Amidst increasing awareness of diet-health relationships, plant-derived bioactive peptides are recognized for their dual nutritional and health benefits. This study investigates bioactive peptides released after Alcalase hydrolysis of protein from chachafruto (Erythrina edulis), a nutrient-rich South American leguminous plant, focusing on their behavior during simulated gastrointestinal digestion. Evaluating their ability to scavenge radicals, mitigate oxidative stress, and influence immune response biomarkers, the study underscores the importance of understanding peptide interactions in digestion. Methods included previous enzymatic hydrolysis with Alcalase to obtain peptides, and results show significant radical scavenging and oxidative stress protection by chachafruto peptides. These findings highlight the potential of chachafruto bioactive peptides in functional foods and nutraceuticals, supporting human health through dietary interventions.

In the main prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica) producing region in the State of Mexico, fruit production (tunas) occupies the largest cultivated area with 15,800 ha, while 900 ha are cultivated for fresh consumption (“nopal” or “nopalitos”). Two composite samples consisting of prickly pear cactus cladodes (n=6) and another of nopal vegetable (n=6) showing virus-like symptoms were collected. Both sample sets were subjected to high-throughput sequencing (HTS) to identify the viruses and viroids present. The HTS results were verified using RT-PCR and Sanger sequencing. Subsequently, 86 nopal samples (nopal vegetable, prickly pear cactus, xoconostle and wild) were analyzed via RT-PCR with specific primers for the viruses and viroids previously detected via HTS. Three viruses were discovered [Opuntia virus 2 (OV2), cactus carlavirus 1 (CCV-1), and Opuntia potexvirus A (OPV-A)], along with a previously reported viroid [Opuntia viroid 1 (OPVd-1)]. Additionally, two new viroid species were identified, provisionally named Mexican opuntia viroid (genus Pospiviroid) and Opuntia viroid 2 (OVd-2). Phylogenetic analysis, pairwise identity comparison, and conserved structural elements analysis confirmed the classification of these two viroids as new species within the Pospiviroidae family. This is the first report of a pospiviroid and two apscaviroids infecting prickly pear in the world. Overall, this study enhances our understanding of the virome associated with nopal in Mexico.

Views of aging include peoples’ assessment of their own aging process and their subjective age. Positive aging views relate to good psychological well-being which predicts better physical and mental health. While these were substantially studied, the moderating roles of self-aging attitudes and psychological well-being in the subjective age-age discrimination connection have been much less explored. The current study used a convenience sample of 568 participants (mean = 66.21y, SD = 11.95, age range 50-95), 55.8% women, 67.1% employed. In line with the hypotheses, young subjective age and psychological well-being were connected to less age discrimination in the workplace and higher psychological well-being mitigated the subjective age-age discrimination at work connection. When the perception of old age as a period of loss was added to the model, adults who perceived old age as a period of loss and reported lower levels of psychological well-being, demonstrated the strongest relationship between an increase in subjective age and an increase in age-related discrimination at work. The findings emphasize the importance of the psychological well-being of older employees as a resource for improving their attitudes to their last years at work.

Radial nerve palsies present a challenging clinical scenario, often leading to substantial functional impairment. This study focuses on evaluating the outcomes of tendon transfer surgeries in patients with post-traumatic radial nerve injuries. The radial nerve, vital for upper limb movements, faces various etiologies such as trauma, compression, or idiopathy. Patients with radial nerve palsy encounter difficulties in daily activities, emphasizing the need for effective management strategies. The research introduces a novel evaluation protocol, aiming to comprehensively assess tendon transfer outcomes. This protocol incorporates functional movements of wrist and finger joints, encompassing both objective and subjective parameters. The retrospective study includes eleven patients treated between 2010 and 2022, with a minimum follow-up of one year post-surgery. Tendon transfers demonstrated positive results. The evaluation protocol covers a wide range of parameters, including wrist and finger mobility, thumb function, grip strength, and patient satisfaction. The results indicate successful restoration of motor function, with an average grip strength of 70% compared to the healthy arm. The proposed evaluation protocol facilitates standardized and reproducible assessment, minimizing subjective errors in clinical evaluations. Despite the study's limitations, such as a relatively small sample size, the findings underscore the effectiveness of tendon transfers in treating radial nerve palsies. The introduced evaluation scheme provides a comprehensive and reproducible approach to assess outcomes, contributing to the global standardization of tendon transfer assessments in radial nerve injuries.

The field of construction materials is pivotal in developing sustainable and resilient infrastructure. This demands continuous research to understand the properties and behaviors of these materials under diverse conditions. Although advancements in material science and numerical modeling have been significant, experimental testing remains indispensable for a thorough comprehension of material characteristics, particularly under extreme stresses and environmental factors. This need has forced the development of a wide array of testing techniques, each designed to evaluate specific engineering properties, thus creating a complex and varied landscape of experimental methodologies. This study provides a comprehensive overview of both conventional and innovative experimental testing techniques used to characterize construction materials. It explores the related methodologies and identifies potential gaps in their application within the industry. The spectrum of testing covered includes mechanical, chemical, thermal, microstructural, durability, physical, rheological properties, and non-destructive testing methods. Mechanical tests assess strength, hardness, and fatigue, whereas chemical analyses utilize techniques such as spectroscopy and chromatography. Thermal properties are examined using thermogravimetric analysis, and microstructural characteristics are explored through advanced imaging techniques. Durability testing focuses on materials’ resistance to environmental challenges, while physical properties tests evaluate aspects like porosity and water absorption. Rheological and non-destructive tests further examine materials’ behavior and integrity without causing damage. By discussing these methodologies, the study sheds light on various approaches to material evaluation and aims to enhance the selection, application, and development of testing standards. This overview seeks to inform and inspire future research and innovation in the science of construction materials, contributing to the development of more resilient and sustainable construction practices.

Analytical instruments used for scientific research and education are often expensive. This limitation poses a challenge for schools and educators in low-income countries to provide practical science training to students. To address this problem, the improvisation of analytical instruments and instructional materials has emerged as a viable solution. By incorporating practical experiments into science education, students have the opportunity to engage directly with scientific instruments, conduct investigations, and collect data. This hands-on approach fosters a deeper understanding of scientific principles, enhances critical thinking skills, and cultivates scientific mindsets among students. Herein, we review and discuss, step-by-step, the approach of using a smartphone for quantitative analysis, referred to as smartphone digital image colorimetry (SDIC). SDIC, with its practicality and accessibility, utilizes smartphone digital cameras for image acquisition and the freely available image processing programs, such as ImageJ and smartphone Apps, for image quantification. Using SDIC can enable students in low-income countries to develop essential scientific skills, including critical thinking, data interpretation, and an evidence-based approach to scientific research. By leveraging the ubiquity and affordability of smartphone technology, SDIC offers an accessible and cost-effective approach to practical science education, bridging the gap between theory and practice in resource-constrained settings.

In the most cases, invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) of the breast is identifiable when they present with classic infiltrative growth pattern. However, subset of IDC can occur in a very sneaky way, significantly mimicking the appearance of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). In this condition, it’s much easier to miss the invasive component without pulling ancillary staining when morphologic findings are extremely compatible with DCIS, especially the diagnosis of DCIS was made on the previous biopsy. Here, we reported a 55 year-old female who was noted to have microcalcification at the 11:00 o’clock of the right posterior breast on routine mammographic examination in 09/2023. Biopsy of the calcification area in 10/2023 reported high grade DCIS (ER+ PR-). Histologic examination of subsequent mastectomy specimen showed two separate DCIS-looking areas (Figure 1A-D and Figure 2). Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining showed that myoepithelial markers, smooth muscle myosin heavy chain (SMMHC), p63, CK5/6 and S100, were retained at the periphery of all the expanded acini in one area (Figure 1E-H). Unexpectedly and surprisingly, myoepithelial markers were completely lost at the periphery of part of the DCIS-looking acini in another area (Figure 3A-H), immunohistochemically compatible with the diagnosis of invasive ductal carcinoma admixed with DCIS. Knowing that invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast can present as DCIS-looking morphology, especially given the condition that the diagnosis of DCIS was rendered on the previous biopsy, will enhance awareness of pathologists to recognize DCIS-looking invasive ductal carcinoma. In turn, this will prevent misdiagnosis and under-treatment of patients with invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast.

The hotel sector generates related environmental aspects from its construction process to the operation of its activities, products and services. In this way, corporate environmental management becomes directly linked, since it provides an adequate management of its resources, thus minimizing impacts. Thus, this research aims to carry out a socioeconomic and environmental diagnosis of the hotel sector in the municipality of Mossoró-RN. The study was classified in an exploratory, descriptive and explanatory way, with a qualitative-quantitative approach that is based on bibliographic, documentary and field research, carried out in 10 lodging facilities, through the application of questionnaires, on general aspects, initial environmental assessment and environmental aspects, and the data obtained were treated in Microsoft Excel software with the objective of creating a model and demonstrating results on the sustainable level of each establishment in question. The profile of the lodging facilities analyzed is characterized by 50% having from 10 to 30 rooms, 80% having between 10 and 30 employees, 80% being micro-enterprises, with 50% in an area of 750 m² to 2250 m² and 80% operating for more than 10 years. Point out a relevant result on the impacts of companies. The projects analyzed were built without any complaint for environmental crime and without negative impacts on the local population. Actions to reduce consumption were also observed, especially for the rationalization of water and energy. To this end, it points out that the adoption of the Environmental Management System (EMS) as a differential in the management of aspects and impacts of the hotel sector.

Aggregation of the protein α-Synuclein (αSyn) is a hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and multiple systems atrophy, and alleviating the extent of αSyn pathology is an attractive strategy against neurodegeneration. The engineered binding protein β-wrapin AS69 binds monomeric αSyn. AS69 reduces primary and secondary nucleation as well as fibril elongation in vitro. It also mitigates aSyn pathology in a mouse model based on intrastriatal injection of aSyn pre-formed fibrils (PFF). Since the PFF-based model does not represent all aspects of PD, we tested here whether AS69 can reduce neurodegeneration resulting from αSyn overexpression. Human A53T-αSyn was overexpressed in the mouse Substantia nigra (SN) by using recombinant adeno-associated viral vector (rAAV). AS69 was also expressed by rAAV transduction. Behavioral tests and immunofluorescence stainings were used as outcomes.Transduction with rAAV-αSyn resulted in αSyn pathology as reported by phospho-αSyn staining and caused degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the SN. The co-expression of rAAV-AS69 did not reduce αSyn pathology or degeneration of dopaminergic neurons. We conclude that αSyn monomer binding by rAAV-AS69 was insufficient to protect from aSyn pathology resulting from αSyn overexpression.

To understand dynamics in climate change, informing policy decisions and prompting timely action to mitigate its impact, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of the short-term trend of year-on-year CO2 emission changes across ten countries, considering a broad range of factors including socioeconomic, CO2-related industry, and education. This study uniquely goes beyond the common country-based analysis, offering a broader understanding of the interconnected impact of CO2 emissions across countries. Our preliminary regression analysis, using the ten most significant features, could only explain 66% of variations in the target. To capture emissions trend variation, we categorized countries by the change in CO2 emission volatility (high, moderate, low with upward or downward trends), assessed using standard deviation. We employed machine learning techniques, including feature importance analysis, Partial Dependence Plots (PDPs), sensitivity analysis, and Pearson and Canonical correlation analyses, to identify influential factors driving these short-term changes. The Decision Tree Classifier was the most accurate model, with an accuracy of 96%. It revealed population size, CO2 emissions from coal, the three-year average change in CO2 emissions, GDP, CO2 emissions from oil, education level (incomplete primary), and contribution to temperature rise as the most significant predictors, in order of importance. Furthermore, this study estimates the likelihood of a country transitioning to a higher emission category. Our findings provide valuable insights into the temporal dynamics of factors influencing CO2 emissions changes, contributing to global efforts to address climate change

Crystallization of glass through conventional thermal annealing in a furnace is a well-understood process. However, crystallization by femtosecond (fs) laser brings another dimension to this process. The pulsed nature of the irradiation necessitates a reevaluation of parameters for optimal crystallization and to understand the particularities in the case of using fs laser. This includes adjusting the laser pulse energy, the repetition rate, and the writing speed to either initiate nucleation or achieve substantial crystal growth. Therefore, a key challenge to this work is to establish reliable calculations for understanding the relation of the size of the crystallized region with respect to an ongoing transition (e.g., solid-to-solid, liquid-to-solid), and accounting for the aforementioned laser parameters. In this context and based on previous work, we simulate a temperature distribution (in space and time) to model the thermal treatment at any point in the glass. By setting the condition that the temperatures are between the glass transition and melting temperature, we can deduce the crystallized region size to be compared with experimental observations. For that purpose, the knowledge of the beam width at the focal point and of the absorbed beam energy fraction are critical inputs that were extracted from experiments found in the literature. After that, management of the crystallization process and the width of the crystallization line can be achieved according to pulse energy e.g. crystallite size, and also the effect of the scanning speed can be understood. Among the main conclusions to highlight, we disclose the laser conditions that determine the extent of the crystallized area and deduce that it is never interesting to increase the pulse energy too much but rather the repetition rate for uniform crystallized line.

To improve efficacy and safety of sunscreen emulsions, UV‐filter skin permeation could be kept as low as possible by reducing UV‐filter content or changing emulsion composition. In this work, different lipid phase ratio (12, 14 and 16% w/w) were assessed for their ability to affect the technological and sensory properties of O/W emulsions in which bemotrizinol (BMTZ), a broad spectrum sunscreen agent, was incorporated free or loaded into nanostructured lipid nanocarriers (NLC) to reduce its release from the vehicle and, hence, its skin permeation. The following technological properties were evaluated in vitro by suitable methodologies: spreadability, viscosity, pH, occlusion factor, BMTZ release, sun protection factor (SPF). Sensory attributes were assessed by trained panelists in three different phases: before/during pick‐up, rub‐in, after application. Raising the lipid phase ratio led to an increase of viscosity and to a corresponding drop of spreadability while the incorporation of BMTZ‐loaded NLC determined a decrease of occlusion factor and an increase of SPF. No BMTZ release was observed from all emulsions. Sensory attributes were mainly affected by lipid phase ratio. These results suggest that lipid phase ratio and BMTZ incorporation into NLC could contribute to determine technological and sensory properties of O/W emulsions.

The study was conducted to evaluate the agronomic performance, forage yield, and nutritive values of Desho grass varieties under supplementary irrigation at Dambi Dollo University experimental site, Western Ethiopia. Three Desho grass varieties (Areka /DZF#590, Kindu kosha-1/DZF #591, and Kulumsa /DZF #592) were arranged in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The CROPWAT 8.0 model, local climate data, forage data, and soil data were used to determine Desho grass water requirements and irrigation schedules. The agronomic parameters, yield, chemical composition, and in vitro digestibility of the feed samples at standardization cut were determined following the standard procedures. The results showed significant differences (p

The main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain is 4-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Phthalimide acts as a sodium channel antagonist, one of the finest targets for treating epilepsy is the sodium channel and JNK kinase activity is inhibited to treat epilepsy. a novel compound with multiple targets of action for the treatment of epilepsy also anti-oxidant activity has been designed. The compounds are designed in two series aldehydes and aniline. Docking of all the designed compounds has been done with the suitable protein GABA-AT, sodium channel, JNK protein, and anti-oxidant from protein bank. QSAR was done for constructing many linear regression models. In combination with the developed Docking and QSAR outcomes, ADMET has been performed for the active compounds. The result shows that 11 of the compounds have excellent binding energy in docking with all the receptors and also have good QSAR results and follow the ADMET. The structural understanding of human GABA-AT inhibition was obtained from molecular dynamics simulation studies for compound no. 11 at 5 nanoseconds. Synthesis and pharmacological activity also suggest that the designed compound no.11 be considered the best Novel Compound.

Ensuring access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities, coupled with behavior change education in schools, is fundamental for fostering a conducive learning environment and promoting principles of inclusion, dignity, and equality. This study focuses on 12 primary schools in Anápolis, Brazil, encompassing 4,394 students and 248 teachers. WASH assessments were conducted through a questionnaire, observation of water and sanitation facilities and structures, and microbiological analysis. Over the period 2018 to 2020, the proportion of schools with safely managed drinking water surged from 42% to 92%. However, sanitation conditions in the schools were categorized as a basic level, with hygiene services rated as limited in 92% of the schools due to the absence of soap. While this study reveals that Anápolis schools generally align with WASH guidelines for basic/advanced drinking water services, there is a crucial need for enhancements in both hardware and software facilities to address sanitation and hygiene challenges.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling has emerged as a powerful approach for monitoring biodiversity in the context of diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and has broad potential for both environmental surveys and species management. eDNA studies focusing on plant and animal species have capitalized on analytical methodologies developed originally for metagenomic studies of microorganisms, and on technological improvements in sample collection. However, while eDNA studies have proliferated rapidly, efforts to standardize sampling and analytical methods are still nascent. Critically, fundamental data concerning the distribution and persistence of eDNA in different ecological contexts are lacking, complicating both confidence in species detection and comparability between studies. We propose that key deficits could be addressed by using well-designed synthetic DNA standards or tracers, which are widely used in fields ranging from medical diagnostics to hydrology. In-field application of a standardized mixture of barcoded synthetic DNA fragments of varying lengths and concentrations that are recovered concommitantly with eDNA sampling should provide critical yet missing data on environmental DNA distribution and turnover, as well as an internal molecular standard to enhance both species detection and comparability between eDNA studies.

Background: Breast cancer remains a significant health concern among women globally. Despite advancements in awareness and diagnostic techniques, it persists as a leading cause of death, with profound impacts on affected individuals' quality of life. Primary and secondary prevention, including regular screenings and practices like Breast Self-Examination (BSE), are pivotal in ensuring early diagnosis. The NHS in Italy offers screenings for women aged 50-69 every two years, managed by the Local Health Authority. However, the participation rates, especially among the Chinese female population residing in Italy, are not well-understood. Methods: Using a snowball method, we electronically disseminated a survey to investigate how Chinese women living in Italy engage with available NHS screening programs. The survey also explores their practice of BSE, the use and impact of technological tools on prevention, and aims to understand their depth of knowledge and misconceptions about breast cancer. Results: The data revealed a significant gap in breast cancer screening adherence and knowledge among Chinese women in Italy, with a notable discrepancy between the general population and those who have previously encountered cancer. Conclusions: The results highlight the urgent need for interventions that are culturally sensitive, stressing that these actions are not only desirable but essential.

The spring-in phenomenon of the composite parts can affect the assembly process. This study aims to predict the spring-in phenomenon of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) part. Here, we predict the spring-in of the CFRP part using a coupled analysis of the forming and cooling processes during the stamping process. First, a simulation of the entire forming process, such as the transfer of the composite laminate, gravity analysis, and forming was performed to obtain the temperature distribution of the CFRP part. Subsequently, a finite-element (FE) simulation of the cooling process was conducted to predict the spring-in phenomenon of the shaped CFRP part using the temperature data obtained in the forming simulation. Finally, a CFRP part was manufactured and compared with the results of the FE simulation.

In northern Canada where permafrost is prevalent, a shortage of accessible, affordable, and high-quality housing has been ongoing for decades. Design of foundations in permafrost presents unique engineering challenges due to permafrost soil mechanics and climate change. There is no specific design code for pile or shallow foundations in northern Canada. Consequently, the design process heavily relies on the expertise and experience of Arctic geotechnical engineers who have specialized knowledge in this field. Therefore, a comprehensive review of the practice or literature in foundation design in the Arctic would be necessary. The main objective of this review paper is to provide an overview of the common foundations in permafrost and the techniques adopted to counteract the effects of frozen soils. This study conducted a literature review of state-of-the-art practices on deep and shallow foundations used in northern Canada, including common steel pipe piles and thermosyphons. The review summarized the current principles, including adfreeze strength, creep settlement, and frost heave, used in the foundation design in permafrost. Then this paper summarized the findings from interviewing several engineers or professionals who have experiences in the design of foundations in permafrost. The interviews revealed the technical and non-technical aspects of foundation design practice in northern Canada. Lastly, in order to demonstrate the design methods, the paper presented two examples where screw piles and steel pipe piles were designed to support a residential building in northern Canada, according to the state-of-practice criteria for adfreeze strength, long term settlement and frost heave.

Surfactants are widely used in the synthesis of nanoparticles, as they have a remarkable ability to direct their growth to obtain well-defined shapes and sizes. However, their post-synthesis removal is a challenge, and the methods used often result in morphological changes that defeat the purpose of the initial controlled growth. The cleaning methods could be classified as thermal or non-thermal. In general, the structure of materials can be better preserved by non-thermal treatments. After the removal of surfactants, the highly active surfaces of nanomaterials may undergo structural reconstruction by exposure to a different environment. Thus, ex situ characterization after air exposure may not reflect the effect of the cleaning methods. In situ characterization is required to better understand the impact of various cleaning procedures. Combining X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, in situ infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy, and environmental transmission electron microscopy measurements with CO probe experiments, we investigated different surfactant-removal methods to produce clean metallic Pt nanoparticles from surfactant-encapsulated ones. Non-thermal plasmas show the best results. It was demonstrated that both UV-ozone treatment and room temperature O2 plasma treatment lead to the formation of Pt oxides on the surface after the removal of the surfactant. These oxides are reduced to metallic Pt during in situ CO probe experiments. On the other hand, when H2 was used for plasma treatment, the Pt0 oxidation state and nanoparticle size distribution were preserved. In addition, H2 plasma treatment can reduce Pt oxides after O2-based treatments, resulting in metallic nanoparticles with clean surfaces. Thermal reduction in hydrogen leads to carbon species emerging onto nanoparticle surfaces after heating and agglomeration of Pt nanoparticles. Particularly, O2-based thermal treatments result in the formation of aggregates consisting of small nanoparticles. These findings provide a better understanding of the various options for surfactant removal from metal nanoparticles and point toward non-thermal plasmas as the best route if the integrity of the nanoparticle needs to be preserved.

We review the literature on medical discourse and attempt to build a computational model of it. Medical discourse sheds a light on communication structure of patient-doctor and other communication scenarios in healthcare and should be leveraged to facilitate and automate this communication when it is possible and practical. We propose a unified framework to represent communication discourse at the meta-level, where the subject of the communication is expressed in a language object. So far, the broad range of work on medical discourse is detached from computational discourse analysis, and we explore the possibilities of filling this gap and computationally treat the peculiarities of how information is passed between the agents in a hospital setting. We select the domain of question answering (QA) against a corpus of medical documents of diverse nature to evaluate our computational model of medical discourse. It turns out that applying specific structures obtained in medical discourse studies improves the relevance and efficiency of question answering.

The black hole (BH) phenomenon is an intraluminal restenotic lesion. It was identified by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) after intracoronary brachytherapy and drug-eluting stent implantation. Despite the similarity in the mode of action of brachytherapy and drug-eluting stent implantation, the BH phenomenon appears to be uncommon after drug-eluting stent implantation. Specifically, the BH phenomenon is better identified by OCT than by IVUS. Herein, we present a case of in-stent restenosis with suspected BH phenomenon on IVUS confirmed by OCT.

Wheat pollen, characterized by its short lifespan, exhibits rapid germination after anthesis. The preservation of wheat pollen is contingent upon environmental factors, including temperature, relative humidity, light, and wind. The objective is to develop a method for preserving wheat pollen effectively, specifically for the purpose of breeding. The short longevity of wheat pollen grains renders it impractical to conduct tests for pollen viability and in vitro germination on a large scale. Herein, the impact of storage temperatures and duration was assessed on pollen viability and in vitro germination to optimize storage conditions for preserving pollen viability. Pollen grains from 50 diverse spring wheat genotypes, each with three replicates, were harvested and stored at temperatures of 22°C, -20°C, and 4°C. Subsequently, pollen viability and in vitro germination rates were determined after storage of 1, 3, and 6 days. The results revealed that storage temperatures, durations, genotypes, and their interactions had a statistically significant impact on both pollen viability and in vitro germination. Notably, when pollen was kept at 22°C, almost all genotypes exhibited a loss of pollen viability and in vitro germination after 1, 3, and 6 days of storage. Likewise, storage at -20°C failed to extend pollen germination. However, at a storage temperature of 4°C, the pollen of 36 wheat genotypes exhibited a range of 6-14% in vitro pollen germination and remained viable even for 6 days. Simple linear regression analysis further revealed a significant negative correlation between pollen viability, in vitro germination, and storage time and temperature. In conclusion, our findings underscore 4°C as the optimal temperature for preserving pollen viability and in vitro pollen germination in spring wheat for up to 6 days. The results of the present study suggests that pollen viability of wheat is genotype de-pendent, storage temperature and storage duration. Thus, the 36 wheat genotypes identified during the present work could be efficiently maintained at 4◦C for short-term storage (6 days) and could be further used for genetics and breeding purposes.

Globally, between 10% and 15% of couples experience infertility. Given the high demand for Assisted Reproductive Techniques (ART), there is growing interest in exploring modifiable factors influencing their outcomes. In this context, the objective of this review was to investigate the impact of adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (MD), recognized for its benefits in reproductive health, on ART outcomes. Methodology: A systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA methodology. International databases were consulted, selecting studies published between 2010 and 2023, in English and Spanish, involving patients aged 18-55, and examining intermediate and/or clinical outcomes of ART. Systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and animal studies were excluded. Results: Of the 9 included articles, 5 found statistically significant associations between adherence to the MD and positive outcomes in ART, such as a higher number and quality of embryos, clinical and biochemical pregnancy, and live births. However, other studies found no such associations. Conclusions: There is a potential association between adherence to the MD and ART outcomes. The evidence is very limited, necessitating further investigation.

Endovascular therapy (EVT) has revolutionized the management of acute ischaemic strokes with large vessel occlusion, with emerging evidence suggesting its benefit also in large infarct core volume strokes. In the last 2 years, 4 randomised controlled trials have been published on this topic - RES-CUE-Japan-LIMIT, ANGEL-ASPECT, SELECT2 and TENSION, with overall results showing that EVT improves functional and neurological outcomes compared to medical management alone. This review seeks to summarise the recent evidence presented by these 4 trials and highlight some of the limitations of our current understanding on this topic.

Castanea sativa Mill., an indigenous species of the mountainous Gabala region of Azerbaijan, where its local variety is now facing the danger of extinction. The preservation of this variety of European chestnut requires the development of effective strategies for reliable in vitro regeneration systems as an alternative to traditional methods, which has become the main objective of this study. In solving this problem, the generally accepted technique of micro-multiplication of axillary shoots was mainly used. First, a phased sterilization of was carried out using liquid soap, Previkur fungicide and mercury (II) chloride. DKW (Driver and Kuniyuki Walnut) nutrient medium was used for germination of explants, into which growth stimulants BAP (Benzilamunapurine), IBA (Indole - 3 butyric acid), IAA (Indole Acetic acid), NAA (Naphthalene Acetic Acid) and GA3 (Gibberelic acid) were introduced in various combinations and quantities. The test of the above-mentioned sterilization model revealed significant shortcomings in terms of the acceptability of the results obtained (16-77%). It was also found that the germination of explants takes 14 days and it is better to conduct it in a DKW environment containing hormones BAP (0.6 mg), IBA (0.1 mg) and GA3 (0.1 mg) / 1 L DKW. A mixture of BAP (0.1mg) + IBA (0.35 mg) is more suitable for the reproduction of grown explants + GA3 (0.2 mg) / 1 l DKW (the result is 3 new micro-plants for each explant), and for good root formation (it takes 30 days) – a mixture of IBA 1.0 mg + NAA 0.5 mg + IAA 0.5 mg / l L DKW. After the shoots have acquired a certain length (at least 1.5 cm), it is required to transfer them for 22 days to a DKW medium containing IBA (1 mg), IAA (0.5 mg) and NAA(0.5 mg) / l L DKW so that the root splitting process begins and ends.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about major changes in our world and has accelerated the progress of the job market. This presents both a challenging and exciting prospect for the workforce in the future, particularly in 2030 and beyond. Through thorough literature reviews, this paper navigates the constantly changing landscape of education and employment. It specifically focuses on the importance of preparing students for the jobs of the future by fostering skills such as adaptability, critical thinking, empathy, integrity, optimism, proactivity, and resilience. The pandemic has accelerated the need for online learning and remote work skills, which are now essential for future success. Through observations, the paper also examines the pulse of the situation in Iligan City, Philippines, where aligning educational institutions with the changing job market is crucial. Overall, this paper has significant implications for educational reforms and real-world challenges, creating a guide for institutions to empower students and contribute to the city's economic growth. Significant information suggests that in a constantly evolving world, those who are prepared, adaptable, and equipped with the skills to shape the future will succeed. Iligan City is well-aware that it needs to position itself to play a pivotal role in this journey.

Irrigation and debridement using an irrigation solution is a fundamental step during the surgi-cal treatment of both acute and chronic periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). However, there is no consensus on the optimal solution, nor is there sufficient evidence on optimal irrigation time and combination of solutions. Therefore, it is necessary to determine which solution or combi-nation of solutions is most efficacious against biofilm, as well as the optimal irrigation time. We conducted an experimental in vitro model by inoculating stainless steel discs with ATCC strains of methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant S. aureus, Pseudomonas aeru-ginosa, and a clinical strain of Staphylococcus epidermidis. The discs were all irrigated with com-monly used antiseptic solutions (10% and 3% povidone iodine, hydrogen peroxide, 3% acetic ac-id, and Bactisure™) for 1 min, 3 min, and 5 min and their combinations for 9 min (3 min each) vs. sterile saline as a positive control. We evaluated the reduction in biofilm based on colony form-ing unit (cfu) counts and, in combination assays, also based on cell viability and scanning elec-tron microscopy. All antiseptics alone reduced more than 90% of cfu counts after 1 min of irriga-tion; the worst results were for hydrogen peroxide and 3% acetic acid. When solutions were combined, the best results were observed for all those starting with acetic acid, in terms of both reduction of log cfu/ml counts and viable cells. We consider that a combination of antiseptic so-lutions, particularly that comprising the sequence acetic acid+povidone iodine+hydrogen per-oxide, would be the best option for chemical debridement during PJI surgery.

We aimed to investigate the clinical results following poor-quality embryo transfer and the parameters to foresee the prognosis. In this study, 2123 cycles that had day 3 and day 5 single-fresh embryo with a poor-quality embryo transfers and a good-quality embryo transfers were compared. The cycles according to transfer day were evaluated by conducting a subgroup analysis. The correlation between all the obtained demographic characteristics, controlled ovarian stimulation parameters and cycle results were analysed. Clinical pregnancy was established in 53 patients that underwent transfer in the poor-quality embryo group (14.9%). Of these patients, 36 had live birth (live birth rate per clinical pregnancy 67.9%). In cleavage-stage embryos, live birth rates per clinical pregnancy were higher in poor-quality blastocyst transfer. When analysing the factors affecting live births in poor-quality embryo group, as the total gonadotropin dose increases, the probability of live birth decreases, as in the probability of hCG positivity. In conclusion; although the probability of pregnant is low, when clinical pregnancy is established, there is a high chance of having a live birth after poor-quality embryo transfers. This could be regarded as an acceptable option in cycles when only poor-quality embryos were available.

We investigate numerically the interactions of in-phase Airy beams modulated by a fundamental Gaussian beam and fourth-order diffraction in Kerr nonlinear media. Directly numerical simulations show that normal (anomalous) fourth-order diffractions and in-phase (out-of-phase) Gaussian beam affect the interactions of solitons generated from Airy beams in unique manners. Different from previous results that interactions between in-phase (out-of-phase) conventional beams are always attractive (repulsive), many anomalous interactions of Airy beams are obtained. Stable bound states of breathing Airy soliton pairs can be formed with the help of fourth-order diffraction and fundamental Gaussian beam.

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed a significant threat to society in recent times, endangering human health, life, and economic well-being. The disease spreads quickly due to the highly infectious SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has undergone numerous mutations. Despite intense research efforts by the scientific community since its emergence in 2019, no effective therapeutics have been discovered yet. While some repurposed drugs have been used to control the global outbreak and save lives, none have proven universally effective, particularly for severely infected patients. Although the spread of the disease is generally under control, anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents are still needed to combat current and future infections. This study reviews some of the most promising repurposed drugs containing indolyl heterocycle, which is an essential scaffold of many alkaloids with diverse bio-properties in various biological fields. The study also discusses natural and synthetic indole-containing compounds with anti-SARS-CoV-2 properties, as well as computer-aided drug design (in-silico studies) for optimizing anti-SARS-CoV-2 hits/leads.

This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic roles of various immunohistochemical markers in urothelial carcinoma in situ (uCIS) through a meta-analysis and review of diagnostic test accuracy. Immunohistochemical markers CK20, CD44, AMACR, and p53 were evaluated in the present study. We analyzed the expression rates of immunohistochemical markers and compared their diagnostic accuracies. The estimated expression rates were 0.803 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.726–0.862), 0.142 (95% CI: 0.033–0.449), 0.824 (95% CI: 0.720–0.895), and 0.600 (95% CI: 0.510–0.683) for CK20, CD44, AMACR, and p53, respectively. In the comparison between uCIS and reactive/normal urothelium, the expression of CK20, AMACR, and p53 in uCIS was significantly higher than in reactive/normal urothelium. CD44 showed significantly lower expression in uCIS than in the reactive/normal urothelium. Among the markers, AMACR had the highest sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratio. The AUC on SROC was the highest for CK20. In conclusion, immunohistochemical markers, such as CK20, CD44, AMACR, and p53, can be useful in differentiating uCIS from reactive/normal urothelium.

In this study, four experimental treatments were evaluated: (T1) alfalfa hay + concentrate, (50:50%, DM); (T2) alfalfa hay + Leucaena leucocephala + concentrate, (30:20:50%, DM); (T3) alfalfa hay + prickly pear + concentrate, (30:20:50%, DM); and (T4) alfalfa hay + Leucaena leucocephala + prickly pear + concentrate, (30:10:10:50%, DM). NH3-N concentrations in T2 and T4 decreased when replaced alfalfa hay in 20 and 10 %, respectively. Treatments did not affect the concentration of total volatile fatty acids (TVFA) between T3 and T4 (p>0.05); while the concentrations among T1 and T2 were different (P<0.05). T2 showed a reduction of 25.5 % in the methane production when compared to T1(p < 0.05).The lowest concentrations of protozoa were observed in T2 and T4, which contained Leucaena leucocephala (T2) and Leucaena leucocephala + prickly pear (T4) (p<0.05). The highest concentration of total methanogens was recorded in T1 and were different to T2, T3 and T4 (p<0.05). Leucaena leucocephala at a inclusion percentage of 20 % decreased the methane when compared to T1; whereas prickly pear there was not a positive effect the methane production.

During embryo development, the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) acts as an important site for protein biosynthesis, however, in vitro culture (IVC) can negatively affect ER homeostasis. Thereby, the aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of supplementation of tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA), an ER stress inhibitor, in the IVC of bovine embryos. Two experiments were carried out: Exp. 1: evaluation of blastocyst rate, hatching kinetics and gene expression of hatched embryos after being treated with different concentrations of TUDCA (50, 200 or 1,000 μM) in the IVC; Exp. 2: evaluation of the re-expansion, hatching, and gene expression of hatched embryos previously treated with 200 µM of TUDCA at IVC and submitted to vitrification. There was no increase in the blastocyst and hatched blastocyst rates treated with TUDCA in the IVC. However, embryos submitted to vitrification after treatment with 200 µM of TUDCA, increased hatching rate post-warming, together with a down-regulation in the expression of ER stress-related genes and the accumulation of lipids. In conclusion, this work showed that the addition of TUDCA during in vitro culture can improve the cryotolerance of the bovine blastocyst through the putative modulation of ER and oxidative stress.

Keywords: Kenaf; liquid cultivation; solid cultivation; in vitro propagation, life on land

Coffee is not only a delicious beverage but also an important dietary source of natural antioxidants. We live in an oxidative world where it is impossible to avoid pollution, stress, food additives, radiation, and other sources of oxidants that eventually lead to severe health disorders. Fortunately, there are chemicals in our diet that counteract the hazards posed by the reactive species that trigger oxidative stress. They are usually referred to as antioxidants; some of them can be versatile compounds that exert such a role in various ways. This review summarizes, from a chemical point of view, the antioxidant effects of relevant molecules found in coffee. Their ways of action and trends in activity are analyzed, considering the data gathered so far from both theory and experiments. The influence of the media and pH in aqueous solution, and structure-activity relationships are discussed. The protective role of the explored compounds is examined. A particular section is devoted to derivatives of some coffee components, and another one to their bioactivity. The data used in the analysis come from theoretical anc computational protocols, which have been proven to be very usefull in this context. Hopefully, the information provided here will promote further investigations into the amazing chemistry contained in our morning cup.

Coffee is not only a delicious beverage but also an important dietary source of natural antioxidants. We live in an oxidative world where it is impossible to avoid pollution, stress, food additives, radiation, and other sources of oxidants that eventually lead to severe health disorders. Fortunately, there are chemicals in our diet that counteract the hazards posed by the reactive species that trigger oxidative stress. They are usually referred to as antioxidants; some of them can be versatile compounds that exert such a role in various ways. This review summarizes, from a chemical point of view, the antioxidant effects of relevant molecules found in coffee. Their ways of action and trends in activity are analyzed, considering the data gathered so far from both theory and experiments. The influence of the media and pH in aqueous solution, and structure-activity relationships are discussed. The protective role of the explored compounds is examined. A particular section is devoted to derivatives of some coffee components, and another one to their bioactivity. Hopefully, the information provided here will promote further investigations into the amazing chemistry contained in our morning cup.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is an opportunistic pathogen and is the leading cause of infection in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). The ability of P. aeruginosa to evade host responses and develop into chronic infection causes significant morbidity and mortality. Several mouse models have been developed to study chronic respiratory infections induced by P. aeruginosa, with the bead agar model being the most widely used. However, this model has several limitations, including the requirement for surgical procedures and high mortality rates. Herein, we describe novel and adapted biologically relevant models of chronic lung infection caused by P. aeruginosa. Three methods are described, a clinical isolate infection model, utilizing isolates obtained from patients with CF, an incomplete antibiotic clearance model, leading to bacterial bounce-back and the establishment of chronic infection, and an adapted water bottle chronic infection model. These models circumvent the requirement for surgical procedure and importantly, can be induced with clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa and in wild-type mice. We also demonstrate successful induction of chronic infection in the transgenic βENaC murine model of CF. We envisage that the models described will facilitate the investigations of host and microbial factors, and the efficacy of novel antimicrobials, during chronic P. aeruginosa respiratory infections.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading infectious disease with serious antibiotic resistance. The benzothiazinone (BTZ) scaffold PBTZ169, an inhibitor of the decaprenylphosphoryl-β-D-ribose 2'-oxidase (DprE1) in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), showed anti-TB potential in animal model and piloted clinical tests. Although highly potent, the BTZ type DprE1 inhibitors in general shows extremely low aqueous solubility, which adversely affect the drug like property. To improve the compounds physiochemical properties, we generated a series of BTZ analogues. Several optimized compounds had MIC values against Mtb in single digit nanomolar. The representative compound 37 displayed improved solubility and bioavailability compared to the lead compound. Additionally, compound 37 shows Mtb-killing ability in an acute infection mouse model.

The objective of this pilot study was to compare glucose concentrations in capillary blood (CB) samples analysed in a laboratory by a validated method and glucose concentrations measured in the interstitial fluid (ISF) by continuous glucose monitoring under different physical activity levels in a postprandial state in healthy and active subjects without diabetes. Ten healthy, active subjects (26±4 years, 67±11 kg bodyweight (BW), 11±3 h) were included in the study. Within 14 days, they underwent six tests consisting of a) resting fasted (R/Fast), b) resting after intake of 1 g glucose/kg BW (R/Glc) and c) running for 60 minutes at moderate (65/Glc) and d) high (85/Glc) intensity after intake of 1 g glucose/kg BW. Data were collected in the morning, following a standardised dinner before test day. Sensor-based glucose concentrations were compared to simultaneous capillary blood glucose concentrations. Pearson’s r correlation coefficient was highest for R/Glc (.92, p<.001) compared to R/Fast (.45, p<.001), 65/Glc (.60, p<.001) and 85/Glc (.70, p<.001). Mean absolute relative deviation (MARD) and standard deviation (SD) was smallest for resting fasted and similar between all other conditions (R/Fast: 8±6%, R/Glc: 17±12%, 65/Glc: 22 ± 24%, 85/Glc: 18±17%). However, Bland-Altman plot analysis showed a higher range between lower and upper limits of agreement (95% confidence interval) of paired data under exercising compared to resting conditions. Under resting fasted conditions, both methods produce similar outcomes. Under resting postprandial and exercising conditions, respectively, there are differences between both methods. However, further data in healthy subjects need to be gathered considering physical activity and nutrition status.

With permafrost degenerating caused by climate change, water accumulation increases in permafrost regions during last decades. Water accumulation will deteriorate existing status of engineering in cold regions. Water accumulation can make a thermal effect on permafrost under construction, even result in failure of the subgrade. Moreover, the thermal effect is related to water temperature. However, temperature variation of water accumulation is complex, and its influence factors include air temperature, environment, scope of water accumulation and so on. In order to make analysis of the damage mechanism of water accumulation on permafrost, it is necessary to explore the internal temperature change of water accumulation. This paper proposes a review about temperature calculation method of water accumulation in cold environment. The thermal calculation method between air and water boundary of water accumulation is summarized. Water temperature change of water accumulation with various type is analyzed. The thermal calculation considering phase transformation in water accumulation is discussed, and heat transfer from the bottom of water accumulation to the underlying soil is further studied. Finally, the key factors which are advantageous to make research about the thermal effect of water accumulation in permafrost is proposed to optimize calculation method.

This study examines whether and how carbon trading policy impacts the financialization of non-financial firms, using China emission trading scheme as a natural experiment. We show that the carbon trading policy has effectively long-term inhibitory effect on corporate financialization. Our findings are robust to possible result bias and more precise control group. In addition, we explore potential channels through which carbon trading policy can affect financialization, and find that it contributes to curb financialization by reducing financing constraints. Finally, we show that the relationship between carbon trading policy and financialization of non-financial companies is moderated by company’s ownership, region and industry competition.

Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) is an obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen known to cause trachoma, sexually transmitted infections, and reactive arthritis. The more serious sequelae of these diseases, blindness from trachoma and pelvic inflammatory disease from chlamydial STD are immunopathological responses to chronic infections. With the abundance of dendritic cells in CT infection sites and their central importance in immune regulation, the susceptibility of dendritic cells to CT infection was investigated in vitro. CT (serovar F) was grown and extracted from HeLa 229 cells for infection of human dendritic cells (DCs). Human DCs were generated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells in the presence of GM-CSF and IL-4. Infected DCs were harvested at 0, 4, 24, and 48 h after infection and immunostained. Results from fluorescence microscopy showed that DC can be infected and can support the growth of CT in vitro. Intracellular elementary and reticulate bodies of CT were detected, and reticulate bodies were shown to multiply over the 48 h-cycle in DC. At 48 h, intracellular elementary bodies were detected in some DCs. These results may provide new insights into the possible participation of DC in sustaining chronic or latent infection, or even dissemination of CT infection to other sites.

Simulation-based education is a part of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) education. The paper discusses the experimental success of using Virtual Reality (VR) technology in simulation-based ITS education to improve the quality of education while increasing immersion and motivation. The study documents the application of VR technology to a microscopic simulation model and the methodology to capture and evaluate student experiences. The study discusses findings and ways to improve the planned VR technology implementation in the ITS laboratory.

Sea surface salinity (SSS) is one of the Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) as defined by the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS). Acquiring high-quality SSS datasets with high spatial-temporal resolution is cruicial for research on the hydrological cycle and earth climate. This study assessed the quality of SSS data provided by four high-resolution ocean reanalysis products, including the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) 1/12° global reanalysis, the The Copernicus Global 1/12° Oceanic and Sea Ice GLORYS12 Reanal-ysis, the Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) reanalysis, the ECMWF Oceanic Reanalysis System 5 (ORAS5) product and the Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean Phase II (ECCO2) reanalysis. Regional comparison in the Mediterranean Sea shows that reanalysis largely depicts the accurate spatial SSS structure away from river mouths and coastal areas but slightly underestimates the mean SSS values. Better SSS reanalysis performance is found in the Levantine Sea while larger SSS uncertainties are found in the Adriatic Sea and the Aegean Sea. The global comparison with CMEMS level-4 (L4) SSS show generally con-sistent large-scale structures. The mean ΔSSS between monthly gridded reanalysis data and in situ analyzed data is -0.1 PSU in the open seas between 40°S and 40°N with the mean Root Mean Square Deviation (RMSD) generally smaller than 0.3 PSU and the majority of correlation coefficients higher than 0.5. Comparison with collocated buoy salinity shows that reanalysis products well captures the SSS variations at the locations of tropical moored buoy arrays at weekly scale. Among all the four products, the data quality of HYCOM re-analysis SSS is highest in marginal sea, GLORYS12 has the best performance in the global ocean especially in tropical regions. Comparatively, ECCO2 has the overall worst performance to reproduce SSS states and variations by showing the largest discrepancies with CMEMS L4 SSS.

Imaginary dimensions in physics require an imaginary set of base Planck units and some negative parameter $c_n$ corresponding to the speed of light in vacuum $c$. Fresnel coefficients for the normal incidence of electromagnetic radiation on monolayer graphene introduce the second, negative fine-structure constant $\alpha_2^{-1} \approx -140.178$ as a fundamental constant of nature and this constant introduces these imaginary base Planck units along with this negative parameter $c_n \approx -3.06 \times 10^8~\text{[m/s]}$. Neutron stars and white dwarfs, considered as \emph{objects} emitting perfect black-body radiation, are conjectured to possess energy exceeding their mass-energy equivalence ratios, wherein the imaginary parts of two complex energies inaccessible for direct observation make storing excess of these energies possible. With this assumption, black holes are fundamentally uncharged; charged micro neutron stars and white dwarfs with masses lower than $5.7275 \times 10^{-10}~[\text{kg}]$ cannot be observed; and the radii of white dwarfs' cores are limited to $R_{WD} < 6.7933~G M_{WD}/c^2$, where $M_{WD}$ is a white dwarf mass. This sets the bounds on charged blackbody objects' minimum masses and maximum radii.

Over the last decade, Psidium guajava L. (guava) leaves have demonstrated their in vitro and in vivo effect against Diabetes mellitus (DM). However, there is a lack of literature concerning the effect of the individual phenolic compounds present in the leaves in DM disease. For this reason, the aim of the present work was the in silico evaluation of each phenolic compound. The identification of an 80% ethanol extract of guava leaves revealed the presence of 73 compounds. The in silico study carried out with the DIA-DB web server revealed that aldose reductase was the target protein with heterogeneous affinity. Naringenin exhibited the highest number of interactions with target proteins, and compounds like catechin, quercetin, naringenin and morin displayed similarities with known antidiabetic drugs. In conclusion, the computational workflow showed that guava leaves contain several compounds that can play a therapeutic role in the treatment of DM.

The poor success rate of preclinical drugs which target the nervous system is related to the highly complex nature of brain physiology and pathophysiology. For in vitro drug screening in this field, the two-dimensional (2D) approach - where cells are incubated in a monolayer - is not physiologically relevant. In contrast, in vivo rodent models are very low throughput and expensive. As such, improved, well-characterised three dimensional (3D) in vitro models should be employed to bridge the gap between 2D in vitro primary screening and rodent models by incorporating aspects of the in vivo brain environment. These key features include the extracellular matrix (ECM) and a multidimensional relationship of supporting cells. In this study, a neural progenitor cell line was differentiated into the main types of cells found in brain, including neurons and astrocytes. This model was designed in a 3D extracellular matrix replacement in a minimalised manner. Different culture formats using multi-well plates were explored and a high-throughput cellular imaging platform was applied. Next, we applied this model to assess neural toxicity of a newly synthesised dual-specificity tyrosine-regulated kinase 1 (DYRK1) inhibitor derived from natural compounds, which is structurally related to a natural DYRK1A inhibitor harmine, K04179. Chemical studies have already shown that K04179 has higher specificity to DYRK1A compared with previously reported DYRK1 inhibitors, such as INDY. We have produced the first report of the biological effects of this new compound on the new 3D minimalised mid-brain model with quantification of both neuronal and astrocyte populations in tandem, revealing differential toxic effects of DYRK1 inhibitor compounds K04179 and INDY on neurons and glia.

Breaking up prolonged sitting by short bouts of light physical activities including standing and walking has been shown to be beneficial for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D). This paper presents the development of an android mobile app to deliver a just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) to reduce sedentary time in people with T2D. A total of six design workshops were conducted with seven experts to identify design requirements, a behavioural framework, and required contextual adaptations for the development of a bespoke mobile app (iMOVE). Moreover, a focus group was conducted among people with T2D as potential end-users (N=10) to ascertain their perceptions of the app. Feedback from the focus group was used in subsequent iterations of the iMOVE app. Data were analysed using an inductive qualitative thematic analysis. Based on workshops, key features of iMOVE were developed, including simplicity (e.g., navigation, login), colours and font sizes, push notifications, messaging algorithms and a triggering system for breaking up sitting time and moving more. Based on the user testing results, a goal setting tab was added, font sizes were made larger, the brightness of colours was reduced, and a colour indicator was used to indicate device connectivity with an activity tracker. A user-centric app was developed to support people with T2D to transition from sedentary to active lifestyles.

Background: While mankind is still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, on May 7, 2022, a case of monkeypox virus (MPXV) has been reported to the WHO. Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease with characteristics comparable to those seen in smallpox cases in the past. It has been a public health threat, particularly in Africa, but recently have been circulating the world, consequently, may become a global public health threat in a very short period. Thus, the current work was planned and then constructed a multi-epitope vaccine that can evoke an immunological response against MPXV utilizing cell surface-binding protein as a target in order to develop a novel vaccine that is both safe and almost free of side effects. Results: The proposed vaccine composed of 304 amino acids and was shown to be antigenic in Vaxijen server (0. 5311) and nonallergenic in AllerTop server. The 3D structure of the designed vaccine is predicted, refined and validated by various in silico tools to assess the stability of the vaccine. Moreover, solubility of the vaccine construct was found greater than the average solubility provided by protein-Sol server indicating the solubility of the vaccine construct. Moreover, the most promising epitopes bound to MHC I and MHC II alleles were found having good binding affinities with low energies ranging between ₋7.0 - ₋8.1kcal/mol. Conclusion: We conclude from our research that the cell surface-binding protein is one of the primary proteins involved in MPXV pathogenesis. The most promising epitopes were selected using a rigorous procedure and used for vaccine design. As a result, our study will aid in the development of appropriate therapeutics and prompt the development of future vaccines against MPXV, which could serve as an important milestone in the production of an antiviral vaccine against MPXV.

To explore a new set of anticancer agents, a novel series of pyrazolo[4,3-e]pyrido[1,2-a]pyrimidine derivatives 7a-l have been designed and synthesized via cyclocondensation reactions of pyrazolo-enaminone 5 with a series of arylidene malononitriles; compound 5 was obtained from 5-amino-4-cyanopyrazole (3). The structures of the target compounds 7a-l were investigated by spectral techniques and elemental analysis (IR, UV-Vis, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and ESI-MS). All compounds were evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxicity employing a panel of different human tumor cell lines, A375, HT29, MCF7, A2780, FaDu as well as non-malignant NIH 3T3 and HEK293 cells. It has been found that the conjugate 7e was the most active towards many cell lines with EC50 values ranging between 9.1 and 13.5 µM, respectively. Moreover, in silico docking studies of 7e with six anticancer drug targets, i.e. DHFR, VEGFR2, HER-2/neu, hCA-IX, CDK6 and LOX also was performed, in order to gain some insights into their putative mode of binding interaction and to estimate the free binding energy of this bioactive molecule.

Inorganic nanoparticles are utilized for therapeutic, diagnostic, or in combination, theranostic purposes. The latter involves simultaneous sensing, imaging, or tracking of drug delivery. Furthermore, these nanoparticles can differ in their morphologies, which affect outcomes such as the effectiveness of hyperthermia, induction, drug loading, circulation time by escaping the body's immune system, imaging modality clarity, and biosensing. However, design of these theranostics is limited by the lack of a method to predict their therapeutic efficacy. Herein, we report a simple and novel computational approach via algebraic and geometric calculations of surface area (SA) to volume (V) ratios (SA:V) which can help predict the efficacy of the inorganic nanoparticles of the investigated morphologies. The approach comprises a coding platform for the program and uses Python 3 on a Windows 10 operating system. Analyses of 29 polyhedral morphologies that inorganic nanoparticles could assume ex silico showed that only particular concave and convex morphologies in this size regime are more productive over the standard sizes as well as a few noted in literature for baseline comparison. Our results provide a method that can aid in predicting the efficacy of inorganic nanoparticles with certain morphology giving rise to their fundamental basis and eventual implementation ex silico.

The extrusion of food for human and animal consumption is a unit operation that includes mixing, shearing and force to the materials related to the rheological properties of the materials in the extruder. The present work aims to study the rheological behavior of an extruded fish diet incorporating hydrolyzed protein flour processed by extrusion. The measurement was carried out online with a slit die rheometer, defining the rheological models and parameters that fit the process. During the extrusion process, the raw materials used were hydrolyzed protein meal, fish meal and cassava starch. For the results, the evaluated treatments were adjusted to the Power Law, where an increase in the shear rate decreases the viscosity of the material, corresponding to a pseudoplastic behavior. The incorporation of hydrolyzed protein flour presented a significant effect on the value of n and Klp, increasing the viscosity with the increase in the percentage of inclusion of HPH. The models obtained for the prediction of the viscosity are adjusted to the changes in shear rate, temperature and humidity of the system.

Personalization, mobility, artificial intelligence, corporate life transferred to the world in social media - all these elements will shape corporate social media in the near future. It is necessary to consider what features and what standards of behaviour enterprises will have to meet in order to build an image in the world of social media and adapt to the preferences and requirements of the client. Corporate social media has been created to support clients in using various services, give them the possibility of easy communication without time and place barriers. Therefore, high-quality corporate social media profiles significantly affect trust in the company and can affect its reputation. Considering that the aim of the article is to examine the impact of social media on the image of the company, various exchanges of perception of the quality of corporate social media, the risks they bring for the company and the perception of them by customers, which gives the image, were examined. The results of empirical research indicate that the secu-rity, simplicity and variety of m-banking services have a significant impact on the perceived qu-ality, which in turn has a positive impact on reputation. The author proposed a methodology based on the Kano model and customer satisfaction in order to examine the declared needs and unspecified desires and divide them into different groups with different impact on consumer satisfaction. The study took the form of an original, universal questionnaire that can be used in other similar studies. The analysis included 861 correctly completed questionnaires, and the ob-tained results were included in the management's action plans after their submission. Enterpri-ses expressed their interest that the measures taken should be reviewed after one to two years.

Globally, there are 1.35 million road fatalities every year, which are estimated to cost governments approximately US$ 518 billion, making road fatalities the 8th leading cause of death across all age groups and the leading cause of death of children and young adults. In South Africa, despite tremendous governmental efforts to curb the soaring trajectory of road accidents, the annual number of road fatalities has increased by 26% in recent years. By fitting a structural equation model (SEM) and a GARCH Model (Generalized Auto-Regressive Conditional Heteroskedastic-ity) to analyze and predict future trend of road accidents (number of road accidents, number of casualties, number of fatal crashes and number of persons killed) in South Africa, we propose and test a complex metamodel that integrates multiple causality relationships. We show an increasing trend of road accidents over time, a trend that is predictable by number of vehicles in the country, the population of the country and the total distance travelled by vehicles. We further show that death rate linked to road accidents is on average 23.14 deaths per 100,000 persons and is pre-dictable following the equation: y = -0.0114x2+1.2378x-2.2627 (R2=0.76) with y = death rate and x = year. Finally, in the next decade, the number of road accidents is predicted to be roughly constant at 617,253 accidents but can reach 1 896 667 accidents in the worst-case scenario. The number of casualties was also predicted to be roughly constant at 93 531 over time, although this number may reach 661 531 in the worst-case scenario. However, although the number of fatal crashes may decrease in the next decade, it is forecasted to reach 11 241 within the next 10 years with the worse scenario estimated at 19 034 within the same period. At the same time, the number of persons killed in fatal crashes is also predicted to be roughly constant at 14 739 but may also reach 172 784 in the worse scenario. Overall, the present study reveals perhaps the positive effects of government initiatives to curb road accidents and their consequences; we call for more stronger actions for a drastic reduction in road accident events in South Africa.

Conditional generative adversarial networks (CGANs) learn a mapping from conditional input to observed image and perform tasks in image generation, manipulation and translation. In-situ monitoring uses sensors to obtain real-time information of additive manufacturing (AM) processes that relate to process stability and part quality. Understanding the correlations between process inputs and in-situ process signatures through machine learning can enable experimental-driven predictions of future process inputs. In this research, in-situ data obtained during a metallic powder bed fusion AM process is mapped with a CGAN. A single build of two turbine blades is monitored using EOSTATE Exposure OT, a near-infrared optical tomography system of the EOS M290 system. Layerwise images generated from the in-situ monitoring system were paired with a conditional image that labeled the specimen cross-section, laser-scan stripe overlap and z-distance to part surfaces. A CGAN was trained using the turbine blade data set and employed to generate new in-situ layerwise images for unseen conditional inputs.

The majority of skin cancers are caused by over exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The effects of UV radiation on the expression of drug transporters expressed in human skin has never been studied. In this the effects of UVA and UVB irradiation on the expression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters and Solute carrier (SLC) transporters was evaluated in normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK) and normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDF) in primary culture. First experiments were intended to validate the inflammatory reaction in response to stimulation by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in NHEK, NHDF and 3D-reconstructed human epidermis (3D-RHE) model. LPS treatment has shown to increase the expression of IL-8 and TNF-alpha in all three in vitro models. Expression of the most expressed ABC and SLC transporters was then measured in NHEK and NHDF after UVA (30 J/m²) and UVB (40 mJ/m²) irradiation. The most striking result was a significant 29-fold increase of the expression of SLCO4A1 in normal human dermal fibroblasts. In summary, this study shows for the first time a significant regulation of the expression of SLCO4A1 in human dermal fibroblasts induced by UVA irradiation. This finding is of particular interest as most of skin cancers are caused by over exposure to ultraviolet radiation and need to be considered in pharmacokinetic evaluation of topical drugs.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was particularly invasive in Italy during the period between March and late April 2020 then decreased in both in the number of infections and in the seriousness of the illness throughout the summer of 2020. In this discussion, we measure the severity of the disease by the ratio of Intensive Care Units (ICU) spaces occupied by COVID-19 patients and the number of Active Cases (AC) each month from April to October 2020. We also use the ratio of the number of Deaths (D) to the number of Active Cases. What clearly emerges, from rigorous statistical analysis, is a progressive decrease in both ratios until August, indicating progressive mitigation of the disease. This is particularly evident when comparing March-April with July-August; during the summer period the two ratios became roughly 18 times lower. We test such sharp decreases against possible bias in counting active cases and we confirm their statistical significance. We then interpret such evidence in terms of the well-known seasonality of the human immune system and the virus-inactivating effect of stronger UV rays in the summer. Both ratios, however, increased again in October as ICU/AC began to increase in September 2020. These ratios and the exponential growth of infections in October indicate that the virus - if not contained by strict measures - will lead to unsustainable challenges for the Italian health system in the winter of 2020-2021 .

We provide a detailed analysis of the electronic properties of graphene-like materials with charge carriers living on a curved substrate, focusing in particular on constant negative-curvature spacetime. An explicit parametrization is also worked out in the remarkable case of Beltrami geometry, with an analytic solution for the pseudoparticles modes living on the curved bidimensional surface. We will then exploit the correspondent massless Dirac description, to determine how it affects the sample local density of states.

The world is currently, subjected to the worst health crisis documented in modern history; an epidemic led by the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). At the epicenter of this crisis, healthcare professionals continue working to safeguard our well-being. To the regular high levels of stress, COVID new heights even more to healthcare professionals so depending on the area, specialty, and type of work. Here we investigated what are the tendencies, or areas most affected. Through an adaptation of the original COVID-stress scale, we developed a remote, fast test designed for healthcare professionals of the Northeastern part of Mexico, an important part of the country with economic and cultural ties to the US. Our results showed 4 key correlations as highly dependent: Work area – Xenophobia (p &lt; 0.045), Work with COVID patients - Traumatic stress (p &lt; 0.001) and Total number of COVID patients per day – Traumatic stress (p &lt; 0.027), and Total number of COVID patients - Compulsive checking and reassurance. Overall concluding that normal levels of stress have increased (mild – moderate). Additionally, we further determine that the fear of being an asymptomatic patient (potential to spread without knowing) continues being a concern.

The silanol activity and trace metal detection methods for chemically bonded silica gels were evaluated in silico. Test compounds with large molecular sizes may demonstrate negative results because of the possibility of indirect hydrogen bonding via short alkyl groups or siloxane of the silica gels. This hypothesis was based on the observation of weak hydrogen bonding energy values similar to those observed in the study of the alkyl group effect on the hydrogen bonding of alkanols. Consequently, smaller molecules may be a better choice for the analysis of bonded-phase quality.

Abstract: The quantitative analysis of the chromatographic behavior of basic compounds was performed in silico. The liquid chromatography (LC) data measured with pentyl-, hexenyl-, and octyl-bonded silica gels were analyzed in silico employing model phases. The main retention force was the van der Waals (VW) interaction, and the main desorption force was an electrostatic (ES) interaction. The contribution of hydrogen bonding (HB) was weak compared to that for acidic compounds. The quantitative explanation was achieved utilizing the calculated VW, HB, and ES energy values obtained from a molecular mechanics program. The electron localization was observed at the molecular interaction-site calculated MOPAC program. This fundamental approach was like that of explaining chemical reactions. The difference was electron localization in chromatography or electron transfer in a chemical reaction.

Natural products comprise a rich reservoir for innovative drug leads and are a constant source of bioactive compounds. To find pharmacological targets for new or already known natural products using modern computer-aided methods is a current endeavor in drug discovery. Nature’s treasures, however, could be used more effectively. Yet, reliable pipelines for large scale target prediction of natural products are still rare. We have developed an in silico workflow consisting of four independent, stand-alone target prediction tools and evaluated its performance on dihydrochalcones (DHCs) – a well-known class of natural products. Thereby, we revealed four previously unreported protein targets for DHCs, namely 5-lipoxygenase, cyclooxygenase-1, 17β- hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 3, and aldo-keto reductase 1C3. Moreover, we provide a thorough strategy on how to perform computational target prediction and guidance on using the respective tools.

Metabolic enzymes are often targeted for drug development programs of metabolic diseases such as diabetes and its complications. Many secondary metabolites isolated from natural products have shown therapeutic action against these enzymes. However, some commercially available synthetic drugs have shown unfriendly impacts with various side effects. Thus, this research has focused on a comprehensive study of secondary metabolites showing better inhibitory activities towards metabolic enzymes such as α-amylase, α-glucosidase, aldose reductase, and lipase. Further receptor-based virtual screening was performed against the various secondary metabolites database designed in-silico. Using Gold combined with subsequent post-docking analyses, the score was obtained as methyl xestospongic ester (Gold score 65.83), 2,″4″-O-diacetylquercitrin (Gold score 65.15), kaempferol-3-O-neohesperidoside (Gold score 53.37) and isosalvianolic acid C methyl ester (Gold score 53.44) for lipase, aldol reductase, α-amylase, and α-glucosidase, respectively. Besides, vitexin and isovitexin for α-amylase; N-trans-Caffeoyl-tyramin for α-glucosidase; purpurolide F and schaftoside for lipase; acteoside and orientin for aldose reductase could be potential drugs for respective enzymes based on in-silico analyses, supported by experimental IC₅₀ values reported. They could bind to the competitive sites of the various targets of metabolic enzymes, and finally, toxicity analysis using ProTox-II was also performed.

Wolbachia are intracellular endosymbionts of several invertebrate taxa, including insects and nematodes. Although Wolbachia DNA has been detected in ticks, its presence is generally associated with parasitism by insects. To determine whether or not Wolbachia can infect and grow in tick cells, cell lines from three tick species, Ixodes scapularis, Ixodes ricinus and Rhipicephalus microplus, were inoculated with Wolbachia strains wStri and wAlbB isolated from mosquito cell lines. Homogenates prepared from fleas collected from cats in Malaysia were inoculated into an I. scapularis cell line. Bacterial growth and identity were monitored by microscopy and PCR amplification and sequencing of fragments of Wolbachia genes. The wStri strain infected Ixodes spp. cells and was maintained through 29 passages. The wAlbB strain successfully infected Ixodes spp. and R. microplus cells and was maintained through 2-5 passages. A novel strain of Wolbachia belonging to the supergroup F, designated wCfeF, was isolated in I. scapularis cells from a pool of Ctenocephalides sp. cat fleas and maintained in vitro through two passages over nine months. This is the first confirmed isolation of a Wolbachia strain from a flea and the first isolation of any Wolbachia strain outside the “pandemic” A and B supergroups. The study demonstrates that tick cells can host multiple Wolbachia strains, and can be added to panels of insect cell lines to improve success rates in isolation of field strains of Wolbachia.

Lack of shock absorption capability of conventional steel bollards causes significant vehicle damage and consequently high repair costs. This research studies a solution to reduce vehicle damage by inserting PLA honeycomb structures. A honeycomb-inserted bollard was designed based on numerical simulations using LS-DYNA, which yielded the bollard designed for actual vehicle-bollard collision experiments. Simulation efforts were focused on calculating the acceleration characteristics when a vehicle collides with steel and honeycomb-inserted bollards. Compared to the simulated steel bollards, 20 MPa yield-strength honeycomb-inserted bollard showed 0.017s delay in the maximum acceleration occurrence time, reduction of the maximum acceleration to 37.4% of that of steel bollards, and 13.1% reduction in the B-pillar maximum acceleration. Actual vehicle-bollard collision experiments, with a gyro-sensor installed at the test vehicle front bumper frame, also proved improved shock absorption characteristics of the honeycomb-inserted bollards. An experiment with honeycomb-inserted bollard showed 0.783s delay in the maximum acceleration occurrence time, a significant delay when compared to steel bollards. The maximum acceleration measured by the gyro-sensor was 0.35m/s2 when the simulation predicted it to be 0.388 m/s2, proving the similarity in the simulations and experiments. Thus, this study of shock absorption characteristics promised reduced damage to vehicles and lower repair cost.

Buildings use 30-40 % of all energy resources and are thus their main consumers in modern society. Moreover, buildings require a vast amount of different raw materials. During the last two decades, several green building certifications have been created in order to consider social, economic and environmental aspects of sustainability of buildings. One of the most famous and widely used of these certifications is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). So far, the use of LEED has concentrated in the US and other developed countries. One reason that restricts the use of this point-based system certification in developing countries is the limited data about its costs. In this study, the extra cost of the certification process will be evaluated besides the changes needed in the design of the building to reach the points required by LEED. At the first stage, the number of points the case study earns in its current format (Scenario 1) were found out, then the cost difference of getting either the Certified (Scenario 2) or Silver (Scenario 3) level LEED certification for the building was studied. It was found that besides some technical considerations, filling the criteria of the Certified and Silver level increases the total costs of construction by 3.4% and 5.9%. Further improvement of the building’s energy efficiency would enable the attainment of a higher-level certification. The results of the study could help to promote the use of green building certifications in Western Asia.

Structure quality of LuFeO3 epitaxial layers grown by pulsed-laser deposition on sapphire substrates with and without platinum interlayers has been investigated by in-situ high-resolution x-ray diffraction (reciprocal-space mapping). The parameters of the structure such as size and misorientation of mosaic blocks have been determined as functions of the thickness of LuFeO3 during the PLD growth and for different platinum interlayers thicknesses up to 40 nm. The x-ray diffraction results combined with ex-situ scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy demonstrate that the Pt interlayer significantly improves the structure of LuFeO3 by reducing the misfit of the LuFeO3 lattice with respect to the material underneath.

We present a high-throughput nanoindentation study of in-situ bending effects on incipient plastic deformation behavior of polycrystalline and single-crystalline pure aluminum and pure copper at ultra-nano depths (<200nm). We find that hardness displays a statistically inverse dependence on in-plane stress for indentation depths smaller than 10nm, and the dependence disappears for larger indentation depths. In addition, plastic noise in the nanoindentation force and displacement displays statistically robust noise features, independently of applied stresses. Our experimental results suggest the existence of a regime in FCC crystals where ultra-nano hardness is sensitive to residual applied stresses, but plasticity pop-in noise is insensitive to it.

There is currently an interest in “active” implantable biomedical devices that include mechanical stimulation as an integral part of their design. This paper reports the experimental use of a porous scaffold made of interconnected networks of slender ferromagnetic fibres that can be actuated in vivo by an external magnetic field applying strains to in-growing cells. Such scaffolds have been previously characterized in terms of their mechanical and cellular responses. In this study, it is shown that the shape changes induced in the scaffolds can be used to promote osteogenesis in vitro. In particular, immunofluorescence, gene and protein analyses reveal that the actuated networks exhibit higher mineralization and extracellular matrix production, and express higher levels of osteocalcin, alkaline phosphatase, collagen type 1a1, runt-related transcription factor 2 and bone morphogenetic protein 2 than the static controls at the 3-week time point. The results suggest that the cells filling the inter-fibre spaces are able to sense and react to the magneto-mechanically induced strains facilitating osteogenic differentiation and maturation. This work provides evidence in support of using this approach to stimulate bone ingrowth around a device implanted in bone and can pave the way for further applications in bone tissue engineering.

The protection of electronics against environmental influences and mechanical loads is important for integration of conventional electronics in textile conductive tapes. For this purpose, the sensors on the tapes are molded with plastic locally. This process step is recognized in the injection molding process. The molding compound is then later selected depending on: The field of application, the parameters of the manufacturing process and the textile tape properties. We have designed a mould for liquid silicone (LSR) as well as for the textile and electronic insertions. The cavities are sealed by a local compression of the textile and the two inserts are positioned with position pins representing the main aspect of the mould design. The sampling tool and the process parameter optimization are mainly based on the material properties of the silicone and the mechanical sensitivity of the inserts. To reduce the deformation of the circuit boards by the melt front and ensuring the functionality of the electronics a low-pressure process is used.

Many scientific and technological problems are studied with the help of computer codes that simulate the phenomena of interest rather than via traditional laboratory experiments. Such models play an important role in neuroscience where they are used to mimic brain function from the sub-cellular to the macroscopic level. Exploration with computer models carries with it a number of statistical challenges: where to sample the input space for the simulator, how to make sense of the data that is generated, how to estimate unknown parameters in the model, how to validate a model. The simulator setting also has some unique problems and possibilities. This review paper describes statistical research on these issues and how that work might be applied to neural simulations.

Detecting cracks in teeth is a clinical challenge. Patients may complain of diffuse pain on chewing, pain, at times, on temperature change and pain that occurs episodically. Common diagnostic tools such as radiographs and visual examination may not detect cracks. This case report shows how PTR-LUM in The Canary System can detect cracks in teeth not seen with other devices. In this clinical situation, the crack involved a portion of the mesial and distal surfaces of a mandibular second molar.

The growing shortage of human resources to manage landscape in the water environment has led to problems concerning preservation of the landscape in Japan. To cultivate people with awareness about preserving the landscape, it is important to understand the process of how a region’s residents develop an attachment toward the water environment in their area. This paper identified factors influencing the attachment of residents toward the Fukushima-gata lagoon, Niigata prefecture, Japan, as a case study while focusing on changes in the lifestyle of the regional residents. The findings are as follows: (1) The target households frequently used Fukushima-gata lagoon for “fishing and for picking edible wild plants” and “gathering reeds to make thatched roofs” before “the reclamation project was carried out by the government in Fukushima-gata lagoon.” They also frequented Fukushima-gata lagoon for “walking and cherry blossom viewing” after “the reclamation project” was implemented. (2) Even the fact that distance from the lagoon to their place of residence increased after the project did not lose their attachment to the lagoon. (3) It was suggested that the project contributed to increase the attachment of regional residents towards Fukushima-gata lagoon because of multiple factors such as “playing in the water,” “livelihood opportunity,” “recreational use,” and so on. (4) Changes in the attachment of regional residents toward Fukushima-gata lagoon before and after the reclamation project was carried out by the government corresponded to “changes in the lifestyle of the local residents” before and after the project.

The issues of metallic scrap management and its utilization in manufacturing plants are nowadays intensely considered to address essential sustainability guidelines. Efficient recycling procedure for shop floor metallic scrap is not yet available because of abundance and contamination of nonmetallic constituents. Other ferrous metallic scrap are melted and purified during secondary steelmaking to get products in the form of blooms and billets are obtained. This study illustrates the potential of powder technology (powder metallurgy (PM) and metal injection molding (MIM)) based process for solid-state recycling and attainment of usable products. Industrially downgraded grinding sludge is pulverized and used as a raw material. Results showed properties of sintered parts are significantly improved due to in-situ reduction and densification during sintering. Recyclability Index (RI) was created to compare the effect of process variables on obtained products. Based on RI, recycled ferrous parts have about 70% comparable properties with equivalent pure iron parts. Complex reduction and sintering behavior in MIM, particularly, diffusion and pore volume kinetics limits applicability of MIM with this recycling approach. However, few industrial parts were developed and manufactured by PM based approach to validate the applicability of this novel recycling-cum-manufacturing process for the production of porous parts.

The apparent metal-insulator transition (MIT) in two-dimension (2D) was discovered by Kravchenko et al. [1] more than two decades ago in strongly interacting 2D electrons residing in a Si-metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (Si-MOSFET). Its origin remains unresolved. Recently, low magnetic field reentrant insulating phases (RIPs), which dwell between the zero-field (B=0) metallic state and the integer quantum Hall (QH) states where the Landau-level filling factor υ > 1, have been observed in strongly correlated 2D GaAs hole systems with large interaction parameter rs (~20-40) and high purity. A new complex phase diagram was proposed, which includes zero field MIT, low magnetic field RIPs, integer QH states, fractional QH states, high field RIPs and insulating phases (HFIPs) with υ < 1 in which the insulating phases are explained by the formation of Wigner crystal. Furthermore, evidences of new intermediate phases were reported. All contribute to the further understandings of the puzzle. This review article serves the purpose of summarizing those recent experimental findings and theoretical endeavors, to foster future research efforts.

We study the resonant dipole-dipole interaction energy between two uniformly accelerated identical atoms, one excited and the other in the ground state, prepared in a correlated Bell-type state, and interacting with the scalar field or the electromagnetic field nearby a perfectly reflecting plate. We suppose the two atoms moving with the same uniform acceleration, parallel to the plane boundary, and that their separation is constant during the motion. We separate the contributions of vacuum fluctuations and radiation reaction field to the resonance energy shift of the two-atom system, and show that Unruh thermal fluctuations do not affect the resonance interaction, which is exclusively related to the radiation reaction field. However, nonthermal effects of acceleration in the radiation-reaction contribution, beyond the Unruh acceleration-temperature equivalence, affect the resonance interaction energy. By considering specific geometric configurations of the two-atom system relative to the plate, we show that the presence of the mirror significantly modifies the resonance interaction energy between the two accelerated atoms. In particular, we find that new and different features appear with respect to the case of atoms in the free space, related to the presence of the boundary and to the peculiar structure of the quantum electromagnetic field vacuum in the locally inertial frame. Our results suggest the possibility to exploit the resonance interaction between accelerated atoms, as a probe for detecting the elusive effects of atomic acceleration on radiative processes.

Axon guidance is a crucial process for growth of the central and peripheral nervous systems. In this study, 3 axon guidance related disorders, namely- Duane Retraction Syndrome (DRS) , Horizontal Gaze Palsy with Progressive Scoliosis (HGPPS) and Congenital fibrosis of the extraocular muscles type 3 (CFEOM3) were studied using various Systems Biology tools to identify the genes and proteins involved with them to get a better idea about the underlying molecular mechanisms including the regulatory mechanisms. Based on the analyses carried out, 7 significant modules have been identified from the PPI network. Five pathways/processes have been found to be significantly associated with DRS, HGPPS and CFEOM3 associated genes. From the PPI network, 3 have been identified as hub proteins- DRD2, UBC and CUL3.

This paper deals with bistatic subsurface probing of a horizontally layered dielectric half-space by means of ultra-wideband electromagnetic pulses. A receiver collects reflections from the air-ground interface and from the gradients of dielectric permittivity in the half-space. This scenario is of interest for ground penetrating radar (GPR) applications. For the analytical description of the received signal, we developed and implemented a novel time-domain version of the coupled-wave Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin approximation. Our solution is in very good agreement with finite-difference time-domain results, radically accelerates calculations, and effectively accounts for the protracted return signals observed in the lower part of the GPR spectrum. The paper includes results showing the application of the proposed technique to two case studies: in particular, the method was employed for the post-processing of experimental radargrams collected on Lake Chebarkul, in Russia, and to simulate GPR probing of the Moon surface, to detect smooth gradients of the dielectric permittivity in lunar regolith.

This paper proposes an innovative mechatronic piezo-actuated module to control vibrations in modern machine tools. Vibrations represent one of the main issues that compromise seriously the quality of the workpiece. The active vibration control (AVC) device is composed by a host part integrated with sensors and actuators synchronized by a regulator, able to make a self-assessment and adjust to the environmental alteration. This study presents the mechatronic model based on the kinematic and dynamic analysis of the AVC device. To ensure a real time performance, a H2-LQG controller has been developed and validated by simulations involving machine tool, PZT actuator and controller models. The Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) architecture is adopted to control and attenuate the vibrations. A set of experimental tests has been performed to validate the AVC module on a commercial machine tool. The feasibility of the real time vibration damping is demonstrated and the simulation accuracy is evaluated.

As the educational landscape evolves, understanding and fostering student adaptability has become increasingly critical. This study presents a comparative analysis of (XAI) techniques to interpret machine learning models aimed at classifying student adaptability levels. Leveraging a robust dataset, we employed several machine learning algorithms with a particular focus on Random Forest, which demonstrated a 91% accuracy. Our study utilizes (SHAP), (LIME), Anchors, (ALE), and counterfactual explanations to reveal the specific contributions of various features impacting adaptability predictions. Consistently, 'Class Duration' and 'Financial Condition' emerge as key factors, while the study also underscores the subtle effects of 'Institution Type' and 'Load-shedding'. This multi-faceted interpretability approach bridges the gap between machine learning performance and educational relevance, presenting a model that not only predicts but also explains the dynamic factors influencing student adaptability. The synthesized insights advocate for educational policies accommodating socioeconomic factors, instructional time, and infrastructure stability to enhance student adaptability. The implications extend to informed and personalized educational interventions, fostering an adaptable learning environment. This methodical research contributes to responsible AI application in education, promoting predictive and interpretable models for equitable and effective educational strategies.

Patients with pT1 high-grade (HG) bladder cancer (BC) and a very high risk of progression might benefit from immediate radical cystectomy (RC), but this option remains controversial. Validation of a standardized method to evaluate the extent of lamina propria (LP) invasion (with recognized prognostic value) in transurethral resections (TURBT) specimens is still needed. The Rete Oncologica Lombarda (ROL) system showed a high predictive value for progression after TURBT in recent retrospective studies. Our aim was to validate ROL system on a large mono-institutional prospective series of primary urothelial carcinomas. From 2016 to 2020, we adopted ROL for all patients with pT1 HG BC on TURBT. We employed a 1.0-mm threshold to stratify tumors in ROL1 and ROL2. A total of 222 pT1HGBC were analyzed. Median age was 74 years, with male predominance (73.8%). ROL was feasible in all cases: 91 cases were ROL1 (41%) and 131 ROL2 (59%). At a median follow up of 26.9 months (IQR 13.8-40.6), we registered 80 recurrences and 40 progressions. ROL was a significant predictor of tumor progression at both univariable (HR 3.53; CI 95% 1.56 – 7.99; p&lt;0.01) and multivariable (HR 2.90; CI 95% 1.25 – 6.75; p=0.01) Cox regression analyses. At Kaplan-Meier estimates, ROL showed correlation with both PFS (p=0.0012) and RFS (p=0.0167). Our results confirmed the strong predictive value of ROL for progression on a large prospective series. We encourage the application of ROL for reporting the extent of LP invasion, substaging T1 HG BC, and improving risk tables for urological decision making.

Background: Obesity among pregnant women is common, and their offspring are predisposed to obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes. Circulating metabolites that are related to insulin resistance and are associated with this decreased tissue-specific uptake are unknown. Here, we assessed metabolite profiles in elderly women and who were either female offspring from obese mothers (OOM) or offspring of lean mothers (OLM). Metabolic changes were tested for associations with metrics for insulin resistance. Methods: 37 elderly women were separated into an elderly offspring from obese mothers (OOM; n = 17) and elderly offspring from lean/normal weight mothers (OLM; n = 20) groups. We measured plasma metabolites using 1H-NMR and also insulin-dependent tissue specific glucose uptake in skeletal muscle were assessed. Associations were made between metabolites and glucose uptake. Results: Compared to the OLM group, we found that the 22:6 docosahexaenoic acid percentage of the total long chain n-3 fatty acids (DHA/FA) was significantly lower in OOM (P = 0.015). DHA/FA associated significantly to skeletal muscle GU (P = 0.031) and M-value in the OLM group only (P = 0.050). Conclusions: DHA/FA is associated with insulin-dependent skeletal muscle glucose uptake and that this association is significantly weakened in the offspring of obese mothers.

In the wake of rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and sensor technologies, a new horizon of possibilities has emerged across diverse sectors. Livestock farming, a domain often sidelined in conventional AI discussions, stands at the cusp of this transformative wave. This paper delves into the profound potential of AI and sensor innovations in reshaping animal welfare in livestock farming, with a pronounced emphasis on a human-centric paradigm. Central to our discourse is the symbiotic interplay between cutting-edge technology and human expertise. While AI and sensor mechanisms offer real-time, comprehensive, and objective insights into animal welfare, it's the farmer's intrinsic knowledge of their livestock and environment that should steer these technological strides. We champion the notion of technology as an enhancer of farmers' innate capabilities, not a substitute. Our manuscript sheds light on: Objective Animal Welfare Indicators: An exhaustive exploration of health, behavioral, and physiological metrics, underscoring AI's prowess in delivering precise, timely, and objective evaluations. Farmer-Centric Approach: A focus on the pivotal role of farmers in the adept adoption and judicious utilization of AI and sensor technologies, coupled with discussions on crafting intuitive, pragmatic, and cost-effective solutions tailored to farmers' distinct needs. Ethical and Social Implications: A discerning scrutiny of the digital metamorphosis in farming, encompassing facets like animal privacy, data safeguarding, responsible AI deployment, and potential technological access disparities. Future Pathways: Advocacy for principled technology design, unambiguous responsible use guidelines, and fair technology access, all echoing the fundamental principles of human-centric computing and analytics. In essence, our paper furnishes pioneering insights at the crossroads of farming, animal welfare, technology, and ethics. It presents a rejuvenated perspective, bridging the chasm between technological advancements and their human beneficiaries, resonating seamlessly with the ethos of the Human-Centric Intelligent Systems journal. This comprehensive analysis thus marks a significant stride in the burgeoning domain of human-centric intelligent systems, especially within the digital livestock farming landscape, fostering a harmonious coexistence of technology, animals, and humans.

The Baisha Murals are a significant part of the world cultural heritage of Lijiang Ancient Town. Among these, the murals in Dabaoji Palace are the largest in scale, best preserved, and most exquisitely painted, integrating elements of Han Buddhism, Taoism, and Tibetan Buddhism, combining traditional painting techniques of the Chinese and the Tibetan, the Naxi and the Bai ethnic groups. They are valuable material for researching the ethnic history, art history, and the history of religions of the Naxi people. This paper focuses on the mural Shakyamuni Buddha Sea Meeting in Dabaoji Palace, analyzing the visual language of the mural based on its painting methods such as the composition of religious figures, scale and proportion, color and line features, and the synergy between murals and architectural space. Interpreting the historical and social context of Lijiang during the Ming Dynasty, this paper explores how the environmental, material, and spiritual dimensions of the Baisha Mural are interconnected to create a realm of mental experiences of Buddhism, elucidating the cultural connotations, aesthetic significance, and historical value of the murals represented through “three religions in one." It reveals the complex interaction between material and spiritual content, real-world and fictional settings in religious art, inspiring contemporary artists to draw inspiration from historical classics and explore the diverse values of cultural heritage.

High-resolution in-situ CT measurements in the (sub-)$\upmu$m range are typically only feasible in synchrotron facilities, as the use of a conventional loading stage in laboratory CTs with a cone beam source does not permit a corresponding geometric magnification. This publication presents a CT system with a novel concept that allows spatial resolutions down to 0.5 $\upmu$m on the one hand, and on the other hand is able to apply loads up to 5 kN in compression and tension direction to the sample during the measurement. This leads to a challenging design of the system with regard to the required precision of the mechanical setup, if measurements close to the theoretically possible magnification can be carried out successfully. The components utilized are presented, along with the requisite considerations and methodologies. It can be demonstrated that the intended specifications with regard to precision and quality are met. Finally, a complex measurement problem in materials science is presented as an illustrative example that demonstrates the potential of the system described.

This narrative review synthesizes findings from empirical studies to explore the factors influencing the adoption of ChatGPT in higher education. The review highlights several critical determinants, both confirmed and debatable, of ChatGPT acceptance among students and educators. Previous studies have predominantly utilized theories such as the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), and the Diffusion of Innovations (DoI) theory. Confirmed factors include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and trust, which significantly predict user attitudes and intentions toward adopting ChatGPT. Perceived usefulness and ease of use are core components influencing adoption positively. However, some factors have shown inconsistent impacts. While generally critical, effort expectancy and facilitating conditions vary based on context. Social influence, demographic characteristics (age, gender), extrinsic motivation, and technology readiness exhibit inconsistent effects, suggesting that intrinsic motivations may be more critical. Data collection primarily used online surveys with structured questionnaires, varying widely in sample sizes from small pilot studies to large-scale surveys and covering diverse academic disciplines. Practical implications suggest enhancing perceived usefulness and ease of use through training and technical support, building trust by addressing privacy concerns, and leveraging social influence to drive adoption. The review underscores the need to refine technology acceptance models to incorporate broader psychological and contextual factors, integrate intrinsic motivation theories, and adopt a systems thinking approach. Addressing limitations such as potential selection bias and the quality and scope of existing studies, future research can develop robust models and provide deeper insights into ChatGPT adoption dynamics in higher education, supporting its effective integration to enhance learning outcomes and foster educational innovation.

Background: Despite tremendous advances in medicine, infective endocarditis (IE) continues to be a challenge for physicians due to increasing morbidity and unchanged high mortality. Objectives: Our aim was to evaluate clinical outcomes in patients with IE and to identify predictors of in-hospital mortality. Material and methods: The study was retrospective, single-centered, and included 270 patients diagnosed with IE, for the period 2005-2021 (median age 65 (51–74), man 177 (65.6%). Results: Native IE (NVIE) was found in 180 (66.7%), prosthetic IE (PVIE) in 88 (33.6%) and cardiac device-related IE (CDRIE) in 2 (0.7%), significantly more in the non-survivors group. Healthcare associated IE (HAIE) was 72 (26.7%), the most common pathogen were Staphylococci and the proportion of Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) non-HACEK were significantly higher in non-survivor’s vs survivors (11 (15%) vs 9 (4.5%), p=0.004). Overall, early surgery was performed in 54 (20%) patients, with a significant difference between deceased/alive (3 (4.5%) vs 51 (25.1%, p=0.000). The all-cause in-hospital mortality rate was 24.8% (67). The risk factors identified that increased the risk of death were septic shock (OR – 83 1; 95% CI (17.0-405.2), p=0.000) and acute heart failure (OR –24.6; 95% CI (9.2-65.0), p=0.000). Early surgery (OR – 0.03, 95% CI (0.01-0.16), p=0.000) and low Charlson comorbidity index (OR – 0.85, 95% CI (0.74-0.98, p=0.026) in turn reduce this risk. Conclusion: We found that acute heart failure and septic shock are independent predictors of in-hospital mortality. Low Charlson comorbidity index and early surgery increased survival. Knowing the predictors of death would change the therapeutic approach to a more aggressive one and improve the near and long-term prognosis of patients with IE.

99mTc is a well-known radionuclide widely used and readily available for medical imaging. Despite this, the 99mTc isotope is rarely utilized for tumour imaging due to the lack of agents that can selectively deliver it to tumours. However, the use of immunologically compatible recombinant proteins, which combine metal-binding sites and tumour-specific ligands, shows promise for utilizing 99mTc in the early detection of tumours. To illustrate this, a protein called E1b, containing a metal binding center with ELP repeats, tumour-specific ligands recognizing integrin αvβ3 and nucleolin, as well as a short Cys-rich sequence, was artificially designed. This protein was produced in E. coli and purified to homogeneity using metal-chelate chromatography. In experiments, C57Bl/6 and Balb/C mice with subcutaneously grafted lung carcinoma (LLC) or mammary gland adenocarcinoma (Ca755, EMT6, or 4T1) were used to test 99mTc-E1b selectivity and the kinetics of isotope retention. The mice were intravenously injected with approximately 80 MBq of 99mTc in complex with E1b, which had been freshly purified using gel-chromatography. The biodistribution of the labeled protein was then studied using the SPECT/CT imaging method within 24 h. The ratio of radionuclide distribution in the tumour versus the adjacent normal tissue (T/N) steadily increased over the 24-h period, reaching 15.7±4.2 for EMT6, 16.5±3.8 for Ca755, 6.7±4.2 for LLC, and 7.5±3.1 for 4T1.

The accelerated development of AI technology has brought about revolutionary changes in various fields of society. Recently, it has been emphasized that Fairness, Accountability, Transparency, Ethics (Explainability) (FATE) should be considered to support the reliability and validity of AI-based decision-making. However, in the case of autonomous driving technology, which is directly related to human life and requires real-time adaptation and response to various changes and risks in the real world, environmental adaptability must be considered in a more comprehensive and converged manner. In order to derive definitive evidence for each object in a convergent autonomous driving environment, it is necessary to transparently collect and provide various types of road environment information for driving objects and driving assistance, and to construct driving technology that is adaptable to various situations by considering all uncertainties in the real-time changing driving environment.This allows unbiased and fair results based on flexible contextual understanding, even in situations that do not conform to rules and patterns, by considering the convergent interactions and dynamic situations of various objects that are possible in a real-time road environment. The transparent, environmentally adaptive, and fairness-based outcomes provide the basis for the decision-making process and support clear interpretation and explainability of decisions. All of these processes enable autonomous vehicles to draw reliable conclusions and take responsibility for their decisions in autonomous driving situations. Therefore, this paper proposes an Adaptability, Fairness, Transparency, Explainability and Accountability (AFTEA) Framework to build a stable and reliable autonomous driving environment in dynamic situations. This paper explains the definition, role, and necessity of AFTEA in artificial intelligence technology and highlights its value when applied and integrated into autonomous driving technology. The AFTEA framework with environmental adaptability will support the establishment of a sustainable autonomous driving environment in dynamic environments, and aims to provide a direction for establishing a stable and reliable AI system that adapts to various real-world scenarios.

Plastics, once regarded as a revolutionary material shaping modern society, now poses an unprecedented threat to our environment. Household solid waste sorting stations produce several fractions, one of which contains a high concentration of Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) film waste (packaging, sunscreen film, etc.). This fraction is difficult to recycle because it contains quite a lot of impurities. Usually, it is sent to the cement factories that burn it together with other fuels. However, with some processing techniques such catalytic pyrolysis this fraction could be valorized. In this paper the experiments which were carried out at a laboratory scale installation, in batches with a processing capacity of 1-3 kg of waste. The pyrolysis reactor is connected to a distillation column giving the possibility to separate the fractions. The gaseous and liquid fractions were characterized by GC-FID-TCD (gases) and GC-MS (liquids) analysis. Natural catalysts such as bentonite or clinoptilolite were studied and used in the melting of plastic mass to simplify the process as much as possible. To test the activity of the catalysts, the pyrolysis of LDPE granules was initially studied. It was found that natural zeolites are much more active than bentonite and that a minimum concentration of 5-10% is needed to have a positive effect on the composition of the fractions (increasing the weight of the light fractions C1-C6, C6-C10 and C11-C13) in relation to the heavy fractions C13-C20 and C20+. Catalytic pyrolysis gives a completely different distribution of light hydrocarbons. The best catalyst selected from LDPE lab experiments, was then tested upon the pyrolysis of plastic film waste obtained by a waste treatment plant. The research objective reported in this paper was to obtain a fraction of combustible gases in the largest possible proportion, which can be much easier exploited by burning in an engine that drives an electric generator.

Background. The minimum wage has become a standard measure in economic and social policies of countries all over the world and it directly or indirectly affects between 20% and 30% of the labour force. The primary objective of this measure is to guarantee that workers receive a minimum wage that allows them to lead a decent life, thereby reducing inequality and poverty. However, studies on the minimum wage have not focused on assessing the effects on these dimensions, but on employment, anticipating a negative effect (in line with the traditional theory of perfect competition), which they have been unable to substantiate. Objectives and Methods. The objective of this study is to address this research gap by analysing the effects of minimum wage increases on income inequality and poverty. To this end, firstly, a systematic review of the empirical analyses was conducted using the PRISMA methodology, with a view to ensuring that all empirical evidence was available. Secondly, the Spanish case was examined. As the significant increase in minimum wage in Spain in 2019 (21,3% in real terms) presents an invaluable opportunity to utilise this event as a natural experiment to generate new evidence, a difference-in-differences approach was employed to assess the impact of this phenomenon. Results. In relation to the first objective, a number of non-exhaustive and outdated literature reviews have been identified, which have been subjected to a critical review. In addition, a total of 31 articles that empirically analysed this relationship in recent years (2020-2024) have been included. The available evidence indicates a clear inverse relationship between the minimum wage and inequalities and poverty. Regarding the Spanish case, there has been a dearth of scientific studies on this subject, particularly in the context of the significant increase observed in 2019, which makes this article of particular relevance. The results are statistically significant, demonstrating an increase of approximately 18% in annual gross income among low-income households, relative to the control group. Furthermore, there is evidence of a spillover effect and a lighthouse effect towards income groups closer to the treatment group. This suggests that the minimum wage increase has a positive impact on the income of workers earning just above the new minimum and even below it. This result is consistent with the existing literature, which shows that minimum wage increases have a positive effect on the income of workers earning slightly above or below the new minimum. Scientific contribution. In doing so, two new basic scientific contributions were made: a systematic, exhaustive, and up-to-date literature review (up to June 2024), as there is, to our knowledge, no recent systematic review of this relationship (minimum wage vs. inequality). Then, the introduction of new scientific evidence demonstrating that a significant increase in the minimum wage can significantly improve the income of low-wage earners without the adverse effects that would otherwise disrupt this positive effect, thereby reducing income inequality and poverty. As a limitation of the study, it would be desirable to delve deeper into other aspects not analysed here, such as the effects on productivity and consumption. Furthermore, it has not been possible to analyse the medium and long-term effects, due to data limitations. Nevertheless, there is evidence that inequality and poverty are on a downward path.

Nitrogen oxides (NOx), pivotal atmospheric pollutants, significantly imperil the environment and human health. The CH4-SCR process, leveraging the abundant and accessible methane (CH4), emerges as a promising avenue for NOx abatement. Previous studies have demonstrated that zeolite support with twelve-membered ring (12-MR) and five-membered ring (5-MR) structures are susceptible to framework collapse in the presence of water, leading to catalyst deactivation. Consequently, there is a necessity to explore novel zeolites with enhanced hydrothermal stability for application in CH4-SCR processes. This research introduced for the first time an investigation into a novel In-H-SSZ-39 catalyst, synthesized via ion exchange and meticulously optimized for preparation conditions, including calcination temperature, In ions concentraiton, and reaction conditions, including CH4/NO ratio, O2 concentration, water vapor content, and Gas hourly space velocity (GHSV). Notably, the In/H-SSZ-39 catalyst achieved superior performance of 42.1% at 605 °C, with a calcination temperature of 500 °C and an In ion concentration of 0.066 M, under CH4/NO ratio of 1.5:1, 10% O2, and GHSV of 21000 h-1. In addition, the catalytic performance was influenced by the concentration of water vapor and the GHSV value.

Generating executable code from natural language instructions using Large Language Models (LLMs) poses challenges such as semantic ambiguity and understanding task- specific contexts. To address these issues, we propose a system called DemoCraft, which enhances code generation by leveraging in-context learning and demonstration selection, combined with latent concept learning. Latent concept learning introduces additional concept tokens, which are trainable embeddings that capture task-specific knowledge. We then test our system on two major datasets: MBPP and HumanEval. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed system achieves an approximate 2x increase in the pass@k metric compared to baseline models. Furthermore, we introduce two novel evaluation metrics: correctness@k and similarity@k. Our empirical studies indicate that our system attains nearly a 3x improvement in these metrics as well.

Fever control is essential in patients with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The efficacy of therapeutic hypothermia (TH) in severe TBI has been investigated over the last few decades; however, in contrast to experimental studies showing benefits, no evidence of efficacy has been demonstrated in clinical practice. In this review, the mechanisms and history of hypothermia were briefly outlined, while the results of major randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and meta-analyses investigating TH for adult TBI are introduced and discussed. The retrieved meta-analyses showed conflicting results, with a limited number of studies indicating benefits of TH. Some studies have shown benefits of long-term TH compared with short-term TH. Although TH is effective at lowering elevated intracranial pressure (ICP), reduced ICP does not lead to favorable outcomes. Low-quality RCTs overestimated the benefits of TH, while high-quality RCTs showed no difference or worse outcomes with TH. RCTs assessing standardized TH quality demonstrated the benefits of TH. As TBI has heterogeneous and complicated pathologies, applying a uniform treatment may not be ideal. A meta-analysis of young patients who underwent early cooling and hematoma removal showed better TH results. TH should not be abandoned, and its optimal should be advocated on an individual basis.

The application of space robotic manipulators and heightened autonomy for ios represents a paramount pursuit for leading space agencies, given the substantial threat posed by space debris to operational satellites and forthcoming space endeavors. This work presents a guidance algorithm based on drl to solve for the space manipulator path-planning during the motion synchronization phase with the mission target. The goal is the trajectory generation and control of a spacecraft equipped with a 7-dof robotic manipulator, such that its end effector remains stationary with respect to the target point of capture. The ppo drl algorithm is used to optimize the manipulator’s guidance law, and the autonomous agent generates the desired joints rates of the robotic arm, which are then integrated and passed to a model-based feedback linearization controller. The agent is first trained to optimize its guidance policy and then tested extensively to validate the results against a simulated environment representing the motion synchronization scenario of an ios mission.

Introduction: Chronic wounds caused by diabetes or lower-extremity artery disease are intractable because the wound healing mechanism is no longer effective due to the poor environment of the wound bed. Biosheet obtained using in-body tissue architecture (iBTA) is a collagen-based membranous tissue that is created within the body and autologously contains various growth factors and somatic stem cells including pluripotent stem cells. When applied to a wound, granulation formation can be promoted and even epithelialization may be achieved. Hearin, we report our clinical treatment experience with seven cases of intractable diabetic foot ulcers. Cases: From 46- to 93-year-old 7 patients had large foot ulcers including heel area, which was failed to heal with standard wound treatment. Methods: Two or four Biosheet-forming molds were implanted subcutaneously in the chest or abdomen, and after 3 to 6 weeks, the molds were removed. Biosheets that formed inside the mold were obtained and applied directly to the wound surface. Results: In all cases, there were no problems with the mold embedding and removal procedures, and Biosheets were formed without any infection or inflammation during the implantation period. The Biosheets were simply applied to the wounds, and in all cases, they adhered within one week, did not fall of, and became integrated with the wound surface Complete wound closure was achieved within 8 weeks in two cases and within 5 months in two cases. One patient was lost due to infective endocarditis from septic colitis. One case required lower leg amputation due to the wound recurrence, and one case achieved wound reduction and wound healing in approximately 9 months. Conclusion: Biotube obtained via iBTA promoted wound healing and were extremely useful for intractable diabetic foot ulcers involving heel area.

The ancient Duchy of Urbino (Marche and Emilia-Romagna Regions, Italy) is known for its spectacular landscapes linked to a unique geological history. This area owns an unexpected cultural resource, which concerns using its landscapes in art. Some great Renaissance artists, including Piero della Francesca, Raphael, and Leonardo, were so impressed by the landscapes that they reproduced them in their most famous paintings. This paper summarizes research concerned with their identification, employing a multidisciplinary method that has enabled the recognition of many morphologies. This contribution provides the scientific community with information on the methodology and regional and national projects developed in this area to enhance its cultural landscapes. Starting from the geological description of the territory, the research focuses on famous works by three great Renaissance artists, providing evidence and morphological details related to the recognition of places: “Nativity” by Piero della Francesca, “Madonna Litta” by Leonardo da Vinci and “Knight’s Dream” by Raphael. Finally, it is proposed to make these landscapes a timeless resource through their inclusion in UNESCO’s cultural heritage. This contribution is addressed to representatives of the administration, conservation, and enhancement of artistic and landscape heritage to stimulate new perspectives for research, education, and tourism within the cultural heritage of this area.

The retrospective noninterventional study investigated the kinetic energy of video images of 18 fertilized eggs (7 were normal and 11 were abnormal) recorded by a time-lapse device leading up to the beginning of the first cleavage. The norm values of cytoplasmic particles were measured by the optical flow method. Three phases profile for normal cases were found regarding the kinetic energy that were 2.199×10⁻²⁴±2.076×10⁻²⁴, 2.369×10⁻²⁴±1.255×10⁻²⁴, and 1.078×10⁻²⁴±4.720×10⁻²⁵ (J) for the phases 1, 2, and 3, respectively. In phase 2, the energies were 2.369 × 10⁻²⁴ ± 1.255 × 10⁻²⁴ and 4.694 × 10⁻²⁴ ± 2.996 × 10⁻²⁴ (J) (mean ± SD, P = 0.0372), and the time required was 8.114 ± 2.937 and 6.018 ± 5.685 (H) (P = 0.0413) for the normal and abnormal cases, respectively. The kinetic energy change was considered a condition for applying the free energy principle that states that, for any self-organized system to be in equilibrium in its environment, it must minimize its informational free energy. The kinetic energy while interpreting it in terms of the free energy principle suggesting clinical usefulness would further our understanding of the phenomenon of fertilized egg development with respect to the birth of human life.

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by filamentous fungi associated to a variety of acute and chronic foodborne diseases. Current toxicology studies mainly rely on monolayer cell cultures and animal models, which are undeniably affected by several limitations. To bridge the gap between the current in vitro toxicology approach and the in vivo predictivity of the data, we here investigated the cytotoxic effects induced by the mycotoxins sterigmatocystin (STE), ochratoxin A (OTA) and patulin (PAT) on different 2D and 3D cell cultures. We focused on human tumours (neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells, and epithelial breast cancer MDA-MB-213 cells) and healthy cells (bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells, BM-MSC, and umbilical vein endothelial cells, HUVECs). Cytotoxicity of STE, OTA, and PAT was determined after 24, 48 and 72 h of exposure by ATP assay in both culture models. 3D spheroids morphology was also analysed using the MATLAB-based open-source software AnaSP. Our results highlighted how each cell line and different culture models showed specific sensitivities, reinforcing the importance of using more complex models for toxicology studies and a multiple cell line approach for an improved and more comprehensive risk assessment.