Renewable active sludge is a smart material for wastewater treatment and the protection of surface water bodies. The generated pellets (dried and pelletised dehydrated anaerobically stabilised excess sludge) are produced in a quantity of 31.4 g ± 5.6 g dry matter (DM) per one Population equivalent (PE) calculated to COD (PE_COD) in one day. As pellets are combustible material, their energy utilisation must reach sustainable development goals (SDGs) - a bridge must be created between »treated sewage sludge as the tool to remove pollutants and nutrients from wastewater« and »preparation of the valuable material as a solid recovered fuel (SRF) that meets customer-specific requirements«. Technical Report CEN/TR 15508 and Technical Standard EN ISO 21640 set up methods for specifying and classifying pellets as an SRF. In the last eleven years (2010 – 2021), pellets' net calorific value (NCV) is 13.0 ± 0.7 MJ kg^-1 as received (ar). In 2021, the 80^th percentile of the Hg/NCV ratio was 0.079 mg Hg MJ^-1. In 2010 – 2021, the annual amount of Hg transferred to stakeholders reduced by 64.3 % m/m - from 10.1 kg to 3.67 kg. The halogen contents of the pellets do not threaten corrosion to the incineration facility. Stable pellets' energy potential and perspective ash composition for critical raw materials recovery qualify pellets as a specific waste stream and a renewable material for SRF production.

Background: Although rarely indicated, antibiotics are commonly used for acute diarrhoea in China. We conducted a randomized, double blind exploratory clinical trial of loperamide, berberine and turmeric for treatment of acute diarrhoea. Methods: Adults with acute uncomplicated diarrhoea were randomized to 4 groups: (A) loperamide; (B) loperamide and berberine; (C) loperamide and turmeric; (D) loperamide, berberine and turmeric. All participants were given rescue ciprofloxacin for use after 48 hours if symptoms worsened or were unimproved. Primary endpoints were feasibility and ciprofloxacin use during the 2 week follow-up period. Semi-structured interviews were conducted following recruitment. Results: Only 21.5% (278/1295) of patients screened were deemed eligible, and 49% (136/278) of these consented and entered into the final analysis. Most participants had mild symptoms, because most patients with moderate or severe symptoms wanted to be given antibiotics. Follow-up was good (94% at 2 weeks). Only two participants used rescue antibiotics compared to 65% of acute diarrhoea patients in the hospital during the recruitment period. The median symptom duration was: 14 hours in group B (IQR 10-22), 16 hours in group D (IQR 10-22), 18 hours in group A (IQR 10-33), 20 hours in group C (IQR 16-54). Re-consultation rates were low. There were no serious treatment-related adverse events. Most interviewed participants said the treatment was effective. Conclusion: Although recruitment was challenging because of widespread expectations for antibiotics, patients with mild diarrhoea accepted to try an alternative. This therapy requires further evaluation in a fully powered, randomised controlled trial among a broader sample.

Wall–stabilized arcs dominated by nozzle–ablation are key elements of self–blast circuit breakers. In the present study, high–current arcs were investigated using a model circuit breaker (MCB) in CO2 as gas alternative to SF6 and in addition a long polytetrafluoroethylene nozzle under ambient conditions for stronger ablation. The assets of different methods for optical investigation were demonstrated, e.g. high-speed imaging with channel filters and optical emission spectroscopy. Particularly the phase near current zero (CZ) crossing was studied in two steps. In the first step using high-speed cameras, radial temperature profiles have been determined until 0.4 ms before CZ in the nozzle. Broad temperature profiles with a maximum of 9400 K have been obtained from analysis of fluorine lines. In the second step, the spectroscopic sensitivity was increased using an intensified CCD camera, allowing single-shot measurements until few microseconds before CZ in the MCB. Ionic carbon and atomic oxygen emission were analyzed using absolute intensities and normal maximum. The arc was constricted and the maximum temperature decreased from >18000 K at 0.3 ms to about 11000 K at 0.010 ms before CZ. The arc plasma needs about 0.5-1.0 ms after both the ignition phase and the current zero crossing to be completely dominated by the ablated wall material.

In most countries, the incidence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is no more than 1 per 100,000 for both men and women; however, it is much higher for men and women in Taiwan. The use of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as complementary and alternative medicine for the treatment of NPC and its treatment-related side effects has been increasing. The National Health Insurance (NHI) covers 99.6% of Taiwan’s residents. In the present population-based cohort study, we aimed to investigate the pattern of utilization of Chinese herbal products (CHPs) for NPC from 2001 through 2011 in Taiwan. We identified a total of 30294 patients with newly diagnosed NPC from the Registry for Catastrophic Illnesses Patient Database (RCIPD). Descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression analysis were employed to estimate the adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for CHP utilization. From 2001 through 2011, 17816 patients aged ≥20 years were newly diagnosed with NPC. Of these, 4749 patients used TCM outpatient services for NPC treatment. TCM users were more likely to be women, young, residents of Central Taiwan, and white-collar workers. The most commonly prescribed formula CHP was Gan-Lu-Yin, followed by Xin-Yi-Qing Fei-Tang and Shan-Shen-Mai-Men-Dong-Tang. The most commonly prescribed single CHP was Hedyotis diffusa, followed by Radix Scrophulariae and Radix Ophiopogonis. These findings provide information regarding personalized therapies for NPC and can promote further clinical experiments and pharmacological research on CHPs for NPC treatment in Taiwan. Further well-designed randomized controlled studies and basic mechanistic studies should assess the safety and effectiveness of CHPs for NPC treatment.

In the paper, the authors discover several series identities involving the Catalan numbers, the Catalan function, the Riemanian zeta function, and the alternative Hurwitz zeta function.

The article considers the issues of ensuring operational performance and environmental sustainability of marine diesel engines by using biodiesel fuel. The research was conducted on 5S60ME-C8 MAN-B&W Diesel Group and 6DL-16 Daihatsu Diesel marine diesel engines, which were operated using RMG380 petroleum fuel and B10 and B30 biodiesel fuels. The efficiency of biofuel usage was assessed based on environmental (reduced nitrogen oxide concentration in exhaust gases) and economic (increased specific effective fuel consumption) criteria. It was found out that the use of B10 and B30 biofuels provides reduction of nitrogen oxides concentration in exhaust gases by 14.71–25.13 %, but at the same time increases specific effective fuel consumption by 1.55–6.01 %. Optimum fuel injection advance angles were determined that ensure the best thermal energy, economic and environmental performance of diesel engines. The optimum angle of biofuel supply advance is determined experimentally and should correspond to the limits recommended by the diesel engine operating instructions. It has been proven experimentally that the use of biofuel increases the environmental sustainability of marine diesel engines by 13.75–29.42 %. It increases the diesel engines environmental safety in case of emergency situations, as well as accidental and short-term emissions of exhaust gases with an increased content of nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere - phenomena that are possible in starting modes of diesel engine operation, as well as in modes of sudden load changes. It is the increase in the environmental friendliness of marine diesel engines in the case of using biofuel that is the most positive criterion and contributes to the intensity of biofuel use in power plants of sea vessels.

Cryopreservation, storing biological material in liquid nitrogen (LN, −196 °C), offers a valuable option for the long-term conservation of non-orthodox seeds and vegetatively propagated species in the sector of agrobiodiversity and wild flora. Although large-scale cryobanking of germplasm collections has been increasing worldwide, the wide application of cryopreservation protocol in wild flora is hampered by difficulties in vitro propagation and a lack of universal cryopreservation protocols, among others. This study established a systematic approach to developing an in vitro culture and droplet-vitrification cryopreservation procedure for shoot tips of Scrophularia kakudensis. The standard procedure includes two-step preculture with 10% sucrose for 31 h and with 17.5% sucrose for 16 h, osmoprotection with loading solution C4-35% (17.5% glycerol + 17.5% sucrose, w/v) for 30 min, cryoprotection with A3-80% (33.3% glycerol + 13.3% dimethyl sulfoxide + 13.3% ethylene glycol + 20.1% sucrose, w/v) at 0 °C for 60 min, and cooling and rewarming using aluminum foil strips. After unloading, a three-step regrowth procedure starting with an ammonium-free medium with growth regulators was essential for developing normal plantlets from cryopreserved shoot tips. Liquid overlay on the gelled medium two weeks after inoculation resulted in vigorous growth during subcultures. Moreover, liquid overlay increased LN regeneration by up to 80%, i.e., 23% higher than no liquid overlay.

There is a growing body of research exploring Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) for the overall population; however, few studies have examined the effectiveness and applications of CAM practices in the paediatric population. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), parent's prevalence using CAM in their dependents is estimated to be as high as 80%. This literature review identified broad, heterogeneous, and inconclusive evidence regarding CAM applications and effectiveness caused mainly by variances in sociodemographic factors and national healthcare systems differences. Additionally, a lack of consensus and polarised positions among mainstream professionals regarding the CAM mechanism of action, applications, and effectiveness were identified. This narrative review shows debatable results for most CAM therapies and their applications. However, some evidence suggests that acupuncture, Yoga, Tai Chi, and massage might benefit users' physical and mental health. Additionally, meditation's available evidence indicates that it might be only helpful in the enhancement of mental health, whereas Reiki only displays an effect on patients' perceptions of comfort. Lastly, herbal medicine was observed to have non-specific evidence to support its claim, given the diverse nature and complexity of herbal compounds and procedures. This comprehensive narrative review might offer health professionals a reference to guide their health practices towards a personalised approach, taking into account the patient's values and beliefs, both important aspects of integrated, evidence-based practice, aiming to improve the quality of the offered health services and patients' satisfaction.

Calpain is delineated as a superfamily of cysteine proteases containing a CysPC motif within their genes. Among the fifteen species of mammalian homologs, calpain-1 and -2, which are categorized as conventional isozymes, execute limited proteolysis in a calcium-dependent fashion. Accordingly, the calpain system participates in physiological and pathological phenomena, encompassing cell migration, apoptosis, skeletal muscle integrity, and synaptic plasticity. The dysregulation of the calpain system has been inextricably linked to a multitude of diseases, such as ischemic and degenerative diseases, rendering it a subject of profound interest in the fields of basic research and pharmaceutical development aimed at therapeutic interventions. Recent investigations have unveiled the contributions of both conventional and unconventional calpains to the pathogenesis of cardiometabolic disorders, such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, and hepatic diseases. Consequently, the present review accentuates the pivotal role of calpains in the complications of cardiometabolic diseases and embarks upon a discourse regarding calpains as molecular targets.

Homelessness continues to be a pervasive public health problem throughout Canada. Hospital Emergency Departments (EDs) and inpatient wards have become a source of temporary care and shelter for homeless patients. Upon leaving the hospital, homeless patients are not more equipped than before to find permanent housing. The Bridge Healing Program in Edmonton, Alberta has emerged as a novel approach to addressing homelessness by providing transitional housing for those relying on repeated visits to the ED. This paper describes the three essential components to the Bridge Healing model: partnership between the ED and a Housing First community organization; facility design based on The Eden Alternative™ principles, and; grassroots community funding. This paper in conjunction with the current pilot project of the Bridge Healing facilities serves as a proof of concept for the model and can inform transitional housing approaches in other communities.

Currently, some non-conventional therapies (NCT), such as acupuncture, homeopathy, osteopathy, naturopathy, herbology, and Traditional Chinese Medicine are structured and well-regulated for a market of teaching and clinical practice in Portugal, among which acupuncture has become one of the most appealing and functional branches. Through investigation of acupuncture laws, field surveys, teaching work and interviews with people from NCT field in Portugal, we showed the current acupuncture education in Portugal and found that according to the academic norms and rules of education in Portugal, there is a gradual difficulty in the progression and maintenance of the degree training dynamics, due to the lack of more tolerant transitional measures and also, a timid commitment on the part of the institutions that embark on these complementary programs. Therefore, it will be necessary to promote additional programs and measures that avoid a total emptiness of the teaching of acupuncture and at the same time losses of clinicians, competencies and quality of information that are difficult to recover. It could be very meaningful and thought-provoking to the future development and improvement of acupuncture in Portugal and in other countries that welcome acupuncture and intend to have a better legislation and application.

The spin-torsion theory is a gauge theory approach to gravity that expands upon Einstein's general relativity (GR) by incorporating the spin of microparticles. In this study, we further develop the spin-torsion theory to examine spherically symmetric and static gravitational systems that involve free-falling macroscopic particles. We posit that the quantum spin of macroscopic matter becomes noteworthy on cosmic scales. We further assume that the Dirac spinor and Dirac equation adequately capture all essential physical characteristics of the particles and their associated processes. A crucial aspect of our approach involves substituting the constant mass in the Dirac equation with a scale function, allowing us to establish a connection between quantum effects and the scale of gravitational systems. This mechanism ensures that the quantum effect of macroscopic matter is scale-dependent and diminishes locally, a phenomenon not observed in microparticles. For any given matter density distribution, our theory predicts an additional quantum term, the quantum potential energy (QPE), within the mass expression. QPE induces time dilation, distance contraction, and thus mimics a gravitational well. When applied to cosmology, our theory yields a static cosmological model. The QPE serves as a counterpart to the cosmological constant introduced by Einstein to balance gravity in his static cosmological model. The QPE also offers a plausible explanation for the origin of the Hubble redshift (traditionally attributed to the universe's expansion). The predicted luminosity distance-redshift relation aligns remarkably well with SNe Ia data from the cosmological sample of SNe Ia. In the context of galaxies, QPE functions as the equivalent of dark matter. The predicted circular velocities align well with the rotation curve data from the SPARC (Spitzer Photometry and Accurate Rotation Curves database) sample. Importantly, our conclusions in this paper are reached through a conventional approach, with the sole assumption of the quantum effects of macroscopic matter on large scales, without the need for additional modifications or assumptions.

Development and implementation of safe natural alternatives to synthetic pesticides are urgent needs that will provide ecological solutions for control of plant diseases, bacteria, viruses, nematodes, pests, and weeds, to ensure economic stability of the farmers and food security as well as protection of the environment and human health. Unambiguously, production of botanical pesticides will allow sustainable and efficient use of natural resources and finally decrease the use of chemical inputs and burden. This is underlined by the strict regulations on pesticide residues in agricultural products and harmonized with the Farm to Fork strategy aimed to reduce pesticide use by 55%, by 2030. Recognizing the urgent need for natural pesticides development, this work is an overview of the current research on the valorization of Mediterranean plants as potential source of biopesticides. More specifically, the extraction methods, the chemical composition, the biopesticidal activity, the commonly used assays for evaluating the antimicrobial, the pesticidal, the repellant and the herbicidal activity of plant extracts as well as toxicological and safety aspects of biopesticides formulation are discussed in detail. Finally, the aspects that have not yet been investigated or are under- investigated and future perspectives are highlighted.

Previous research on the relative benefits of Augmentative and Alternative Communication Systems (AACs) has indicated controversial results regarding the effectiveness, the ease of use, and the preference for the different systems. The study aims to observe the comparative effectiveness of two different Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) tools, the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) and a speech-generating device (SGD), as communication aids for children with autism. Three children with severe autism and minimally verbally or with no functional language participated. The results showed an increase of communicative behavior with both AAC intervention strategies and a speed acquisition time slightly shorter for the SGD training. Two of the three participants showed a preference for the use of the SGD. Reduction in problem behaviors and improvement in vocal production was observed for one of the participants. Results suggest that PECS and SGD are similarly appropriate for the development of initial request skills and that they can encourage vocal production in students with specific prerequisites.

Different external stimuli are perceived by multiple sensor histidine kinases and transmitted by phosphorylation via the phosphotransfer protein Ypd1p in the multistep phosphorelay system of the high osmolarity glycerol signaling pathway of filamentous fungi. How the signal propagation takes place is still not known in detail, since multiple sensor histidine kinase genes in most filamentous fungi are coded in the genome, whereas only one gene for Ypd1 exists. That raises the hypothesis that various Ypd1 isoforms are produced from a single gene sequence, perhaps by alternative splicing, facilitating a higher variability in signal transduction. We found that the mRNA of MoYPD1 in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae is subjected to an increased structural variation and amplified putative isoforms on a cDNA level. We then generated mutant strains overexpressing these isoforms, purified the products and present here one previously unknown MoYpd1 isoform on a proteome level. Alternative splicing was found to be a valid molecular mechanism to increase the signal diversity in eukaryotic multistep phosphorelay systems.

Multiple mRNA isoforms of the same gene are produced via alternative splicing, a biological mechanism that regulates protein diversity while maintaining genome size. Alternatively spliced mRNA isoforms of the same gene may sometimes have very similar sequence, but they can have significantly diverse effects on cellular function and regulation. The products of alternative splicing have important and diverse functional roles, such as response to environmental stress, regulation of gene expression, human heritable and plant diseases. The mRNA isoforms of the same gene, such as the apoptosis associated CASP3 gene, can have dramatically different functions. The shorter mRNA isoform product CASP3-S inhibits apoptosis, while the longer CASP3-L mRNA isoform promotes apoptosis. Despite the functional importance of mRNA isoforms, very little has been done to annotate their functions. The recent years have however seen the development of several computational methods aimed at predicting mRNA isoform level biological functions. These methods use a wide array of proteo-genomic data to develop machine learning-based mRNA isoform function prediction tools. In this review, we discuss the computational methods developed for predicting the biological function at the individual mRNA isoform level.

These studies address the challenge of post-weaning diarrhea (PWD) in piglets, a common and costly health issue exacerbated by the recent European Union ban on therapeutic zinc oxide. The research evaluates whether spray-dried plasma (SDP), a sustainable and highly digestible protein source, can mitigate PWD without compromising piglet growth. Two concurrent studies were conducted on farms using either low-protein or normal-protein diets, with SDP included in varying phases of early piglet feeding. Diets with SDP improved growth rates and feed intake during critical post-weaning phases, particularly under normal protein levels and enhanced feed efficiency and reduced medication needs, indicating its potential to support piglet health while reducing dependency on pharmaceutical interventions. In conclusion, SDP in post-weaning diets helps balance growth and health, even when using low protein diets and offers a viable and sustainable alternative to traditional methods for managing PWD. This work highlights the role of SDP in promoting a circular economy by upcycling animal by-products and aligning with environmentally friendly farming practices.

The article delves into the landscape of the plant-based food industry, exploring innovative market entry strategies and their interplay with the evolving food market and shifting consumer preferences and lifestyles. Adopting a multidimensional approach, the study reflects diverse perspectives at play. Through a comparative analysis of strategic promotion and growth strategies employed by both innovative startups and established industry giants in the plant-based alternatives sector in Germany, the study aims to capture the challenges faced by the 'newer' wave of plant-based alternatives. This examination is particularly relevant for navigating the complexities of entering a competitive market. Striving to penetrate evolving consumer lifestyles, the study draws insightful comparisons with their "older" counterparts. In addition, through in-depth interviews with selected companies, the study investigates the entry methods of startups venturing into the German market, aiming to identify parallels and contrasts in market strategies with established brands. This provides valuable insights into innovation within the alternative food market. Furthermore, the study explores the process of brand "platformization" by scrutinizing the websites of the selected companies and analyzing customers' online reviews of their brand experience. This comprehensive analysis unveils distinctive patterns in communication strategies, brand positioning, and consumer engagement, offering insights into plant-based innovation shaping new, caring lifestyles. Main findings include a strong correlation among dimensions related to food quality, use, and taste, indicating a holistic approach to food consumption facilitated by online platforms.

Lynch syndrome (LS) is one of the most common hereditary cancer syndrome in human populations, associated with germline variants in MLH1, MSH2/EPCAM, MSH6 and PMS2 genes. The advent of next generation sequencing has proven a significant impact in germline variant detection in the causative genes; however, a large proportion of patients with clinical criteria still receive uncertain or negative results. PMS2 is the least frequent reported gene, associated with up to 15% of LS cases with late-onset disease and low penetrance phenotype; however, the proportion of PMS2-LS cases is considered to be highly underestimated. In this context, we consulted public available databases (ClinVar, LOVD) for missense and intronic PMS2 variants and performed an in silico analysis of the genomic sequence. Splicing bioinformatics tools proven effective in other genes were used to assess both the wild-type DNA sequence and reported genetic variants. Splicing alterations were predicted in silico and using GTEx short-read RNA expression data. Out of the 2384 missense variants discovered, 90% were classified with uncertain significance (VUS). 4.9% of missense variants were shown to have a potential splicing consequence (DS > 0.2) using SpliceAI. As described in the original publication, SpliceAI-visual was proven effective in annotation of short intronic variants (< 50 bp). Four short intronic variants were identified using SpliceAI-visual as potentially splicing disturbing, in spite of using a lower threshold (DS > 0.1). Moreover, we observed that Splicing Regulatory Elements (SREs) may play a fundamental role in alternative splicing in PMS2 gene, ESE motifs being overrepresented in highly expressed exons 5, 11 and 14. Computational analysis performed in our study serves as a valuable filtering step for guiding further RNA sequencing experiments. Additional functional data is necessary to evaluate the significance of our findings.

Escherichia coli causes several infections like intestinal diarrhea, urinary tract infections, and pneumonia, which are difficult to treat due to the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared carbapenem-resistant E. coli a critical pathogen and called for the development of new antimicrobial agents. Phage therapy, a century-old technique, has been revitalised recently with many successful applications against multi-drug resistant infections. As such, phage therapy is considered one of the most effective alternatives or adjuvants to antibiotics and is also effective in treating multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections. However, few phages that can kill pathogenic E. coli strains from Southeast Asia have been studied at a molecular level, although the burden of MDR, particularly carbapenem resistance, is high in this region. In this study, three closely related obligately virulent Escherichia phages (øEc_Makalu_001, øEc_Makalu_002, and øEc_Makalu_003) that could infect uropathogenic E. coli were isolated from sewage samples and characterized using morphological as well as sequence-based analysis. Further, a comparative genomic and phylogenetic analysis was done to predict the functional genes and evolutionary relationships. Electron microscopy and genome-based classification revealed that all three phages belonged Krischvirus genus of Straboviridae family. One-step growth curve showed that the latent period of the phages ranged from 15-20 min, the outbreak period was about 50 min, and the burst size ranged between 74-127 PFU/bacterium. Moreover, the phages could tolerate a pH range of 6 to 9 and a temperature range of 25-37°C for up to 180 minutes without significant loss of phage viability. Spotting the purified phages in different clinical isolates showed a broad host-range of isolated Escherichia phages and could lyse up to 30% of the tested pathogenic clinical isolates, including an intra-genus isolate of Klebsiella pneumoniae. The genome organization of all three phages was almost identical and similar to T4-like phage with a full-length genome of ~163 kb. Around 284 coding sequences (CDS) were predicted in each phage, of which only 40% were functional with an average gene length of 951 bp. The coding density in all phages was approximately 95%, while the gene density was 1.73 gene/kbp. Putative lysin, holin, endolysin, and spanin genes were found in the genomes of all three phages, resembling that of T4-like phages implying their phylogenetic relatedness. Furthermore, various in silico sequence analysis tools confirmed that all three phages were strictly virulent with functional lysis modules but devoid of any known virulence or toxin genes, integron-associated genes and antimicrobial-resistance (AMR) genes. In summary, pre-clinical experimental analysis and exploration of genomic features suggest that all three phages may be suitable candidates for therapeutic applications against uropathogenic E. coli.

Biochemical signaling is the key mechanism to coordinate a living organism in all aspects of its life. It is still enigmatic how exactly cells and organisms deal with environmental signals and irritations precisely because of the limited number of signaling proteins and a multitude of transitions inside and outside the cell. Many components of signaling pathways are functionally pleiotropic, which means they have several functions. A single stimulus often activates multiple effectors, a distinct effector can be activated by numerous stimuli and signals triggered by different stimuli are often transduced via shared network components. This very compact and concise review sheds light on the most important molecular mechanisms of cellular signaling in fungi.

High-tech augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) methods are on a constant rise; however, the interaction between the user and the assistive technology is still challenged for an optimal user experience centered around the desired activity. This review presents a range of signal sensing and acquisition methods utilized in conjunction with the existing high-tech AAC platforms for speech disabled individuals, including imaging methods, touch-enabled systems, mechanical and electro-mechanical access, breath-activated methods, and brain computer interfaces (BCI). The listed AAC sensing modalities are compared in terms of ease of access, affordability, complexity, portability, and typical conversational speeds. A revelation of the associated AAC signal processing, encoding, and retrieval highlights the roles of machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) in the development of intelligent AAC solutions. The demands and the affordability of most systems were found to hinder the scale of usage of high-tech AAC. Further research is indeed needed for the development of intelligent AAC applications reducing the associated costs and enhancing the portability of the solutions for a real user’s environment. The consolidation of natural language processing with current solutions also needs to be further explored for the amelioration of the conversational speeds. The recommendations for prospective advances in coming high-tech AAC are addressed in terms of developments to support mobile health communicative applications.

We are interested in studying alterations in the regulatory circuitry that controls mRNA stability and function, and more specifically in the interactions among miRNAs and mRNAs. We have previously reported transcriptome-wide changes in mRNA expression in an animal model of atherosclerosis (ATS) progression, and reversion upon treatment with an αCD40 specific siRNA. In this work, we have used our data on mRNAs downregulated during these processes to study length dynamics as an adaptive mechanism to thwart miRNA activity. We show that ATS progression was characterized by the lengthening of the 5’UTR and 3’UTR regions of these mRNAs. Furthermore, 3’UTR lengthening (but not that of the 5’UTR) was shown to be partially reversed by the treatment with the αCD40 specific siRNA. Study of the exonic composition of the transcriptome of these mRNAs suggested a role for alternative/cryptic/latent splicing in the generation of length variants. This was confirmed by the detection, during ATS progression, of a transcript variant switching process in which specific isoforms were replaced by others that differed in their pattern of alternative splicing, mainly at their 5’ or 3’UTRs. This work highlights alternative splicing as a mechanism contributing to the generation of 5’/3’UTR length and sequence variability during ATS progression and calls attention on factors regulating alternative splicing as possible targets of therapeutical intervention.

Telomeres in epithelial tumours are usually maintained by telomerase, however, in the breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cell line, polyploid cells, induced by doxorubicin (DOX) were found, after mitotic slippage, transiently shifting to recombinatory alternative telomere lengthening (ALT) in PML bodies (APBs). The involvement of the meiotic recombination proteins was evidenced here by juxta-co-localisation of SPO11, DMC1 and RAD51/γH2AX with APBs in these and melanoma SkMel28-DOX-treated cells. Using sublethal doses of DOX we also observed the formation of the PML dimeric rod tandems linking γH2AX/TRF2 foci into ribbons discontinuously inserted into lamin B1 and circumventing cell nuclei. Next, we link these PML-lamin B1 insertions and peripheral rotation of the tandemly linked telomere repeats with the mobility of the nuclear envelope limited chromatin sheets (ELCS). ELCSs comprise two layers of the criss-crossed ~30 nm granules derived from surface heterochromatin (epichromatin) which contains telomere repeats enriched in GpC, PML, and ALU. ELCS protrude, circumvent, loop, split, fuse, and rejoin polyploid cell nuclei. We propose this gear-wheel-like turnover of telomere repeats to be used for the homology search. Interstitial and end-telomere repeats flanked by fragile ALU-Z flipons become recognised by SPO11 nuclease, attract TRF2, PML, and meiotic recombinases. Subsequently, they perform ALT recombining subtelomeres and telomeres or undergo non-homologous end-joining and chromosome rearrangements with ELCS. This mechanism increases the chance of cell survival and may be involved in chromothripsis.

Cyber diplomacy is critical in dealing with evolving cybersecurity dangers and possibilities in the digital era. This article investigates the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchains, and Quantum Computing on cyber diplomacy. AI holds the potential for proactive threat identification and response, while IoT enables international information sharing. Blockchains enable secure data sharing and document verification, but they also pose new threats, such as AI-driven cyber-attacks, IoT privacy breaches, blockchain vulnerabilities, and the potential for quantum computing to break encryption. This article conducts case study reviews, in combination with secondary data analysis, and emphasises the value of international cooperation in developing global norms and frameworks to control responsible technology adoption. Cyber diplomacy can promote cybersecurity, protect national interests, and foster mutual trust among nations in the digital sphere by capitalising on possibilities and reducing threats.

Numerous dynamic and complicated processes characterize development from the oocyte to the embryo. However, given the importance of functional transcriptome profiles, long non-coding RNAs, single-nucleotide polymorphisms, and alternative splicing during embryonic development, the effect that these features have on the blastomeres of 2-, 4-, 8-, 16-cell, and morula stages of development have not been studied. Here, we conducted a scRNA-seq survey of cells from sheep from the oocyte to the blastocyst developmental stages. We then carried out experiments to identify and functionally analyze the transcriptome profiles, long non-coding RNAs, single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and alternative splicing (AS). We founded that between the oocyte and zygote groups significantly down-regulated genes and the second-largest change in gene expression occurred between the 8- and 16-cell stages. We used various methods to construct a profile to characterize cellular and molecular features and systematically analyze the related GO and KEGG profile of cells of all stages from the oocyte to the blastocyst. This large-scale, single-cell atlas provides key cellular information and will likely assist clinical studies in improving preimplantation genetic diagnosis.

The spillover of a virus from an animal reservoir to humans requires both molecular and ecological risk factors to align. While extensive research both before and after the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 in 2019 implicates horseshoe bats as the significant animal reservoir for the new human coronavirus, it remains unclear why it emerged at this time. One massive disruption to animal-human contacts in 2019 is linked to the on-going African swine fever virus (ASFV) pandemic. Pork is the major meat source in the Chinese diet. We hypothesize that the dramatic shortage of pork following large-scale culling and restrictions of pig movement (resulting in marked price increases) led to alternative sources of meat and unusual animal and meat movements nationwide, e.g., involving wildlife, and thus greatly increased opportunities for human-sarbecovirus contacts. Pork prices were particularly high in southern provinces (Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, and Hubei), where wildlife is farmed and more frequently consumed. Major wildlife farming provinces are spread from Northern to Southern China, which overlaps with horseshoe bat host ranges, potential hosts of the proximal SARS-CoV-2 ancestor, and wildlife sourcing provinces of Wuhan Huanan market and possibly other markets. Trading of SARS-CoV-2 susceptible wildlife in these markets, such as minks, raccoon dogs, foxes and palm civets in Wuhan markets, could have increased the risk of SARS-CoV-2 from an intermediary host. Moreover, large quantities of animals raised for fur could have entered the human food chain undetected and significantly increased risks of animal-human contact. Performing retrospective testing of stored susceptible animals and their meat sold before December 2019 may be helpful in the next stage of tracing the animal origin of SARS-CoV-2 as spillover events are more likely to have taken place in 2019 when China was experiencing the worst effects of the ASFV pandemic.

Researchers have reported various impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on small-scale fishers, such as stagnating market demands, reduction of market price and income, etc. While literature have heeded to these impacts in a relatively short time frame, scant evidence exists on the changing impacts over time and on the detailed processes of how fishers have been coping with the challenges in a longer time period. Furthermore, few studies have comprehensively analysed the impacts and strategies from multiple perspectives. This study aims to explore the perceived impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on small-scale fishing communities and to highlight the coping strategies adopted by fishers over a year since the initial outbreak, through a case study in Trang Province, Thailand. Analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data obtained through semi-structured interviews indicated that fishers wisely utilised natural, financial and social capitals at the early stages of the outbreak, while human capitals were essential for recovering from the impacts in the later stages. Our findings suggest that the adaptive capacity to flexibly change livelihood strategies are crucial, while alternative income source may not necessarily help small-scale fishers under stagnating global economy.

Alternative fuels containing biocomponents produced in various technologies are introduced in aviation to reduce its carbon footprint but there is little data describing their impact on the performance and emissions of engines. The purpose of the work is to compare the performance and gas emissions produced from two different jet engines: the GTM-140 microturbine and the full-size DGEN380 turbofan, powered by blends of Jet A-1 and one of two biocomponents: 1) ATJ and 2) HEFA produced from used cooking oil (UCO) in various concentrations. The acquired data will be used to develop an engine emissivity model to predict gas emissions. Blends of the mineral fuel with synthetic components were prepared in various concentrations, and their physicochemical parameters were examined in the laboratory. Measurements of emissions from both engines were carried out in selected operating points using the Semtech DS gaseous analyzer and the EEPS spectrometer. The impact of tested blends on engine operating parameters is limited, and their use does not carry the risk of a significant decrease in aircraft performance or increase in fuel consumption. Increasing the content of biocomponents causes a noticeable rise in the emission of CO and slight increase for some other gasses (HC and NOx), which should not, however, worsen the working conditions of the ground personnel. This implies that there are no contraindications against using tested blends for fuelling gas-turbine engines.

Complementary and alternative treatment approaches are becoming more common among children with chronic conditions. The pravelance of CAM use among US adults was estimated to be around 42% in 2015, and around 44% to 50% among adults with neurologic disorders. Studies report children with chronic illnesses such as cancer, asthma, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), genetic disorders, and other neurodevelopmental disorders are treated with complementary and alternative treatments at higher rates. Dietary therapies are gaining increasing popularity in the mainstream population, due to the heavy media involvement. Although, majority of “fad” diets do not have enough supporting evidence, some dietary therapies have been utilized for decades and have numerous published studies. The objective of this review is to describe the dietary interventions used in children with the specific chronic conditions, to evaluate their efficacy based on published data, and to encourage pharmacist involvement in the management and care of such patients.

There is a global demand for alternative energy sources away from unsustainable fossil fuels. COP26 agreed that fossil fuels should be phased down; at COP27, anxiety about the cost and availability of energy was raised, and COP28 reiterated the phasedown of coal power. Solar technology in the form of Perovskite solar cells is one such alternative energy source. This article considers the fabrication of the Perovskite layer in a solar cell and postulates the extent to which Material Flow Cost Accounting (MFCA) could be used as a feasible costing method, among other things, to address byproduct and waste generation. Through MFCA, the monetary and physical flows of materials are identified and can be applied throughout the supply chain to facilitate affordability, from the extraction of the ore, transportation, fabrication of the chemicals, manufacturing and distribution of the solar cell and panels, and finally, the recycling of the panel. Informed by these observations, a conceptual framework for applying MFCA in fabricating the Perovskite layer in the supply chain is developed based on sets of qualitative propositions. Future work will be researching the processes of manufacturing solar cells, costing raw materials, energy flows, and solar cell manufacturing emissions.

Molecule radiation can be used as a tool to study colder regions in switching arc plasmas like arc fringes in contact to walls and ranges around current zero (CZ). This is demonstrated in the present study for the first time for the case of ablation-dominated high–current arcs as key elements of self–blast circuit breakers. The arc in a model circuit breaker (MCB) in CO2 with and an arc in a long nozzle under ambient conditions with peak currents between 5 and 10 kA were studied by emission and absorption spectroscopy in the visible spectral range. The nozzle material was polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) in both cases. Imaging spectroscopy was carried out either with high-speed cameras or with intensified CCD cameras. A pulsed high-intensity Xe lamp was applied as background radiator for the broad-band absorption spectroscopy. Emission of Swan bands from carbon dimers was observed at the edge of nozzles only or across the whole nozzle radius with highest intensity in the arc center, depending on current and nozzle geometry. Furthermore, absorption of C2 Swan bands and CuF bands were found with the arc plasma serving as background radiator. After CZ, only CuF was detected in absorption experiments.

As artificial intelligence (AI) makes significant headway in various arenas, the field of Speech-Language Pathology is at the precipice of experiencing a transformative shift towards automation. This study introduces QuickPic AAC, an AI-driven application designed to generate topic-specific displays from photographs in a "just-in-time" manner. Using QuickPic AAC, this study aimed to (a) determine which of two AI algorithms (NLG-AAC and GPT-3.5) results in greater specificity of vocabulary (i.e., percentage of vocabulary kept/deleted by clinician relative to vocabulary generated by QuickPic AAC; percentage of vocabulary modified); and to (b) evaluate perceived usability of QuickPic AAC among practicing speech-language pathologists. Results revealed that the GPT-3.5 algorithm consistently resulted in greater specificity of vocabulary and that speech-language pathologists expressed high user satisfaction for the QuickPic AAC application. These results support continued study of the implementation of QuickPic AAC in clinical practice and demonstrate the possibility of utilizing topic-specific displays as just-in-time supports.

Agroindustrial by-products constitute an alternative source of feed livestock, and their use contributes to the sustainability of livestock systems and the circular bioeconomy. The effects of replacing cereal (0%, 40% and 80%) with dehydrated orange pulp (DOP) in the diet of goats on the antioxidant and fatty acid (FA) contents of cheeses were evaluated. For a more suitable understanding of the role of coagulant enzymes in establishing the properties of the cheese, the effect of milk-clotting with animal and vegetable rennet was also analysed. The rennet did not substantially affect the FA or the antioxidant compounds, and the use of DOP did not affect the FA contents. However, the α-tocopherol levels, total phenolic compounds (TPC), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in cheeses increased as the percentage of DOP replacing cereals increased. Moreover, the high correlation obtained between the TAC and the TPC (r = 0.73) and α-tocopherol (r = 0.62) contents indicated the important role played by these compounds in improving the antioxidant capacity of the cheese. In conclusion, DOP is a suitable alternative to cereals in the diet of goats and improves the antioxidant status of the cheese produced.

PitNETs, although typically benign, comprise a small percentage of therapy-resistant aggressive, occasionally metastatic tumors, underpinning a need to identify novel therapeutic targets. PitNETs carry few mutations but associate with conditions that promote alternative splicing as an oncogenic alternative and express the TrkA neurotrophin receptor, which exhibits oncogenic alternative TrkAIII splicing in other tumors. Alternative TrkAIII splicing was assessed by RT-PCR in 53 PitNETs and compared to HIF1a, HIF2a, SF3B1, SRSF2, U2AF1 and JCPyV large T antigen mRNA expression, unconventional Xbp1 splicing, SF3B1 mutation, and TrkA isoform(s) immunoreactivity by confocal immunofluorescence (IF). Alternative TrkAIII mRNA splicing was detected in all invasive PitNET phenotypes, was significantly elevated in invasive compared to non-invasive PIT1 PitNETs, relatively high in invasive and non-invasive SF1 and TPIT PitNETs, and was associated with IF consistent with intracellular TrkAIII activation but not with hotspot SF3B1 mutations, altered SF3B1, SRSF2 and U2AF1 splice factor mRNA expression, JCPyV large T antigen expression or unconventional Xbp1 splicing. A potential role for hypoxia in TrkAIII mRNA splicing was supported by significant elevation of HIF2a mRNA expression in invasive PIT1 PitNETs. These data demonstrate that alternative TrkAIII splicing, potentially promoted by hypoxia, occurs frequently in PitNETs and may associate with IF consistent with intracellular TrkAIII activation, supporting a potential role for TrkAIII in PitNET pathogenesis and progression, identifying TrkAIII as a novel potential target in refractory PitNETs.

The fusion of penetrating peptides (PPs), e.g., cell penetration peptides (CPPs), or antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) together with antimicrobial agents is an expanding research field. Specific AMPs, such as lactoferricin B (LfcinB), have demonstrated strong antibacterial, antifungal, and antiparasitic activity, as well as valuable anticancer activity, proving beneficial in the development of anticancer conjugates. The resulting conjugates offer potential dual functionality, acting as both an anticancer and an antimicrobial agent. This is especially necessary in cancer treatment where microbial infections pose a critical risk. Leukemic cells frequently exhibit altered outer lipid membranes compared to healthy cells, making them more sensitive to compounds that interfere with their membrane. In this communication, we revisited and reanalyzed our earlier research on LfcinB and its conjugates. Furthermore, we carried out new experiments with a specific focus on cell proliferation, changes in membrane asymmetric phosphatidylserine location, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial functions, and in vitro bacterial topoisomerase inhibition.

Alternative splicing (AS) is a gene regulatory mechanism modulating gene expression in multiple ways. AS is prevalent in all eukaryotes including plants. AS generates two or more mRNAs from the precursor mRNA (pre-mRNA) to regulate transcriptome complexity and proteome diversity. Advances in next-generation sequencing, omics technology and bioinformatics tools, and computational methods provide new opportunities to quantify and visualize AS-based quantitative trait variation associated with plant growth, development, reproduction, and stress tolerance. Domestication, polyploidization and environmental perturbation may evolve novel splicing variants associated with agronomically beneficial traits. To date, pre-mRNAs from many genes are spliced into multiple transcripts that cause phenotypic variation for complex traits, both in model plant Arabidopsis and field crops. Cataloguing and exploiting such variation may provide new paths to enhance climate resilience, resource-use efficiency, productivity, and nutritional quality of staple food crops. This review provides insights into AS variation alongside gene expression analysis to select for novel phenotypic diversity for use in breeding programs. AS contributes to heterosis, enhances plant symbiosis (mycorrhiza and rhizobium), and provides a mechanistic link between the core clock genes and diverse environmental clues.

Inhalation is the main route of exposure to airborne pollutants. To evaluate the safety and assess the risks of occupational hazards different testing approaches are used. 3D airway epithelial tissues allow to mimic exposure conditions in vitro, generates human-relevant toxicology data, allows to elucidate mode of action of pollutants. Gilian 3500 pumps equipped with Standard Midget Impingers were used to collect the airborne particulate from woodworking and metalworking environments. EpiAirway™ tissues were used to model half working day (4 h), full working day (8 h), and 3 working day exposures to occupational pollutants. Tissue viability was assessed using MTT assay. RT-qPCR analyses performed to analyze the expression of gelsolin, caspase-3, and IL-6. Tissue morphology was assessed by hematoxylin/eosin staining. Acute exposure to workspace pollutants slightly affected tissue viability and did not change the morphology. Both types of particles suppressed expression of gelsolin, with metalworking samples showing the most pronounced effect. A slight reduction in caspase-3 expression was observed. Particles from metalworking suppressed IL-6 expression. 3D Epithelial tissues can be used to model exposures to airborne pollutants. Exposure to particles from woodworking and metalworking had a minor effect on tissue viability but affected the expression of inflammation and apoptosis-related genes.

Nucleic acid therapeutics are witnessing an impressive acceleration in recent years. They work through multiple mechanisms of action, including downregulation of gene expression and modulation of RNA splicing. While several drugs based on the former mechanism have been approved, few target the latter, despite the promise of RNA splicing modulation. To improve our ability to discover novel RNA splicing-modulating therapies, we developed HCS-Splice, a robust cell-based High-Content Screening (HCS) assay. By implementing the use of a two-colour (GFP/RFP) fluorescent splicing reporter plasmid, we developed a versatile, effective, rapid, and robust high-throughput strategy for the identification of potent splicing-modulating molecules. The HCS-Splice strategy can also be used to functionally confirm splicing mutations in human genetic disorders or to screen drug candidates. As a proof-of-concept, we introduced a dementia-related splice-switching mutation in Microtubule-Associated Protein Tau (MAPT) exon 10 splicing reporter. We applied HCS-Splice to the wild-type and mutant reporters and measured the functional change in exon 10 inclusion. To demonstrate the applicability of the method to cell-based drug discovery, HCS-Splice was used to evaluate the efficacy of an exon 10-targeting siRNA, which was able to restore the correct alternative splicing balance.

Synthetic fuels play an important role in the defossilization of future aviation transport. To reduce the ecological impact of remote airports due to long range transportation of kerosene, a decentralized on-site-production of synthetic paraffinic kerosene is applicable, preferably as near-drop-in fuel or alternatively as blend. One possible solution for such a production of synthetic kerosene is the Power-to-Liquid process. The basic development of a simplified plant layout addressing the specific challenges of a decentralized kerosene production which differ from most current approaches for infrastructural well-connected regions is described. The decisive influence of the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis on the PtL process is shown by means of a steady-state reactor model which was developed in Python and serves as basis for further development of a modular environment able to represent entire process chains. The reactor model is based on reaction kinetics according current literature. The effects of adjustments of the main operation parameters on the reactor behavior are evaluated and the impacts on up- and downstream processes are described. The results prove the governing influence of the Fischer-Tropsch reactor on the PtL process and show its flexibility regarding the desired product fraction output, which makes it an appropriate solution for a decentralized kerosene production.

Background: Recent developments in our understanding of the interactions between long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) and cellular components have improved treatment approaches for various human diseases including cancer, vascular diseases, and neurological diseases. Although investigation of specific lncRNAs revealed their role in the metabolism of cellular RNA, our understanding of their contribution to post-transcriptional regulation is relatively limited. In this study, we explore the role of lncRNAs in modulating alternative splicing and their impact on downstream protein-RNA interaction networks. Results: Analysis of alternative splicing events across 39 lncRNA wildtype and knockout RNA-sequencing datasets from three human cell lines: HeLa (Cervical Cancer), K562 (Myeloid Leukemia), and U87 (Glioblastoma), resulted in high confidence (fdr < 0.01) identification of 4432 skipped exon events and 2474 retained intron events, implicating 759 genes to be impacted at post-transcriptional level due to the loss of lncRNAs. We observed that a majority of the alternatively spliced genes in a lncRNA knockout were specific to the cell type, in agreement with the finding that genes affected by alternative splicing also displayed enriched functions in a cell type specific manner. To understand the mechanism behind this cell-type specific alternative splicing patterns, we analyzed RNA binding protein (RBP)-RNA interaction profiles across the spliced regions. Conclusions: Despite limited RBP binding data across cell lines, alternatively spliced events detected in lncRNA perturbation experiments were associated with RBPs binding in proximal intron-exon junctions, in a cell type specific manner. The cellular functions affected by alternative splicing were also affected in a cell type specific manner. Based on the RBP binding profiles in HeLa and K562 cells, we hypothesize that several lncRNAs are likely to exhibit a sponge effect in disease contexts, resulting in the functional disruption of RBPs due to altered titration of the RBPs from their target loci. We propose that such lncRNA sponges can extensively rewire the post-transcriptional gene regulatory networks by altering the protein-RNA interaction landscape in a cell-type specific manner.

Toxoplasmosis is a zoonosis of warm-blooded animals, affecting also humans, caused by Toxo-plasma gondii, an obligate intracellular parasite with a complex biological cycle. Toxoplasmosis is considered a re-emerging zoonosis and an important public health threat, also for the absence, up to now, of efficient vaccines and preventive measures. Sources of transmission to humans are environmental or food-borne, mainly through the consumption of raw and undercooked meat, predominantly of Sus scrofa, considered highly susceptible to T. gondii. Mainly in the last dec-ades, an effective strategy to counter animal infectious diseases was based on the discovery of resistance immuno-genetic markers, possibly to be used for association studies between geno-typic and phenotypic traits and consequently in Marker Assisted Selection. Until now, this gen-otyping approach has never been adopted for T. gondii infection, so this study aimed, for the first time, to fill this gap. In particular, pigs, reared in different farms of Central Italy, were serologically characterized by an ELISA assay performed on diaphragm meat juice. Out of 179 tested animals, 98 resulted seropositive (54.74%), 57 seronegative (31.84%) and 24 doubtful (10.6%), underlining a possible re-emerging diffusion of this protozoan in the investigated areas. Atten-tion was firstly focused on IL-18 gene, encoding for a pro-inflammatory cytokine that plays a key role starting from the upstream steps of the immunity pathway towards T. gondii. A RT-PCR assay followed by Sanger sequencing of IL-18 cDNA was de novo developed. For this interleukin, at this stage, genetic analysis has not highlighted significant polymorphic variations compared to the reference sequence, except for a seropositive animal. However, the outcomes of this pre-liminary innovative study will be investigated in depth analyzing other relevant genetic re-gions and other target genes.

Dietary supplements are widely embraced by cancer patients seeking complementary and integrative approaches to their care. Unfortunately, many patients do not discuss supplement use with physicians, often due to perceptions of physician indifference or negativity toward supplements. This communication gap exposes patients to unreliable information sources and, potentially, unnecessary risk. As the healthcare landscape evolves, patients increasingly value physicians who recognize their pivotal role in shaping healthcare decisions. This patient-centered perspective emphasizes the provision of evidence-based information tailored to individual needs, open discussions on potential risks, and shared decision-making. It underscores the importance of respecting patient autonomy, offering alternative options, documenting preferences, and ensuring ongoing support while coordinating with the healthcare team. To address these needs, healthcare providers should transform their perspectives and become expert guides who embrace patients as informed, empowered participants. This approach prioritizes open dialogue that considers both facts and uncertainties regarding dietary supplement use, allowing for mutually informed decision-making. Here, we review the literature and present a practical approach emphasizing open discussions, transparency, and respect for patient autonomy. Following this approach, healthcare providers can empower patients to navigate the complexities of dietary supplement use in the context of cancer care, ultimately safeguarding patient safety and well-being.

Currently, there is increasing industrial demand for rare earth elements (REE) as these elements are now integral to the manufacture of many carbon-neutral technologies. The depleting REE ores and increasing mining costs are prompting to look for alternative sources for these valuable metals, particularly from waste streams. Although REE concentrations in most of the alternate resources are lower than current REE ores, some sources such as marine sediments, coal ash, and industrial wastes like red mud are looking promising with significant concentrations of REE in them. This review focuses on the alternative resources for REE such as ocean bottom sediments, continental shelf sediments, river sediments, stream sediments, lake sediments, phosphorites deposits, industrial waste products like red mud, and phosphogypsum, coal, coal fly ash, and related materials, waste rock sources from old and closed mines, acid mine drainage, and recycling of e-waste. Possible future Moon exploration and mining for REE and other valuable minerals are also discussed. It is evident that REE extractions from both primary and secondary ores alone are not adequate to meet the current demand, and sustainable REE recovery from the alternative resources described here is also necessary to meet the growing REE demand. An attempt is made to identify the potential of these alternative resources and sustainability challenges, benefits, and possible environmental hazards to meet the growing challenges in meeting the future REE requirements.

Obviously, the discussion of different factors that could have contributed to the origin of life and evolution represents a clear speculation, since there is no way to check the validity of the most of the related hypotheses on practice, as the corresponding events are not only already happened, but took place in a very distant past. However, there are a few undisputable facts obviously present at the moment, such as the existence of a broad variety of living forms and the abundant presence of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) or hybrid proteins containing ordered domains and intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) in all those living forms. Since it seems that the currently existing living forms have originated from a common ancestor, their variety represents a result of evolution. Therefore, one could ask a logical question of what role(s) those structure-less and highly dynamic but vastly abundant and multifunctional IDPs/IDRs might have in evolution. This study represents an attempt to consider various ideas pertaining to the potential roles of protein intrinsic disorder in origin of life and evolution.

Pieron's and Chocholle’s seminal psychophysical work predicts that human response time to information relative to visual contrast and/or sound frequency decreases when contrast intensity or sound frequency increases. The goal of this study is to bring to the fore the ability of individuals to use visual contrast intensity and sound frequency in combination for faster perceptual decisions of relative depth (“nearer”) in planar (2D) object configurations on the basis of physical variations in luminance contrast. Computer controlled images with two abstract patterns of varying contrast intensity, one on the left and one on the right, preceded or not by a pure tone of varying frequency, were shown to healthy young humans in controlled experimental sequences. Their task (two-alternative forced-choice) was to decide as quickly as possible which of two patterns, the left or the right one, in a given image appeared to “stand out as if it were nearer” in terms of apparent (subjective) visual depth. The results show that the combinations of varying relative visual contrast with sounds of varying frequency exploited here produced an additive effect on choice response times in terms of facilitation, where a stronger visual contrast combined with a higher sound frequency produced shorter forced-choice response times. This new effect is predicted by cross-modal audio-visual probability summation.

The capacitor-mismatch among diverse defects caused by the manufacturing process variations significantly affects the linearity of capacitor-array used to implement the capacitive digital-to-analog converter (CDAC) in the successive-approximation-register (SAR) analog-to-digital converter (ADC). Accordingly, the linearity of the SAR ADC is limited by that of capacitor-array, resulting in serious yield loss. This paper proposes an efficient foreground self-calibration technique to enhance the linearity of the SAR ADCs by mitigating the capacitor-mismatch based on the split ADC architecture along with variable capacitors. In this work, two ADC channels (i.e., ADC1 and ADC2) for the split ADC architecture include their capacitive DACs (CDACs) whose binary-weighted capacitor-arrays consist of variable capacitors. A charge-sharing SAR ADC is used for each ADC channel. In the normal operation mode, their digital outputs are averaged to be the final ADC output, as in a conventional split ADC. In the calibration mode, every single binary-weighted capacitor for the two ADCs is sequentially calibrated by making parallel or/and antiparallel connection among two or thee capacitors from the two channels. For instance, because the capacitors of the CDACs ideally exhibit the binary-weighted relation as Cn=2×Cn−1, variable capacitor Cn of ADC1 can be updated to be closest to the sum of Cn−1 of ADC1 and Cn−1 of ADC2 for the calibration. For the process, the two capacitor-arrays of the two ADCs can be reconfigured to be connected to each other, so that Cn of ADC1 can be connected with two of Cn−1 of ADC1 and ADC2 in antiparallel. The two voltages at the top and the bottom plates of the CDAC are compared by a comparator of ADC1, and the comparison results are used to update Cn. This process is iterated, until Cn is in agreement with the sum of two of Cn−1. Finally, all the capacitors can be calibrated in this way to have the binary-weighted relation. The simulation results based on the proposed work with a split SAR ADC model verified that the proposed technique can be practically used, by showing that the total-harmonic-distortion and the signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio were enhanced by 21.8-dB and 6.4-dB, respectively.

This study investigates the latest advancements in utilizing machine learning techniques for predicting financial market movements. Financial markets are complex systems influenced by numerous factors, making accurate predictions challenging but highly valuable. The research explores various machine learning approaches, including supervised learning, unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning, and deep learning, to enhance the accuracy and reliability of financial market forecasts. The study provides a comprehensive review of current methodologies, highlighting key innovations and their applications in financial market prediction. Techniques such as neural networks, support vector machines, random forests, and ensemble methods are examined in the context of their ability to analyze vast amounts of financial data, identify patterns, and generate actionable insights. Additionally, the research delves into the integration of alternative data sources, such as social media sentiment, news articles, and macroeconomic indicators, to improve prediction models. Through empirical analysis and case studies, the study demonstrates the effectiveness of advanced machine learning models in predicting stock prices, currency exchange rates, and commodity prices. It also discusses the challenges associated with these techniques, including overfitting, data quality issues, and the need for interpretability in model outputs. Findings suggest that machine learning techniques can significantly enhance the predictive power of financial models, offering more accurate and timely insights for investors and financial analysts. The study concludes with recommendations for future research directions, emphasizing the importance of model transparency, the incorporation of diverse data sets, and the continuous adaptation of machine learning algorithms to evolving market conditions.

In the event of an abrupt sunlight reduction scenario there is a time window that occurs between when food stores would likely run out for many countries (~6 months or less) and ~1 year when resilient foods are scaled up. A promising temporary resilient food is leaf protein concentrate (LPC). Although it is possible to extract LPC from tree biomass (e.g. leaves and needles), neither the yields nor the toxicity of the protein concentrates for humans from the most common tree species has been widely investigated. To help fill this knowledge gap, this study uses high-resolution mass spectrometry and an open source toolchain for non-targeted screening of toxins on five common North American coniferous species: Western Cedar, Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine, Western Hemlock, and Lodgepole Pine. The yields for LPC extraction from the conifers ranged from 1% to 7.5%. The toxicity screenings confirm that these trees may contain toxins that can be consumed in small amounts and additional studies including measuring the quantity of each toxin are needed. The results indicate that LPC is a promising candidate to be used as resilient food, but future work is needed before LPCs from conifers can be used as a wide-scale human food.

Pathogenicity is unknown for the majority of human gene variants. For prioritization of sequenced somatic and germline mutation variants, in silico approaches can be utilized. In this study, 84 million non-synonymous Single Nucleotide Variants (SNVs) in the human coding genome were annotated using consensus Variant Effect Prediction (cVEP) method. An algorithm, implemented as a stacked ensemble of supervised learners, performed combination of the 39 functional, conservation mutation impact scores from dbNSFP4.0. Adding gene indispensability score, accounting for differences in the pathogenicities of the variants in the essential and the mutation-tolerant genes, improved the predictions. For each SNV the consensus combination gives either a continuous-value pathogenicity score, or a categorical score in five classes: pathogenic, likely pathogenic, uncertain significance, likely benign, benign. The provided class database is aimed for direct use in clinical practice. The trained prediction models were 5-fold cross-validated on the evidence-based categorical annotations from the ClinVar database. The rankings of the scores based on their ability to predict pathogenicity were obtained. A two-step strategy using the rankings, scores and class annotations is suggested for filtering and prioritization of the human exome mutations in clinical and biological applications of NGS technology.

Verticillium wilt is a soil borne disease caused by distinct vegetative compatibility groups (VCG) of the fungus Verticillium dahliae. Two V. dahliae isolates were recovered from symptomatic cot-ton plants in Australian cotton fields and were assigned to two distinct vegetative compatibility groups (VCGs). One corresponding to the defoliating (VCG 1A) and the other non-defoliating (VCG 2A) pathotypes of Verticillium, have been transformed with Red and Green Fluorescent protein genes, respectively. The transformants maintained their ability to infect cotton and both strains were observed to colonise the xylem vessels of cotton plants. Moreover, we observed that the cotton V. dahliae strains could also infect some sampled non-Gossypium species found in the Australian landscape. The fluorescently labelled strains of V. dahliae will allow us to gain a thorough understanding of the infection processes of this important pathogen.

As a complementary and alternative medicine in the western countries for decades, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used for more than 2000 years in China. Because of the characteristics of the philosophical style and the unknown mechanism of action, TCM sometimes has been biasedly described as "fraught with pseudoscience". From the scientific basis of the systems biology, here we promoted a novel medical model called the entropic systems medicine which could be applied to scientize TCM in future. In entropic systems medicine, TCM and Western modern biomedicine target the different variables of the entropic system. For instance, while Western modern biomedicine directly targets the phenotypes and its SOCs of macrostates, TCM differently targets the microstates, entropy and entropic force to generate SOTFs gradually causing the differentiated syndromes to be slowly rearranged. The prerequisites to modernize TCM are the entropic systems biology having been well established so that the variables could be precisely monitored and mathematically calculated.

The Hyper-Torus Universe Model (HTUM) proposes a novel framework to unify quantum mechanics, cosmology, and consciousness. This paper introduces HTUM's core concept: a higher-dimensional hyper-torus encompassing all possible states of existence. HTUM suggests that the universe functions as a quantum system where all outcomes are inherently connected, with consciousness playing a significant role in actualizing reality. The model introduces several key innovations, including the universe's 4-dimensional toroidal structure (4DTS), providing a new geometric interpretation of spacetime. HTUM presents dark matter and dark energy as nonlinear probabilistic phenomena within this toroidal framework, offering a unique perspective on their nature and interactions. The model proposes a mechanism for wave function collapse through universal self-observation, bridging quantum mechanics and gravity. It introduces a Topological Vacuum Energy Modulator (TVEM) function, offering a potential resolution to the cosmological constant problem. Furthermore, HTUM integrates consciousness as a fundamental aspect of the universe, influencing quantum state actualization and potentially resolving the hard problem of consciousness. The model explores the implications of a timeless singularity and the emergence of time as a product of causal relationships within the toroidal structure. This framework addresses critical challenges in modern physics, including the nature of quantum entanglement, the origin and fate of the universe, and the relationship between mind and matter. The paper discusses the mathematical formulation of HTUM, its implications for quantum mechanics and cosmology, and its potential to bridge the gap between science and philosophy. We present detailed predictions for the cosmic microwave background (CMB) power spectrum, gravitational wave signatures, and large-scale structure formation, demonstrating how HTUM differs from the standard ΛCDM model. Our analysis reveals distinctive oscillatory patterns in the relative difference between HTUM and ΛCDM predictions, with deviations reaching up to ±20% at certain scales. The paper also explores the unification of fundamental forces within the HTUM framework, proposing novel approaches to particle physics and quantum field theory. It introduces the concept of unified mathematical operations, suggesting a more holistic approach to mathematical thinking that aligns with the model's interconnected view of the universe. Additional testable predictions and proposed experimental approaches are discussed, including advanced space-based tests and laboratory experiments probing quantum gravity effects. These specific, quantifiable predictions offer multiple avenues for empirical validation, highlighting HTUM's potential to be distinguished from ΛCDM and other alternative cosmological models. HTUM represents a significant new perspective in our understanding of the universe, inviting further research and exploration into the nature of reality, consciousness, and the fundamental structure of the cosmos. By providing a comprehensive framework that unifies various aspects of physics, cosmology, and consciousness studies, HTUM offers a promising path toward a more complete understanding of our universe.