The design complexity of the new generation of civil aero-engines results in higher demands on engines’ components, higher component temperature, higher heat generation, and, finally, critical thermal management issues. This paper will propose a methodological approach to create physics-based models for heat loads developed by sources as well as a systematic sensitivity analysis to identify the effects of design parameters on the thermal behaviour of civil aero-engines. The ranges and levels of heat loads generated by heat sources (e.g., accessory gearbox, bearing, pumps, etc.) and heat absorption capacity of heat sinks (e.g., engine fuel, oil, and air) are discussed systematically. The practical research challenges for thermal management system design and development for the new and next generation of turbofan engines will then be addressed through a sensitivity analysis of the heat load values as well as the heat sinks flow rates. The potential solutions for thermal performance enhancements of propulsion systems will be proposed and discussed accordingly.

Familial Alzheimer’s disease (FAD) can be caused by mutations in PSEN1 that encodes presenilin-1, a component of the gamma-secretase complex that cleaves amyloid precursor protein. Alterations in calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis and glutamate signaling are implicated in the pathogenesis of FAD, however it has been difficult to assess in humans whether or not these phenotypes are the result of amyloid or tau pathology. This study aimed to assess early calcium and glutamate phenotypes of FAD by measuring the Ca2+ response of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived neurons bearing PSEN1 mutations to glutamate and the ionotropic glutamate receptor agonists NMDA, AMPA and kainate compared to isogenic control and healthy lines. The data shows that in early neurons, even in the absence of amyloid and tau phenotypes, FAD neurons exhibit increased Ca2+ responses to glutamate and AMPA, but not NMDA or kainate. Together this suggests that PSEN1 mutations alter Ca2+ and glutamate signaling as an early phenotype of FAD.

Occupational accidents, despite continuous safety updates, are still a scourge in the occupational and forensic spheres, constituting, among other things, the subject of a large share of litigation. Demographic data can help to understand the areas where the application of health surveillance is lacking. This meta-analysis sets out to analyze data from studies on accidents at work, focusing on the correlation between the areas in which accidents occur and whether or not personal safety equipment is used, about the different regulations in force. For the selection of the data, a systematic review was carried out according to the PRISMA guidelines, with the primary objective of identifying the trend of occupational accidents in specific geographical areas, which differ in terms of the attention paid to preventive aspects. The data we highlighted showed, regarding the type of accident, substantial differences between low-income countries and industrialized countries (stratified according to the Human Development Index) and, an overall indifference as to whether or not individual safety devices were used, revealing that, despite the continuous normative evolution in the field of safety at work, even today, the investigative data on the actual application of the regulations, during accidents at work, is underestimated and little researched.

Abstract: High step-up voltage gain nonisolated DC-DC converter have attracted much attention in photovoltaic, fuel cells and other renewable energy system applications. In this paper, by combining input current ripple-free boost cell with coupled-inductor voltage-doubler cell, an input current ripple-free high voltage gain nonisolated converter is proposed. In addition, passive lossless clamp circuit is adopted to recycle the leakage inductor energy and to reduce the voltage spike across the power switch. By utilizing voltage-doubler cell consisting of diode and capacitor, the voltage stress of switch is further reduced and the resonance between the leakage inductor and the stray capacitor of the output diode is eliminated. A low switch-on-resistance low-voltage-rated MOSFET can therefore be employed to reduce the conduction loss and cost. The reverse recovery loss of output diode is reduced, and the efficiency of converter can be improved. Furthermore, the proposed converter can achieve nearly zero input current-ripple and make the design of electromagnetic interference (EMI) filter easy. Steady state analysis and operation mode of the converter is performed. Finally, experimental results are presented to verify the analysis results of the proposed converter.

Tissue-like phantoms are widely used as a model for mimicking the optical properties of live tissue. This paper presents the results of a diffusion reflection method as well as fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy measurements of fluorescein-conjugated gold nanorods in solution as well as inserted in solid tissue-imitating phantoms. A lack of consistency between the fluorescence lifetime results of the solutions and the phantoms raises a question about the ability of tissue-like phantoms to maintain the optical properties of inserted contrast agents.

In this research, catalytic steam reforming acetic acid derived from the aqueous portion of bio-oil for hydrogen production was investigated by using different Ni/ATC (Attapulgite Clay) catalysts prepared by precipitation, impregnation and mechanical blending methods. The fresh and reduced catalysts were characterized by XRD, N₂ adsorption-desorption, TEM and H₂-TPR. The comprehensive results demonstrated that the interaction between active metallic Ni and ATC carrier was significantly improved in Ni/ATC catalyst prepared by precipitation method, and in which the mean Ni particle size was the smallest (~13 nm) resulted in the highest metal dispersion (7.5%). The catalytic performance of the three catalysts was evaluated through the process of steam reforming of acetic acid in a fixed-bed reactor under atmospheric pressure at two different temperatures, such as 550 ℃ and 650 ℃. Results showed that the Ni/ATC (PM-N/ATC) prepared by precipitation method, achieved the highest H₂ yield of ~82% and little lower acetic acid conversion efficiency of ~85% than that (~95%) of Ni/ATC (IM-NATC) prepared by impregnation method. In addition, the deactivation catalysts after reaction for 4 h were analyzed by XRD, TGA-DTG and TEM, which demonstrated that the catalyst deactivation was not caused by the amount of carbon deposition, but owed to the significant agglomeration and sintering of Ni particles in the carrier.

With advancements in digital technologies such as 5G communications, big data, and cloud computing, the components of network operation systems have become increasingly complex, significantly complicating system monitoring and maintenance. Correspondingly, automated log anomaly detection has become a crucial means to ensure stable network operation and protect them from malicious attacks or failures. Conventional machine learning and deep learning methods assume consistent distributions between the training and testing data, adhering to a closed-set recognition paradigm. Nevertheless, in realistic scenarios, systems may encounter new anomalies that were not present in the training data, especially in log anomaly detection. Inspired by evidential learning, we propose a novel anomaly detector called LogEDL, which supervises training of the model through an evidential loss function. Unlike traditional loss functions, the evidential loss function not only focuses on correct classification, but also quantifies the uncertainty of predictions. This enhances the robustness and accuracy of the model in handling anomaly detection tasks, while achieving functionality similar to open-set recognition. To evaluate the proposed LogEDL method, we conduct extensive experiments on three datasets, i.e., HDFS, BGL, and Thunderbird, to detect anomalous log sequences. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed LogEDL achieves state-of-the-art performance in anomaly detection.

To enhance the applicability of dual-phase high-entropy alloys (HEAs) like Fe32Cr33Ni29Al3Ti3, fabricated via selective laser melting (SLM), a focus on improving their mechanical properties is essential. As part of this effort, heat treatment was explored. This study compares the microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-printed sample with those cooled in water after undergoing heat treatment at temperatures ranging from 1000 to 1200 ℃ for 1 hour. Both pre- and post-treatment samples reveal a dual-phase microstructure comprising FCC and BCC phases. Although heat treatment led to a reduction in tensile and yield strength, it significantly increased ductility compared to the as-printed sample. This strength-ductility trade-off is related to changes in grain sizes with ultrafine grains enhancing strength and micron grains optimizing ductility, also the influence of the content of FCC/BCC phases and dislocation density. In particular, the sample heat-treated at 1000 °C for 1 hour and then water-cooled exhibited a better combination of strength and ductility, a yield strength of 790 MPa, and an elongation of 13%. This research offers innovative perspectives on crafting dual-phase HEA of Fe32Cr33Ni29Al3Ti3, allowing for tailorable microstructure and mechanical properties through a synergistic approach involving SLM and heat treatment.

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) and osteoporosis are two of the most widespread metabolic disease in the world. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of DM among patients affected by osteoporosis and fragility fractures, and to search differences in clinical features. Methods: 713 patients belonging to CTO Bone Unit because of osteoporosis and fragility fractures were divided into two groups, according to the diagnosis of DM. The clinical and bone characteristics of patients were compared. Results: Prevalence of DM was 10.8%. When compared to patients without DM, the median age at the time of first fracture was similar (72 years ± 14 IQR vs 71 years ± 12 IQR); prevalence of combination of vertebral and hip fractures was higher (p=0.039), as well as prevalence of males, although not significantly (p=0.051). Bone mineral density (BMD) at all sites was higher in DM group; Trabecular Bone Score (TBS), instead, was significantly lower (p<0.001). Conclusions: Patients with fragility fractures and DM more frequently show combination of major fractures with higher BMD levels. In these patients, TBS could be a better indicator of bone health than BMD and therefore should be used as a diagnostic tool in clinical practice.

Effective and sustainable water resource management requires flexibility and adaptation to local contexts. Our study analyzes how local water self-governing associations have emerged, using an adapted version of the Combined IAD-SES framework, also known as CIS. Through a compara-tive analysis of two distinct Chilean cases, the research highlights the critical role of historical factors alongside institutional support, political landscapes, and financial realities in shaping current water management practices. The findings suggest that when these elements are aligned and supportive of local water users’ associations, positive outcomes emerge, leading to more effi-cient, sustainable, and user-centered water resource management. Furthermore, this study reveals how the experiences and successes of these local user associations have shaped national policies, particularly regarding the development of monitoring mechanisms and the promotion of public-private cooperation in water governance.

The installation of electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) increases demand and peak loads, potentially straining existing energy distribution infrastructure. Dispersed and inadequately planned placement of charging points (CPs) can disrupt the electrical grid, surpass contracted demand thresholds, and require infrastructure upgrades, thereby incurring unfeasible costs for Distribution System Operators (DSOs). In this context, it is necessary to recognize the role of business models in enabling effective electrification of the transportation sector. In response to these challenges, this paper introduces a novel e-mobility hub management strategy, tailored for implementation in the Brazilian context. The proposed strategy revolves around a microgrid configuration encompassing dispatchable and photovoltaic generation, a battery energy storage system (BESS), EVSE infrastructure, and local loads. Moreover, this centralized controller facilitates the implementation of dynamic pricing and demand-response mechanisms, integral to business models seeking to integrate EVSE into the distribution grid. To validate the efficacy of the proposed solution, hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulations of the microgrid system are conducted. These simulations, incorporating the centralized controller, serve as a tool for assessing system performance and viability before on-site equipment deployment. Finally, this paper concludes with the insights gleaned from test analysis and its discussion through a selection of the most expressive scenarios, including islanded and connected operation modes.

This study explores innovative strategies to enhance hands-on learning experiences in a Database Management Systems (DBMS) course while addressing challenges related to software installation complexities and financial barriers. The investigation focuses on an online course format catering to students majoring in information systems, healthcare administration, business administration, and marketing. Traditional software installation hurdles, especially for complex systems like Microsoft Access and MySQL, can impede students' engagement and access. To overcome these challenges, the study proposes leveraging cloud-based solutions and clientless remote desktop gateways like Apache Guacamole. Results indicate that these approaches effectively eliminate software installation obstacles, ensuring seamless access to essential tools for all students. The study underscores the importance of innovative technological solutions in promoting inclusive and impactful learning environments in higher education.

Public-private partnership (PPP) is a prominent tool for sustainable infrastructure development. However, the positive contributions of PPPs towards attainment of sustainable, climate resilience and zero carbon infrastructure projects are hampered by poor financial risk management. This problem is more prevalent in developing countries like Ghana where private investment inflow has plummeted due to COVID-19 recession and poor project performance. Thus, this study aims at assessing the key financial risk management strategies in ensuring sustainable PPP infrastructure projects in Ghana. The study utilised primary data from PPP practitioners in Ghana solicited through survey questionnaires. Factor analysis, mean scores and fuzzy synthetic analysis are the data analysis techniques for this study. The results revealed sustainable and green funding models, effective cost reduction initiatives, competent team with committed leadership, and emerging technologies and regulations constitute the key strategies to manage financial risks of sustainable PPP infrastructure projects. Although, future studies must expand the scope of data gathering, the findings of the study enrichen the theoretical understanding of financial risks in sustainable investments in PPP infrastructures. Relevant remedies that will aid the development of practical financial risk management guidelines are provided in this study for PPP practitioners.

Heart failure (HF) affects about 60 million people worldwide, making it one of the chronic conditions with the greatest health and economic impact. The primary objective was to assess the efficacy of lung ultrasound (LUS) in the management of HF in order to intervene early and reduce the rate of hospital readmissions. A systematic search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Scopus, including clinical trials, meta-analysis, systematic reviews, and original articles from 2019/1/1-2023/12/31, about LUS for the assessment of HF, on an outpatient basis, for HF diagnosis or/and decompensation. There may be risk of bias because the effects are dependent on the persons delivering the intervention. The results were synthetized by PRISMA method. A total of 873 articles were identified of which 33 articles were selected: [n=19] focused on prognostic assessment of HF, [n=11] centred on multimodal diagnostic assessments, and [n=2] addressing therapeutic guidance for HF diagnosis. LUS exhibits advantages in the detection of sub-clinical congestion linked to prognostic significance in re-admission and mortality during out-patient follow-up, after hospital discharge, and in complex scenarios as the patients' homes or institutional long-term care facilities. However, there are considerable uncertainties in their interpretation and monitoring changes due to its lack of standardization. The need for an updated international consensus on the use of LUS seems obvious.

Having in view the sustainable management of forests, the intensity of silvotechnical interventions is analyzed and documented for young mixed beech stands regenerated naturally by taking into account the allometric relationships between some representative dendrometric elements, respectively, between the height of the trees and the corresponding diameter of their crowns. For this purpose, a functional dependence is established between the height and diameter of the tree crown from young beech stands within which silvotechnical interventions were or were not applied. A mathematical model based on cubic spline regression was developed, also taking into account the determination of the average diameter of the crown for each stand. This average diameter can be used to determine the optimal number of trees per surface unit (ha) at a given time. The research was carried out in three young beech stands, through statistical-mathematical inventories, on sample plots of 300 square meters with a tolerance of 10% and a coverage probability of 90%. The optimal diameter of the crown was obtained by applying the spline regression model, and the most appropriate functional dependence was established, resulting in a linear regression law with a positive slope.

Myotonic dystrophy is a hereditary disorder with systemic involvement. The Italian Neuro-Cardiology Network (INCN-RNC) is a unique collaborative experience involving neurology units combined with cardio-arrhythmology units. The INCN facilitates the creation of integrated neuro-cardiac teams in Neuromuscular Disease Centers for the management of cardiovascular involvement in the treatment of MD1.

It is necessary to manage the power consumption and use fault-tolerance techniques to meet high reliability in Real-Time Embedded Systems, . Hence, in recent years, this is the main reason for providing an ideal approach to decrease power consumption through the worst-case behavior of instantaneous power management (peak-power management), while observing the Thermal Design Power (TDP). Although the multi-core chips in real-time embedded systems provide great opportunity for implementation of Two-phase Triple modular redundancy to meet high reliability, the energy overhead management of concurrently executing tasks is one of the challenges facing designers. In this article, we propose a scheme named Permanent Fault Aware, Two-Phase Peak-Power Management (PFA-TP3M), for scheduling real-time tasks in multi-core systems to eliminate peak power overlap from concurrent running tasks to maintain peak power consumption at the chip TDP. and through mapping different parts of each task on separate cores, prevents consecutive conflicts on cores, which have faced permanent faults to design the fault-tolerant system. Our simulation results show that our proposed scheme provides up to 700x fault tolerance increase (630x on average) compared to the state-of-the-art power management algorithm, an achievement costs up to 14%. (average 11%) increase the length of the task graph compared to it.

In view of the expected climate changes, a paradigm shift in soil management, through reduced tillage and/or a different use of crop residues, can be a key point in the mitigation of the climate impacts. The transition from a traditional cropping system (i.e., durum wheat in continuous cropping system under conventional tillage and/or straw removal) to those undergoing the conservative practices require to be evaluated in a medium to long time frame to reach an equilibrium and thus to be properly investigated. In this regard, cropping system simulation models are fundamental tools for the in-silico evaluation of the response of crop growth and soil organic matter dynamics to varying cropping scenarios. This paper reports the evaluations on the parameterization and reliability of the ARMOSA crop simulation model calibrated and validated on experimental datasets collected on durum wheat grown in continuous cropping system under several straw and soil management strategies in a Mediterranean environment.

Abstruct Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) has emerged as an essential strategy for achieving environmental sustainability within organizations. However, there remains a significant gap in understanding its direct impact on sustainable performance. This study seeks to address these gaps by investigating the relationship between GHRM and sustainable performance, with a focus on the mediating role of green innovation and the moderating influence of transformational leadership. A cross-sectional study was conducted among Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to explore the interrelationships between Green HRM, green process and product innovation, sustainability, and the role of sustainable leadership. The study's findings reveal a positive and significant relationship between green HRM practices and sustainability, encompassing environmental, economic, and social aspects. The findings suggest that management support for environmental initiatives is a critical factor in enhancing the effectiveness and spread of green innovations, emphasizing the importance of GHM in the broader context of organizational change and sustainability. In addition, the study underscores the critical role of transformative leadership in fostering sustainable practices, particularly the significant moderator role of responsible leadership in driving sustainable business practices. In summary, this study provides a roadmap for businesses, particularly SMEs, to leverage HGRM as a strategic tool in their pursuit of sustainability.

Fire hazards present a multifaceted global challenge that endangers human lives and environmental safety. Despite advancements in fire risk management technologies and methods, fires continue to be a prime concern for human security. The Arabian Gulf region, influenced by its climatic and environmental conditions, is especially susceptible to these threats. The Emirate of Sharjah, part of the United Arab Emirates, has made significant progress in reinforcing fire safety measures within residential structures, achieving a decrease in the number of fire-related accidents compared to neighboring Emirates. However, the incidence rate remains relatively high. This study undertook a thorough review and assessment of the existing Fire Management System (FMS) for Sharjah's residential sector, leading to the recommendation of a more robust framework. Through a series of literature reviews, interviews with stakeholders, and surveys, using analytical techniques such as the Delphi method and Failure Mode Effect and Criticality Analysis, vital factors that influence the FMS's effectiveness were pinpointed. The study exposed that the current FMS was largely reactive. In response, a proactive framework incorporating nine essential components was designed to strengthen the Sharjah FMS. These components span across various domains such as fire assurance, assessment of fire risks, management of accidents, evaluation of performance, training programs, research and development initiatives, digital services, monitoring of regulatory compliance, firefighting strategies, automated responses to fires, recovery processes, as well as the use of resilient materials and architectural design considerations. Furthermore, the research introduced two specific fire indexes, the HRBFI and the EFRI. Anchored in the principles of Systems Thinking and Industry 4.0, this proposed framework is aimed at streamlining Sharjah's approach to fire management in dwellings, with the objective of diminishing the frequency of fire incidents yearly. The ultimate aspiration of this framework is to enhance the Emirate's standing in terms of safety and to guarantee a living environment that is safeguarded against the risk of fires..

Nowadays, the increasingly serious environmental pollution and energy problems urgently require internal combustion engine-based transportation vehicles to upgrade or replace, so the new energy transportation vehicles based on hybrid power and fuel cells have gradually stepped on the stage and continue to innovate. The shipping industry is one of the main sources of global greenhouse gas emissions. The development of clean energy ships represented by fuel cells has attracted wide attention. Fuel cell has the advantages of clean, pollution-free and low noise, but it has some disadvantages such as insufficient dynamic response performance and fast performance decay. Limited by the characteristics of a single energy source, a variety of energy sources and bidirectional DC converters are usually mixed together to form a hybrid ship to improve the flexibility, stability and economy of the ship, and enhance its adaptability to complex sea conditions through the reconfiguration of power system energy. Taking fuel cell ferry "FCS Alsterwasser" as the research object, this study proposed an improved equivalent minimum hydrogen consumption energy management strategy based on fuzzy logic control. First, the power system of the modified mother ship was simulated, and a hybrid power system including fuel cell, lithium iron phosphate battery and supercapacitor was proposed. Then, the dynamic system simulation model and double closed loop PI control model are established in MATLAB/Simulink, and the reliability of the model is verified by the simulation analysis of charge and discharge characteristics. Then, the feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated by designing simulation experiments based on typical working conditions of the mother ship. The simulation results show that under the premise of meeting the load requirements, the control strategy designed in this paper has a better optimization effect than the S-type penalty function in terms of lithium battery power, lithium battery SOC, bus voltage stability and equivalent hydrogen consumption, which improves the stability and economy of the power system, and has certain engineering practical value.

Soil resilience has become a central theme in research aimed at understanding the impacts of human activities on the environment and mitigating the negative effects of soil disturbance. To evaluate how soil management practices affect soil resilience, 26 small farms were studied in a mountainous district of Lebanon. Farms were categorized into conventional (C), neutral (N), and regenerative (R), based on the practices adopted including tillage, amendments, rotation, cover crops, residues management, and pest control. Common practices included intercropping (85%), residue retention (73%), cover crops (61%), and organic amendments (46%). Qualitative assessment of soil health used indicators from Latin American Society for Agroecology (SOCLA) as well as from ‘Tool for Agroecological Performance Evaluation’ of the FAO. The indicators aligned with the classification of farms into their respective C/N/R groups. The sustainability scores were 4.28 (Low) for conventional, 6.34 (Moderate) for neutral, and 7.88 (Good) for regenerative farms. Quantitative analysis determined for 15 selected farms showed significant differences in soil organic matter (1.86% C, 2.75% N, 3.32% R), soil respiration (156C, 296N, 380R mg C-CO₂. week⁻¹), and earthworm abundance/liter (2.92C, 4.24N, 5.72R). The Soil Quality Index (SQI) provided an accurate representation of the current soil health condition, with increment from 0.05, 0.27 (low), to 0.49 (good) in conventional, neutral, and regenerative farms, respectively. The research highlights that soil resilience is influenced by a combination of intricate factors, encompassing biotic interactions, as well as physical, chemical, and biological processes. Particularly in regions like the Mediterranean basin, adopting sustainable soil management practices contributes to enduring productivity while preserving the functional integrity and resilience characteristics of the soil.

The main objective of this research was to analyze the relationship between socioeconomic and demographic indicators and the level of transparency of municipalities in the state of Maranhão. The transparency index was constructed based on the LRF and LAI and consisted of 32 items. Subsequently , for To identify which factors explain the level of transparency, a multiple linear regression was carried out, comparing the explanatory variables for the level of transparency adopted in this study. The sample consisted of municipalities in the State of Maranhão, totaling 211 municipalities, as 7 did not have a website. The results of the multiple linear regression model indicate that the IDHM, the log of total GDP, the GDP per capita and the variable log of POP explain the NT of the municipalities surveyed to the point of explain the level of transparency of the municipalities of Maranhão, only the IFDM did not show a relationship with the NT among the variables analyzed.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is a high value horticultural crop in Kenya. Nutritionally, the crop is rich in niacin, carotene, thiamine, and vitamin C. Mwea in Kirinyaga County is one of the major tomato growing areas in Kenya. Tomato production in Kenya is hindered by losses due to diseases caused by pathogens that include plant parasitic nematodes (PPN). Among the plant parasitic nematodes, the root-knot nematode (RKN) is the most predominant in Mwea. This study investigated the soil parameters that influence the distribution of the RKN for the purpose of mapping their distribution. This is important since it ensures that nematicide application is only to specific sites where these nematodes are found thereby saving on input costs as well as protecting the environment. The study consisted of surveys conducted in geo-referenced tomato production fields in seven (7) tomato production sites in Tebere and Mwea. Sampling was done in a stratified random manner in both rainfed and irrigated tomato production fields in both dry and rainy seasons for determination of the spatial and temporal distribution of nematodes, respectively. Nematode extraction was done using the centrifugal floatation technique and identification done to genera level using morphological features. Soil characteristics determining PPN distribution patterns in tomato production fields of Mwea were measured using standard methods. Soil parameters measured included soil pH, electrical conductivity, elevation and soil texture. The PPN incidence and diversity was determined using the Shannon-Weiner species diversity index. Detrended canonical correspondence analysis (DCCA) was performed to interpret and summarize major patterns of variation within the soil variable data and to estimate the ability of each soil variable to reflect variance in the entire PPN data set. Fourteen (14) genera of nematodes were identified with the diversity between 0.6 and 1.2. RKN distribution differed significantly (p<0.05) among the sites. Among the soil samples analyzed, 81% were positive for RKN infestation. There was an insignificant difference (p>0.05) between nematode densities in the dry and rainy seasons. Rainfed fields exhibited a significantly higher (p<0.05) RKN population densities compared to irrigated fields. The study established a great variability in the soil parameters in the area. The RKN distribution pattern, density and abundance were inversely correlated (p<0.05) with the soil pH and positively correlated (p<0.05) with soil EC. Based on the inverse relationship between soil pH and RKN distribution in the Mwea ecosystem, maps of nematode distribution and soil pH were developed. This enables the possibility of a site specific system for management of RKN

The economic downturn caused by the financial crisis of 2008-2009 and the intensifying glob-al climate policy trends forced changes in the energy management of the European Union. The study examined how the most relevant energy economic variables affected the economic growth of the EU between 2010-2019. The study examined the relationship between GDP (dependent variable) and energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, the average energy price, and renewable energy use (independent variables) using the PSL-PM methodology. The results show an asymmetric picture because the independent variables influenced the eco-nomic growth of the EU in the examined period with different correlations and with different strengths. One of the significances of the study is that the presented and analyzed variables, as well as the results of the relationships between them, can contribute to the optimization of the EU's currently critical energy management and economic growth.

Indonesia has emerged as one of the leading producers and exporters of palm oil, as supported by data from the Central Bureau of Statistics in 2021, which indicate that Indonesian palm oil exports reached an impressive value of US$ 18.44 billion, or IDR 258 trillion, in 2020, marking an 18.43 percent growth compared to the previous year. Furthermore, the domestic market for palm oil and palm kernel oil remains substantial, despite improvements in export quantities. Various industries, including cooking oil refineries, specialty fats, shortening, margarine, bath soaps, and oleochemicals, present potential markets for palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel oil (PKO). The palm oil industry encompasses four related sub-sectors, namely growers, millers, refiners, and oleochemicals, forming an integrated value chain from upstream to downstream. The current focus on environmental, economic, and social sustainability is driving companies to adopt internal green activities and expand their efforts into sustainability supply chain management (SSCM). Implementing SSCM practices is often seen as economically beneficial, as research has demonstrated their positive impact on firm performance from a resource perspective. Within the palm oil industry, a wide range of green management applications are being utilized. This study aims to examine and highlight the existing sustainable management practices across the entire palm oil supply chain, with a particular emphasis on producing high-quality palm oil. To achieve this objective, the paper utilizes a systematic review methodology, The number of papers analyzed were 62 articles published which involves an extensive review of relevant literature to identify research trends, gaps, and issues. The study seeks to contribute to the body of knowledge by expanding the theory of organizational readiness in preparing globally competitive palm oil products. The research findings hold practical significance for practitioners and academics, providing a comprehensive roadmap for implementing green management applications at the organizational level in the palm oil industry's upstream-to-downstream chain.

The study aims to investigate Gen Z's intentions to utilize the Waze mobile application as a solution for sustainable traffic management in Meto Manila. The extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used to define user behavior and technology usage to determine the factors influencing Filipino drivers' application acceptance of Waze. The study’s data results have revealed that the System Quality, Perceived Location Accuracy, Perceived Usefulness, and Perceived Ease of Use affect Filipinos' intentions to use traffic navigation applications, particularly Waze. The study utilized a survey and was given to 300 Filipino drivers traveling within the National Capital Region to accurately measure the factors and their connections to usage intention and actual use. The analytical approach used for this investigation was partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The study's results can be applied as a theoretical framework for future researchers of Waze mobile applications, Waze route accuracy, and Waze overall application performance, as well as the features of the Waze application, to evaluate how the use of the Waze mobile application could help in the effective management of traffic situations in Metro Manila. The study was able to assess the effectiveness of the Waze navigation app as a platform for efficiently managing traffic situations in Metro Manila. Moreover, this study also highlighted the application performance of Waze and its acceptance by Filipino drivers in Metro Manila. Furthermore, the study implores a critical review of Waze's application performance. The study recommends that similar future studies must consider samples from a more diverse geographic background to obtain a more accurate representation of Filipinos traveling. Future researchers are also advised to adopt a qualitative research design to gain more detailed insights of Filipinos regarding their experience with the Waze application.

Land resources have been under tremendous anthropogenic pressure with the consequence of their degradation. It is therefore necessary that the land resources must be managed effectively for sustainable development. Different from the developed countries, carbon inventories and data bank to monitor carbon sequestration potential of different ecosystems are unavailable in India. Micro-level studies are essential for sustainable land use management for a land scarce nation like India. To achieve the desirable goal of the present study, a total of 33 tree-based land uses were identified from forested and agricultural landscapes. Of these total land uses, five were in forest landscapes and rest in agricultural landscapes categorized into forest tree plantations (8 land uses), agroforestry (nine land uses), commercial crop plantations (six land uses) and fruit orchards (five land uses). A stratified random nested quadrate sampling method was adopted for vegetation analysis of the different land uses. The SOC, biomass and carbon accumulation in the tree-based land uses were significantly different from each other. Mixed forest soil had the highest amount of SOC, primary nutrients, standing biomass carbon, and ecosystem carbon. Positive correlations were observed between SOC, total standing biomass, litter production, and ecosystem carbon. The sequence of best tree based land uses in terms of total SOC (up to 60 cm depth), total plant biomass, total plant biomass carbon and ecosystem carbon was mixed species forest (126.67, 781.21, 390.61 and 517.27) > sole tree species stands in forest landscape (109.71, 192.56, 96.28 and 205.98) > tea plantations (103.19, 77.07, 38.54 and 141.74) > homegardens (90.34, 97.38, 48.69 and 139.02) > mixed plantation of Anthocephalus cadamba + Swietenia macrophylla (60.07, 111.86, 55.93 and 116.02) > Swietenia macrophylla based agroforestry (62.49, 83.82, 41.91 and 104.40) > mixed plantation of Tectona grandis + Milvus migrans (60.0, 85.97, 42.99 and 102.90). Similarly, the order of the major land uses was forest > commercial crop plantation > forest tree plantations > agroforestry > fruit orchards. The overall average ecosystem carbon accumulation in forests was 3.24 times more than the land uses in agricultural landscapes. The ecosystem carbon accumulation in the tree-based land uses in both forest and agricultural landscape was highly variable and was significantly different from each other. Land use conversion from forest to agriculture can reduce more than half of the carbon stock, but converting into homegardens, tree plantations or agroforestry enhanced carbon storage of the land use systems. The present findings can be used as baseline information for developing prediction models for probable effects of different land use, future intervention and sustainable management of land use systems.

Executive functioning is a key component involved in many of the processes necessary for effective weight management behavior change (e.g., setting goals). Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and third-wave CBT (e.g., mindfulness) are considered first-line treatments for obesity, but it is unknown to what extent they can improve or sustain executive functioning. This pilot randomized controlled trial examined if a CBT-based generalized weight management intervention would affect executive functioning and executive function-related brain activity in individuals with obesity or overweight. Participants were randomized to an intervention condition (N=24) that received the Noom Weight program or to a control group (N=26) receiving weekly educational newsletters. EEG measurements were taken during Flanker, Stroop, and N-back tasks at baseline and months 1 through 4. After 4 months, the intervention condition evidenced greater accuracy over time and, to some extent, neural markers of executive function (error-related negativity and beta and gamma band powers) compared to the control group on the Flanker and Stroop tasks. The intervention condition also lost more weight than controls (-7.1 pounds vs. +1.0 pounds). Given mixed evidence on whether CBT-based interventions can change markers of executive function, this study contributes preliminary evidence that a multicomponent CBT-based weight management intervention (i.e., that provide both support for weight management and is based on CBT) can help individuals sustain executive function compared to controls.

The total amount of greenhouse gas emissions directly or indirectly generated by thermal power enterprises at any given time can be offset through afforestation, energy conservation and emission reduction. The present situation and control methods of CO₂ emission in China's coal-fired thermal power industry are introduced. The complex ecosystem is a unity of ecological functions composed of human society, economic activities and natural conditions. In the context of carbon neutrality and based on the theory of composite ecosystem, this paper divides the coal-fired thermal power plants in China into environmental management zones, calculates the atmospheric environmental capacity, and puts forward the concept of regional atmospheric environmental capacity, classification and zoning control. Finally, the management and control units are classified, and differentiated management and control requirements are put forward to provide a reference for regional air quality standard planning.

Evidence is growing that mankind must learn from nature, a self-sufficient and self-organized system that adopts all the opportunities to develop life and ingeniously makes the most of whatever energy source. Attempting to satisfy the requirements of our energy-consuming world, we cannot afford to disregard any available source of energy, mainly those characterized by zero-CO₂ emissions. In this context an alternative scenario could be opened by the use of the nuclear radiations emitted from naturally occurring or artificially produced radionuclides. Abandoned mines of U, Th and Rare Earths , as well as storage areas of artificially produced isotopes all over the globe are available and affordable sources of radiations that can be converted in electrical power. The transition from laboratory-scale nuclear batteries to large-area converting modules would allow to safely re-use a big amount of already existing radionuclides, converting a trouble into a resource.

Understanding the soil fertility management practices is indispensable to improve faba bean productivity. However, little effort has been made to assess the soil fertility management practices of faba bean producing farmers of Wolaita Zone, southern Ethiopia. The study was conducted in Damot Gale and Sodo Zuria districts in Wolaita Zone to assess farmers’ soil fertility management practices for faba bean production, in 2019 on 310 framers. Faba bean productivity in the studied districts is majorly constrained by the scarcity of arable land, poor soil fertility, and soil acidity. These cumulative effects have caused negative consequences on soil fertility and faba bean productivity. In most soil fertility, management practices in faba bean farm did not significantly vary among the studied districts. The soil management practices by farmers were inadequate to improve soil fertility and to enhance faba bean productivity. Consequently, the average grain productions of both fertilized and unfertilized faba bean farm were far less than the national average. Therefore, intensive soil fertility management interventions such as faba bean residue management, crop rotation, application of sufficient and balanced fertilizers, adequate lime application, screening acidity tolerant varieties are required to improve faba bean productivity. in the studied districts.

Many centers worldwide raised the concern that immunocompromised patients for solid organ transplantation may be at high risk of developing a severe respiratory disease by COVID-19. Currently, there are no specific data on the COVID-19 in patients with generalized immunosuppression and transplantation.In this narrative review, we reported the main data of COVID-19 in patients with solid organ transplantation presented in the literature. The aim is to elaborate a strategy for tailored management, from diagnosis to therapy.The management of adult patients with solid organ transplantation and COVID-19 is a challenge for the clinicians. There is a lack of data in the literature, but three key-points are crucial: in the “pandemic era,” consider the symptomatic patient as positive for COVID-19 until proven otherwise; adjust/stop immunosuppressive agents; protect graft function with adequate route and dose administration of glucocorticoid and supportive measures. For pediatric patients, data are scarce. It is unclear if immunosuppression in patients with solid organ transplantation alters the predisposition to acquiring COVID-19 or if the disease implications are modified for better or for worse. Further studies are needed.

Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN) enable a growing number of Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications with large geographical coverage, low bit-rate, and long lifetime requirements. LoRa (Long Range) is a well-known LPWAN technology that uses a proprietary Chirp Spread Spectrum (CSS) physical layer, while the upper layers are defined by an open standard - LoRaWAN. In this paper, we propose a simple yet effective method to improve the Quality-of-Service (QoS) of LoRa networks by fine-tuning specific radio parameters. Through a Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) problem formulation, we find optimal settings for the Spreading Factor (SF) and Carrier Frequency (CF) radio parameters, considering the network traffic specifications as a whole, to improve the Data Extraction Rate (DER) and to reduce the packet collision rate and the energy consumption in LoRa networks. The effectiveness of the optimization procedure is demonstrated by simulations, using LoRaSim for different network scales. In relation to the traditional LoRa radio parameter assignment policies, our solution leads to an average increase of 6% in DER, and a number of collisions 13 times smaller. In comparison to networks with dynamic radio parameter assignment policies, there is an increase of 5%, 2.8%, and 2% of DER, and a number of collisions 11, 7.8 and 2.5 times smaller than equal-distribution, Tiurlikova's (SoTa), and random distribution, respectively. Regarding the network energy consumption metric, the proposed optimization obtained an average consumption similar to Tiurlikova's, and 2.8 times lower than the equal-distribution and random dynamic allocation policies. Furthermore, we approach the practical aspects of how to implement and integrate the optimization mechanism proposed in LoRa, guaranteeing backward compatibility with the standard protocol.

Sustainable development (SD) is essential to reduce and mitigate climate change impacts, environmental deterioration and to increase social sustainability. SD is therefore highly relevant for the engineering profession and is today found integrated with the higher education of specific engineering programs. This paper investigated the knowledge of SD for students entering the master’s program in Sustainable Building Information Management (BIM) by comparing levels of knowledge at the start and end of the first course Sustainability, Analyses and Simulations. The level of knowledge of SD was analyzed by classifying students’ conceptions of sustainability using SOLO taxonomy and the spectrum of liminality and the threshold concept. Students written responses to the question “What do you know about sustainability?” and written group project reports were used for analyzing levels of knowledge of SD. Levels of knowledge of SD was classified as pre (pre-liminal or pre-structural); uni-structural, multi-structural, relational and post-stages (extended abstract or post-liminal). In total, 68% of the students entering the master’s program in 2017 and 88% in 2018 showed a pre-structural, uni-structural and multi-structural SD knowledge. In general, few students entering the program showed relational and post-stages of SD knowledge, 32% and 12% of the students in 2017 and 2018, respectively. The students at the post-stage were able to express themselves more individually and creatively compared to previous levels in that they could connect the dimensions of SD to the context of SD of buildings, but also argue why SD of buildings was important and they could also suggest actions or tools for improved SD that engineers should use. Only one group of five (in 2017) showed a post-stage level of knowledge in the group project report. It is likely that the student’s general approach to the work with the reports was to mainly cope with the course requirements which is a sign of surface approach to learning. It, therefore, seems reasonable that future developments of the course should ensure that the students use the scientific literature in their group project reports to make it easier for them to understand the relationship between software use and the connection to green buildings certificate systems and SD of buildings. By making it mandatory to include scientific literature in the reports the students will be encouraged to read and think critically, and deeper, and to put the practical implementation of the software analysis results into a scientific context of SD and BIM.

Abstract Background: Chronic pain is common among older adults and is associated with adverse physical and psychological outcomes. Given the expected burden and limited healthcare resources, an innovative and cost-effective method to manage chronic pain should be developed. Peer volunteers (PVs) have been used as an affordable alternative to professional services to help patients manage their chronic conditions including pain with success and acceptance. The aim of this paper is to explore the experiences and perceptions of PVs in a peer-led pain management program among nursing home residents. Methods: This longitudinal study formed part of a wider research study, a clustered randomised controlled trial, which investigates the effectiveness of a 12-week peer-led pain management program (PAP) in relieving chronic pain and enhancing pain self-efficacy among nursing home residents. Quantitative data were collected from questionnaires (demographics, pain situation and pain knowledge) for all PVs. Qualitative data (PVs’ experiences in leading the PAP, their perceived benefits, limitations and barriers encountered, its usefulness to the participants and recommendations for improving the PAP) were collected from focus group for a selected sample at baseline (before attending the training) and at week 12 (upon completion of the PAP). Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences and NVivo 8. Results: A total of 46 PVs were recruited (34 female, 74%), with mean±SD age of 61.0±5.1 years. Thirty-one PVs reported to have chronic pain. Before the training, self-rated pain knowledge was 39.1±20.4 (maximum 100 points). When actual pain knowledge was assessed, a mean pain knowledge score of 86.1±10.6 points was found. There was a significant difference between the self-rated pain knowledge and the pain knowledge score (p<0.001). PVs reported to have improvement in their knowledge and skills. No PVs reported negative comments regarding their role in the PAP, although experienced barriers such as communication, space and privacy were reported. Conclusions: This study provides further evidence that peer-led pain management program is feasible. Barriers identified may benefit the design and planning of future PAP. Trial registration: ClincalTrials.gov (NCT03823495), 30 January 2019. (Retrospectively registered).

The coordination planning between land use and transportation system is an important premise of solving urban transportation problems and realizing land use integration. This study investigates the interactive and feedback relationship between land use and transportation system from the perspective of access management. By integrating the land use and traffic data from Las Vegas Metropolitan area with the system dynamics model, the causal relationship and causal loop diagrams (CLDs) are introduced to analyze the cause-and-effect relationship and quantitative relationship between the factors of the combined system of land use and transportation, and then sub-models partition and system simulation are performed. The systems dynamics model is established by analyzing the relationship between a series of access management techniques, traffic characteristics, and land use features. The results show that system dynamics model can be used as an effective alternative to model the symbiosis relationship of land use and transportation system for urban planning and construction.

In this paper, several classes of rough Marcinkiewicz integral operators along surfaces of revolution on product spaces are investigated. We prove the Lp boundedness of these operators when their kernels functions belong to a class of functions related to a class of functions introduced by Grafakos-Stefanov. The results in this paper extend and improve several known results on Marcinkiewicz integrals.

In recent decades, the creation and availability of Voluntary Geographic Information (VGI) has changed the paradigm associated with the production of Geospatial Information (GI), since due to its free access, citizens can view, analyse, process, and validate this type of data. One of the most popular examples of VGI is the collaborative OpenStreetMap (OSM) project which covers a wide range of themes or characteristics associated with the real world. One of these themes is the feature “waterway” that represents watercourses. The quality of OSM data characteristics is an issue that has been published by many authors in recent years, particularly on the analysis of the completeness indicator. However, few references are found in literature to studies that analyse the completeness of OSM watercourses. This study presents an analysis of the variation over time in completeness/coverage of the OSM "waterway" feature in the epochs of 2014 and 2023 in a mountainous region included in the Mondego River basin, located in Inland of Portugal. The results show that the completeness of this OSM feature (waterway) has a slight increase, considering the amplitude of this period (nine years) and the fact that, nowadays, digital mobile devices enable access to satellite images, therefore allowing in an easy way the digitalization of entities or objects of the real world remotely. Regarding the indicator’s altitude, slope and location/proximity of settlements, it was not possible to observe their influence on the evolution of the completeness of this geographic entity (OSM waterway).

Fire is a serious security threat that can lead to casualties, property damage, and environmental damage. However, despite the availability of object detection algorithms, challenges persist in detecting fires and smoke. These challenges include slow convergence speed, poor performance in detecting small targets, and high computational cost limiting deployments. In this paper, Fire smoke and human detection based on ConvNeXt and Mixed encoder (FCM-DETR), an end-to-end object detection algorithm based on Deformable DETR, is proposed. Firstly, we introduce ConvNeXt to take the place of Resnet, which greatly reduces the amount of computation and improves the ability to extract irregular flame features. Secondly, to effectively process multi-scale features, the original encoder is decoupled into two modules. Then Mixed encoder, an innovative encoder structure, is proposed, resulting in excellent performance of multi-scale fire and smoke features fusion. What can’t be overlooked is that the encoder block is compatible with any DETR-based models. Finally, the convergence speed is accelerated and the mean of average precision is improved by applying a novel loss function called Powerful IoU v2. The experimental results indicate that our model achieves the best detection accuracy compared to other models, with mAP reaching 66.7%, mAPs and Accuracyfire achieving impressive 50.2% and 98.05%, respectively.

The aim of this work was to describe the physiological limitations induced under drought conditions in young sweet orange trees, including the crop capability to recuperate its physiological status once re-watering, and after a water withholding. The trial was conducted during two consecutive months (July and August) in two-years old sweet orange trees. Three irrigation treatments were arranged: A full irrigation treatment; (FI); a low-frequency deficit-irrigation treatment (LFDI); and a sustained-deficit irrigation (SDI) treatment. The obtained results showed that for Stem values below -1.5 MPa, significant decreases in gas exchange rates, evidencing diffusive limitations to drought stress. Additionally, there was evidence of increased osmolyte synthesis, compatible as a defensive response to prevent oxidative damage. Likewise, the isohydric behaviour observed also resulted in significant decreases in gs even for moderate stress situations. In addition, it was observed that in the LFDI treatment, the stress levels reached caused a significant increase in the levels of Pro and MDA, which were not equal to those detected in FI during the recovery periods, which leads us to assume that potential values below -1.8 MPa would be causing significant oxidative damage with no capacity for subsequent recovery, and probably affecting the final yield.

In this paper, we consider a fourth-order suspension bridge equation with nonlinear damping term |u_t|^m-2u_t and source term |u|^p-2u. We give necessary and sufficient condition for global existence and energy decay results without considering the relation between m and p. Moreover, when p>m, we give sufficient condition for finite time blow-up of solutions. The lower bound of the blow-up time T_max is also established. It worth to mention that our obtained results extend the recent results of Wang (J. Math. Anal. Appl., 2014) to the nonlinear damping case.

In order to correct attenuated millimeter-wavelength (Ka-band) radar data and address the problem of instability, an attenuation correction methodology (attenuation correction with variation trend constraint; VTC) was developed. Using synchronous observation conditions and multi-band radars, the VTC method adopts the variation trends of reflectivity in X-band radar data captured with wavelet transform as a constraint to adjust reflectivity factors of millimeter-wavelength radar. The correction was evaluated by comparing reflectivities obtained by millimeter-wavelength cloud radar and X-band weather radar. Experiments showed that attenuation was a major contributory factor in the different reflectivities of the two radars when relatively intense echoes exist, and the attenuation correction developed in this study significantly improved data quality for millimeter-wavelength radar. Reflectivity differences between the two radars were reduced and reflectivity correlations were enhanced. Errors caused by attenuation were eliminated, while variation details in the reflectivity factors were retained. The VTC method is superior to the bin-by-bin method in terms of correction amplitude and can be used for attenuation correction of shorter wavelength radar assisted by longer wavelength radar data.

BACKGROUND: Qu-aroma is a critical quality indicator for medium-high temperature Daqu (MT-Daqu), significantly influencing the aroma profile of strong-aroma Baijiu (SAB). SAB is produced across various regions in China, each with unique environmental conditions and production techniques. These regional differences are likely to cause variations in the Qu-aroma of MT-Daqu. Despite this, comprehensive research on the variations in Qu-aroma across different regions has been lacking. This study aims to address this gap by utilizing Gas Chromatography-Olfactometry-Mass Spectrometry (GC-O-MS) and electronic nose (E-nose) technology, combined with sensory evaluation, to analyze the differences in Qu-aroma characteristics and volatile compound profiles of MT-Daqu from seven distinct production areas.RESULTS: Sensory analysis identified seven broad aroma categories and 25 specific aromas characterizing the Qu-aroma of MT-Daqu samples. Chen aroma and roasted aroma were notably more prevalent in MT-Daqu samples from Sichuan compared to those from other regions (P < 0.05), while the fermentation aroma was less prominent in Sichuan samples. In total, 123 volatile compounds were detected in MT-Daqu, with 46 classified as aroma-active compounds. Among these, 21 aroma-active compounds were identified as markers distinguishing Sichuan MT-Daqu from those produced in non-Sichuan regions, showing significant differences in their concentrations (P < 0.05). Additionally, six major aroma-active compounds-ethyl isovalerate, ethyl heptanoate, hexanal, 1-nonanal, (E)-2,4-decadienal, and 2,3-dimethyl-5-ethylpyrazine-were found to significantly contribute to the aroma differences between Sichuan and non-Sichuan MT-Daqu.CONCLUSION: This study delineates the distinct Qu-aroma characteristics of MT-Daqu from various SAB production areas and identifies the aroma-active compounds responsible for these differences. The insights gained from this research offer valuable guidance for optimizing flavor profiles in MT-Daqu production, potentially enhancing the overall quality and regional distinctiveness of the product.

Acid-producing bacteria in pit mud play a crucial role in the fermentation of Chinese liquor, significantly influencing its flavor, taste, and overall quality. This study investigates three strains of anaerobic acid-producing bacteria from pit mud to optimize both single and combined bacterial fermentations for enhanced acid production. Acid production levels were quantitatively measured using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The Design Expert software was employed to identify significant nutritional factors affecting the production of hexanoic and butyric acids. These factors were optimized through climbing tests and response surface analysis. The Box-Behnken Design (BBD) experimental design and variance analysis were used to determine the optimal levels of each significant factor. The SJ-1/SJ-3/SJ-8/enriched solution exhibited the highest acid production, with a total acid production of 2216.07±0.10 mg/100 ml. The yields of caproic acid and butyric acid were 801.94±0.11 mg/100 ml and 1167.33±0.14 mg/100 ml, respectively. The optimized fermentation medium for caproic and butyric acid production consisted of 5.1 g/L peptone, 5.04 g/L sodium acetate, and 4.45 g/L sodium butyrate, with a pH of 6.4. Under these conditions, the production of caproic acid and butyric acid reached 1172.73 mg/100 ml and 2382.45 mg/100 ml, respectively. These values represent significant increases (P<0.05) of approximately 46.24% for caproic acid and 104.09% for butyric acid compared to initial levels. The model predicts caproic and butyric acid production to be 1184.21 mg/100 ml and 2387.84 mg/100 ml, respectively, which closely aligns with experimental results. This indicates the model’s effectiveness and provides valuable insights for enhancing acidity in liquor production.

Background: Obesity remains a widely debated issue, often criticized for the limitations in its identification and classification. This study aims to compare two distinct systems for classifying obesity: Body Mass Index (BMI) and body fat percentage (BFP) as assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). By examining these measures, the study seeks to clarify how different metrics of body composition influence the identification of obesity-related risk factors. Methods: The study enrolled 1255 adults, comprising 471 males and 784 females, with a mean age of 36 ± 11.90 years. Participants exhibited varying degrees of weight status, including optimal weight, overweight, and obesity. Body composition analysis was conducted using the TANITA Body Composition Analyzer BC-418 MA III device (T5896, Tokyo, Japan), evaluating the following parameters: current weight, basal metabolic rate (BMR), adipose tissue (%), muscle mass (%), and hydration status (%). Results: Age and psychological factors like cravings, fatigue, stress, and compulsive eating were significant predictors of obesity in the BMI model but not in the BFP model. Additionally, having a family history of diabetes was protective in the BMI model (OR: 0.33) but increased risk in the BFP model (OR: 1.66). The BMI model demonstrates exceptional predictive ability (AUC=0.998). In contrast, the BFP model, while still performing well, exhibits a lower AUC (0.975), indicating slightly reduced discriminative power compared to the BMI model. Conclusions:BMI classification demonstrates superior predictive accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity. This suggests that BMI remains a more reliable measure for identifying obesity-related risk factors compared to the BFP model.

Beta thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that results in inefficient erythropoiesis due to genetic mutation that leads to reduction or absence of the hemoglobin beta-globulin protein. Approximately 8.5% of UAE residents suffer from β-thalassemia, a significant health and financial problem. The treatment options available for β-Thalassemia major are limited and associated with a wide range of complications. β-thalassemia gene therapy is emerging as a potential novel treatment option that eliminates the complications caused by the current long-term treatment modalities and the associated economic burden. This paper reviews the scientific literature related to emerging gene-therapy for β-Thalassemia by analyzing all the articles published from January 2010 to December 2023 in the English language on Databases like PubMed, Scopus, ProQuest, and CINAHL. The use of gene therapy has demonstrated promising outcomes for a permanent cure of β-Thalassemia. ZYNTEGLO (Betibeglogene autotemcel) is the only cell-based gene therapy which was approved by the FDA on 19th August, 2018. To conclude, Gene therapy is an innovative solution. It demonstrates a promising future, but does come with its own set-backs and is something that must be tackled in-order to revolutionize it in the medical world. FDA approved ZYNTEGLO is a potentially one-time curative treatment for β-Thalassemia. Although cutting-edge, its use is limited because of the high cost; a price of $2.8million per patient.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released from plants have been correlated with disease-status. Analysis of VOCs using GC-MS is time-consuming, laboratory-based, and requires specialist training. Electronic nose devices (E-nose) provide a portable alternative. Three different E-nose devices were compared to assess how accurately they could detect Mango Twig Tip Dieback and Panama disease in banana. The devices were initially trained on known volatiles, then pure cultures of Pantoea sp., Staphylococcus sp., and Fusarium odoratissimum, and finally, on infected and healthy mango leaves and field-collected, infected banana pseudo-stems. The experiments were repeated three times with six replicates for each host-pathogen pair. The variation between healthy and infected host materials was evaluated by principal component and linear discriminant analysis, cross-validation and chemometric data analysis. GC-MS analysis was conducted contemporaneously and identified an 80% similarity between healthy and infected plant material. The portable C 320 was 100% successful in discriminating known volatiles but had a low capability in differentiating healthy and infected plant substrates. The advanced devices (PEN 3 / MSEM 160) successfully detected healthy and diseased samples with a high variance. The results suggest that E-nose devices are more sensitive and accurate in detecting changes of VOCs between healthy and infected plants compared to headspace GC-MS.

Statistical denoising techniques have been well studied, however many challenges still remain. This 9 article focuses on determining the least necessary number of significant samples in a statistical pop-10 ulation sampling, while minimizing the impact on the statistical detection of the fiber Bragg grating 11 (FBG) power spectra. This is achieved by using Bayesian decision making, small population statis-12 tics while excluding false detection. First, we investigate the impact of two-sided sliding window 13 technique applied near the cell under the test. The window size varies from 8 to 60 samples. The 14 considered maximum size of population sampling is connected with the number of wavelength 15 samples within the bandwidth of the symmetrical FBG power spectra peaks. Regarding the sym-16 metry of FBG power spectra peaks and the possible reduction of computational demands, we inves-17 tigate the impact of a one-sided sliding window. This enables to achieve less processing latency for 18 real time applications thus brings benefits to FBG-based fiber optical sensing. Both, two- and one-19 sided small population sampling techniques are then experimentally verified. Detection results are 20 analyzed in depth via calculating detection thresholds by using the small size window sliding along-21 side the waveband. From results achieved, it was found that the normality three-sigma rule does 22 not need to be followed while using the small population sampling. Experimental demonstrations 23 and analyses showed that the proposed concept of denoising and statistical threshold detection 24 based on the sliding window does not depend on the prior knowledge of probability distribution 25 functions of the FBG power spectra peaks level and background noise. We have also found that the 26 thresholds’ adaptability mainly depends on the statistical numerical characteristics of the above ad-27 ditive mixture of the FBG power spectra peaks signals and background noise.

The purpose of this study is to examine the match-related performance (scores and penalties) of the athletes in the Junior EJC (European Judo Championship) and U23 EJC categories before and immediately after the Covid-19 quarantine, according to gender and weight category groups. Our sample was based on the junior and U23, male and females, 2019-2020 Junior European Judo Championships and 2019-2020 U23 European Judo Championships. A total of 1431 matches in these tournaments were analyzed: male (n=812) and female (n=619). The main findings of this study showed that most matches in both the male and female categories resulted in ippon (2019-2020 average: 64,35% for Junior male, 70,55% for U23 male and 69,3% for Junior female, 64,4% for U23 female). No significant differences (p &gt; 0.05) were observed between gender and age groups concerning the match scores. In the formation phase of the technique, considerations of high- and low-intensity actions, and analysis of the speed of athletes during matches in official competitions can help to better understand the dynamics of the variability of movements in judo matches. In addition, suggestions are presented to be applied to athletes in different age categories who are on the way to become Olympic athletes.

Panax notoginseng is a traditional Chinese medicine, and saponins are its main active ingredients. The content of saponins in flower of P. notoginseng is the highest in the whole plant. Minor ginsenosides have stronger pharmacological activity than main ginsenosides, but its content in nature is very low. We can use extracted total saponins from P. notoginseng flower as the substrate to produce minor ginsenosides by biotransformation method. In this study, we used the fungus Talaromyces flavus and its crude enzymes to transform the extracted total saponins of P. notoginseng flower. Through the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the transformation substrates and products, it was found that minor ginsenosides Gyp-XVII, ginsenosides C-Mc1, C-Mx1, F2, Rg3, 20(R)-Rg3, Rk1 and Rg5 were found in the products and the conversion rate of the major saponins in P. notoginseng flower ranged from 44.16 to 55.22%, the yields of the minor ginsenosides ranged from 0.05 to 3.24%. This study provided a good experimental idea, greatly increased the utilization rate of total saponins in P. notoginseng flower, and laid a foundation for promoting the wide application of minor saponins.

In wireless sensor networks (WSNs), each sensor node can estimate the global parameter from the local data in distributed manner. This paper proposed a robust diffusion estimation algorithm based on minimum error entropy criterion with self-adjusting step-size, which are referred to as diffusion MEE-SAS (DMEE-SAS) algorithm. The DMEE-SAS algorithm has fast speed of convergence and is robust against non-Gaussian noise in the measurements. The detailed performance analysis of the DMEE-SAS algorithm is performed. By combining the DMEE-SAS with diffusion minimum error entropy (DMEE) algorithms, an Improving DMEE-SAS algorithm is proposed, in non-stationary environment where tracking is very important. The Improving DMEE-SAS algorithm can avoid insensitivity of the DMEE-SAS algorithm due to the small effective step-size near the optimal estimator, and obtain a fast convergence speed. Numerical simulations are given to verify the effectiveness and advantages of these proposed algorithms.

The influence of short term water absorption on the mechanical properties of halloysite nanotubes-multi layer graphene reinforced polyester hybrid nanocomposites has been investigated. The addition of nano-fillers significantly increased the flexural strength; tensile strength and impact strength in dry and wet conditions. After short term water exposure; the maximum microhardness; tensile; flexural and impact toughness values were observed at 0.1 wt% MLG. The microhardness increased up to 50.3%; tensile strength increased up to 40% and flexural strength increased up to 44%. Compared to dry samples; the fracture toughness and surface roughness of all types of produced nanocomposites were increased that may be attributed to plasticization effect. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the main failure mechanism is caused by the weakening of nano-filler-matrix interface induced by water absorption. It was further observed that synergistic effects were not effective at concentration of 0.1 wt% to produce considerable improvement in mechanical properties of produced hybrid nanocomposites.

Abstract: Effectiveness of a Single Fixed Dose 3 mg Rasburicase for Prevention and Management of Hyperuricemia of Tumor Lysis Syndrome in adult Cancer Patients Background: Tumor lysis syndrome (TLS) is a potentially life-threatening complication associated with certain types of cancer. Rasburicase is an essential medicine required to prevent and treat the hyperuricemia associated with TLS. Due to a shortage of rasburicase during the COVID-19 pandemic, a fixed dose strategy of 3 mg rasburicase had been used in many adult cancer patients in our center. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a 3 mg fixed dose of rasburicase in preventing and managing hyperuricemia associated with TLS in adult cancer patients. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, observational cohort study between March 2020 and November 2022. The study included adult patients who received a fixed dose of 3 mg rasburicase. The primary outcome measure was the reduction in serum UA levels of

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a multisystem disorder that presents with a variety of phenotypes involving metabolic, endocrine, reproductive, and psychological symptoms and signs. Women with PCOS are at increased risk of pregnancy complications including implantation failure, miscarriage, gestational diabetes, fetal growth restriction, preterm labour, and preeclampsia (PE). This may be attributed to the presence of specific susceptibility features associated with PCOS before and during pregnancy, such as chronic systemic inflammation, insulin resistance (IR), and hyperandrogenism, all of which have been associated with an increased risk of pregnancy complications. Many of the features of PCOS are reversible following lifestyle interventions such as diet and exercise, and pregnant women following a healthy lifestyle have been found to have a lower risk of complications, including PE. This review summarizes the evidence investigating the risk of PE and the role of nutritional factors in women with PCOS. The findings suggest that the beneficial aspects of lifestyle management of PCOS, as recommended in the evidenced-based international guidelines, extend to improved pregnancy outcomes. Identifying high-risk women with PCOS will allow targeted interventions, early pregnancy screening, and increased surveillance for PE. Women with PCOS should be included in risk assessment algorithms for PE.

This study examines the DCMA concerning the future risk of the water security status. We considered three risk factors: population growth, economic growth, and natural water supply demand differences. In the risk analysis part, we consulted with experts from several sectors including academia, Non-Governmental Organization (NGOs), and industry, to predict that the probability of future water stresses in high, medium, and low scenarios are 0.73, 0.24, and 0.03, respectively. In the decision analysis part, we adopted two Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) approaches that include Multiple Attribute Value Theory (MAVT) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methods to evaluate the best alternative decision to alleviate future water stresses in the DCMA. The sensitivity analysis demonstrates the best option closely connects to the weighting scheme of the criteria considered in the framework. This study provides a valuable risk and decision analysis framework to analyze the water security status associated with the future water supply and demand gap decrease caused by three risk factors: population growth, climate change, and natural water supply.

Background:This study evaluated the effect of low-level laser therapy on postoperative pain and wound healing in children undergoing primary molar extractions.Methods:40children,6-10years of age, systemically healthy, and had atraumatic extraction indications of bilateral primary molar teeth were included in the study. First session randomly selected tooth was extracted under local anesthesia. In the control group, only the clot formation on the socket was observed and photographed. Other group extraction's performed 2weeks later. The LLLT group treated with980nm wavelength Doctor Smile Wiser diode laser and photographed. Non-epithelialized surface measurements performed with the ImageJ program. Pain assessment was performed with Wong-Baker Pain Scale. Statistical analyzes were performed with SPSS software.Results: There was no statistically significant difference in Wong-Baker values(p&gt;0.05). The laser group had more '0' values on days 1 and7; same values as the control group were recorded on other days. In soft tissue healing 3rd day evaluations, non-epithelialized surface of laser socket was found to be smaller than control group, and measurement results were found to be statistically significant(p&lt;0.05). The other days' measurement results were not statistically significant(p&gt;0.05).Conclusions:Although LLLT not found to be very effective in reducing postoperative discomfort after extraction of primary molars, it provides better wound healing in extraction sockets.

Infectious illnesses have always posed a threat to human health, with tuberculosis being a major concern. The use of various medications and antibiotics in the fight against such TB has led to the emergence of drug-resistant tuberculosis, which has become increasingly difficult to manage. While there have been a few studies and proposed conceptual models on how to manage and prevent various drug-resistant TB mutations and lineages, a model aimed at limiting and con-trolling such mutations in rural areas burdened with tuberculosis is lacking. This study seeks to map a model that is to be used to bridge the gap by facilitating the exchange of knowledge among healthcare professionals in healthcare facilities, diagnostic laboratories, and research institutes, particularly for underprivileged communities in the Eastern Cape. The model will also serve as a guide to monitor and evaluate epidemiological TB management plans.

Background: This systematic review aims to investigate whether percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGDB), as definitive treatment, is superior to emergency cholecystectomy (EC) in high-risk patients with acute cholecystitis (AC). Material and methods: A systematic literature search was performed until December 2022 using Scopus, Medline/PubMed and Web of Science databases in order to compare PTGDB as definitive treatment vs EC in AC. Results: Seventeen studies (1 Randomized Control Trials and 16 observational studies) have been included with a total of 783,672 patients (32,634 treated with PTGDB vs 4,663 who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 343 who underwent open cholecystectomy and 746,032 who underwent cholecystectomy, but without laparoscopic or open approach being specified). The quality assessment (ROBINS-I) of the not randomized studies showed a serious risk, differently the evaluation of the randomized study (RoB 2) showed a low risk of bias. Analysis of the results shows that PTGDB, despite being minimally invasive, do not have different incidence of complications than EC (RR 0.77 95% CI [0.44 to 1.34]; I2 = 99%; P=0.36). A lower postoperative mortality was reported in patients who underwent EC (2.37%) than in PTGDB group (13.78 %) (RR 4.21; 95% CI [2.69 to 6.58]; P < 0.00001), furthermore the risk of hospital readmission for biliary complications (RR 2.19 95% CI [1.72 to 2.79]; I2 = 48 %; P<0.00001) and hospital stay (MD 4.29 95% CI [2.40 to 6.19]; P<0.00001) were lower in EC group. Conclusions: No advantage in using PTGDB as a definitive treatment over EC in the management of critically ill patients with AC has been demonstrated; the results of our systematic review and meta-analysis suggest using EC as the treatment of first choice, even for very high-surgical-risk patient in which PTGDB should be reserved. The major limitation of this systematic review and meta-analysis is associated to a low quality of evidence for the serious bias in the not randomized studies. For this reason, new high powered and well-designed clinical trials are needed to recommend PTGDB as definitive treatment in patients unfit for surgery or those who refuse to undergo surgery.

The restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic left many older adults isolated and confined. Under active aging theory, self-management is crucial for well-being among older adults coping with aging. The current study examines how (a) initial self-management, and (b) changes in self-management due to independent physical training, affect psychological outcomes in a sample of care home residents following outbreak of the pandemic. 64 older adults (53 females, 11 males), mean age is 82.23, reported on their self-management abilities, then embarked on six months of training in chair exercises (one session per week). The training exercises were halted after 22 sessions due to the pandemic, but some residents continued to practice independently. Eight weeks after the outbreak of the pandemic, residents who had continued to practice at least once per week (n = 35) and those who had not continued to practice (n = 29) were questioned again about their self-management, and about five psychological outcomes: anxiety, traumatic stress, satis-faction, general mood, and post-traumatic growth (PTG). Self-management improved among older adults who independently practiced the exercises, and declined among those who did not. Pre-pandemic self-management significantly predicted post-outbreak traumatic stress symptoms, anxiety, general mood, and satisfaction with life, but not PTG. However, the difference in self-management between the pre-pandemic and post-outbreak measures was associated with PTG, and made a unique contribution to prediction of the other effects. Self-management abilities among older adults can be seen as a protective factor against adverse psychological outcomes at times of trauma. Further, the improvement in self-management among older adults who independently practiced physical excises made a unique contribution beyond initial self-management abilities.

Remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) have played an important role in exploration and management of groundwater resources. In this study, we present modeling of groundwater potential zone in Khoyrasol block in Birbhum district, West Bengal by using remote sensing and GIS techniques. The objective of the study is to explore groundwater as well as surface water availability in different geomorphic units. Different thematic maps of geology, hydro-geomorphology, lineament, slope, land use/land cover (LULC), depth to water level and soil maps are prepared and groundwater potential zones are obtained by overlaying all thematic maps in terms of Weightage Index Overlay (WIO) method. All the thematic map classes have been assigned weightage according to their role in groundwater occurrence. Finally, groundwater potential zones are classified into four categories viz., excellent, good to medium, medium to poor and poor. The outcome of the present research work will help the local farmers, decision-maker, researchers and planners for exploration, monitoring, and management of groundwater resources for this study area.

The urgency to address the adverse impacts of climate change on livelihoods and ecosystems has seen an increase in global driven initiatives. However, shifting vulnerabilities associated with land use resource based adaptation and maladaptive feedback loops they create have been given low attention. Policy discourses that frame adaptation as a local responsibility and bias towards reducing industrial Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at the expense of Agricultural emissions across scale are thought to account for the undesirable situation. This calls for a reflective policy framework and climate policy innovation. We provide counter arguments using Drivers, Pressure, State, Impact, Response (DPSIR) model and telecoupling principles to suggest use of resilience as an integrative lens in visualising the proposal. Using a case study on resource constrained smallholder dairy production systems, western Kenya, we analyse the critical issues in the context of decision making and environmental externalities. The effect of price risks on dairy cattle feeding strategies and ultimately carbon footprints and ecoefficiencies were examined through methane simulation and gross margin analysis (GM). The lowest ecoefficiency was associated with exclusively local coping strategies i.e. Maize Stover (Ms), while the highest ecoefficiency was observed in feeding strategies that utilise external resources and/or legume fodders. We conclude that management of externalities need to capture institutional, economic processes and incentive systems, as well as organizational and policy coherence to shape the interests and behaviour of individual land user. In particular, policy innovation should focus on price and market risks as critical factors that mediate actor decision making at implementation level as they impact GHG emissions which transcend individual decision boundaries.

In areas with strongly seasonal climates, local people often use complex strategies to manage agricultural production shortages, including diverse activities such as hunting, selling and consuming non-agricultural products, and wage labor. We surveyed all the households in a village in northern Laos to evaluate how such livelihood activities varied during years with differing agricultural production conditions. We compared two years with normal rice production conditions (2010, 2012) and one year with a severe rice shortage (2011) due to a rodent outbreak. Earning wages inside and outside the village was the most important activity for mitigating rice shortages, followed by selling livestock and using/selling non-timber forest products. Villagers also borrowed rice from a village rice bank. Most cash income was earned from selling rice. We concluded that a balance of traditional risk management activities under the swidden system (e.g., raising livestock) with the more recent rice bank system and wages from the market economy will be critical for the sustainable development of mountain villages in northern Laos. Permanent crops and monocultures tend to make local livelihoods more dependent on a single crop, but maintaining the traditional swidden system will help local people to manage agricultural production shortages.

The North China Plain is among the regions most afflicted by ground fissure disasters in China. Recent urbanization has accelerated ground fissure activity in the three counties of the northern North China Plain, posing significant threats to both the natural environment and socioeconomic sustainability. Despite the increased attention, a lack of comprehensive understanding persists due to delayed recognition and limited research. This study conducted field visits and geological surveys across 43 villages and 80 sites to elucidate the spatial distribution patterns of ground fissures in the aforementioned counties. By integrating these findings with regional geological data, we formulated a causative model to explain ground fissure formation. Our analysis reveals a concentration of ground fissures near the Niuxi and Rongxi faults, with the former exhibiting the most extensive distribution. The primary manifestations of ground fissures include linear cracks and patch-shaped collapse pits, predominantly oriented in east-west and north-south directions, indicating tensile failure with minimal vertical displacement. Various factors contribute to ground fissure development, including fault activity, ancient river channel distribution, bedrock undulations, rainfall, and ground settlement. Fault activity establishes a concealed fracture system in shallow geotechnical layers, laying the groundwork for ground fissure formation. Additionally, the distribution of ancient river channels and bedrock undulations modifies regional stress fields, further facilitating ground fissure emergence. Rainfall and differential ground settlement serve as triggering mechanisms, exposing ground fissures at the surface. This research offers novel insights into the causative mechanisms of ground fissures in the northern North China Plain, providing valuable scientific evidence for mitigating ground fissure disasters during the urbanization process in the region.

The present study deals with the transplantation of mature Argan trees (Argania spinosa L. Skeels) and focuses on optimizing survival rates depending on the seasons, the type of shoot pruning applied to the trees and preconditioning treatments consisting of root pruningand watering for a few months before transplanting. So far, the transplantation of this species at the adult stage has not received enough attention in spite of its ecological and socio-economic importance for the regions where it thrives. The results obtained show that transplanting in summer, autumn and winter resulted in survival rates exceeding 50%. The Argan trees transplanted in spring hardly achieved 10% survival. However, the total cutback of the crown induced survival improvement that reached a rate greater than 70% for summer, autumn and winter, and 50% for spring. Watering alone or combined with root pruning for 6 months helped improve the recovery rate but only when carried out in autumn with transplantation in spring. On the other hand, when these pre-treatments were applied in the spring to transplant the trees in summer, the recovery rate was not improved.

Chip pad alignment inspection is of great importance in the industrial field. However, due to the fact that chip pads are usually small, problems such as misdetection and missed detection often occur. When applying deep learning methods for chip pad detection, it is necessary to ensure accurate detection of small target chips while meeting the requirements of lightweight detection models for industrial needs. To solve the above problems, this paper proposes a lightweight model based on improved YOLOv5s. Firstly, the feature extraction part is improved to increase the network's focus on the target. Secondly, the feature fusion layer is improved to double the resolution of the prediction head, and the context-aware network is designed to enhance the context-capture ability of key features of small targets. Finally, SIoU is adopted as the loss function to improve the speed and accuracy of the regression frame. The experimental results show that the improved YOLOv5s algorithm improves the detection accuracy by 2.3% and reduces the network parameters by 81.8% compared to the original algorithm. The improved algorithm is combined with image processing techniques to design correction methods for alignment anomalies and realize real-time alignment anomaly correction in industry.

The combination of encryption and digital watermarking technologies is a trend to achieve full lifecycle data protection. Recently, reversible data hiding in encrypted domain (RDHED) has greatly aroused the interests of many scholars. But the fixed order of first encryption and then watermarking makes this kind of algorithms unsuitable to many applications. Commutative encryption and watermarking (CEW) technology realizes the flexible combination of encryption and watermarking, and suits more applications. However, most existing CEW schemes for vector maps are not reversible and unsuitable to high precision maps. To solve this problem, here we propose a commutative encryption and reversible watermarking (CERW) algorithm for vector maps based on virtual coordinates which are uniformly distributed on the number axis. The CERW algorithm consists of virtual interval step based encryption scheme and coordinate difference based reversible watermarking scheme. In the encryption scheme, the map coordinates are moved randomly by multiples of virtual interval step defined as distance between two adjacent virtual coordinates. In the reversible watermarking scheme, difference expansion (DE) technique is used to embed the watermark bit into the coordinate difference computed based on the relative position of a map coordinate in a virtual interval. Since the relative position of a map coordinate in a virtual interval keeps unchanged during the coordinate scrambling encryption process, the watermarking operation and the encryption operation don’t interfere with each other and the commutativity between encryption and watermarking achieves. Results show that: proposed method has high security, high capacity and good invisibility. In addition, the algorithm is not only applicable to polyline and polygon vector data, but also can be applied to sparsely distributed point data which the traditional DE watermarking algorithm often fails to watermark.

The Marun-Keu complex plays a significant role in understanding the geological evolution of the Ural orogen; however, it remains poorly understood. This study aims to provide insights into the complex's age, protolith composition, rock formation conditions, and its position in the region's history. The zircons from the host granitic gneisses are characterized by magmatic cores with an age of 470 Ma and metamorphic rims with an age of approximately 370 Ma. We suggest that the metamorphic rims were formed during eclogite metamorphism and that the metagranitoids hosting the eclogites experienced eclogite metamorphism simultaneously with the basic and ultrabasic rocks that are common in this area. Heterogeneous zircons were also isolated from the selvage of a pegmatite vein, in which four domains are distinguished, two to three of which can be identified within single grains, as follows: 1) igneous cores with an age of approximately 470 Ma and the geochemical characteristics of zircon crystallized in basic rocks; 2) zircons recrystallized during eclogite metamorphism with geochemical characteristics intermediate between those of the magmatic cores and true eclogitic zircon; 3) pegmatitic zircon, exhibiting the most sharply differentiated REE spectra of all four domains, characterized by a prominent positive Ce anomaly and a weakly expressed negative Eu anomaly; and 4) eclogitic zircon, observed in the form of veins and rims, superimposed in relation to the other three domains. The age of the latter three domains is within the error range and is estimated to be approximately 370 Ma. This indicates that the processes of eclogite metamorphism and the formation of pegmatites occurred at approximately the same time in the studied area.

Ruminant animals naturally emit methane gas owing to anaerobic microbial fermentation in the rumen, and these gases are considered major contributors to global warming. Scientists worldwide are attempting to minimize methane emissions from ruminant animals. Some of these attempts include the manipulation of rumen microbes using antibiotics, synthetic chemicals, dietary interventions, probiotics, propionate enhancers, stimulation of acetogens, manipulation of rumination time, vaccination, and genetic selection of animals that produce low methane (CH4). The majority of synthetic additives are harmful to both beneficial rumen microbes and the host or only temporarily affect methanogenesis. Phytogenic feed additives (PFAs) have recently emerged as the best alternatives to antibiotics and synthetic chemicals because of growing public concerns regarding drug resistance and the negative impacts of antibiotics and synthetic chemicals on humans, livestock, and the environment. These additives reduce methane production and improve the volatile fatty acid profile. In this review, we provide an overview of PFA sources and how their bioactive components affect the rumen microbiome to reduce methane emissions. Additionally, we highlight the mechanisms of action of PFAs as a whole as well as some of their bioactive components.

Metabolites present in the hemolymph of honey bees play a crucial role in modulating the metamorphic process within the species. However, the precise alterations in metabolite composition, along with the associated variances and regulatory pathways implicated during the larvae-to-pupae metamorphosis of honey bees, remain incompletely elucidated. In this investigation, we gathered hemolymph samples from honey bee larvae at three distinct physiological stages-feeding, prepupal, and pupae and subjected them to metabolite analysis utilizing the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) technique. Employing principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), we identified significant differential metabolites and conducted a metabolic pathway analysis on those differentially up-regulated during the prepupal and pupae stages. Notably, metabolites up-regulated in the hemolymph of prepupal stage larvae primarily governed glucose metabolism and fat digestion and absorption, while those in pupae stage larvae were involved in regulating chitin and lipopolysaccharide precursor formation, as well as the biosynthesis of phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. These findings bear significant implications for advancing our comprehension of the metamorphic processes in honey bees.

Viral contamination in the aquaculture industry is a significant challenge that requires further research. Emerging evidence suggests that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a role in regulating various biological processes, including immunity. However, most studies have focused on model organisms, and little is known about non-coding RNAs in the immune response to viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) in rainbow trout. In this study, we investigated the listing of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in rainbow trout challenged with VHS virus. We explored their potential role in defense-like responses based on transcriptomic analysis of the virus-treated and control groups. As a result of this research, 4207 lncRNAs were identified, of which 182 lncRNAs were differentially expressed between treated and untreated samples. Among 7753 lncRNA transcripts, 1920 were novel intergenic (class code “u”), and 3748 transcripts were potentially novel isoform of lncRNAs. Gene ontology analysis revealed biological pathways associated with the stress response and immune signaling. Pairs of genes such as TP63-MSTRG.62, IL10-MSTRG.9783, IL10-MSTRG.9784, TK1-MSTRG.22826, and MSTRG.17881-GLI1 showed cis interactions, while DOCK10-MSTRG.30015, MSTRG.36357-LOC101268921, and MSTRG.34190-ENPP2 showed trans interactions. In this study, the role of lncRNAs in regulating the expression of the target genes was clearly identified. This finding is consistent with the regulatory processes of immune system responses mediated by cytokines, as well as the regulation of oxygen levels in response to viral infection. The information presented here highlights the various regulatory mechanisms of lncRNAs in the expression of immune system genes in fish treated with VHS virus.

The next-generation communication systems demand integration of sensing, communication, and power transfer (PT) capabilities, requiring high spectral efficiency, energy efficiency, and low cost, while also necessitating robustness in high-speed scenarios. Integrated sensing and communication systems (ISACS) exhibit the ability to simultaneously perform communication and sensing tasks using a single RF signal, while simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT) systems can handle simultaneous information and energy transmission, and orthogonal time frequency space (OTFS) signals are adept at handling high Doppler scenarios. Combining the advantages of these three technologies, a novel cyclic prefix (CP) OTFS based integrated simultaneous wireless sensing, communication, and power transfer system (ISWSCPTS) framework is proposed in this work. Within the ISWSCPTS, the CP-OTFS matched filter (MF) based target detection and parameters estimation (MF-TDaPE) algorithm is proposed to endow the system with sensing capabilities. To enhance the system’s sensing capability, a waveform design algorithm based on CP-OTFS ambiguity function shaping (AFS) is proposed, which is solved by iteratively method. Furthermore, to maximize the system’s sensing performance under communication and PT Quality of Service (QoS) constraints, a semidefinite relaxation (SDR) beamforming design (SDR-BD) algorithm is proposed, solved using through SDR technique. Simulation results demonstrate that the ISWSCPTS exhibits stronger parameter estimation performance in high-speed scenarios compared to orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), waveform designed by CP-OTFS AFS demonstrates superior interference resilience, and beamforming designed by SDR-BD strikes a balance in the overall performance of the ISWSCPTS.

European strategic policy directions towards a sustainable blue economy have strengthened interest in maritime investments, thus increasing sectoral competition for marine space. Emerging repercussions out of such a rising interest need to be handled by Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) as a means for: properly allocating marine space to diverse uses; managing conflicts and promoting synergies among them; and pursuing a multi-use perspective of this space. A critical stage of each MSP exercise is the exploration of land-based spatial/developmental directions and their current or potential repercussions in the marine environment in order for constraints but also perspectives in policy choices/maritime uses in the MSP context to be featured; and attainment of a successful coherence or coordination between land and marine spatial/developmental policies to be ensured, by analyzing Land-Sea-Interaction (LSI) and embedding it in the MSP. The latter is the focus of this paper aiming to illuminate critical issues emerging from land-based (terrestrial) policy frameworks for feeding MSP endeavors; and is accomplished in the Northern Aegean Sea, Greece. Towards this end, a multilevel approach is adopted, delving into diverse policy contexts at the local, regional and national/European level and aiming to attain more informed MSP decisions in the specific study region.

IBD, encompassing CD and UC, are characterized by chronic gastrointestinal inflammation due to abnormal immune responses to gut microflora. The bidirectional communication between the gut and the brain, known as the GBA, is disrupted in IBD, leading to neurobiological imbalances and affective symptoms. Systemic inflammation in IBD affects the brain's inflammatory response system, hormonal axis, and BBB integrity, influencing gut microbiota and clinical responses to probiotics. This review aims to explore the links between dysregulations in the GBA, serum biomarkers, and the development of MCI and NDDs. The objective is to identify potential correlations and propose future research directions to understand the impact of altered microbiomes and intestinal barrier functions on NDDs. Studies suggest a potential link between IBD and extraintestinal complications such as MCI and NDDs. Mechanisms include systemic inflammation, BBB dysfunction, autoimmune responses, GBA dysfunction, medication effects, and comorbidities. Serum biomarkers, including vitamin D3, C-reactive protein, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, vitamin B12, homocysteine, serum amyloid, neuron-specific enolase, neurofilament light chain, S100 proteins, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, IL-6, LP-2 associated phospholipase, prostaglandin E2, IL-1β, and TNF-α, have been investigated for their potential to predict MCI but current results are lacking clarity.

In the process of oil and gas development and production, when the flow rate in the wellbore is large, the materials underground will be eroded, causing the operation to be unable to proceed smoothly and reducing the efficiency of oil and gas production. Therefore, optimizing the anti-erosion coating under high-speed flow conditions in wellbore is a very interesting thing. It can greatly improve operational efficiency. In this paper, laser cladding was used to prepare the new coating used in the PDC drill bit. Then, the effects of tungsten carbide and multi-layer graphene on the microstructure and properties of the tungsten carbide coating were studied. The research results indicate that, for new coatings, 60% tungsten carbide and 0.3% graphene are the optimal ratios. After adding WC, the hardness has significantly improved. However, when the WC content further increases more than 30%, the increase in hardness is relatively small. In addition, when the content of graphene is more than 0.3%, the branched structure became thicker, and not only the segregation of Cr, Si and W became very obvious again, but also the segregation of Fe occurred at the Ni enrichment site. The research results contribute to improving oil and gas production and operational efficiency under high-speed fluid flow conditions in the wellbore.

Although Eulerian approaches are standard in computational acoustics, they are less effective for certain classes of problems like bubble acoustics and combustion noise. A different approach for solving acoustic problems is to compute with individual particles following particle motion. In this paper, a Lagrangian approach to model sound propagation in moving fluid is presented and implemented numerically, using three meshfree methods to solve the Lagrangian acoustic perturbation equations (LAPE) in the time domain. The LAPE split the fluid dynamic equations into a set of hydrodynamic equations for the motion of fluid particles and perturbation equations for the acoustic quantities corresponding to each fluid particle. Then, three meshfree methods, the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method, the corrective smoothed particle (CSP) method, and the generalized finite difference (GFD) method, are introduced to solve the LAPE and the linearized LAPE (LLAPE). The SPH and CSP methods are widely used meshfree methods, while the GFD method based on the Taylor series expansion can be easily extended to higher orders. Applications to modeling sound propagation in steady or unsteady fluids in motion are outlined, treating a number of different cases in one and two space dimensions. A comparison of the LAPE and the LLAPE using the three meshfree methods is also presented. The Lagrangian approach shows good agreement with exact solutions. The comparison indicates that the CSP and GFD method exhibit convergence in cases with different background flow. The GFD method is more accurate, while the CSP method can handle higher Courant numbers.

Although, promotion of urbanization culture in recent decades has made inevitable development of cities in the world, however, the development can be guided in a direction that leave, to the extent possible, minimum socioeconomic and environmental impacts. For this, it is required to first forecast auto-spreading orientation of cities and suburbs in rural areas over time and then avoid shapeless growth of cities. This paper is an attempt to develop a dynamic hybrid model based on logistic regression (LR), Markov chain (MC), and cellular automata (CA) for prediction of future urban sprawl in fast-growing cities. The model was developed using 12 widely-used urban development criteria, whose significant coefficient was determined by logistic regression, and validated by relative operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The validated model was run in Guilan, a tourist province in northern Iran with a very high rate of urban development. For this, changes in the area of urban land use were detected over the period of 1989 to 2013 and then, future sprawl of the province was forecasted by the years 2025 and 2037. The analysis results revealed that the area of urban land use was increased by more than 1.7 % from 36012.5 ha in 1989 to 59754.8 ha in 2013, and the area of Caspian Hyrcanian forestland was reduced by 31628 ha. The results also predicted an alarming increase in the rate of urban development in the province by the years 2025 and 2037, during which urban land use is predicted to develop 0.9 % and 1.38 %, respectively. The development pattern is expected to be uneven and scattered, without following any particular direction. The development will occur close to the existing or newly-formed urban basements as well as around major roads and commercial areas. This development, if not controlled, will lead to the loss of 13863 ha of Hyrcanian forests and if the trend continues, 21013 ha of Hyrcanian forests and 20208 ha of Barren/open lands are expected to be destroyed by the year 2037. In general, the proposed model is an efficient tool for the support of urban planning decisions and facilitates the process of sustainable development of cities by providing decision-makers with an overview on future development of cities where the growth rate is very fast.

Inorganic nanoparticles based on magnetite improve the mechanical, thermal, and magnetic properties of microporous cryogel polymer composites. Here we report the synthesis of microporous cryogel based on the crosslinked sodium vinyl sulfonate (Na-VS) and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid sodium salt (Na-AMPS). The magnetite nanoparticles were inserted into Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel either during its crosslinking polymerization or by in-situ technique after its crosslinking. The morphology, particle sizes, thermal stability and magnetite contents of Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel and its magnetite composites were investigated. The prepared Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel and its magnetite composites were used as adsorbents for methylene blue (MB) cationic dye using optimum conditions. The magnetite Na-VS/Na-AMPS cryogel composite prepared by in-situ technique achieved the best adsorption MB removal capacity for 7 cycles among the other adsorbents via chemical adsorption mechanism at room temperature.

Spacecraft recovery technology is crucial in the field of aerospace, in which the parachute plays a key role in slowing down the descent speed of the spacecraft and realizing a smooth landing. In order to construct a dynamically adjustable parachute deployment strategy, it is necessary to measure the parachute dynamic load accurately in real time. However, the existing sensor measurement scheme is difficult to meet the measurement requirements due to its large structure and complex wiring. In order to meet the current demand for real-time measurement of parachute cords dynamic load, a miniature measuring instrument is designed.According to the function and technical requirements of the miniature measuring instrument, the hardware modules of the acquisition system are selected and designed, and the integration debugging and performance optimization of the microcontroller module, A/D sampling module, signal acquisition circuit and power supply module are carried out. The software of the parachute cords tension acquisition system based on the miniature measuring instrument is developed. The elastomer is modeled by using SolidWorks and statically analyzed by using AnsysWorkbench finite element analysis software. Then the final structure of the elastomer and the pasting position of the strain gage are determined through the results analysis as well as experimental verification. The hardware module of the signal acquisition system for the miniature measuring instrument is then encapsulated. The force value of the miniature measuring instrument is calibrated and tested many times by using the microcomputer-controlled electronic universal testing machine. The experimental results show that the designed miniature measuring instrument has accurate data, strong stability and good real-time performance, which meets the demand for real-time accurate measurement of miniature measuring instrument, and can provide reliable data for parachute cords parameter validation and stepless unfolding design.

The state of the grinding wheel in the grinding process directly affects the surface quality of the workpiece. The monitoring of the wear state of the grinding wheel can effectively identify the wear information of the grinding wheel and timely and effectively repair the grinding wheel. In this paper, a multi-sensor fusion precision grinding wheel wear intelligent monitoring system is established for typical difficult-to-machine aerospace material titanium alloy, and a multi-eigenvalue fusion algorithm based on improved support vector machine (SVM) is proposed. The extracted sound emission signal wavelet packet decomposition coefficient mean square value, force signal grinding force ratio, and vibration signal effective value are used as the input of the improved support vector machine, and the identification strategy is adjusted by the entropy weight evaluation method. The results show that the monitoring system established in this paper can effectively identify the wear state of the grinding wheel, and the monitoring accuracy can reach more than 92%.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) systems rely on semantic symmetry similarity measuring between two sentences. To address the challenges of insufficient training data and limited domain-specific understanding in low-resource FAQs, this paper proposes a general framework, PDAMF-FAQ, to solve these issues. Firstly, we propose a paraphrasing-based data augmentation model that integrates syntactic information and edit vectors. Using a rule-based approach, it retrieves template sentences from a corpus and masks relevant words with special characters. Edit vectors between the original and paraphrase sentences are added to a pre-trained model's encoding layer to enhance the model's ability to learn the differences between the original and reference paraphrase sentences. Additionally, this paper presents a mixed-feature semantic matching model based on SimBERT. The model extracts keyword features from the text, replacing these keywords with special characters to construct intent features. These intent features, along with the user question and keyword features, are then concatenated to form the model's input. Experiments were conducted respectively on the paraphrasing-based data augmentation model, mixed-feature semantic matching model and their comprehensive application in a low-resource domain-specific FAQ. The experimental results show that the proposed framework effectively improve the performance of domain-specific FAQ system.

Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL) affects 1-2% of women, and its triggering factors are unclear. Several studies have shown the vaginal, endometrial, and gut microbiota may play a role in RPL. A decrease in the quantity of Lactobacillus crispatus in local microbiota has been associated with an increase in local (vaginal and endometrial) inflammatory response and immune cell activation that leads to pregnancy loss. The inflammatory response may be triggered by gram-negative bacteria, lipopolysaccharides (LPS), viral infections, mycosis, or atypia (tumor growth). Bacterial structures and metabolites produced by microbiota could be involved in immune cell modulation and may be responsible for immune cell activation and molecular mimicry. Gut microbiota metabolic products may increase the amount of circulating pro-inflammatory lymphocytes, which, in turn, will migrate into vaginal or endometrial tissues. Local proinflammatory Th1 and Th17 subpopulations along with a decrease in Treg and tolerogenic NK cells are accountable for the increase in pregnancy loss. Local microbiota may modulate the local inflammatory response increasing pregnancy success. Analyzing local and gut microbiota may be necessary to characterize some RPL patients. Although oral supplementation of probiotics has not been shown to modify vaginal or endometrial microbiota, the metabolites produced by it may benefit patients. Lactobacillus crispatus transplantation into the vagina may enhance the required immune tolerogenic response to achieve a normal pregnancy. The effect of hormone stimulation and progesterone to maintain early pregnancy on microbiota has not been adequately studied, and more research is needed in this area. Well-designed clinical trials are needed to ascertain the benefit of microbiota modulation in RPL.

The intestinal microbiota, comprised of bacteria, archaea, and phages, inhabits the gastrointestinal tract of the organism. Male reproductive sterility is currently a prominent topic in medical research. Increasing research suggests that gut microbiota dysbiosis can result in various reproductive health problems. This article specifically investigates the impact of gut microbiota dysbiosis on male reproductive infertility development. Gut microbiota imbalances can disrupt the immune system and immune cell metabolism, affecting testicular growth and sperm production. This dysfunction can compromise the levels of hormones produced and secreted by the endocrine glands, affecting male reproductive health. Furthermore, imbalance of the gut microbiota can disrupt the gut-brain-reproductive axis, resulting in male reproductive infertility. This article will explore how the imbalance of the gut microbiota impacts male reproductive infertility through immune regulation, endocrine regulation, and interactions of the gut-brain-reproductive axis, concluding with recommendations for prevention and treatment.

Quantitative determination of the critical size of inclined coal pillar in old goaf water affected area is of great significance for water damage prevention and safe mining. The critical size of inclined waterproof coal pillar is derived by using theoretical analysis, numerical calculation and field engineering practice for the stability of the waterproof coal pillar in old goaf water affected area of 1303 working face of Dananhu I mine in Xinjiang region. Firstly, a force model of inclined waterproof coal pillar was established to reveal the law that the critical size of the coal pillar increases with the increase of coal seam inclination under the action of asymmetric load. Then, numerical simulation was applied to reveal the dynamic evolution process of plastic deformation-destabilization-destruction of section coal pillar under the influence of mining and single-side water pressure, and the critical size of waterproof coal pillar in study area was determined to be 19.09m. Finally, measures such as pumping and pressure relief and slurry reinforcement were adopted to reduce the deformation rate of the roadway on side of waterproof coal pillar, which ensured the stability of the coal pillar and roadway and the safe recovery of the working face.

Tack is one of the most important factors affecting the operability of prepregs, but it is still very difficult to obtain the change of prepreg tack with time at different temperatures. In this paper, a newly designed T-peel device is used to test the tack decay rate of prepregs at different temperatures. The obtained decay rate deviates less than 8.9% from the manufacturer's data. The maximum deviation of the ratio of tack decay speeds calculated by the Arrhenius equation from the experiments is not higher than -9.7%. It is proved that the present method can obtain the decay rate of tack of prepregs at different temperatures. This method is also applicable to the other two types of prepregs. The article proposes the handling life unit, an operational life measurement unit for prepregs, and establishes that the relationship between tack and remaining shelf life reduces prepreg management costs.

This study investigates the impact of specimen size on the mechanical properties of wood, specifically focusing on compression strength, elastic modulus, and Poisson's ratio. Compression tests were conducted using three different specimen sizes (20mm×20mm×30mm, 40mm×40mm×60mm, 60mm×90mm×90mm) in the longitudinal, radial, and tangential directions. Mechanical parameters, failure mechanisms, load-displacement curves, and stress-strain relationships were systematically analyzed for each size. The study also evaluated the influence of specimen size on the accuracy of finite element numerical simulations by utilizing the obtained mechanical parameters. The results reveal a significant correlation between compressive strength and specimen size, indicating a decrease in compressive strength with increasing specimen size. Conversely, elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio exhibit less sensitivity to variations in specimen size. Notably, parameters derived from small-sized specimens (20mm×20mm×30mm) exhibited substantial errors, while those obtained from medium-sized (40mm×40mm×60mm) and large-sized specimens (60mm×90mm×90mm) demonstrated greater reliability, providing precise results in finite element numerical simulations.

The AREB/ABF (ABA response element binding) proteins in plants are vital for plant stress responses, but the understanding of AREB/ABFs in orchid species, an important traditional medicinal and ornamental plants, is limited. Here, twelve AREB/ABF genes were identified within three orchids’ complete genome and classified into three groups (groups I, II, and III) via a phylogenetic analysis, which was further supported by the analysis of their conserved motifs and gene structures. The cis-elements analysis showed that hormone response elements followed by light and stress responses were widely rich in AREB/ABFs. A prediction analysis of orchid ABRE/ABF-mediated regulatory network was further constructed through cis-regulatory elements (CREs) analysis of their promoter regions and revealed that several transcriptional factor (TF) gene family were abundant as the potential regulators for orchid AREB/ABFs. Expression profile analysis based on public transcriptomic data showed that most AREB/ABF genes have distinct tissue-specific expression patterns in orchid plants. Additionally, DcaABI5 as the homolog of ABA INSENSITIVE 5 (ABI5) from Arabidopsis was selected for further analysis. The results showed that Arabidopsis transgenic overexpressing DcaABI5 could rescue the ABA insensitive phenotype in the mutant abi5. Collectively, these findings will provide valuable information on AREB/ABF genes in orchids.

Background: Removable prostheses have seen a fundamental change recently because of advances in polymer materials, allowing improved durability and performance. Despite these advancements, notable differences still occur amongst various polymer materials and processing technologies, requiring a thorough grasp of their mechanical, physical, and therapeutic implications. Methods: Fours different processing techniques, all utilizing Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) as the main material, were used to construct complete dentures. The specimens underwent a mechanical test. Results: All the specimens broke under the influence of a certain force, rather than yielding through flow, as is characteristic for plastic materials. For each specimen, the maximum force (N) was recorded (figure 4), as well as the breaking energy, Conclusions: The best results were obtained in the case of the thermoplastic injection system and, surprisingly and contrary to those in the specialized literature, the worst results were recorded in the case of 3D printed samples.

To date, the percentage composition of the lung microbiome in bronchopulmonary cancer has not been summarized. Existing studies on identifying the lung microbiome in bronchopulmonary cancer through 16S rRNA sequencing have shown variable results regarding the abundance of bacterial taxa. Objectives: To identify the predominant bacteria in the lung microbiome of bronchopulmonary cancer from samples collected through bronchoalveolar lavage and to assess their potential role in the diagnosis of bronchopulmonary cancers. Data Sources: A systematic review of English articles using MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science. Search terms included lung microbiome, lung cancer, bronchoalveolar lavage. Study Selection: Randomized clinical trials that investigated the lung microbiome in bronchopulmonary cancer with samples collected via bronchoalveolar lavage. Data Extraction: Independent extraction of articles using predefined data fields, including study quality indicators. Data Synthesis: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria, focusing on those that utilized a percentage expression of the microbiome at the phylum or genus level. There was noted heterogeneity between studies, both in terms of phylum and genus, with a relatively constant percentage of the Firmicutes phylum and the genera Streptococcus and Veillonella being mentioned. Significant differences were also observed regarding the inclusion criteria for study participants, the method of sample collection, and data processing. Conclusions: To date, there is no consistent percentage pattern at the phylum or genus level in bronchopulmonary cancer, with the predominance of a phylum or genus varying across different patient cohorts, resulting in non-overlapping outcomes.

The abstract should be a total of about 250 words and structured to contain the following headings: Background/Objectives, Methods, Results, Conclusions. Background/Objectives: Place the question addressed in a broad context and highlight the purpose of the study; Methods: Describe briefly the main methods or treatments applied. Include any relevant preregistration numbers, and species and strains of any animals used; Results: Summarize the article’s main findings; Conclusions: Indicate the main conclusions or interpretations. The abstract should be an objective representation of the article: it must not contain results which are not presented and substantiated in the main text and should not exaggerate the main conclusions. Clinical trial abstracts should include items that the CONSORT group has identified as essential.

The Doppler band compensated by the keystone transform (KT) is limited. Therefore, it needs to be used in conjunction with the Doppler ambiguity compensation function to correct the range migration (RM) caused by maneuvering targets with Doppler ambiguity. However, the KT implemented by sinc interpolation suffers from significant performance loss at boundaries of compensation Doppler bands. Additionally, in a multi-target scenario, KT implementation methods occupy high complexity when the Doppler range of targets spans over two compensation Doppler bands. To address aforementioned issues, this study presents a variable Doppler starting point keystone transform (VDSPKT) method, where a new form of ambiguity compensation function is constructed, turning the Doppler starting point of the compensation band in KT variable. Firstly, the position of the compensation Doppler band is changed from fixed to adjustable as needed, enhancing the flexibility of KT. Crucially, the connection points of the compensation Doppler bands in sinc interpolation are reset, avoiding the performance loss at their boundaries. Also, the compensation band is adjusted to cover the narrow Doppler frequency range caused by targets, significantly improving the computational efficiency. Finally, the simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach effectively addresses the performance degradation and high computational complexity of KT in the aforementioned scenarios, resulting in a computational load reduced by approximately 50% compared to traditional methods.

Tumid Lupus Erythematosus has been the subject of heated debate as to its correct nosographic classification. In particular, its definition has changed over time, depending on the different studies performed. In this review we address the initial definition of TLE, the changes that have taken place in the understanding and placement within the classification of Lupus Erythematosus (LE), and focus on clinical, histopathological, immunophenotypical and differential diagnosis aspects.

Background: Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) believe that diet is a key factor in the pathogenesis of their disease and in worsening their symptoms; they often follow restrictive diets that can lead to malnutrition, anxiety, and stress. Recent studies have found an association between eating disorders and IBD, particularly anorexia nervosa and ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). None of these studies report the association with orthorexia nervosa, that is the obsession with healthy and natural foods. Aim: to assess the risk of orthorexia nervosa in patients with IBD. Methods: 158 consecutive subjects were recruited, including 113 patients diagnosed with IBD and 45 controls. The Donini standardized questionnaire ORTO-15 was administered to assess the risk of orthorexia; clinical and demographic data were also collected. Results: patients with IBD have a prevalence of orthorexia of 77%, significantly higher than the 47% observed in the control group. In patients with IBD, the risk of orthorexia is associated with lower BMI and history of previous surgery. Conclusion: Many patients with IBD develop orthorexia nervosa that impacts the patient's psychological and social sphere, exposes them to a high risk of nutritional deficiencies, and affects quality of life. Further high quality studies are warranted to evaluate the clinical impact of orthorexia and its correlation with clinical features and frank eating disorders.

Spermatogenesis is critical for insect reproduction and is regulated by many different genes. In this study, we found that Forkhead transcription factor Fd59a functions as a key factor in spermatogenesis of Drosophila melanogaster. Fd59a contains a conversed Forkhead domain, and it is clustered to the FoxD subfamily with other FoxD members from some insect and vertebrate species. Mutation in Fd59a caused swelling in the apical region of the testis. More importantly, only a few mature sperm were present in the seminal vesicle of Fd59a mutant flies compared to the control flies, and the fertility of Fd59a2/2 mutant males was significantly lower than that of the control flies. Immunofluorescence staining showed that the homeostasis of testis stem cell niche in Fd59a2/2 mutant and Fd59a RNAi flies was disrupted, and apoptosis of sperm bundles was increased. Furthermore, results from RNA-sequencing and qRT-PCR suggest that Fd59a can regulate expression of genes related to reproductive process and cell death. Taken together, our results indicated that Fd59a plays a key role in the spermatogenesis of Drosophila.

In Cameroon, Aedes mosquitoes transmit various arboviruses, posing significant health risks. We aimed to characterize the Aedes virome in southwestern Cameroon and identify potential core viruses which might be associated with vector competence. A total of 398 Aedes mosquitoes were collected from four locations (Bafoussam, Buea, Edea and Yaounde). Aedes albopictus dominated all sites except for Bafoussam where Aedes africanus prevailed. Metagenomic analyses of mosquitoes grouped per species into 54 pools revealed notable differences in eukaryotic viromes between Ae. africanus and Ae. albopictus, with the former exhibiting greater richness and diversity. Thirty-seven eukaryotic virus species from 16 families were identified, including six novel viruses with near complete genome sequences. Seven viruses were further quantified in individual mosquitoes via qRT-PCR. Although none of them could be identified as core viruses, Guangzhou sobemo-like virus and Bafoussam mosquito solemovirus virus were highly prevalent regionally in Ae. albopictus and Ae. africanus, respectively. This study highlights the diverse eukaryotic virome of Aedes species in southwestern Cameroon. Despite their shared Genus, Aedes species exhibit limited viral sharing, with varying viral abundance and prevalence across locations. Ae. africanus, an understudied vector, harbors a rich and diverse virome, suggesting potential implications for arbovirus vector competence.

Predators are dependent on the capture of prey to meet their energetic and nutritive requirements, imposing a regime of predation risk. Consequently, prey experience both consumptive and non-consumptive effects. Non-consumptive effects may manifest through altered growth and ontogenetic trajectories of prey species, a dynamic modulated by olfactory or other sensory cues from predators. Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel represents a great invasive threat to global horticulture. While earlier research has primarily centered on the consumptive interactions between B. dorsalis and its natural enemies, the potential consequences of non-consumptive interactions on the development of B. dorsalis have been overlooked. In this study, we investigated the impact of predation risk effects, induced by both visual exposure to the predatory mantis Hierodula patellifera Serville and its associated odor, on the life history traits of B. dorsalis. Female B. dorsalis demonstrated reduced development time in the presence of isolated H. patellifera or H. patellifera odor, yet evidenced significantly increased fecundity. Conversely, males displayed no significant change in development time. Additionally, neither female nor male body weight at death was significantly influenced by predation risk from isolated predators or predator odor. These results indicated adaptive developmental strategies of B. dorsalis when faced with risks from predators and highlight the important role of predator odor, which has the potential to lay the groundwork for improving biological control efforts and innovative approaches within pest control.

Water footprint has been widely used to illustrate the consumption of water in many situations; for instance, in products, processes or regions of interest. In this work, we analyzed – using a sensitivity analysis approach – the effect of some variables in the calculation of the water footprint in the viticulture in Brazilian Serra Gaúcha (the major producing region of Brazilian Wine).The classical Penman-Monteith model for evapotransporation was considered, with uncertainties in some parameters (dead mulch covering fraction in the vineyard, maximum temperatures for some months, altitudes and latitudes of the site). The sensitivity analysis was conducted using the SAFE toolbox under Octave framework. The results indicated that the the portion of the water footprint corresponding to the evapotranspiration is more sensitive to the values of mulch covering fraction and the altitude of the site in comparison with the latitude and the maximum temperatures.

This study extends the CGAN-based MODIS cloud vertical-profile (64×64-scene, about 70km width×15km height) retrieval technique developed by Leinonen et al. (2019) [1] to construct seamless 3D cloud fields for the MODIS granules [2]. Firstly, the accuracy and spatial continuity of the Leinonen et al. [1] retrievals are statistically evaluated. Then, according to the characteristics of the retrieval error, a spatially overlapping-scene ensemble generation method and a bi-directional Ensemble Binning Probability Fusion (CGAN-BEBPF) technique are developed, which improves the CGAN retrieval accuracy and support to construct seamless 3D clouds. The CGAN-BEBPF technique involves three steps: cloud masking, intensity scaling, and optimal value selection. It ensures adequate coverage of the low reflectivity areas while preserving the high reflectivity cloud cores. The technique is applied to retrieve the 3D cloud fields of Typhoon Chaba and a multi-cell convective system. The cloud structures of the CGAN-BEBPF results are highly consistent with the ground-based radar observations. It can retrieve weak clouds at the top levels of convective storms and hurricanes that were missed by ground-based radars and fill the gaps of the ground-based radar lower-level PPI scan. Overall, CGAN-BEBPF can be automated to retrieve the rich informative 3D structures of typhoons and severe convective systems over the oceans along the MODIS swath, which certainly presents great value for improving maritime and near-shore typhoons and convection prediction and other cloud-sensitive applications.

The utilization of natural waxes to form oleogels has emerged as a new and efficient technique for structuring liquid edible oil into solid-like structures for diverse food applications. The objective of this study was to investigate the interaction between sunflower wax (SW) and monoglycerides (MGs) in olive oil oleogels and to assess their physical characteristics and storage stability. To achieve this, pure SW and a combination of SW with MGs in a 1:1 ratio were examined within a total concentration range of 6-12% w/w. The formed oleogels were characterized based on their microstructure, melting and crystallization properties, textural characteristics, and oxidative stability during storage. All the oleogels were shelf-stable, and as the concentration increased, the hardness of the oleogels also increased. The crystals of SW oleogels were long needle-like, while the combination of SW and MGs led to the formation of crystal aggregates and rosette-like crystals. The differential scanning calorimetry and FTIR showed that the addition of MGs led to different crystal structures. The oxidation results revealed that oleogels had low peroxide and TBARS values throughout the 28-day storage. These results provide useful insights about the utilization of SW and MGs oleogels for potential applications in the food industry.

In this paper, we first discuss the research status and application progress of the finite element method and the smoothed particle method. By analyzing the advantages of the smoothed particle method and the finite element method, a new coupling algorithm, namely FEM-SPH algorithm, is proposed. By the method of comparison, it shows that finite element method and SPH method in the simulation of large deformation problems each have advantages and disadvantages, the finite element method smoothed particle coupling algorithm is effective to achieve the performance of high computational efficiency and can naturally simulate large deformation problems across. In the process of calculation, the large deformation unit can be freely into an algorithm to facilitate the calculation accuracy and efficiency of three methods of numerical simulation. Through the study found, FEM-SPH algorithm not only overcome the defect of smooth particle tensile instability, but also overcomes the problem of low efficiency of finite element computation. To further test the FEM-SPH algorithm has advantages in the practical engineering, we have carried out the actual test to the example of the super high speed collision, concluded that, since the target of most of the computational domain is always finite element, smoothed particle focused only in contact with the projectile and target of local area, particle number is not much, the whole calculation process just ten minutes, computational efficiency has been greatly improved, at the same time in the simulation of large deformation, the advantage is very obvious .This provides a criterion for the actual project, depending on the specific material deformation mode and choose a more appropriate conversion algorithm.