The present article describes a one-pot and cascade mode process using biocompatible/biodegradable reagents, for directly and simply obtaining surfactant compositions of mixtures of D-mannuronic acid and L-guluronic acid directly from oligoalginates or semi-refined alginates (mixtures of alginate, cellulose, hemicellulose, laminaran and fucan). Simple treatments of partial purification of the reaction crudes (elimination of the salts and/or the residual fatty alcohols) or isolation of the surfactant compositions result in derived compounds and in compositions having performance levels appropriate to applications in detergency. In addition, the challenging extension of this cascading one-pot synthesis technology to crude milled brown seaweeds was successfully carried out to provide promising surface-active compositions made up of alkyl uronate and alkyl glycoside monosaccharides.

The device and method in accordance with the constant pressure regulation of micro droplet PCR in microfluidic chips are developed to explore the optimization way for the micro droplet movement, fragmentation, and bubble generation in microfluidic chips in existing digital PCR technology. In the developed device, an air source device is adopted to regulate the pressure in the chip, such that micro droplet generation and PCR amplification without bubbles can be achieved. In 3 min, the sample in 20ul will be distributed into nearly 50,000 water-in-oil droplets exhibiting a diameter of about 87μm, and the micro droplet will be subjected to a close arrangement in the chip without air bubbles. The device and chip are adopted to quantitatively detect the human gene . As indicated by the experimental results, a good linear relationship exists between detection signal and DNA concentration ranging from 101~ 105 copies /μL (R2=0.999). The micro droplet PCR devices based on constant pressure regulation chips exhibit a wide variety of advantages (e.g., achieving high pollution resistance, micro droplet fragmentation and integration avoidance, reducing human interference, and standardizing results). Thus, micro droplet PCR devices based on constant pressure regulation chips have promising applications in nucleic acid quantification.

Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) has emerged as an important bioanalytical method for assessing the pharmacokinetics of human cell-based medicinal products after xenotransplantation into immunodeficient mice. A particular challenge in bioanalytical qPCR studies is that the different tissues of the host organism can affect amplification efficiency and amplicon detection to varying degrees, and ignoring these matrix effects can easily cause a significant underestimation of the true number of target cells in a sample. Here we describe the development and drug regulatory-compliant validation of a TaqMan® qPCR assay for quantification of mesenchymal stromal cells in the range of 125 to 20,000 cells/200 µl lysate by amplification of a human-specific, highly repetitive αsatellite DNA sequence of the chromosome 17 centromere region HSSATA17. Assessment of matrix effects in 14 different mouse tissues and blood revealed a wide range of spike recovery rates across the different tissue types from 11 to 174%. Based on these observations, we propose to perform systematic spike-and-recovery experiments during assay validation and to correct for the effects of the different tissue matrices on cell quantification in subsequent bioanalytical studies by multiplying the back-calculated cell number by tissue-specific factors derived from the inverse of the validated percent recovery rate.

Rice blast, caused by Magnaporthe oryzae, poses significant threat to rice production. Rice blast susceptibility has been observed in Japanese rice varieties with excellent eating quality. Enhancing blast resistance is essential to ensure minimal use of agricultural chemicals. Two types of blast resistance are observed: true resistance, which is a type of qualitative resistance expressed by a major gene, and field resistance, which is a type of quantitative resistance expressed by multiple micro-acting genes. ‘Resistance collapse’, in which a variety with a true resistance gene becomes diseased by blast fungus races compatible with the resistance gene, has been observed. Varieties carrying blast-resistance genes, such as Pb1 (panicle blast resistance 1), have been developed through DNA marker-assisted selection. In this review, we focus on the Pb1, which expresses strong quantitative resistance to panicle blast and has been widely used in Japan without showing ‘resistance collapse’ for 40 years. Pb1 is an ‘adult plant resistance gene’ that does not exert strong selection pressure on the blast population during the leaf blast stage, thus preventing the selective multiplication of Pb1-compatible blast strains. This epidemiological mechanism prevents ‘resistance collapse’. Interdisciplinary research and breeding are required to sustainably use genes that induce high field resistance.

The third trimester of pregnancy is the most critical period for human brain development, during which significant changes occur in the morphology of the brain. The development of sulci and gyri allows considerable increase of the brain surface. In premature childrens, these alterations take place outside the womb that may cause a disruption of the normal brain maturation process. We hypothesize that a normalized atlas of brain maturation with cerebral ultrasound images from birth to term equivalent age will help clinicians assess these changes. This work proposes a semi-automatic GUI platform for segmenting the main cerebral sulci in the clinical setting from ultrasound images. This platform has been obtained from images of a cerebral ultrasound neonatal database images provided by two clinical researchers from the Hospital Sant Joan de Déu in Barcelona, Spain. The primary objective is to provide a user-friendly design platform for clinicians, for running and visualizing an atlas of images validated by medical experts. This GUI offers different segmentation approaches, pre-processing tools, and is friendly designed for running, visualizing images, and segmenting the principal sulci. The presented results are discussed in detail in this paper, providing an exhaustive analysis of the proposed approach’s effectiveness.

In eutrophic waters, such as Mikawa Bay, Japan, anoxic bottom water develops in summer. This causes sulfide release into seawater by sulfate reduction in the sediment, leading to environmental problems. The addition of iron to sediments is a method used to improve the sediment environment, which was devised from a natural phenomenon. However, this method has not yet been quantitatively evaluated. In this study, we aim to quantitatively evaluate the suppressive effect of iron on sulfide release. First, we develop a sediment model that focuses on S and Fe. We then attempted to reproduce the observations and experiments on sulfide dynamics using the model. Consequently, the proposed model was able to reproduce field sulfur and Fe dynamics in sediments. Additionally, the model described the characteristics of sulfide release considering the effects of additive iron materials. Finally, we conducted predictive calculations and quantitatively evaluated the effects of adding iron materials to the sediments in terms of sulfur and iron cycles.

In current study, the production of microparticles from fifteen commercial sugarcane pulp (SCP) lunch-boxes into different types of food under different conditions was investigated, where we used DI water, 4% HAc, and 95% EtOH to simulate aqueous, acidic, and fatty foods. Results showed that compared with DI water and 95% EtOH, 4% HAc caused the degradation of sugarcane fibers, resulting in the highest number of microparticles released, which was significantly greater than the specified limit value. It was estimated that consumers might intake a total number of 36,400 ~ 231,700 items per meal per lunch-box, of which the proportion of microparticles with particle size between 100 ~ 500 μm was the largest, with a number of 12,376 ~ 130,795 items. Moreover, of all SCP lunch-box except S-11, Al and Fe are the main metals, ranging between 35.16 ~ 1244.04 and 44.71 ~ 398.52 mg/kg, respectively, followed by Pb, Ti, and Sr. Interestingly, unlike other lunch-boxes, the content of Pb in S-11 was the highest, with a number of 136 mg/kg. This study provides important information that the safeness including both the production of microparticles and the metallic elements should be considered for SCP lunch-boxes when in contact with food.

The Republic of Djibouti is a small country in the Horn of Africa and, as in most developing countries, rain gauges are sparse and data are scarce. This study aims to report on the reliability of gridded precipitation datasets (P datasets) across the Republic of Djibouti through direct comparisons with rain gauge measurements from the annual to the daily time scales. Our specific objective is to be able to use such products in the context of hydrological modeling at a daily time step. Given the scarcity of available data in the Republic of Djibouti, our study was carried out on two time windows (1980-1990 and 2008-2013) and two gauge networks with different spatial resolutions: the southeast of the Republic of Djibouti (5000 km2) and the Ambouli catchment (794 km2), which drains the city of Djibouti. The reliability of these products is analyzed with quantitative metrics and categorical metrics, exclusively at a daily time step for the latter. The performance of the P datasets degrades from the annual time scale to the daily time scale. Even though the same products exhibit the best performance at the various time scales, the performance of most of the products differs from one spatial scale to another. Our results demonstrate the importance of the temporal and spatial windows, as the same products can perform differently according to the scale. For all the spatiotemporal scales, the most reliable product is MSWEP v.2.2. This P dataset is derived from a combination of satellite products (multiple sensors such as infrared and passive microwave), reanalysis products, and rain gauge observations. A strong discrepancy between rain gauge observations and P datasets is revealed according to the categorical metric at a daily time step. The analysis of rainfall events triggering runoff, using a 10 mm rainfall threshold showed that the most efficient products were unable to accurately detect such events at a daily time step, with a significant underestimation of rainfall events higher than 10 mm. None of these products, even the most reliable, can be used for a calibration/validation of a hydrological model at a daily time step.

Fusarium wilt of banana is a devastating disease that has decimated banana production worldwide. Host resistance to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), the causal agent of this disease, is genetically dissected in this study using two Musa acuminata ssp. malaccensis segregating populations segregating for Foc Tropical (TR4) and Subtropical (STR4) race 4 resistance. Marker loci and trait association using 11 SNP-based PCR markers allowed the candidate region to be delimited to a 12.9 cM genetic interval corresponding to a 959 kb region on Chromosome 3 of ‘DH-Pahang’ reference assembly v4. Within this region, there is a cluster of pattern recognition receptors, namely leucine rich repeat ectodomain containing receptor-like protein kinases, cysteine-rich cell wall associated protein kinases, and leaf rust 10 disease-resistance locus receptor-like proteins positioned in an interspersed arrangement. Their transcript levels were rapidly upregulated in the resistant but not in susceptible F2 progenies at the onset of infection. This suggests that one or several of these genes may control resistance at this locus. To confirm the segregation of single-gene resistance, we generated an inter-cross between the resistant parent ‘Ma850’ and a susceptible line ‘Ma848’, to show that the STR4 resistance co-segregated with marker ‘28820’ at this locus. Finally, an informative SNP marker 29730 allowed the locus specific resistance to be assessed in a collection of diploid and polyploid banana plants. Out of the 60 lines screened, 22 lines were predicted to carry resistance at this locus, including lines known to be TR4 resistant, such as ‘Pahang’, ‘SH-3362’, ‘SH-3217’, ‘Ma-ITC0250’, and ‘DH-Pahang/CIRAD 930’. Additional screening in the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture’s collection suggests that the dominant allele is common among in the elite ‘Matooke’ NARITA hybrids, as well as in other triploid or tetraploid hybrids derived from East African highland bananas. Fine-mapping and candidate gene identification will allow characterization of molecular mechanisms underlying TR4 resistance. The markers developed in this study can now aid the marker-assisted selection of TR4 resistance in breeding programs around the world.

Rice false smut caused by Ustilaginoidea virens is one of the most devastating diseases on rice worldwide, which results in serious reduction of rice quality and yield. As an airborne fungal disease, early diagnosis of rice false smut, monitoring the epidemics and distribution of its pathogens, is particularly important to management the infection. In this study, a quantitative loop-mediated isothermal amplification (q-LAMP) method for the U. virens detection and quantifying was developed. This method has higher sensitivity and efficiency compared to quantitative real-time PCR (q-PCR) method. The species-specific primer sets UV-2 used was design based on the unique sequence of U. virens ustiloxins biosynthetic gene (NCBI accession number: BR001221.1). The q-LAMP assay was able to detect a concentration of 6.4 spores/mL at an optimal reaction temperature of 63.4℃ within 60 min. Moreover, the q-LAMP assay can even achieve accurate quantitative detection when there were only 9 spores on the tape. A linearized equation for the standard curve, y =-0.2866x + 13.829 (x is the amplification time, the spore number = 100.65y), was established for detection and quantifying of U. virens. In field detection applications, this q-LAMP method is more accurate and faster than traditional observation method. Collectively, this study has established a powerful and simple monitoring tool for U. virens, which provide valuable technical supports for forecast and management of rice false smut, and theoretical basis for precise fungicide application.

A class of nearly Sasakian manifolds is considered. We discussion geometric effects of some symmetries on such manifolds, and show, under a certain condition, that the class of Ricci-symmetric nearly Sasakian manifolds is a subclass of Einstein manifolds. We prove that a nearly Sasakian space form with Ricci tensor satisfying the Codazzi equation is either a Sasakian manifold with a constant $\phi$-holomorphic sectional curvature $\mathcal{H}=1$ or a $5$-dimensional proper nearly Sasakian manifold with a constant $\phi$-holomorphic sectional curvature $\mathcal{H}>1$. We also prove that the spectrum of the operator $H^{2}$ generated by the nearly Sasakian manifold is a set of simple eigenvalue $0$ and an eigenvalue of multiplicity $4$. We show that there exist integrable distributions on the same manifolds with totally geodesic leaves, and prove that there are no proper nearly Sasakian space forms with constant sectional curvature.

Metabolomics is a powerful set of methods that uses analytical techniques to identify and quantify metabolites in biological samples, providing a snapshot of the metabolic state of a biological system. In medicine, metabolomics can help diagnose diseases, reveal molecular basis of a disease, and monitor treatment responses, while in agriculture, it can improve crop yields and plant breeding. However, animal metabolomics faces several challenges due to the complexity and diversity of animal metabolomes, the lack of standardized protocols, and the difficulty in interpreting metabolomic data. The current dataset includes quantitative metabolomic profiles of eye lens tissues from 26 bird species (111 specimens) that can aid researchers in developing new experiments, mathematical models, and integrations with other omics data. The dataset includes raw 1H NMR spectra, protocols for sample preparation, and data preprocessing with the final table containing information on 89 reliably identified and quantified metabolites. The dataset is quantitative, making it relevant for supplementing with new specimens or comparison groups, followed by data mining and expected new interpretations. It was obtained from bird specimens collected in compliance with ethical standards and reveals potential differences in metabolic pathways due to phylogenetic difference or environmental exposure.

With the growing of university chemistry experiment projects, scientific research personnel, specialized equipment, laboratory accident is increasing yearly. And accident data lacks a safety platform to store related information and cannot be guaranteed for efficient conditional sharing. To solve these problems, we designed a laboratory accident system to store, share related data and predict risk level. In this paper, we manually collected chemistry laboratory accidents by python software and class assignments, then analyses risk factor variables using Spsspro, finally established a prediction model using Stata. We intended to register laboratory related data into proposed chemistry accident system based on data ownership safety architecture. The chemistry accident system can break data barriers using confirmation and authorization key technology to trace non-tampered data source in real time when emergency accident happens. Meanwhile, our proposed system can use our designed accident risk model to predict risk level of any experiment project. It can also recommend appropriate safety education models.

In this paper, we have constructed a WKB approximation for graphene having a Y-shaped Kekul\'e lattice distortion and a special folding of the $\mbox{\boldmath$K$}$ and $\mbox{\boldmath$K$}^\prime$ valleys, which leads to very specific linear energy dispersions with two non-equivalent pairs of subbands. These obtained semi-classical results, which include the action, electron momentum and wave functions, are utilized to analyze the dynamics of electron tunneling through non-square potential barriers. In particular, we explore resonant scattering of an electron by a potential barrier built on Kekul\'e-distorted graphene. Mathematically, a group of consecutive equations for a semi-classical action have been solved by following a perturbation approach under the condition of small strain-induced coupling parameter $\Delta_0 \ll 1$ (a good fit to its actual value $\Delta_0 \backsim 0.1$). Specifically, we consider a generalized model for Kek-Y graphene with two arbitrary Fermi velocities. The dependence of the electron transmission amplitude on the potential profile $V(x)$ and band parameters of Kekul\'e-patterned graphene has been explored and analyzed in details.

The inappropriate use of pesticides in the world and particularly in Africa, explains their presence in various environmental compartments. This presence in the environment has harmful consequences on living beings, especially humans. This review, based on scientific publications, aims to analyze the problem of pesticides in Africa. From a corpus of 81 articles published in Africa on this topic between 1996 and 2019, we have outlined the issues relating to phytosanitary practices, environmental pollution, food contamination, intoxication of farmers and consumers, qualitative and quantitative analysis methods used, as well as the regulations on the subject and their application in Africa. Based on an analysis of the factors that are at the root of the problems of environmental pollution, contamination and health that they cause in Africa, possible solutions were proposed to produce healthy products and preserve our common environmental heritage.

In traditional oriental medicine, carrots (Daucus carota L.) are considered effective medicinal herbs; however, the use of D. carota leaves (DGL) as therapeutic agents has not been explored in depth. Therefore, we aimed to demonstrate the value of DGL, generally treated as waste while developing plants for wide industrial availability. Six flavone glycosides were isolated and identified from DGL, and their constituents were identified and quantitated using an NMR and HPLC/UV method, which was optimized and validated. The structure of chrysoeriol-7-rutinoside from DGL was elucidated for the first time. The method exhibited adequate relative standard deviation (<1.89%) and recovery (94.89–105.97%). The deglycosylation of DGL flavone glycosides by Viscozyme L and Pectinex was assessed. Upon converting the reaction contents to percentages, the luteolin, apigenin, and chrysoeriol groups showed values of 85.8, 33.1, and 88.7%, respectively. The enzyme-treated DGL had a higher inhibitory effect on TNF-α and IL-2 expression than that of the carrot roots or carrot leaves without enzyme treatments. These results highlight the importance of carrot leaves and could be used as baseline standardization data for commercial development.

As semi-airborne mineral exploration has limited budgets, it is critical to design experimental procedures that generate data maximizing the desired information We investigate the effects of transmitter-receiver geometries for a variety of anomalies and semi-airborne layouts. Our simulations indicate that 200 m flight line spacing and 100 m point distance are the optimal trade-off between coverage and survey progress for various targets. Based on the target size and distance between the transmitter and the target, the transmitter length should be at least equal to the length of the target and for more than 1 km, at least two or three times the target size. Likewise important are the location and direction of the transmitter cables, which can have great impact on the result of inversion and should be parallel to the target strike. By using more than one transmitter, better results are obtained. If the strike of the target is known, transmitters should be parallel to each other and if not, it is better to use perpendicular transmitters. Results showed that the optimal distance between transmitters is 3 km. Our simulations show that it is even possible to recover targets just below the transmitter in corresponding areas of masked data.

Women have been leading organizations and communities for centuries, but their journeys in leadership have sometimes been challenging. This paper aims to reflect on women's positive and negative experiences in leadership roles and understand the factors contributing to their successes and challenges.To explore these issues, we will draw on various academic literature, including studies on gender and leadership and case studies of women in leadership positions. We will also examine the cultural and social factors that affect women's experiences in leadership, including bias and discrimination, societal expectations, and work-life balance challenges.One key theme from this analysis is the importance of role models and support networks in helping women succeed in leadership roles. Women with access to mentorship, sponsorship, and peer networks are more likely to thrive in their roles and overcome the challenges they may face. However, lacking female role models and mentors can make it difficult for women to advance in their careers and contribute to feelings of isolation and imposter syndrome.Another important theme is the need for organizations and society to address systemic biases and discrimination that prevent women from reaching their full potential. This can include initiatives such as unconscious bias training, flexible work arrangements, and policies that support gender diversity and inclusion.In conclusion, this paper highlights women's positive and negative experiences in leadership roles and emphasizes the need for ongoing efforts to support and empower women in leadership. By addressing the challenges women face and building a culture of inclusion and support, organizations and society can help unlock the full potential of women leaders and create a more equitable and just world.

This research paper aimed to explore the impact of childhood and adolescent experiences on the leadership development of Emirati women in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Using a qualitative research methodology, the study utilized in-depth narrative semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and diary writing to understand the complex issue of leadership development. Findings indicate that childhood and adolescent experiences, including family upbringing, education, culture, and societal expectations, have significant impacts on the leadership development of Emirati women. Specifically, family upbringing and cultural values shape Emirati women's leadership aspirations and behaviors, while education and societal expectations provide opportunities and barriers for women's leadership development. The implications of these findings for policymakers and practitioners seeking to promote women's leadership development in the UAE are discussed.

Few studies have examined the pros and cons of integrated TB and HIV service delivery in public healthcare facilities, and even fewer have proposed conceptual models for improved integration. This study intends to fill that vacuum by outlining the development of a facility-based paradigm for integrating TB, HIV and patients services. The design of the proposed model were in stages that involved the evaluation of existing TB-HIV integration model and synthesis of both quantitative and qualitative data from the study sites which were selected public healthcare facilities at both rural and peri-urban settings in Oliver Reginald (O.R) Tambo District Municipality in Eastern Cape, South Africa. Secondary data on 2009-2013 TB-HIV clinical outcomes were obtained from multiple sources for quantitative analysis. Qualitative data involved focus group discussions among patient and heath care staff, which was thematically analysed. The development of a possibly better model and validation of this model show that the district's health system was reinforced by the model's guiding principles, which placed a strong emphasis on inputs, processes, outcomes, and integration effects.The model is adaptable to different healthcare delivery systems but will require support from healthcare stakeholders and professionals to be successful.

Semi-structured complex numbers H was a number set developed to enable division by zero in ordinary algebraic equations. Its utility has been shown in mathematics and engineering. However, very little has been done to show its usefulness in computer science. Consequently, the aim of this paper was to show the utility of semi-structured complex numbers in computer science by developing a division by zero calculator. First two computer programs were written, one for a standard (STD) calculator and the other for a division by zero (DBZ) calculator. The programs were fed 20000 randomly generated arithmetic equations of varying lengths and the space and time complexity associated with processing these equations were measured and compared to determine the efficiency of each calculator. In the process, three major contributions were made: (1) A representation for semi-structured complex numbers that enables it to be easily used by a computer was developed; (2) It was demonstrated that the DBZ calculator outperforms the STD calculator in terms of efficiency; and, (3) It was shown that the number set H reduced the amount of error handling required to run a computer program. These results provide a firm foundation to advance the number set as a useful tool in computer science.

Sesquiterpene lactones (STLs) are a large group of terpenoids most commonly found in plants of the Asteraceae family, e. g. in chicory plants, displaying a wide range of interesting biological activities. However, further studies on the biological potential of chicory derived STLs and analogues are challenging as only four of these molecules are commercially available (as analytical standards), and to date there are no published or patented simple extraction-purification processes capable of large scale STLs isolation. In this work we describe a novel three-step large scale extraction and purification method for the simultaneous purification of 11,13-dihydrolactucin (DHLc) and lactucin (Lc) starting from a chicory genotype rich in these STLs and in the corresponding glycosyl and oxalyl conjugated forms. After a small-scale screening on 100 mg of freeze-dried chicory root powder, the best results were achieved with a 17 h water maceration at 30°C. With these conditions we managed to increase the content of DHLc and Lc, at the same time favouring the hydrolysis of their conjugated forms. On a larger scale, the extraction of 750 g of freeze-dried chicory root powder, followed by a liquid-liquid extraction step and a reversed-phase chromatography, allowed the recovery of 642.3 ± 76.3 mg of DHLc and 175.3 ± 32.9 mg of Lc. The two pure STLs were subsequently used in the context of semi-synthesis to generate analogues for biological evaluation as antibacterial agents. In addition, other described chicory STLs that are not commercially available were also synthesized or extracted to serve as analytical standards for the study. In particular, lactucin-oxalate and 11,13-dihydrolactucin-oxalate were synthesized in two steps starting from Lc and DHLc, respectively. On the other hand, 11β,13-dihydrolactucin-glycoside was obtained after a MeOH/H₂O (70/30) extraction, followed by a liquid-liquid extraction step and a reversed-phase chromatography. Together, this work will help facilitate the evaluation of the biological potential of chicory derived STLs and their semisynthetic analogues.

Recently, a paper was written to reformulate and strengthen the theory of semi-structured complex numbers H (a new number set invented to enable division by zero). Whilst the paper had profound results, the application of this number set in many areas of engineering and science has not been fully explored. Consequently, the aim of this paper was to establish the number set H as a useful mathematical tool by providing an amalgam of results arising from its application in several areas of engineering and science. In the process, this paper makes four major contributions: these are (1) determining the product of the gradients of a horizontal and vertical line; (2) developing new Euler formulas relating exponential, trigonometric and hyperbolic functions in the 3D semi-structured complex number Euclidean space; (3) establishing semi-structured complex numbers as a better extension of the complex number set than quaternions; (4) resolving singularities that may arise in engineering and science equations (because of division by zero) to develop reasonable conclusions in the absence of experimental data. These results and their applications provide a firm foundation to advance the number set H as a useful mathematical tool.

Reservoir in the Central Structural Zone of the Xihu Sag is the Huagang Formation, dominated by natural gas reservoirs, and the reservoir in the Western Slope Zone is the Pinghu Formation, dominated by light oil and wet gas. In this paper, the Gas Drive Water Displacement- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (GWD-MRI) experiments are used to simulate the charging characteristics of the sandstone migration layer. The centrifugal- Magnetic Resonance (Cen-NMR) experiments simulate the short-term fast trap charging process, and the Semi-Permeable Baffle (SPB) charging experiment simulates the slow trap accumulation process. Studies have shown that there is a start-up pressure for the migration layer charging, and the start-up pressure of the core with a permeability of 0.3mD is about 0.6MPa. Experimental simulations have confirmed that there is a front zone with changed water saturation, with a width of about 1-1.5cm. The migration layer charging mainly has two actions, drive effect and carry effect. The drive effect reduces the water saturation to 70%-80%, and the carry effect can still reduce the water saturation by 5%-10%. The water saturation of rapid charging is mainly affected by the petro-physical. The porosity is high, the water saturation is low. The water saturation decreased significantly with the increase of centrifugal force when the centrifugal force is smaller. If the centrifugal force is greater than 0.8 MPa, the water saturation decreases slowly. The water saturation of the trap slowly charging is basically maintained at 40%-50%, which matches the water saturation of the airtight coring from 40%-55%, the petro-physical do not affect the final water saturation.

This study investigates the effects of the antiperspirant aluminum chlorohydrate on the development of antibiotic resistance in commensal Staphylococcus epidermidis isolates. The isolates were exposed to aluminum chlorohydrate for 30 days, respectively. The bacteria that developed resistance to oxacillin, and ciprofloxacin were isolated, and the expression levels of some antibiotic resistance genes were determined by quantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR. Before and after the exposure, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of the bacteria were determined by the microdilution method. A time-dependent increase was observed in the number of bacteria that developed resistance and increased the MIC value. Consistent with the ciprofloxacin resistance observed after exposure, an increase in the norA, norB/C, gyrA, gyrB, parC, and parE gene expressions was observed. In addition to aluminum chlorohydrate exposure, oxacillin resistance was observed in all test bacteria in the group subcultured only in the medium, suggesting that phenotypic resistance cannot be correlated with chemical exposure in the light of these data. The increase in mecA gene expressions of selected test bacteria that acquired resistance to oxacillin after exposure compared with control groups suggests that the observed resistance may be related to aluminum chlorohydrate exposure. To our knowledge, this is the first time in the literature that the effects of aluminum chlorohydrate as an antiperspirant on the development of antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus epidermidis have been reported.

This study focuses on land cover and land management changes in relation to food security and environmental services in a semi-arid area of East Nusa Tenggara (ENT) – Indonesia. The study was conducted in Central Sumba District of ENT Province. Classification and regression tree (CART) for land cover classification has been analyzed using machine learning techniques using Google Earth Engine. A survey with Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and followed with in-depth interviews were conducted for primary data collection involving a total of 871 respondents. The Socio-economic data analyzed statistics descriptively and non-parametric tests. The study showed that: 1). There has been a substantial land use change during the devo-lution era that has both positive and negative implications for food security and envi-ronmental services. 2). There has been population pressure in the fertile or agricultur-al land as the direct impact of the development of city infrastructures; and 3). Nation-al intervention through the Food Estate program has fostered and shaped land use change and land management in Central Sumba District. The study highlights the importance that the devolution spirit should help to well manage the limited ara-ble/agricultural land in dominated semi-arid to ensure food security and environment services.

In this paper, in order to provide proper parameters for the preparation of semi-solid billets, the semi-solid annealing of hot-rolled 2A14 Al alloy was investigated. The microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) with X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD), scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). XRD results show that with the increase of temperature, equilibrium θ-Al2Cu gradually dissolved in the matrix. The EDS results of SEM and STEM show that there were coarse θ-Al2Cu phase, ultra-fine precipitate Al(MnFeSi) or (Mn, Fe)Al6 phase and atomic clusters in the microstructure. EBSD results show that the recrystallization mechanism was dominated by continuous static recrystallization (CSRX), the homogeneous nucleation occurred when the sample was heated to near solidus temperature, and CSRX happened in the semi-solid temperature. In the process of recrystallization, the micro-texture changed from preferred orientation to random orientation. A variety of experimental results show that static recrystallization (SRX) occurred at semi-solid temperature due to the blocking effect of atomic clusters on dislocation slip and the Zener drag effect of fine precipitates on low angle grain boundaries (LAGBs) disappeared with melting at semi-solid temperature.

Milk is a complex liquid, and the concentrations of many of its components are under genetic control. Many genes and pathways are known to regulate milk compositon, and the purpose of this review is to highlight how the discoveries of quantitative trait loci (QTL) for milk phenotypes can elucidate these pathways. The main body of this review focusses primarily on QTL discovered in cattle (Bos taurus) as a model species for lactation biology, with occasional references to other ruminant species, and some comparisons with human milk composition are also presented. The following section describes a range of techniques that can be used to help identify the causative genes underlying QTL when the underlying mechanism involves the regulation of gene expression. As genotype and phenotype data bases continue to grow and diversify, new QTL will continue to be discovered, and, although proving the causality of underlying genes and variants remains difficult, these new data sets will further enhance our understanding of lactation biology.

The local and global order in dense packings of linear, semi-flexible polymers of tangent hard spheres are studied by employing extensive Monte Carlo simulations at increasing volume fractions. Chain stiffness is controlled by a tunable harmonic potential for the bending angle whose intensity dictates the rigidity of the polymer backbone as a function of the bending constant and equilibrium angle. The studied angles range from acute to obtuse ones, reaching the limit of rod-like polymers. We analyze how packing density and chain stiffness affect the ability of chains to self-organize at the local and global levels. The former corresponds to crystallinity as quantified by the Characteristic Crystallographic Element (CCE) norm descriptor, while the latter is computed through the scalar orientational order parameter. In all cases, we identify the critical volume fraction for the phase transition and gauge the established crystal morphologies, developing a complete phase diagram as a function of packing density and equilibrium bending angle. A plethora of structures is obtained, ranging from random hexagonal closed packed morphologies of mixed character and almost perfect face centered cubic (FCC) and hexagonal close-packed (HCP) crystals at the level of monomers, to nematic mesophases, with prolate and oblate mesogens at the level of chains. For rod-like chains, hysteresis is observed between the establishment of long-range nematic order and crystallization, while for right-angle chains both transitions are synchronized. A comparison is also provided against the analogous packings of monomeric and fully flexible chains of hard spheres.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect individuals across the globe, with some individuals experiencing more severe disease than others. The relatively high frequency of re-infections and breakthrough infections observed with SARS-CoV-2 highlights the importance of extending our understanding of immunity to COVID-19. Here we aim to shed light on the importance of antibody titers and epitope utilization in protection from re-infection. Health care workers are highly exposed to COVID-19 and are therefore also more likely to become re-infected. We utilized quantitative, multi-antigen, multi-epitope SARS-CoV-2 protein microarrays to measure IgG and IgA titers against various domains of the nucleocapsid and spike proteins. Potential re-infections in a large, diverse health care worker cohort (N=300) during the second wave of the pandemic were identified by assessing the IgG anti-N titers before and after the second wave. We assessed epitope coverage and antibody titers between the 'single infection’ and ‘re-infection’ groups. Clear differences were observed in the breadth of the anti-N response before the second wave, with the epitope coverage for both IgG (p=0.019) and IgA (p=0.015) being significantly increased in those who did not become re-infected compared to those who did. Additionally, the IgG anti-N (p=0.004) and anti-S titers (p=0.018) were significantly higher in those not re-infected. These results highlight the importance of the breadth of elicited antibody epitope coverage following natural infection in protection from re-infection and disease in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus is a syndrome with neuroradiological findings and clinical pattern characteristic but not specific for the pathology. Since the prevalence is growing due to the rapidly aging society, standardized and validated protocol for diagnosis is needed, also because this condition may mimic other disorders among elderly such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. Material and methods: We analysed data from 44 patients with suspect diagnosis of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus with age > 60 years, clinical triad and neuroradiological pattern examined in our ward from November 2018 to November 2022. Neu-ropsychological assessment includes Mini Mental State Examination and Mental Deterioration Battery. Motor scores were collected from gait and balance tests. The evaluation was performed before and after an extended lumbar drainage last 48h. Patients who has scores improvement after the extended lumbar drainage, undergo ventriculoperitoneal shunt with a programmable valve. Results: All patients undergo neuropsychological assessment and motor tests, only 2 patients were unable to perform motor tests because bedridden. 16 patients showed no benefit from the tests, in 2 cases even a worsening of cognitive performance. 28 patients showed an improvement in their performances, but in most cases the improvement involved only the neuropsychological as-sessment. All patients underwent ventriculoperitoneal shunt have had a typical answers pattern in Mental Deterioration Battery test. We performed 9 ventriculoperitoneal shunt and 1 ventricu-lo-atrial shunt. Conclusions: Qualitative neurocognitive tests come out to be more sensitive compared to quantitative neurocognitive tests in identifying patients with suspected idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus benefiting from extended lumbar drainage test and then un-derwent surgical treatment. This could be considered a valid screening in elderly patients with suspected idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus in order to minimize the number of invasive procedures. More studies are necessary to validate this tool.

This paper analyzes the collection of George Viau (1855-1939) from a computational perspective. Indeed, this dental surgeon, close to the Impressionists, collected several hundred works of art in the first half of the 20th century: the auctions of his collection, in 1907, 1930 and after his death, in 1942, 1943 and 1948, accounted for 642 artworks and, during the Occupation, the 1942 sale produced a total of more than 46 million francs. Thanks to statistics, econometrics, network analysis and cartography, it is possible to understand the salient features of the collection and its place in the world of Parisian auctions.

Plant secondary metabolites are organic compounds (alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolics, tannins, anthraquinones, saponins, steroids, lignins, terpenes) produced by plant for self-defense during growth and development in order to protect them from harmful agents. As population is increasing and quality of life is reducing couple with outbreak of some diseases that are posing threat on the economy, a lot of medicinal plants have attracted interest of researchers because of the usefulness of these metabolites in pharmaceuticals, food and cosmetic industries. In this review, the pharmacological activities of some medicinal plants that are rich in secondary metabolites were studied, means of identifying and quantifying using spectrophotometry and chromatography techniques were also discussed. However, this will assist to reduce the uses and dependent on the synthetic drug and the onset of the age related diseases.

There has been a surge in the interest for (semi)transparent photovoltaics (sTPVs) in recent years, since the more traditional, opaque, devices are not ideally suited for a variety of innovative appli-cations spanning from smart and self-powered windows for buildings to those for vehicle inte-gration. Additional requirements for these photovoltaic applications are a high conversion effi-ciency (despite the necessary compromise to achieve a degree of transparency) and an aesthetical-ly pleasing design. One potential realm to explore in the attempt to meet such challenges is the bio-logical world, where evolution has led to highly efficient and fascinating light-management structures. In this mini-review, we explore some of the biomimetic approaches that can be used to improve both transparent and semitransparent photovoltaic cells, such as moth-eye inspired structures for improved performance and stability or tuneable, coloured, and semi-transparent devices inspired by beetles’ cuticles. Lastly, we will briefly discuss possible future developments for bio-inspired and potentially bio-compatible sTPVs.

Dolomite is a common type of natural soluble rock. The strength of rock decreases under the action of corrosion, which has a significant impact on the self-stability and long-term safety of the tunnel surrounding the rock. To reveal the microscopic structure evolution and strength-damage law of carbonate rock caused by corrosion, chemical corrosion, rock uniaxial compression, and electron microscope scanning tests are conducted at different pH values on the dolomite of the Doushantuo Formation. The rock dissolution at different pH values exhibits four typical stages: the initial dissolution stage, secondary dissolution acceleration stage, stable dissolution rate stage, and dissolution attenuation stage. During the dissolution process, the initial dissolution rate is 25.91 times that of the stable stage, and the maximum strength attenuation is 76.2% after 21 days of dissolution. For macroscopic failure, the rock is developed from 1 to 2 external fractures to multiple internal and external fractures and penetrated, and the specimen transforms from brittle to flexible. For microstructure, the sample exhibits corrosion characteristics along the joint surface, intensified corrosion at the edge, etc. The porosity increase rate is 0.6%/d; however, the length–width ratio of the pores is maintained at 1.7–1.85, indicating that the development rate of pores in different directions is similar. The results of this study have enriched the study of the dolomite dissolution mechanism and have important reference value for the stability evaluation of tunnel surrounding rock in karst environments.

Research has been growing on object detection using semi-supervised methods in past few years. We examine the intersection of these two areas for floor-plan objects to promote the research objective of detecting more accurate objects with less labelled data. The floor-plan objects include different furniture items with multiple types of the same class, and this high inter-class similarity impacts the performance of prior methods. In this paper, we present Mask R-CNN based semi-supervised approach that provides pixel-to-pixel alignment to generate individual annotation masks for each class to mine the inter-class similarity. The semi-supervised approach has a student-teacher network that pulls information from the teacher network and feeds it to the student network. The teacher network uses unlabeled data to form pseudo-boxes, and the student network uses both unlabeled data with the pseudo boxes and labelled data as ground truth for training. It learns representations of furniture items by combining labelled and unlabeled data. On the Mask R-CNN detector with ResNet-101 backbone network, the proposed approach achieves mAP of 98.8%, 99.7%, and 99.8% with only 1%, 5% and 10% labelled data, respectively. Our experiment affirms the efficiency of the proposed approach as it outperforms the fully supervised counterpart using only 10% of the labels.

Iturbide is located in the Northeast of Mexico, it has a rich native and exotic flora, however, there are no ethnobotanical records, therefore, it requires attention in the documentation of traditional practices and uses of its botanical resources. In 2021, twelve field trips were carried out, applying 110 semi-structured interviews. Plant samples were collected, identified and deposited in an herbarium. We used the Chi-square test to compare ethnobotanical uses with respect to others reported in Mexico. To determine the cultural importance, three ethnobotanical indices were applied (UVI, ICF and FL). We recorded 250 species with ethnobotanical uses associated with 121 genera and 83 families, including 140 native and 110 exotic species. The most common plant families were Asteraceae, Lamiaceae, and Fabaceae. The main uses were ornamental, medicinal and food. The species with the highest UVI values ​​were Lepidium peruvianum, Ocimum basilicum and Rosmarinus officinale. The multifunctionality of the native and exotic flora demonstrates the extensive knowledge associated with botanical resources. Examples, the role of ornamental plants, with a direct impact on human well-being, the resilience of healers and traditional inhabitants by using different species for the treatment of various ailments. or indigenous edible plants in the daily diet.

A time integration scheme based on semi-Lagrangian advection and Laplace transform adjustment has been implemented in a baroclinic primitive equation model. The semi-Lagrangian scheme makes it possible to use large time steps. However, errors arising from the semi-implicit scheme increase with the time step size. In contrast, the errors using the Laplace transform adjustment remain relatively small for typical time steps used with semi-Lagrangian advection. Numerical experiments confirm the superior performance of the Laplace transform scheme relative to the semi-implicit reference model. The algorithmic complexity of the scheme is comparable to the reference model, making it computationally competitive, and indicating its potential for integrating weather and climate prediction models.

Pharmacophores are an established concept for the modelling of ligand-receptor interactions based on the abstract representations of stereoelectronic molecular features. They became widely popular as filters for the fast virtual screening of large compound libraries. Until today a lot of effort has been put into the development of sophisticated algorithms and strategies to increase the computational efficiency of the screening process. However, hardly any focus was put on the development of automated procedures that optimise pharmacophores towards higher discriminatory power, which until today still has to be done manually by a human expert. In the age of machine learning, the researcher has become the decision-maker at the top level, outsourcing analysis tasks and recurrent work to advanced algorithms and automation workflows. Here we propose an algorithm for the automated selection of features driving pharmacophore model quality using SAR information extracted from validated QPhAR models. By integrating the developed method into an end-to-end workflow, we present a fully automated method that is able to derive best-quality pharmacophores from a given input dataset. Finally, we show how the QPhAR-generated models can be used to guide the researcher with insights regarding (un-)favourable interactions for compounds of interest.

: Our study aim to test the influence of RGB reflectance and chlorophyll content on grain fill and grain yield of 15 durum wheat cultivars sown under semi-arid conditions. the evolution of chlorophyll content during three stages showed a stability during the heading stage, the chlorophyll content begins at this degradation during grain filling. Boutaleb genotype which was the best yielding genotype was characterized by low values ​​of RGB reflectance and high values ​​of majority of grain filling parameters and thousand kernels weight. Grain filling follows a sigmoid curve. Chlorophyll content was positively correlated with reflectance under the green band and negatively with both Red and Blue bands. A positive correlation was recorded between thousand kernel weight and grain yield, maximum grain dry weight and grain filling duration. The duration of the grain filling was positively influenced by the maximum dry weight of the grain and negatively by the grain filling ratio, the grain filling ratio was positively affected by reflectance at blue band. The principal component analysis separated the cultivars considered into 3 principal components, the absorption/reflectance component, the profitability component and the component of grain filling rate to which the local landrace Boutaleb belongs in terms of grain yield.

We survey the main results emerging in the rapidly developing field that considers the geometry of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Our ideas of stability depend on variational principles – Maximum Entropy together with Least Action (and the isomorphic Least Exertion) – and this stability (invariance in time) indicates the centrality of the geometries of the systems. We explore a variety of examples of the application of thermodynamics in both macro- and micro-systems, and propose that irreversibility is an intrinsic and fundamental property of the physical realm (instead of being merely emergent). Using the concept of complex time, we examine the underlying mathematical unity of quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, and geometrical thermodynamics. We show how the Planck and Boltzmann constants provide the fundamental quantum units for the phenomenological characteristics of the two Noether-conserved quantities controlling overall thermodynamic behaviour: respectively, energy and entropy production. We discuss the far-reaching isomorphisms (between all of complex time, temperature and the system symmetry) that always exist for Maximum Entropy systems, even as they exhibit either irreversible (dissipative, yet still dynamically stable) or reversible (including stable and static geometries) behaviours.

Financial capacity instruments are psychometric tools designed to evaluate individual decisional capacity based on financial decisions. As tests are complex and need special conditions for administration and evaluation, it is difficult to use them in daily geriatric clinics. Our scoping review objective was to evaluate existing financial capacity instruments from the perspective of simplicity and portability. We evaluated one English speaking knowledge database (Medline) using a dedicated MeSH terminology. The review yielded one independent instrument, The Semi-Structured Clinical Interview for Financial Capacity, that can be easy adapted for every-day clinical use. It is simple to understand and perform and do not need trained personnel for administration. It can be finalized in 15 minutes. Initially validated on 261 subjects (with different forms of cognitive impairment), it showed good accuracy and precision mainly in subjects with cognitive impairment. The test is less apt to detect early or fluctuating cognitive impairment. Simplicity, the main advantage of the test, allows gamification fact that increases portability. Familiar images (coins, money) that are used for performing simple tasks does not need complex translation and adaptation. In form of a game, the test is suitable for serial administration, increasing the chance for early capacity reduction detection. Results reflect a physician judgement related to the subjects’ capacity to understand and execute simple financial instructions and not financial proficiency scores. The main limitation of our review is that we investigated only one, English speaking, knowledge database. The scoping strategy generated a financial capacity instrument that can be used in geriatric clinics for early diagnostic of decisional capacity reduction. Further studies are needed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the test in conditions of serial administration and in populations having various financial experience.

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

Quantitative differential phase contrast (qDPC) imaging has become an important method of optical measurement and life science research in microscopy because of its high reconstruction resolution and non-invasive, high-contrast and quantitative imaging of biological samples. Despite the continuous development of the principle and algorithm, the frame rate of the existing qDPC algorithm is still much lower than that of camera acquisition, so it is hardly applied to real-time image the fast-moving biological samples. In this paper, based on color-coded multiplexing strategy, a compact real-time quantitative phase imaging system is designed to realize multi-mode imaging. The system employs a programmable LED array to illuminate directly, and the phase reconstruction algorithm is deployed in the graphics processing unit (GPU) of the laptop to accelerate the calculation. The system can achieve high-speed quantitative phase imaging of non-stained biological samples, and the frame rate can reach 60fps. The device has the advantages of compact structure, low cost and portability. Thus, it is suitable for mobile medical applications.

A new set of alkoxy alcohols were synthesised by reaction of eugenol oxirane with aliphatic and aromatic alcohols. These eugenol derivatives were evaluated against their effect upon the viability of the insect cell line Sf9 (Spodoptera frugiperda).The most promising compounds, 4-(3-(tert-butoxy)-2-hydroxypropyl)-2-methoxyphenol and 4-(2-((4-fluorobenzyl)oxy)-3-hydroxypropyl)-2-methoxyphenol were submitted to in silico assays to predict possible targets. Thought an Inverted Virtual Screening approach, 23 common pesticide targets were screened and the top 2 targets predicted were further evaluated through molecular dynamics simulations and free energy calculations. In addition, these to eugenol derivatives were subjected to encapsulation and release assays using liposome-based nanosystems of egg phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol (7:3), with encapsulation efficiencies higher than 90% and release profiles well described by both Korsmeyer-Peppas and Weibull models.

Object segmentation is still considered a challenging problem in autonomous driving, particularly in consideration of real world conditions. Following this line of research, this paper approaches the problem of object segmentation using LiDAR-camera fusion and semi-supervised learning implemented in a fully-convolutional neural network. Our method is tested on real-world data acquired using our custom vehicle iseAuto shuttle. The data include all-weather scenarios, featuring night and rainy weather. In this work, it is shown that LiDAR-camera fusion with only a few annotated scenarios and semi-supervised learning, it is possible to achieve robust performance on real-world data in a multi-class object segmentation problem. The performance of our algorithm is measured in terms of intersection over union, precision, recall and area-under-the-curve average precision. Our network achieves 82% IoU in vehicle detection in day fair scenarios and 64% IoU in vehicle segmentation in night rain scenarios.

Degenerative spinal cord (SC) compression is a frequent pathological condition with increasing prevalence throughout aging. Initial non-myelopathic cervical SC compression (NMDC) might progress over time into potentially irreversible degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). While quantitative MRI (qMRI) techniques demonstrated the ability to depict intrinsic tissue properties, longitudinal in-vivo biomarkers to identify NMDC patients who will eventually develop DCM are still missing. Thus, we aim to review the ability of qMRI techniques (such as diffusion MRI, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), magnetization transfer (MT) imaging, magnetic resonance spec-troscopy (1H-MRS)) to serve as prognostic markers in NMDC. While DTI in NMDC patients con-sistently detected lower fractional anisotropy and higher mean diffusivity at compressed levels caused by demyelination and axonal injury, MT and 1H-MRS along with advanced and tract-specific diffusion MRI recently revealed microstructural alterations also rostrally pointing to Wallerian degeneration. Recent studies also disclosed significant relationship between micro-structural damage and functional deficits, assessed by qMRI and electrophysiology, respectively. Thus, tract-specific qMRI in combination with electrophysiology critically extend our under-standing of the underlying pathophysiology of degenerative SC compression and may provide predictive markers of DCM development for accurate patient management. However, the prog-nostic value must be validated in longitudinal studies.

The purpose of this work is to study quasi-stationary wave structure in the mid-latitude stratosphere and mesosphere (40–50°N) and its role in the formation of the annual ozone cycle. Geopotential height and ozone from Aura MLS data are used and winter climatology for January–February 2011–2020 is considered. More closely examined is the 10-degree longitude segment centered on Longfengshan Brewer station, China, and located in the region of the Aleutian Low influence associated with the quasi-stationary zonal maximum of total ozone. Annual and semi-annual oscillations in ozone were compared using units of ozone volume mixing ratio and concentration, as well as changes in ozone peak altitude and in time series of ozone at individual pressure levels between 316 hPa (9 km) and 0.001 hPa (96 km). The ozone maximum in the vertical profile is higher in volume mixing ratio (VMR) values than in concentration by about 15 km (5 km) in the stratosphere (mesosphere), in consistency with some previous studies. We found that the properties of the annual cycle are better resolved in the altitude range of the main ozone maximum: middle–upper stratosphere in VMR and lower stratosphere in concentration. Both approaches reveal SAO/AO-related changes in the of ozone peak altitudes in a range of 4–6 km during the year. In the lower-stratospheric ozone of the Longfengshan domain, an earlier development of the annual cycle takes place with a maximum in February and a minimum in August compared to spring and autumn, respectively, in zonal means. This is presumably due to the higher rate of dynamical ozone accumulation in the region of the quasi-stationary zonal ozone maximum. The “no-annual-cycle” transition layers are found in the stratosphere and mesosphere. These layers with undisturbed ozone volume mixing ratio throughout the year are of interest for more detailed future study.

Fluorine represents a privileged building block in pharmaceutical chemistry. Diethylaminosulfur-trifluoride (DAST) is a reagent commonly used for replacement of alcoholic hydroxyl groups with fluorine and is also known to catalyze water elimination and cyclic Beckmann-rearrangement type reactions. In this work we aimed to use DAST for diversity-oriented semisynthetic transformation of natural products bearing multiple hydroxyl groups to prepare new bioactive compounds. Four ecdysteroids, including a new constituent of Cyanotis arachnoidea, were selected as starting materials for DAST-catalyzed transformations. The newly prepared compounds represented combinations of various structural changes DAST was known to catalyze, and a unique cyclopropane ring closure that was found for the first time. Several compounds demonstrated in vitro antitumor properties. A new 17-N-acetylecdysteroid (13) exerted potent antiproliferative activity and no cytotoxicity on drug susceptible and multi-drug resistant mouse T-cell lymphoma cells. Further, compound 13 acted in significant synergism with doxorubicin without detectable direct ABCB1 inhibition. Our results demonstrate that DAST is a versatile tool for diversity-oriented synthesis to expand chemical space towards new bioactive compounds.

So-called ‘zero’ or ‘null’ tenses have often been characterized as functionally deficient forms, deprived of any inherent content. In this paper, we will focus on the semantics of a morpho-phonologically null inflectional verbal paradigm in Anindilyakwa (Groote Eylandt, N.T., Australia, which is both temporally and aspectually underspecified. Through a quantitative corpus study conducted in the paper, we establish that ‘zero inflection’ in this language, contra prior works on such tenses in general (e.g. Bybee 1990) and in Anindilyakwa in particular (Bednall 2019), presents various degrees of sensitivity to traditional Vendlerian aspectual parameters. We show that while telicity is not a significant predictor for the temporal interpretation of zero-inflected Anindilyakwa verbs, and dynamicity is a good but not very good predictor, only a very broad opposition between change-of-state (including qua boundedness) and non-change-of-state, or perfective/imperfective, gives very significant biases towards past vs. present anchoring. We also show that atomic telicity is the only categorical Aktionsart predictor for temporal anchoring in this context correctly predict the temporal anchoring of such verbs, and stativity is not biased towards present interpretations, thereby questioning currently received typological theories of the semantics of so-called ‘zero-tenses’ / aspectuo-temporally underspecified tenses.

The combination of organic matter, iron oxide, and clay minerals is of great significance for the adsorption of copper ions (Cu). The purpose of this study is to explore the characteristics of Cu adsorption and laws governing Cu complexation to organic–inorganic, organic–clay mineral, and iron-oxide–clay mineral complexes in the sediments in the estuary of plateau fault and sinking lake——Dianchi Lake. In this study, Cu adsorption tests were performed on the three complexes, in order to study the kinetic behavior of adsorption, Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models were used. The samples before and after adsorption were characterized via scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Our results show that, the Freundlich isotherm models model was able to describe adsorbent behavior in comparison to the Langmuir models. During the Cu adsorption process, the iron-oxide–clay mineral complex is able to adsorb Cu, via coordination exchange, through the –OH contained therein. Organic-matter–clay mineral complexes bonded to the surfaces of clay minerals by replacing the hydroxyl groups with functional groups (carboxyl groups or phenolic hydroxyl groups) contained in the organic matter. Organic–inorganic composites then adsorbed Cu through the coordination exchange of –OH in the polar functional groups of alcohols, phenols, and carboxylic acids. The adsorption capacity of Cu in these three sediment complexes was observed to have the following order: organic–inorganic complex > organic-matter–clay mineral complex > iron-oxide–clay mineral complex. The semi-quantitative analysis results of Fourier Infrared Spectroscopy show that the organic matter (changes in the peak area of functional groups such as carboxyl groups) in the organic-inorganic composite material has an important effect on the amount of copper ions adsorbed by clay minerals.

In proteomics, it is essential to quantify proteins in absolute terms if we wish compare results among studies and integrate high-throughput biological data into genome-scale metabolic models. While labeling target peptides with stable isotopes allows protein abundance to be accurately quantified, the utility of this technique is constrained by the low number of quantifiable proteins that it yields. Recently, label-free shotgun proteomics has become the “gold standard” for carrying out global assessments of biological samples containing thousands of proteins. However, this tool must be further improved if we wish to accurately quantify absolute levels of proteins. Here, we used different label-free quantification techniques to estimate absolute protein abundance in the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. More specifically, we evaluated the performance of seven different quantification methods, based either on spectral counting (SC) or extracted-ion chromatogram (XIC), which were applied to samples from five different proteome backgrounds. We also compared the accuracy and reproducibility of two strategies for transforming relative abundance into absolute abundance: a UPS2-based strategy and the total protein approach (TPA). This study mentions technical challenges related to UPS2 use and proposes ways of addressing them, including utilizing a smaller, more highly optimized amount of UPS2. Overall, three SC-based methods (PAI, SAF, and NSAF) yielded the best results because they struck a good balance between experimental performance and protein quantification.

Image segmentation is a new challenge prob- lem in medical application. The use of medical imaging has become an integral part of research, as it allows us to see inside the human body without surgical intervention. Many researcher have studied brain segmentation. One stage method is used to segment the brain tissues. In this paper, we proposed the multi-stage generative ad- versarial network to solve the problem of information loss in the one-stage. We utilize the coarse-to-fine to improve brain segmentation using multi-stage generative adversar- ial networks (GAN). In the first stage, our model generated a coarse outline for (i) background and (ii) brain tissues. Then, in the second stage, the model generated outline for (i) white matter (WM), (ii) gray matter (GM) and (iii) cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). A good result can be achieved by fusing the coarse outline and refine outline. We conclude that our model is more efficient and accu- rate in practice for both infant and adult brain segmenta- tion. Moreover, we observe that multi-stage model is faster than prior models. To be more specific, the main goal of multi-stage model is to see the performance of the model in a few shot learning case where a few labeled data are available. For medical image, this proposed model can work in a wide range of image segmentation where the convolution neural networks and one-stage methods have failed.

Protein import into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the first step in the biogenesis of about 10,000 different soluble and membrane proteins in humans. It involves co- or post-translational targeting of precursor polypeptides to the ER and their subsequent membrane insertion or translocation. So far, three pathways for ER targeting of precursor polypeptides plus four pathways for ER targeting of mRNAs were described. Typically, these pathways deliver their substrates to the Sec61 polypeptide-conducting channel in the ER membrane. Next, the precursor polypeptides are inserted into the ER membrane or translocated into the ER lumen, which may involve auxiliary translocation components, such as the TRAP and Sec62/Sec63 complexes, or auxiliary membrane protein insertases, such as EMC and the TMCO1 complex. Recently, the PEX19/PEX3-dependent pathway, which has a well-known function in targeting and inserting various peroxisomal membrane proteins into pre-existent peroxisomal membranes, was also found to act in targeting and, putatively, inserting monotopic hairpin proteins into the ER. These either remain in the ER as resident ER membrane proteins or are pinched off from the ER as components of new lipid droplets. Therefore, the question arose if this pathway may play a more general role in ER protein targeting, i.e. represents a fourth pathway for ER targeting of precursor polypeptides. Thus, we addressed the client spectrum of the PEX19/PEX3-dependent pathway in both PEX3-depleted HeLa cells and PEX3-deficient Zellweger patient fibroblasts by an established approach, which involves label-free quantitative mass spectrometry of the total proteome of depleted or deficient cells and differential protein abundance analysis. The negatively affected proteins included twelve peroxisomal proteins and two hairpin proteins of the ER, thus confirming two previously identified classes of putative PEX19/PEX3-clients in human cells. Interestingly, fourteen collagen-related proteins with signal peptides or N-terminal transmembrane helices and belonging to the secretory pathway were also negatively affected by PEX3-deficiency, which may suggest compromised collagen biogenesis as a hitherto unknown contributor to organ failures in the respective Zellweger patients.

Novel pH responsive semi-interpenetrating polymer hydrogels based on tamarind gum-co-poly(acrylamidoglycolic acid) (TMGA) polymers have been synthesized using simple free radical polymerization in the presence of bis[2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl] phosphate as a crosslinker and potassium persulfate as a initiator. In addition, these hydrogels have been used as templates for green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (13.4±3.6 nm in diameter, TMGA-Ag) by using leaf extract of Teminalia bellirica as reducing agent. Swelling kinetics and equilibrium swelling behavior of the TMGA hydrogels have been investigated in various pH environment the maxium % equilibrium swelling behavior observed i.e., 2882±1.2. The synthesized hydrogels and silver nanocomposites have been characterized by the UV, FTIR, XRD, SEM and TEM. TMGA and TMGA-Ag hydrogels have been investigated to study the characteristics of drug delivery and antimicrobial study. Doxorubicin hydrochloride, a chemotherapeutic agent successfully encapsulated with maximum encapulstaion efficiency i.e., 69.20±1.2 and performed in vitro release studies in pH physiological and gastric environment at 37 ℃. The drug release behavior is examined with kinetic models such as zero order, first order, Higuchi, Hixson Crowell, Korsmeyer-Peppas. These release data was the best fitted with the Korsemeyer-Peppas transport mechanism with n=0.91. Treatment effect on HCT116 Cell, human colon cancer cells were assessed with cell viability and cell cycle analysis. Antimicrobial activity of TMGA-Ag hydrogels is studied against to Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumonia. Finally, the results demonstrate that TMGA and TMGA-Ag are promising candidates for anti-cancer drug delivery and inactivation of pathogenic bacteria, respectively.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified and reproduced thousands of diseases associated loci but many of them are not directly interpretable due to the strong linkage disequilibrium among variants. Transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS) incorporated expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) cohorts as reference panel to detect associations with the phenotype at the gene level and were gaining popularity in recent years. For nicotine addiction, several important susceptible genetic variants were identified by GWAS, but TWAS that detected genes associated with nicotine addiction and unveiled the underlying molecular mechanism were still lacking. In this study, we used eQTL data from the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) consortium as reference panel to conduct tissue specific TWAS on cigarettes per day (CPD) over 13 brain tissues in two large cohorts: UK Biobank (UKBB; N=142,202) and the GWAS & Sequencing Consortium of Alcohol and Nicotine use (GSCAN; N=143,210), and then meta-analyzed the results across tissues while considering the heterogeneity across tissues. We identified three major clusters of genes with different meta-patterns across tissues consistent in both cohorts, including homogenous genes associated with CPD in all brain tissues, partially homogeneous genes associated with CPD in cortex, cerebellum and hippocampus tissues, and lastly the tissue-specific genes associated with CPD in only few specific brain tissues. Downstream enrichment analyses on each gene cluster identified unique biological pathways associated with CPD and provided important biological insights into the regulatory mechanism of nicotine dependence in the brain.

Background: In the functional data analysis (FDA), the hybrid or mixed data are scalar and functional datasets. The semi-functional partial linear regression model (SFPLR) is one of the first semiparametric models for the scalar response with hybrid covariates. Various extensions of this model are explored and summarized. Methods: Two first research articles, including “semi-functional partial linear regression model”, and “Partial functional linear regression” have more than 300 citations in Google Scholar. Finally, only 106 articles remained according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria such as 1) including the published articles in the ISI journals and excluding 2) non-English and 3) preprints, slides, and conference papers. We use the PRISMA standard for systematic review. Results: The articles are categorized into the following main topics: estimation procedures, confidence regions, time series, and panel data, Bayesian, spatial, robust, testing, quantile regression, varying Coefficient Models, Variable Selection, Single-index model, Measurement error, Multiple Functions, Missing values, Rank Method and Others. There are different applications and datasets such as the Tecator dataset, air quality, electricity consumption, and Neuroimaging, among others. Conclusions: SFPLR is one of the most famous regression modeling methods for hybrid data that has a lot of extensions among other models.

We generalize the dynamical analog of the Berry geometric phase setup to the quaternionic model of Avron et al. In our dynamical quaternionic system, the fast half-integer spin subsystem interacts with a slow two-degrees-of-freedom subsystem. The model is invariant under the 1:1:2 weighted SO(2) symmetry and spin inversion. There is one formal control parameter in addition to four dynamical variables of the slow subsystem. We demonstrate that the most elementary qualitative phenomenon associated with the rearrangement of the energy super-bands of our model consists of the rearrangement of one energy level between two energy superbands which takes place when the formal control parameter takes the special isolated value associated with the conical degeneracy of the semi-quantum eigenvalues. This qualitative phenomenon is of the topological origin, and is characterized by the second Chern class of the associated semi-quantum system. The correspondence between the number of redistributed energy levels and the second Chern number is confirmed through a series of examples.

Abstract: Droughts are complex and gradually evolving conditions of extreme water deficits which can compromise livelihoods and ecological integrity, especially in fragile arid and semi-arid regions that depend on rainfed farming, such as Kitui West in south-eastern Kenya. Against the background of low ground-station density, 10 gridded rainfall products and four gridded temperature products were used to generate an ensemble of 40 calculations of the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) to assess uncertainties in the onset, duration and magnitude of past droughts. These uncertainties were driven more by variations between the rainfall products than variations between the temperature products. Remaining ambiguities in drought occurrence could be resolved by complementing the quantitative analysis with ground-based information from key informants engaged in disaster relief, effectively formulating an ensemble approach to SPEI-based drought identification to aid decision making. The reported trend towards drier conditions in Eastern Africa was confirmed for Kitui West by the majority of data products, whereas the rainfall effect on the increasingly dry conditions was more subtle than annual and seasonal declines and greater annual variation, which warrants further investigation. Nevertheless, the effects of increasing droughts are already felt on the ground and warrant decisive action.

The goal is to reduce poverty, the method used is a literature study to see the effect of using Financial Technology (Fintech) on financial inclusion, method to see the effect of financial inclusion on poverty. From the results of the tests, the use of Fintech can increase financial inclusion, thereby encouraging poverty alleviation. It can be seen that the Financial Inclusion variable has a significant and negative effect on the poverty variable. This shows that countries that have high levels of financial inclusion are generally estimated to have low poverty rates. Increasing a country's financial inclusion can reduce poverty.

The ever-growing field of materials with applications in the biomedical field holds great promise regarding the design and fabrication of devices with specific characteristics especially scaffolds with personalized geometry and architecture. The continuous technological development pushes the limits of innovation in obtaining adequate scaffolds and establishing their characteristics and performance. To this end, computed tomography (CT) proved to be a reliable, non-destructive, high-performance machine, enabling visualization and structure analysis at sub-micronic resolutions. CT allows both qualitative and quantitative data of the 3D model, offering an overall image of its specific architectural features as well as reliable numerical data for rigorous analyses. The precise engineering of scaffolds consists in the fabrication of objects with well-defined morphometric parameters (e.g.: shape, porosity, wall thickness), and in their performance validation through thorough control over their behavior (in situ visualization, degradation, new tissue formation, wear, etc.). This review is focused on the use of CT in biomaterial science with the aim of qualitatively and quantitatively assess the scaffolds’ features and in monitoring their behavior following in vivo or in vitro experiments. Furthermore, the paper presents the benefits and limitations regarding the employment of this technique when engineering materials with applications in the biomedical field.

Desertification is impeding the implementation of reforestation efforts in Mongolia. Many of these efforts have been unsuccessful due to lack of technical knowledge on water and nutrient management strategies, limited financial support, and short-lived rainfall events. We investigated the effects of irrigation and fertilization on the morpho-physiological traits of Populus sibirica Hort. Ex Tausch and Ulmus pumila L. and to suggest irrigation and fertilization strategies for reforestation. Different irrigation and fertilizer treatments were applied: no irrigation, 2 L h-1, 4 L h-1 and 8 L h-1 of water; no fertilizer, 2 L h-1 + NPK, 4 L h-1 + NPK, and 8 L h-1 + NPK; and no compost, 2 L h-1 + compost, 4 L h-1 + compost, and 8 L h-1 + compost. The leaf area (LA) and specific leaf area (SLA) of both species responded positively to 4 L h-1 and/or 8 L h-1. Results also showed that the addition of either NPK or compost to 4 L h-1 and/or 8 L h-1 irrigation resulted in a higher LA, SLA, and leaf biomass (LB). Total chlorophyll content decreased with irrigation in both species. The same pattern was detected when a higher amount of irrigation was combined with fertilizers. Lastly, we found that both diurnal and seasonal leaf water potential of plants grown in 4 L h-1 and/or 8 L h-1 were significantly higher than in control plots. Therefore, 4 L h-1 and/or 8 L h-1 with either NPK or compost has shown to be the optimal irrigation and fertilization strategy for the species in an arid and semi-arid region of Mongolia. Results should provide us with a better understanding of tree responses to varying amounts of irrigation with or without fertilizer in pursuit of sustainable forest management in arid and semi-arid ecosystems.

Eating disorders (ED) are characterized by alterations in eating behavior. The genetic factors shared between ED diagnoses have been underexplored. The present study aimed to perform a genome-wide association study on individuals with disordered eating behaviors in the Mexican population, blood methylation quantitative trait loci (blood-meQTL) analysis, and in silico function prediction by different algorithms. The analysis included a total of 1803 individuals. Genome-wide association study and blood-meQTL analysis were performed by logistic and linear regression. In silico functional variant prediction, phenome-wide, and transcriptome-wide association studies by different algorithms were analyzed. In the genome-wide association study, we identified 44 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) associated at a nominal value and 7 blood-meQTL at a genome-wide umbral. The SNPs were enriched in genome-wide associations of the metabolic and immunologic domains. In the in silico analysis, the SNP rs10419198 located on an enhancer mark could change the expression of PRR12 on blood, adipocytes, and brain areas that regulate food intake. The present study supports the previous associations of genetic variation in the metabolic domain with ED.

Anemia and thyroid disorders are global health issues that affect all ages but are more apparent in women. In this case, some serological components responsible for IDA and TSH disorders in women have been found actively regulated through a complex steroidal-calcitriol mediated pathway. This research has been investigated the correlation between Calcitriol and the serological components responsible for IDA and TSH disorders in childbearing and non-child-bearing women of different health conditions. Experimental sampling from 452 women suffering from both IDA and TSH disorders were taken, aged between 0 and 70 years. Serological parameters, such as iron, total iron-binding capacity and ferritin, were assessed for IDA profiling, whereas thyroid-stimulating hormone and free thyroxin were for TSH profiling based on the individual’s serum calcitriol status. The resulted serological data were interpreted using sophisticated computer programming language and algorithms for quantitative biochemical analysis. The study resulted in a significant correlation between FT4 and Calcitriol (P<0.0001) for all age groups. TSH also showed strong interactions with the fluctuation of calcitriol level (P<0.0001), except for the children aged below 10 years (P<0.063). The iron, TIBC, TSH, and FT4 showed phenomenal regulation with the steroidal-calcitriol concentration for congenital patients. Unlike the others, ferritin has a substantial connection with Calcitriol (P<0.0064) fluctuation in the serum. To ratify, the concentrations of TSH, FT4, iron, TIBC, and ferritin were found to be significantly interconnected in terms of serum calcitriol level in women suffering from IDA and TSH disorders simultaneously. To understand the accuracy and efficacy of the Calcitriol in IDA and TSH disorders, some other inflammatory markers and parathyroid hormone analysis are need in future studies, besides a large number of samples.

The doctoral defense is an important step towards obtaining the doctoral degree. As such, preparing for the event is necessary. Anecdotal evidence highlights that there is a wide variety of ways in which doctoral candidates prepare for the defense. In this work, I want to explore if there is a relation between the way in which a doctoral candidate prepares for the defense and two important aspects of the defense: the outcome of the defense, and the student perception during and after the defense. For this purpose, I first reviewed the literature on the topic of the preparation for the doctoral defense. Then, I carried out an international survey on the doctoral defense and analyzed the data of the 204 completed surveys with respect to the preparation for the defense using quantitative and qualitative methods. The methods I used included the statistical tests of the correlation between on one hand the preparation and on the other hand the defense outcome and student perception. I used inductive thematic analysis of the open-ended survey questions to gain deeper insight in the way candidates prepared for their defense. I found that candidates most often prepare by making their presentation, reading their thesis, and practicing. The most effective measure is the mock defense, followed by a preparatory course. Reading blogs, books, and chapters is a less effective preparation measure. The conclusion of this work is that doctoral candidates need to understand the format of their defense in order to be able to prepare properly, and that universities should explore either individual pathways to the defense or pilots using a mock defense and/or preparatory course to give their doctoral candidates the necessary tools to prepare for their doctoral defense.

Let $G$ be a group with identity $e$ and $R$ be a commutative $G$-graded ring with nonzero unity $1$. Graded semi-primary and graded $1$-absorbing primary ideals have been investigated and examined by several authors as generalizations of graded primary ideals. However, these three concepts are different. In this article, we characterize graded rings over which every graded semi-primary ideal is graded $1$-absorbing primary and graded rings over which every graded $1$-absorbing primary ideal is graded primary.

The Performance Assessment for California Teachers (PACT) is a high stakes summative assessment that was designed to measure pre-service teacher readiness. We examined the inter-rater reliability (IRR) of trained PACT evaluators who rated 19 candidates. As measured by Cohen’s weighted kappa, the overall IRR estimate was .17 (poor strength of agreement). IRR estimates ranged from -.29 (worse than expected by chance) to .54 (moderate strength of agreement); all were below the standard of .70 for consensus agreement. Follow up interviews of 10 evaluators revealed possible reasons we observed low IRR, such as departures from established PACT scoring protocol, and lack of, or inconsistent, use of a scoring aid document. Evaluators reported difficulties scoring the materials that candidates submitted, particularly the use of Academic Language. Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA) is suggested as a method to improve IRR in the PACT and other teacher performance assessments such as the edTPA.

This study aims to better understand students who attend the Basic Vocational Training Cycles (FPB) regarding the measures to ensure diversity. This quantitative research project approximates the perception of students concerning their passage through their previous studies and their satisfaction and goals after finishing the school year. The sample con-sists of 352 students from Cordoba (Spain). A questionnaire has been used which follows the CIPP model. After the exploratory factor analysis was completed with the different groups of items and their descriptive analysis, various tests were carried out to consider the hypotheses (Pearson's correlation (r), one-factor analysis of variance and repeated ANOVA measures). The results indicate that the educational interest of the students is ac-ademic and professional. Likewise, there is no relationship detected between the appear-ance of socio-professional goals and average academic levels and the attributions with re-spect to repetitions of previous courses, although these goals vary depending on the satis-faction shown by the students with respect to the cycles. We conclude that the course of the FPB influences the adoption of decisions regarding academic-professional projects.

Background: The gut microbiome plays a major role in chronic diseases, of which several are characterized by an altered composition and diversity of bacterial communities. Large-scale sequencing projects allowed characterizing the perturbations of these communities. However, translating these discoveries into clinical applications remains a challenges. To facilitate routine implementation of microbiome profiling in clinical settings, portable, real-time, and low-cost sequencing technologies are needed. Results: Here, we propose a computational and experimental protocol for whole genome quantitative metagenomics studies of human gut microbiome with Oxford Nanopore sequencing technology (ONT) that could be applied to other microbial ecosystems. We developed a bioinformatic protocol to analyse ONT sequences taxonomically and functionally and optimized pre-analytic protocols including stool collection and DNA extraction methods to maximize read length. This is a critical parameter for the sequence alignment and classification. Our protocol was evaluated using simulations of metagenomic communities which reflect naturally occuring compositional variations. Next, we validated both protocols using stool samples from a bariatric surgery cohort, sequenced with ONT, Illumina and SOLiD technologies. Results revealed similar diversity and microbial composition profiles. Conclusion: This protocol can be implemented in the clinical or research setting, bringing rapid personalized whole genome profiling of target microbiome species.

Data independent acquisition - mass spectrometry (DIA-MS) is becoming widely utilised for robust and accurate quantification of samples in quantitative proteomics. Here, we describe the systematic evaluation of the effects of DIA precursor mass range on total protein identification and quantification. We show that a narrow mass range of precursors (~250 m/z) for DIA-MS enables a higher number of protein identifications. Subsequent application of DIA with narrow precursor range (from 400 to 650 m/z) on Arabidopsis sample with spike-in of known proteins identified 34.7% more proteins than in conventional DIA (cDIA) with a wide precursor range of 400-1200 m/z. When combining several DIA-MS analyses with narrow precursor ranges (i.e., 400-650, 650-900 and 900-1200 m/z), we were able to quantify 10,099 protein groups with a median coefficient of variation of <6%. These findings represent a 59.4% increase in the number of proteins quantified than with cDIA analysis. This is particularly important for low abundance proteins, as exemplified by the 6-protein mix spike-in. In cDIA only 5 out of the 6-protein mix were quantified while our approach allowed accurate quantitation of all six proteins.

The doctoral defense is an important step in the doctoral journey and an essential requirement for obtaining the doctoral degree. Past research on the doctoral defense has focused solely on national practices. In this work, I investigate the potential link between the doctoral defense format based on its major and minor elements and the perception of the defense by the student. For this purpose, I first reviewed the different defense formats used internationally to extract the different elements of the doctoral defense, as well as the literature on students’ perceptions of the doctoral defense. Then, I carried out an international survey which received 297 responses, of which 204 completed surveys which I used for the analysis in this article. I first analyzed the outcomes of the survey using qualitative and quantitative methods, and then cross-correlated the outcomes of defense format to the outcomes of student perception. From this analysis, I observe that the defense elements that positively impact the students’ perception are: publication of the thesis before the defense, receiving committee feedback before the defense, knowing the recommendation of one or more committee members in advance, having the supervisor present in the audience or as part of the committee, using a dress code, and including a laudatio. The final conclusion of this work is threefold. The first conclusion is that the details of the defense format impact most the students’ perception. The second conclusion is that doctoral students on average value the defense as a positive experience. The third conclusion is that the defense format cannot influence two important aspects of how a student perceives the defense: the student’s inner life and lived experience during the defense, and the behavior of the committee members.

This paper presents a steady-state and transient heat conduction analysis framework using the polygonal scaled boundary finite element method (PSBFEM) with polygon/quadtree meshes. The PSBFEM is implemented with commercial finite element code Abaqus by the User Element Subroutine (UEL) feature. The detailed implementation of the framework, defining the UEL element, and solving the stiffness/mass matrix by the eigenvalue decomposition are presented. Several benchmark problems from heat conduction are solved to validate the proposed implementation. Results show that the PSBFEM is reliable and accurate for solving heat conduction problems. Not only can the proposed implementation help engineering practitioners analyze the heat conduction problem using polygonal mesh in Abaqus, but it also provides a reference for developing the UEL to solve other problems using the scaled boundary finite element method.

A semi-structured interview (SSI) is one of the essential tools in conduction qualitative research. This essay draws upon the pros and cons of applying semi-structured interviews (SSI) in the qualitative research method. Moreover, the challenges of SSI during the coronavirus pandemic are critically discussed to provide plausible recommendations.

All neurological diseases have their pathological progress influenced by microglial cells, which react to insults with multiple morphofunctional phenotypes. However, the complete morphological spectrum of the reactive microglia, revealed by the three-dimensional microscopic reconstruction, has not been explored in detail in virus limbic encephalitis. Here, we used anatomical series of brain sections from a previous study using Piry arbovirus encephalitis, expanding the original investigation to CA1/CA2. The morphological response of the homeostatic and reactive microglia was investigated 8 days after infection. The hierarchical cluster and linear discriminant function analysis of multimodal morphometric features allowed to distinguish between the microglial morphology of infected individuals and controls. In order to represent more broadly the morphological spectrum of the microglia of each cluster, representative cells of the homeostatic and reactive microglia were chosen, using the sum of the distances of each cell in relation to all the others. Overall, the multivariate statistical analysis showed that the reactive microglia of infected animals have more complex trees and thicker branches, that cover a larger volume of tissue than the microglia of control animals. With this approach a more reliable representation of the microglia dispersion in the Euclidean space, would be closer to the spectrum of morphotypes of the control and infected groups, and help to avoid hiding the morphological kaleidoscope of surveillant and reactive microglia. As form precedes function in nature, our findings are a good starting point for future research with integrative approaches to microglia form and function.

The goal of newborn screening is to improve health outcomes by identifying and treating affected newborns. This manuscript provides an overview of a data tool to facilitate the longitudinal collection of health information on newborns diagnosed with a condition through NBS. The Newborn Screening Translational Research Network (NBSTRN) developed the Longitudinal Pediatric Data Resource (LPDR) to capture, store, analyze, visualize, and share genomic and phenotypic data over the lifespan of NBS identified newborns to facilitate understanding of genetic disease, and to assess the impact of early identification and treatment. NBSTRN developed a consensus-based process using clinical care experts to create, maintain, and evolve question and answer sets organized into common data elements (CDEs). The LPDR contains 24,172 core and disease-specific CDEs for 118 rare genetic diseases, and the CDEs are being made available through the NIH CDE Repository. The number of CDEs for each condition average of 2,200 with a range from 69 to 7,944. The LPDR is used by state NBS programs, clinical researchers, and community-based organizations. Case level, de-identified data sets are available for secondary research and data mining. The development of the LPDR for longitudinal data gathering, sharing, and analysis supports research and facilitates the translation of new discoveries into clinical practice.

All neurological diseases have their pathological progress influenced by microglial cells, which react to insults with multiple morphofunctional phenotypes. However, the complete morphological spectrum of the reactive microglia, revealed by the three-dimensional microscopic reconstruction, has not been explored in detail in virus limbic encephalitis. Here, we used anatomical series of brain sections from a previous study using Piry arbovirus encephalitis, expanding the original investigation to CA1/CA2. The morphological response of the homeostatic and reactive microglia was investigated 8 days after infection. The hierarchical cluster and linear discriminant function analysis of multimodal morphometric features allowed to distinguish between the microglial morphology of infected individuals and controls. In order to represent more broadly the morphological spectrum of the microglia of each cluster, representative cells of the homeostatic and reactive microglia were chosen, using the sum of the distances of each cell in relation to all the others. Overall, the multivariate statistical analysis showed that the reactive microglia of infected animals have more complex trees and thicker branches, that cover a larger volume of tissue than the microglia of control animals. With this approach a more reliable representation of the microglia dispersion in the Euclidean space, would be closer to the spectrum of morphotypes of the control and infected groups, and help to avoid hiding the morphological kaleidoscope of surveillant and reactive microglia. As form precedes function in nature, our findings are a good starting point for future research with integrative approaches to microglia form and function.

With COVID-19 vaccines slowly being rolled out in many countries, it is important to understand the public’s acceptance of being vaccinated. This study aims to study the willingness and motivations among residents of the cities of Caloocan, Malabon, and Navotas, Philippines to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Based on an online survey of 137 respondents, who willingly participated in the study, 71% will take a COVID-19 vaccine if it becomes available, with similar rates among respondents from Caloocan (82%), Malabon (83 %), and Navotas (81%). If a vaccine is proven safe and effective, more respondents (82%) will take a COVID-19 vaccine. Furthermore, safety against COVID-19 as well as the safety and effectiveness of vaccines are the primary factors why respondents are willing or unwilling to get a vaccine. The results highlight the need for effective messaging that promotes COVID-19 vaccination, with emphasis on the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, and its benefits to the public, especially that the vaccines that will be delivered in the country in the next few months are not the most preferred brands by the respondents.

Created in 1905, the Société des Artistes Meridionaux organized annual exhibitions in Toulouse, in order to promote regional arts and (re)created a "Latin" - and modern - style. Based on a corpus of 11,486 artworks exhibited at the SAM between 1907 and 1939, this paper seeks to measure the contours and particularities of the Salons des Artistes Meridionaux, using a computational approach.

This paper describes how to construct a low-cost magnetic levitation system (MagLev). The MagLev has been intensively used in the engineering education, allowing instructors and students to learn through hands-on experiments essential concepts, such as electronics, electromagnetism, and control systems. Built from scratch, the proposed MagLev depends only on simple, low-cost components readily available on the market. In addition to showing how to construct the MagLev, this paper presents a semi-active control strategy which seems novel when applied in the MagLev. Experiments performed in the laboratory have compared the proposed control scheme with the classical PID control. The corresponding real-time experiments illustrate both the effectiveness of the approach and the potential of the MagLev for education.

Agricultural landscapes are more and more characterized by intensification and habitat losses. Landscape composition and configuration are known to mediate insect abundance and richness. In the context of global insect decline, and despite 75% of crops being under insect’s dependence, there is still a gap of knowledge about the link between pollinators and aromatic crops. Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) is an aromatic plant cultivated in South of France, for its essential oil which is of great economic interest. Using pan-traps, we investigated the influence of the surrounding habitats at landscape scale (semi-natural habitat proportion and vicinity, landscape configuration) and local scale agricultural practices (insecticides and patch size) on fennel-flower-visitor abundance and richness and their subsequent impact on fennel essential oil yield. We found that fennel may to be a generalist plant species. We did not find any effect of intense local management practices on insect abundance and richness. Landscape configuration and the proximity to semi-natural habitat were the main drivers of flying insect’s family richness. This richness positively influenced fennel essential oil yield. Maintaining a complex configuration of patches at the landscape scale are important to sustain insect diversity and crop yield.

Depletion of ore deposits, increasing demand for raw materials, the need to process low-grade, complex and finely disseminated ores and the reprocessing of tailings are challenges, especially for froth flotation separation technologies. Even though capable of handling relatively fine grain sizes the flotation separation of very fine and ultrafine particles faces many problems still. Further, the flotation of low-contrast semi-soluble salt-type minerals with very similar surface properties, many complex interactions between minerals, reagents and dissolved species often result in poor selectivity. This study investigates the flotation beneficiation of ultrafine magnesite rich in dolomite from de-sliming, currently reported to the tailings. The paper especially focuses on the impact of the depressant sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP) on: (i) the froth properties using dynamic froth analysis (DFA), (ii) the separation between magnesite and dolomite/calcite and (iii) its effect on the entrainment. Furthermore, the application of 1-hydroxyethylene-1,1-diphosphonic acid (HEDP) is a more environmentally friendly and low-cost alternative to SHMP is presented and discussed. The paper contributes to understanding on the complexity of depressant responses in froth flotation.

Double-spiral galaxies are common in the Universe. It is known that the logarithmic double spiral is a Maximum Entropy geometry and represents spiral galaxies well. It is also known that the virial mass of such a galaxy can be approximately determined from the entropy of its central supermassive black hole. But over time the black hole must accrete mass, and therefore the overall galactic entropy must increase. From the associated entropic Euler-Lagrange equation (forming the basis of the Principle of Least Exertion, and also enabling the application of Nöther’s theorem) we show that the galactic entropy production is a conserved quantity, and we derive an appropriate expression for the relativistic entropic Hamiltonian of an idealised spiral galaxy. We generalise Onsager’s celebrated expression for entropy production and demonstrate that galactic entropy production has two parts, one many orders of magnitude larger than the other, and where the smaller is comparable to the Hawking radiation of the central supermassive black hole. We conclude that galaxies cannot be isolated, since even idealised spiral galaxies have non-zero entropy production.

Intertidal seagrass plays a vital role in estimating the overall health and dynamics of coastal environments due to its interaction with tidal changes. However, most seagrass habitats around the globe have been in steady decline due to human impacts, disturbing the already delicate balance in environmental conditions that sustain seagrass. Miniaturization of multi-spectral sensors has facilitated very high resolution mapping of seagrass meadows, which significantly improve the potential for ecologists to monitor changes. In this study, two analytical approaches used for classifying intertidal seagrass habitats are compared: Object-based Image Analysis (OBIA) and Fully Convolutional Neural Networks (FCNNs). Both methods produce pixel-wise classifications in order to create segmented maps, however FCNNs are an emerging set of algorithms within Deep Learning with sparse application towards seagrass mapping. Conversely, OBIA has been a prominent solution within this field, with many studies leveraging in-situ data and multiscale segmentation to create habitat maps. This work demonstrates the utility of FCNNs in a semi-supervised setting to map seagrass and other coastal features from an optical drone survey conducted at Budle Bay, Northumberland, England. Semi-supervision is also an emerging field within Deep Learning that has practical benefits of achieving state of the art results using only subsets of labelled data. This is especially beneficial for remote sensing applications where in-situ data is an expensive commodity. For our results, we show that FCNNs have comparable performance with standard OBIA method used by ecologists, while also noting an increase in performance for mapping ecological features that are sparsely labelled across the study site.

Recently, there has been renewed interest in the performance, functionality, and sustainability of traditional small-scale storage interventions (check dams, farm bunds and tanks) used across India for the improvement of local water security. The Central Groundwater Board of India is en-couraging the construction of such interventions for the alleviation of water scarcity. It is of critical importance to understand the hydrological effect of these interventions at basin scales to maximise their effectiveness. The quantification of small-scale interventions in hydrological modelling is often neglected, especially in large-scale modelling exercises. A bespoke version of the GWAVA model was developed to assess the impact of interventions on the water balance of the Cauvery Basin and two smaller sub-catchments. Model results demonstrate that farm bunds appear to have a negligible effect on the estimated average annual simulated streamflow at the outlets of the two sub-catchments and the basin whereas tanks and check dams have a more significant effect. In-terventions generally were found to increase evaporation losses across the catchment. The model adaption used in this study provides a step-change in the conceptualisation and quantification of the consequences of small-scale storage interventions in large- or basin-scale hydrological models.

Complex models have received significant interest in recent years and are being increasingly used to explain the stochastic phenomenon with upward and downward fluctuation such as the stock market. Different from existing semi-variance methods in traditional integer dimension construction for two variables, this paper proposes a simplified multi-factorized fractional dimension derivation with the exact Excel tool algorithm involving the fractional center moment extension to covariance, which is a complex parameter average that is a multi-factorized extension to Pearson covariance. By examining the peaks and troughs of gold price averages, the proposed algorithm provides more insight into revealing underlying stock market trends to see who is the financial market leader during good economic times. The calculation results demonstrate that the complex covariance is able to distinguish subtle differences among stock market performances and gold prices for the same field that the two variable covariance may overlook. We take the London, Tokyo, Shanghai, Toronto and Nasdaq as the representative examples.

Abstract Unlike accelerated motion or curvalinear motion,a nonlinear motion state(non-inertial system) can be described by differential equations or the other algebric equations in axiom 2, the accelerated motion in axiom 3 can be considered to be described by using the equation of the linear and curvilinear process of the continuum extending to infinitely distance.Further, this linear and curvilinear process of the continuum is a quantitative continuum in essence as a unity of infinitely quantities and infinitely dimensions at infinite distance (infinity) relative to all orientations in which we exist. These indicates that an accelerated motion accumulates continuously started from a finite quantities, leaping to transit from finite to infinite quantities by an infinitely great accelerating force.

Complex modeling has received significant attention in recent years and is increasingly used to explain the statistical phenomenon with increasing and decreasing fluctuations such as the similarity or difference of spike protein charge patterns of coronaviruses. Different from the existing covariance or correlation coefficient methods in traditional integer dimension construction, this study proposes a simplified novel fractional dimension derivation with the exact Excel tool algorithm. It involves the fractional center moment extension to covariance, which ends up a complex covariance coefficient that is better than the Pearson correlation coefficient, in the sense that the nonlinearity relationship can be further depicted. The spike protein sequences of coronaviruses were obtained from the GenBank and GISAID database, including the coronaviruses from pangolin, bat, canine, swine (three variants), feline, tiger, SARS-CoV-1, MERS, and SARS-CoV-2 (including the strains of Wuhan, Beijing, New York, German, and UK variant B.1.1.7) were used as the representative examples in this study. By examining the values above and below the average/mean based on the positive and negative charge patterns of the amino acid residues of the spike proteins from coronaviruses, the proposed algorithm provides deep insights into the nonlinear evolving trends of spike proteins for understanding the viral evolution and identifying the protein characteristics associated with viral fatality. The calculation results demonstrate that the complex covariance coefficient analyzed by this algorithm is capable of distinguishing the subtle nonlinear differences in the spike protein charge patterns with reference to Wuhan strain SARS-CoV-2 for which the Pearson correlation coefficient may overlook. Our analysis reveals the unique convergent (positive correlative) to divergent (negative correlative) domain center positions of each virus. The convergent or conserved region may be critical to the viral stability or viability; while the divergent region is highly variable between coronaviruses suggesting high frequency of mutations in this region. The analyses show that the conserved center region of SARS-CoV-1 spike protein is located at amino acid residues 900, but shifted to the amino acid residues 700 in MERS spike protein, and then to amino acid residues 600 in SARS-COV-2 spike protein, indicating the evolvement of the coronaviruses. Interestingly, the conserved center region of the spike protein in SARS-COV-2 variant B.1.1.7 shifted back to amino acid residues 700, suggesting this variant is more virulent than the original SARS-COV-2 strain. Another important characteristic our study reveals is that the distance between the divergent mean and the maximal divergent point in each of the viruses (MERS>SARS-CoV-1>SARS-CoV-2) is proportional to viral fatality rate. This algorithm may help to understand and analyze the evolving trends and critical characteristics of SARS-COV-2 variants, other coronaviral proteins and viruses.

This work is concerned with the existence and uniqueness of boundary value problems defined on semi-infinite intervals. These kinds of problems seldom admit exactly known solutions and, therefore, the theoretical information on their well-posedness is essential before attempting to derive an approximate solution by analytical or numerical means. Our utmost contribution in this context is the definition of a numerical test for investigating the existence and uniqueness of solutions of boundary problems defined on semi-infinite intervals. The main result is given by a theorem relating the existence and uniqueness question to the number of real zeros of a function implicitly defined within the formulation of the iterative transformation method. As a consequence, we can investigate the existence and uniqueness of solutions by studying the behaviour of that function. Within such a context the numerical test is illustrated by two examples where we find meaningful numerical results.

This paper deals with a non-standard finite difference scheme defined on a quasi-uniform mesh for approximate solutions of the Magneto-Hydro Dynamics (MHD) boundary layer flow of an incompressible fluid past a flat plate for a wide range of the magnetic parameter. We show how to improve the obtained numerical results via a mesh refinement and a Richardson extrapolation. The obtained numerical results are favourably compared with those available in the literature.

The conversion of CO2 into more synthetically flexible CO is an effective and potential method for CO2 remediation, utilization and carbon emission reduction. In this paper, the reaction of carbon-carbon dioxide (Boudouard reaction) was performed in a microwave fixed bed reactor using semi-coke (SC) as both the microwave absorber and reactant and was systematically compared with that heated in a conventional thermal field. The effects of the heating source, SC particle size, CO2 flow rate and additives on CO2 conversion and CO output were investigated. By microwave heating (MWH), CO2 conversion reached more than 99 %, while by conventional heating (CH), the maximum conversion of CO2 was approximately 29% at 900 °C. Meanwhile, for the reaction with 5 wt% Barium Carbonate added as a promoter, the reaction temperature was significantly reduced to 750 °C with almost quantitative conversion of CO2. Further kinetic calculations showed that the apparent activation energy of the reaction under microwave heating was 46.3 kJ/mol, which was only one-third of that observed under conventional heating. The microwave-assisted Boudouard reaction with catalytic barium carbonate is a promising method for carbon dioxide utilization.

Fiber reinforced thermoplastics (FRTP), which is reinforced with glass or carbon fibers, are used to improve the mechanical strength of injection-molded products. However, FRTP has problems such as the formation of weld lines, the deterioration of the appearance due to the exposure of fibers on the molded product surface, and the deterioration of the strength of molded products due to the fiber orientation in the molded products. We have designed and fabricated an injection mold capable of melt flow control and induction heating and cooling that has the functions of both heating and cooling the injection mold as well as the function of controlling the melt flow direction using a movable core pin. In this study, the above-mentioned mold was used for the molding of carbon fiber reinforced semi-aromatic polyamide. As a result, we found that increasing the heating temperature of the mold and increasing melt flow control volume contribute to the prevention of the generation of a weld line and the exposure of fibers on the molded product surface, as well as to the formation of a flat surface and increased bending strength. The relationships of these results with the carbon fiber orientation in the molded products and the crystallization of semi-aromatic polyamide were also examined in this study.

With an estimated 3 to 5 million human cases annually and the potential to infect domestic and wild animal populations, influenza viruses are one of the greatest health and economic burdens to our society [1] and pose an ongoing threat of large-scale pandemics. Despite our knowledge of many important aspects of influenza virus biology, there is still much to learn about how influenza viruses replicate in infected cells, for instance how they use entry receptors or exploit host cell trafficking pathways. These gaps in our knowledge are due, in part, to the difficulty of directly observing viruses in living cells. In recent years, advances in light microscopy, including super-resolution microscopy and single-molecule imaging, have enabled many viral replication steps to be visualised dynamically in living cells. In particular, the ability to track single virions and their components, in real time, now allows specific pathways to be interrogated providing new insights to various aspects of the virus-host cell interaction. In this review, we discuss how state-of-the-art imaging technologies, notably quantitative live-cell and super-resolution microscopy, are shedding new nanoscale and molecular insights into influenza virus replication and revealing new opportunities for developing antiviral strategies.

Root rot diseases remain a major global threat to the productivity of agricultural crops. They are usually caused by more than one type of pathogen and are thus often referred to as a root rot complex. Fungal and oomycete species are the predominant participants in the complex, while bacteria and viruses are also known to cause root rot. Incorporating genetic resistance in cultivated crops is considered as the most efficient and sustainable solution to counter root rot; however, resistance is often quantitative in nature. Several genetics studies in various crops have identified quantitative trait loci associated with resistance. With access to whole genome sequences, the identity of the genes within the reported loci is becoming available. Several of the identified genes have been implicated in pathogen response. However, it is becoming apparent that at the molecular level, each pathogen engages a unique set of proteins to either infest the host successfully or be defeated or contained in doing so. In this review, a comprehensive summary of the genes and potential mechanisms underlying resistance or susceptibility against the most investigated root rots of important agricultural crops is presented.

We report cross-shore profile evolution at Palanga, eastern Baltic Sea where short period waves dominate. Cross-shore profile studies began directly after a significant coastal erosion caused by storm “Anatoly” in December of 1999 and continued for a year. Further measurements were undertaken sixteen years later. Cross-shore profile ∆V(x) changes were described, and cross-shore transport rates Q(x) were calculated. A K-means clustering technique was applied to determine sections of the profile with the same development tendencies. Profile evolution was strongly influenced by the depth of closure which is constrained by a moraine layer and the presence of a groyne. The method used divided the profile into four clusters: the 1st cluster in the deepest water represents profile evolution limited by the depth of closure, and the 2nd and 3rd mostly are affected by processes induced by wind, wave and sea-water level changes. The most intensive sediment volume changes were observed directly after the coastal erosion. The largest sand accumulation was in the 4th profile cluster, which includes the upper beach and dunes. Seaward extension of the dune system caused a narrowing of the visible beach which has led to an increased sand volume (accretion) being misinterpreted as erosion

The study aimed to develop standards for a welfare assessment protocol, by validating potential categorisation thresholds for assessment of beef farms in various beef cow-calf production systems in Namibia. Forty measures combined from a New Zealand-based protocol plus Namibia-specific measures, were applied on 55 beef farms (17 commercial farms, 20 semi-commercial and 18 communal village farms) during pregnancy testing, and a questionnaire guided interview. The categorised measures on a 3-point welfare score of 0: good 1: marginal and 2: poor/unacceptable welfare were subsequently compared with derivation of thresholds based upon the poorest 15% and best 50% of herds for each measure. Overall combined thresholds of continuous measures across the 3 farm types, showed 10/22 measures that posed welfare compromise across Namibia, where commercial farms had 4/22 measures and semi-commercial and communal village farms had 12/22 and 11/22 respectively with high thresholds. Most measures-imposed thresholds were retained because of significant importance to welfare of animals and preventiveness of the traits, while leniency was given to adjust good feeding and mortality measures to signify periods of drought. Handling measures (fearful, falling/lying) and abrasions thresholds were adjusted to reflect the temporary stress caused by infrequent cattle handling, and faulty yard designs/design and possible cattle breed influence on handling. Hence, the country needs prioritised investigation of underlying contributing factors and remediation to reduce the high thresholds.

A proposed animal welfare assessment protocol for semi-arid rangeland-based cow-calf systems in Namibia combined 40 measures from a protocol developed for beef cattle in New Zealand with additional Namibia-specific measures. Preliminary validation of the protocol had been undertaken with five herds in one semi-commercial village. The aim of the current study was to apply this protocol and compare animal welfare across three cow-calf production systems in Namibia. A total of 2529 beef cows were evaluated during pregnancy testing in the yards of 17 commercial, 20 semi-commercial and 18 communal (total: 55) herds followed by an assessment of farm resources and a questionnaire-guided interview. Non-parametric tests were used to evaluate the difference in the welfare scores between the production systems. The results indicated a discrepancy of animal welfare between the three farm types, with a marked separation of commercial farms from semi-commercial, and communal village farms in the least. The differences in these production systems was mainly driven by economic gains through access to better beef export market for commercial farms and semi-commercial villages, as well as by the differences in the available grazing land, facility designs/quality and traditional customs in the village systems. The results indicate an advantage of commercialisation over communalisation.

Background: Objectives. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of direct current stimulation (DCS) applied at the transcranial, suboccipital and spinal level on experimental sensory modalities and pain outcome measures in healthy subjects. The hypothesis of this study was that systematic analysis of the efficacy of DCS on modulating evoked thermal and mechanical pain modalities and mechanisms such as endogenous pain modulation in healthy individuals would reveal sensitive outcome measures help develop this technique for the control of chronic pain. Materials and Methods. Database searches were conducted up to December 2019 for randomized controlled trials that performed sham-controlled DCS of experimental sensory modalities and pain outcomes following transcranial, suboccipital and spinal locations in healthy participants. Standardized mean differences with 95% confidence intervals were calculated for sensory modalities, including random-effect metanalysis. Results: Thirty-one studies were included for analysis (647 participants). A significant decrease in pain intensity for active vs sham transcranial stimulation was identified for pain intensity (n=158; SMD=0.79; 95% CI=0.56 to 1.02), a significant increase in heat pain threshold (n=222; SMD=1.16; 95% CI=0.95 to 1.37), and a significant increase in cold pain threshold (n = 155; SMD = 0.77, 95% CI 0.53 to 1.01). No significant modulation of pressure pain threshold was identified with DCS and only a limited number of studies focused on experimental pain modulation following neuromodulation at the suboccipital or spinal level. Conclusions: These results show significant transcranial DCS neuromodulation of pain intensity and on thermal pain modalities. Future studies should focus on endogenous pain and sensory modality modulation with sham-controlled DCS applied at transcranial, suboccipital and spinal locations.

The accurate assessment and monitoring of soil erosion is of great significance for guiding food production and ensuring ecological security, and it is a current research hotspot. In this paper, remote sensing and geographic information systems (GISs) are combined with the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE model) to carry out research on soil erosion monitoring and make a quantitative evaluation. According to five factors, including rainfall erosivity, soil erodibility, topography, vegetation cover, crop management and water and soil conservation measures, the distribution of the soil erosion rate in Jilin Province in 2019 was mapped, and the soil erosion rate was divided into 5 levels according to the degree of erosion, including very slight, slight, moderate, severe and extremely severe erosion. Based on the segmented S-slope factor model and the unique topographical features of the study area, the relationships among the soil erosion rate, erosion risk level, erosion area, erosion amount and slope angle (θ) were systematically analysed, and a slope angle of 15° was identified as the threshold for soil erosion on sloped farmland in Jilin Province. The total soil erosion in Jilin Province was 402.14×106 t in 2019, the average soil erosion rate was 21.6 t·ha-1·a-1, and the average soil loss thickness was 1.6 mm·a-1; these values were far greater than the soil erosion rate risk threshold of 10 t ·Ha-1·a-1. Thus, the province has a strong level of soil erosion. We conclude that soil degradation is accelerating, and food production and the ecological environment will face severe challenges. It is suggested that soil erosion control should be carried out according to different types and slopes of land, with an emphasis on the management of forestland and farmland because forestland and farmland are currently the first types of land to be managed in Jilin Province. This paper aims to explore a timely, fast, efficient and convenient soil erosion monitoring and evaluation method and provide effective monitoring tools for agricultural water and soil conservation, ecological safety management and stable food production in Jilin Province and similar black soil areas.

In recent years, there have been frequent reports on the adverse effects of synthetic cannabinoid (SC) abuse. SCs cause psychoactive effects, similar to those caused by marijuana, by binding and activating cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) in the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to establish a reliable quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) model to correlate the structures and physicochemical properties of various SCs with their CB1R-binding affinities. We prepared 15 SCs and their derivatives (tetrahydrocannabinol [THC], naphthoylindoles, and cyclohexylphenols) and determined their binding affinity to CB1R, which is known as a dependence-related target. We calculated the molecular descriptors for dataset compounds using an R/CDK (R package integrated with CDK, version 3.5.0) toolkit to build QSAR regression models. These models were established and statistical evaluations were performed using the mlr and plsr packages in R software. The most reliable QSAR model was obtained from the partial least squares regression method via external validation. This model can be applied in vivo to predict the addictive properties of illicit new SCs. Using a limited number of dataset compounds and our own experimental activity data, we built a QSAR model for SCs with good predictability. This QSAR modeling approach provides a novel strategy for establishing an efficient tool to predict the abuse potential of various SCs and to control their illicit use.

A radical, albeit pragmatic protocol for experimental access to putative String/M-theoretic, Einstein Unified Field Mechanical (UFM) additional dimensionality (XD) of the brane-bouquet bulk is presented. If successful, results demonstrate the existence dimensionality beyond the metric of observed physical reality provided by the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics and Cosmology. Quantum Mechanics (QM), as well-known is incomplete and further, should no longer be considered the basement of reality; meaning, Locality and Unitarity – the fundaments of quantum theory are an insufficient basis for extending the representation of reality. A seminal model of Tight Bound States (TBS) below the lowest Bohr orbit in the hydrogen atom, proposed by Vigier, is extended to a Kaluza-Klein-like (KK) cyclical tier of XD hyperspherical cavities defined within a manifold of uncertainty (MOU) of finite radius up to the semi-quantum limit, predicting, within its domain, new spectral lines in Hydrogen. The proposed protocol for this process, with phase modifications, provides efficacy of large-scale additional dimensionality (LSXD) of the brane bulk; XD-LSXD incursion duality accesses nonlocal Einsteinian UFM phenomena, leading to myriad new classes of technological innovation.