and acetylcholine, are able to generate protons. The results of the numerous experimental works taken into consideration indicate that protons can play a fundamental role both in the generation and in the transmission of the nerve impulse.

Two-dimensional MXene synthesized from MAX phase ceramic has the good electrical conductivity, promising to be used as electrodes. In this study, Nb4C3Tx MXene and low-entropy (Nb0.8Ti0.05V0.05Zr0.05Ta0.05)4C3Tx MXene were prepared by etching Nb4AlC3 and (Nb0.8Ti0.05V0.05Zr0.05Ta0.05)4AlC3 ceramics in the HF acid at 60 oC. By investigating the electrochemical properties of lithium batteries, it was found that the Nb4C3Tx and (Nb0.8Ti0.05V0.05Zr0.05Ta0.05)4C3Tx could provide the specific capacities of 163.7 mAh·g-1 and 130 mAh·g-1 after 50 cycles at a current density of 0.1 A·g-1, respectively, and maintain the coulombic efficiency close to 100%, good for the utilization of electrodes in the lithium batteries.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming more prevalent across industries as diverse as healthcare, finance, and transportation. Artificial intelligence is based on the analysis of large data sets and requires a continuous supply of high-quality data. However, using data for AI is not without its challenges. This paper comprehensively reviews and critically examine the challenges of using data for AI, including data quality, data volume, privacy and security, bias and fairness, interpretability and explainability, ethical concern, and technical expertise and skills. This paper examines e these challenges in details and offers advices on how companies can address them. By understanding and addressing these challenges, organizations can harness the power of AI to make smarter decisions and gain a competitive advantage in the digital age.

This paper investigates the dynamic properties of artificial neural networks using differential equations and explores the influence of parameters on stability and neural oscillations. By analyzing the equilibrium point of the differential equations, we identify conditions for asymptotic stability and criteria for oscillation in artificial neural networks. Furthermore, we demonstrate how adjusting synaptic weights between neurons can effectively control stability and oscillation. The proposed model offers potential insights into the malfunctioning mechanisms of biological neural networks implicated in neurological disorders like Parkinson's disease tremors and epilepsy seizures, which are characterized by abnormal oscillations.

This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the global gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets. The article begins by discussing the increasing demand for gas and LNG, particularly in Asia, as countries aim to transition to cleaner sources of energy. It explores how market volatility has led to energy security interventions and lasting economic and emissions impacts. It then explores the global supply and demand dynamics, highlighting the structural change expected in the market and the competition between Europe and Asia for limited new LNG supply. The article also focuses on Europe's increased flexibility and dependence on LNG imports, which have risen by 60% to 121 million tonnes, offsetting lower Russian pipeline imports. Furthermore, the article delves into global supply and demand dynamics, how the market is expected to remain tight, and how record gas and LNG prices have led to demand reductions. Additionally, it analyzes the future outlook and investment needs, highlighting the continued uptake of gas in heavy-duty transport and the need for further investment to avoid a supply-demand gap. The article concludes with an analysis of the implications for the future of the global gas and LNG markets.

Root crops grow in the soil deeply and bond with soil closely, which results in that the process of the separation between soil and root becomes the most difficult during the harvesting processes. In order to harvest root crops efficiently, the mechanical harvesting has become the main developing trend. However, high power and high damage rate are still occurred when mechanical harvester gets in touch with the roots. In this paper, we review the research of the development and evaluation of the mechanical harvesting of root crops and its performance optimization on the past years. The process of soil separation mainly consists in the initial separation between root and the ground and further separation between root and adhered soil. In general, the soil-cutting operation in the initial separation and the sieving mechanism in the further separation require high draught and power. And the dramatic friction, impact, pressure and so on, which happen in the components and soil-roots, are the key reasons to lead to root damage. The optimization of harvesting methods and parameters, including the digging shovel shape, working conditions, vibration, and screening way, is more significant in improving the harvesting performance. But there are still some limitations in the research and application of the mechanical harvester for root crops. Future research is suggested to focus on the development of the soil break-up when the digging shovel cutting soil, the insight into the interaction between soil and roots by different external compression loads, and the long-term studies to verify the high-efficiency and low-damage performances of mechanical harvester in practical application.

In particle physics, spin is an intrinsic form of angular momentum carried by the elementary particles. It is believed that spin is a solely quantum-mechanical phenomenon, which does not have a counterpart in classical mechanics. We have derived the simplest equations of spin and magnetic moment of a charged elementary particle. These formulas enable us to understand the physical nature of the spin and the structure of elementary particles. It is shown that the electron and muon are in the shape of a thin ring with a circular cross section (torus), and the proton is in the form of a ring with a non-circular cross section (toroid). The connection between the photon’s spin of and the propagation of electromagnetic waves is considered.

Accurate detection and quantification of regional vegetation trends is essential for understanding the dynamics of landscape ecology and vegetation distribution. We applied a comprehensive trend analysis to satellite data to describe geo-spatial changes in vegetation along the Pacific slope of Peru and northern Chile, from sea level to the continental divide, a region characterised by biologically unique and highly sensitive arid and semi-arid environments. Our statistical analyses show broad regional patterns of positive trends in EVI, called “greening” alongside patterns of “browning” where trends are negative between 2000 and 2020. The coastal plain and foothills, up 1000m, contain notable greening of the coastal Lomas and newly irrigated agricultural lands occurring alongside browning trends related to changes in land use practices and urban development. Strikingly, the precordilleras show a distinct ’greening strip’ which extends from approximately 6°S to 22°S, with an altitudinal trend; ascending from the tropical lowlands (170-780 m) in northern Peru, to the subtropics (1000-2800 m) in central Peru, and temperate zone (2600-4300 m) in southern Peru and northern Chile. We find that the geographical characteristics of the greening strip do not match climate zones previously established by Köppen and Geiger. Greening and browning trends in the coastal deserts and the high Andes lie within well defined climatic and life zones, producing variable but identifiable trends. However, the distinct Pacific slope greening presents an unexpected distribution with respect to the regional Köppen-Geiger climate and life zones. This work provides insights on understanding the effects of climate change on Peru’s diverse ecosystems in highly sensitive, biologically rich arid and semi-arid environments on the Pacific slope.

Nearest-neighbour clustering is a simple yet powerful machine learning algorithm that finds natural application in the decoding of signals in classical optical-fibre communication systems. Quantum k-means clustering promises a speed-up over the classical k-means algorithm; however, it has been shown to currently not provide this speed-up for decoding optical-fibre signals due to the embedding of classical data, which introduces inaccuracies and slowdowns. Although still not achieving an exponential speed-up for NISQ implementations, this work proposes the generalised inverse stereographic projection as an improved embedding into the Bloch sphere for quantum distance estimation in k-nearest-neighbour clustering, which allows us to get closer to the classical performance. We also use the generalised inverse stereographic projection to develop an analogous classical clustering algorithm and benchmark its accuracy, runtime and convergence for decoding real-world experimental optical-fibre communication data. This proposed `quantum-inspired' algorithm provides an improvement in both the accuracy and convergence rate with respect to the k-means algorithm. Hence, this work presents two main contributions. Firstly, we propose the general inverse stereographic projection into the Bloch sphere as a better embedding for quantum machine learning algorithms; here, we use the problem of clustering quadrature amplitude modulated optical-fibre signals as an example. Secondly, as a purely classical contribution inspired by the first contribution, we propose and benchmark the use of the general inverse stereographic projection and spherical centroid for clustering optical-fibre signals, showing that optimizing the radius yields a consistent improvement in accuracy and convergence rate.

The textile and clothing (T&C) industry is not usually viewed as an exemplar of sustainable de-velopment and the circular economy, as the industry has hitherto made its products in linear fashion, with relatively little recycling of the finished goods. This article examines the industry’s approach to the core sustainability concept and the circular economy in particular, through a re-view of the available academic literature, evidence from corporate sustainability reports and websites, and feedback from an online survey of industry professionals. The role of digital technology deployment in engendering sustainability and the circular economy in the industry is also explored. The study finds that whilst sustainability is now firmly embedded at the strategic level in the vast majority of companies studied, attitudes towards the circular economy remain fickle. The use of digital technologies in support of sustainability objectives is also limited at present, but the article concludes that the need to meet compliance requirements and new cus-tomer perceptions of sustainability will speed the transition to circular economy activities, facili-tated by greater exploitation of digital technologies. Building upon the research findings, existing models and an initial conceptual framework, a simple operational model for initiating such a transition for small-to-medium sized enterprises in the T&C industry is put forward.

The emergence of cloud computing, big data analytics, and machine learning has catalysed the use of remote sensing technologies to enable more timely land management of sustainability indicators such as ground cover and grassland biomass, given the uncertainty of future climate and drought conditions. Here, we examine the potential of “regenerative agriculture”, as an adaptive grazing management strategy to minimise bare ground exposure while maximising pasture biomass productivity. High-intensity sheep grazing treatments were conducted in small fields (less than 1 hectare) for short durations (typically less than 1 day). Paddocks were subsequently spelled to allow pasture biomass recovery (treatments comprising 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15 months) with each compared with control treatments with lighter stocking rates for longer periods (2,000 DSE). Pastures were composed of wallaby grass (Austrodanthonia species), kangaroo grass (Themeda triandra), Phalaris (Phalaris aquatica, and cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata) were destructively sampled to estimate total standing dry matter (TSDM), standing green biomass, standing dry biomass and trampled biomass. We then invoked a machine learning model using Sentinel-2 imagery to quantify TSDM, standing green biomass and standing dry biomass. Faced with La Nina conditions, regenerative grazing did not significantly impact pasture productivity, with all treatments showing similar TSDM and green biomass. However, regenerative treatments significantly impacted litter fall and trampled material, with the high intensity grazing treatments causing more dry matter trampling, increasing litter, enhancing decomposition rates and surface organic matter. Pasture digestibility was greatest for treatments with minimal spelling (3 months), whereas both standing senescent and trampled material were significantly greater for the treatment with 15-month spell periods. Estimates of TSDM using machine learning with Sentinel-2 imagery underestimated TSDM in treatment plots but explained spatiotemporal variability associated within and across treatments. The root mean square error between the measured and modelled TSDM was 903 kg DM/ha, which was less than the variability measured in the field. We conclude that regenerative grazing with short recovery periods (3-6 months) are most conducive to increasing pasture production under high rainfall conditions, and we speculate that high intensity grazing is likely to positively impact on soil organic carbon through increased litterfall and trampling. Our study paves the way forward for using machine learning with satellite imagery to quantify pasture biomass at small scales, enabling management of pastures from afar.

The APOE locus has garnered significant clinical interest because of its association with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and longevity. This genetic association appears across multiple genes in the APOE locus. Despite the apparent differences between AD and longevity, both conditions share a commonality of aging-related changes in mitochondrial function. This commonality is likely due to accumulative biological effects, partly exerted by the APOE locus. In this study, we investigated changes in mitochondrial structure/function-related markers using oxidative stress-induced human cellular models and postmortem brains (PMBs) from individuals with AD and normal controls. Our results reveal a range of expressional alterations, either up- or down-regulated, in these genes in response to oxidative stress. In contrast, we consistently observed an upregulation of multiple APOE locus genes in all cellular models and AD PMBs. Additionally, the effects of AD status on mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNA CN) varied depending on APOE genotype. Our findings imply a potential coregulation of APOE locus genes, possibly occurring within the same topologically associating domain (TAD) of the 3D chromosome conformation. The coordinated expression of APOE locus genes could impact mitochondrial function, contributing to the development of AD or longevity. Our study underscores the significant role of the APOE locus in modulating mitochondrial function and provides valuable insights into the underlying mechanisms of AD and aging, emphasizing the importance of this locus in clinical research.

On the basis of the force and safety factor analysis of traditional retaining wall, a new analytical method of force and displacement of slope is suggested, the numerical theoretical solution of the stress distribution of the sliding body can be obtained under the conditions, which the stresses distribution are satisfied with the differential equilibrium equations, the boundary conditions, the compatibility equation and the macroscopic equilibrium equations. The interface stresses between the sliding body and the retaining wall are continuous, the theoretical solution of retaining wall stress distributions can be gotten, while the stress differential equilibrium equation, the compatibility equation, macroscopic force and moment balance equations are satisfied. The strain and displacement solutions can be obtained by using Duncan Chang and Hooke constitutive equations for the slope and the retaining wall respectively. The transfer station of landfill in the Guandukou Town of Badong County is taken as an example, the results of the sliding body and retaining wall analysis show: The stress and strain solutions of a slope and a retaining wall can be obtained by the proposed method, the forces between the retaining wall and the sliding body include shear stress and normal stress, and the stress distributions change with the deformation of the sliding body, the shape and material of retaining wall can be optimized according to the calculation results，it is feasible for the proposed analysis method of slope with retaining wall design to be run many years.

While the field of personality neuroscience has extensively focused on humans and, in a few cases, primates and rodents, a wide range of research on fish personality has emerged in the last decades. This research is focused mainly on the ecological and evolutionary causes of individual differences, but also aimed less extensively at proximal mechanisms (e.g., neurochemistry or genetics). We argue that, if consistent and intentional work is made to solve some of the meta-theoretical issues of personality research both on fish and mammals, fish personality research can lead to important advances in personality neuroscience as a whole. The five dimensions of personality in fish (shyness-boldness, exploration-avoidance, activity, aggressiveness, and sociability) need to be translated into models that explicitly recognize the impacts of personality in psychopathology, synergizing research on fish as model organisms in experimental psychopathology, personality neuroscience, and ecological-ethological approaches to the evolutionary underpinnings of personality to produce a powerful framework to understand individual differences.

In recent years, the FDA has approved numerous antitumor drugs that are mutation-based for clinical use. These drugs have improved the precision of treatment and reduced adverse effects and side effects. Personalized therapy is a prominent and hot topic of current medicine and also represents the future direction of development. With the continuous advancements in gene sequencing and high-throughput screening, research and development strategies for personalized clinical drugs have developed rapidly. This review elaborated the recent personalized treatment strategies, which include artificial intelligence, multi-omics analysis, chemical proteomics, and computation aided drug design. These technologies rely on the molecular classification of diseases, the global signaling network within organisms, and new models for all targets, which significantly support the development of personalized medicine. Meanwhile, we summarized chemical drugs such as lorlatinib, osimertinib, and other natural products that deliver personalized therapeutic effects based on genetic mutations. This review also highlights potential challenges in interpreting genetic mutations and combining drugs, while providing new ideas for the development of personalized medicine and pharmacogenomics in cancer study.

The CuCrSn alloy is promising as high-strength and high-conductivity Cu alloy due to its relative low smelting requirement, while thus far reports on the CuCrSn alloy is still quite lacked. In this study, the microstructure and properties of Cu-0.20Cr-0.25Sn (wt%) specimens prepared under different rolling and aging combinations were comprehensively characterized, in order to reveal the effects of cold rolling and aging on the CuCrSn alloy. The results show that increasing the aging temperature from 400 ºC to 450 ºC can obviously accelerates the precipitation, and the cold rolling before aging significantly increases the initial microhardness and promotes the precipitation. Whereas, the deformation hardening will be eliminated during the aging process, making the microhardness even decrease monotonically when the aging temperature and the rolling ratio before aging are high. Performing the cold rolling after the aging can maximize the effects of precipitation strengthening and deformation strengthening, and its adverse impact on the conductivity is not serious. A tensile strength of 506.5 MPa and a conductivity of 70.33% IACS were obtained with such a treatment, only the elongation decreases. Different strength-conductivity combinations of the CuCrSn alloy can be achieved through appropriate combinations of the aging and post aging cold rolling conditions.

Using number theory, a formula is obtained that describes the thermal conductivities of ZrC, UC, UN, ThN, ZrN and Th_xU_1-xN at x = 0.2 and 0.5 with temperature change. This formula contains the atomic numbers of the elements, the thermal conductivities of the individual elements of the substance, and the structural parameter. There is no direct dependence on temperature in the formula, since it is hidden in the thermal conductivities of each element and in the structure parameter. In some temperature ranges, the structural parameter is constant; therefore, the thermal conductivity of some carbides and nitrides is expressed through summing the thermal conductivities of individual elements.

Corals are an important habitat for a diverse fauna which is especially rich in branching species. Each colony harbors several species and dozens of individuals forming an integrated symbiotic community. Factors affecting the diversity and abundance of coral symbionts are poorly understood. The present study tested experimentally the relationship between the population density of coral Pocillopora verrucosa and the diversity and abundance of symbionts in planted coral fragments exposed during three months. Colony size and bleaching were also considered as two additional factors. We demonstrated that even at the early stage of the colonies’ formation, the diversity of obligate symbiontson on these corals was higher than in any other studied local faunas of the World Ocean.Species richness and abundance of symbionts were positively related to colony size and density, while no impact of bleaching was found. Species richness and abundance of obligate symbionts increased along with the host population density, while in facultative symbionts, these indexes decreased. We hypothesized that the negative effect of the host density on species richness and abundance of facultative symbionts is caused by the competitive pressure of obligates, which increases with their abundance. Reasons for the different responses of obligate and facultative symbionts to host density were considered.

Over recent decades, therapeutic proteins have had widespread success in treating a myriad of diseases. Glycosylation, a near universal feature of this class of drugs, is a critical quality attribute that significantly influences the physical properties, safety profile and biological activity of therapeutic proteins. Optimizing protein glycosylation, therefore, offers an important avenue to developing more efficacious therapies. In this review, we discuss specific examples of how variations in glycan structure and glycoengineering impacts the stability, safety, and clinical efficacy of protein-based drugs that are already in the market as well as those that are still in preclinical development. We also highlight the impact of glycosylation on next generation biologics such as T cell-based cancer therapy and gene therapy.

Mental health issues can have significant impacts on individuals and communities and hence on social sustainability. There are several challenges facing mental health treatment, however, more important is to remove the root causes of mental illnesses because doing so can help prevent mental health problems from occurring or recurring. This requires a holistic approach to understanding mental health issues that are missing from the existing research. Mental health should be understood in the context of social and environmental factors. More research and awareness are needed, as well as interventions to address root causes. The effectiveness and risks of medications should also be studied. This paper proposes a big data and machine learning-based approach for the automatic discovery of parameters related to mental health from Twitter data. The parameters are discovered from three different perspectives, Drugs & Treatments, Causes & Effects, and Drug Abuse. We used Twitter to gather 1,048,575 tweets in Arabic about psychological health in Saudi Arabia. We built a big data machine learning software tool for this work. A total of 52 parameters were discovered for all three perspectives. We defined 6 macro-parameters (Diseases & Disorders, Individual Factors, Social & Economic Factors, Treatment Options, Treatment Limitations, and Drug Abuse) to aggregate related parameters. We provide a comprehensive account of mental health, causes, medicines and treatments, mental health and drug effects, and drug abuse, as seen on Twitter, discussed by the public and health professionals. Moreover, we identify their associations with different drugs. The work will open new directions for social media-based identification of drug use and abuse for mental health, as well as other micro and macro factors related to mental health. The methodology can be extended to other diseases and provides a potential for discovering evidence for forensics toxicology from social and digital media.

Native reactive electrophile species (RES) are long-recognized regulators of pathophysiology; yet, knowledge surrounding how RES regulate context-specific biology remains limited. The latest technological advances in profiling and precision decoding of RES sensing and signaling have begun to bring about improved understanding of localized RES regulatory paradigms. However, studies in purified systems—prerequisites for gaining structure/function insights—prove challenging. We here introduce emerging chemical biology tools available to probe RES signaling, and the new knowledge that these tools have brought to the field. We next discuss existing structural data of RES-sensor proteins complexed with electrophilic metabolites or small molecule drugs (limited to < 300 Da), including challenges faced in acquiring homogenous RES-bound proteins. We further offer considerations that could promote enhanced understanding of RES regulation derived from three-dimensional structures of RES-modified proteins.

Cardiac complications of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection have been well-identified since the beginning of the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Such conditions can occur of various etiologies, such as respiratory failure and hypoxemia, direct cardiac tissue damage due to viral replication, indirect myocarditis as systemic inflammation, and the interaction of different medications. Recently, with the start of the COVID-19 vaccination programs, COVID-19 vaccine-associated cardiac adverse events (AEs) have emerged and are increasingly being reported. Although these AEs are usually mild and self-limited, they can sometimes cause severe, catastrophic outcomes. This review compares the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of the de novo SARS-CoV-2 infection-related and COVID-19 vaccine-related myocarditis and pericarditis.

Most head and neck cancers are diagnosed in advanced stages, when the curative interventions are no longer possible. The assessment and the multidisciplinary therapeutic approach of the locally advanced cases are difficult since the onset of the disease becomes a significant challenge for the whole attending team (including both the patient and his family) because they have to deal with to an extensive symptomatology (abundant secretions, refractory pain, mutilations predominantly in the cephalic area), with the cure of stomas (tracheostomy, gastrostomy) and with various post-therapeutic sequelae. The present paper reflects the impact of late diagnosis, the complexity of the multimodal specific oncological treatment (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, pal-liative and terminal treatment), the adaptation of medical care to the psycho-emotional structure, having as an example the case of 54-year old patient (with his consent) diagnosed with pharyn-golaryngeal neoplasm who presented himself to “St. Luca” Chronic Disease Hospital, the Oncol-ogy-Palliative Care Department, in September 2021. In patients with locally advanced head and neck cancers, besides the specifically oncological therapeutic decisions, the empathic-emotional connection between the medical team with the patient and his family plays a key role in the ther-apeutic conduct.

Pyrolysis has been applied in the human economy for many years, and it has become a significant alternative to the production of chemical compounds, including biofuels. The article focuses mostly on recent achievements in the technical and processing aspects of pyrolysis. This review provides an overview of the recent advanced pyrolysis technology used in gas, bio-oil, and biochar production. The key parameters to maximize the production of specific chemical compounds were discussed and considered during the construction of the reactors. The emphasis is put on optimizing the process parameters, technical requirements, and renewable energy use in the process and conception to improve the efficiency of product production. The application of pyrolysis gas, oil, and biochar as valuable chemical compounds are related to the intensifying effects of climate change, biofuel production, and waste management in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.

Using the nematode C. elegans germline as a model system, we previously reported that PUF-8 (a PUF RNA-binding protein) and LIP-1 (a dual-specificity phosphatase) repress sperm fate at 20°C and the dedifferentiation of spermatocytes into mitotic cells (termed "spermatocyte dedifferentiation") at 25°C. Thus, double mutants lacking both PUF-8 and LIP-1 produce excess sperm at 20°C, and their spermatocytes return to mitotically dividing cells via dedifferentiation at 25°C, resulting in germline tumors. To gain insight into the molecular competence for spermatocyte dedifferentiation, we compared the germline phenotypes of three mutant strains – fem-3(q20gf), puf-8(q725; fem-3(q20gf), and puf-8(q725); lip-1(zh15). Both fem-3(q20gf) and puf-8(q725); fem-3(q20gf) mutants produced excess sperm like puf-8(q725); lip-1(zh15) double mutants. Our results show that spermatocyte dedifferentiation was not observed in fem-3(q20gf) mutants, but it was more aggressive in puf-8(q725); lip-1(zh15) than in puf-8(q725); fem-3(q20gf) mutants. These results suggest that MPK-1 (the C. elegans ERK1/2 MAPK ortholog) activation by removing the function of LIP-1 in the absence of PUF-8 promotes spermatocyte dedifferentiation. This idea was confirmed using Resveratrol (RSV), a potential activator of MPK-1 and ERK1/2 in C. elegans and human cells. Notably, spermatocyte dedifferentiation was significantly enhanced by RSV treatment, and its effect was blocked by mpk-1 RNAi. We, therefore, conclude that PUF-8 and MPK-1 are normally required to inhibit spermatocyte dedifferentiation and tumorigenesis. Since these regulators are broadly conserved, we suggest that similar regulatory circuitry may control cellular dedifferentiation and tumorigenesis in other organisms, including humans.

Mint and to a lesser extent menthol have been used since antiquity for medicinal purposes. Key components of mint and menthol use such as composition and intake, safety and traditional uses are discussed prior to a review of clinical and human performance outcomes in the areas of digestive and respiratory health; antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, nocioception, migraine and headache and emerging evidence regarding COVID 19. Evidence suggests benefit for patients with irritable bowel syndrome and related digestive issues, with analgesic and respiratory effects also noted. Perceptual characteristics relating to thermal comfort and sensation, taste sensitivity and alertness are also considered; these effects are predominantly driven by stimulation of transient receptor potential melastatin 8 (TRPM8) activity resulting in sensations of cooling and freshness, with lesser influence on thirst. Finally, sport performance is considered as a domain that may further elucidate some of the aforementioned underpinning outcomes due to its systemic and dynamic nature, especially when performed in hot environmental conditions.

The vulcanization of rubber compounds is an exothermal process. A carbon black-filled and natural rubber-based (NR) formulation was mixed with different levels of sulfur (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0 and 6.0 phr) and studied with Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) for the determination of the vulcanization enthalpy. It was found that the vulcanization enthalpy is dependent from the amount of sulfur present in the compound and the vulcanization heat released was -18.4 kJ/mol S if referred to the entire rubber compound formulation or -46.0 kJ/mol S if the heat released is referred only to the NR present in the compound. The activation energy for the vulcanization of the rubber compounds was also determined by a DSC study at 49 kJ/mol and found quite independent from the sulfur content of the compounds under study. A simplified thermochemical model is proposed to explain the main reactions occurring during the vulcanization. The model correctly predicts that the vulcanization is an exothermal process although it gives an overestimation of the vulcanization enthalpy which is larger for the EV vulcanization package and smaller for the conventional vulcanization system. If the devulcanization is conducted mechanochemically in order to break selectively the sulfur-based crosslinks, then the natural rubber compounds recovered from used tires can be re-vulcanized again and the exothermicity of such process can be measured satisfactorily with DSC analysis. This paper not only proposes a simplified mechanism of vulcanization and devulcanization but also proposes an analytical method to check the devulcanization status of the recycled rubber compound in order to distinguish truly devulcanized rubber from reclaimed rubber.

Obesity is related to the establishment of chronic inflammation and metabolic diseases, but it can be positively influenced by the regular practice of physical activity. The study aimed to compare the anthropometric, metabolic, and inflammatory parameters of physically active Military Police Officers (MPOs) with those who are less physically active. Sixty male MPOs, low activity (n=28) and physically active (n=32) participated. The following parameters were measured: plasma cytokine levels, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, circulating glucose triglyceride (TAG) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, and plasma glutamic oxalacetate transaminase (GOT), glutamic-pyruvate transaminase (GPT), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) activities. The physically active group presented lower body fat and reduced TAG and IL-8 levels compared to the low activity group. Moreover, a negative correlation between SPE and SBP, DBP, BPM was detected for the physically active group (p<0.05) but not in the low activity group. Furthermore, the physically active group's work time (WT) values were not correlated with the important metabolic markers SBP, DBP, BPM, GLU, TAG (p>0.05) but could be in the low activity group (p<0.05). These findings highlight the fundamental protective role of physical activity in controlling body composition, subclinical inflammation, and cardiovascular risk in MPOs.

226Ra and 228Ra are typically monitored for groundwater and surface water compliance at legacy U mining and milling sites. Groundwater monitoring results for combined Ra (226Ra+228Ra) reported by the existing contract laboratory at a former U mine and mill Site (Wyoming, USA) have been highly variable and with increasing trends at the Site compliance and background wells since the method was changed in 2005. Sample reanalysis has indicated poor reproducibility and significant analytical error in 228Ra measurements. An interlaboratory comparison was conducted to evaluate the potential causes of the high variability and analytical error. Two different methods were used for 226Ra (M903.0 and M903.1) and 228Ra (M904.0 and Ra-05). 226Ra results were less variable compared to 228Ra, and 228Ra data from the existing laboratory were qualified as estimated with high bias due to detection of 228Ra in the field blank. Compliance with the 226Ra+228Ra groundwater standard was either met or not met, depending on which laboratory conducted the analyses. Specific laboratory techniques, rather than the analytical method, are contributing to elevated 228Ra values being reported. It was recommended that samples whose 226Ra+228Ra results exceed the Site standard in the future be reanalyzed by the existing laboratory with a sample split also being sent to an outside laboratory for confirmatory analysis.

The field of applied behavior analysis has been directly involved in both research and applications of behavioral principles to improve the lives of captive zoo animals. Thirty years ago, Forthman and Ogden (1992) wrote one of the first papers documenting some of these efforts. Since that time, considerable work has been done using behavioral principles and procedures to guide zoo welfare efforts. The current paper re-examines and updates Forthman and Ogden’s original points, with attention to the five categories they detailed: (1) promotion of species-typical behavior, (2) reintroduction and repatriation of endangered species, (3) animal handling, (4) pest control, and (5) animal performances. In addition, we outline three current and future directions for behavior analytic endeavors: (i) experimental analyses of behavior and the zoo, (ii) applied behavior analysis and the zoo, and (iii) within-subject methodology and the zoo. The goal is to provide a framework that can guide future behavioral research in zoos, as well as create applications based on these empirical evaluations.

Mounting evidence supports the connections between exposure to environment types––such as green spaces and biodiversity––and human health. However, the mechanistic links that connect biodiversity (the variety of life) and human health, plus the level of supporting evidence, are less clear. Here, we undertook a scoping review to map the links between biodiversity and human health and summarise the levels of associated evidence using an established weight of evidence framework. Distinct from other reviews, we provide additional context regarding the environment-microbiome-health axis, evaluate the environmental buffering pathway (e.g., biodiversity impacts on air pollution), and draw upon expert opinion to provide case studies on three underrepresented linkages. The case studies include (1) biodiversity and Indigenous Peoples’ health, (2) biodiversity and urban social equity, and (3) biodiversity and COVID-19. We observed a moderate level of evidence to support the environmental microbiota-human health pathway and a moderate-high level of evidence to support broader nature pathways (e.g., green space) to various health outcomes, from stress reduction to enhanced wellbeing and improved social cohesion. However, studies of broader nature pathways did not typically include specific biodiversity metrics, indicating clear research gaps. Further research is required to understand the connections and causative pathways between biodiversity (e.g., using metrics such as taxonomy, diversity/richness, structure, and function) and health outcomes. There are well-established frameworks to assess the effects of broad classifications of nature on human health. These can assist future research in linking biodiversity metrics to human health outcomes. Our case studies on underrepresented linkages highlight the roles of biodiversity and its loss on urban lived experiences, infectious diseases, and Indigenous Peoples’ sovereignty and livelihoods. More research and awareness of these socioecological interconnections are needed.

How do sensor research and technologies grow over time? This paper applies the network analysis with a new computational approach to map the structure and evolution of sensor research and technologies over a 30-year time frame (1990-2020).The goal of this study is to analyze the evolution of sensor research for forecasting emerging scientific and technological trajectories. Results show that the scientific interaction within ecosystem (represented with networks) of sensor generates a co-evolution of scientific fields supporting the accelerated growth of different technological tra-jectories, such as: wireless sensors, fiber optic and optical sensors, gas sensors and biosensors. These results suggest main theoretical implications that explain the evolution of sensor research with critical aspects of innovation management to support R&D investments towards new technological trajectories having a high potential of growth.

The diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune diseases are major challenges. Their signs, symptoms, and their clinical severity change throughout the course of the disease. The available treatments for these conditions do not result in complete remission, and their long-term use generates several side effects. The main challenges in this field are the development of more sensitive diagnostic tools, and effective treatments. Studies in patients and animal models reported alterations in monocyte phenotype, activation, and function. These cells play an essential role in the pathogenesis of chronic inflammatory states and have become a target for extracorporeal monitoring and specific intervention. Nanoparticles (NPs) are ultrafine particles that can be used as contrast agents in diagnostic imaging techniques to detect specific cells in inflammatory infiltrates in tissues that are not easily accessible by biopsy. In addition, NPs can be designed to deliver drugs to a cell population or tissue. This review describes several experimental pieces of evidence demonstrating that monocytes and macrophages can specifically uptake various types of NPs, thus becoming detectable in vivo by magnetic resonance imaging and susceptible to be modulated by therapeutic agents. Hence, nanoparticles targeting mononuclear phagocytes represent promising tools for diagnosing and treatment.

Taking a DNA-sequence, a word with letters/bases A, T, G and C, as the relation between the generators of an infinite group $\pi$, one can discriminate two important families: (i) the cardinality structure for conjugacy classes of subgroups of $\pi$ is that of a free group on $1$ to $4$ bases and the DNA word, viewed as a substitution sequence, is aperiodic. (ii) The cardinality structure for conjugacy classes of subgroups of $\pi$ is not that of a free group, the sequence is generally not aperiodic and topological properties of $\pi$ have to be determined differently. The two cases rely on DNA conformations such as A-DNA, B-DNA, Z-DNA, G-quadruplexes, etc. We found a few salient results: Z-DNA, when involved in transcription, replication and regulation in a healthy situation implies (i). The sequence of telomeric repeats comprising $3$ distinct bases, most of the time, satisfies (i). For $2$-base sequences in the free case (i) or non free case (ii), the topology of $\pi$ may be found in terms of the $SL(2,\mathbb{C})$ character variety of $\pi$ and the attached algebraic surfaces. The linking of two unknotted curves --the Hopf link-- may occur in the topology of $\pi$ in cases of biological importance, in telomeres, G-quadruplexes, hairpins and junctions, a feature we already found in the context of models of topological quantum computing. For $3$- and $4$ base sequences, other knotting configurations are noticed and a building block of the topology is the $4$-punctured sphere. Our methods have the potential to discriminate potential diseases associated to the sequences.

Climate change poses a serious threat to global agricultural activity and food production. To address this issue, plant genome editing technologies have been developed to provide an alternative solution for crop improvement. Unlike conventional breeding techniques (e.g., selective breeding and mutation breeding), modern genome editing tools offer more targeted and specific alterations of the plant genome to produce crops with desired traits, such as higher yield and/or stronger resilience to the changing environment. In this review, we discuss the current development and future applications of genome editing technologies in mitigating the impacts of biotic and abiotic stresses on agriculture. We focus specifically on the CRISPR/Cas system, which has been the center of attention in the last few years as a revolutionary genome-editing tool in various species. We also conducted a bibliographic analysis on CRISPR-related papers published from 2012 to 2021 (10 years) to identify trends and possible gaps in the CRISPR/Cas-related plant research. In addition, this review article outlines the current shortcomings and challenges of employing genome editing technologies in agriculture with notes on future prospective. We believe combining conventional and more innovative technologies in agriculture would be the key to optimizing crop improvement beyond the limitations of traditional agricultural practices.

Background: Using the COM-B model as a framework, an EU-wide survey aimed to ascertain multidisciplinary healthcare workers’ (HCWs) knowledge, attitudes and behaviours on antibiotics, antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance. The UK findings are presented. Methods: A 43-item questionnaire was developed through a two-round modified Delphi consensus process. The UK target quota was 1,315 respondents. Results: 2,404 participants responded. The highest proportion were nursing and midwifery professionals (42%), pharmacists (23%) and medical doctors (18%). HCWs correctly answered that antibiotics are not effective against viruses (97%), they have associated side effects (97%), unnecessary use makes antibiotics ineffective (97%) and healthy people can carry antibiotic resistant bacteria (90%). However, fewer than 80% correctly answered that using antibiotics increases a patient’s risk of antimicrobial resistant infection or that resistant bacteria can spread from person to person. Whilst the majority of HCWs (81%) agreed there is a connection between their antibiotic prescribing behaviour and the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria, only 64% felt that they have a key role in controlling antibiotic resistance. The top three barriers to providing advice or resources were lack of resources (19%), insufficient time (11%) and the patient being uninterested in the information (7%). Approximately 35% of UK respondents who were prescribers prescribed an antibiotic at least once in the last week due to fear of patient deterioration or complications. Conclusion: These findings highlight that a multifaceted approach to tackling the barriers to prudent antibiotic use in the UK is required and provides evidence for guiding targeted policy, intervention development and future research. Education and training should focus on patient communication, information on spreading resistant bacteria and increased risk for individuals.

This paper first explains the theory of the origin of force from a new perspective, explaining that the origin of all forces is caused by the "missing of energy in the time dimension" (non-conservation in a certain period of time), and constructs a unified theory of force on this basis. Then, through the unified theory of force, the following phenomena are reinterpreted: (1) The common origin of the inverse square law of gravitation and electromagnetic force; (2) The origin of the repulsive force of electrons and protons at small distances; (3) The mystery of the rotation curve of galaxies and the new explanation of "dark matter"; (4) explain the origin of the magnetic field; (5) Predict that moving magnets have the same radiation effect as charged particles (electron magnetic moments also have radiation effects); (6) Reinterpret Maxwell's displacement current; (7) Reinterpret synchrotron radiation and bremsstrahlung; (8) Explain that the strong and weak forces are short-range forces; (9) Predict the true structure of black holes and the origin of gravitational waves;(10) Possible explanation for the origin of the speed of light.