The study aimed to identify football players at high risk (HR) for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury via a four-test battery and assess possible factors affecting classification. Ninety-one professional and semi-professional athletes participated in a field-based preseason screening. Aknowledged inter-limb asymmetry limits for quadriceps and hamstrings isometric strength, and Single Leg Triple Hop for distance, in addition to the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS) comprised the test-battery. Additional assessment of hip adductors and core stability completed the global functional profile of the players. Sixty-one players were identified as HR and 30 as low-risk (LR) for ACL injury. Test-battery classified adequately 78,0% of them (Chi-square= 27,485 p=,000), identifying only 4 misclassified cases in the LR group, this low number being important for avoiding improper treatment of injury-prone athletes. All partcipants were considered healthy, and history of a previously rehabilitated injury did not interfere with the results. LESS seems to be the optimal criterion for classification and also the best predictor of both the initial grouping and the secondary one with the wrong vs correct classification cases. The proposed test-battery provides a promising option for field-based preseason ACL-risk assessment of football players and needs to be studied prospectively.

The purpose of the research was to examine and assess the relation between the pilot’s concentration and reaction time with specific brain activity during short-haul flights. In order to obtain this task, participants took part in 1-hour long flight sessions performed on FNPT II class flight simulator. During the flight auto–pilot was activated and subjects were instructed to give response to unexpected events that were occurring during the flight. Brainwaves of each participant were recorded with Emotiv EPOC+ Scientific Contextual EEG device. Statistical analyses of the results were presented in the article.

Globally 703 000 people commit suicide (4th leading cause of mortality among 15-29 year-olds, 1.4% of all deaths globally) every year, which have a negative effect on families, colleagues, and societies. India accounts for 36.6 percent of global suicide in women and 24.3 percent among men, while having only 17.8 percent of the global population, also remarkable fact is that the suicide ratio for female is 14.7 per 100,000 compared to 21.2 per 100,000 of male which is 2.1 times the global average in female, while 1.4 times higher for men. COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) pandemic has certainly affected the physical, mental, economical and social well being of global population directly or indirectly in different ways. Deteriorating physical, mental, economical and social health of an individual could increase the suicidal tendency, leading to accidents and suicide. This study tried to find out the COVID-19 pandemic situation impact on accidental death as well as suicide rates in India. The study period is from 1st January 1967 to 31st December 2021, to assess the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic situation on suicide and accidental death rates. This study revealed that the suicide deaths percentage among males increased significantly in comparison to females in COVID-19 era and actual count and incidence also increased. This study revealed that the mean accidental death and suicide both increased during COVID period of study as compared to pre-pandemic whole period from 1967 by 25.47 % and 30.61% respectively. Alternatively we can say that the accidental death and suicides increased significantly in India, which is largely preventable.

Ludwigia octovalvis (Jacq.) P.H. Raven is widely used in traditional medicine for different illnesses included diabetes and hypertension. However, its impact on lipotoxicity and metabolic syndrome in vivo has not been addressed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of this plant on the metabolic syndrome parameters in a C57BL6J mouse hypercaloric diet model. L. octovalvis hydroalcoholic extract and its ethyl acetate fraction (25 mg/kg/day) were used for sub-chronic assessment (10 weeks). Also four subfractions (25 mg/kg) were evaluated in the postprandial triglyceridemia test in healthy C57BL6J mice. The hydroalcoholic extract and ethyl acetate fraction significantly decreased body weight gain (-6.9 g and -1.5 g), fasting glycemia (-46.1 and -31.2 mg/dL), systolic (-26.0 and -22.5mmHg) and diastolic (-8.1 and 16.2 mmHg) blood pressure, free fatty acid concentration (-13.8 and -8.0 μg/mL) and insulin-resistance (measured by TyG index, -0.207 and -0.18) compared to the negative control. Postprandial triglyceridemia test showed that the effects in the sub-chronic model are due, at least in part, to improvement in this parameter. L. octovalvis treatments, particularly the hydroalcoholic extract, improve MS alterations and decrease free fatty acid concentration. These effects are possibly due to high contents of corilagin and ellagic acid.

We present a crack-free optically active SiO2 glass-composite material containing YAG:Ce synthesized by a modified sol-gel technique. A glass-composite material consisting of yttrium aluminum garnet doped with Ce3+ (YAG:Ce) entrapped into a SiO2 xerogel. This composite material has been prepared by sol–gel technique with modified gelation and drying process to obtain crack-free optically active SiO2 glass. The concentration of the YAG:Ce was from 0.5 to 2.0 wt%. All synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) techniques. The luminescence properties of the obtained materials were studied.

Background: Public engagement is needed to make sure urban forestry management efforts align with the values of the public being served. Noting this, we determined current and desired urban forest access of Florida (United States) residents using the criteria from the 3-30-300 rule (i.e., 3 trees visible from home, 30% canopy in neighborhood, and a green space within 300 meters of home). Methods: A survey of 1,716 Florida residents was conducted to assess canopy coverage and green space access. Respondents were then asked if this level of urban forest access was sufficient for their needs. We also asked their perceptions of the benefits and drawbacks of urban trees and whether they had any negative interactions with trees in the past. Results: We found that 37.3% of Florida residents met all three criteria of the 3-30-300 rule. Despite this, half the respondents would prefer more trees in their neighborhoods. When asked to name the top benefits provided by trees, the most common responses were shade, beauty, and attracting wildlife. The most common drawbacks to urban trees included risk to property, leaves/debris, and fears regarding storms and hurricanes. Conclusions: Florida residents largely value their urban forest and would like to see it maintained or enhanced. Improving access to greenspaces for recreation is the most pressing concern for urban forest managers in Florida looking to meet the requirements of the 3-30-300 rule. Results from this study can inform and test urban forest management at national and global scales.

This study investigated the effects of three oil production methods on the physicochemical properties of dietary fiber from rice bran flour, and the hypolipidemic effects of the dietary fibers were investigated in vitro and in vivo. The particle size results showed that the organic solvent-impregnated rice bran meal dietary fiber (N-RBDF) had the smallest average particle size and the aqueous enzymatic rice bran meal dietary fiber (E-RBDF) had the narrowest particle size distribution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results demonstrated that all three kinds of rice bran meal dietary fibers (RBDF) were irregularly flaky. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) results revealed that the three RBDFs had similar reactive groups, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that all three RBDFs were cellulose type I crystals. The results of thermogravimetric analysis showed that the lignin content of N-RBDF was significantly lower than that of the other two. Among the three kinds of RBDFs, E-RBDF had higher water retention capacity, swelling capacity, oil holding capacity, and adsorption capacity for cholesterol and sodium bile salts. The results of experimental studies in hyperlipidemic rats showed that all three kinds of RBDFs significantly reduced triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and elevated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in serum of hyperlipidemic rats; they also significantly lowered malondialdehyde (MDA) and elevated total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities in liver of rats. In addition, all three kinds of RBDFs decreased aminotransferase (ALT) and aminotransferase (AST) activity in serum and also improved liver steatosis and reduced atherosclerosis index (AI) in rats with hyperlipidemia. Our study provides a reference for the development and utilization of rice bran meal and the application of rice bran meal dietary fiber in food processing.

This study aims to report the clinical signs, therapy, necropsy, and histopathological findings of the first case of airsacculitis caused by enterobacteria and eggs of the superfamily Diplotriaenoidea in M. choliba in the Amazon Biome. The bird was admitted without clinical signs, had been hospitalized for observation for five months, and had started the rehabilitation process for release 37 days before it started to show signs of weakness, lack of appetite, cachexia, dyspnea, ruffled feathers, vomiting, and dry feces. Therapy with oxytetracycline (48 mg/kg), sulfamethoxazole (48 mg/kg), mebendazole (25 mg/kg), potenay (0.5 ml/kg), sodium chloride 0.9% (50 ml /kg) and mercepton (5ml/kg), however, after five days of starting the treatment, the bird died. At necropsy, prominence of the keel, pieces of food in the oral cavity and proventriculus, thickened air sacs, intestine with firm stools, and the presence of gas, hepatomegaly, and splenomegaly were observed. The parasitological examination showed eggs of the Diplotriaenoidea superfamily. The microbiological analysis identified Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Enterobacter aerogenes. Histopathological examination showed heterophilic bacterial airsacculitis. The diagnosis was confirmed through clinical signs, necropsy findings, and parasitological, microbiological, and histopathological examination results.

The deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems in decentralized environments is on the rise, yet representation of shared conceptualization in such scenarios remains a challenging issue. The absence of a shared understanding can lead to suboptimal performance of AI systems and hinders the ability to comprehend the knowledge and beliefs of agents in the domain. This paper proposes a formal model for modeling conceptualization in AI systems that integrates ontology, epistemology, and epistemic logic. The model aims to address the gap in representing shared conceptualization in decentralized environments and enhance the performance of AI systems operating in such environments. The proposed model is a hybrid structure that blends extensional and intensional structures and leverages logic-based languages for modeling purposes. A case study in the healthcare sector is presented to illustrate the application of the proposed model. The study contributes to the existing literature by providing a formal model for representing shared conceptualization in decentralized environments, which can be utilized to optimize the performance of AI systems in these environments.

The ever deepening population aging has brought opportunities and challenges to the continued expansion of tourism consumption in China. In this article, the impact of population aging on household tourism consumption was studied from both theoretical and empirical aspects. First, the micro mechanisms of the impact of population aging on household tourism consumption were analyzed, which include economic condition mechanism, intergenerational care mechanism, health status mechanism and Internet use mechanism. Subsequently, the impact of population aging on household tourism consumption and its impact mechanisms were tested, and the heterogeneity analysis was conducted, by using the data of China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) from 2014, 2016 and 2018. The main conclusions of the article are as follows: (1) Population aging has a significant negative impact on household tourism consumption, and a series of robustness test results such as endogenous treatment support this finding. (2) The results of the impact mechanism test show that population aging has a negative mediating effect on household tourism consumption by reducing household economic conditions. The moderating effect of intergenerational care on the effect of population aging on household tourism consumption is insignificant. Health status of the elderly and Internet use have a significant positive moderating effect on the impact of population aging on household tourism consumption. (3) The results of the heterogeneity analysis show that the negative impact of population aging on household tourism consumption in urban areas is greater than that in rural areas, and the negative impact of population aging on household tourism consumption of families with the old-old elderly is greater than that of falimies with the young-old elderly. The conclusions of this article provide important references for activating tourism consumption in China in the context of population aging.

In the present study the effects of Origanum onites L. extract and essential oil of O. onites L. on the antioxidant status of the liver and brain of mice were investigated. Due to certain disadvantages of essential oils, such as poor solubility, high volatility, sensitivity to UV light and heat, formulation of liposomes with Oregano essentials (OE) was optimized and used in this study. The results demonstrated that the best composition of the lipid carriers and Oregano essentials were conducted in terms of the PDI, mean particle size and EE. The LE4 formulation contained Lipoid S100 of 45 mg, Lipoid S75 of 45 mg and 90 mg of EO. The administration of O. onites L. extract to mice for 21 days significantly decreased glutathione (GSH) level in the liver and brain of mouse as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in the liver. In the brain of mice MDA level significantly increased after this extract consumption. Whereas liposomes with OE significantly decreased GSH concentration in mouse brain and MDA concentration in mouse liver but increased (p>0.05) GSH level in liver and MDA concentration in brain of mice compared with the control group. It was investigated that both, O. onites L. extract as well as liposomes with OE of this plant material make changes in the antioxidant status in the liver and brain of mice.

The aim of the current study was to develop and evaluate the therapeutic potential of apocynin (APO) loaded pH-sensitive nanoparticles (NPs) based transdermal hydrogel for management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Slightly modified nanoprecipitation technique was used for preparation of polymeric nanoparticles. Optimization was done through design expert software. Optimized APO-NPs were loaded into carbopol-934 based hydrogel as final dosage form and further studied for physicochemical properties. Optimized APO-NPs formulation had a minimum particle size 63.44 nm, polydisperibility index 0.161, and zeta potential -15mV with a maximum encapsulation efficiency of 89%. In-vitro and ex-vivo studies of APO-NPs based hydrogel was performed at pH 5.5 (pH of normal skin) and 6.8 (pH of inflammed joint) showed a pH-responsive sustained drug release and increased penetration in comparison to free APO based hydrogel. The stability studies of APO-NPs based hydrogel were done to strengthen the potential use of the prepared formulation through transdermal route. Assessment and therapeutic efficacy of the prepared pH-sensitive nanocarriers system was evaluated in chronic inflammatory RA mice model. Parameters associated with chronic inflammation were investigated including behavioral changes and histopathological, and radiological x-rays images of joints of mice paws. In-vivo study depicts improvement in behavioral parameter, decline in synovial hyperplasia and bone structure restoration. In conclusion, APO loaded pH-sensitive NPs based transdermal is a promising carrier system that can effectively manage RA.

Accurately predicting the power of solar power generation can greatly reduce the impact of the randomness and volatility of power generation on the stability of the power grid system, which is beneficial for the balanced operation and optimized dispatch of the power grid system, and reduces operating costs. Solar PV power generation depends on weather conditions, which are prone to large fluctuations under different weather conditions. Its power generation is characterized by randomness, volatility and intermittency. Recently, the demand for further investigation and effective use on the uncertainty of short-term solar PV power generation prediction has been getting increasing attention in many application of renewable energy sources. In order to improve the predictive accuracy of output power of solar PV power generation and develop a precise predictive model, the authors worked predictive algorithms for the output power of a solar PV power generation system. Moreover, since short-term solar PV power forecasting is one of the important aspects for optimizing the operation and control of renewable energy systems and electricity markets, this review focuses on the predictive models of solar PV power generation, which can be verified in the daily planning and operation of a smart grid system. In addition, the predictive methods in the reviewed literature are classified according to the input data source used for accurate predictive models, and the case studies and examples proposed are analyzed in detail. The contributions, advantages and disadvantages of the predictive probabilistic methods are compared. Finally, the future studies of short-term solar PV power forecasting is proposed.

The COVID-19 pandemic has invited us to envision education anew, embracing a new era of instructional practices and learning environments. This study explores language teachers' and students' experiences in the post-pandemic landscape, providing valuable insights into the challenges, adaptations, and opportunities. Grounded in socio-cultural perspectives and educational theories, such as Vygotsky's socio-cultural theory and Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory, the study employs Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to comprehensively analyze secondary data sources. Findings reveal the significant role of social interaction and cultural context in language learning, amid reduced face-to-face contact and increased reliance on technology. The study uncovers the intricate interplay between individual, interpersonal, and environmental factors, shedding light on educators' and learners' challenges. Autonomy, competence, and relatedness emerge as crucial for intrinsic motivation and optimal learning outcomes. While acknowledging limitations related to secondary data sources, the study offers a comprehensive overview of the literature, informing language education practices in the post-pandemic era. It contributes to understanding the complex dynamics and interactions within language education and calls for future research using primary data collection methods to explore experiences and perspectives further. By understanding post-pandemic experiences, this study aims to shape education policies, practices, and pedagogical approaches, supporting effective language learning and the well-being of educators and learners in this transformed educational context.

The kinetic energy transfer between the atmosphere and oceans, called wind work, affects ocean dynamics including near-inertial oscillations and internal gravity waves, mesoscale eddies, and large-scale zonal jets. For the most part, recent numerical estimates of global wind work amplitude are almost 5 times larger than those reported 10 years ago. This large increase is explained by the impact of the broad range of spatial and temporal scales covered by winds and currents, the smallest of which have only recently been uncovered by increasingly high resolution modeling efforts. However, existing satellite observations do not fully sample this broad range of scales. The present study assesses the capabilities of ODYSEA, a conceptual satellite mission to estimate the amplitude of wind work in the global ocean. To this end, we use an ODYSEA measurement simulator fed by the outputs of a km-scale coupled ocean-atmosphere model to estimate wind work globally. Results indicate that compared with numerical truth estimates, the ODYSEA instrument performs well globally, except for latitudes north of 40∘N during summer due to unresolved storm evolution. This performance is explained by the wide-swath properties of ODYSEA (a 1,700 km wide swath with 5 km posting for winds and surface currents), its twice-a-day (daily) coverage at mid-latitudes (low latitudes), and the insensitivity of the wind work to uncorrelated errors in estimated wind and current.

Globally, over 1.4 billion adult people remain unbanked. This worrisome phenomenon was exacerbated by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which further created a new dimension of inequality in accessing financial services. Digital financial inclusion promises to be an effective tool for addressing this socioeconomic ill and propelling economic development. Given the limited studies on the subject in the context of the developing economies, it is imperative to understand the existing policies, practices, and barriers to digital financial inclusion in the developing economies so as to provide cutting-edge interventions for redress. It is against this background that this study seeks to address the following research questions: (1) What is the state of digital financial inclusion in the developing economy? (2) What are the policies and practices regarding digital financial inclusion in the developing economy? (3) What are the barriers to digital financial inclusion and innovative interventions for redress? Findings reveal that about 44% of the adult population in developing countries does not have access to financial services, with only a few countries that have made significant progress and gains through policy and practice such as mobile financial services, mobile money interoperability, native connectivity, human capital development, and digitalization of public services for digital financial inclusion. The findings also identify challenges and implications with recommendations, which are discussed in detail in the paper.

: Cnidium officinale Makino, a perennial crop in the Umbeliperae family, is harvested in the summer for medicinal purposes. The average temperature in Korea has recently increased, and consequently, the area used to cultivate C. officinale has been reduced, and plant disease and soil sickness have increased. In this study, rhizosphere bacteria were isolated from C. officinale, and their antagonistic activity evaluated against Fusarium solani, which is a major issue during repeated cultivation. Twenty-eight strains were isolated from the root and rhizosphere soil, of which seven showed antagonistic activity against F. solani and were further investigated. An in planta test found that the dead rate of shoots was significantly lower in the group inoculated with PT1 isolated from the root tissue and that the fresh and dry weights were also higher, when compared with the other groups. PT1 was thus considered to have antagonistic activity against F. solani. The 16S rRNA analysis identified the PT1 as Leclercia adecarboxylata, and downstream studies confirmed the production of enzymes related to antagonism, such as siderophore and N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase. The phosphorous solubilizing ability and secretion of related enzymes were also confirmed. The results indicate that PT1 could be utilized as a PGPR to help control fusarium wilt.

The heritage of ancient buildings is an important part of the world's history and culture, which has an extremely rich historical-cultural value and artistic research value. Beijing has a large number of palace ancient buildings, and because of the age of their construction, many of them have problems of varying degrees of peeling and mold on the inner surfaces of the envelope. To solve the problems of the damp and moldy interior of palace buildings, a mathematical model of indoor heat and moisture transfer was established based on a wooden palace ancient building in Beijing. Through the indoor mold distribution validation model, the effects of outdoor humidity, soil moisture, wall humidity, and other factors on the indoor heat and moisture transfer of ancient buildings were simulated and analyzed by using the control variables method. The results showed that the molds were distributed at the indoor corners and floors, and the simulation of indoor humidity match the measured humidity. Thus, the simulation results were consistent with the actual situation. The variable trend of the relative humidity of the indoor environment with the outdoor humidity is inconsistent from plane to plane, i.e. it increases or remains constant with the increase of the outdoor humidity. The indoor ambient relative humidity increased with increasing the wall humidity. And the indoor average temperature is 23.3 ℃ and indoor relative humidity ranged between 90.9 % to 92.44 %. Soil moisture and wall humidity were the main factors affecting the indoor environmental relative humidity.

In this work, we developed a highly sensitive multiplexed immunosensor for direct simultaneous detection of both N-terminal Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP) and Cortisol in human artificial saliva (AS). The developed biosensor platform based on silicon nitride was composed from four gold working microelectrodes (WEs) and an integrated counter and reference electrode. Gold WEs were biofunctionalized through carboxyl diazonium (4-APA) to immobilize both anti- NT-proBNP and anti-Cortisol antibodies for simultaneous detection. The electroaddressing of the 4-APA onto the gold WE surfaces was realized by cyclic voltammetry (CV), while the interaction between antibodies and antigens in PBS was monitored by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The antigen detection in human AS was realized by EIS combined with the standard addition method. The immunesensor was highly sensitive and selective toward the corresponding biomarkers in both PBS and artificial human saliva as well as in the presence of other potential interfering biomarkers such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-10 (IL-10). The limit of detection (LOD) was at 0.2pg/mL for NT-proBNP within the range 0.03 to 0.9pg/mL, while the LOD for Cortisol was 0.06 ng/mL within the range 0.02 to 0.6 ng/mL for Cortisol in artificial saliva. The developed immunosensor is very promising for significant detection time reducing as it allows the simultaneous detection of various biomarkers.

The owners of forests with water protection functions in Bulgaria do not receive compensation for their limited right to use wood and non-wood forest products from the forest areas they own. At the same time, the contribution derived from forests with water protection functions is received by water users and water consumers, whereas the costs of managing the forests are borne by their owners. The problem thus defined is not a forestry one, but an economic one, and the purpose of this paper ensues therefrom, namely to propose and test a methodology for valuating the produc-tion function of forest areas with water protection function in Bulgaria, allowing a fair distribu-tion of income between the forest owner and the user of forest ecosystem services. The methodol-ogy is based on the form of forest management and the analytical expression of the economic rela-tionship between a forest owner and a user of forest ecosystem services, constructed using Schen-rock’s formula. It has been tested with actual data on forest areas with water protection functions falling within the administrative and territorial scope of Velingrad municipality and based on the obtained results proposals have been made for the distribution of the contributions generated by forest ecosystems between the forest owner and the user of the forest ecosystem services.

In pursuit of carbon neutrality, the demand for metals that are necessary for the development of clean energy technologies is rapidly increasing. Metallurgical waste, such as slag, presents a promising secondary source of these key metals. This research aims to develop an eco-friendly hydrometallurgical process to recover Cu, Ni, and Co from discarded copper/nickel slag. The high-pressure acid leaching (HPAL) was used to selectively leach Ni, Cu, and Co from the fayalite slag, yielding high leaching efficiencies of 99.9%, 89.4%, and 99.9%, respectively, with low Fe and Si tenors to the pregnant leach solution (PLS). The solvent extraction (SX) technique utilizing LIX 984N was used to selectively extract and enrich copper from the dilute PLS to about 23 g/L Cu with a very low Fe concentration of 0.05 g/L. Potassium amyl xanthate (PAX) solution was used to form Ni and Co xanthate complexes from the raffinate solution. Nickel was selectively recovered using ammonia solution, while cobalt xanthate complex was thermally decomposed and recovered as cobalt oxide solids of about 25 wt.% Co. A comprehensive process flowsheet is presented, furthermore, to realize the real application of the developed slag cleaning process, a preliminary economic evaluation was performed.

The frequency of selected polymorphisms, one in each gene coding for proteins with antioxidative properties (CAT, SOD2, GPX1, NQO1) was compared between patients suffering from pain-related temporomandibular disorders (TMDp;n=85) and control subjects (CTR;n=85). According to the Oral Behaviours Checklist score participants were divided into high-frequency parafunction (HFP;n=98) and low-frequency parafunction (LFP;n=72) groups. In addition, we have investigated the association of selected polymorphisms with participants' psychological (anxiety, depression) and psychosomatic (hypervigilance, somatosensory amplification) characteristics. Polymorphisms rs1001179, rs4880, rs1050450, rs689452 were genotyped using the genomic DNA extracted from buccal mucosa swabs and real-time TaqMan genotyping assays. No differences in genotype distribution between TMDp patients and control subjects were found. Still, TMDp patients who were homozygous for minor allele A, related to the GPX1 polymorphism rs1050450 reported significantly more waking-state oral behaviours compared to GA+GG genotype carriers (score: 30 vs. 23, p=0.019). Frequency of genotype AA for rs1050450 polymorphism was higher in HFP compared to LFP participants (14.3% vs. 4.2%, p =0.030). Most important predictors of waking-state oral behaviours were depression, anxiety, AA genotype (rs1050450) and female sex. Explored genetic factors were not found to be significant risk factors for either TMDp or sleep-related oral behaviours. The association of waking-state oral behaviours with selected gene polymorphisms additionally supports previous assumptions that the daytime bruxism is more closely linked to various stress manifestations, which might also be reflected through the variability related to cellular antioxidative activity.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a widely studied subject due to its increasing prevalence and links to diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity. It has severe complications, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and portal hypertension that can lead to liver transplantation in some cases. To better prevent and treat this pathology, it is important to understand its underlying physiology. Here, we identify three main factors that play a crucial role in the physiopathology of NAFLD: oxidative stress, insulin resistance, and the key role of carcinoembryonic antigen related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1). We discuss the pathophysiology linking these factors to NAFLD pathophysiology.

For centuries, Foeniculi fructus (F. fructus) has been used as a traditional herbal medicine in China and Europe and is widely used as a natural therapy for digestive disorders, including indigestion, flatulence, and bloating. The mechanism by which F. fructus alleviates functional dyspepsia was analyzed through network pharmacology, and its therapeutic effect on an animal model of functional dyspepsia was investigated. The compounds, targets, and related diseases of F. fructus were studied utilizing the traditional Chinese medicine systems pharmacology (TCMSP) database. Information on the target genes was classified using the UniProt database. A network was built using Cytoscape 3.9.1, and functional dyspepsia-related genes were checked using the Cytoscape string application. The efficacy of F. fructus on functional dyspepsia, including gastroparesis and gastrointestinal motility, was confirmed by treatment with its extract in a mouse model of loperamide-induced functional dyspepsia. Seven compounds targeted twelve functional dyspepsia-associated genes. In a functional dyspepsia mouse model, F. fructus significantly suppressed the symptoms when compared to that in the control group. Our animal studies showed that the mechanism of action of F. fructus is closely related to gastrointestinal motility. Based on animal experimental results, the results showed that F. fructus provides a potential means to treat functional dyspepsia, suggesting that its medical mechanism for functional dyspepsia can be described by the relationship between seven key compounds of F. fructus, including oleic acid and β-sitosterol, and 12 functional dyspepsia-related genes.

There is little doubt that final victories over pandemics, such as COVID-19, are attributed to herd immunity, either through post-disease convalescence or active immunization of a high percentage of the world's population with vaccines, demonstrating protection from infection and transmission, being available in large quantities and at reasonable prices. However, it is assumable that humans with immune defects or immune suppression, e.g., as a consequence of allograft transplantation, cannot be immunized actively nor produce sufficient immune responses to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infections. These subjects desperately need other strategies, such as sophisticated protection measures and active immunization. Hypertonic salt solutions attack vulnerable core areas of viruses, i.e., salt denatures surface proteins and thus prohibits virus penetration of somatic cells. It has to be ensured that somatic proteins are not affected by denaturation regarding this unspecific virus protection. Impregnating filtering facepieces with hypertonic salt solutions is a straightforward way to inactivate viruses and other potential pathogens. As a result of the contact of salt crystals on the filtering facepiece, these pathogens become denatured and inactivated almost quantitatively. Such a strategy could be easily applied to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and other ones that may occur in the future. Another possible tool to fight the COVID-19 pandemic is passive immunization with antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, preferably from human origin. Such antibodies can be harvested from patients´ human sera, which have successfully survived their SARS-CoV-2 infection. The disadvantage of a rapid decrease of the immunoglobulin titer after infection ends can be overcome by immortalizing antibody-producing B-cells via fusion with, e.g., mouse myeloma cells. The resulting monoclonal antibodies are then of human origin and available in, at least theoretically, unlimited amounts. Finally, dry blood spots are a valuable tool for surveilling the population´s immunity.

The multivariate Gaussian random fields with matrix-based scaling laws are widely used for inference in statistics and many applied areas. In such contexts interests are often in symmetry and in the rates of change of spatial surfaces in any given direction. This article analyzes the almost sure sample function behavior for operator fractional Brownian motion, including multivariate fractional Brownian motion. We obtain the estimations of small ball probability and the strongly locally nondeterministic for operator fractional Brownian motion in any given direction. Applying these estimates we obtain Chung's laws of the iterated logarithm for spatial surfaces of operator fractional Brownian motion. Our results show that the precise rates of change of spatial surfaces are completely determined by the self-similarity exponent.

Background: Children with anorectal malformation (ARM) require long-term follow-up, especially for fecal continence and main predictors of longer-term success are the type of ARM, associated anomalies and sacral integrity. Three-Dimensional High Resolution Anorectal Manometry (3D-HRAM) provides an image of the pressure profile of anal sphincter complex. Aim of study was to evaluate the anal sphincter function in ARM patients with 3D HRAM correlating this analysis to clinical outcome and to associated malformations. Methods: Forty ARM patients, were submitted to 3D HRAM: manometric, anatomical and clinical score were correlated to response to bowel management (BM). Results: A positive correlation between all scores and type of ARM was found: in high ARM and in patients with spinal anomalies (regardless to ARM type) lower scores were reported and even after BM they do not achieve good continence. Conclusions: 3D-HRAM provides information on the functional anatomy of the sphincter complex. Our study shows good correlation between the manometric results and clinical outcome, confirming spinal malformations and ARM type as most important prognostic risk factors for poor outcome. Specific sphincteric defects can be explored with manometry, allowing for tailored bowel management strategies.

Emotional instability and stress are main disturbances that condition the learning process, affecting both teachers and students. The main objective of this review is to analyze the influence of stress and emotions (as part of stress) on the learning process. The quality and intensity of emotions will not depend exclusively on a particular situation, but also on the subjective evaluation that the person makes of the situation in terms of a set of assessment dimensions. Emotions lead to sentimental, cognitive, behavioral and physiological changes, which will have a strong influence on intellectual performance. Stress is a physiological mechanism that the organism develops to adapt and survive in external and internal environments. Although it seems that it is a general pattern of response to emotions, it could be assumed that each emotion seems to have its own pattern of physiological reaction. In conclusion, extreme stress situations can generate anxiety and frustration in students. The activation of coping strategies constitutes a key mechanism for dealing positively with problems and challenges, generating positive emotions essential for the self-regulation of learning.

The influence of pH, temperature, biopolymer ratio, total concentration, and ionic concentration on the interaction between egg white protein (EWP) and chitosan (CS) was investigated through turbidity, zeta potential, and state diagram in our research. In addition, phase behavior was observed under various conditions. The turbidity of EWP remained low (turbidity<0.03) and basically unchanged at a wide range of pH (4.0-8.0), while the turbidity of CS was slightly higher (turbidity<0.2) after pH 7.0 than before. Moreover, under the same conditions, a sharply rising peak pattern was observed for the complex between EWP and CS. The maximum turbidity value was observed at 55°C, and the temperature had a mild effect on turbidity. The optimum EWP to CS ratio was found to be 12:1 based on the experiment of the turbidity curves and state diagrams influenced by different biopolymer mixing ratios. With the enhanced concentrations of total biopolymer, the maximum turbidity rose insignificantly above 0.1%.

Modern computational biology makes widespread use of mathematical models of biological systems, in particular systems of ordinary differential equations, as well as models of dynamic systems described in other formalisms, such as agent-based models. Parameters are numerical values of quantities reflecting certain properties of a modeled system and affecting model solu-tions. At the same time, depending on parameter values, different dynamic regimes - stationary, oscillatory, established as a result of transient modes of various types - can be implemented in the system. Predicting changes in the solution dynamics type depending on changes of model parameters is an important scientific task. Nevertheless, this problem does not have an analytical solution for all formalisms in a general case. The routinely used method of performing a series of computa-tional experiments, i.e. solving a series of direct problems with various sets of parameters fol-lowed by expert analysis of solution plots is labor-intensive with a large number of parameters and a decreasing step of the parametric grid. In this regard, the development of methods allow-ing to obtain and analyze information on a set of computational experiments in an aggregate form is relevant. This work is devoted to developing a method for visualization and classification of various dy-namic regimes of a model using a composition of the dynamic time warping (DTW-algorithm) and principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) methods. This method allows to obtain a qualitative visualisation of the results of the set of solutions of a mathematical model and to carry out the correspondence between the values of the model parameters and the type of dynamic regimes of its solutions. This method has been tested on the Lotka-Volterra model and artificial sets of var-ious dynamics

In 2021, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and global food insecurity, the Nigerian poultry sector was yet exposed to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus and its economic challenges. Between 2021 and 2022, HPAI caused 467 outbreaks reported in 31 of the 37 administrative regions in Nigeria. In this study, we characterized the genome of 97 influenza A viruses of the subtypes H5N1, H5N2 and H5N8 identified in different agro-ecological zones and farms during the 2021-2022 epidemic. The phylogenetic analysis of the HA genes showed widespread distribution of the H5Nx clade 2.3.4.4b and similarity with the HPAI H5Nx viruses detected in Europe since late 2020. Topology of the phylogenetic trees indicates the occurrence of several independent introductions of the virus into the country followed by a regional evolution of the virus most probably linked to its persistent circulation in West African territories. An additional evidence of the evolutionary potential of HPAI viruses circulating in this region is the identification in this study of a putative H5N1/H9N2 reassortant virus in a mixed-species commercial poultry farm. Our data confirm Nigeria as a crucial hotspot for HPAI virus introduction from the Eurasian territories and reveal a dynamic pattern of avian influenza virus evolution within the Nigerian poultry population.

Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection, with septic cardiomyopathy being a common and severe complication. Despite its significant clinical impact, the molecular mechanisms underlying sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy (SICM) remain incompletely understood. In this study, we performed a comparative analysis of whole transcriptome profiles in two widely used mouse models of septic cardiomyopathy, the cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) model and the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) model. Our aim was to identify key genes and pathways involved in the development of septic cardiomyopathy and to evaluate the similarities and differences between the two models. Our findings suggested that 1) both methods can induce septic heart dysfunction within 24 hours; 2) distinct whole transcriptome expression profiles are revealed; 3) potentially different pathways are involved in causing heart failure in sepsis. The comprehensive comparison provides valuable insights into the molecular basis of septic cardiomyopathy and contributes to the ongoing search for effective treatment strategies, triggered by different factors for SICM.

Demyelinating diseases alter myelin or the coating surrounding most nerve fibers in the central and peripheral nervous systems. The grouping of human central nervous system demyelinating disorders today includes Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorders (NMOSD) as distinct disease categories. Each disease is caused by a complex combination of genetic and environmental variables, many involving an autoimmune response. Even though these conditions are fundamentally similar, research into genetic factors, their unique clinical manifestations, and lesion pathology has helped with differential diagnosis and disease pathogenesis knowledge. This review aims to synthesize the genetic approaches that explain the differential susceptibility between these diseases, explore the overlapping clinical features, and pathological findings, discuss existing and emerging hypotheses on the etiology of demyelination, and assess recent pathogenicity studies and their implications for human demyelination. This review presents critical information from previous studies on the disease, which asks several questions to understand the gaps in research in this field.

In this study the formation of thin-film barrier coatings based on a highly-conducting Bi1.60Er0.4O3 (EDB) solid electrolyte on supporting Ce0.8Sm0.2O1.9 (SDC) electrolyte substrates is implemented for the first time using electrophoretic deposition (EPD). Electrokinetic properties of EDB-based suspensions in a non-aqueous dispersion medium of isopropanol modified with small additions of polyethyleneimine (PEI, 0.26 g/L) and acetylacetone (0.15 g/L), as well as in a mixed isopropanol/acetylacetone (70/30 vol.%) medium are studied. The dependences of the thickness of EDB coatings on voltage and deposition time are obtained using deposition on a model Ni-foil electrode. Preliminary synthesis of a conductive polypyrrole (PPy) polymer film is used to create surface conductivity of non-conductive SDC substrates. The efficiency of using a modified dispersion medium based on isopropanol to obtain a continuous EDB coating 12 μm thick, sintered at a temperature of 850 °C for 5 h, is shown. The microstructure and morphology of the surface of the EDB coating are studied. Pt/SDC/EDB/Pt cell is used to characterize the coating conductivity. The EPD method is shown to be promising for the formation of barrier coatings based on doped bismuth oxide. The developed method can be used for creating cathode barrier layers in SOFC technology.

Insulator defect detection is of great significance to compromise the stability of the power transmission line. The state-of-the-art network of object detection, YOLOv5, has been widely used on insulator and defect detection. However, YOLOv5 network has some limitations like poor detection rate and high computational loads in detecting small insulator defects. To solve these problems, we proposed a light-weight network for insulator and defect detection. In this network, we introduced Ghost module into YOLOv5 backbone and neck to reduce the parameters and model size to enhance the performance in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Besides, we added small object detection anchors and layers for small defect detection. In addition, we optimized the backbone of YOLOv5 by applying convolutional block attention module (CBAM) to focus on critical information for insulator and defect detection and suppress uncritical information. The experiment result shows the mean average precision (mAP) 0.5 and the mAP0.5:0.95 of our model can reach 99.4% and 91.7%, the parameters and model weight are reduced to 3807372 and 8.79M, which can easily deploy to embedded devices like UAVs. And the speed of detection can reach 10.9ms/image, which can meet the real-time detection requirement.

Our understanding of the diversity of life on our planet and the possibility of finding or sustaining life elsewhere in the universe plays a central role in supporting human space settling and exploration. Astrobiology and its outcomes require a multidisciplinary and comprehensive approach, in which the microbial, geological, chemical, astronomical, and physical domains of research are interlinked. An example of the applications of astrobiology and space microbiology is the use of extremophiles for in-situ resource utilization through biomining and bioleaching. To better understand the multidisciplinary research landscape in this area, we have quantitatively reviewed the global scientific literature on astrobiology with a focus on biomining and bioleaching through bibliometric network analysis, investigating patterns and trends in its development over time. The network analysis of the keywords co-occurrence highlights different connecting and overlapping clusters, illustrating the multidisciplinary character of astrobiology. Temporal analyses show a recent focus on topics related to microbiology and geomicrobiology, emphasizing the role that these fields will play in future astrobiology research. In conclusion, astrobiology, biomining, and bioleaching research are timely responding to the identification of these techniques as tools for biotechnological applications, expected to play a crucial role in long-term human space exploration.

The work reports a facile synthesis of high thermally-stable nanocrystalline anatase TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) doped with different atomic concentrations (0.5, 1.0, 3.0, and 6.0%) of Gd3+ and Nd3+ ions by a template-free and one-step solvothermal process, using titanium(IV) butoxide as titanium precursor and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as solvent. The structure and morphology of the Gd3+, Nd3+, and 0.5%Gd3+-0.5%Nd3+/doped TiO2 NPs have been characterized by using various analytical techniques. The Gd3+/ and Nd3+/TiO2 molar ratios were found to have a pronounced impact on the crystalline structure, size, and morphology of TiO2 NPs. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies revealed the proper substitution of Ti4+ by Gd3+ and Nd3+ ions in the TiO2 host lattice. The as-prepared Gdx/TiO2, Ndx/TiO2, and Gd1.0/Ndx/TiO2 bimetallic NPs, x = 0.5, 1.0, 3.0, and 6%, have been investigated as electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 1.0 M KOH solution using a variety of electrochemical techniques. At any doping percentage, the Gd1.0/Ndx/TiO2 bimetallic NPs showed higher HER catalytic performance than their corresponding counterparts i.e. Gdx/TiO2 and Ndx/TiO2. Upon increasing the Nd content from 0.5 to 6.0%, the HER catalytic performance of the Gd1.0/Ndx/TiO2 bimetallic NPs was generally enhanced. Among the studied materials, the bimetallic Gd1.0/Nd6.0/TiO2 NPs emerged as the most promising catalyst with an onset potential of -22 mV vs. RHE, a Tafel slope of 109 mV dec-1, and an exchange current density of 0.72 mA cm-2. Such HER electrochemical kinetic parameters are close to those recorded by the commercial Pt/C (onset potential: -15 mV, Tafel slope: 106 mV dec-1, and exchange current density: 0.80 mA cm-2), and also comparable with those measured by the most active electrocatalysts reported in the literature. The synergistic interaction of Gd and Nd is thought to be the major cause of the bimetallic catalyst's activity.

Under the increasingly severe global heat threat, continuous high temperature has far-reaching effects on plant growth and development and become a major constraint to crop production. The development of heat-resistant varieties has become research hotspot in many fields, and it is also necessary to establish effective identification methods. In this study, twenty Brassica rapa varieties were selected to to investigate the physiological and biochemical characteristics under heat stress, explore the relationship between physiological response and the heat resistance mechanism, select some typical heat-resistant and heat-sensitive varieties. The effects of photosynthetic electron transfer and antioxidant pathway on heat resistance of Brassica rapa were identified. These findings will providing an important reference for the physiological regulation and identification method of high-temperature stress in plants.

Increasing green total factor productivity is the key to achieving green development in agriculture. This study measured the green total factor productivity of Jiangxi’s agriculture, and its regional and temporal evolution characteristics were examined. The fixed-effects model was then used to investigate the model’s fundamental components empirically. The study’s findings reveal the following: During the period under review, technical change was the primary element driving the rise in the green total factor productivity of agriculture. A rising “U”-shaped trend with notable regional variances characterizes the spatial and temporal evolution. The primary factors that affect changes in green total factor productivity in agriculture include the ease of transportation, the per capita disposable income of rural residents, the level of agricultural mechanization, the degree of urbanization, the level of financial support for agriculture, and the percentage of workers in secondary industries. As a result, it is suggested that, in order to substantially increase agricultural green total factor productivity, agricultural green technological support should be strengthened, more fully developed, and promoted in a multi-pronged approach.

A deterministic compartment model for the transmission dynamics of onchocerciasis with nonlinear incidence functions in two interacting populations is studied. The model is quantitatively analyzed to investigate it's local asymptotic behavior with respect to disease-free and endemic equilibria. It is shown, using Routh-Hurwitz criteria, that the disease-free equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable when the basic reproduction number is less than the unity. When the reproduction number is greater than the unity, we prove the existence of a locally asymptotically stable endemic equilibrium. Furthermore, bifurcation analysis was done by investigating the possibility of the co-existence of the equilibria of the model at R0<0 but near R0=0 by Center Manifold Theory.

In this paper we propose a simple procedure to obtain multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) decorated with TiO₂-Ag nanoparticles (MWCNT-TiO₂-Ag). MWCNT were decorated with TiO2-Ag via combined functionalisation with -OH and –COOH groups and polymer wrapping technique using poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH). TiO₂ modified Ag nanoparticles were synthesized through Pechini method using mixture of acetylacetonate-modified titanium (IV) isopropoxide with silver nitrate (the Ag+/Ti4+ atomic ratio, is 0.5, 1,0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 %, respectively) and the L(+)-ascorbic acid, as reducing agents. XRD analysis revealed the formation of nanocomposite containing CNT, TiO₂ (anatase and rutile) and Ag. By SEM was evidenced the presence of the nanoparticles on MWCNT surface. The increases of the ratio between Ag⁺ and Ti⁴⁺ decrease the band gap energy of the samples. In Raman spectra the characteristic vibration of the TiO₂, Ag and C atoms of graphite are identified. The photocatalytic activity of the MWCNT-TiO₂-Ag nanocomposite was assessed by examining the degradation of Allura red (E129) aqueous solution under UV irradiation. The dye photodegradation process follows a pseudo – first – order kinetic with respect to the Langmuir – Hinshelwood reaction mechanism.

: Given that cancer is a disease that is rampant in the world and especially in Africa where the population has enormous difficulty in treating it, plants are a safer and less expensive alterna-tive. Cassava is one of the plant species valued in Benin because of its numerous medicinal and nutritional virtues. This study evaluated the biological activities of amygdalin from the organs of three cassava varieties most produced in Benin (BEN, RB, and MJ). HPLC analysis was used to quantify amygdalin in cassava organs and derivatives. Phytochemical screening was performed to determine secondary metabolite groups. DPPH and FRAP methods were used to assess anti-oxidant activity. Cytotoxicity of the extracts was tested on Artemia salina larvae. The an-ti-inflammatory activity was evaluated in vivo on albino mouse paw edema model induced by 5% formalin. The anticancer activity was evaluated in vivo on Wistar rats rendered cancerous by 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH) using 5-fluorouracil as reference molecule. The results showed that the organs of all three-cassava varieties contained glycosides, flavonoids, saponosides, ster-oids, tannins, coumarins, and cyanogenic derivatives. Young stems and fresh leaves of cassava had the highest amygdalin concentration with 11142.99 µg 10 g-1 and 9251.14 µg 10 g-1 respec-tively. The Agbeli derivative was more concentrated in amygdalin with a content of 401.56 µg 10 g-1 than the others derivatives. The antioxidant activity results showed that the amygdalin ex-tracts were found to be DPPH radical scavengers with IC50 values ranging from 0.18 mg mL-1 to 2.35 mg mL-1. The cytotoxicity test showed no toxicity of the extracts toward shrimp larvae. Ad-ministration of amygdalin extracts from the leaves of BEN and MJ varieties prevents inflamma-tory edema. The percentages of edema inhibition varied between 21.77% and 27.89%. These val-ues are similar (p> 0.05) to that of acetylsalicylic acid (25.20%). Amygdalin extract of BEN variety significantly (p<0.0001) reduces edema. Cancer induction with DMH was inhibited by both BEN extract. In both preventive and curative treatments, rats fed with amygdalin extracts showed low anti-cancer activity under the effect of DMH and the significant difference in biochemical results. Thus, the organs of all three cassava varieties studied have secondary metabolites and good an-tioxydant activity. The leaves contain high levels of amygdalin and can be used as an-ti-inflammatory and anticancer agents.

An essential metric for determining the efficacy of tuberculosis (TB) control programs is the evaluation of TB treatment outcomes. Assessing treatment outcomes is fundamental to facilitating the End TB Strategy set target. Clinic records from 457 patients with DR-TB were examined for data collection while 101 patients were followed up prospectively. Data were analyzed using Stata version 17.0. The odds ratio and 95% confidence interval were calculated to check the association between variables. P ≤ 0.05 was con-sidered statistically significant. Of the 427 participants, 65.8% had successful treatment whilst 34.2% had unsuccessful TB treatment. A total of 61.2% and 39% of the HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants had a successful TB treatment whilst 66% and 34% of both HIV-negative and positive participants had unsuccessful TB treatment. From 101 patients that were followed up, smokers had longer treatment outcomes compared to non-smokers. In the study with HIV/TB co-infection, men predominated. HIV and tuberculosis co-infection made therapy difficult with unfavorable effects on TB management. The treatment success rate (65.8%) is lower than the WHO threshold standard with a high proportion of patients lost to follow-up. The co-infection of tuberculosis and HIV resulted in undesirable treatment outcomes. Strengthening TB surveillance and control is recommended.

The objective of this study was to compare the pathogens and susceptibilities of the current automated rule-based technology (RBT) antibiogram with one manually collected through chart review with additional rules applied. This study was a 2-year, retrospective cohort study and included all bacterial cultures within the first 30 days from patients admitted to a single Burn Center. The current RBT antibiogram served as the control and new antibiogram versions were created using additional rules and compared to the control. Six-hundred fifty-seven patients were admitted (61% excluded for lack of cultures). Fifty-nine percent had at least one hospital acquired risk factor with over one-third having recent illicit drug use and one-third having a recent hospitalization. Of the 410 cultures included, 57% were Gram-negative and half were from wound infections. Sensitivities were significantly different when comparing manual and the RBT version after including factors, such as days since admission, presence of hospital acquired risk factors, or previous antibiotic courses. Recommended empiric Gram-negative antibiotics changed from double coverage to a single β-lactam with > 90% susceptibility. The susceptibilities between first and subsequent courses were dramatically different. Before developing an antibiogram or interpreting the output, it is important to consider which automated criteria are utilized, especially for units with extended lengths of stay.

Data-driven models based on artificial intelligence are efficiently used to solve complex problems. The quality of groundwater is of utmost importance, as it directly impacts human health and the environment. In major parts of the world groundwater is the main source of drinking water, it is essential to periodically monitor water quality. Conventional water quality monitoring techniques involve periodical collection of water samples and analysis in the laboratory. This process is expensive, time consuming and involves lot of manual labor. The aim of our study is to build an ant colony optimized neural network for predicting groundwater quality parameters. We have proposed artificial neural network comprising of six hidden layers. The approach was validated using our groundwater quality dataset of a hard rock region in the northern part of Karnataka, India. Groundwater samples were collected by us periodically from March 2014 to October 2020 from 50 wells in this region. These samples where analysed for measuring the pH, Electrical Conductivity, Na+, Ca+, Na+, K+, Mg2+, F-, Cl- and U+. The temporal dataset was split for training, testing and validation of our model. Metrics such as R2 (Coefficient of Determination), RMSE (Root Mean Squared Error), NSE (Nash–Sutcliffe efficiencies) and MAE (Mean Absolute Error) were used to evaluate the prediction error and model performance. These performance evaluation metrics indicated the efficiency of our model in predicting the temporal variation in groundwater quality parameters. The method proposed by us can be used for prediction and the temporal frequency of sample collection can be reduced to save time and cost. The results also confirm that the combination of artificial neural network with ACO is a promising tool to optimize weights while training the network, and hence will help in reasonable prediction of groundwater quality parameters.

‘Arrayana’ mandarin fruits have a short postharvest life and are sensitive to chilling injury (CI) during cold storage. Brassinosteroids (BR) have been used as a sustainable technology to alleviate CI in fruits and improve postharvest quality. This study evaluated the effect of applying the 24-epibrasinolide analogue (EBR), at doses of 5 mg L-1; DI-31 analogue, at 5 and 10 mg L-1; and control, on the main physical and biochemical characteristics of 'Arrayana' mandarin stored at 4°C for 40 days and, subsequently, 7 days at room temperature (shelf life). The application of EBR and DI-31 analogues reduced the appearance of CI in the exocarp of 'Arrayana' mandarin fruits by reducing electrolyte leakage, maintaining membrane integrity, and increasing antioxidant activity and phenol content at the end of cold storage and shelf life. This was especially pronounced with 5 mg L-1 of EBR. Similarly, the BR maintained the postharvest quality of mandarins by reducing weight loss, respiratory intensity and chlorophyll degradation; increasing β-carotene; and maintaining titratable acidity, and soluble solids. Our research reports for the first time CI tolerance in Arrayana mandarin using natural (EBR) and spirostanic (DI-31), analogues and illustrates the tolerance functionality of the DI-31 analog on CI in fruit postharvest.

There is a need for a modified Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) to estimate physical activity levels more accurately in populations. We aimed to develop a modified GPAQ and examine its construct validity among adults in Kerala state, India. We incorporated locality-specific, metabolic equivalent task (MET)-based activities into the original GPAQ and administered this modified GPAQ among randomly selected 451 individuals (age ≥20 years) residing in the Trivandrum district of Kerala. Construct validity was assessed using Generalized Linear Models by examining the association of total moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) MET-minutes per week estimated by the modified GPAQ with clinical measures. The mean age of participants was 45.4 (SD: 14.1) years and 52.6% were female. Increasing total MVPA MET-minutes per week was associated with decreasing weight (β=-0.011 kg, 95% CI: -0.020, -0.002), waist circumference (β=-0.013 cm, 95% CI: -0.023, -0.004), and systolic blood pressure (β=-0.009 mmHg, 95% CI: -0.015, -0.002), independent of age, sex, education, occupation, current smoking, current alcohol use, and fruit and vegetable intake. The validity coefficients and associations between total MVPA MET-minutes per week and theoretical constructs of physical activity were in agreement with those predicted, providing evidence of construct validity for the modified GPAQ.

Phytochemicals are gaining popularity due to their antioxidant effects and potential protection against inflammation, cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer. The retention of these phytochemicals during extraction must be maximized. This research focused on extracting bioactive compounds from Psidium guajava Linn leaves using solvent extraction (SE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) with distilled water (DW) or 60% (v/v) ethanol/water (ET). Phytochemical screening demonstrated that all of the screening showed positive results in all extraction methods, except glycoside. There were no significant (p&gt;0.05) differences in total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid content (TFC) during MAE, SE, and UAE in case of ET. However, SE shows better (p&lt;0.05) extraction of TPC and TFC than UAE and MAE in case of DW. ET shows better (p&lt;0.05) extraction of TPC and TFC than DW. Antioxidant analysis shows the same trend though both DPPH and FRAP values were higher in MAE and SE for ET and DW, respectively. MAE/ET showed the highest inhibitory activity and dose-dependent response using SW480 cell via MTT assay. HPLC and TLC analysis reveal the fingerprint of morin, might function as an anticancer agent. In conclusion, MAE/ET is the most efficient among the extraction techniques in terms of anticancer activity.

Cause-Related Marketing (CRM) has emerged as a new concept that links CSR activities to marketing, enabling corporations to pursue both building company-consumer partnership and gaining sustainable mutual benefits that are elicited from the partnership. Among various cause-related marketing activities, on-line cause-related advertising is the most commonly used one. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of on-line cause-related advertising and moderating role of ethical consumption propensity. In particular, this study intends to contribute to successful development of on-line cause-related advertising strategy by focusing on the relationship between the four factors: customers' perception of on-line cause-related advertising, brand-consumer relationship, brand attachment and loyalty. The results of this study are as follows: First, customers' perception of on-line cause-related advertising was related positively to consumer-brand- relationship. Second, brand-consumer relationship was related positively to brand attachment and customer loyalty. Third, brand attachment was related positively to customer loyalty. Furthermore, from the consumer’s psychological viewpoint, ethical consumption propensity had a significant moderating effect to between customers' perception of cause-related advertising and brand-consumer relationship as well as brand attachment. The results of this study may contribute to the existing literature as an new empirical attempt to examine the effect of the on-line cause-related advertising.

1) Background: This study focused on the validity of audible replies to voice queries in gyneco-logic oncology by Siri, Alexa, Google, and Cortana virtual assistants (VAs).; (2) Methods: 21 evaluators analyzed VA audible answers to voice queries related to gynecologic oncology. A 3-tier template was utilized for each voice query: “X?” (A), “What is X?” (B), and “Define X?” (C) in a 24-question panel, allowing questions to be posed in different formats to assess the VAs at a greater depth. Responses were scored using a rubric designed to assess the validity and quality of each answer; (3) Results: For general queries, Google provided the most correct audible replies (ncorrect = 20; 83.3% correct), followed by Alexa (ncorrect = 16; 66.7% correct), Siri (ncorrect = 11; 45.8% correct), and Cortana (ncorrect = 5; 20.8% correct.; For Gynecologic Oncology related queries, Google also provided the most correct audible replies (ncorrect=222; 18.14%), followed by Alexa (ncorrect=75; 6.51%), Siri (ncorrect=55; 5.46%), and Cortana (ncorrect=23; 2.28%). (4) Conclusions: The audible replies to oral queries on gynecologic oncology topics varied between Siri, Alexa, Google, and Cortana. Google’s audible reply accuracy was superior to audible replies by Siri, Alexa, and Cortana. Since there is room for considerable improvement in VA performance, the authors advise caution when using VAs for medical queries in gynecologic oncology.

This study, based on the AISAS model, explores the impact of the interaction effect between visual and auditory signals on consumer purchase behavior. Using experimental methods, 120 participants were randomly assigned to four different visual and auditory signal combinations, and their purchase intentions and actual purchase behavior were measured. The results show that the interaction effect between visual and auditory signals has a significant impact on both purchase intentions and actual purchase behavior, and there is a significant positive relationship. Specifically, when visual and auditory signals are mutually consistent, consumers have the highest purchase intentions and actual purchase behavior; when both visual and auditory signals are absent, consumers have the lowest purchase intentions and actual purchase behavior; when either the visual or auditory signal is missing, consumers' purchase intentions and actual purchase behavior are in between the two extremes. This study provides a new perspective for understanding consumers' decision-making processes in multi-sensory environments and offers valuable insights for the development of marketing strategies.

This retrospective observational study describes the results of an ad-hoc designated prevention protocol aimed at containing the spread of the scabies infestation among healthcare workers (HCWs) of a large University Hospital in Italy. The outbreak started on October 2022 and a preventive protocol was set up thanks to a multidisciplinary approach. HCWs at high scabies risk were defined as subjects working in UOs with more than five confirmed cases of scabies, close contacts of a confirmed case of scabies, or HCWs with signs and symptoms of the disease. All cases of at high scabies risk underwent a dermatological examination and the infested HCWs were suspended from work until definitive healing. Mass prophylactic treatment was established for all HCWs working in UOs with more than five confirmed cases of scabies. Until March 2023, out of 183 screening dermatological examinations, 21 (11.5%) were diagnostic for scabies. We obtain a prevalence of scabies of 2.6% (21/800) and a duration of the outbreak of 14.7 weeks. Statistical analysis shows a significant association between scabies and being a nurse and have an allergy to dust mites. We obtained a low prevalence of scabies infection, limiting the duration of the outbreak and the related economic burden.

A new three-dimensional numerical model of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) with a single straight channel has been developed to primarily investigate the important impact of the double-sided microporous layer (MPL) coating on the overall performance of the fuel cell and the distribution of the current and the oxygen concentration within the cathode gas diffusion layers (GDLs). Realistic experimentally estimated interfacial contact resistance values between the gas diffusion layer and each of the bipolar plates and the catalyst layer values were incorporated into the model, and parametric studies were performed. The results showed that the double-sided MPL coating could significantly improve the fuel cell performance by up to 30%. Also, it was shown that the neglect of the contact resistance between the MPL and the catalyst layer could overestimate the fuel cell performance by up to 6%. In addition, the results showed that the fuel cell performance and the distribution of the current and oxygen are more sensitive to the porosity of the MPL facing the bipolar plate than the porosity of the MPL facing the catalyst layer. All the above results are presented and critically discussed in detail.

Laser energy per unit surface, necessary to trigger the material removal, decreases with the pulse shortening becoming the pulse-time independent in the sub-picosecond range. These pulses are shorter the electron-to-ion energy transfer time and electronic heat conduction time minimizing the energy losses. The electrons receiving the energy larger than the threshold, drag the ions off the surface in the mode of electrostatic ablation. We show that the pulse shorter than the ion period (Shorter-the-Limit (StL)) ejects conduction electrons with the energy larger than the work function (from a metal) leaving the bare ions immobile in a few atomic layers. The electrons emission is followed by the bare ion’s explosion, ablation, and THz radiation from expanding plasma. We compare this phenomenon to the classic photo effect, nanocluster Coulomb explosions, show differences and consider possibilities for detecting the new mode of ablation experimentally by emitted THz radiation and consider applications of high-precision nano-machining with this low intensity irradiation.

Recent studies show that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) improves cognitive and motor functions in patients with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Gamma rhythm low-field magnetic stimulation (LFMS) is a new non-invasive rTMS technique that generates diffused and low-intensity magnetic stimulation to deep cortical and subcortical areas. To investigate potential therapeutic effects of LFMS in PD, we subjected an experimental mouse model to LFMS (as early treatment). We examined the LFMS effect on motor functions as well as neuronal and glial activities in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) induced male C57BL/6J mice. Mice received MPTP injection (30 mg/kg, i.p., once daily for 5 days) followed by LFMS treatment, 20 minutes each day for 7 days. LFMS treatment improved motor functions compared to the sham-treated MPTP mice. Further, LFMS significantly improved tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and decreased glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) levels, in substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) and non- significantly in striatal (ST) regions. LFMS treatment improved neuronal nuclei (NeuN) level in SNpc. Our findings suggest that early LFMS treatment improved the neuron survival and in turn, motor functions in MPTP intoxicated mice brain. Further investigation is required to clearly define the molecular mechanisms by which LFMS improves motor and cognitive function in PD patients.

Acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and reduced diffusion (AESD) is characterized by biphasic seizures following febrile viral infections and delayed reduced diffusion of the cerebral white matter on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) (bright tree appearance, BTA). However, hypoxic encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and AESD-mimicking imaging findings has not been reported. Herein, we report an case of hypoxic encephalopathy due to suffocation with concomitant biphasic seizures and BTA, mimicking AESD. On day 1, a 5-month-old female was found face down with breathing cessation and deteriorating consciousness level. The electroencephalography (EEG) revealed periodic epileptic discharges, suggesting possible nonconvulsive status epilepticus. Despite the improvements in consciousness level and EEG abnormalities on day 2, her consciousness level deteriorated again with generalized tonic-clonic seizures on day 3, and head MRI-DWI revealed restricted diffusion predominantly in the subcortical areas, suggesting BTA. Treatment for acute encephalopathy resolved clinical sei-zures and EEG abnormalities. The persistence of abnormal EEG, reflecting abnormal excitation and accumulation of neurotoxic substances caused by hypoxia, may have contributed to the devel-opment of AESD-like findings. As hypoxic encephalopathy causes AESD-like biphasic seizures, monitoring the consciousness level, seizure occurrence, and EEG abnormalities even after acute symptoms have temporarily improved following hypoxia is essential.

: Background: The thymus gland is the first lymphoid organ formed to regulate a newborn's immunity. It reaches its maximum size during puberty, after which it undergoes an atrophic procedure called involution, but its ability to grow again in response to some stresses, such as infections, neoplasia, surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy is maintained. There is not any comprehensive study on computed tomographic features of thymus gland in dogs. So, the goal of the present study is to achieve some information about thymus gland using computed tomography as a non-invasive method. Methods: One hundred and fifty dogs classified in 5 age groups and 2 breed groups were entered to this study and the thymus gland was evaluated using 2-slice computed tomography machine. The inclusion criteria for the present study were having normal complete blood count, plain and post-contrast CT scan examination of thoracic region and no history of neoplasia, chemotherapy or radiotherapy. The visibility, density, enhancement, grade, size, volume, shape, borders and lateralization of the thymus were evaluated and statistical analysis were performed. The effect of obesity on thymic grade and volume were also investigated. Results: The visibility, density, dorsal length, volume and grade decreased with increasing age. The thymic shape and lateralization were mostly wedge-shaped and left sided respectively. The borders became concave with aging and increasing body fat content caused to increase fatty degeneration of thymus. Conclusions: Declining of thymic density, grade, size and volume with aging was related to thymic involution and fatty degeneration was accelerated by increasing body fat content. Females and Males were different only in thymic shape and small and large breeds were different only in thymic volume. The thymus was visible in some geriatric dogs with no underlying disease. We hope that the present work can be used by radiologists in reading thoracic computed tomography but investigation of thymic characteristics in dogs with neoplasia and history of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and thoracic surgeries can complete this study.

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

Abstract: Climate change is one of the main barriers for agricultural production and productivity globally. Hence, understanding farmers’ adoption level of CSA practices and determinants is of highly important for policy decisions. Consequently, the study's purpose was to assess adoption level of multiple CSA practices and determinants of climate-smart agriculture practices in the study area. The study was conducted in Welmera Woreda, Oromia Region, Ethiopia. From the Woreda, three kebeles were identified, and 306 respondent farmers were selected. A cross-sectional household survey, focus group discussion, and key informant interviews were used. Multivariate probit model was used to examine adoption determinants of multiple climate-smart agriculture practices. According to the result, Conservation agriculture, integrated soil fertility management, and crop diversification are the most commonly practiced CSA techniques in the study area. Demographic factors result indicated that being male as compared with female farmers, has positive and significant effect on crop diversification and improved livestock feed and feeding practices. Age of farmers significantly and negatively affecting the probability of adoption of improved soil fertility management practices and crop diversification. However, it affects the adoption of agroforestry practices positively and significantly. Based on the result of economic factors, having relatively large farm land size significantly increases the adoption of conservation agriculture, improved soil fertility management, crop diversification, improved livestock feed and feeding practices, and postharvest technology practice. Better farm income increases the likelihood of uptake of improved livestock feed and feeding. Having a large number of livestock positively influences adoption of conservation agriculture and having access to credit services positively influences the implementation of agroforestry, crop diversification, and postharvest technology. In addition, institutional factors such as access to agricultural extension service and training found that significantly and positively influences the adoption of crop diversification; access to participation on farmers’ field day similarly significantly and positively influence the adoption of both conservation agriculture and improved soil fertility management practice. Awareness creation for farmers and experts about climate change and including location specific CSA practices in to agricultural program is crucial.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had devastating impacts on the global economy and public health. This study aimed to assess the level of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance, hesitancy, and associated factors among staff and students of the Federal University of Health Sciences Otukpo, Benue State, Nigeria. A web-based cross-sectional survey was conducted between November 2021 and April 2022, and data were collected and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Of the 150 completed and analyzed questionnaires, the majority of respondents (80.0%) were between 16 and 45 years old. The study found that 58.4% of participants indicated vaccine hesitancy, with skepticism about the vaccine's fast production/rollout and fear of vaccine side effects being the most common reasons for hesitation. Respondents' age, religion, and category were significant factors influencing vaccine acceptance and hesitancy (P < 0.05). The university community has a high level of awareness of COVID-19 but low vaccine acceptance, resulting in high levels of vaccine hesitancy. The study recommends that policymakers and public health officials should prioritize testing and vaccination for job categories with higher risk of exposure to COVID-19. They should provide accurate information about COVID-19 testing and vaccination and implement workplace-based testing and vaccination programs. These interventions can help to increase COVID-19 testing and vaccination uptake among the university community and mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

The safe and reliable operation of autonomous vehicles in complex and dynamic environments is heavily dependent upon exteroceptive and proprioceptive sensors. A LiDAR system generates accurate 3D point clouds, which are crucial for the detection, classification, and tracking of multiple targets. LiDAR data, however, presents significant challenges due to its density, noise, and varying sampling rates. In this study, various clustering and MTT techniques for LiDAR point clouds will be identified and classified within the context of autonomous driving to assess the state-of-the-art methods’ key challenges and their performances. We have categorized clustering and MTT methods used in AV applications, identified research gaps and challenges and analyzed existing algorithms and their challenges in detail. Researchers and practitioners in the field of autonomous driving will find this review to be a valuable resource.

Blood flow-restricted training (BFR) is constantly growing in popularity. Despite growing evidence of the significant influence of BFR training on different body functions, its impact on the vascular system, especially the arteries, is controversial. Therefore, the objective of our study was to analyze how BFR exercise, compared to other types of exercise without restriction of blood flow or other active intervention, influences arterial functions and angiogenesis in adults. Studies comparing the effect of BFR versus non-BFR training on arterial parameters are divided into three categories. Endothelial function, angiogenesis, and other vasculature functions. The search was based on three databases (Cochrane Library, PubMed®, Embase). In this systematic review, 38 studies were included. Meta-analysis revealed a more significant improvement in flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) (p=0.002) and the production of the primary angiogenesis biomarker Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) (p=0.009) after training in BFR compared to nonBFR (p=0.002). Analysis of pulse wave velocity, ankle-brachial index, systolic blood pressure, or heart rate did not show a significant difference in changes between BFR and non-BFR training. Other parameters examined were not sufficiently provided to be included in the meta-analysis. The results obtained, present trends suggesting the significant impact of BFR training on endothelial functions and angiogenesis. Unfortunately, there is still a lack of multicenter randomized clinical trials, including many participants, that are necessary to confirm the advantage of BFR over non-BFR activity.

Two different silica conformations (Xerogels and Nanoparticles) both formed by the mediation of dendritic poly (ethylene imine) were tested at low pHs on the problematic uranyl cation sorption. The effect of crucial factors i.e., temperature, electrostatic forces, adsorbent composition, accessibility of the pollutant to the dendritic cavities and MW of the organic matrix was investigated to conclude the optimum formulation for water purification under these conditions. This was attained with the aid of UV-Visible and FTIR spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), ζ-potential; Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) porosimetry, Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TG) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) Results highlighted that both adsorbents have extraordinary sorp-tion capacity. Xerogels are cost-effective since they approximate the performance of na-noparticles with much lesser organic content. Furthermore, they are more practicable materials since they may penetrate the pores of a metal or ceramic solid substrate in the form of a precursor, gel-forming solution.

We found an important fact that the beam footprint line of Ping will intersect with the real water depth when the initial incidence angle is about 45°, and sound velocity error hardly has an effect on it. This is contrary to our previous experience that the soundings of the central beam of multi-beam bathymetric system (MBS) is the most accurate. Firstly, the influence of sound velocity errors on central beam and seafloor topography distortion was analyzed. Secondly, the process of proving this fact was given, and the topography correction method was proposed by compensating the sound velocity profile area (SVP area). Finally, we showed in the first simulation of four type errors in SVPs that this fact is verified. The topography correction method used in the second simulation to correct the topography distortion of the first simulation is also verified.

Rice bran arabinoxylan compound (RBAC) is a polysaccharide modified by Lentinus edodes mycelial enzyme widely used as a nutraceutical. To explore translational research on RBAC, a scoping review was conducted to synthesise research evidence from English, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese sources while combining bibliometrics and network analyses for data visualisation. Ninety-eight articles on RBAC and the biological activities related to human health or disease were included. Research progressed with linear growth (median=3/year) from 1998 to 2022, predominantly on Biobran MGN-3 (86.73%) and contributed by 289 authors from 100 institutions across 18 countries. Clinical studies constitute 61.1% of recent articles (2018 to 2022). A shifting focus from immuno-cellular activities to human translations over the years was shown via keyword visualisation. Beneficial effects of RBAC include immunomodulation, synergistic anticancer properties, hepatoprotection, antiinflammation, and antioxidation. Cancer patients reported reduced side effects from chemoradiotherapy and improved quality of life in human studies, indicating RBAC’s impact on the psycho-neuro-immune axis. RBAC has been studied in 17 conditions, including cancer, liver diseases, HIV, allergy, chronic fatigue, gastroenteritis, cold/flu, diabetes, and in healthy participants. Further translational research on the impact on patient and community health is required for the evidence-informed use of RBAC in health and disease.

Neuroinflammation is one disease hallmark on the road to neurodegeneration in primary tauopathies. Thus, immunomodulation might be a suitable treatment strategy to delay or even prevent the occurrence of symptoms and thus relieve the burden for patients and caregivers. In the last years, the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) received increasing attention as it is immediately involved in the regulation of the immune system and can be targeted by the anti-diabetic drug pioglitazone. Previous studies have shown significant immunomodulation in amyloid-β (Aβ) mouse models by pioglitazone. In this study, we performed long-term treatment over six months in P301S mice as a tauopathy model with either pioglitazone or placebo. We performed serial 18 kDa translocator protein positron-emission-tomography (TSPO-PET) imaging and terminal immunohistochemistry to assess microglial activation during treatment. Tau pathology was quantified via immunohistochemistry at the end of the study. Long-term pioglitazone treatment had no significant effect on TSPO-PET, immunohistochemistry read-outs of microglial activation, or tau pathology levels in P301S mice. Thus, we conclude that pioglitazone modifies the time course of Aβ-dependent microglial activation, but does not significantly modulate microglial activation in response to tau pathology.

Physicians often label anatomical structure sets in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) images with nonstandard names. As these names vary widely, the standardization of the nonstandard names in the Organs at Risk (OARs), Planning Target Volumes (PTVs), and 'Other' organs inside the area of interest is a vital problem. Prior works considered traditional machine learning approaches on structure sets with moderate success. This paper presents integrated deep learning methods applied to structure sets by integrating the multimodal data compiled from the radiotherapy centers administered by the US Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the Department of Radiation Oncology at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). The de-identified radiation oncology data collected from VHA and VCU radiotherapy centers have 16,290 prostate structures. Our method integrates the heterogeneous (textual and imaging) multimodal data with Convolutional Neural Network (CNN)-based deep learning approaches like CNN, Visual Geometry Group (VGG) network, and Residual Network (ResNet). Our model presents improved results in prostate (RT) structure name standardization. Evaluation of our methods with macro-averaged F1 Score shows that our deep learning model with single-modal textual data usually performs better than the previous studies. We also experimented with various combinations of multimodal data (masked images, masked dose) besides textual data. The models perform well on the textual data alone, while the addition of imaging data shows that deep neural networks can achieve improved performance using information present in the other modalities. Additionally, using masked images and masked doses along with text leads to an overall performance improvement with the various CNN-based architectures than using all the modalities together. Undersampling the majority class leads to further performance enhancement. The VGG network on the masked image-dose data combined with CNNs on the text data performs the best and establishes the state-of-the-art in this domain.

Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is a complex pathophysiological process that can lead to severe and irreversible consequences, including the complete loss of renal function. While standardized strategies for preventing IRI during "back-table" and cold preservation are available, various intraoperative prevention methods have been proposed to mitigate the harmful effects of warm ischemia and reperfusion of the kidney. These methods include pharmacological agents, mechanical interventions, and surgical techniques such as renal capsulotomy, ischemic preconditioning, venous blood reperfusion, renal perfusion, and the use of tissue engineering techniques like mesenchymal stromal/stem cells and/or decellularization. In this comprehensive analysis, we provide a detailed overview of pharmacological agents and intraoperative methods and approaches for the prevention and treatment of renal IRI. We begin by discussing the mechanisms of IRI and the challenges of preventing it during surgery. Then using a bibliometric analysis and molecular docking of brand-new legends we showed eplerenone have the most binding affinity to Aldehyde dehydrogenase (AD), Estrogen receptor (ER), Klotho protein, Mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) for preventing IRI comparing with other available therapeutics, Benzodioxole, Hydrocortisone, Indoles, Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, and Niacinamide. Next, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the potential benefits and limitations of various prevention strategies, including an in-depth discussion of the mechanisms of action of pharmacological agents, mechanical interventions, and surgical techniques. Furthermore, we introduce a novel scoring system for the prevention methods of kidney IRI, which takes into account the effectiveness, feasibility, and safety of each method. We then analyze the current state of clinical research in this area and discuss the implications of these methods for future clinical practice. Overall, this article provides a valuable resource for clinicians and researchers seeking to prevent and treat renal IRI in surgical settings, and introduces a new scoring system that can be used to guide the selection of the most effective and safe prevention methods.

Al has very good corrosion resistance and corrosion properties. The corrosion resistance of Al cast alloys is different because these alloys contain a lot of elements. Especially in secondary alloys which contain more impurity elements from which Fe is the most common. This study deals with secondary AlSi7Mg0.3 cast alloys which contain more Fe and are affected by a chloride corrosion environment. This environment was selected based on the application of castings in the automo-tive industry. The main object was to research the effect of such an environment on basic me-chanical properties and fatigue properties. The results show that a higher Fe content does not lead to a significant reduction in the properties of the casting and the chloride environment is not so harmful. Therefore, can be stated that the investigated secondary sand-cast experimental materials can replace the primary alloys without losing the required corrosion and mechanical properties.

The last decade was characterized by the reduction of hospital beds throughout Europe. When facing Covid pandemic, this has been an issue of major importance as hospitals were seriously overloaded with an unexpected growth in demand. The dichotomy formed by the scarcity of beds and the need for acute care was handled by the Bed Management (BM) function. This study explores how BM was able to help the solidness of the healthcare system, managing hospital beds at best and recruiting others in different set-tings as intermediate care, in a large Local Health Authority (LHA) in central Italy. Ad-ministrative data show how the provision of appropriate care was achieved recruiting approximately 500 beds belonging to private healthcare facilities affiliated with the re-gional healthcare system and exercising at best the BM function. The ability of the system to absorb the extra demand caused by Covid was made possible using intermediate care beds, which allowed to stretch the logistic boundaries of the hospitals, and by the promptness of Bed Management in converting beds in Covid beds and reconverting them and timely managing internal patient logistic, thus creating space according to the healthcare demand.

Small hydro-power systems seem to be the best solution for energy generation through the use of pump as turbine (PAT) due to its low cost and lesser environmental hazards associated with it. Recently, PAT applications are gaining global attention in energy generation but its operation is not fully understood. The performance and flow behavior is affected by several operational conditions. This study seeks to investigate the effects of rotational speed on flow behavior and performance of a PAT. Rotational speed is an important physical parameter that affects the operation of a PAT. A selected centrifugal pump model of four blades and splitters was used for the study. Numerical simulations were carried out using k-ε turbulence model to solve the three-dimensional (3D) equations in both pump and PAT modes. The outcomes were then validated using experimental results in the pump mode to obtain overview flow physiognomies. The results predicted that the efficiency increases as the rotational speed increases in the pump mode whereas in turbine mode, higher rotational speed cannot convert hydraulic energy into mechanical energy. Thus, a rotational speed of 1500 rpm performed the highest efficiency of 69.8% at QBEP among the other rotational speeds selected. Moreover, the head performance in the turbine mode increases as the flow rate increases. This research provides useful information which will help improve PAT performance as well as selecting PAT for small hydro-power site.

(1) Background: The prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Poland is not exactly known. This study aims to present secondary epidemiological data identifying the scale of the spread of novel coronavirus infection in selected professional groups of HCWs in Poland. (2) Methods: The secondary epidemiological data included both the number of infections and the number and percentages of deaths in individual occupational groups, which occurred throughout the observation period, both in the country and in individual voivodeships. (3) Results: The prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections among HCWs was 16.48%. The highest percentage of infected concerned laboratory scientists (21.62%) and paramedics (18%). The highest frequency of infections among HCWs occurred in the province of Zachodnio-Pomorskie (18.9%). Due to COVID-19, 558 healthcare workers died during the analysed period, mostly nurses (n=236) and doctors (n=200). The results regarding the vaccination coverage of HCWs against COVID-19 indicate the highest percentage of vaccinated were among doctors (83.63%) and the smallest among physiotherapists (38.2%). (4) Conclusions: In general, the percentage of infections was high in Poland during the pandemic (16.48%). Significant territorial differences were observed in the frequency of infections, deaths, and percentage of vaccinated workers in individual voivodeships.

Digital transformation of agriculture can support economic growth and food and nutri-tion security in Africa. This study provides an overview of the status of digital agriculture in five west African countries, analyzing their efforts in developing the enabling environment and inno-vations while formulating recommendations based on the identified gaps for the effective trans-formation of the sector. Information was retrieved through a literature search from various sources, including web pages and databases of national agricultural and digital transformation institutions and start-ups of the five target countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria) and regional/international institutions. There have been increasing agri-digital initia-tives in the five countries, which were grouped into seven categories based on their objectives. Steady progress was also observed in mobile internet adoption, despite the differences in deploy-ing crucial infrastructure to promote digital agriculture. The mobile connectivity index (MCI) in all five countries is below 60. Nonetheless, Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire demonstrated more efforts in internet and electricity access, especially in rural areas. Benin and Nigeria have developed sep-arate documents depicting the roadmap for Digital Agriculture, while the other countries are working to create one or have it embedded in their national development plans. Similarities and specificities exist among countries for laws and processes protecting Agri-digital innovators. To be competitive and self-reliant in the global e-economy, these countries must reposition them-selves to accelerate changes in digital agriculture through effective governance and synergy of actions in different sectors and across nations.

The Covid 19 pandemic threaten the life of individuals and there was a lack of information in treatment, handling of patients and disposal of waste. The psychological and behavioral impact on Humans due to outbreak of Covid is studied and based on that a person-centered care center is suggested. The research methodology used are surveys, interviews among stake holders and design details of person-centered care center. Based on the surveys and interviews conducted during pandemic, it is found that 94% of the respondents prefer to use private vehicles with at least one member to ac-company them. People prefer to use 3 ply facemasks, followed by cotton masks and N95. Existing literature discusses the physical effects on the individual, but this paper focuses more on pros and cons on human life during the pandemic and lock down period. Based on the study, care center with facilities to treat patients with different levels of infections and counselling center for the persons suffered from Covid and other infectious diseases to overcome their psycho-logical and behavior changes are recommended.

We hypothesized that reticuloruminal temperature and pH, as well as cow activity, can be used as biomarkers for the early diagnosis of clinical mastitis in dairy cows. Therefore, we aimed to detect the relationship between reticuloruminal temperature and pH, cow activity, and clinical mastitis in dairy cows. We randomly selected cows with clinical mastitis and clinical healthy cows (HG) out of 600 milking cows. We recorded the following parameters during the experiment: reticulorumen tem-perature (RR temp.), reticulorumen pH (RR pH), and cow activity. We used smaXtec boluses (smaXtec animal care technology®, Graz, Austria). In this investigation, reticulorumen data ob-tained seven days before diagnosis were compared to HG data from the same time period. CM cows were observed on the same days as the healthy cows. The healthy group’s RR pH was 7.32% higher than that of cows with CM. Reticulorumen temperature was also 1.25% higher in the CM group than in the control group. The healthy group had a higher average value for walking activity and was 17.37% higher than the CM group. The data of reticulorumen pH changes during 24 h showed that during the day, the pH changed from 5.53 to 5.83 in the CM group. By contrast, pH changed from 6.05 to 6.31 in the control group. The lowest reticulorumen pH in the CM group was detected on the third day before diagnosis. It was 15.76% lower than the highest reticulorumen pH detected on the sixth day before diagnosis. The lowest reticulorumen pH in CM cows was detected at 0 and 1 days before diagnosis. It was 1.45% lower than the highest reticulorumen pH detected on the second day before diagnosis. The lowest walking activity in the CM group was detected 0 days before diagnosis, 50.60% lower than on the fifth day before diagnosis. The lowest walking activity was detected 0 days before diagnosis, 39.57% lower than on the seventh day before diagnosis. In this study, we found that reticuloruminal temperature, reticuloruminal pH, and cow ac-tivity could be used as biomarkers for the early diagnosis of clinical mastitis in dairy cows.

Introduction: Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disease. The objective was to elaborate a cream with natural products and salicylic acid. Hypothesis: ¿Will the topical cream made from natural products reduce the characteristic clinical signs of psoriasis? Methodology: Quasi-experimental clinical trial, in 100 healthy volunteer subjects, five formulations of the new product were prepared and applied to each 20 healthy subjects. The universe was 270 patients with different type of dermatology disease, 120 volunteer patients were selected with Psoriasis, of which he creams was applied to 60 volunteer patients with mild and moderate psoriasis were no randomly administered the full formulation of the new product at TMC Hospital. The database for this study is in the Figshare and Dryad repository. Outcome: In healthy subjects showed that 99% had no side effects. In psoriasis patient mild and moderate psoriasis at TMC Hospital was evaluated the results before and after treatment with the new formulation, Using T Student for paired tests, in the clinical variables, as well as the PASI index and the SBA, the alternative hypothesis was proved, the new formula is effective in the control post treatment of psoriasis (p=0.000). Discussion: The new formulation showed greater efficacy after 10 days treatment. This cream is recommended as an alternative and complementary therapy for psoriasis, since it did not show secondary reactions in healthy subjects, so its effectiveness was demonstrated in this study. A new population study is recommended by regions in Ecuador: coast, highlands, Amazon and Galapagos Island, to evaluate the response to treatment.

A 3D graphene foam made of interconnected multilayer graphene flakes was produced on optical fibres (OF) by laser-induced transformation of a polyimide (PI) film coated on the OF cladding. This material, known as la-ser-induced graphene (LIG), was explored in the electrochemical detection and quantification of dopamine (DA) at physiologically relevant concentrations in the presence of the most relevant interfering molecules in biological fluids, ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA). The measured limit of detection is 100 nM, the linear range is 0.1 to 5 μM and a maximum sensitivity of 5.0 µA µM−1 cm−2 was obtained for LIG decorated with Pt nanoparticles (NPs). Moreover, immunity to AA and UA interference and to fouling was attained by decorating the LIG elec-trode with Pt NPs and coating with Nafion. These figures of merit underlines the potential of these sensors for the quantification of physiologically relevant concentrations of DA in biological fluids, paving the way for the development of hybrid electrochemical/optical sensing actuating platforms in a lab-on-fibre configuration, with relevant applications in biomedical engineering. The advantages of this hybrid arrangement include the possi-bility of in-situ counterproofing, extended measuring ranges, photoelectrochemical detection and the probing of inaccessible places. This elegant approach can also provide a simple and cost-effective way to fabricate biomed-ical devices with extended functionality, such as medical optical probes with added electrochemical capabilities, optogenetics combined with local electrochemical detection, among others.

Mood and anxiety disorders affect pregnant people and their families at increased rates throughout the perinatal period. Geographic, financial, and social barriers persist in identification and access to care that preclude adequate diagnosis and treatment of anxiety and mood disorders. These challenges have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for Black and Indigenous People and People of Color (BIPOC) who already experience increased risk for adverse mental health outcomes and faced structural barriers to accessing perinatal mental health care at baseline. The literature shows that integrated care can improve mental health outcomes and save billions of dollars in annual healthcare costs. This study evaluated a novel statewide integrated care effort designed to facilitate access to perinatal mental health care for OB/GYN patients. In addition to enrollment data, variables studied were maternal program satisfaction, retention rates, and preliminary maternal mental health outcomes. 285 patients were ever referred for care. Of this, we contacted 259 patients (91%) and enrolled 209 (72%). Of the 209, 48 were lost to follow up, while 107 remained enrolled at the time of data analysis. 54 patients met their treatment goals. 97% of individuals asserted they were satisfied with the services they received. Black race and public insurance predicted faster attrition from treatment; risk for interpersonal violence exposure and substance use were not related to attrition. Preliminary mental health outcomes showed significant decreases in anxiety and depression, with the most dramatic decreases in the first month of treatment. The MC3 Perinatal care program is a viable, patient-endorsed collaborative care model that increases access to perinatal mental health and facilitate access to outside resources.

Metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD) is a hereditary neurodegenerative disease characterized by demye-lination and motor and cognitive impairment due to the deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme arylsulfatase A (ARSA) or the saposin B activator protein (SapB). Current treatments are limited; however, gene therapy using adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors for ARSA delivery has shown promising results. The main challenges for MLD gene therapy include optimizing AAV dosage, selecting the most effective serotype, and determining the best route of administration for ARSA delivery into the central nervous system. This study aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of AAV serotype 9 encoding ARSA (AAV9-ARSA) gene therapy when administered intrave-nously or intrathecally in minipigs, a large animal model with anatomical and physiological similarities to humans. By comparing these two administration methods, this study contributes to the understanding of how to improve the effectiveness of MLD gene therapy and offers valuable insights for future clinical applications.

The problem of health status prediction of insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) gains a lot of attention in the field of health management of power electronic equipment. The performance degradation of IGBT gate oxide layer is one of the important failure modes. In view of failure mechanism analysis and easy implementation of monitoring circuit, this paper selects the gate leakage current of IGBT as the precursor parameter of gate oxide degradation, and uses time domain characteristic analysis, gray correlation degree, Mahalanobis distance, Kalman filter and other methods to carry out feature selection and fusion, and finally obtains a health indicator characterizing the degradation of IGBT gate oxide. Based on the Convolutional Neural Network and Long Short-Term Memory (CNN-LSTM) network, this paper constructs an IGBT gate oxide degradation prediction model, and performs experimental analysis on the dataset released by NASA-Ames Laboratory, and the average absolute error of performance degradation prediction is as low as 0.0216. Compared with Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Support Vector Regression (SVR) and CNN-LSTM models, CNN-LSTM network has the highest prediction accuracy. These results show the feasibility of gate leakage current as a precursor parameter of IGBT gate oxide layer failure, as well as the accuracy and reliability of the CNN-LSTM prediction model.

The present work aims to explain the aluminum hydrolysis reaction kinetics based on properly chosen theoretical model with machined aluminum waste chips and alkali solutions up to 1M as a promoter, and to estimate overall reaction profit. In order to obtain results of better accuracy, we work with flat Al waste chips because a flat surface is preferable to maximally increase the time for created hydrogen bubbles to reach the critical gas pressure. At describing the reaction kinetics, flat shape allows using a planar one-dimensional shrinking core model instead of much complicated polydisperse spheric shrinking core model. We analyze the surface chemical reaction and mass transfer rate steps to obtain the first order rate constant for surface reaction and the diffusion coefficient of aqueous reactant in the byproduct layer, respectively. With our reactor we achieved H2 yield of 1145 mL per 1 g Al with 1M NaOH, which is 92% of the theoretical maximum. At estimation of the profit, we pay much attention to the loss of alkaline and find a crucial dependence on its price. Nevertheless, in terms of consumed and originated materials for sale, conversion of the aluminum waste material into green hydrogen by properly chosen reaction parameters has a positive profit even by consuming alkali of chemical grade.

Variable-DOF (or kinematotropic) mechanisms are a class of reconfigurable mechanisms. The number of variable-DOF multi-loop planar mechanisms proposed so far is very limited. This paper proposes a novel 8-link variable-DOF planar mechanism with five motion modes. Firstly, a description of the 8-link variable-DOF planar mechanism is presented. Reconfiguration analysis of the 8-link mechanism is then carried out using an elimination and algebraic geometry hybrid approach. The analysis shows that the 8-link mechanism has one 2-DOF motion mode and four 1-DOF motion modes and can switch among three motion modes at four transition configurations and between two motion modes at the remaining four transition configurations. Geometric characteristics of the mechanism in different motion modes are also revealed. Unlike the variable-DOF planar mechanisms found in literature, the proposed 8-link mechanism has two inactive joints in one of its 1-DOF motion modes, and both 4R kinematic sub-chains of the mechanism must appear as parallelograms in a pair or anti-parallelograms in a pair in the same motion mode. As a by-product, a method for factoring trigonometric functions in two angles is proposed.

The conventional use of medicinal plants is in part based on the widespread belief that plant crude extracts are non-toxic. In South Africa, traditional preparations of Cassipourea flanaganii used to treat hypermelanosis have accordingly been regarded by many as non-toxic. Whether so, impacts on the potential of bark extracts to be developed as a commercial drug to treat melasma, given their documented capacity to inhibit tyrosinase activity. Our study investigated the acute and subacute toxicity of the methanol extract of C. flanaganii bark in rats. Wistar rats were randomly assigned into different treatment groups. The rats received daily oral gavage of crude extract for acute and sub-acute toxicity tests. Haematological, biomechanical, clinical and histopathology examinations were carried out to evaluate possible toxicity of C. flanaganii. Results were subjected to the Student’s t-test and ANOVA. For both acute and subacute toxicity, there was no statistical difference between groups. There were no clinical or behavioral signs of toxicity observed in the rats. No treatment-related gross pathology lesions as well as no histopathology was observed. The findings of this study demonstrate the absence of acute or subacute toxicity after oral treatment with C. flanaganii bark extracts in Wistar rats at the levels administered.

A thermal-oxidative aging test at 120°C was condutcted on Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM) vulcanizates of the semi-efficient vulcanization system. The effect of thermal-oxidative aging on EPDM vulcanizates was systematically studied by curing kinetics, aging coefficient, cross-linking density, macroscopic physical properties, contact angle, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (FTIR), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and thermal decomposition kinetics. The results show that the content of hydroxyl and carbonyl groups as well as the carbonyl index increased with increasing aging time, indicating that EPDM vulcanizates are gradually oxidized and degraded. As a result, the EPDM vulcanized rubber chains were cross-linked, and its conformational transformation was limited and its flexibility was weakened. The thermogravimetric analysis demonstrates the thermal degradation of EPDM vulcanizates had competitive reactions of cross-linking and degradation, and the thermal decomposition curve can be divided into three stages, meanwhile the thermal stability of EPDM vulcanizates gradually decreases with the increase of aging time. The introduction of antioxidant in the system can promote the cross-linking speed and reduce the cross-linking density of EPDM vulcanizates, while inhibiting the surface thermal and oxygen aging reaction. This is attributed to the fact that the antioxidant can reduce the thermal degradation reaction level, but it is not conducive to the formation of a perfect crosslinking network structure and reduce the activation energy of thermal degradation of the main chain.

Wood has been used in the construction, furniture, and automotive industries since ancient times. In areas where wood material is used, it is combined with various fasteners. The durability of the products produced using wooden materials depends on the performance of the fasteners. Since wood is a hydroscopic and biodegradable material, various changes occur in its structure when exposed to external weather conditions. Wood materials used especially in the field of construction and urban furniture are exposed to effects such as extreme temperatures, freezing, moisture, or drying depending on the seasons. In this study, the effect of freeze-thaw cycling (FTC) process on screw direct withdrawal resistance (SDWR) of plywood produced from beech, ozigo, and okoume species was investigated. In this context, the effects of screwing time (before or after), screw orientation (face or edge), number of cycles (0 to 7) in the FTC process and plywood type parameters on SDWR were investigated. As a result of the tests, when the mean SDWR values were examined according to the plywood type, the highest values were obtained in beech, ozigo, and okoume plywood, respectively. Considering the screwing time parameter, it was determined that there was no statistically significant difference between the mean SDWR values in other plywood types except beech plywood (p&lt;0.05). When the screw orientation parameter is examined, screwing in the face direction gave better results than screwing in the edge direction in all plywood types. There was a decrease in the mean SDWR values inversely proportional to the increase in the number of cycles in FTC-treated plywood.

Different inlet structures have a significant impact on the internal flow characteristics of a solid-magnesium powder water ramjet engine. Based on the magnesium-water reaction model, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method is applied to establish a numerical simulation method for the internal flow field of the engine, and the internal flow characteristics of the engine under different inlet structure conditions are studied. The simulation results show that high-temperature gas can effectively promote the ignition of magnesium powder at the top of the combustion chamber, while accelerating the evaporation of the first inlet water and increasing the combustion rate of magnesium powder. The secondary inlet has the most significant effect on the temperature inside the combustion chamber. When the secondary inlet flow rate increases towards the top of the combustion chamber, it increases the amount of heat absorbed by the evaporating water at the top of the chamber, thereby reducing the temperature at the top of the combustion chamber. However, when the flow rate is low, it results in insufficient oxidizer at the top of the combustion chamber, which is unfavorable for the combustion of magnesium powder.

In many tropical regions, national forests plantations programs have been promoted. Those plantations contribute frequently to habitat changes. However, it is unclear associated effects on habitat fragmentation and landscape connectivity. From 2008 to 2018, we examined plantation and deforestation data base of Manabí province (Ecuador) for assessing fragmentation and connectivity. At regional scale, forest plantations had a significant effect on land uses changes and fragmentation during the study period. Forests decreased from 33.7% to 32.45% between 2008 and 2018 in the study area, although other natural land uses, mostly shrubs, increased almost double (from 2.4% to 4.68%). Most of the deforestation affected native forests during this period, and most of reforested and afforested areas in 2018 covered former agricultural land. In this period, fragmentation data shows a decrease in the number of patches and an increase in patch average size. When considering reforestation, deforestation was higher than the afforested area (58 km2 of difference) increasing the number of patches but with smaller size. The scenarios that presented better connectivity were those where forest areas increased: avoiding deforestation and considering reforestation. Those scenarios had in general a higher number of links and distance. Regionally, the avoiding deforestation scenario increased connectivity for Puma yagouaroundi in the west part of the Manabí province. On the other hand, for the reforested scenario, the number of links also increased on central and extreme northeast areas. Our findings suggest that plantations may contribute to conservation thanks to an increase in forest plantations connectivity between fragmented patches.

Biochar is an inexpensive and effective carbon sequestration technology produced by slow and fast pyrolysis of biomass feedstock at elevated temperatures in inert conditions producing large quantities of solid residue (i.e., biochar), condensable liquids (bio-oil) and hydrocarbon gases. Biochar have shown excellent adsorption capabilities. Biochar has shown excellent adsorption capabilities for short-chain PFAS and short chain PFAS. This paper suggests optimal pyrolysis reaction conditions to adsorb PFAS to maximum allowable concentrations in wastewater up to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is 70 ng/L. The paper highlights the operation conditions and influential reaction conditions to control the microporous structures in Biochar. The paper also aims to summarize the fundamentals of production of Biochar from biomass slow pyrolysis as well as optimal conditions for extraction of PFAS from wastewater streams and destruction of PFAS in biosolids. The scientific contributions for production of Biochar from biomass pyrolysis are highlighted. The paper also highlights the advantages of biochar over activated carbon in terms of low manufacturing costs and higher adsorption rates.

The unique physical demands of soccer necessitate optimal nutrition strategies for enhancing players' performance, recovery, and overall health. However, the effects of nutrition interventions on professional soccer players remain underexplored. This review aims to synthesize the current literature on the impact of nutrition interventions on professional soccer players' performance to inform future research and practical applications. The review will follow the PRISMA guidelines and the Cochrane Handbook of Systematic Reviews. We will employ a four-part search strategy to identify relevant studies, including electronic bibliographic databases, trial registers, the web of clinical trials, and bibliography screening. Inclusion criteria will encompass randomized clinical trials involving professional or semiprofessional soccer players utilizing a nutrition or diet intervention. Quality assessment will be conducted using the Risk of Bias 2 (RoB 2) tool. A narrative synthesis will be provided, detailing the intervention types and their effects on performance. This review will offer a comprehensive understanding of the potential benefits of nutrition interventions for soccer professionals, helping coaches, nutritionists, and players to tailor their approaches for optimal performance and recovery.

Heritage conservation area designation is often resisted by communities due to concerns with overly strict regulations for property alterations and negative impacts on property values. This paper addresses these concerns by examining Freemans Bay and Onehunga – two Special Character Areas (SCAs) in Auckland, New Zealand. A property value analysis was used to assess the impact of SCA designation on property values and an online questionnaire survey gathered information on homeowners’ experiences and levels of satisfaction with living in an SCA. The results indicate that designated SCA properties have higher average values than non-designated properties and homeowners are overwhelmingly satisfied with living in a SCA. The main benefits are a sense of community and having certainty around the look and feel of their neighbourhood into the future. The main issue identified by respondents is the requirement for Resource Consent. The majority of people who had gone through the process found it to be a negative experience because of the high cost in terms of time and money. A historic urban landscape approach to the development of management plans and design guidelines is recommended to improve the implementation of the Special Character Areas in Auckland and beyond.

This study examined the ventral process of C6 in extinct and extant Equus (sister taxa to Equus ferus caballus only) with the purpose of describing normal morphology and identifying anomalous variations relevant to recent studies describing a congenital malformation in E. ferus caballus. Overall, 83 specimens from 9 museums and 3 research/educational facilities were examined – 71 extinct specimens from 12 species and 12 extant specimens from 5 species. The lateral view revealed a large convexity existed in the ventral process between the cranial ventral tubercle (CrVT) and the caudal ventral tubercle (CVT) in the earliest ancestor Hyracotherium grangeri 55mya that receded throughout the millennia to a smaller convexity in E. ferus caballus and sister taxa. The CrVT was visibly shorter and narrower than the CVT with a constricted section directly ventral to the transverse process essentially demarcating the CrVT and CVT. No congenital malformations were evident. As the ventral process of C6 is an integral component for muscle attachment in supporting the head/neck during posture and locomotion, this would indicate the caudal module in the cervical column might be compromised when a partial or complete absence of the CVT is detected via radiographs in modern E. ferus caballus.

Hydropericardium hepatitis syndrome (HHS) caused by fowl adenovirus-4 have been frequently reported in commercial chickens from several countries causing significant economical losses. In Azerbaijan, fowl adenovirus infections in broiler and layer breeders flocks cause severe disease and mortality. Here we investigated the pathological lesions and the dissemination of fowl adenovirus-4 into the visceral organs of infected birds. Tissue samples containing liver, heart and spleen from 20 necropsied chickens were collected on the FTA cards and presence of fowl adenovirus was analysed by PCR and sequencing. Postmortem findings of both broiler and layer breeder chickens were similar, and the most affected organs were the liver with hepatitis and the heart with hydropericardium lesions. Other postmortem signs include swollen kidneys with haemorrhages and small white foci on the surface of the spleens. In some birds intestinal congestion and ecchymotic hemorrhages were also apparent. The PCR analysis revealed that all collected organs from 20 birds showed presence of fowl adenovirus-4 genome. The sequence analysis showed that fowl adenovirus-4 prevalent in Azerbaijan carry more closer phylogenetic relationship with the viruses prevalent in the Middle East, Far East and Indian subcontinent. However, a distinct diversity was seen from the strains prevalent in Europe, North and South America. This study will provide evidence the impact of fowl adenovirus-4 on the poultry production and improved preventive disease control strategies are required to reduce the HHS disease in chickens in Azerbaijan.

One of the key issues in sustainable tourism research is the gap between tourists' expressed friendly attitudes towards sustainable behaviors and their actual behaviors. Although many "low-carbon" themed restaurants have emerged during the low-carbon transformation of the Chinese tourism industry, low-carbon food services have not been significantly improved. This study takes food as the entry point to explore tourists' behavior and attitudes towards low-carbon tourism in relation to food. We conducted two interviews. The first interview was a semi-structured contextual interview with 120 tourists who had experiences in food streets, aim-ing to identify the core user group: low-carbon attitude-friendly tourists with high-carbon food behaviors. The second interviews was an in-depth interview based on grounded theory with 29 core users, analyzing the four main reasons for their high-carbon food behaviors and their re-quirements for low-carbon food services in tourism. Based on this, we extracted four design ele-ments for low-carbon tourism food services: low-carbon information show service, low-carbon service product attractiveness improvement, low-carbon food environment atmosphere creation, and service providers' low-carbon behaviors. Through these four service elements, we constructed a low-carbon tourism food service design framework based on the core users' needs, discussed the mechanism of service elements, and provided service design suggestions accordingly. The re-search results serve tourism providers, low-carbon tourism researchers, and designers.

Introduction: Successful R0 resection is crucial for the survival of patients with primary liver cancer (PLC) or liver metastases. Up to date, surgical resection lacks a sensitive, real-time intraoperative imaging modality to determine R0 resection. Real-time intraoperative visualization with near-infrared light fluorescence (NIRF) using indocyanine green (ICG) may have the potential to meet this demand. This study evaluates the value of ICG visualization in PLC and liver metastases surgery regarding R0 resection rates. Materials and Methods Patients with PLC or liver metastases were included in this prospective cohort study. ICG 10mg was administered intravenously 24 hours before surgery. Real-time intraoperative NIRF visualization was made with the SpectrumTM Fluorescence Imaging Camera System. First, all liver segments were inspected with the fluorescence imaging system and intraoperative ultrasound for identification of the known tumor as well as additional lesions, compared to preoperative MRI. PLC, liver metastases, and additional lesions were then resected according to oncological principles. Of all resected specimens the resection margins were analyzed with the fluorescence imaging system for ICG positive spots right after resection. Histology of additional detected lesions as well as ICG fluorescence compared to histological resection margins were assessed. Results Of the 66 included patients median age was 65.5 years (IQR 58.7 - 73.9), 27 (40.9%) were female and 18 (27.3%) were operated laparoscopically. Additional ICG positive lesions were detected in 23 (35.4%) patients of which nine (29%) were malignant. In patients with no fluorescent signal at the resection margin, R0 rate was 93.9%, R1 rate was 6.1%, and R2 rate was 0% compared to a ICG positive resection margin with a R0 rate of 64.3%, R1 rate of 21.4%, and R2 rate of 14.3% (p=0.005). One and two year overall survival were 95.2% and 88.4%, respectively. Conclusion The here presented study provides significant evidence that ICG NIRF guidance helps to identify R0 resection intraoperatively. This offers a true potential to verify radical resection and improve patients´ outcome. Furthermore, implementation of NIRF guided imaging in liver tumor surgery allows to detect a considerable amount of additional malignant lesions.

Abstract: Five patients with standard medical treatment-resistant symptoms of skin lesions, ear infections, allergic rhinitis, nasal congestion, asthma, heartburn, and failure to thrive were success- fully treated with an integrative medicine assessment and integrative medicine treatment approach. The integrative medicine assessment method of autonomic response testing enabled the identifica- tion of nickel sensitivity as a common element in these patients. It guided the use of the integrative medicine therapies of low dose immunotherapy, gamma linoleic acid supplementation, chelation, dietary nickel restriction, and removal of nickel containing dental and cosmetic appliances. A chart review of 151 patients indicated a strong association of nickel and the simultaneous presence of skin lesions.

A FIB/STEM interfacial study was performed on a TBC/Ti₂AlC MAX phase system, oxidized in an aggressive burner rig test (Mach 0.3 at 1300°C for 500 h). The 7YSZ TBC, a-Al₂O₃ TGO, and MAXthal 211 Ti₂AlC base were variously characterized by TEM/STEM, EDS, SADP, and HRTEM. The YSZ was a mix of ‘clean’ featureless and ‘faulted’ high contrast grains. The latter exhibited ferro-elastic domains of high Y content tetragonal t'' variants. No martensite was observed. The TGO was essentially a duplex a-Al₂O₃ structure of inner columnar plus outer equiaxed grains. It maintained a perfectly intact, clean interface with the Ti₂AlC substrate. The Ti₂AlC substrate exhibited no interfacial Al-depletion zone, but rather numerous faults along the basal plane of the hexagonal structure. These are believed to offer a means of depleting Al by forming crystallographic, low-Al planar defects, proposed as Ti_2.5AlC_1.5. These characterizations support and augment prior optical, SEM, and XRD findings that demonstrated remarkable durability for the YSZ/Ti₂AlC MAX phase system in aggressive burner tests.

The Asian weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) is a natural enemy, generalist predator of diverse major pest species (i.e. the highly destructive oriental fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis) in economically strategic agricultural landscapes in Australia and Southeast Asia countries. For effective implementation of the weaver ant for biological control of the invasive bagworms Metisa plana, the dominant pest in the oil palm plantation, its distribution was investigated in Malaysia. From 2018-2022, censuses were first carried out to record Oecophylla colonies presence. Oecophylla colonies’ occupation patterns were monitored on 8 selected plantations. To distinguish between brood and barracks nests, 26 captured nests were evaluated to define the main predictor variable for its practical visual identification. More than 11000 palms with 10821 nests for over 500 colonies were sampled in this study. Results showed that O. smaragdina colonies distribution pattern exhibited three-dimensional ubiquitous occupation dominance. We also found that by observing the colony’s dense population spatial arrangements, it demonstrates them as spreading by waves featuring interconnected irregular geometrical patches shaped for each colony. The height to the ground nest location in palm canopies was the significant visual discriminant factor between Brood and barrack nests. Moreover, polydomous arboreal nesting behavior occupation occurred irrespective of palms or associated host plants sizes (≥ 3 m), throughout the year. However, colony nesting behaviors were polydomous and monodomous on shorter plants (≥ 2 m), while being strictly monodomous on small plants (≤ 1.5 m). Colonies occupied an average 3 to 4 palms yearly beginning from the newly founding phase up to the stable mature phase (3 to 4 years). Furthermore, we found that matured stable colonies (3 ≥ age ≥13) occupied 10-12 palms on average, on 800 m² to 2500 m² area delimited by a minimum average 20 m² of “no ants land” zone between each colony. Our results suggest that a sustained agriculture system in this area would be possible with the presence of matured colonies nests exploitation which could provide an efficient biological control ecosystem service.

CD39 is involved in adenosine metabolism through conversion of extracellular ATP to adenosine. Because extracellular adenosine plays a critical role in the immune suppression of tumor microenvironment, the inhibition of CD39 activity by monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) is one of the important strategies for tumor therapy. In this study, we developed specific and sensitive mAbs for mouse CD39 (mCD39) using the Cell-Based Immunization and Screening (CBIS) method. The established anti-mCD39 mAbs, which were established by the CBIS method including C₃₉Mab-1 (rat IgG_2a, kappa) and C₃₉Mab-2 (rat IgG_2a, lambda), reacted with not only mCD39-overexpressed Chinese hamster ovary-K1 (CHO/mCD39) but also endogenously mCD39-expressed cell lines, such as L1210 (mouse lymphocytic leukemia) and J774-1 (mouse macrophage-like) cell lines through flow cytometry. Kinetic analyses using flow cytometry indicated that the dissociation constant (K_D) of C₃₉Mab-1 and C₃₉Mab-2 for CHO/mCD39 was 7.3 × 10⁻⁹ M and 5.5 × 10⁻⁹ M, respectively. K_D of C₃₉Mab-1 and C₃₉Mab-2 for L1210 was 3.3 × 10⁻⁹ M and 3.6 × 10⁻¹⁰ M, respectively. Furthermore, C₃₉Mab-1 could detect the lysate of CHO/mCD39 by western blot analysis. These results indicate that C₃₉Mab-1 and C₃₉Mab-2 are useful for the detection of mCD39 in many functional studies.

Less than half of e-waste plastics is sorted worldwide and this rate is likely to decline as major processing countries have banned importation of e-waste plastics. This forces the development of decentralized processing facilities, also known as microfactories. The present work investigates the recyclability of different grades of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) copolymer, polycarbonate, and polypropylene, which were found to be very abundant in a recycling site in the UK. The determination of the matrix relied on the resin identification code imprinted in the e-waste plastic and subsequent FTIR analysis. The melt-blend extrusion technology enabled the valorization of the wasted thermoplastics as 3D filament without significant degradation of the polymers. The recycled materials maintained the tensile strength around 2.5 MPa in agreement with the specifications offered by virgin polymers. Further characterization was done by means of laser microscope, thermogravimetric analysis, and XRF to determine the commercial viability of the recycled filament. A modified solvent-based method was developed with acetone to remove the brominated flame retardants: 25g/100mL, 30 minutes of contact time, and 4 extraction steps. The FTIR results show that the degradation of the rubbery dispersed phase corresponding to the butadiene can be accumulated in the less soluble fraction of the waste ABS.

Background: Malaria remains a serious public health concern worldwide, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions, and the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in children especially among those aged under five in developing countries. Malaria can be fatal if not promptly and accurately diagnosed, especially in children.This study was carried out to determine the level of malaria infection and its associated risk factors among febrile children.Methods: Blood samples were collected and analyzed from two- hundred (200) systematically selected febrile children aged 1-10 years old. assay of samples collected were carried out using standard methods.data were collected using a pretested structured questionnaire. Results: Results obtained from study subjects shows that, of the eighty-seven (87) infected subjects, 34 (39.1%) were aged 1-5 years, while 52 (59.8%) were within the range of 6 years and above.severity of infection showed 48 (55.2%) with scanty parasitic infection while 25 (28.7%) showed moderate infection, and 13 (14.9%) showed heavy infection.The association of age and level of parasitemia showed that 34 (58.8% ) subjects below 5 years, recorded scanty malaria compared to 14.7% with severe malaria within the age range.Considering gender, of the 33 infected female subjects, 45.5% had scanty malaria, 36.4% showed moderate malaria, while 18.2% had severe malaria, compared to the males subjects.Conclusion: This study reveals the prevalence of malaria infection with some level of severity among children at our study location.The need for prompt diagnosis and improved access to all malaria interventions becomes relevant,with a special focus on the high risk group.