Understanding African swine fever virus (ASFV) transmission is essential for strategies to minimize virus spread during an outbreak. ASFV can survive for extended time periods in animal products, carcasses, and the environment. While ASFV genome was found in the environment around infected farms, data on the virus survival in soil are scarce. We investigated different soil matrices spiked with ASFV-positive blood from infected wild boar to see if ASFV can remain infectious in the soil beneath infected carcasses. As expected, ASFV genome detection was possible over the entire sampling period. Soil pH, structure, and ambient temperature played a role for the stability of infectious ASFV. Infectious ASFV was demonstrated in specimens originating from sterile sand for at least three weeks, from beach sand for up to two weeks, from yard soil for one week, and from swamp soil for three days. Virus was not recovered from two acidic forest soils. All risk mitigation experiments with citric acid or calcium hydroxide resulted in complete inactivation. In conclusion, stability of infectious ASFV is very low in acidic forest soils but rather high in sandy soils. However, given the high variability, treatment of carcass collection points with disinfectants should be considered.

Fullerene molecules are composed of carbon in forms of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube. Fullerenes have attracted considerable attention in different fields of science since their discovery in 1985. The unique carbon cage structure of fullerene provides immense scope for derivatization, rendering potential for various industrial applications. The prospective applications of fullerenes thus have led to assorted fullerene derivatives. The unique chemical structure also provides ease for fullerene to be synthesized through various kinds of conjugating techniques, where fullerene can be located either on the backbone or the branch chain. Here in this review, we have compiled the toxicity and biosafety aspects of fullerene in aquatic organisms. The frequent use of fullerene is likely to come in contact and interact with the aquatic environment and aquatic organisms. According to the current understanding, waterborne exposure to fullerene-based nanomaterials indeed triggers toxicities at cellular, organic, molecular as well as neurobehavioral levels.

Coronavirus is now a significant human pathogen with the emergence of SARS-CoV-2. Until now there has been no data to support a threat to agricultural industries. Using a comparative genomic protein analysis, this study examined the angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACEII) gene of 17 animal species with an emphasis on agriculture. To determine viral vulnerability the 20 known SARS-CoV-2 receptor-binding domain (RBD)/ACEII receptor interaction sites were compared to determine their potential susceptibility to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. With the known bat host’s (XP_032963186) number of binding sites as a threshold, we note that ALL animal species examined in this study contained significant numbers (≥10) of SARS-CoV-2 binding sites and could be at risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection. The data from this study suggest SARS-CoV-2 imposes a grave threat to the safety and security of the agricultural industry. Urgent studies are needed to determine if infected animals can transmit SARS-CoV-2 before and/or after processing.

This study explored the electrocortical correlates of conscious and nonconscious perceptions of emotionally laden faces in neurotypical adult women with varying levels of autistic-like traits (Autism Spectrum Quotient - AQ). Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded during the viewing of backward-masked images for happy, neutral, and sad faces presented either below (16 ms - subliminal) or above the level of visual conscious awareness (167 ms - supraliminal). Sad compared to happy faces elicited larger frontal-central N1, N2, and occipital P3 waves. We observed larger N1 amplitudes to sad faces than to happy and neutral faces in High-AQ (but not Low-AQ) scorers. Additionally, High-AQ scorers had a relatively larger P3 at the occipital region to sad faces. Regardless of the AQ score, subliminal perceived emotional faces elicited shorter N1, N2, and P3 latencies than supraliminal faces. Happy and sad faces had shorter N170 latency in the supraliminal than subliminal condition. High-AQ participants had a longer N1 latency over the occipital region than Low-AQ ones. In Low-AQ individuals (but not in High-AQ ones), emotional recognition with female faces produced a longer N170 latency than with male faces. N4 latency was shorter to female faces than male faces. These findings are discussed in view of their clinical implications and extension to autism.

SARS-CoV-2 is a novel coronavirus that is the causative agent of Coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVD-19). As of the 17^th April 2020, it has infected 2 114 269 people resulting in 145 144 deaths. The timing, magnitude and longevity of humoral immunity is not yet understood for SARS-CoV-2. Nevertheless, understanding this is urgently required to inform the likely future dynamics of the pandemic, to guide strategies to allow relaxation of social distancing measures and to understand how to deploy limiting vaccine doses when they become available to achieve maximum impact. SARS-CoV-2 is the seventh human coronavirus to be described. Four human coronaviruses circulate seasonally and cause common colds. Two other coronaviruses, SARS and MERS, have crossed from animal sources into humans but have not become endemic. Here we review what is known about the human humoral immune response to epidemic SARS CoV and MERS CoV and to the seasonal, endemic coronaviruses. Then we summarize recent, mostly non-peer reviewed studies into SARS-CoV-2 serology and reinfection in humans and non-human primates and summarize current pressing research needs.

The outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infections in 2019 is in dire need of finding potential therapeutic agents. In this study, we used molecular docking to repurpose HIV protease inhibitors and nucleoside analogues for COVID-19, with evaluations based on docking scores calculated by AutoDock Vina and RosettaCommons. Our results suggest that Indinavir and Remdesivir possess the best docking scores, and comparison of the docking sites of the two drugs reveal a near perfect dock in the overlapping region of the protein pockets. After further investigation of the functional regions inferred from the proteins of SARS coronavirus, we discovered that Indinavir does not dock on any active sites of the protease, which may give rise to concern in regards to the efficacy of Indinavir. On the other hand, the docking site of Remdesivir is not compatible with any known functional regions, including template binding motifs, polymerization motifs and nucleoside triphosphate (NTP) binding motifs. However, when we tested the active form (CHEMBL2016761) of Remdesivir, the docking site revealed a perfect dock in the overlapping region of the NTP binding motif. This result suggests that Remdesivir could be a potential therapeutic agent. Clinical trials still must be done in order to confirm the curative effect of these drugs.

The SARS-CoV-2 was confirmed to cause the regional outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan, China. The 3C-like protease (3CL^pro), an essential enzyme for viral replication, is a valid target to compacts SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. In this research, an integrated library consisting of 1000 compounds from Asinex Focused Covalent (AFCL) library and 16 FDA-approved protease inhibitors were screened against SARS-CoV-2 3CL^pro. Top compounds with significant docking scores and making stable interactions with catalytic dyad residues were obtained. The screening results in identification of compound 621 from AFCL library as well as Paritaprevir and Simeprevir from FDA-approved protease inhibitors as potential inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 3CL^pro. The mechanism and dynamic stability of binding between the identified compounds and SARS-CoV-2 3CL^pro were characterized using 50 nanoseconds (ns) molecular dynamic (MD) simulation approach. The identified compounds are potential inhibitors worthy of further development as SARS-CoV-2 3CLpro inhibitors/drugs. Importantly, the identified FDA-approved therapeutics could be ready for clinical trials to treat infected patients and help to curb the COVID-19.

The evaluation of forage crops for adaptability and performance across production systems and environments is one of the main strategies used to improve forage production. To enhance the genetic resource base and identify traits responsible for increased feed potential of Napier grass, forty-five genotypes from EMBRAPA, Brazil, were evaluated for forage biomass yield and feed nutritional quality in a replicated trial under wet and dry season conditions in Ethiopia. The results revealed significant variation in forage yield and feed nutritional qualities among the genotypes and between the wet and dry seasons. Feed fibre components were lower in the dry season while crude protein, in vitro organic matter digestibility and metabolizable energy were higher. Based on the cumulative biomass yield and metabolizable energy yield, top performing genotypes were identified that are candidates for future forage improvement studies. Furthermore, the marker-trait association study identified diagnostic SNP and SilicoDArT markers and potential candidate genes that could differentiate high biomass yielding and high metabolizable energy genotypes in the collection.

The objective of this study was to synthesize 9-/13-position substituted berberine derivatives and evaluated their cytotoxic and photocytotoxic effects against three human cancer cell lines. Among all the synthesized compounds, 9-O-dodecyl- (5e), 13-dodecyl- (6e) and 13-O-dodecyl-berberine (7e) exhibited stronger growth inhibition against three human cancer cell lines, (HepG2, HT-29 and BFTC905), in compare with structurally related berberine (1). These three compounds also showed the photocytotoxicity in human cancer cells in a concentration-dependent and light dose-dependent manner. Through flow cytometry analysis, we found out a lipophilic group at 9-/13-position of berberine may have facilitated its penetration into test cell and hence enhanced its photocytotoxicity on human liver cancer cell HepG2. Further, in cell cycle analysis, 5e, 6e and 7e induced HepG2 cells to arrest at S phase and caused apoptosis upon irradiation. In addition, photodynamic treatment of berberine (1) and its derivatives 5e, 6e and 7e again showed a significant photocytotoxic effects on HepG2 cells, induced remarkable cell apoptosis, greatly increased intracellular ROS level and the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential. These results over and again confirmed that berberine derivatives 5e, 6e and 7e greatly enhanced photocytotoxicity. Taking together, the test data led us to conclude that berberine derivatives with a dodecyl group at 9-/13-position could be great candidates for the anti-liver cancer medicines developments.

In this study, we wanted to discuss the acute coronary syndromes in the pregnant womens which are very important for life ofthe fetus. Spontaneous coronary artery dissection and management, which is the most common cause of acute coronary syndrome in pregnant women is also discussed. About 300 articles were examined and 35 articles which published in high quality journals with high level of evidence were chosen and this review was prepared.

In interepidemic periods, a sapronoses typically employs a variety of mechanisms for maintaining viability of its causative agent in terrestrial parasitic systems, associated with different adaptive strategies utilized by its populations to survive. Unlike spore-forming bacteria, causative agents of sapronoses use resistant cell forms, which is a viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state, and persistence. Implementation of these strategies is conditioned by effects of various stress factors of the habitat and is characterized by decreased metabolism, alteration of the morphology and physiology of bacterial cell, and cessation of its replication. It is important that the resistant forms of cells retain virulence and, as favorable conditions come, turn back into the active vegetative form again. The discovery of the genetic modules of bacterial toxin–antitoxin systems in recent years has made it possible to identify a number of complicated regulatory molecular mechanisms responsible for maintaining the pathogenic potential of resistant forms of causative agents of natural-focus sapronoses in interepidemic periods.

Considering the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, onshore wind energy is certain to play a major role in future energy systems. This topic has received significant attention from the research community, producing many estimations of Europe's onshore wind potential for capacity and generation. Despite this focus, previous estimates have relied on distribution assumptions and simulation schemes that summarily under predict both the amount of available future wind capacity as well as its performance. Foremost in this regard is the common use of contemporary, or at least near-future, turbine designs which are not fitting for a far-future context. To fulfill this role, an improved, transparent, and fully reproducible work flow is presented for determining European onshore wind potential. Within a scenario of turbine cost and design in 2050, 13.5 TWof capacity is found to be available, allowing for 34.4 PWh of generation. By sorting the explicitly-placed potential generation locations by their expected generation cost, national relations between turbine cost and performance versus a desired capacity are exposed. In this way, it is shown that all countries possess some potential for onshore wind energy generation below 4 €_ct kWh^-1. and, furthermore, that it is unlikely for these costs to exceed 6 €_ct kWh^-1.

Microbubbles and nanobubbles can be prepared using various shells, such as phospholipids, polymers, proteins, and surfactants. They are echogenic and can be used as contrast agents for ultrasonic and photoacoustic imaging. These bubbles can be engineered in various sizes as vehicles for gas and drug delivery applications with novel properties and flexible structures. Hypoxic areas in tumors develop owing to an imbalance of oxygen supply and demand. In tumors, hypoxic regions have shown more resistance to chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and photodynamic therapies. The efficacy of photodynamic therapy depends on the availability of oxygen in the tumor to generate reactive oxygen species. Micro/nanobubbles have been shown to reverse hypoxic conditions and increase tissue oxygen levels. This review summarizes the synthesis methods and shell compositions of micro/nanobubbles and methods deployed for oxygen delivery. In addition, the shortcomings and prospects of engineering micro/nanobubbles are discussed for their potential use in photodynamic therapy.

Degradation of environment quality is currently the prime cause of the recent occurrence of natural disasters; it also contributes in the increase of the area that is prone to natural disasters. This research is aimed to map the potential of areas around Pesanggrahan river in DKI Jakarta by segmenting the Digital Elevation Model derived from LIDAR data. The objective of this segmentation is to find the watershed lines of the DEM image. Data processing in this research is using LIDAR data which take the ground surface data, which is overlaid with Jakarta river map and subsequently, the data is then segmented the image. The expected result of the research is the flood potential area information, especially along the Pesanggrahan river in South Jakarta.

Recent research on fractional order control laws has introduced the fractional calculus concept into the field of control engineering. As described herein, we apply fractional order LQR control to a current-controlled attractive-force type magnetic levitation system, which is a strongly nonlinear and unstable system, to investigate its control performance through experimentation. First, to design the controller, a current-controlled attractive-force type magnetic levitation system expressed as an integer-order system is extended to a fractional order system expressed using fractional order derivatives. Then target value tracking control of levitated objects is achieved by adding states, described by the integrals of the deviation between the output and the target value, to the extended system. Next, a fractional order LQR controller is designed for the extended system. For state-feedback control such as fractional order servo LQR control, which requires information of all states, a fractional order state-observer is configured to estimate fractional order states. Simulation results demonstrate that fractional order servo LQR control can achieve equilibrium point stabilization and enable target-value tracking. Finally, to verify the fractional order servo LQR control effectiveness, experiments using the designed fractional order servo LQR control law are done with comparison to conventional integer-order servo LQR control.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating mental health disorder that causes significant dysfunction in individuals. Currently, there are many approved Pharmacotherapy and Psychotherapy treatment options for PTSD, but unfortunately, half of the patients do not respond to traditional therapies. In this article, we reviewed clinical trials and research on 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) assisted Psychotherapy in PTSD patients, its pharmacokinetics and current treatment guidelines for PTSD. Based on the results of the efficacy of MDMA assisted Psychotherapy from six phases II Randomized controlled trials. MDMA-assisted Psychotherapy for PTSD has received the “Breakthrough Therapy” designation from the FDA. MDMA can potentially reduce PTSD symptoms even in treatment-resistant cases by increasing certain neurohormones, i.e. dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine and oxytocin. It also modulates activities in the brain regions involved in fear and anxiety. Future research is needed to show whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages and whether its use can be integrated into available treatment options for PTSD.

Global crop yields are estimated to be reduced by 30–40% per year on account of plant pests and pathogens. Agricultural insect pests raise concerns about constraining global food security and climate changes contributing to the rise of infestation. The current management relies on plant breeding, associated or not with transgenes and chemical pesticides. Both approaches face serious technology obsolescence on the field due to resistance breakdown or development of insecticide resistance. The need for new Modes of Action (MoA) approaches in managing crop health grows each year, driven by market demands to reduce economic losses and phytosanitary requirements to meet the consumer perception. Disabling pest genes by sequence-specific expression silencing is considered a promising tool in the development of environment and health respectful biopesticides. The specificity conferred by long dsRNA-base solutions give support to minimizing effects on off-targeted genes in the insect pest genome and the target gene in non-target organisms (NTOs). In this review, we summarize the current status of gene silencing by RNA interference (RNAi) for agricultural control. More specifically, we focus on the engineering, development and application of gene silencing to control Lepidoptera by the employment of non-transforming dsRNA technologies. Despite some delivery and stability drawbacks of topical applications, we reviewed works showing convincing proof-of-concept results that point to imminent innovative solutions. Considerations about the regulamentation of the ongoing research on dsRNA-based pesticides to produce commercialized products for exogenous application are discussed. Academic and industry initiatives reveal a worthy effort to accomplish controlling Lepidoptera pests with this new mode of action to provide more sustainable and reliable technologies to field management. New data on genomics of this taxon encourage the increment of a customized target genes portfolio. As a case of study, we illustrate how dsRNA and associated methodologies could be applied to control an important Lepidopteran coffee pest.

The COVID-19 Omicron variant, reported to be the most immune evasive variant of COVID-19, is resulting in a surge of COVID-19 cases globally. This has caused schools, colleges, and universities in different parts of the world to transition to online learning. As a result, social media platforms such as Twitter are seeing an increase in conversations related to online learning. Mining such conversations, such as Tweets, to develop a dataset can serve as a data resource for interdisciplinary research related to the analysis of interest, views, opinions, perspectives, attitudes, and feedback towards online learning during the current surge of COVID-19 cases caused by the Omicron variant. Therefore this work presents a large-scale public Twitter dataset of conversations about online learning since the first detected case of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in November 2021. The dataset is compliant with the privacy policy, developer agreement, and guidelines for content redistribution of Twitter, as well as with the FAIR principles (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability) principles for scientific data management. The paper also briefly outlines some potential applications in the fields of Big Data, Data Mining, Natural Language Processing, and their related disciplines, with a specific focus on online learning during this Omicron wave that may be studied, explored, and investigated by using this dataset.

This paper proposes a linear eddy-current feature to determine the radius of a metallic ball in a non-contact manner. An electromagnetic eddy-current sensor with two coils is placed co-axially to the metal ball during measurement. It is well known that the distance between the sensor and test piece (i.e. lift-off) affects eddy-current signals. In this paper, it is found that the peak frequency feature of inductance spectrum is linear to the lift-off spacing between the centre of coil and ball. Besides, the slope of peak frequencies versus lift-offs is linked to the radius of ball. The radius of metallic balls is retrieved from the experimental and embedded analytical result of the slope. Measurements have been carried out on 6 metallic balls with different radii. The radius of the metallic ball can be retrieved with an error of less than 2 %.

BACKGROUND: Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments that significantly influence the health of individuals and communities. Various factors like income, socio-economic status, stress, customs, culture, healthcare services largely affect the health status of individuals and communities. OBJECTIVE: This study was carried out to identify the factors responsible for the social determinants of health among residents of Buari Ishola Isibo in Ede North Local Government Area, Osun State, Nigeria. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive cross – sectional study was utilized, and multi-stage random sampling method was employed in selecting 60 households of Buari Ishola Isibo in Ede North Local Government Area, Osun State, Nigeria. Questionnaire was used for data collection and data was analyzed using SPSS version 21. RESULTS: The respondents’ ages were between 15 – 60 years and above. 29 (48.3%) were between 31 – 60 years old, 31 (52.0%) were males, 40 (66.7%) were married, 57 (95.0%) were Islam and Yoruba. 29 (48.3%) earned 10,000 – 30,000 monthly, 23 (38.3%) had secondary school education, 39 (65.0%) were traders and 27 (45.0%) have 6 – 10 households respectively. Of the 60 respondents, 34 (56.7%) visit government health facility when they are sick, 21 (35.0%) make use of hand dug well in their compound as the source of their water supply, 27 (45.0%) uses flush water closet toilet as the means of disposing off their excreta, 36 (60.0%) lives in concrete with zinc roof house, 27 (45.0%) have between 6 – 10 rooms in their house, 55 (91.7%) sleep in a room and 21 (35.0%) make use of charcoal as source of fuel for their cooking. CONCLUSION: Poverty or lower income affects the health of individuals through a person’s health throughout their life span. Issues that affect social determinants of health of individuals and community in a negative way should be accosted with all seriousness.

The fluid seepage in local-saturated zone of subgrade promotes the migration of fine particles in the filler, resulting in the change of pore structure and morphology of the filler and the deformation of solid skeleton, which affects the fluid seepage characteristics. Repeatedly, the muddy interlayer, mud pumping and other diseases are finally formed. Based on the theory of two-phase seepage, the theory of porous media seepage, and the principle of effective stress in porous media, a two-phase fluid-solid coupling mathematical model in local-saturated zone of subgrade considering the effect of fine particles migration is established. The mathematical model is numerically calculated with the software COMSOL Multiphysics○R, the two-phase seepage characteristics and the deformation characteristics of the solid skeleton in local-saturated zone of the subgrade are studied. The research results show that due to the continuous erosion and migration of fine particles in local-saturated zone of the subgrade, the volume fraction of fine particles first increases then decreases and finally becomes stable with the increase of time. And the volume fraction of fine particles for the upper part of the subgrade is larger than that for the lower part of the subgrade. The porosity, the velocity of fluid, the velocity of fine particles, and the permeability show a trend of increasing first and then stabilizing with time; the pore water pressure has no significant changes with time. The vertical displacement increase first and then decrease slightly with the increase of time, and finally tend to be stable. For a filler with a larger initial volume fraction of fine particles, the maximum value of the volume fraction of fine particles caused by fluid seepage is larger, and the time required to reach the maximum value is shorter. It can be concluded that in actual engineering, the volume fraction of fine particles in the subgrade filler should be minimized on the premise that the filler gradation meets the requirements of the specification.

Knowing the reasons for mobility choices, how users evaluate the characteristics of public transport and how satisfied they are with the travel experience is essential to promote the use of LTP (Local Public Transport), especially in rural or suburban areas where the use of private car is often prevalent. The present study aimed to investigate the mobility experience and the reasons for use and non-use of the LPT in a suburban area by the people travelling to a large Hospital Centre in a Province of the North-east of Italy. An anonymous questionnaire was completed by people from different categories travelling to the hospital (students, employees, clients), user and non-users of the LPT. The results showed that insufficient hourly coverage and accessibility of the service are the primary reasons for opting not to use LPT and together with reliability and comfort, these factors contribute to user satisfaction with their travel experience. Perceived sustainability of LPT contributes to overall travel satisfaction. However perceived sustainability alone does not appear to influence the choice of LPT if the service lacks adequate accessibility and does not meet the needs of travelers in terms of hourly coverage

In this paper we give the new formulas for calculating the self-inductance for the circular coils of the rectangular cross sections with the radial and the azimuthal current densities. These formulas are given by the single integration of the elementary functions which are integrable on the interval of the integration. From these new expressions we can obtain the special cases for the self-inductance of the thin disk pancake and the thin wall solenoid that confirm the validity of this approach. For the asymptotic cases, the new formula for the self-inductance of the thin wall solenoid is obtained for the first time in the literature. In this paper we do not use special functions such as the elliptical integrals of the first, second and third kind, Struve, and Bessel functions because that is very tedious work. The results of this work are compared with already different known methods and all results are in the excellent agreement. This is way we consider this approach as the novelty because of its simplicity in the self -inductance calculation of the previously mentioned configurations.

Urban planning and transportation policies are vital to creating sustainable and liveable cities. Transit-orientated development (TOD) has emerged as a prominent approach, emphasising the establishment of neighbourhoods with convenient access to public transportation and promoting car-free lifestyles. TOD initiatives aim to improve public transit efficiency, reduce dependence on private vehicles, and encourage walkability and connectivity within communities. By prioritising TOD, cities can effectively address transportation challenges, alleviate congestion, mitigate carbon emissions, and improve residents' overall quality of life. This research paper investigates the connection between proximity to transit stations and local living habits. Specifically, it examines the human mobility of residents living within a 15-minute walk distance of transit stations in Auckland, New Zealand, a car-dependent city striving to transition into a sustainable TOD model. The objective is to determine whether people living near transit stations are more inclined to participate in local activities and exhibit a higher proportion of trips within a radius of 15 minutes. The results illustrate that approximately 54% of the residents show dominant local mobility patterns. However, only about 16 stations out of 34 show their local residents have prominent collective 'local' travel patterns. By understanding the connection between proximity to transit stations and local mobility patterns, urban planners and designers can make informed decisions to improve the built environment and optimise the land use mix. This research offers insights to support the creation of vibrant and people-centric urban environments, facilitating the development of sustainable and liveable cities.

The influence of instrumental variables on farmers ‘perceptions using rotation fallow as sustainable agriculture practices had been the aim of our research. By using simultaneous equations models, this study tried to understand the relationship between green manure farmer’s perceptions on using rotation-fallow and planting green manure in Guangxi Province, south of China. The results showed that subsidizing green manure farmers based on standard subsidy by the unit of green manure sown area; the training on the green manure planting technology or the demonstration preaching; the green manure farmers preference for the kinds of subsidy (funds, seeds, and mechanical services) were the mostly great drivers of the program of restoring planting green manure in the study area. These incentives measures must be enhanced as priority to restore definitely green manure planting. However, the findings of the study showed that the total income of the 2017 year, the area of an agricultural field of household and the household members (16–65 years old), providing labor in the agricultural field, have some influences on planting green manure and on farmer’s perceptions on using rotation-fallow as sustainable agriculture practices. Brief, the unobserved factors which influenced the endogenous factors play an important role to enhance widely the impact of farmers’ perceptions on planting green manure.

Cholinesterase (ChE) and secretase (BACE) inhibitors, and fibril- and β-amyloid-suppressing medicines are used to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD) symptomatically. The prevalence and complex nature of AD have increased the urgent need for multi-targeted directed ligands (MTDLs). This is because MTDLs can prevent potential drug-drug interactions during poly-therapy and have a better therapeutic profile than single targeted agents. Using piperazine linker or spacer and two primary scaffolds, benzofuran and 8-hydroxyquinoline, a unique class of multi-targeted medicines was recently reported by our group. These compounds showed re-markable effectiveness in inhibiting Aβ1-42 aggregation and acting as iron chelators.The results prompted us to synthesize an additional series of compounds as multimodal anti-AD agents and investigate its inhibitor activities to ChE (AChE/BChE) and BACE1 enzymes. The resulting in-hibitory effects suggested that the compounds under study might be used to improve cognitive function. The docking analysis' findings revealed that the compounds bind to AChE and BChE by forming H-bond interactions with amino acid residues at binding sites and µ-stacking inter-actions with aromatic residues, whereas the binding to BACE1 only revealed H-bond interac-tions with amino acid residues at binding sites.

Organic horticulture is a holistic management system which follows good production practices and should be considered as the cornerstone of mitigating climate change and to produce healthier fruits and vegetables. This agroecosystem practice not only benefits the green economy but promotes and enhances soil biological activity, biodiversity, and other biological cycles in the sphere. The last decade has observed a rise in the production and consumption of organically certified agricultural products due to their higher nutritional value, lowered risk of exposure to harmful chemicals and improved organoleptic properties. The aim of this review was to demonstrate the considerable impact of organic horticulture on mitigating climate change and simultaneously satisfy consumer needs. The outcome of this review demonstrates that there are still numerous research studies required to evaluate how different farming systems and pedoclimatic conditions can contribute to more efficient horticultural practices.

This study aims to formulate binary cementitious systems containing silica fume (SF) and micro quartz (MQ) to improve cementitious concrete's durability and mechanical properties. In this investigation, we examined the effects of different essential variables, such as the level of SF and MQ replacement and the ratio of the water-binder (w/b). In this study, the w/b ratios were 0.25, 0.3, 0.35, and 0.4. Replacement levels for SF were 8, 10, and 12%, while replacement levels for MQ were 5, 8, 10, 15, 25, and 35%. The porosity and permeability decreased with an increase in replacement levels, regardless of the type of fine material used or the amount of replacement. Meanwhile, the strength increased markedly with SF replacement, reaching its maximum MQ of 25% at the SF level. The strength of the SF mixing was the highest in all mixes, and it remained the highest until 15% of MQ was replaced. The ultrafine size of MQ particles contributes to the improvement of compressive strength, porosity, and permeability in a similar way to SF particles, despite their high crystalline structure. Furthermore, in this study, analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed to verify the influence of each variable on the studied response.

Fe- and Al-rich metapelite from the Transangarian segment of the Yenisey Ridge (East Siberia, Russia) is a potential new source of high-alumina refractories. The rocks have relatively high average contents of Al2O3 (20 wt.%) and Fe2O3 (7.91 wt%), moderate K2O (3.44 wt%), and low CaO (0.74 wt%). Their dominant mineral assemblages are andalusite + muscovite + margarite + chlorite + biotite + quartz or staurolite + kyanite or/and andalusite + chlorite + muscovite + biotite + quartz with ±garnet and ±plagioclase. Al2SiO5 polymorphs occur as up to 1.5 cm andalusite porphyroblasts and partial or complete pseudomorphs after andalusite (kyanite and staurolite). Accessories include abundant Fe-Ti oxides and sporadic REE-, Y-, Ca-phosphates; sulfides are negligible. The composition of Al2SiO5 concentrates obtained in laboratory by heavy-media and magnetic separation from ≥0.06 mm fractions meet all requirements for raw material of this type: >56 wt% Al2O3, <42 wt% SiO2, <1 wt% Fe2O3, <1.2 wt% TiO2, and <0.2 wt% (CaO+MgO). The andalusite, kyanite, and mixed ores yield 0.7-4.1 wt%, 0.7-2.2 wt%, and 1.9-6.0 wt% of concentrate, respectively. The best-quality ores rich in Al2SiO5 polymorphs reside in zones of contact and/or dynamic metamorphism superimposed over regional metamorphism of Al-rich rocks.

Hydrogels can provide instant relief to pain and facilitate the fast recovery of wounds. Currently the incorporation of medicinal herbs/plants in polymer matrix is being investigated due to their anti-bacterial and wound healing properties. Herein, we investigated the novel combination of chitosan (CS), chondroitin sulfate (CHI) and garlic (Gar) to synthesize hydrogels through freeze gelation process for faster wound healing and resistance to microbial growth at the wound surface. The synthesized hydrogels were characterized via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), which confirmed the presence of relevant functional groups. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images exhibited the porous structure of the hydrogels, which is useful for the sustained release of Gar from the hydrogels. The synthesized hydrogels showed significant inhibition zones against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). Furthermore, cell culture studies confirmed the cyto-compatibility of the synthesized hydrogels. Thus, the novel hydrogels presented in this study can offer antibacterial effect during wound healing and promote tissue regeneration.

Background: Oral cancer (OC) is serious health concerning issue that has a high fatality rate. The oral cavity has seven kinds of OC, including the lip, tongue, and floor of the mouth, as well as the buccal, hard palate, alveolar, retromolar trigone, and soft palate. The goal of this study is to look into new biomarkers and important pathways that might be used as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic candidates in OC. Methods: Publicly available repository the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) was responsible to collect OC-related datasets. GSE74530, GSE23558, and GSE3524 microarray datasets were collected to apply analysis. Minimum cut-off criteria of |log fold-change (FC)| > 1 and adjusted p < 0.05 were applied to figure out the up-regulated and down-regulated differential expression genes (DEGs) from the three datasets. After that only common DEGs in all three datasets were collected to apply further analysis. Gene ontology (GO) and Pathway analysis were implemented to explore the functional behaviors of DEGs. Then protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were built to identify the most performed genes, clustering algorithm was also implemented to identify complex parts of PPI. TF-miRNA networks were also constructed to study deeply about OC-associated DEGs. Finally, top gene performers from PPI networks were used to apply drug signature analysis. Results: After applying filtration and cut-off criteria 2508, 3377, and 670 DEGs were found for GSE74530, GSE23558, and GSE3524 respectively, and 166 common DEGs were found in every dataset. The GO annotation remarks that most of the DEGs were associated with the terms of type I interferon signaling pathway. The pathways of KEGG reported that the common DEGs are related to the Cell cycle and Influenza A. The PPI network holds 88 nodes and 492 edges and CDC6 had the highest number of connections. 4 clusters were identified from the PPI. Drug signatures doxorubicin and resveratrol showed high significance according to the hub genes. We anticipate that our bioinformatics research will aid in the definition of the pathophysiology and the development of new therapies for OC.

Potential dependent special relativity and Gauss's law for the electric field have been used for gravity by assuming vacuum energy to be generated when the energy is a minimum useful expression for vacuum energy has been found. This expression shows that elementary particles are generated by gravity vacuum filling their hollow balls; using Schrödinger equation for spherically symmetric particles vacuum energy is quantized. Treating mass as vibrating spheres thus solving Schrödinger, coordinate harmonic oscillator energy relation has been found.

Sensitive and precise nucleic acid detection is critical for clinical diagnostics and biotechnological advancements. Diagnostic in infectious disease field is very unique from diagnosing any other disease, that is time is of the essence; in outbreaks people die even with each passing hour in some cases, if the correct diagnosis wasn't make; for example Zika in particularly is a very challenging virus to diagnose, because it's in very few numbers of copies in the infected person, so it need high sensitive diagnostic approach to spot it, In particular, the advanced tools SHERLOCKv2 and DETECTR, give almost an immediate detection of attomolar amounts of pathogenic nucleic acids with specificity similar to that of PCR but with slight technical settings and that will guide the correct intervention for the patient. SHERLOCKv2 and DETECTR technologies are game changers for our ability to identify infectious disease and rapid detection of tumor DNA or cancer-related viruses with ultra-sensitive tests that don’t require a lot of complicated processing to go through. In this paper, we will review cutting-edge infectious disease diagnosis by CRISPR-Cas systems.

Environmental interventions and ecological adaptations harbor millions of valued substances and metabolites in plants which can be employed and commercialized for human benefits. Present study encompasses the untapped potential of pine needles of Indo-Himalayan region for the production of different metabolites and their pharmacological significance in terms of antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. Total phenolic and flavonoid content from the needles of ten pine species was quantified using three different solvent systems. Results revealed that out of 10 different selected Pinus species, Pinus taeda showed highest concentration of total phenolics, soluble-F phenolics and flavonoids content (approx.147.02 mg/g, 141.08 mg/g and 21.91mg/g respectively) as compared to other species. On the other hand P. greggii showed highest Bound-W phenolic content (approx.3.62mg/g). Among all the selected plant species, the needles of P.echinata exhibited the highest and P.thunbergii had the lowest ratio of total flavonoids to total phenolics. Most of these compounds were found to have effective antioxidant activities as well as antimicrobial activity, as estimated by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and disk diffusion test respectively.

This article proposes a monitoring system that allows to track transitions between different stages in the berry harvesting process (berry picking, waiting for transport, transport, and arrival to the packing) solely using information from temperature and vibration sensors located in the basket. The monitoring system assumes a characterization of the process based on Hidden Markov Models and uses the Viterbi algorithm to perform inference and estimate the most likely state trajectory. The obtained state trajectory estimate is then used to compute a potential damage indicator in real-time. The proposed methodology does not require information about the weight of the basket to identify each of the different stages, which makes it effective and more efficient than other alternatives available in the industry.

Interaction with social agents employing natural language have been discussed especially since Weizenbaum (1966) observed the social effects of his chatbot named 'Eliza', which imitated a cli-ent-centered conversation. With Nass and Reeves’ media equation theory and computers as social actors paradigm, a well-tested framework has been introduced to the study of human-computer interaction. In the 1990s, there was a renewed focus on natural language analysis, which has be-come a crucial area of research in machine learning. Recent advancements in data processing and storage capacities have led to the development of AI-generated utterances that closely resemble human utterances. As a result, AI-based systems can now mimic social relationships to a signifi-cant extent. In light of these technological developments, the article explores whether quasi-social relationships should be considered within the field of social psychology and examines the poten-tial advantages and challenges of this approach.

Recent measurements in the MRX laboratory plasma [J.Yoo et al, Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 145101 (2024)] have evidenced the role of lower hybrid drift waves produced during magnetic reconnections in producing an effective anomalous resistivity and heating of electrons. A detailed modelization of the energy transfer from the waves to electrons is missing, though. In this work, we attempt such an exercise using a Hamiltonian test-particle model for wave-electron interaction, valid for low-β weakly collisional plasmas. Quantitative agreement with MRX results is found.

To establish simulated micro-gravity conditions, biological organisms are placed on a simulated microgravity system, which primarily rotate in two or three dimensions and rely on slow sedimentation with latency to detect gravity. Fluid dynamics arise as a consequence of rotation of the chambers with in which the cells are filled. To minimize the effects of centrifugal forces, it is necessary to position the samples as close to the center of rotation as possible. Strong shear forces and velocities within the vessel can have an adverse impact on cells, making this a critical topic in cell biology. During experimental investigation, this specific phenomenon is not apparent, but numerical modelling readily illustrates and is not widely analyzed in literature's. Furthermore, bulk flask are frequently employed on random positioning machines (RPM), not merely because they demand a substantial quantity of reagents. The flask presented in the study can be easily developed and fitted in conventional cell culture plates containing medium and reagents similar to those used in ground experiments, thus allowing it to remain close to the center of rotation. In the present study, a series of fluid dynamics simulations are performed to examine the impact of shear forces within the microvessel presented under varying conditions using a foreign medium condition, and these results are compared with existing vessels by observing the effects of shear forces and maximum velocity zones.

(1) Background: Emergencies confront civilian and military healthcare providers with medical and hygienic challenges due to the lack of potable water. This pilot study aimed to describe the application of two different methods for microbiological monitoring of water in a harsh environment in terms of performance, ease of use, availability, and the possibility of using the results to evaluate water quality. (2) Methods: Samples from raw water, Potable water, and water for consumers were taken from two different camps with the same raw water source. The samples were analyzed by using IDEXX industry-standard methods (Colilert and Enterolert enzymatic test kits) and a combination of membrane filtration and 3M-Petrifilm. (3) Results: The IDEXX method used at the Norwegian Camp are easier to utilize and has a broader range of analyzing kits for drinking water analysis. In addition, IDEXX is better adapted to the requirements of the national legislation. However, the combination of membrane filtration followed by incubation on 3M-Petrifilm ™, as used at the Swedish camp, is a better field alternative compared to traditional bacteriology, as it eliminates the need to produce and store agar plates. (4) Conclusions: This pilot study highlights the need for adapted technical equipment and tools for internal microbiological control of water production in a harsh field environment and may facilitate the use of a relatively simple method for water control and ensure the safety of deployed staff in both civilian and military settings.

Millions of people use public transportation daily worldwide and frequently touch surfaces, thereby producing a reservoir of microorganisms on surfaces increasing the risk of transmission. Constant occupation makes sufficient cleaning difficult to achieve. Thus, an autonomous, perma-nent antimicrobial coating (AMC) could keep down the microbial burden on such surfaces. A photodynamic AMC was applied to frequently touched surfaces in buses. The microbial burden (colony forming units, cfu) was determined weekly and compared to equivalent surfaces in buses without AMC (references). The microbial burden ranged from 0 – 209 cfu/cm² on references and from 0 – 54 cfu/cm² on AMC. The means were 13.4 ± 29.6 cfu/cm² on references and 4.5 ± 8.4 cfu/cm² on AMC (p<0.001). The difference of microbial burden on AMC and references was al-most constant throughout the study. Considering a hygiene benchmark of 5 cfu/cm², the data yield an absolute risk reduction of 22.6 % and a relative risk reduction of 50.7 %. In conclusion, photo-dynamic AMC kept down the microbial burden, reducing the risk of transmission of microor-ganisms. AMC permanently and autonomously contributes to hygienic conditions on surfaces in public transportation. Photodynamic AMC therefore are suitable for reducing the microbial load and closing hygiene gaps in public transportation.

The circuitry of the summarized "floating" differential stages (FDS) based on complementary field-effect transistors with a control p-n junction (CJFET), intended for use in low-noise analog microcircuits, for example, operational amplifiers. The results of modeling the flow characteristics of one of the CJFET FDSs in the LTSpice XVII environment at low temperatures (down to -197 ⁰С) and exposure to a neutron flux in the range of 1e13 ÷ 1e15 n / cm² are presented.

One ambitious objective of Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) is to shorten the materials development cycle by using computational materials simulation techniques at different length scales. In this regard, the most important aspects are the prediction of the microstructural evolution during material processing and the understanding of the contributions of microstructural features to the mechanical response of the materials. One possible solution to such a challenge is to apply the Phase Field (PF) method because it can predict the microstructural evolution under the influence of different internal or external stimuli, including deformation. To accomplish this, it is necessary to take into account plasticity or, specifically, non-homogeneous plastic deformation, which is particularly important for investigating the size effects in materials emerging at the micron length scale. In this work, we present quasi-2D simulations of plastic deformation in a face centred cubic system in a finite strain formulation. Our model consists of dislocation-based strain gradient crystal plasticity implemented into a PF code. We apply this model to study the influence of grain size on the mechanical behavior of polycrystals, which includes dislocation storage and annihilation. Furthermore, the initial state of the material before deformation is also considered. The results show that a dislocation-based strain gradient crystal plasticity model can capture the Hall-Petch effect in many aspects. The model reproduced the correct functional dependence of the flow stress of the polycrystal on grain size without assigning any special properties to the grain boundaries. However, the predicted Hall-Petch coefficients are significantly smaller than those found typically in experiments. In any case, we found a good qualitative agreement between our findings and experimental results.

Hydroiodic acid (HI) treated - reduced graphene oxide (rGO) ink/conductive polymeric composites are considered as promising cold cathodes in terms of high geometrical aspect ratio and low field emission (FE) threshold devices. In this study, four simple, cost-effective, solution-processed approaches for rGO-based field effect emitters were developed, optimized and compared; rGO layers were coated on a) n+ doped Si substrate, b) n⁺-Si/P3HT:rGO, c) n⁺-Si/PCDTBT:rGO and d) n⁺-Si/PCDTBT:PC₇₁BM:rGO composites, respectively. The fabricated emitters were optimized by tailoring the concentration ratios of their preparation and field emission characteristics. In a critical composite ratio, FE performance was remarkably improved compared to the pristine Si, as well as n⁺-Si/rGO field emitter. In this context, the impact of various materials, such as polymers, fullerene derivatives, as well as different solvents on rGO function reinforcement and consequently on FE performance upon rGO-based composites preparation was investigated. The field emitter consisted of n⁺-Si/PCDTBT:PC₇₁BM(80%):rGO(20%)/rGO displayed a field enhancement factor of ∼2850, with remarkable stability over 20h and low turn-on field in 0.6V/μm. High-efficiency graphene-based FE devices realization paves the way towards low-cost, large-scale electron sources development. Finally, the contribution of this hierarchical, composite film morphology was evaluated and discussed.

Satellite derived bathymetry methods over coastal areas were born to deliver basic and useful information like bathymetry. However, the process is not straightforward, the main limitation being the need of field data. The Self-calibrated Spectral Supervised Shallow-water Modeler (4SM) method was tested to obtain coastal bathymetry without the use of any field data. Using LANDSAT-8 multispectral images from 2013 to 2016, a bathymetric time series was produced. Groundtruthed depths and an alternative method, Stumpf’s Band Ratio Algorithm, were used to verify the results. Retrieved (4SM) vs groundtruthed depths scored an average r2 (0.90), and a low error (RMSE = 1.47 m). Also 4SM showed, over the whole time series, the same average accuracy of the control method (40%). Advantages, limitations and operability under complex atmosphere and water column conditions, and high and low-albedo bottom processing capabilities of 4SM are discussed. In conclusion, the findings suggest that 4SM is equally accurate as the commonly used Stumpf’s method, the only difference being the independence of 4SM to previous field data, and the potential to deliver bottom spectral characteristics for further modelling. 4SM represents a significative advance in coastal remote sensing potential to obtain bathymetry and optical properties of the marine bottom.

Ultrasonic feedback energy is affected by the variety, planting and growth state of crops, it is difficult to fine application in precision agriculture systems. To this end, an ultrasonic sensor was mounted in a spray boom height detection system. Winter wheat was used as the test object to obtain feedback energy values for the spray boom height from the top of the wheat in the field during six critical growth stages: the standing stage, jointing stage, booting stage, heading stage, filling stage and maturity stage. The relationship between the actual value of the height from the spray boom to the top of wheat (Habw) and the detected value of the height from the spray boom to the top of wheat (Hdbw) was analyzed. A spray boom height detection model based on the ultrasonic sensor during the full growth cycle of wheat was determined. Field validation tests showed that the applicability of the spray boom height detection distance (Dd) of the spray boom height detection model proposed in the present study was 450 mm~950 mm. Within the applicable Dd range, the detection error of the detection model was ≤5 cm during the full growth cycle. This study provides an ultrasonic detection model construction method, which improves the reliability and accuracy of ultrasonic boom height detection for different wheat growth stages.

Solidification microstructure is formed under high cooling rates and temperature gradients in powder-based additive manufacturing. In this study, a non-equilibrium multi-phase field method (MPFM), which was based on a finite interface dissipation model proposed by Steinbach et. al., coupled with a CALPHAD database was developed for a multicomponent Ni alloy. A qua-si-equilibrium MPFM was also developed for comparison. Two-dimensional equiaxed micro-structural evolution for the Ni (Bal.)–Al–Co–Cr–Mo–Ta–Ti–W–C alloy was performed at various cooling rates. The temperature–γ fraction profiles obtained under 10^5 K/s using non- and qua-si-equilibrium MPFMs were in good agreement with each other. Over 10^6 K/s, the differences between non- and quasi-equilibrium methods grew as the cooling rate increased. The non-equilibrium solidification was strengthened over a cooling rate of 10^6 K/s. Colum-nar-solidification microstructural evolution was performed under cooling rates from 5×10^5 K/s to 1×10^7 K/s at various temperature gradient values under the constant interface velocity (0.1 m/s). The results showed that as the cooling rate increased, the cell space decreased in both methods, and the non-equilibrium MPFM agreed well with experimental measurements. Our results show that the non-equilibrium MPFM can simulate solidification microstructure in powder bed fusion additive manufacturing.

The emerging use of visualization techniques in pathology and microbiol- ogy has been accelerated by machine learning (ML) approaches towards image preprocessing, classification, and feature extraction in an increasingly complex series of datasets. Modern Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architectures have developed into an umbrella of vast image reinforcement and recognition methods, including a combined classification-localization of single/multi-object featured images. As a subtype neural network, CNN cre- ates a rapid order of complexity by initially detecting borderlines, edges, and colours in images for dataset construction, eventually capable in mapping intricate objects and conformities. This paper investigates the disparities between Tensorflow object detection APIs, exclusively, Single Shot Detector (SSD) Mobilenet V1 and the Faster RCNN Inception V2 model, to sample computational drawbacks in accuracy-precision vs. real time visualization capabilities. The situation of rapid ML medical image analysis is theoretically framed in regions with limited access to pathology and disease prevention departments (e.g. 3rd world and impoverished countries). Dark field mi- croscopy datasets of an initial 62 XML-JPG annotated training files were processed under Malaria and Syphilis classes. Model trainings were halted as soon as loss values were regularized and converged.

Urumqi City, located in the northwest of China, is a city with high indoor radon concentration in nationwide indoor radon survey in China. This study focuses on the assessment of indoor radon level and its potential sources in this city. Indoor radon measure using RAD7 and solid nuclear track detector (SSNTD), soil gas radon by RAD7 and determining specific activity of uranium and radium in soil samples by a high pure germanium spectrometer were performed from 2021 to 2023. The results reveal a wide range of indoor radon concentrations in Urumqi, with anomalies above 400 Bq/m3 in some dwellings. The arithmetical and geometric mean values of indoor radon concentration in Urumqi are 90.24 ± 83.04 Bq/m3 and 66.25 Bq/m3, respectively. The geometric mean values of radon and thoron by SSNTD is 110 Bq/m3 and 109 Bq/m3. The analysis suggest that the activity of faults and fault structures are the main factors influencing indoor radon levels, with frequent earthquakes contributing to higher average radon concentrations. Additionally, investigations into indoor radon and building material radioactivity in detailed are recommended for buildings with radon anomalies and the source of indoor radon anomalies.

Background: Early diagnosis of postoperative complications is an urgent task, allowing timely prescribing of appropriate therapy and reducing the cost of patient treatment. Prognostic models based on various data could help in the early diagnosis of postoperative complications after cardiac surgery. Objectives: The purpose of the study was to determine whether an integrated approach based on clinical data along with metabolites and biomarkers had greater predictive value than the models built on less data. Methods: The study included patients (n=62) admitted for planned cardiac surgery (coronary artery bypass grafting with cardiopulmonary bypass), who were retrospectively divided into two groups depending on the presence (n=26) or absence (n=36) of postoperative complications of all types. Clinical and laboratory data on the first day after surgery were analyzed. Additionally, patients' blood samples were collected before and on the first day after surgery to determine biomarkers (interleukin-6, procalcitonin, NT-proBNP, high-sensitivity troponin T) and metabolites (8 aromatic and 2 dicarboxylic acids were detected using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry). Results: Patients before surgery, compared with healthy donors, differed in the concentration of metabolites (p &lt; 0.05), and had concentrations of a number of biomarkers exceeding the corresponding reference values. Multivariate PLS-DA models, predicting the presence or absence of postoperative complications, were built using clinical data (ROC-AUC=0.71), concentrations of metabolites and biomarkers (ROC-AUC=0.60), and the entire data set (ROC-AUC=0.75). For comparison we built univariate models using the EuroScore2 (ROC-AUC=0.59) and SOFA (ROC-AUC=0.76) scales; concentrations of lactate (ROC-AUC=0.71), the dynamic changes of 4-hydroxyphenyllactic acid (ROC-AUC=0.69), and the sum of three sepsis-associated metabolites (ROC-AUC=0.70). The proposed complex model using entire data set was comparable to the SOFA scale, which confirms the expediency of searching for new predictive models based on a variety of factors.

Milk serves as a crucial source of natural bioactive compounds essential for human nutrition and health. The gastrointestinal digestion of milk proteins releases various biologically active peptides that positively impact human health and enhance physiological performance. With the growing production of cheese, Greek yogurt, and other dairy products, the volume of unutilized acid whey is significantly increasing. Acid whey, containing almost all whey proteins and approximately one-quarter of casein, presents a valuable raw material for generating peptides with potential health benefits. These peptides exhibit properties such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, antihypertensive, antithrombotic, opioid, mineral-binding, and growth-stimulating activities, contributing to improved human immunity and the treatment of chronic diseases. Enzymatic hydrolysis of milk proteins has been developed as a method to produce these peptides, facilitating their use in food fortification. To incorporate whey into functional beverages, it undergoes fermentation by lactic acid bacteria with proteolytic activity. To specifically enrich these beverages with peptides exhibiting targeted bioactivities, it is essential to select lactic acid bacteria strains possessing the requisite protease profiles. Additionally, the sensory properties of the final product can be enhanced using starter cultures with diverse metabolic capabilities, even in the absence of added flavoring agents. Given the imperative to develop waste-free technologies and enhance the profitability of the dairy industry, there is a growing need to efficiently utilize and transform acid whey into a broad spectrum of valuable products and food additives. This approach is justified not only by the nutritional benefits of the bioactive components in whey but also by the commercial potential of safe and health-enhancing products.

To evaluate genetic variability and seedling plant response to a dominated Warrior (-) race of yellow rust in Northern and Central European germplasm, we used a population of 229 winter wheat cultivars and breeding lines for genome-wide association study (GWAS). A wide variation in yellow rust disease severity (based on infection types 1-9) was observed in this panel. Four breeding lines TS049 (from Austria), TS111, TS185, and TS229 (from Germany) and one cultivar TS158 (KWS Talent) from Germany were found to be resistant to Warrior (-) FS 53/20 and Warrior (-) G 23/19. GWAS identified five significant SNPs associated with yellow rust on chromosomes 1B, 2A, 5B, and 7A for Warrior (-) FS 53/20, while one SNP on chromosome 5B was associated with disease for Warrior (-) G 23/19. For Warrior (-) FS 53/20, we discovered a new QTL for yellow rust resistance associated with the marker Kukri_c5357_323 on chromosome 1B. The resistant allele G at the marker locus Kukri_c5357_323 on chromosome 1B and the susceptible allele T at the marker locus Excalibur_c17489_804 on chromosome 5B showed the largest effects (1.21 and 0.81, respectively) on the severity of yellow rust detected in Warrior (-) FS 53/20 and Warrior (-) G 23/19. Among 144 putative genes within the flanking sequence of the significant SNPs detected by GWAS, the function of the best candidate genes was determined as protein kinase activity and oxidoreductase activity. Our results provide the basis for knowledge-based resistance breeding in the face of the enormous impact of the Warrior (-) race on wheat production in Europe.

Several clusters and individual cases of acute —often severe— hepatitis have been reported in Europe —mainly in the United Kingdom (U.K.)—, the United States (U.S.) and recently in Asia since October 2021. Laboratory investigation of the common viral hepatitis agents (HAV, HBV, HCV, HDV and HEV) yielded negative results prompting the use of the term “acute non hepA–E hepatitis” to describe this condition. The cases were characterized by the manifestations of acute hepatitis (abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice and very high levels of liver enzymes) affecting children with a median age of 3–4 years. The exact underlying etiology has not been revealed yet; however, a leading hypothesis is that an infectious agent is the culprit underlying cause or at least a risk factor for acute non hepA–E hepatitis occurrence. So far, laboratory testing has shown the presence of adenovirus serotype 41 (Ad–41) which is classified in group F of adenoviruses in about three-fourths of the reported cases. However, the definitive link between adenoviruses and acute non hepA–E hepatitis has not been fully elucidated, which necessitates further investigation of this possible correlation. As of the end of April 2022, more than 200 cases were reported worldwide, the majority of which were in Europe: the U.K. (n=114), Italy (n=17), Spain (n=13), Israel (n=12), the U.S. (n=9), Denmark (n=6), Netherlands and Ireland (n=4), Japan (n=3), Austria, Belgium, France, and Norway (n=2), Germany, Poland, and Romania (n=1). Possible cases are being evaluated in Illinois, Minnesota, North Carolina, Wisconsin states of the U.S., Canada, Singapore and Slovenia. Vigilant surveillance and epidemiologic investigation to identify further cases are warranted at the global level to delineate the features of this emergent public health issue. The possible role of environmental and toxic agents including foodborne toxins should not be overlooked as well. Specific guidelines for identification of further cases is necessary particularly in low-income settings where testing for adenoviruses is not considered routinely. Genetic analysis of Ad–41 isolates is recommended to assess the potential changes in virus genome with subsequent possible altered virus behavior. Immunopathogenesis is another possibility that should be examined as well considering the absence of virus detection in liver biopsies of the affected children in the U.S.

A number of regolith-hosted REE occurrences have recently been discovered in the Esperance region in southern Western Australia. This paper summarizes major characteristics of the REE mineralization and discusses contributing factors and potential controls. The main aim is to explain why there is a lack of highly sought-after ion-adsorption clay type REE deposits across the region despite the presence of the regolith-hosted REE mineralization on a regional scale. Local mineralization mostly occurs as continuous flat-lying enrichment “blankets” within the residual regolith developed over Archaean–Proterozoic granite gneisses and granitoids with elevated REE content. The enriched horizon is commonly located in the lower saprolite and saprock and is accompanied by an overlying REE-depleted zone. This distribution pattern, together with the data on HREE fractionation and the presence of the supergene REE minerals, indicate chemogenic type enrichment formed by supergene REE mobilization into groundwater, downward transport and accumulation in the lower part of the weathering profile. Residual REE accumulation processes due to bulk rock volume and mass reduction during weathering also contribute to mineralization. It is proposed that climate and groundwater chemistry are the critical controls on the distribution of REEs in the weathering profile and on their speciation in the enrichment zone. Cenozoic aridification of climate in southwest Australia heavily overprinted pre-existing REE distributions in the weathering profile. Acidic (pH &lt;4), highly saline groundwaters intensely leached away any relatively weakly bound, adsorbed or colloidal REE forms, moving them downward. Dissolved RREs precipitated as secondary phosphates in neutral to alkaline environment at lower Eh near the base of the weathering profile forming the supergene enrichment zone. Low denudation rates, characteristic of areas of low relief under the arid climate, are favorable for the preservation of the existing weathering profiles with REE mineralization.

Intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1/CD54), a transmembrane glycoprotein, has been considered as one of the most important adhesion molecules during leukocyte recruitment. It is encoded by the ICAM1 gene and plays a central role in inflammation. It’s crucial role in many inflammatory diseases such as ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis are well established. Given that neuroinflammation, underscored by microglial activation, is a key element in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease (PD), we investigated whether ICAM-1 has a role in this progressive neurological condition and if so, elucidate the underpinning mechanisms. Specifically, we were interested in potential interaction between ICAM-1, glial cells and ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of cell death that has recently been implicated in PD. We conclude that there exist direct and indirect (via glial cells and T cells) influences of ICAM-1 on ferroptosis and that further elucidation of these interactions can suggest novel intervention for this devastating disease.

Cestodes are etiological agents of neglected diseases such as echinococcosis and cysticercosis, which are major public health problems. Antiparasitic treatment relies on a small number of approved drugs, which are often only partially effective, poorly tolerated and require prolonged administration. Thus, the discovery of novel potential treatments is critical. The Stevia genus (Asteraceae) includes species that are associated with medicinal uses and are considered a source of bioactive compounds. Here, we analyzed four South American Stevia species that have previously demonstrated antiprotozoal properties. The effect of dichloromethane extracts of these species was determined by motility assays on Mesocestoides vogae, a laboratory model of cestodes. Stevia alpina showed the highest anthelmintic potential followed by S. maimarensis and S. multiaristata, while S. aristata was the least active. The sesquiterpene lactones estafietin and eupatoriopicrin were purified from S. alpina and S. maimarensis, respectively. Estafietin showed cestocidal activity, inhibiting parasite viability in a dose-dependent manner, even from the first day of incubation. Consistent with the motility effects, the extract of S. alpina and estafietin induced major alterations on the morphology of the parasite. The results of this report show that Stevia species represent a source of new molecules with potential for the treatment of neglected tropical diseases caused by cestodes.

Bicuspid Aortic valve Stenosis (BCAS) with an incidence of 3% of the world's population constitutes the most frequent Congenital Heart Disease whereas all other subtypes collectively constitute 1% of all life births. Most and the extreme severity spectrum of valvular Aortic Stenosis (VAS) in adulthood are cases of congenital bicuspid aortic valve. It seems that the congenital occurrence of the bicuspid aortic valve is a major prerequisite of the pathological calcifications and fibrosis seen in adults. Those progressive changes can't be explained by sole hemodynamic destructive forces but other factors inherent to the bicuspid valve tissue are also contributing. Therapeutic options of (VAS) are relatively stagnant and have been limited to invasive and surgical options. Prudent observation of the risk factors of some CHDs including BCAS was the epigenetic effect of planetary electromagnetic field on the delicate process of endothelial mesenchymal transformation (EndoMT). The incidence of BCAS is progressively increasing as we depart north from the equator to the north pole. A deeper understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying EndoMT in congenital as well as acquired heart diseases is expected to open a new era in reversing heart disease in the human species. The potential to manipulate EndoMT and its signaling pathways or to reverse it with external electromagnetic power is an exciting therapeutic option for a wide array of congenital and acquired heart diseases including bicuspid aortic stenosis (BCAS) in the human species.

Abstract: Imaging of low (LGG) to high (HGG) grade gliomas is conventionally performed with MRI, which is the non-invasive gold-standard imaging modality to derive data. Gliomas (Grade 1,2,3,4) are lethal and demonstate poor outcomes despite novel therapies. Integrins compose of heterodimeric parasympathetic nervous system; the aVb3 (RGD i.e. Galacto-Arginine-Glycine-Aspartic acid) have been displayed as a potential biomarker that can be imaged via PET in order to trace the angiogenetic pathway. Gliomas are common primary central nervous system (CNS) tumours which are often pose a diagnostic challenge, even to stage and manage because of their heterogeneity in molecular aberrations. Several core mutational core hallmarks of gliomas are inducing/accessing vasculature, tumour promoting inflamation, polymorphic microbes and avoiding/resisting cell death; these ultimately lead to poor prognosis. In 2007, the classification of diffuse gliomas was based on the histopathology and subtype e.g. Pilocytic astrocytoma and low cell proliferation, in 2016, the classification of diffuse gliomas was based on the IDH status, 1p/19q codeletion, subtype and grade; then in 2021, the IDH status (wild-type or mutant), molecular profile, subtype and grade were added in order to improve the classification of diffuse gliomas. Imaging (MRI) techniques progress stalled despite the imperfections in MRI e.g distinguishing RN (radionecrosis) and PsP (Pseudoprogression) hence the exploration of PET probes that detect important hallmarks of gliomas e.g. techniques such as [68Ga]68Ga-RGD positron emission tomography (PET) to be utilised to assess vasculature. This case report aimed to determine the potential clinical utility of molecular imaging with 68Ga-RGD PET used in complementary to traditional MRI techniques.

The emergence of acquired resistance to EGFR-TKIs is almost inevitable even after a remarkable clinical response. Secondary mutations such as T790M and C797S are responsible for the resistance to 1st/2nd generation (1/2G) TKIs and 3G TKIs, respectively. To overcome both the T790M and C797S mutations, novel 4G EGFR-TKIs are now under early clinical development. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of a 4G EGFR-TKI in the treatment of lung cancer with EGFR mutation as well as explored resistance mechanisms to a 4G TKI. First, we compared the efficacies of seven TKIs including a 4G TKI, BI4020, against Ba/F3 cell models that simulate resistant tumors after frontline osimertinib treatment failure because of a secondary mutation. We also established acquired re-sistant cells to BI4020 by chronic drug exposure. Ba/F3 cells with an osimertinib-resistant secondary mutation were refractory to all 3G TKIs tested (alflutinib, lazertinib, rezivertinib, almonertinib, and befotertinib). BI4020 inhibited the growth of C797S-positive cells; however it was not effective against L718Q-positive cells. Erlotinib was active against all Ba/F3 cells tested. In the analysis of resistance mechanisms of BI4020 resistant (BIR) cells, none harbored secondary EGFR mutations. HCC827BIR cells had MET gene amplification and were sensitive to a combination of capmatinib (MET-TKI) and BI4020. HCC4006BIR and H1975BIR cells exhibited epithelial to mesenchymal transition. This study suggests that erlotinib may be more suitable than 4G TKIs to overcome sec-ondary mutations after front-line osimertinib. We found that off-target mechanisms that cause re-sistance to earlier generation TKIs will also cause resistance to 4G TKIs.

Although the neurofilament light chain (NfL) is used as a biomarker for neurodegenerative decline, its use in surgery- and anaesthesia-induced acute cognitive dysfunction remains controversial. We aimed to synthesise the evidence to explore the potential of NfL as an established biomarker for perioperative neurocognitive disorders (PND). We systematically searched the PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library electronic databases, and Cochrane Central Registry of Clinical Trials. Our results show that CSF NfL levels positively correlated with blood NfL levels (r = 0.63; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.42-0.77). The pooled standardised mean difference (SMD) showed a significantly higher preoperative CSF NfL levels (SMD = 0.27; 95% CI, 0.07-0.47) and both pre- and postoperative blood NfL levels (SMD = 0.53, 95% CI, 0.40-0.66 and SMD = 0.58, 95% CI, 0.43-0.73) in the postoperative delirium (POD) group. Postoperative blood NfL levels were significantly elevated in both POD group (SMD = 0.49; 95% CI, 0.34-0.64) and no-POD group (SMD = 0.67; 95% CI, 0.53-0.81). Our meta-analysis indicates that NfL may serve as a potential biomarker for POD, and elevated preoperative blood NfL levels could be a risk factor for POD. Further studies are needed to confirm the association of CSF/blood NfL levels with other PND types.

This study investigated a novel probiotic-enriched ice cream containing fermented white kidney bean homogenate to explore its potential health benefits. We assessed the viability of various probiotic strains during ice cream production and storage, focusing on their potential to reach the gut, and evaluated the overall antioxidant activity using DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, and TPC assays. The incorporation of fermented white bean homogenate significantly increased antioxidant capacity compared to the control group. Notably, strains like L. rhamnosus GG and L. plantarum 299v demonstrated the most pronounced effects on antioxidant activity, suggesting potential synergistic benefits between probiotics and bioactive compounds in fermented white beans. Although all probiotic strains experienced decreased viability during storage, certain strains, particularly L. plantarum 299v and L. casei DN-114001, showed promising survival rates even after 6 months. These results suggest the potential for developing probiotic ice cream containing viable bacteria capable of reaching the gut and contributing to a healthy gut microbiota. This could potentially improve digestion, reduce inflammation, and boost the immune system. Overall, this study highlights the potential of probiotic-enriched ice cream with fermented white kidney bean homogenate to combine the established benefits of probiotics for gut health with the enjoyment of consuming ice cream.

The study focused on Molecular Docking simulations using Autodock Vina in conjunction with the Pyrx program to investigate potential drugs and natural compounds against the Bcr-Abl oncoprotein. From initial virtual screening of 200 compounds, 11 potential candidates were selected for further evaluation. Additional investigations included toxicity prediction using the pKCSM server. Among the compounds, Diosmin and Hesperidin showed high maximum tolerated doses in humans and low toxicity. Conversely, only Eltrombopag among the selected drugs exhibited excellent parameters, albeit with a potential risk of liver damage at high dosages. These findings underscore the need for comprehensive evaluation of efficacy and safety in the development of potential treatments targeting the Bcr-Abl oncoprotein.

Cancer, a globally prevalent and often deadly disease, holds promise for improved treatment through the integration of innovative medical technologies and interdisciplinary collaborations. Despite advancements, current cancer therapies lack a specific focus on addressing recurrence and targeting cancer stem cells (CSCs), known contributors to relapse. In this study, we utilized three types of cancer cells and generated three types of CSCs derived from them to conduct proteomic analysis and identified shared cell surface biomarkers as potential targets for a comprehensive treatment strategy. The selected biomarkers underwent evaluation through shRNA treatment, revealing contrasting functions in cancer and CSCs. Knocking down the identified protein showed promising results in regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and stemness via the ERK signaling pathway. This led to a reduction in resistance to anticancer agents, ultimately enhancing the overall anticancer effects. Additionally, the biomarker's significance in clinical patient outcomes was confirmed using bioinformatics. Our study suggests a novel cancer treatment strategy that addresses existing limitations in current anticancer therapies.

We will demonstrate how the CMB temperature simply can be predicted from what we will call geometric mean Planck gravitational potential energy in the universe. This falls nicely in line with the recent discovery that the CMB temperature also is a geometric mean of the minimum and maxium temerature in the Hubble sphere, and also that the CMB tem- perature can be derived from the Stefan-Boltzman law. Since the Coulomb force for Planck charges are identical to the Newton force for two Planck mass particles this also seems to give a potential connection between electrostatic force and the CMB temperature.

This study employs molecular docking experiments to investigate the binding interactions of Hypericin with key proteins implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Hypericin demonstrated a significant binding energy of -10.1 kcal/mol with ABAD (3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase type II). The analysis revealed multiple binding interactions, including hydrogen bonds with arginine 6, serine 7, and glutamic acid 140, as well as hydrophobic bonds involving leucine 11, aspartic acid 142, and aspartic acid 86. These findings illuminate the intricate molecular interactions between Hypericin and ABAD, suggesting its potential as a lead compound for further therapeutic development in the context of Alzheimer's disease. Additionally, a parallel docking investigation was conducted for Beta-secretase 1 (BACE1), a protein pivotal in the generation of beta-amyloid peptides—a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Inhibiting BACE1 activity is considered a promising therapeutic strategy for AD. Computational analyses suggest that Hypericin may serve as a potential inhibitor of BACE1. Molecular Docking results reveal a robust binding affinity between Hypericin and BACE1, supported by a significant binding energy score of -10.3 kcal/mol. Notably, both ABAD and BACE1 exhibit high binding affinity with Hypericin. This theoretical exploration provides an initial understanding of the intricate molecular pathways involved in Alzheimer's disease and proposes Hypericin as a potential therapeutic compound for mitigating its progression.

Given the remarkable progress in global health and overall quality of life, the significant rise in life expectancy has become intertwined with the surging occurrence of neurodegenerative disorders (ND). This emerging trend is poised to pose a substantial challenge to the fields of medicine and public health in the years ahead. In this context, Alzheimer's disease (AD) is regarded as a ND that causes recent memory loss, motor impairment and cognitive deficits. AD is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly and its development is linked to multifactorial interac-tions between the environment, genetics, aging and lifestyle. The pathological hallmarks in AD are the accumulation of beta amyloid (A) peptide, the hyperphosphorylation of tau protein, neuro-toxic events and impaired glucose metabolism. Due to pharmacological limitations and in view of the prevailing glycemic hypometabolism, the ketogenic diet (KD) emerges as a promising non-pharmacological possibility for managing AD, an approach that has already demonstrated efficacy in addressing other disorders, notably epilepsy. KD consists of a food regimen in which carbohydrate intake is discouraged at the expense of increased lipid consumption, inducing met-abolic ketosis, whereby the main source of energy becomes ketone bodies, instead of glucose. Thus, under these dietary conditions, neuronal death through lack of energy would be decreased, inasmuch as the metabolism of lipids is not impaired in AD. In this way, the clinical picture of patients with AD would potentially improve, through the slowing down of symptoms and delaying the progression of the disease. Hence, this review aims to explore the rationale behind utilizing the KD in AD treatment while emphasizing the metabolic interplay between KD and the improvement of AD indicators, drawing insights from both pre-clinical and clinical investigations.

The global predicament of solid waste generation looms as a mounting crisis, profoundly impacting the world, particularly in developing nations. Each day, the world's population contributes millions of tonnes of municipal solid waste, with projections pointing toward further escalation in the coming years. This surge in waste, predominantly composed of cellulose-rich materials, correlates directly with heightened pollution, a threat that transcends borders and imperils humanity as a whole.To confront this ever-growing issue, cellulase, a potent hydrolytic enzyme capable of digesting cellulose, a chief component of solid waste, is explored as a potential solution. In this study, we harness cellulase enzymes derived from the digestive tracts of both Archachatina marginata and Oryctes rhinoceros larvae, employing them as biodegradation agents for cellulose-based waste materials.The cellulase enzymes are methodically isolated and partially purified via ammonium sulfate precipitation at 65% saturation. Their efficacy in breaking down a variety of waste categories, encompassing kitchen waste, leaves, paper, wood, and industrial waste, is meticulously assessed and benchmarked against carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), a well-established laboratory substrate. The study also ascertains the specific activity of these enzymes.Spectrophotometric analyses of the cellulase enzymes' actions on the diverse waste materials unveil intriguing results. Archachatina marginata and Oryctes rhinoceros larvae exhibit distinct performance metrics, registering percentage ranges of (11.04% - 28.31%) and (33.69% - 189.11%) on wood waste, (76.52% - 196%) and (108.56% - 567.01%) on paper waste, (78.57% - 148.14%) and (163.33% - 436.76%) on leaf waste, (57.16% - 179.95%) and (63.38% - 457.05%) on kitchen waste, and (59.95% - 77.51%) and (117.26% - 155.23%) on industrial waste, respectively. This study underscores the substantial biodegradation potential inherent in cellulase enzymes from both Oryctes rhinoceros larvae and Archachatina marginata when applied to diverse waste materials. While the rates and impacts of waste degradation vary between these sources, their promising contributions to waste management come into focus, offering sustainable and innovative approaches to tackle the pressing global challenge of solid waste proliferation.

Consciousness pervades our daily experiences, yet it remains largely unaccounted for in contemporary physics and chemistry theories. Several existing theories, such as the Integrated Information Theory (IIT), Global Workspace Theory (GWT), Electromagnetic Field Theory (EMF Theory of Consciousness), and Orchestrated Objective Reduction Theory (Orch-OR), attempt to clarify the essence of consciousness. Yet, they often encounter significant challenges. These challenges arise due to the intricate nature of our neural systems and the limitations of current measurement and computational technologies, which often prevent these theories from being rigorously mathematically described or quantitatively tested. Here we introduce a novel theory that hypothesizes consciousness as an inherent property of certain particle configurations. Specifically, when a group of particles align in a particular state, they exhibit consciousness. This relationship between particle states and conscious perceptions is governed by what we term the "universal consciousness code". And we propose a possible practical mathematical method to decipher the complex relationship between neural activities and consciousness and to test our theory using the latest artificial intelligence technologies.

Due to the low content, few studies are focused on the volatile compounds of Phlomoides rotata (Benth. ex Hook. f.) Mathiesen (PR, syn. Lamiophlomis rotata (Benth.) Kudô). However, such volatile compounds may have important pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anticancer. In order to identify the chemical markers (CMs) in the essential oils (Es) and explore the potential bioactivities, we first conduct a thoroughly investigation on the volatile compounds and evaluate their anti-oxidant activities (AOAs), to the best of our knowledge. Light yellow Es with a fresh and elegant smell are obtained by hydro-distillation with an average yield of 0.11% (mL/g). After separation through cryoprecipitation, the crystals (Cs) and EOs removed crystals (RCs) were gotten, respectively. A total of 81 components are qualified and quantified in the Es, Cs and RCs, in which 44 ones are first reported from PR. As for content, the main compounds are long-chain fatty acids (LCFAs) and their esters. Among them, palmitic acid (PA), myristic acid (MA), linoleic acid (LA), oleic acid (OA) and methyl palmitate are highlighted, Besides, hexahydrofarnesyl acetone and phytol are also prominent Four kinds of C13-norisoprenoids are first reported from PR, in which, trans-β-damascenone is potent in flavour. In sum, these eight representative compounds can be chosen as the CMs. The AOAs of Es, Cs, RCs and four CMs such as PA, MA, LA and OA are evaluated by in vitro assays. In general, PA and MA present pro-oxidant activities (POAs) or weak AOAs. LA and OA show POAs or weak AOAs in lower concentration group, whereas demonstrate medium or strong AOAs in higher concentration group. Usually, the RCs demonstrate stronger AOAs and the Cs present weaker AOAs compared with those of the corresponding Es, which should be related to their different content of PA. This study can give some hints on the utilization of such Es which are abundant in LCFAs.

Alheira is a naturally fermented meat sausage traditionally made in the Portuguese region of Trás-os-Montes. Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) have been found to be the dominant microorganisms in alheira. This study aimed: 1) to characterize technological features and in vitro antimicrobial activity of LAB isolates; and 2) to reveal associations between such phenotypic characteristics and the isolates genotypically identified to species level through amplification and sequencing of the 16S ribosomal gene. Sixty-two LAB isolates were identified and Enterococcus faecium was the most prevalent (32.3%), followed by Leuconostoc mesenteroides (19.4%) and Latilactobacillus sakei (17.7%), aligning with previous research on traditional Portuguese fermented meat sausages. The phenotypic analysis of LAB isolates indicated diverse acidification capacities, proteolytic activities, and inhibitory effects against foodborne pathogens. Comprising the technological attributes, L. paracasei and L. mesenteroides had higher proteolytic activity (3.46 and 3.43 mm), whereas E. faecium and L. paracasei stood out for their acidifying capacity, with mean pH after 6 h of 5.78 and 6.03, respectively. Overall, lactobacilli presented higher inhibition diameter against the pathogens Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella Typhimurium. Although the mechanisms for inhibition of pathogen growth needs to be further elucidated, these findings enhance our understanding of LAB diversity and functionality in alheira sausages, contributing to product safety and quality assessment.

Cities have witnessed a booming interest in cycling in recent years. However, the implementation of cycling networks rarely followed a strategy to make them more accessible to specific social groups, such as women. To address this gap in knowledge, this paper provides a holistic perspective of women’s cycling mobility. Specifically, the study’s goal is to look into the social and environmental implications of cycling for women in Turin, Italy. Hence, this paper provides insights for ensuring a woman-friendly cycling system in a city and ensuring women’s participation as vital stakeholders in promoting a bike-friendly identity. We clarify women’s perceptions of cycling and outline the requirements for more inclusive bike infrastructures. Thus, we identify strategies to improve women’s access to bike lanes and investigate the environmental benefits of reduced air pollution by such a bike system. All this information is intended to define a more socially inclusive and environmental-friendly transport system in Turin for everyone, as depicted in Goal 11 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Rising consumer demand for more safety, healthy and fresh-like food has given new concepts for food packaging. Besides, the growing concern with environmental issues has increased the search for materials from non-petroleum sources and biodegradable ones. Thus, active films based on biopolymers loaded with natural active compounds have potential to be used as food packaging. However, there are a lot of lipophilic active compounds that are a problem to incorporate in hydrophilic matrices, such as polysaccharides and proteins. One way to overcome these challenges is adding these compounds encapsulated in O/W emulsions. The incorporation of emulsion in biopolymeric matrix has influence in the film properties, such as mechanical, barrier, optical, among other. In this way, this review aims to point out the main characteristics of the emulsions systems encapsulating active compounds and its influence in the film properties and to present and discus critically the recent advances in the area.

Due to the low content, few studies are focused on the essential oils (EOs) of Phlomoides rotata (Benth. ex Hook. f.) Mathiesen (syn. Lamiophlomis rotata (Benth.) Kudô. This plant has been used to treat rheumatic arthritis and grasserie in China. However, such EOs may have important pharmacological activities such as anti-cancer. To identify the chemical markers (CM) in the EOs and evaluate their antioxidant activities (AAs), we firstly conduct a thoroughly investigation on their chemicals and AAs, to the best of our knowledge. Light yellow EOs with fresh and elegant smell are obtained by hydro-distillation with average yield 0.11% (volume mL/weight g). The crystals are separated from the EOs through cryoprecipitation, respectively. A total of 81 components are qualified and quantified in the EOs, crystals and EOs removed crystals, in which 44 ones are first reported. As for content, the main compounds are long-chain fatty acids (FAs) and their esters. The most abundant one n-hexadecanoic acid (palmitic acid, PA) accounting for 43.15-54.8%, 58.49-64.57% and 15.9-41.1%, in the EOs, crystals and EOs removed crystals, respectively. Seven compounds including PA, tetradecanoic acid, linoleic acid, oleic acid, methyl hexadecanoate, hexahydrofarnesyl acetone and phytol can be chosen a the CMs in these EOs. The AAs are evaluated through in vitro assays. PA presents pro-oxidant activities in a concentration dependence manner. Usually, the EOs removed crystals demonstrate stronger AAs, and the crystals demonstrate weaker AAs compared with that of the corresponding EOs, which is related to the different content of PA in these samples. This study can give some hints for the utilization of such EOs which are abundant in FAs such as PA.

The orchid genus Brachystele Schltr. comprises 20 species distributed from Mexico to Argentina; 10 are found in Brazil. Anatomical studies of Orchidoideae Lindl. have been scarce, and the anatomy and histochemistry of Brachystele are still largely unknown. We characterized the vegetative organs of B. guayanensis (Lindl.) Schltr. using standard anatomical and histochemical microtechniques. Brachystele guayanensis was observed to display the anatomical characters commonly found in the vegetative organs of representatives of the Orchidaceae and Orchidoideae (including a uniseriate epidermis, thin cuticle, amphistomatic leaves, anomocytic, diacytic and tetracytic stomata, a homogeneous mesophyll, collateral vascular bundles, rhizomes with pericyclic fibers, roots with velamen, uniseriate exodermis, endodermis and pericycle). Histochemical tests confirmed the presence of lignin, proteins, and alkaloids, the lipidic nature of the cuticle, starch grains stored in spiranthosomes in the roots, and the composition of the raphides. Alkaloids were observed in great abundance, especially in the roots, and may have potentially useful medicinal activities, as has been observed in groups phylogenetically related to Brachystele.

The number of published studies on curcuminoids in cancer research, including its lead molecule curcumin and synthetic analogs, has been increasing substantially during the past two decades. Insights on the diversity of inhibitory effects they produced on a multitude of pathways involved in carcinogenesis and tumor progression were provided. As this wealth of data was obtained in a setting of various experimental and clinical data, this review first aimed at presenting a chronology of discoveries and an update on their complex in vivo effects. Secondly, there are many interesting questions linked to their pleiotropic effects. One of them, which is a growing research topic, relates to their ability to modulate metabolic reprogramming. This review will also cover the use of curcuminoids as chemosensitizing molecules, that can be combined with several anticancer drugs for reversing the phenomenon of multidrug resistance. Finally, current investigations in these three complementary research fields raise several important questions that will be put in the prospects for the future research related to the importance of these molecules in cancer research.

Background: Sleeping Sickness, Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) is a vector- borne disease caused by Trypanosoma brucei (T.b). Sleeping sickness in Ethiopia was reported in 1967 for the first time. Recently in Southern parts of Ethiopia, in August 2022, five (5) cases of sleeping sickness (T. b. rhodesiense) were confirmed. Following this outbreak, the current investigation was aimed to identify the entomological and epidemiological drivers for the reemergence of HAT outbreak and recommend appropriate interventions. Methods: A cross sectional study design with descriptive data analysis was used. Tsetse fly collection and blood samples from cattle animals were taken. NGU and bio-conical traps were used to determine the distribution (density and abundance) of the vector. About 10μl of blood was collected from the marginal ear vein of 301 cattle animals using the heparinized microhematocrit capillary. The parasite detection was carried out through vector dissection under binocular stereo-microscope (magnification of 60X) and microscopic examination from serum of Animals using the Buffy coat method. Results: A total of 329 tsetse flies were captured and identified to Glosina (G.) pallidipes 259 (60.4%) and Glossina fuscipes 70 (16.3%). 188 (51.1%) of tsetse flies were collected from Dembagofa with 94 apparent density. Among all captured Tsetse flies, 39 (11.8%) of Tsetse were fed with high female apparent density in each ecological variation: wood land (51), Bush land (20) and grassland (11). Overall, the apparent density of tsetse fly was high in Wood land (93): G. pallidipes (76.5) and Bush land (36.5). Among all examined cattles for the presence of parasite, 9 cattles were detected positive with an overall prevalence of 3%. T. congolense 6 (2%) and T. vivax 1 (0.3%) with 2 (0.7%) suspected brucei. The parasite prevalence Trypanosoma was 4 (4.6%) in poor body condition (Bcs) cattle. The animals in the age range 5 - 9 years were infected high with 7 (5.3%) prevalence. Conclusion: The current study revealed that there are high-risk factors that predispose the community to Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) due to the presence of two different species of Tsetse flies and many animal reservoirs. The transmissions of Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) are related to environmental, Vector, and human factors. Further geographically expanded investigation should be conducted throughout the country.

Disruptive selection arises when extreme phenotypes have a fitness advantage compared to more intermediate phenotypes. Theory and evidence suggest that intraspecific resource competition is a key driver of disruptive selection. However, while competition can be indirect (exploitative) or direct (interference), the role of interference competition in disruptive selection has not been tested, and most models of disruptive selection assume exploitative competition. We experimentally investigated whether the type of competition affects the outcome of competitive interactions using a system where disruptive selection is common: Mexican spadefoot toads (Spea multiplicata). Spea tadpoles develop into alternative resource-use phenotypes: carnivores, which consume fairy shrimp and other tadpoles, and omnivores, which feed on algae and detritus. Tadpoles intermediate in phenotype have low fitness when competition is intense, as they are outcompeted by the specialized tadpoles. Our experiments revealed that the presence of carnivores significantly decreased foraging behavior in intermediate tadpoles, and that intermediate tadpoles had significantly lower growth rates in interference competition treatments with carnivores but not with omnivores. Interference competition may therefore be important in driving disruptive selection. As carnivore tadpoles are also cannibalistic, the ‘fear’ effect may have a greater impact on intermediate tadpoles than exploitative competition alone, similarly to non-consumptive effects in predator-prey or intraguild relationships.

IKEA is a massive international conglomerate company, and the purpose of this exploratory qualitative research is to investigate how the burgeoning academic field known as "artificial intelligence" (AI) could assist IKEA in resolving some of the challenges that it is currently dealing with in relation to its efforts to source sustainable materials. According to the conclusions of this study, artificial intelligence has the potential to aid in the resolution of at least some of the issues associated with sustainable sourcing, at least to some degree. This was developed by mapping the issues, analyzing the potential for adopting artificial intelligence as a solution, and defining the components that are required for efficient adoption of the technology. A number of prerequisites need to be satisfied by businesses before artificial intelligence may be used in the area of sustainable sourcing. In addition, a number of artificial intelligence's constraints need to be addressed before the technology can be put into practice by the same businesses. In conclusion, the findings of this study offer some management implications and ideas for businesses that have the goal of sourcing in a way that is less harmful to the environment by making use of technological breakthroughs such as artificial intelligence. This can be accomplished through the utilization of innovative technologies.

Yellow fever is an emerging and re-emerging viral disease transmitted through the bites of infective Aedes mosquitoes. Several outbreaks of yellow fever have been documented in southern Ethiopia.Understanding the transmission cycle is pivotal to manage arboviral disease outbreaks. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate which species of Aedes mosquitoes contribute to the YF virus transmission and the outbreaks that have occurred, and their behaviors (biting and resting) in the region. Two districts were selected based on previous Yellow Fever (YF) outbreak history. A longitudinal entomological sampling was carried out to collect adult Aedes mosquitoes using human landing catches, mechanical mouth aspirators and pyrethrum spreadsheet collection. Adult mosquito collections were conducted twice a month for six months from February 2019 to July 2020. Identification of mosquito species at the genus level was done using morphological keys and speciation using molecular techniques on 406 Aedes due to limited laboratory resources (primers and probe, reagents shortage) and budget limits. Aedes mosquitoes were pooled and tested for YFV, dengue virus (DENV, serotype 1-4) and chikungunya virus (CHKV) by qPCR. A total of 1689 mosquitoes 93.7% (1582/1689) of Aedes and 6.3% (107/1689) of Culex were collected. Of the total collected mosquitoes, 58.7% (991/1689) were from Ofa study sites whereas the left 41.3% (698/1689) were from Boko Dawula. 93.5% (1579/1689) of Aedes complex were collected during wet season. Most of the mosquitoes were collected during the wet season 97.9% (1653/1689). Of the 1582 Aedes simpsoni complex, 57.7% (913/1582) were from Ofa district and the remaining 42.3% (669/1582) were from Boko Dawula district. Of the 406 Aedes mosquitoes molecularly characterized to the species level, the Aedes simpsoni complex accounted for 99.5% (404/406), while Aedes aegypti found in the Ofa district accounted for only 0.5% (2/ 406). From the 934 Aedes simpsoni tested for viruses and none were positive. The human biting activities of Aedes (Ae.) simpsoni peaked at 8:00 – 9:00 hour and 16:00 – 17:00 hour, mostly outdoors, both within the villages and forests. The leaves of Ensete (E.) ventricosum appear to be ideal resting places for Aedes (Ae.) simpsoni complex. Although the tested Ae. simpsoni complex was negative for arboviruses; morning and afternoon activities of the species coincide with human outdoor activities and may therefore pose the risk of viral infection. The lower dominance of Aedes aegypti indicated that the major responsible vector for the occurrences of previous and current arboviral diseases was due to other mentioned Aedes species. It is of great importance to improve surveillance activities of arboviruses in reservoir hosts and vectors to establish control measures. Furthermore, the origin of bloodmeal and the mosquito’s role in the transmission of arboviral diseases need further study to improve the understanding of this species.

Although most people are infected with Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) during their lifetime, only a minority of them develop an EBV-associated malignancy. EBV acts in both direct and indirect ways to transform infected cells into tumor cells. There are multiple ways in which the EBV, host, and tumor environment interact to promote malignant transformation. This paper focuses on some of the mechanisms that EBV uses to transform the tumor microenvironment (TME) of EBV-associated gastric cancer (EBVaGC) for its benefit, including overexpression of IDO1, synergism between H pylori and EBV coinfection, and M1 to M2 switch. In this review, we expand on different modalities and combinatorial approaches to therapeutically target this mechanism.

Background: Immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) is a complex autoimmune disease, and the exact pathogenesis remains to be elucidated. Methods: We conducted summary data-based Mendelian randomization (SMR) analysis and performed functional mapping and annotation using FUMA to explore genetic loci that are po-tentially involved in the pathogenies of IgAN. Both analyses used summarized data of a recent genome-wide association study (GWAS) on IgANs, which included 477,784 Europeans (15,587 cases and 462,197 controls) and 175,359 East Asians (71 cases and 175,288 controls). We performed separate SMR analysis using CAGE and GTEx eQTL data. Results: Using the CAGE eQTL data, our SMR analysis identified 32 probes tagging 25 unique genes that were pleiotropically/potentially causally associated with IgAN, with the top three probes being ILMN_2150787 (tagging HLA-C, PSMR=2.10×10-18), ILMN_1682717 (tagging IER3, PSMR=1.07×10-16) and ILMN_1661439 (tagging FLOT1, PSMR=1.16×10-14). Using GTEx eQTL data, our SMR analysis identified 24 probes tagging 24 unique genes, with the top three probes being ENSG00000271581.1 (tagging XXbac-BPG248L24.12, PSMR=1.44×10-10), ENSG00000186470.9 (tagging BTN3A2, PSMR=2.28×10-10), and ENSG00000224389.4 (tagging C4B, PSMR=1.23×10-9). FUMA analysis identified 3 independent, significant and lead SNPs, 2 genomic risk loci and 39 genes. Conclusion: We identified many genetic variants/loci that are potentially involved in the patho-genesis of IgAN.

Peptide-based drugs are promising anticancer candidates due to their biocompatibility, and low toxicity. Particularly, tumor homing peptides (THPs) have the ability to bind specifically to can-cer cells receptors and tumor vasculature. Despite their potential to develop antitumor drugs, there are few available prediction tools to assist the discovery of new THPs. Two webservers based on machine learning models are currently active, the TumorHPD (https://webs.iiitd.edu.in/raghava/tumorhpd) and the THPep (http://codes.bio/thpep), and more recently the SCMTHP (SCMTHP (pmlabstack.pythonanywhere.com), based on scoring card method. Herein, a novel method based on network science and similarity searching implemented in the starPep toolbox (http://mobiosd-hub.com/starpep/) is presented for THPs discovery. The approach leverages from exploring the structural space of THPs with Chemical Space Networks (CSNs) and from applying centrality measures to identify the most relevant and non-redundant THPs sequences within the CSN. Such THPs were considered as queries (Qs) for multi-query similarity searches that applies a group fusion (MAX-SIM rule) model. The resulting multi-query similarity searching models (SSMs) were validated with three benchmarking datasets of THPs/non-THPs. Predictions achieved accuracies ranged from 92.64 to 99.18% and Matthews Correlation Coefficients between 0.894-0.98, outperforming state-of-the-art predictors. The best model was applied to repurpose AMPs from the starPep database as THPs, which were subse-quently optimized for the TH activity. Finally, 54 promising THP leads were discovered, and their sequences were analyzed to encounter novel motifs. These results demonstrate the potential of CSNs and multi-query similarity searching for a rapid and accurate identification of THPs.

Waste recovery is an important aspect towards human and environmental health protection. Unfortunately, proper food waste management is among the serious challenges in the field of solid waste management worldwide. Therefore, it is of great importance to conduct studies towards achieving efficient and cost-effective approaches for food waste management. This study investigated the potential of recovering food waste through maggots’ production as animal feed. The influence of fly attractant application on maggot production was also investigated. The study also investigated the potential of maggot production for waste recovery and reduction. Four different types of food waste (starch food leftovers, rotten bananas and peels, rotten pineapple and peels, and rotten oranges) were used in the investigation process. From the results, it was observed that the application of fly attractants had a significant effect on the production of maggots as determined by the weights after harvesting. Average weight of 94 g/kg of maggot was achieved from banana materials with an application of fly attractant during the 8th day of the cultivation; which is equivalent to a 32.4% increase from the same day when the material was cultured without applying fly attractant. Also, from the starch materials, about 77 g/kg of maggot weight was achieved; which is a 54.6% increase from the same day and the same material but without application of fly attractant. Moreover, the relative dry weight reduction in the trials varied from 52.5% to 82.4%.

Nociceptive innervation of the thoracolumbar fascia (TLF) has been investigated over decades, however these studies have not been compiled or collectively appraised. The purpose of this scoping review was to assess current knowledge regarding nociceptive innervation of the TLF to better inform future mechanistic and clinical TLF research targeting low back pain (LBP) treatment. PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane and Embase databases were searched in January 2021 using relevant descriptors encompassing fascia and pain. Eligible studies were: (a) published in English; (b) preclinical and clinical (in vivo and ex vivo) studies; (c) original data; (d) included quantification of at least one TLF nociceptive component. Two-phase screening procedures were conducted by a pair of independent reviewers, data were extracted and summarized from eligible studies. The search resulted in 257 articles of which 10 met inclusion criteria. Studies showed histological evidence of nociceptive nerve fibers terminating in low back fascia, suggesting a TLF contribution to LBP. Noxious chemical injection or electrical stimulation into fascia resulted in longer pain duration and higher pain intensities than injections into subcutaneous tissue or muscle. Pre-clinical and clinical research provides histological and functional evidence of nociceptive innervation of TLF. Greater knowledge of fascial neurological components could impact LBP treatment.

HLA class-I (HLA-I) polyreactive monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) reacting to all HLA-I alleles were developed by immunizing HLA-E monomeric heavy chain (HC) (Open Conformers, OCs). Two of the mAbs (TFL-006 and TFL-007) bound to the HC’s coated on a solid matrix. The binding was inhibited by a peptide 117AYDGKDY123, present in all alleles of the six HLA-I isoforms but masked by 2-microglobulin -m) in intact HLA-I trimers (Closed Conformers, CCs). Identical HLA-I polyreactivity is observed in IVIg administered to lower anti-HLA antibodies (Abs) in HLA-sensitized patients, but the mechanism is unknown. We hypothesized that the mAbs that mimic IVIg HLA-I polyreactivity might mimic the immunomodulatory functions of IVIg. We tested the relative binding affinity of the mAbs and IVIg for both OCs- and CCs and compared their effects on (a) the phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-activation T-cells, (b) the production of anti-HLA-II antibody (Ab) by B-memory cells, and anti-HLA-I Ab by immortalized B-cells, and (c) the upregulation of CD4+, CD25+, and Fox P3+ T-regs. The mAbs bound only to OCs, whereas IVIg is bound to both CCs and OCs. The mAbs suppressed blastogenesis and proliferation of PHA-activated T-cells, anti-HLA Ab production by B-cells and expanded the T-regs, better than IVIg. We conclude that a humanized version of the TFL-mAbs could be an ideal therapeutic IVIg-mimetic.

Erythropoietin (EPO) protects cells by inhibiting apoptosis, oxidative stress and inflammation in several models of retinal degeneration. In this study, we demonstrate the effects of recombinant Adeno Associated Virus (AAV) vector-mediated delivery of a modified form of erythropoietin (EPO-R76E) in an established mouse model of dry-AMD in which retinal degeneration is induced by RPE oxidative stress. Experimental vector AAV-EPO-R76E and control vector AAV-GFP were packaged into serotype-1 (AAV1) to enable RPE selective expression. RPE oxidative stress-mediated retinal degeneration was induced by exon specific deletion of the protective enzyme MnSOD (encoded by Sod2) by cre/lox mechanism. Experimental mice received subretinal injection of AAV-EPO-R76E in the right eye and AAV-GFP in the left eye. Western blotting of RPE/Choroid protein samples from AAV-EPO-R76E injected eyes showed RPE specific exogenous protein expression. Retinal degeneration was monitored by electroretinography (ERG). EPO-R76E over-expression in RPE delayed the progressive retinal degeneration as measured by light microscopy in RPE specific Sod2 knockout mice. Delivery of EPO-R76E vector can be used as a tool to prevent retinal degeneration induced by RPE oxidative stress as seen in this mouse model.

Concerns about China’s air quality, and its impact on the important tourism industry have been on the debate in recent years. This article aims to investigate the potential effect of air pollution on direct economic impact of tourism, using the case of Beijing and Shanghai. The results indicate that air pollution negatively affects China's inbound tourism, resulting in huge loss of tourist arrivals and receipts, and Beijing suffers a greater loss in comparison with Shanghai, its loss in tourist number amounts to 1569,700 persons, equal to CNY 10264.268 million in tourism receipts, and the GDP losses ranges from CNY 20528.536 to 41057.072 across major source countries. This study provides a quantification of the impact helpful to generate a social awareness of air pollution detrimental impacts on inbound tourism and hence the economy.

Self-assembling peptide P11-4 is amphiphilic and pH-triggered with demonstrated effectivity repairing early carious lesions in enamel. However, P11-4 effects on dentin biomineralization and repair remain unexplored. Thus, cytocompatibility and effectiveness of P11-4 inducing mineralization and migration of odontoblast-like cells (MDPC-23) were investigated. MDPC-23 were seeded in contact with P11-4(0.5µg/ml and 1µg/ml), Dentin Matrix Protein 1 (DMP1 0.5µg/ml and 1 µg/ml) or Calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2 100µg/ml) solutions. Cytotoxicity was verified using MTT (n=6/group). Mineralization was tested using Alizarin Red (n=4/group). Cell migration was assessed by light microscopy (n=2/group). MTT and Alizarin Red data were compared using Krus-kal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney (α=0.05). P11-4 (0.5µg/ml and 1µg/ml) and DMP1 (0.5µg/ml and 1µg/ml) presented the highest cytocompatibility; Ca(OH)2 presented the lowest. DMP1 1µg/ml exhibited the highest mineralization ability, with no difference to P11-4 1µg/ml. Ca(OH)2 presented lower values than DMP1 1µg/ml (p<0.05), but similar to P11-4 1µg/ml. P11-4 and DMP1 at 0.5 µg/ml showed induced less mineralization than P11-4 and DMP1 at 1µg/ml (p<0.05), with no difference to Ca(OH)2. All materials stimulated cell migration, however, lower concentrations of DMP1 and P11-4 provided better results. P11-4 is cytocompatible, induces mineralization and MDPC-23 migration like DMP1. P11-4 could be an alternative for dentin mineralization and tooth repair.

We hypothesized that rumen fluid with yeast producing cellulase enzyme can occur and also produces a high biomass compared to S. cerevisiae. Therefore, the aim of this study was to screen and isolate yeast from rumen fluids with an experimental design method. We optimized a fermentation medium containing sugarcane molasses as a carbon source and urea as a nitrogen source to measure the efficiency of biomass production and cellulase activity. Two fistulated-crossbred Holstein Friesian steers, averaging 350 ± 20 kg body weight, were used to screen and isolate ruminal yeast. The two experiments were designed. A 12 × 3 × 3 factorial was used in a completely randomized design to determine biomass and carboxymethyl cellulase activity. Factor A was isolated yeasts and S. cerevisiae. Factor B was sugarcane molasses (M) concentration. Factor C was urea (U) concentration. Potential yeast was selected for identified and analyzed as a 4 × 3 factorial use in a completely randomized design including. Factor A was incubation times. Factor B was isolated yeast strains including code H-KKU20 (as P. kudriavzevii-KKU20), I-KKU20 (C. tropicalis-KKU20), and C-KKU20 (as Galactomyces sp.-KKU20). Isolation was under aerobic conditions, resulting in a total of 11 different colonies. We noted two appearances of colonies including, asymmetric colonies of isolated yeast (indicated as A, B, C, E, and J) and ovoid colonies (coded as D, F, G, H, I, and K). The highest biomass was observed in three yeasts including codes H, I, and C-KKU20 when inoculated in 25% molasses with 1% urea (M25+U1) (p <0.01). The highest CMCase activity was observed in yeast code H-KKU20 when inoculated in all media solutions (p <0.01). Ruminal yeasts strains H-KKU20, I-KKU20, and C-KKU20 were selected for their ability to produce biomass and their CMCase enzyme synthesis. Identification of isolates H-KKU20 and I-KKU20 revealed that those isolates belonged to Pichia kudriavzevii-KKU20 and Candida tropicalis-KKU20, while C-KKU20 was identified as Galactomyces sp.-KKU20. Two strains provided maximum cell growth: P. kudriavzevii-KKU20 (9.78 and 10.02 Log cell/ml) and C. tropicalis-KKU20 (9.53 and 9.6 Log cells/ml) at 60 and 72 h of incubation time, respectively. The highest ethanol production was observed in S. cerevisiae: 76.4, 77.8, 78.5, and 78.6 g/L at 36, 48, 60, and 72 h of incubation time, respectively (p <0.01). The P. kudriavzevii-KKU20 yielded the least reducing sugar about 30.6 and 29.8 g/L at 60 and 72 h of incubation time, respectively. It could be concluded that screening and isolating yeast from rumen fluids resulted in 11 different characteristics of yeasts. The first novel yeasts discovered in the rumen fluid of cattle were Pichia kudriavzevii-KKU20, Candida tropicalis-KKU20, and Galactomyces sp.- KKU20. P. kudriavzevii-KKU20 had higher results than the other yeasts in terms of biomass production, cellulase enzyme activity, and cell number.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has reached a global epidemic across the world after first reported in Wuhan, China’s Hubei province in December 2019. The pandemic is also associated with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) characterized by excess inflammation, progressive arterial hypoxemia and dyspnea. Mesenchymal stem/ stromal cells (MSCs) have been investigated as treatment for ARDS due to immunomodulatory property. Exosomes derived from MSCs play an important role in paracrine signaling of MSCs, thereby contributed to immunomodulation of the immune microenvironment. Exosomes are emerged as potential alternative to MSC cell therapy with superiority of safety. In this review, we will introduce MSC-derived exosomes and briefly discuss current progress on MSCs and exosomes in ARDS, which may have clinical implications in pathogenesis and treatment of COVID-19.

Crop plants should be resilient to climatic factors in order to feed ever-increasing populations. Plants have developed stress-responsive mechanisms by changing their metabolic pathways and switching the stress-responsive genes. The discovery of plant transcriptional factors (TFs) as key regulators of different biotic and abiotic stresses have opened up new horizons for plant scientists. TFs perceive the signal and switch certain stress-responsive genes on and off by binding to different cis-regulatory elements. The above 50 species of plant TFs have been reported in nature. DREB, bZIP, MYB, NAC, Zinc-finger, HSF, Dof, WRKY, and NF-Y are important with respect to biotic and abiotic stresses whereas the role of many TFs is yet to explore. In this review, we summarize the role of different stress-responsive TFs with respect to biotic and abiotic stresses. Further, challenges and future opportunities linked with TFs for developing climate-resilient crops are also elaborated.

Recent studies have demonstrated silk fibroin’s ability to extend the shelf life of foods by mitigating the hallmarks of spoilage, namely oxidation and dehydration. Due to the potential for this protein to become more widespread, its safety was evaluated comprehensively. First, a bacterial reverse mutation test (Ames test) was conducted in five bacterial strains. Second, an in vivo erythrocyte test was conducted with Sprague Dawley rats at doses up to 1,000mg/kg-bw/day. Third, a range-finder study was conducted with Sprague Dawley rats at the highest consumption amount given solubility and oral gavage volume constrains (500mg/kg-bw/day). Fourth, a 28-day study in Sprague Dawley rats was conducted at the 500mg/kg-bw/day amount. Fifth, an in vitro pepsin digestion assay was performed to assess the potential for protein allergenicity. Sixth, allergenic potential was further assessed using liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy for detection of allergenic insect proteins. Seventh, the protein sequences were subjected to bioinformatic analyses. Together, these studies raise no mutagenic, carcinogenic, toxicological, or allergenic concerns with the oral consumption of silk fibroin.

Green Infrastructures (GI) are considered key to reconcile ecological and social benefits by providing multiple functions. The concept is increasingly promoted and guidelines for its implementation have been developed in many countries and regions of the Western Hemisphere. However, for other parts of the world, especially for countries with less developed infrastructures, promotion, guidance for decision-making and manuals for GI are often lacking. But the state of infrastructure development and often unplanned character of settlements in the Global South differ and result in specific constraints as well as demands to GI that need to be addressed explicitly. This study presents a methodological approach to explicitly address the specific conditions and physical limitations to GI development in urban areas of the Global South. A four step methodology was developed to assess the implementation potential for retrofitted and multifunctional urban green infrastructure in public areas. An initial site analysis (1) and the definition of design criteria as well as general strategies (2) to achieve the different dimensions of multi-functionality are the basis to derive spatial typologies (3) for GI elements and finally the spatial suitability assessment for potential placements (4). An application of the methodology to a study area in the metropolitan region of San José, Costa Rica, shows exemplarily that the potential to improve the hydrological conditions (up to 34% of surface runoff reduction), ecological conditions (increase of green space by 2,2 %, creation of 1500 m length of roadside greenery and two new habitat types), and social conditions (2.200 m of road type upgrading) of multi-functionality of the site through Green Infrastructures. These assessment results of different multi-functionality dimension can serve as a guidance for GI promotion and implementation in urban areas of the Global South.

The outbreak of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) has infected more than 11 million people and has claimed more than 530.000 deaths world-wide. In July 2020, still, there is no specific treatment for disease caused by the novel coronavirus. In the search to curb the global pandemic COVID-19, some eastern and developing countries have approved various treatment with controversial efficacy, among that the use of the antimalarial Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), so far with inconclusive clinical evidence of effectiveness. On the other hand, computer-based screening suggest that HCQs analog are promising molecules, to impair viral replication in vitro[1]. Therefore, what is emerging from this complex background, is the need to understand molecular mechanism beyond drugs that can be helpful against viral infection for this and future pandemic. The intent of this Brief Report is to highlight: i) the involvement of the Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) cascade in viral infection and ii) the urgent need to have molecular data on the effectiveness of the combination of MAPK inhibitors together with HCQ and HCQs analogs in curbing viral infection. We are convinced that a better understanding of the patterns of elicited molecular mechanisms will be critical for new molecular approaches to this severe disease

In the face of the newly emergent COVID-19 pandemic, researchers around the world are racing to identify efficacious drugs capable of preventing or treating its infection. They are doing that by testing already available and approved antimicrobials for their rapid repurposing against COVID-19. Using the data emerging on the comparable efficacy of various compounds having different mechanisms of action and indications, I suggest in this report, their potential mechanistic convergence. Specifically, I highlight the lysosome as a key possible therapeutic target for COVID-19, proposing one of the lysosomal storage disorders, Niemann-Pick type C disease (NPC), as a prototypical condition with inherent resistance or an “unfavorable” host cell environment for viral propagation. The included reasoning evolves from previously generated data in NPC, along with the emerging data on COVID-19. The aim of this report is to suggest that pharmacological induction of a “transient” NPC-like lysosomal dysfunction, could hold answers for targeting the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

There is a strong anticipated future for human pluripotent stem cell-derived hepatocytes (hiPS-HEP), but so far their use has been limited due to insufficient functionality. We investigated the potential of hiPS-HEP as an in vitro model for metabolic diseases by combining transcriptomics with multiple functional assays. The transcriptomics analysis revealed that 86% of the genes were expressed at similar levels in hiPS-HEP as in human primary hepatocytes (hphep). Adult characteristics of the hiPS-HEP were confirmed by the presence of important hepatocyte features, e.g. Albumin secretion and expression of major drug metabolizing genes. Normal energy metabolism is crucial for modeling metabolic diseases, and both transcriptomics data and functional assays showed that hiPS-HEP were similar to hphep regarding uptake of glucose, LDL and fatty acids. Importantly, the inflammatory state of the hiPS-HEP was low under standard conditions, but in response to lipid accumulation and ER stress the inflammation marker TNFα was upregulated. Furthermore, hiPS-HEP could be co-cultured with primary hepatic stellate cells both in 2D and in 3D spheroids, paving the way for using these co-cultures for modeling NASH. Taken together, hiPS-HEP have the potential to serve as an in vitro model for metabolic diseases. Furthermore, differently expressed genes identified in this study can serve as targets for future improvements of the hiPS-HEP.

The purpose of this study was to recommend to the government about the appropriate land use based on geoelectric and hydrochemical works. The results were supposed to be used as models for effective land use. During the study, a groundwater survey using a geoelectrical method was conducted and was used to map an aquifer flow. In general, Solok groundwater mapping was meant to provide information necessary to optimize follow-up activities for the use of clean water. It was also intended to minimize the negative impacts of exploitation and utilization of groundwater. This research aimed to provide information on groundwater conditions in Solok. It focused on the survey of groundwater sources, the inversion of measurement data on Sclumberger electrode configuration geoelectric in thirteen districts, and chemical analysis of pH, Fe, Nitrite, and DHL. The results show there was a great potential for groundwater-unconfined aquifers.

The burdens of malnutrition, protein and micronutrient deficiency, and obesity cause enormous costs to society. Crop nutritional quality has been compromised by the emphasis on edible yield and through the loss of biodiversity due to the introduction of high-yielding uniform cultivars. Heirloom crop cultivars are traditional cultivars grown for a long time (> 50 years), and whose heritage has been preserved by regional, ethnic or family groups. Heirlooms are recognized for their unique appearance, names, uses and historical significance. They are gaining in popularity because of their unique flavors and cultural significance to local cuisine, and their role in sustainable food production for small-scale farmers. As a contrast to modern cultivars, heirlooms may offer a welcome alternative in certain markets. Recently, market channels have emerged for heirloom cultivars in the form of farmer-breeder-chef collaborations and seed savers organizations. There is therefore urgent need to know more about the traits available in heirloom cultivars, particularly for productivity, stress tolerance, proximate composition, sensory quality and flavor. This information is scattered and the intention of this review is to document some of the unique characteristics of heirloom cultivars that may be channeled into breeding programs for developing locally adapted high value cultivars.

Strip-mined land (SML) disturbed by coal-mining is the non-crop land resource that can be utilized to cultivate high-yielding energy crops such as miscanthus for bioenergy applications. However, the biomass yield potential, annual availability and environmental impacts on growing energy crops in SML are less understood. In this study, we estimated the yield potential of miscanthus (Miscanthus sinensis) in SML and its environmental impacts on local streams using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). After calibration and validation of the SWAT model, the results demonstrated that miscanthus yield potentials were 2.6 (0.8−5.53), 10.0 (1.3−16.0) and 16.0 (1.34−26.0) Mg ha^-1 with the fertilizer application rate of 0, 100, and 200 kg-N ha^-1 respectively. Furthermore, cultivation of miscanthus in the SML has the potential to reduce sediment (~20%) and nitrate (2.5%−10.0 %) loads reaching to water streams with a marginal increase in phosphorus load. The available SML in the United States could produce about 10 to 16 dry Tg of biomass per year without negatively impacting the water quality. In conclusion, SML can provide a unique opportunity to produce biomass for bioenergy applications, while improving stream water quality in highly dense mining area (the Appalachian region) in the United States.

Electron Beam Melting (EBM) is an increasingly used Additive Manufacturing (AM) technique employed by many industrial sectors, including the medical device and aerospace industries. The application of this technology is, however, challenged by the lack of process monitoring and control system that underpins process repeatability and part quality reproducibility. An electronic imaging system prototype has been developed to serve as an EBM monitoring technique, the capabilities of which have been verified at room temperature and at 320+10°C. Nevertheless, in order to fully assess the applicability of this technique, the image quality needs to be investigated at a range of elevated temperatures to fully understand the influence of thermal noise due to heat. In this paper, electronic imaging pilot trials at elevated temperatures, ranging from room temperature to , were carried out. Image quality measure Q of the digital electron images was evaluated, and the influence of temperature was investigated. In this study, raw electronic images generated at higher temperatures had greater Q values, i.e. better global image quality. It has been demonstrated that, for temperatures between , the influence of temperature on electronic image quality was not adversely affecting the visual clarity of image features. It is envisaged that the prototype has significant potential to contribute to in-process EBM monitoring in many manufacturing sectors.

There is a range of local weather and climate-related factors that contribute to the degradation of cultural heritage buildings, structures and sites over time. Some of these factors are influenced by changes in climate and some of these changes manifest themselves though a speeding up of the rate of degradation. It is the intention of this paper to review this situation with special reference to the Nordic Countries, where typical trends resulting from climate change are shorter winters and increased precipitation all year round. An attempt is made to initially draw up a classification of materials and structures relevant to cultural heritage that are affected, with a proposed numeric scale for the urgency to act. The intention is to provide information on where best to concentrate cultural heritage site preservation resources in the future.