Pathogenic Salmonella strains have a set of virulence factors allowing them to generate systemic infections and damage in a variety of hosts. Among these factors, bacterial proteins secreted by specialized systems are used to penetrate the host’s intestinal mucosa, through the invasion and destruction of specialized epithelial M cells in the intestine. On the other hand, numerous studies have demonstrated that humans, as well as experimental animal hosts, respond to Salmonella infection by activating both innate and adaptive immune responses. Here, through live cell imaging of S. Typhimurium infection of zebrafish larvae, we showed that besides the intestinal colonization, a deformed cloacae region and a concomitant accumulation of S. Typhimurium cells was observed upon bacterial infection. The swelling led to a persistent inflammation of infected larvae, although the infection was non-lethal. The in vivo inflammation process was confirmed by the co-localization of GFP-tagged S. Typhimurium with mCherry-tagged neutrophils at 72 hours post exposition. Our live-cell analyses suggest that Salmonella Typhimurium induce cloacitis-like symptoms in zebrafish larvae. Typhimurium induce cloacitis-like symptoms in zebrafish larvae.

Africa is gradually becoming an epicentre for the COVID-19 pandemic. From the current trends of the disease, Africa might be the last hardest hit continent. While scientific investigations are ongoing to develop effective management through medications and vaccines, existing knowledge, perceptions and attitudes could be harnessed to develop an effective strategy to curb community transmission of the COVID-19. The present study assessed the awareness level, perceptions and attitudes of people living in rural, peri-urban and urban communities in Northern Ghana and their preparedness for the prevention and containment of COVID-19. We conducted a face-to-face interview and administered 553 semi-structured questionnaires in eighteen (18) rural and peri-urban/urban communities under Tolon District, Kumbungu Districts, Sagnarigu Municipality, Savelugu Municipality and Tamale Metropolis from 23^rd of April to 8^th of June 2020. The percentage of male to female among the respondents was 56.8% and 43.2%, respectively. Nearly half (41%) of the respondents had no formal education and 91.3% of them were Muslims. Most of the respondents (85%) held the view that COVID-19 is a punishment from God. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) between the time rural and peri-urban/urban communities first heard of COVID-19. Majority (63%) of the rural respondents depended on radio, while the peri-urban/urban respondents (51%) relied on television for information on COVID-19. All respondents were aware of COVID-19 and 91.7% could mention at least two symptoms of the disease but 18% believed there was no COVID-19 in Ghana. Most of the respondents (69.6%) believed they will not contract the virus. Our findings may provide useful data to government and other stakeholders in the COVID-19 fight.

Montiaceae (Portulacineae) comprise a clade of at least 268 species plus ca. 27 subspecific taxa primarily of western North America, the Chilean Floristic Region, and temperate Australasia. This work uses existing phylogenetic metadata to elaborate a new cladistic taxonomic synthesis. A total of 24 taxa are validated, nine new and 15 necessary nomenclatural recombinations. Hypotheses of Montiaceae historical biogeographical, ecological, and phenotypic evolution are evaluated in light of recent metadata and in terms of classical, contemporary, and novel systematic and evolutionary epistemology.

An endemic pear species spreads in one region of western Georgia, Adjara, called Khechechuri. Pears are dietary source of bioactive components such as polyphenols and triterpenic acid. In addition to its gastronomic value, the aim of the article was to examine and compare phenolic compounds, flavonoids, catechins, phenolic acids, and antioxidant activities in five species of Khechechuri collected from various regions in Adjara region: Adjaristskali, Merisi, Dandalo, Shuakhevi, and Khulo. Five fruit parts, the skin, edible pulp, the whole pear (skin + pulp), juice and the pomace were analyzed and the results were compared. Our study revealed that the amount of total phenolic content found in the skin of West Georgian pear types was as much as 4650 mg/kg. Also, the pear pomace showed significant amount of total phenolic content in all species of Khechechuri. In addition, in all species of Khechechuri pears, flavonoids were found, except in the fruit juice.

Cistanthe subspeciosa Hershk. (Cistanthe Spach sect. Cistanthe; Montiaceae) here is described as a herbaceous to suffruticose perennial from the vicinity of Copiapó, Chile. Its epithet is juxtaposed with its rank in order to highlight its subspecific aesthetic. In particular, the specioid is infrequent, locally restricted, and lacks unique diagnostic traits. Rather, it is diagnosed by a combination of traits characteristic of different Cistanthe species from the region, none of which can be identified as the referential species to which Cs. subspeciosa might be considered subspecific. The intersection between species nomenclature and species ontology thus is discussed. I hypothesize that Cs. subspeciosa is irrigated primarily by mountain runoff rather than localized precipitation, and that it might be both resistant to and dependent upon high substrate metal concentrations characteristic of the Copiapó region. The ornamental value of this and other Cistanthe species is discussed. Finally, additional historical details pertaining to Calandrinia spectabilis Otto & Dietr. and Cistanthe philhershkovitziana are provided.

The genus Fritillaria belongs to the widely distributed family Liliaceae. The bulbs of Fritillaria ussuriensis and Fritillaria cirrhosa are valuable herbaceous medicinal ingredients. However, they are still used indiscriminately in herbal medicine. Identification and molecular phylogenic analysis of Fritillaria species is therefore required. Here, we report the complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequences of F. ussuriensis and F. cirrhosa. The two Fritillaria cp genomes were 151,524 and 151,083 bp in length, respectively, including a pair of inverted repeat regions (52,678 and 52,156 bp) separated by a large single copy region (81,732 and 81,390 bp) and small single copy region (17,114 and 17,537 bp). A total of 111 genes in F. ussuriensis and 112 in F. cirrhosa comprised 77 protein-coding genes in F. ussuriensis and 78 in F. cirrhosa, 30 tRNA genes, and four rRNA genes. The gene order, content, and orientation of the two Fritillaria cp genomes exhibited the general structure of flowering plants, and were similar to those of other Fritillaria species. Comparison of the six Fritillaria species’ cp genomes indicated seven highly divergent regions in intergenic spacers and in the matK, rpoC1, rpoC2, ycf1, ycf2, ndhD, and ndhF coding regions. We established the position of the six species through phylogenic analysis. The complete chloroplast genome sequences of two Fritillaria species will be useful genomics resources for identification of Fritillaria species and for studying the phylogenetic relationship among Fritillaria species within the Liliaceae family.

This paper proposes a new approach for multi-focus images fusion based on Region Mosaicing on Contrast Pyramids (REMCP). A density-based region growing method is developed to construct a focused region mask for multi-focus images. The segmented focused region mask is decomposed into a mask pyramid, which is then used for supervised region mosaicking on a contrast pyramid. In this way, the focus measurement and the continuity of focused regions are incorporated and the pixel level pyramid fusion is improved at the region level. Objective and subjective experiments show that the proposed REMCP is more robust to noise than compared algorithms and can fully preserves the focus information of the multi-focus images meanwhile reducing distortions of the fused images.

A fast algorithm is established to transform points of the unit sphere into fundamental region symmetrically. With the resulting algorithm, a flexible form of invariant mappings is achieved to generate aesthetic patterns with symmetries of the regular polyhedra. This method avoids the order restriction of symmetry groups, which can be similarly extended to treat regular polytopes in n-dimensional space for n>=4.

The geographical environment, food culture, and dietary habits are substantially different between the southern and northern regions in China. We investigated the associations with dietary patterns and metabolic syndrome between Chinese adult from the southern and northern regions (North: 1249; South: 1849) using data from the Chinese Health and Nutrition 2009 survey. Respectively, four dietary patterns were identified by factor analysis in the two regions. Each dietary pattern of factor score was calculated for three groups by tertile (T1<T2<T3). In the northern region, the association between the Alcohol and Western pattern and the risk of abdominal obesity (OR: 1.31; 95%:1.01, 1.68), hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 1.35; 95%:1.05, 1.74), high fasting blood glucose (OR: 1.37; 95%: 1.05, 1.80), and hypertension (OR: 1.55; 95%: 1.45, 1.99) was increased. In the southern region, the Convenience Food pattern was positively associated with hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 1.53; 95%: 1.03, 2.26), low HDL-cholesterol (OR: 1.96; 95%: 1.12, 3.43), and metabolic syndrome (OR: 1.79; 95%: 1.03, 3.11). The Alcohol dietary pattern was positively associated with high fasting blood glucose (OR: 1.83, 95%: 1.13, 2.97). There are some dietary pattern differences in the two regions. It is necessary to consider the factors of food culture and food intake habits in order to provide nutrition education to Chinese individuals from different regions in the future.

Calandrinia compressa Schrad. ex DC (Prodr. 3: 359. 1828) is the name currently widely applied to a polymorphic annual species of Calandrinia sect. Calandrinia endemic to the Chilean Floristic Region. A total of ten validly published heterotypic names plus six horticultural designations (and orthographic variants thereof) have been considered at some point as taxonomically the same as C. compressa. Two additional heterotypic taxa and their synonyms and two other designations possibly refer to this species. Two other taxa sometimes referred to this species are excluded. I treat here a total of 77 distinct nomenclaturally valid names and invalid designations and variants thereof. The type of one of the valid and legitimate names, Calandrinia pilosiuscula DC (Rev. Portulac. 9. 1827), is judged here to be taxonomically the same as the type of C. compressa. Because of its chronological priority, Calandrinia pilosiuscula DC must be accepted as the correct name for Calandrinia compressa Schrad. ex DC when the two are considered taxonomic synonyms. Here, the taxonomic history of this taxon is articulated and, where possible, types are identified and/or designated. The natural and anthropogenic history of the species is summarized critically in a theoretical context.

POH (Peri Orbital Hyperpigmentation) represents a minor clinical entity that attracts immense aesthetic damages and it generates social integration difficulties. This review focuses on the etiopathogenic causes of this entity, differentiating and reclassifying this defect as having, on the one hand, genetic causes of melanic hyperproduction – for Fitzpatrick cutaneous phototypes IV and V – and, on the other hand, both genetic and acquired vascular causes, in individuals with light-coloured skin phototypes. Hence, there is a big difference in the field of pathogenic treatment, for the two entities. In addition, this study notes the direct relationship between skin aging and POH, especially for aquired vascular causes. In this reasoning, other aesthetic deficiencies of the skin in the palpebral area should be also considered, like: blepharochalasis, wrinkles, the anatomical causes of the lower eyelid shading, symmetrical or asymmetric suborbital oedema. All of these issues will complicate the therapeutic decision and subsidiary, the pharmaceutical advice. In this context, the review shows the guidelines for a honest councelling of the patients, pointing the efficiency limit for the topical pharmaceutical medication (depigmentants, exfoliants) versus the necessity of minimally invasive or/ and surgical treatments (in blefarochalasis).

During HVDC earth return operation systems, a high magnitude current will be injected into soil through earth electrode, the potential on the surface would change widely and produce unfavorable effects on the AC systems around. This paper presents an effective finite element method (FEM) coupling electric field with thermal field to evaluate the electrical field induced by the injected DC current. Firstly, owe to the characteristic of FEM, this method can consider arbitrary soil and earth electrode structure. Secondly, by setting the electrical and thermal parameters of soil as a function of temperature at the same time, the dynamic coupling process of electric field and thermal field is simulated accurately. Thirdly, to deal with the singular point in FEM subdivision and the huge computation in traditional three-dimensional FEM, the FEM coupling 2-D earth electrode with 3-D soil based on "shell" theory is introduced. Finally, based on the suggested method, the effect of abnormal resistance region (ARR) near DC earth electrode on electric field distribution is analyzed.

External quantum efficiency of industrial-grade green InGaN light-emitting diodes (LEDs) has been measured in a wide range of operating currents at various temperatures from 13 K to 300 K. Unlike blue LEDs, the efficiency as a function of current is found to have a multi-peak character, which could not be fitted by a simple ABC-model. This observation correlated with splitting of LED emission spectra into two peaks at certain currents. The characterization data are interpreted in terms of non-uniformity of the LED active region, which is tentatively attributed to extended defects like V-pits. We suggest a new approach to evaluation of temperature-dependent light extraction and internal quantum efficiencies taking into account the active region non-uniformity. As a result, the temperature dependence of light extraction and internal quantum efficiencies have been evaluated in the temperature range mentioned above and compared with those of blue LEDs.

It is strongly desirable to accurately detect the clouds in hyperspectral images onboard before compression. However, conventional onboard cloud detection methods are not appropriate to all situation such as shadowed cloud or darken snow covered surfaces which are not identified properly in the NDSI test. In this paper, we propose a new spectral–spatial classification strategy to enhance the orbiting cloud screen performances obtained on hyperspectral images by integrating threshold exponential spectral angle map (TESAM), adaptive Markov random field (aMRF) and dynamic stochastic resonance (DSR). TESAM is performed to classify the cloud pixels coarsely based on spectral information. Then aMRF is performed to do optimal process by using spatial information, which improved the classification performance significantly. Some misclassification points still exist after aMRF processing because of the noisy data in the onboard environment. DSR is used to eliminate misclassification points in binary labeling image after aMRF. Taking level 0.5 data from hyperion as dataset, the average overall accuracy of the proposed algorithm is 96.28% after test. The method can provide cloud mask for the on-going EO-1 images and related satellites with the same spectral settings without manual intervention. The experiment indicate that the proposed method reveals better performance than the classical onboard cloud detection or current state-of-the-art hyperspectral classification methods.

This study was carried out at Kita-mura near Bibai located in central Hokkaido, Japan, with the intention of investigating the effects of different agronomical managements on CH4 emissions from paddy fields on mineral soil over peat under farmers’ actual management conditions in the snowy temperate region. Four fields were studied, including two fields with twice drainage (D1-M and D2-M) and also a single-drainage field (D3-S) under single-cropping yr-1 and a paddy-fallow-paddy crop rotation as their systems. The other field was under single cropping yr-1 with continuous flooding (CF-R) in the pattern of soybean (upland crop)-fallow-paddy. The mineral-soil thickness of these soil-dressed peatland fields varied from 20 to 47 cm. The amount of crop residues leftover in the fields ranged from 277 to 751 g dry matter m−2. Total CH4 emissions ranged from 25.3 to 116 g CH4-C m−2 per growing season. There was a significant relationship between crop-residue carbon (C) and total CH4 emissions during the rice-growing season. This study, therefore, CH4 fluxes from paddy soils in that there was a strong interaction between readily available C source for methanogens and anaerobic conditions created by water management. Despite the differences in water regime and soil type, the average values of straw’s efficiency on CH4 production in this study were significantly higher than those of southern Japan and statistically identical with central Hokkaido. Our results suggest that the environmental conditions of central Hokkaido in association with crop-residue management had a significant influence on CH4 emission from paddy fields on mineral soil over peat. Rotation soybean (upland)-to-paddy followed by drainage twice practices also largely reduces CH4 emission. However, mineral-soil dressing on peat could have a significant impact to suppress CH4 emission from beneath the peat reservoir.

Mereotopology is a concept rooted in analytical philosophy. The phase-field concept is based on mathematical physics and finds applications in materials engineering. The two concepts seem to be disjoint at a first glance. While mereotopology qualitatively describes static relations between things like x isConnected y (topology) or x isPartOf y (mereology) by first order logic and Boolean algebra, the phase-field concept describes the geometric shape of things and its dynamic evolution by drawing on a scalar field. The geometric shape of any thing is defined by its boundaries to one or more neighboring things. The notion and description of boundaries thus provides a bridge between mereotopology and the phase-field concept. The present article aims to relate phase-field expressions describing boundaries and especially triple junctions to their Boolean counterparts in mereotopology and contact algebra. An introductory overview on mereotopology is followed by an introduction to the phase-field concept already indicating first relations to mereo- topology. Mereotopological axioms and definitions are then discussed in detail from a phase-field perspective. A dedicated section introduces and discusses further notions of the isConnected relation emerging from the phase-field perspective like isSpatiallyConnected, isTemporallyConnected, isPhysicallyConnected, isPathConnected and wasConnected. Such relations introduce dynamics and thus physics into mereotopology as transitions from isDisconnected to isPartOf can be described.

A deep review of the existing literature on the culpeo ecology is carried out, using scientific articles, book chapters and web resources. For information published before 1988, the synthesis made by a previous report was used. For subsequent information, bibliographic searches were carried out through the main servers, considering all of the generic names used to define the species so far. From this update, new general patterns on ecology, behavior and conservation concerns about culpeos are described. Gaps in current knowledge have been identified and new lines of research are proposed.Most of the studies focused on diet, conflicts with the species in livestock areas, and on the use of space and habitat. We found an incomplete, poor justification for all of the proposed subspecies and their supposed geographical distribution, as well as a scarcity of studies on genetic issues, population dynamics and conservation concerns. It is remarkable that vast regions in South America holding culpeos lacked basic information on the species.Diet studies describe a marked trend towards resources selection at the local level, which supports the view of the culpeo as a facultative trophic specialist. In addition, it has been confirmed that in the high Andes the culpeo is also a top predator that may regulate carnivorous communities, as well as that in arid environments culpeos can act as important seed dispersers. The assessment of the conservation status of the species differs among regions, although there is no sufficient information to reach clear conclusions in most cases. Even so, in Ecuador and Colombia the species has been listed as ‘Vulnerable’. Direct persecution and habitat alteration are considered to be the most important threats that the species is facing in many countries, although other risk factors such as climate change could also have serious consequences for the canid at the global scale.

Yemen is a water-scarce country with inadequate fresh water and considerable groundwater depletion, as well as a lack of adequate surface water. The study region is considered an arid region, and there is insufficient water to meet the needs of the region's yearly population growth rate of 4 %. This study aims to assess the water resources in the Sana'a region and to identify the current water situation and forecast for the future. Rainfall changes spatial and temporal in very few quantities and an annual average of 267 mm. Water harvesting facilities are entirely filled by 75% of the total water facilities in the rainy seasons. The groundwater level in Sana’a Basin decreases about 6-8 meters annually due to the increase in the number of wells, the abundance of abstraction, and the lack of recharge. The amount of abstraction exceeds 400% of the recharge in the Sana'a basin. The water per capita is 70 - 85 m³ annually. It is an abstraction from the aquifers by private wells. The crop cultivated area decreased from 184217 hectares in 2007 to 122583 hectares in 2018 due to lack of water. The sewage treatment plant treats 18.25 Mm³ annually, with less than 70 % efficiency. The water deficit is about 500 to 723 Mm³ annually; it is an abstraction from the aquifers by private wells. The current water situation in the Sana'a region is catastrophic, and the planning and management must ensure a water balance in the future.

The detection performance of small objects in remote sensing images has not been satisfactory compared to large objects, especially in low-resolution and noisy images. A generative adversarial network (GAN)-based model called enhanced super-resolution GAN (ESRGAN) showed remarkable image enhancement performance, but reconstructed images usually miss high-frequency edge information. Therefore, object detection performance showed degradation for small objects on recovered noisy and low-resolution remote sensing images. Inspired by the success of edge enhanced GAN (EEGAN) and ESRGAN, we applied a new edge-enhanced super-resolution GAN (EESRGAN) to improve the quality of remote sensing images and used different detector networks in an end-to-end manner where detector loss was backpropagated into the EESRGAN to improve the detection performance. We proposed an architecture with three components: ESRGAN, EEN, and Detection network. We used residual-in-residual dense blocks (RRDB) for both the ESRGAN and EEN, and for the detector network, we used a faster region-based convolutional network (FRCNN) (two-stage detector) and a single-shot multibox detector (SSD) (one stage detector). Extensive experiments on a public (car overhead with context) dataset and another self-assembled (oil and gas storage tank) satellite dataset showed superior performance of our method compared to the standalone state-of-the-art object detectors.

NCDs are the leading cause of mortality globally which estimated 40 million death per year (68% of total death), with cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes. In the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR), around 60% of all deaths are attributed to NCDs. Two-thirds of NCD premature deaths are linked to 4 shared modifiable behavioural risk factors: tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol. These unhealthy behaviours lead to 4 key metabolic/biological changes that increase the risk of NCDs: raised blood pressure, overweight/obesity, high blood glucose levels/diabetes, and hyperlipidemia (high levels of fat in the blood). Globally, countries are already working towards agreed global goals on maternal and infant nutrition and on the prevention of NCDs, and both these include halting the increase in overweight and obesity and reducing NCD diet-related risk factors including reducing saturated fatty acids (SFA) and Trans fatty acid (TFA) intake. According to values reported for countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region, average SFA intake is estimated at 10.3% of energy intake (EI), thus exceeding the WHO recommended level of 10% EI. Average TFA intake in EMR countries is estimated at 1.9% EI, which also exceeds the WHO recommended levels of 1% EI. The EMR region was reported amongst the regions with the highest levels of TFA intake. The highest SFA intake was reported from Djibouti, Kuwait, Saudi-Arabia and Yemen, while the highest TFA intakes were reported from Egypt and Pakistan. If countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region receive immediate public health attention, that toll of NCD-related morbidity and mortality can be considerably decreased if evidence-based preventive interventions are implemented effectively. In this context, reductions in saturated fat and trans fat intakes have been highlighted as cost-effective strategies that may hamper the growth of the NCD epidemic.

Climate analogues provide forestry practice empirical evidence of how forests are managed in “twin” regions, i.e. regions where the current climate is comparable to the expected future climate at a site of interest. But the uncertain future climate creates uncertainty in how to adapt the forests. We therefore investigate how the uncertainty in future climate affects tree species suitability and whether there is a common underlying pattern. Like most studies we employ different ensemble variants of RCP 4.5 and 8.5. But instead of focusing on a single point in future time, we resolve each variant in a climate trajectory from 2000 to 2100. We calculate climatic distances between the climate trajectories of our site of interest and the current climate in Europe, generating maps with twin regions from 2000 to 2100. Forest inventories from the twin regions allow us to trace the changes in the prevalence of 23 major tree species. We find that it is not the direction but rather the velocity of the change that differs between the scenarios. We use this pattern to propose a tree species suitability concept that integrates the uncertainty in future climate. Twin regions provide further information on silvicultural practices, pest management, product chains etc.

Abstract: The probability of existence or not of local extinctions of six species of carnivorous mammals was analyzed by ordering the species composition in nested subsets in 7 fragments of forest habitats in the Coastal Mountains in the Araucanía Region, in southern Chile. Nested Temperature Calculator (NTC) and BINMATNEST computer programs were used to process the results. The first software provided a temperature in the archipelago of 28.21 degree Celsius, whereas the second program showed a nesting temperature of 16.58 degree Celsius. The computer software used in this study suggest that there is no nesting pattern at the level species composition of carnivorous mammal assemblage in the evaluated area, which may be due to the habitat use characteristics of the different carnivorous mammals studied here.

Telemedicine is the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for clinical health care from a distance. The exchange of radiographic images and electronic patient health information/records (ePHI/R) for diagnostic purposes has the risk of confidentiality, ownership identity, and authenticity. In this paper, a data hiding technique for ePHI/R is proposed. The color information in the cover image is used for key generation, and stego-images are produced with ideal case. As a result, the whole stego-system is perfectly secure. This method includes the features of watermarking and steganography techniques. The method is applied to radiographic images. For the radiographic images, this method resembles watermarking, which is an ePHI/R data system. Experiments show promising results for the application of this method to radiographic images in ePHI/R for both transmission and storage purpose.

Therapeutics antibodies have increasingly shifted the paradigm of disease treatments, from small molecules to biologics, especially in cancer therapy. Despite the increasing number of antibody candidates, much remains unknown about the antibody and how its various regions interact. In fact, the constant region can govern effects that might be useful in reducing the unwanted consequences resulted from systemic circulation. For this reason, apart from the commonly used IgG isotypes, IgA antibodies are promising therapeutics drugs, given its localized mucosal effects. While the antibody Fc effector cell activity has been well explored, recent research has shown evidences that the constant region of the antibody can also influence antigen binding, challenging the conventional idea of region-specific antibody functions. To further investigate this, we analyzed the IgA antibody constant and its allosteric effects onto the antigen binding regions, using recombinant Pertuzumab IgA1 and IgA2 variants. We found mutations in the C-region to reduce Her2 binding, and our computational structural analysis showed that such allosteric communications were highly dependent on the antibody hinge, providing the evidence to consider antibodies as a whole protein rather than a sum of functional regions.

In early 2020 from April to early June, the metropolitan area of Sydney as well as the rest of New South Wales (NSW, Australia) experienced a period of lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19 virus in the community. The effect of reducing anthropogenic activities including transportation had an impact on the urban environment in term of air quality which is shown to have improved for a number of pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxides (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO), based on monitoring data on ground and from satellite. Besides primary pollutants CO and NOx emitted from mobile sources, PM2.5 (primary and secondary) and secondary ozone (O3) during the lockdown period will also be analysed using both air quality data and modelling method. The results show that NO2, CO and PM2.5 levels decreased during the lockdown, but O3 instead increased. The change in the concentration levels however are small considering the large reduction in traffic volume of ~30%. By estimate the decrease in traffic volume in Sydney region, the corresponding decrease in emission input to the WRF-CMAQ (Weather Research and Forecasting - Community Multiscale Air Quality Modeling System) air quality model is then used to estimate the effect of lockdown on the air quality especially CO, NO2, O3 and PM2.5 in the Greater Metropolitan Region (GMR) of Sydney. COVID-19 lockdown period is an ideal case to study the effect of motor vehicle and mobile source contribution to air pollutants such as those listed above in the GMR.

Cameroon territory is experiencing significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes since its independence in 1960. But the main relevant impacts are recorded since 1990 due to intensification of agricultural activities and urbanization. LULC effects and dynamics vary from one region to another according to the type of vegetation cover and activities. Using remote sensing, GIS and subsidiary data, this paper attempted to model the land use and land cover (LULC) change in the Centre Region of Cameroon that host Yaoundé metropolis. The rapid expansion of the city of Yaoundé drives to the land conversion with farmland intensification and forest depletion accelerating the rate at which land use and land cover (LULC) transformations take place. This study aims at assessing the impacts of both agriculture and urbanization on the LULC change in the Centre Region of Cameroon. A detailed LULC map from MAPBOX high resolution images and three LULC maps were produced from Landsat TM-OLI images (1984-2015). A maximum likelihood classification techniques using ERDAS Imagine, showed forest decline with a total loss of 54% in thirty years. Also, Landsat and MAPBOX images to which we added 1951 aerial photograph and SPOT 6 (2006) were used to analyse urban growth in the city of Yaoundé. The results show a remarkable urban spatial spread of the metropolis between 1951 and 2015, with a peak in 2000. Images processing enabled us to analyse the long term dynamics of LULC change since the 1950s in this Region using ArcGIS & QGIS software’s. Based on this dynamic, a LULC projection map was produced using Markov model on IDRISI Selva, demonstrating the decrease of the dense forest (45% in 2015 to 0.25% in 2050). It was estimated that by 2050, the entire dense forest can be depleted if nothing is done, while only 12.67% of the secondary forest would remain in the Region. Such a projected map is very useful to decision makers for council development and urban planning. This effective forest depletion ties with the hypothesis that urbanization of Yaoundé and its secondary surrounding satellite cities (within a radius of 30-100km) is a veritable driving force of deforestation.

Soil erosion seriously affects vineyards. In this study, the influence of two plant covers on soil moisture and the effect of different physiographic conditions on runoff and sediment yields were evaluated in a rainfed vineyard formed by four fields (NE Spain) during 15 months. One field had spontaneous vegetation as plant cover and three fields had a cover crop of common sainfoin. The vineyards’ rows were dry and stable, whereas the inter-row areas were wet although very variable, and the corridors were wet and very stable. Soil moisture in the inter-row areas with Common sainfoin was much higher than in the rows (62% - 70%) whereas this difference was lower with spontaneous vegetation (40%). Two runoff and sediment traps (STs) were installed in two ephemeral gullies, and 26 time-integrated surveys (TIS) done. The mean and maximum runoff yields were 9.8 and 30.7 l TIS^–1 in ST2 and 13.5 and 30.2 l TIS^–1 in ST3. The mean turbidity was 333 and 19 g l^–1, and the maximum sediment yields were 41,260 and 2,778 g TIS^–1 in ST2 and ST3. Changes in the canopy covers (grapevines and plant covers) and rainfall parameters explained the runoff and sediment dynamics.

It is widely discussed that growth of GDP has a vague impact on environmental pollution due to the emissions of carbon dioxide from consumed fossil fuels in production, transportation and power generation, and creation of required instruments to control environmental pollution as well. Due to the fact that environmental pollution can be a reason of mortality increase in a society, the main purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between economic growth, fossil fuel consumption, mortality (from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease) and environmental pollution using Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation technique in the case of CIS member states over the period of 1993-2018. The major results revealed CO2 emissions in in the region of CIS have a positive effect on increase of mortality from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease. In regards to fossil fuel consumption, the estimation proved that this variable affects mortality from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease positively. In addition, we found effect of economic growth, population growth and inflation rate positively, while any improvement in human development index (HDI) has a negative effect on increase of mortality from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease in the CIS region. It is recommended that the CIS member states carry out different policies to improve energy transition indicating movement from fossil fuel energy sources to renewable ones. Moreover, we recommend the CIS member states to enhance various policies for easy access to the electricity from green sources and increase of renewable supply through improved technologies, sustainable economic growth, and increase of using green source in daily social life.

This is study follows environmental diversity assessment for geotourism development in Asir region. Geotourism seeks to supporting the tourism landscape in its interaction with the historical and archaeological, architectural or immaterial heritage, and requires diversification in terms of product, market and geographical potential. The study is based on various tourist facades and environmental diversity in Asir. As tourism development is a comprehensive undertaking involving many sectors, and these are the challenges to which the country’s tourism industry should respond to promote domestic tourism. quality and spatial pattern of tourism resources, climate comfort, and natural disaster possibility. Based on analyze multi-source datasets collected, geomorphological features of this area, we created a GIS database comprising geologic and topographic maps, and satellite images using these datasets. The findings of the study provided valuable insights into the role of environmental diversity in achieving tourism. The study examined the interrelationship between tourism and environmental diversity.

Recently, the environment is being put under constantly increasing pressure. Globally, water shortage is considered as one of the most serious environmental problems which affect human life and plant wealth. Iraq is highly affected by water deficit in many regions. In particular, Al-Najaf region is selected to be under evaluation for the current and future water resources shortage. This study is based on the collected data for rainfall, evaporation, flow-rate, groundwater, water needed for irrigation, and daily uses for the period between 2000 and 2018. The Artificial Neural Network, normal distribution, and lognormal distribution type III are applied for analyzing the collected data in addition to predict the water shortage for year 2050. Results show a water shortage in years 2002, 2004, 2005, and 2017 only for the selected period. A Simulink model is constructed using Matlab to increase the credibility of the estimated results and gives accurate results for the groundwater and surface water needed. Where in 2050, it is found that it needs to use the groundwater source by 0.024 x 10⁹ m³ to support the surface water source which is represented by the Euphrates River. The study shows the extent of inefficient management of water resources in Al-Najaf region.

Image processing is a field of which its popularity increases and continues and, that grows dynamically with new technologies. Nowadays, image processing finds itself in use in almost every field. One of these uses is undoubtedly in the field of medicine, where diagnosis and treatment planning are made from images and, which is constantly changing with newly developed techniques. Of course, the most important factor in using this so widely in the medical field is the acquisition of images on every medical field. With the help of these images, the complaints can be seen more easily and the doctor can follow a path in the treatment of the disease. In our study, we used the Region Growing segmentation method to detect the intestinal mass. This study compares the area determined by the specialist with the area obtained with the segmentation process and, it is seen that the created software system can be used as an auxiliary system to specialist doctors.

As human activities of the countries in the East Asia have been remarkably expanding over recent decades, various problems in relation to ships, such as oil spill and many other coastal marine pollution, are continuously occurring in the coastal region. In order to conserve marine resources and prepare for possible ship accidents in advance, the need for efficient ship management is increasing over time. Multi-satellite, multi-sensor, multi-wavelength or multi-frequency observations make it possible to monitor a variety of vessels in the coastal region. This study presents the results of ship detection methodology applied to multi-spectral satellite images in the seas around Korean Peninsula based on optical, hyperspectral, and microwave remote sensing. To detect ships from hyperspectral images with a few hundreds of spectral channels, spectral matching algorithms are used to investigate similarity between the spectra and in-situ measurements. In the case of SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) images, the Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR) algorithm is used to discriminate the vessels from backscattering coefficients of Sentinel-1 SAR and ALOS-2 PALSAR2 images. The present ship detection methods can be extensively utilized for optical, hyperspectral, and SAR images for comprehensive coastal management purposes toward perpetual sustainability in the future.

Water inrush from coal floor constitutes one of the main disasters in mine construction and mine production, which always brings high risks and losses to the coal mine safe production. As the mining depth of coal fields in North China gradually increased, especially in the complicated structural region, the threat posed by limestone karstic water of coal floor to the safe stoping of mines has become increasingly prominent. In this paper, the Taoyuan coalmine was taken as an example, for which, the directional borehole grouting technology was utilized to reinforce the coal seam floor prior to mining. Also, the factors affecting the grouting effect were analyzed. These were the geological structure, the crustal stress and the range of slurry diffusion. The layout principle of grouting drilling was put forward and the directional drilling structure was designed. The water level observations in the end hole indicated that the target stratum was accurate and reliable. The effect of grouting was validated through the audio frequency electric perspective method and the holedrilling in the track trough. The results demonstrated that the effect of grouting in third limestone and the rock stratum above the third limestone of coal seam floor was apparent. Simultaneously, no water inrush occurred following the actual mining of the working face, which further demonstrated that the grouting reinforcement effect was apparent. The research findings were of high significance for the prevention and control of floor water disaster and water conservation in deep complex structural areas.

The present paper aims to elucidate the impact of climate change on the availability and security of water and energy in the Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA Region). The region is particularly challenged by a number of factors including a large variability of bio-geographical characteristics, extreme population growth over the last few decades and substantial societal and economical transitions as well as armed conflicts in some of the countries of the region. Anticipated changes in climate conditions will exacerbate the challenges with regard to providing sufficient amounts of water and energy to the communities in the region. Impacts of climate change will materialize as an increasing number of heat waves, primarily in urban structures and the decline in water availability as a result of enhanced droughts and a growing numbers of dry spells. The interrelationships between energy and water and their mutual dependencies are addressed by the Water-Energy-Nexus concept. With regard to the challenges addressed here, Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean are a particular point in case. Mitigation and adaptation strategies include enhanced efficiency of energy and water use, integrated technology assessments regarding electricity generation and the production of potable water and electricity through concentrated solar power.

Emerging RNA virus infections are a growing concern among domestic bird and poultry industries due to the severe impact it can have on the flock health and economic livelihoods. Avian paramyxoviruses (APMV) are pathogenic, negative sense RNA viruses that cause serious infections in the respiratory and central nervous system. APMV was detected in multiple avian species during the 2017 migration season in Ukraine, and studied using PCR, virus isolation, and sequencing. Of the 4090 wild bird samples, eleven swabs were isolated in chicken embryos and identified for APMV serotype by hemagglutinin inhibition test: APMV-1, APMV-4, APMV-6, APMV-7. At a variety of sites in Ukraine we characterized the virulence of the virus and further analyzed and predicted the potential risks of spillover to immunologically naïve populations. RNA was extracted and amplified using a multiplex-tiling primer approach to encompass full cDNA genomes. Full-length APMV-1 (n=5) and APMV-6 (n=2) genomes were sequenced on an Oxford Nanopore MinION device in Ukraine. All APMV-1 and APMV-6 fusion (F) proteins possessed a monobasic cleavage site, suggesting these APMV were likely low virulence, annually circulating strains. Utilization of this low-cost method will identify gaps in viral evolution and circulation in this understudied but important critical region for Eurasia.

The ecological background condition of the semi-arid steppe region (SASR) is extremely fragile. It is recognized that the development of coal and electricity power is a kind of strong human interference behavior for regional landscape ecology. Landscape ecological classification (LEC) is the premise of landscape ecology research of the mining area. The current research on the SASR and grassland LEC of coal-power base is relatively less, but still remains uncertainty concerning how to stratify and classify urban mining landscapes into units of ecological significance at spatial scales appropriate for management. This study is based on hierarchy theory, scale theory, landscape process, the patch-corridor-matrix model, the network, the theory of multiple planning integration and the principle of remote sensing. According to the comprehensive principle, principles of the combining of structure and function, principle of the combining human-ominated and natural landscape, principle of emphasis, and principle of combining qualitative analysis with quantitative research of LEC in large-scale coal-power base(LSCPB). On the basis of occurrence method land classification, fully consider the ecological attributes of the land, integration pattern, processes and function theory of the landscape ecology, the LEC system of the LSCPB in the SASR has been constructed by using top-down decomposition classification method. Empirical research of the Victory and Mindong No.1 mining areas of Shenhua Group shows that the classification system constructed in this paper can meet the requirements of LEC and fully reflect the status of landscape ecology of LSCPB in SASR. This study can provide theoretical guidance for the landscape ecology of LSCPB, while also supporting a theoretical reference for the LEC research.

Most existing cancer therapies negatively affect normal tissue as well as cancerous tissue. A potentially effective strategy for treating cancer that precludes off-target damage and could be an option for most patients would involve targeting one or more mutations that are ubiquitous in the given patient’s tumor(s). To effect this strategy, one would employ multi-region sequencing of a patient’s primary tumor and metastases to seek out mutations that are shared between all or at least most regions. Once the target or targets are known, one would ideally rapidly generate a molecular switch for at least one of said ubiquitous mutations that can distinguish the mutated DNA, RNA, or protein from the wild-type version and subsequently trigger a therapeutic response. I propose that the therapeutic response involve the replication of an oncolytic virus or intracellular bacterium, as any mutation can theoretically be detected by a vector that enters the cell - and automatic propagation could be very helpful. Moreover, the mutation “signal” can be easily enhanced through transcriptional and translational (if the target is an intracellular protein) enhancement. Importantly, RNA may make the best target for the molecular switches in terms of amplification of the signal and ease of targeting.

Two region asymmetric polymers PR2F and PR1F with three repeat units of A-D-A, π-D-A, and π-D-π along the polymer backbone were attained by polymerizing different fluorinated benzothiadiazole-thiophene units, FBT-T and 2FBT-T units (A–π), with benzodithiophene unit (D), respectively. Here, the new region asymmetric polymers were in contrast to the traditional polymers featuring a D–A or D–π–A–π backbone. Both the region asymmetric polymers showed a low lying of HOMO energy level in relation to that of the PC61BM acceptor and then obtained the high open-circuit voltage of ~1 V in both PR2F and PR1F devices. Bulk-heterojunction devices based on PR2F with difluorinated BT exhibited an appreciable power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 4.73% due to the relatively high and balanced charge carrier mobilities, while the mono-fluorinated BT polymer PR1F-based devices gave a lower PCE of 2.92%. These results indicate that the region asymmetric conjugated polymer is a promising class of materials for polymer solar cell applications, and it is significant to further understand the influence of polymer structure on optoelectronic properties.

Organic farming has positive, impact on environment, soil health, and healthy food quality. Worldwide demand for organic foods is increasing by leaps and bounds in recent years. The present investigation was undertaken during 2014 to 2018 to evaluate the effect of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) co-culture with maize (Zea mays L.) on productivity enhancement over prevailing maize-fallow system, and to assess the feasibility of inclusion of short duration winter crops after maize with appropriate residue management practices on productivity and soil health. The experiment comprised of six cropping systems in main plot and three soil moisture conservation (SMC) measures options in sub plot. Results indicated that the inclusion of second crop in place of fallow and cowpea co-culture with maize increased average maize grain yield by 6.2 to 23.5% as compared to that of maize-fallow (MF). Use of maize stover mulch (MSM) + weed biomass mulch (WBM) increases maize grain yield by 19.1 and 6.5% over those of MSM and no mulch (NM), respectively. Various soil moisture conservation (SMC) measures had significant (p=0.05) effect on crop yields and water productivity. Double cropping system had significantly (p=0.05) higher amount of soil available NPK, soil organic carbon (SOC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and dehydrogenase activity (DHA) at 0-15 cm and at 15-30 cm depth than those under MF. The SWC measures of MSM+WBM had significantly higher available N, SOC, and MBC by 5.5, 4.8 and 8.1% than those under NM, respectively. Correspondingly, soils under MSM and MSM+WBM had 2.24 and 2.99% lower bulk density (ρb) in 0-15 cm and 2.21 and 2.94% lower ρb in 15-30 cm than that of NM. The energy use efficiency (EUE) was significantly higher under MCV (7.90%) over rest of the cropping sequences. MSM+WBM and MSM recorded 25.1 and 16.6% higher net energy over NM, respectively. The net return (INR 159.99×103/ha) and B:C ratio (2.86) were significantly higher with MCV system followed by MCR cropping sequence. MSM+WBM had significantly higher net return (INR 109.44×103/h), B:C ratio (2.46) over those under MSM (INR 97.6×103/h) and NM (INR 78.61×103/h). Overall the cowpea co-culture with maize and inclusion of short cycle winter crops along with MSM+WBM in maize-based cropping systems was found productive in terms of crop and water, profitable, energy efficient and sustained the soil health.

Widespread poverty is the most serious threat and social problem that Bangladesh faces. Regional vulnerability to climate change threatens to escalate the magnitude of this poverty. It is essential that projections of poverty be made while bearing in mind the effects of climate change. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the agrarian sub-national regional analysis of climate change vulnerability in Bangladesh under various climate change scenarios and its potential impact on poverty. This study is relevant to socio-economic research on climate change vulnerability and agriculture risk management and has the potential to contribute new insights to the complex interactions in household income and climate change risks to agricultural communities in Bangladesh and South Asia. The current study uses analysis of variance, cluster analysis, decomposition of variance and log-normal distribution to estimate the parameters of income variability that ascertain vulnerability levels and help us to understand the poverty levels that climate change could potentially incur. It is found that the income share in income sources revealed that income category shares across the various regions of Bangladesh are far from uniform. The variance decomposition of income showed that agricultural income in Mymensingh and Rangpur is the main cause of income difference. Moreover, large variance of agricultural income in the regions is induced by gross income from rice production. Additionally, constant reduction of rice yield due to climate change in Bangladesh is not such a severe problem for farmers, however, the extreme events like flood, flash flood, drought, sea level rise, and greenhouse gas emission based on RCPs could increase the poverty rates in Mymensingh, Rajshahi, Barisal, and Khulna regions that would be highly affected by unexpected yield loss due to extreme climatic events. Therefore, research and development of adaptation measures to climate change for regions where farmers are largely dependent on agricultural income is important.

This study aligns with the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals- 3 which aim to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. It contributes to the nascent literature stream on energy-health dynamics by introducing a holistic theoretical model to empirically examine the mediation effect of carbon emissions on the relationship between nonrenewable energy and infant mortality rates. Using an unbalanced panel data on 42 Asia and the Pacific countries from 2005 to 2015 and deploying the structural equation modeling approach, the empirical results are surmised as follows: (i) in regard to the full sample of countries, nonrenewable energy indirectly increases infant mortality rates through increasing carbon emissions. In other words, carbon emissions play a partial mediation role between nonrenewable energy and infant mortality rates; and (ii) for the different income groups, carbon emissions show varying mediation effects. For example, the mediation effects of carbon emissions in lower-middle and upper-middle income countries are found to be similar to those of the full sample of countries. Therefore, based on these findings, we conclude that nonrenewable energy is an essential determinant of infant mortality rates. Policy recommendations are put forward.

The hybrid system is analyzed and optimized to produce electric energy in Non-Interconnected Zones in the Colombian Caribbean region, contributing both to the improvement in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and to the rational use of energy. A comparative analysis of the performance of these systems was carried using a dynamic model in real wind and solar data. The model is integrated by a Southwest Wind Power Inc. wind turbine. AIR 403, a proton exchange fuel cell (PEM), an electrolyze, a solar panel and a charge regulator based on PID controllers to manipulate oxygen and hydrogen flows in the cell. The transient responses of the cell voltage, current, and power were obtained for the demand of 200 W for changes in solar radiation and wind speed for all days of the year 2013 in the Ernesto Cortissoz airport, Puerto Bolívar, Alfonso Lopez airport and Simon Bolívar airport, by regulating the flow of hydrogen and oxygen into the fuel cell. The maximum contribution of power generation from the fuel cell was presented for the Simon Bolívar airport in November with a value of 158,358W (9.45%). A multi-objective design optimization under a Pareto front is presented for each place studied to minimize the Levelized Cost of Energy and CO₂ emission, where the objective variables are the number of panel and stack in the PV system and PEM.

Watershed’s landscape features and climate features have a significant influence on the mountainous catchment’s hydrological response. This literature review synthesizes recent kinds of literature investigating associations between surface runoff and catchment’s landscape features, and the potential controls of climate variables, with an emphasis on mountainous regions. Such factors are significant controls on surface runoff through their influence on the rate of infiltration capacity, antecedent soil moisture conditions, and underlying bedrock structure. The literature review indicates that there are considerable issues that remain to be resolved in advance a concrete understanding of the influence of catchment’s characteristics on surface runoff response.

We have determined Hf isotopic compositions of 12 samples associated with the giant El Teniente Cu-Mo deposit, Chile. The samples range in age from ≥8.9 to 2.3 Ma and provide information about the temporal evolution of their magmatic sources from the Late Miocene to Pliocene. Together with previously published data, the new analysis indicate a temporal decrease of 10 εHf(t) units, from +11.6 down to +1.6, in the 12.7 m.y. from 15 to 2.3 Ma. These variations imply increasing incorporation of continental crust through time in the magmas that formed these rocks. The fact that the samples include mantle-derived olivine basalts and olivine lamprophyres suggests that these continental components were incorporated into their mantle source, and not by intra-crustal contamination (MASH). We attribute the increase, between the Middle Miocene and Pliocene, of crustal components in the subarc mantle source below El Teniente to be due to increased subduction erosion and transport of crust into the mantle. The deposit formed above a large, long-lived, vertically zoned magma chamber that developed due to compressive deformation and persisted between the period ~7 to 4.6 Ma. Progressively more hydrous mantle-derived mafic magmas feed this chamber from below, providing heat, H₂O, S and metals, but no unique “fertile” Cu-rich magma was involved in the formation of the deposit. As the volume of these mantle-derived magmas decreased from the Late Miocene into the Pliocene, the chamber crystallized and solidified, producing felsic plutons and large metal-rich magmatic-hydrothermal breccias that emplaced Cu and S into the older (≥8.9 Ma) mafic host rocks of this megabreccia deposit.

Wildfire susceptibility maps display the wildfires occurrence probability, ranked from low to high, under a given environmental context. Current studies in this field often rely on expert knowledge, including or not statistical models allowing to assess the cause-effect correlation. Machine learning (ML) algorithms can perform very well and be more generalizable thanks to their capability of learning from and make predictions on data. Italy is highly affected by wildfires due to the high heterogeneity of the territory and to the predisposing meteorological conditions. The main objective of the present study is to elaborate a wildfire susceptibility map for Liguria region (Italy) by applying Random Forest, an ensemble ML algorithm based on decision trees. Susceptibility was assessed by evaluating the probability for an area to burn in the future considering where wildfires occurred in the past and which are the geo-environmental factors that favor their spread. Different models were compared, including or not the neighboring vegetation and using an increasing number of folds for the spatial-cross validation. Susceptibility maps for the two fire seasons were finally elaborated and validated and results critically discussed highlighting the capacity of the proposed approach to identify the efficiency of fire fighting activities.

Cervical cancer is a worldwide public health problem with a high rate of illness and mortality among women. In this study, we proposed a novel framework based on Faster RCNN-FPN ar-chitecture for the detection of abnormal cervical cells in cytology images from cancer screening test. We extended the Faster RCNN-FPN model by infusing deformable convolution layers into the feature pyramid network (FPN) to improve scalability. Furthermore, we introduced a global contextual aware module alongside the Region Proposal Network (RPN) to enhance the spatial correlation between the background and the foreground. Extensive experimentations with the proposed deformable and global context aware (DGCA) RCNN were carried out using the cer-vical image dataset of “Digital Human Body" Vision Challenge from the Alibaba Cloud TianChi Company. Performance evaluation based on the mean average precision (mAP) and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve has demonstrated considerable advantages of the proposed framework. Particularly, when combined with tagging of the negative image samples using tra-ditional computer-vision techniques, 6-9% increase in mAP has been achieved. The proposed DGCA-RCNN model has potential to become a clinically useful AI tool for automated detection of cervical cancer cells in whole slide images of Pap smear.

Studying hydro-meteorological factors variations and its links to large-scale atmospheric circulation systems can facilitate the understanding of the hydrological processes and sustainable water resources management in the source region of the Yangtze River (SRYR). Currently, researches mostly focused on the temporal and spatial variation characteristics in hydro-meteorological factors; however, researches on the hydro-meteorological variations and its links to large-scale atmospheric circulation systems in the SRYR are scarce. Based on long-term hydro-meteorological and reanalysis data, this research investigated multiscale variations of hydro-meteorological factors and its links to large-scale atmospheric circulation characteristic indices during 1957~2012 in the SRYR. The results showed that the amounts of streamflows and precipitation in the SRYR declined during the 1990s. Since the 2000s, the amounts of streamflows and precipitation had increased significantly climate in the SRYR. The change trends of precipitation and streamflows in the SRYR are synergetic at annual and seasonal scales, and have three significant periods, namely 3~5 years, 15–20 years and 30–40 years. The South Asia monsoon (SAM) plays a relatively more important role in the hydro-meteorological factors changes in the SRYR. The relative contributions of SAM to streamflows and precipitation changes were 83.6% and 78%, respectively. During the driest (wettest) year, the SAM is relatively weak (strong), and brings less (more) southwest airflow into the SRYR, less (more) precipitation and streamflows will be generated in the SRYR.

Village has a vital role in the national development efforts. The concept of development considered village as an object instead of a subject of development. This study focused on determining the important points in enabling a village to be independent by shifting the paradigm of “building the village” into “the building village”. This study was an exploratory research of public policies with qualitative legal studies. This study was conducted in 3 villages in Bandung regency with different characteristics, namely Neglawangi with urban characteristics, Cibiru Wetan with sub-urban characteristics, and Rancamanyar with plural characteristics. The results of this study showed that the wise step in building an independent village is through “the building village” road maps. First, encourage the inception of critical and care community and community organizations who dynamically interact in the policy making processes of village development. Second, implement a participative, accountable, and transparent planning and budgeting system within the limits of their authorities. Third, empower inclusive village economic institutions. The three road maps can succeed if they are supported by good implementation of participative, systematic, effective and efficient planning and budgeting system, as well as good monitoring.

Rett syndrome (RTT), a neurodevelopmental disorder, is mainly caused by mutations in methyl CpG-binding protein 2 (MECP2), which alter the functions of domains to either bind to methylated DNA or interact with a transcriptional co-repressor complex. It has been established that alterations in cyclin-dependent kinase-like 5 (CDKL5) or forkhead box protein G1 (FOXG1) correspond to distinct neurodevelopmental disorders, given that a series of studies have indicated that RTT is also caused by alterations in either one of these genes. We tried to elucidate RTT through evolution and structure assessment of MeCP2, CDKL5, and FOXG1, by focusing on their binding partners and disordered structures. Here, we provide insight into the similarities of the FOXG1 and MECP2 binding partners evolution and function. On the other hand, we suggest that CDKL5 could be a potential candidate for a classical RTT treatment, particularly based on its disordered structure that spans after the catalytic domain to the C-terminus, which shows abundant linear motifs that can bind to molecules with divergent structures of similar affinity. Additionally, we provide insight into the relationship between disordered structure and disease.

The role of γδ T cells in vertebrate immunity is still an unsolved puzzle. Species such as humans and mice display a low percentage of these T lymphocytes (i.e., “γδ low species”) with a restricted diversity of γδ T cell receptors (TR). Conversely, artiodactyl species (i.e., “γδ high species”) ac-count for a high proportion of γδ T cells with large γ and δ chain repertoires. The genomic organisation of the TR γ (TRG) and δ (TRD) loci has been determined in sheep and cattle, noting that a wide number of germline genes that encode for γ and δ chains characterise their genomes. Taking advantage from the current improved version of the genome assembly, we have investigated the genomic structure and gene content of the dromedary TRD locus, which, as in the other mammalian species, is nested within the TR alpha (TRA) genes. The most remarkable finding was the identification of a very limited number of variable germline genes (TRDV) compared to sheep and cattle, which supports our previous expression analyses for which the somatic hypermutation mechanism is able to enlarge and diversify the primary repertoire of dromedary δ chains. Furthermore, the comparison between genomic and expressed sequences reveals that D genes, up to four incorporated in a transcript, greatly contribute to the increased diversity of the dromedary δ chain antigen binding-site.

Searching, recognizing and retrieving a video of interest from a large collection of a video data is an instantaneous requirement. This requirement has been recognized as an active area of research in computer vision, machine learning and pattern recognition. Flower video recognition and retrieval is vital in the field of floriculture and horticulture. In this paper we propose a model for the retrieval of videos of flowers. Initially, videos are represented with keyframes and flowers in keyframes are segmented from their background. Then, the model is analysed by features extracted from flower regions of the keyframe. A Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) is adapted for the extraction of discriminating features. Multiclass Support Vector Machine (MSVM) classifier is applied to identify the class of the query video. Experiments have been conducted on relatively large dataset of our own, consisting of 7788 videos of 30 different species of flowers captured from three different devices. Generally, retrieval of flower videos is addressed by the use of a query video consisting of a flower of a single species. In this work we made an attempt to develop a system consisting of retrieval of similar videos for a query video consisting of flowers of different species.

We reviewed the current status of a Vulnerable seagrass, Halophila beccarii from the coast of India using the published data from 1977-2020. We found that the seagrass, H. beccarii has a pan India distribution on both east and west coast. It is abundant in the intertidal silty-muddy region on the west coast, while on the east coast it is found on sandy habitats, with few exceptions of muddy habitat. H. beccarii was found to be associated with mangroves or smaller seagrass species within a depth limit of 1.7m. Low salinity and high nitrate levels were observed for the H. beccarii meadows of the west coast due to its association with mangroves. The nutrient levels in H. beccarii meadows of India were comparatively lower than other seagrass meadows. Most of the research on H. beccarii has focoused on its morphometrics (41%), reproductive (33%) and distribution (29%) along the coast of India. Reproductive traits such as flowering and fruiting varying according to the seasons of each coast due to the influence of monsoon and its associated temperature, salinity and nutrient influx. H. beccarii has a great potential of various bioactive compounds, which needs further investigation. Habitat disturbance, anthropogenic pollution and coastal development are the major cause of declining H. beccarii ecosystems in India. Significant loss of the seagrass was observed from the west coast of India due to increased coastal development activities. There is a significant need in quantifying H. beccarii population trends, impact of climate and anthropogenic stressors, economic values of ecosystem services and the role of ecological connectivity for better conservation and management of H. beccarii seascapes across India. There is a need for integration of research outcomes in policy framing for preventing the decline and further loss of this vulnerable seagrass ecosystem.

Rett syndrome (RTT) is mainly caused by mutations in methyl CpG-binding protein 2, cyclin-dependent kinase-like 5, or forkhead box protein G1. These RTT-causing proteins harbor an intrinsically disordered region (IDR) whose conformation exhibits spatiotemporal heterogeneity, which not only confer versatility to the protein, but also implicates them in diseases. The IDR generally evolves more rapidly than an ordered structure. In this study, we examined the relationship between pathogenic RTT-associated point mutations in RTT-causing proteins and the evolutionary dynamics of sequence features including structural order–disorder, phosphorylation sites, and evolutionary rates. We also analyzed the molecular properties and evolution of proteins that interact with RTT-causing proteins in terms of phylogenetic profiles, tissue specificity, subcellular localization, expression level, and functions. The results indicate that constrained IDRs may function by forming contacts with other regions in the protein sequence causing pathogenic missense mutations likely to arise in the rapidly evolving IDR and affect molecular networks, leading to disease. The results also provide novel insights into the genetic basis for RTT and the evolution of the neocortex in higher vertebrates.

The North Sea Offshore Grid concept has been envisioned as a promising alternative to: 1) ease the integration of offshore wind and onshore energy systems, and 2) increase the cross-border capacity between the North Sea region countries at low cost. In this paper we explore the techno-economic benefits of the North Sea Offshore Grid using two case studies: a power-based offshore grid, where only investments in power assets are allowed (i.e. offshore wind, HVDC/HVAC interconnectors); and a power-and-hydrogen offshore grid, where investments in offshore hydrogen assets are also permitted (i.e. offshore electrolysers, new hydrogen pipelines and retrofitted natural gas pipelines). We compare these scenario results with a business as usual scenario, in which offshore wind is connected radially to the shore and no offshore grid is deployed. All scenarios are run with the IESA-NS model, without any specific technology ban and under open optimization. This paper also presents a novel methodology, combining Geographic Information Systems and Energy System Models, to cluster offshore spatial data and define meaningful offshore regions and offshore hub locations. This novel methodology is applied to the North Sea region to define nine offshore clusters taking into account offshore spatial claims, and identifying suitable areas for single-use and multi-use of space for renewable energy purposes. The scenario results show that the deployment of an offshore grid provides relevant cost savings, ranging from 1% to 4.1% of relative cost decrease (2.3 bn € to 8.7 bn €) in the power-based, and ranging from 2.8% to 7% of relative cost decrease (6 bn € to 14.9 bn €) in the power-and-hydrogen based. In the most extreme scenario (H2) an offshore grid permits to integrate 283 GW of HVDC connected offshore wind and 196 GW of HVDC meshed interconnectors. Even in the most conservative scenario (P1) the offshore grid integrates 59 GW of HVDC connected offshore wind capacity and 92 GW of HVDC meshed interconnectors. When allowed, the deployment of offshore electrolysis is considerable, ranging from 61 GW to 96 GW, with capacity factors of around 30%. Finally, we also find that, when imported hydrogen is available at 2 €/kg (including production and transport costs), large investments in an offshore grid are not optimal anymore. In contrast, at import costs over 4 €/kg imported hydrogen is not competitive.

Fungal endophytes are the most ubiquitous plant symbionts on earth and are phylogenetically diverse. Studies on the fungal endophytes in tobacco have shown that they are widely distributed in the leaves, stems, and roots, and play important roles in the composition of the microbial ecosystem of tobacco. Herein, we analyzed and quantified the endophytic fungi of healthy tobacco leaves at the seedling (SS), resettling growth (RGS), fast-growing (FGS), and maturing (MS) stages at three altitudes [600 (L), 1000 (M), and 1300 m (H)]. We sequenced the ITS region of fungal samples to delimit operational taxonomic units (OTUs) and phylogenetically characterize the communities. The result showed the number of clustering OTUs at SS, RGS, FGS and MS were greater than 170, 245, 140, and 164, respectively. At the phylum level, species in Ascomycota and Basidiomycota had absolute predominance, representing 97.8% and 2.0 % of the total number of species. We also found the number of unique fungi at the RGS and FGS stages were higher than those in the other two stages. Additionally, OTU richness was determined by calculating the Observed Species, Shannon, Simpson, Chao1, ACE, Goods coverage and PD_whole_tree indices based on the total number of species. Our results showed RGS samples had the highest diversity indices. Furthermore, we found that the diversity of fungal communities tended to decrease with increasing tobacco growth altitude. The results from this study indicated that the tobacco harbors an abundant and diverse endophytic fungal population, which provides new opportunities for exploration their potential utilization.

The paper analyses how between 1956 and 2009 the agrarian metabolism of the Barcelona Metropolitan Region (BMR) has become less functional, losing circularity in biomass flows and in relationship to its landscape. We do so by adopting a Multi-EROI and flow-fund (MuSIASEM) analyses and its nexus with landscape functional structure. The study of agricultural flows of Final Produce, Biomass Reused and External Inputs is integrated with that of land use, livestock, power capacity and population changes between 1956 (at the beginning of the Green Revolution) and 2009 (fully industrialized agriculture). A multi-scale analysis is conducted at the landscape scale (seven districts within the Barcelona metropolitan region) as well as for the functions deployed, within an agroecosystem, by the mutual interactions between its funds (land-uses, livestock and farming population). A complex nexus between land, livestock, dietary patterns and energy needs is shown; we conclude that from the perspective of the circular bioeconomy the agrarian sector has gone worse hand in hand with the landscape functional structure. Therefore, a novel perspective in landscape agroecology is opened

The objective of this study is to investigate whether the sequence length of HIV-1 increases over time. A longitudinal analysis of full-length coding region sequences (FLs) in an outbreak of HIV-1 infection among patients with hemophilia and local controls identified as infected with the Korean subclade B of HIV-1 (KSB). Genes amplified by overlapping RT-PCR or nested PCR were subjected to direct sequencing. In total, 141 FLs were sequentially determined over 30 years in 62 KSB-infected patients. Non-KSB sequences were retrieved from the Los Alamos National Laboratory HIV Database. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that within KSB, 2 FLs from plasma donors O and P comprised two clusters together with 8 and 12 patients with hemophilia, respectively. Signature pattern analysis for the KSB of HIV-1 revealed signature nucleotide residues at 1.05%, compared with local controls. Additionally, in-depth FLs sequence analysis over 30 years in KSB indicates that the KSB FL significantly increases over time before combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) and decreases on cART. Furthermore, the increase in FLs over time significantly occurred in the subtypes B, C and G, but, there was no increase in the subtypes D, A, and F1. Consequently, subtypes F1 and D had the shortest sequence length. Our analysis was extended to compare HIV-1 with HIV-2 and SIVs. Essentially, the longer the sequence length (SIVsm > HIV-2 > SIVcpz > HIV-1), the longer the survival period. The increase in the length of the HIV-1 sequence over time suggests that it might be an evolutionary direction toward attenuated pathogenicity.

A quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) modelling approach is introduced to mimic transverse mixing of an inflow into a river from one of its banks, either an industrial outfall or a tributary. The concentrations of determinands in the inflow vary greatly from those in the river, leading to very long mixing lengths in the river downstream of the inflow location. Ideally, a two-dimensional (2D) model would be used on a small scale to capture the mixing of the two flow streams. However, for large-scale applications of several hundreds of kilometres of river length, such an approach demands too many computational resources and too much computational time, especially if the application will at some point require ensemble input from climate-change scenario data. However, a one-dimensional (1D) model with variables varying in the longitudinal flow direction but averaged across the cross-sections is too simple of an approach to capture the lateral mixing between different flow streams within the river. Hence, a quasi-2D method is proposed in which a simplified 1D solver is still applied but the discretisation of the model setup can be carried out in such a way as to enable a 2D representation of the model domain. The quasi-2D model setup also allows secondary channels and side lakes in floodplains to be incorporated into the discretisation. To show proof-of-concept, the approach has been tested on a stretch of the lower Athabasca River in Canada flowing through the oil sands region between Fort McMurray and Fort MacKay. A dye tracer and suspended sediments are the constituents modelled in this test case.

This study aimed to ascertain the applicability of a machine learning approach to the description of residential mobility patterns of households in the Seoul metropolitan region (SMR). The spatial range and temporal scope of the empirical study were set to 2015 to review the most recent residential mobility patterns in the SMR. The analysis data used in this study involve the microdata of Internal Migration Statistics provided by the Microdata Integrated Service of Statistics Korea. We analysed the residential relocation distance of households in the SMR by using machine learning techniques such as ordinary least squares regression and decision tree regression. The results of this study showed that a decision tree model can be more advantageous than ordinary least squares regression in terms of the explanatory power and estimation of moving distance. A large number of residential movements are mainly related to the accessibility to employment markets and some household characteristics. The shortest movements occur when households with two or more members move into densely populated districts. In contrast, job-based residential movements have relatively longer distance. Furthermore, we derived knowledge on residential relocation distance, which can provide significant information on the urban management of metropolitan residential districts and the construction of reasonable housing policies.

This paper discusses the preliminary results of archaeological surveys conducted in the Juuku Region of north-central Kyrgyzstan on the south side of Lake Issyk kul. Our goal was to document ancient and contemporary agropastoral systems over a four millenia time period. During the surveys about 350 loci were identified as settlements, burial mounds, graves, single artifact finds, and artifact scatters (ceramic). The areas of Juuku Valley survey included two discrete polygons: Polygon 1, Lower Juuku at 1750 to 1950 m asl in elevation and Polygon 2, Chak Juuku or Upper Eastern Branch Juuku Valley at 2060 to 2100 m asl in elevation. Three radiometric dates and preliminary archaeobotanical studies were conducted at three exposed profile cuts. The methods included here are: (1) pedestrian surveys; (2) use of digital maps (Google Earth, Encarta); (3) placing archaeological loci within known chronological time periods; (4) AMS dating of charcoal samples collected from profile deposits; and (5) preliminary identification of plant remains found from archaeobotanical samples. The results of our research represent the first step toward inventorying and interpreting archaeological data in the Juuku Valley derived from field studies.

Ozone and fine particles (PM_2.5) are the two main air pollutants of concern in the New South Wales Greater Metropolitan Region (NSW GMR) region due to their contribution to poor air quality days in the region. This paper focuses on source contributions to ambient ozone concentrations for different parts of the NSW GMR, based on source emissions across the greater Sydney region. The observation-based Integrated Empirical Rate Model (IER) was applied to delineate the different regions within the GMR based on the photochemical smog profile of each region. Ozone source contribution is then modelled using the CCAM-CTM (Cubic Conformal Atmospheric Model-Chemical Transport Model) modelling system and the latest air emission inventory for the greater Sydney region. Source contributions to ozone varied between regions, and also varied depending on the air quality metric applied (e.g., average or maximum ozone). Biogenic volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions were found to contribute significantly to median and maximum ozone concentration in North West Sydney during summer. After commercial domestic, power station was found to be the next largest anthropogenic source of maximum ozone concentrations in North West Sydney. However, in South West Sydney, beside commercial and domestic sources, on-road vehicles were predicted to be the most significant contributor to maximum ozone levels, followed by biogenic sources and power stations. The results provide information which policy makers can devise various options to control ozone levels in different parts of the NSW Greater Metropolitan Region.

The bHLH-PAS proteins are a family of transcription factors regulating expression of a wide range of genes involved in different functions, from differentiation and development control, by oxygen and toxins sensing to circadian clock setting. In addition to the well-preserved DNA-binding bHLH and PAS domains, bHLH-PAS proteins contain long intrinsically disordered C-terminal regions, responsible for their activity regulation. Our aim was to analyse the potential connection between disordered regions of the bHLH-PAS transcription factors with posttranscriptional modifications and liquid-liquid phase separation in the context of the disease-associated missense mutations. Highly flexible disordered regions, enriched in short more ordered motives, are responsible for wide spectrum of interactions with transcriptional co-regulators. Based on our in silico analysis and taking into account fact that transcription factors functions can be modulated by posttranslational modifications and spontaneous phase separation, we assume that the location of missense mutations inducing disease states, is clearly related to sequences directly undergoing these processes or to sequences responsible for their activity regulation.

Molecular identification via Internal Transcribed Spacer region (nrDNA-ITS) sequencing of Fusarium spp. isolates from wheat originated from Stara Zagora region, were performed for the first time in Bulgaria. А total of 60 wheat samples (Triticum aestivum) were morphologically identified at the genus level as Fusarium spp. in advance. The rDNA-ITS region of all isolates was successfully amplified and the PCR products obtained were directly sequenced. After a comparison of detected sequences with NCBI database, members of three different fungal genera (Fusarium, Chaetomium, and Alternaria) were identified. Among Fusarium isolates, the F. tricinctum was prevailing, followed by F. poae. A total of three isolate F. proliferatum, F. graminearum and F. equiseti were presented with a single probe. The lowest genetic distance (0.004) was detected between F. tricinctum isolates. On the base of genetic distances, fungal isolates were grouped in two main clusters – one comprising F. tricinctum isolates and F. proliferatum, and second including F. equiseti, F. graminearum and F. poae. It could be concluded that the rDNA-ITS genome region of the genus Fusarium may be used as a suitable marker of early detection, accurate and reliable identification of Fusarium spp. contamination of wheat. The timely and accurate information would assist in the selection of appropriate approaches for control of fusarium infections and possible mycotoxins contamination of agricultural production.

Mountain systems within the Mediterranean region, e.g. the Pyrenees, are very sensitive to climate change. In the present study, we quantified the magnitude of extreme precipitation events and the number of days with torrential precipitation (daily precipitation ≥ 100 mm) in all the rain gauges available in the Pyrenees for the 1981-2015 period, analyzing the contribution of the synoptic scale in this type of events. The easternmost (under the Mediterranean influence) and north-westernmost (under Atlantic influence) areas of the Pyrenees registered the highest number of torrential events. The heaviest events are expected in the eastern part, i.e. 400 mm day-1 for a return period of 200 years. Northerly advections over the Iberian Peninsula, which present a low zonal index, i.e. im-plying a stronger meridional component, give rise to torrential events over the western Pyrenees; and easterly advections favour extreme precipitation over the eastern Pyrenees. The air mass travels a long way, from the east coast of North America, bringing heavy rainfall to the western Pyrenees. In the case of the torrential events over the eastern Pyrenees, the air mass causing the events in these areas is very short and originates in the Mediterranean Basin. The NAO index has no influence upon the occurrence of torrential events in the Pyrenees, but these events are closely related to certain Mediterranean teleconnections such as the WeMO

Endemic freshwater fish from semiarid environments are among the most threated species in the world due to the water overexploitation and habitat fragmentation problems. Stepped or pool-type fishways are used worldwide to reestablish longitudinal connectivity and mitigate fish migration problems. Many of them are being installed or planned in rivers of semiarid environments, however, very few studies about fish passage performance through pool-type fishways has been carried out to date on these regions. The present work focuses on the passage performance of two potamodromous cyprinids endemic of these regions, with different ecological and swimming behavior: southern Iberian barbel (Luciobarbus sclateri) and Iberian straight-mouth nase (Pseudochondrostoma polylepis), in two of the most common types of stepped fishways: vertical slot and submerged notch with bottom orifice fishways. Experiments were carried out during the spawning season in the Segura River (South-Eastern Spain), using a PIT tag and antennas system. Ascent success was greater than 80%, with a median transit time lower than 17 minutes per meter of height in all trials and for both species and fishway types. Results show that both types of fishways, if correctly designed and built, provide interesting alternatives for the restoration of fish migration pathways on these regions.

The problem of identifying functional regions in an urban setting has been approached in literature using two general methodologies: top-down, encoding expert knowledge on urban planning and design (e.g. into patterns) and using that knowledge for identification, and bottom-up, relying on crowdsourcing and Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) to train learning models, using techniques such as Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) topic modeling. Both approaches have their advantages but also face important limitations, with knowledge-based approaches being criticized for scalability and transferability issues and data-driven approaches for lacking interpretability and depending heavily on data quality. To mitigate these disadvantages, we propose a novel framework that fuses data and knowledge in three different ways: functional regions identified from individual approaches are evaluated against each other, knowledge from patterns is used to adjust learning model results and topic models are used to adjust pattern-based results. The proposed methodologies are demonstrated through the use case of identifying shopping-related functional regions in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Results show that the combination of results from knowledge-based and data-driven techniques can help uncover discrepancies between the two different approaches and smoothen inaccuracies caused by the limitations of each approach.

In addition to the canonical loss-of-function mutations, mutations in proteins may additionally result in gain-of-function through the binary activation of cryptic ‘structural capacitance elements’. Our previous bioinformatic analysis allowed us to propose a new mechanism of protein evolution - structural capacitance – that arises via the generation of new elements of microstructure upon mutations that cause a disorder-to-order (DO) transition in previously disordered regions of proteins. Here we propose that the DO transition is a necessary follow-on from expected early codon-anticodon and tRNA acceptor stem-amino acid usage, via the accumulation of structural capacitance elements - reservoirs of disorder in proteins. We develop this argument further to posit that structural capacitance is an inherent consequence of the evolution of the genetic code.

In the northern Fennoscandian Shield, a vanadium mineralization occurs in the Paleoproterozoic Pechenga–Imandra-Varzuga (PIV) riftogenic structure. It is localized in sulfide ores hosted by sheared basic and ultrabasic metavolcanics in the Pyrrhotite Ravine and Bragino areas and was formed at the latest stages of the Lapland-Kola orogeny 1.90–1.86 Ga ago. An additional formation of vanadium minerals derived from contact metamorphism and metasomatism produced by the Devonian Khibiny alkaline massif in the Pyrrhotite Ravine area. Vanadium forms its own rare minerals (karelianite, coulsonite, kyzylkumite, goldmanite, mukhinite, etc.), as well as it can be an isomorphic admixture in rutile, ilmenite, crichtonite group, micas, chlorites, etc. Vanadium originated from two sources: (1) basic and ultrabasic volcanics initially enriched in vanadium and (2) metasomatizing fluids that circulated along shear zones. The crystallization of vanadium and vanadium-bearing minerals was accompanied by chromium and scandium mineralization. Vanadium mineralization in Paleoproterozoic formations throughout the world is briefly considered. The simultaneous development of vanadium, chromium and scandium mineralizations is a unique feature of the Kola sulfide ores. In other regions sulfide ores contain only two of these three mineralizations produced by one ore-forming process.

We aimed to investigate whether the sequence length of HIV-1 increases over time. A longitudinal analysis of full-length coding region sequences (FLs) during an HIV-1 outbreak among pa-tients with hemophilia and local controls infected with the Korean subclade B of HIV-1 (KSB) was performed. Genes were amplified by overlapping RT-PCR or nested PCR and subjected to direct sequencing. Overall, 141 FLs were sequentially determined over 30 years in 62 KSB-infected patients. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that within KSB, two FLs from plasma donors O and P comprised two clusters together with 8 and 12 patients with hemophilia, respectively. Signature pattern analysis for the KSB of HIV-1 revealed 91 signature nucleotide residues (1.05%). In total, 48 and 43 signature nucleotides originated from clusters O and P, respectively. Only six positions contained 100% specific nucleotide(s) in clusters O and P. Additionally, in-depth FL analysis over 30 years indicates that the KSB FL significantly increased over time before combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) and decreased with cART. The increase occurred due to a significant increase in env and nef genes, originating in the variable regions of both genes. The increase in the sequence length of HIV-1 over time suggests that it has an evolutionary direction.

The purposes of this study are to analyze the groundwater quality of Ogallala Aquifer and evaluate the hydrological characteristics in the southern High Plains region of the Permian Basin, Texas. Levels of chloride, fluoride, nitrate, pH, selenium, and total dissolved solids (TDS) were analyzed through the years 1990-2016. A total of 133 wells were collected from the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) which is an open database by the US government. Statistical analysis was utilized to evaluate the groundwater quality and propose trends. The average levels of the contaminants were compared to their respective Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCL) by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Potential human health risks that each contaminant possesses were described. Possible sources of each contaminant were discussed with oil/gas activities, agricultural practices, and other human actions impact its conditions. This research provides important information for groundwater quality of Ogallala aquifer and contributes on understanding the response to development in the Permian Basin, Texas.

(1) Background: Cameron County, which is located in the Rio Grande Valley, holds historical records for storm surges with noticeable property damage, fatalities, and injuries; (2) Methods: using storm surge hazard datasets from the National Oceanic and Atlantic Agency (NOAA), and American Community Survey (ACS) 2019 datasets and Geographic Information System (GIS), the study estimates at-risk population and their socio-demographic attributes; (4) Conclusions: Estimated water levels of a storm surge could be reached up to 5 feet in category 1 event, 9 feet in category 2, 17 feet in category 3, and above 20 feet in category 4 and 5. In the category 5 event, there is an estimated 37% (159,659) of the total county’s population (434,294) will be under flooded water. Suggestions are made to better prepare and successfully evaluate.

In recent decades, the interest in PFAS has grown exponentially around the world, due to the toxic effects induced by these chemical compounds in humans, as well as in other animals and in plants. However, current knowledge related to the antistress responses that organisms can express when exposed to these substances is still insufficient and therefore it requires further investigation. The present study focuses on antioxidant responses in Squalius cephalus and Padogobius bonelli, exposed to significant levels of PFAS in an area of the Veneto region subjected to a recent relevant pollution case. These two ubiquitous freshwater species were sampled in three rivers characterized by different concentrations of PFAS. Several biomarkers of oxidative stress have been evaluated and the results suggest that PFAS chronic exposure induces some physiological responses in the target species, at both cellular and tissue scales. The risk of oxidative stress seems to be kept under control by the antioxidant system by means of gene activation at the mitochondrial level. Moreover, the histological analysis suggests an interesting protective mechanism against damage to the protein component based on lipid vacuolization.

In this paper, we discuss optical properties of the topologically charged rotating black hole. We study the horizon, the photon region, the shadow of the black hole and other observables. The results show that in addition to the black hole spin parameter $a$, the other two parameters, five-dimensional mass parameter $\beta$ and electric charge $q$, are also found to affect the horzion, the photon region and the black hole shadow. In a certain range, with the increase of the three parameters, the horizon distance, shape of the photon region and the black hole shadow will all shrink. Moreover, with the increase of these three parameters, the distortion parameter $\delta_{s}$ gradually increases, while the peak of the black hole energy emission rate decreases.

Regionalization of food systems for shortening supply chains and developing local agriculture to feed city-regions presents particular challenges for food planning and policy. Existing foodshed approaches enable to assess the theoretical capacity of food self-sufficiency of a specific region, but they struggle to consider the diversity of existing crops in a way that could be usable for informing decisions and support urban food strategies. Most studies are based on the definition of the area required to meet local consumption, obtaining a map represented as an isotropic circle around the city, without considering the site-specific pedoclimatic, geographical and socio-economic conditions, which are essential for the development of local food supply chains. In this study we propose a first stage to fill this gap by combining the Metropolitan Foodshed and Self-sufficiency Scenario (MFSS) model, which already considers regional yields and specific land use covers, with spatially explicit data on cropping pattern, soil and topography. We use European-wide available data and apply the methodology in the city-region of Avignon (France), initially considering a foodshed with a radius of 30 Km. Our results show that even though a theoretical high potential self-sufficiency could be achieved for the whole food commodities consumed (>80%), when considering the specific pedological conditions of the area, this could be suitable only for domestic plant-based products, whereas for animal products an expansion of the initial foodshed to a radius of 100Km was required to provide >70% of self-sufficiency. We conclude that it is necessary to shift the analysis from the size assessment to the commodity-group specific spatial configuration of the foodshed based on biophysical and socio-economic features, and discuss avenues for further researches enabling to develop a foodshed assessment as a complex of complementary pieces: the foodshed archipelago.

The assessment of water quality consists of counting bacteria indicating fecal contamination or detecting the presence of pathogenic bacteria using standardized or validated methods of classical microbiology. Our present study aims to determine the bacteriological quality of drilling water in the Tandjilé region of Chad. Our method used was based on qualitative and quantitative research on suspected total coliforms, Echerichia Coli and fecal enterococci were analyzed according to the standard routine methods of the French Association for Normalization (AFNOR). Microbiological analysis shows the presence of indicators of fecal contamination such as total coliforms, Escherichia coli and fecal enterococci. The number of strains detected in 100 ml were E. coli (7 /29 samples), fecal Streptococcus (6 /29 samples) and total coliforms (29/29 samples), respectively from borehole water. The contamination rate of E. coli is 24.13%, total coliforms 100% and 20.68% of fecal enterococci in boreholes. The high number of these microorganisms is more than the values recommended by the WHO for the quality of drinking water. Corrective and urgent measures are needed to improve the quality of these water resources, rich in pathogens, which are health risks, and the causes of infectious diseases such as gastroenteritis, diarrhea, typhoid and skin diseases.

Macroautophagy/autophagy plays an important role in cellular copper clearance. The means by which the copper metabolism and autophagy pathways interact mechanistically is vastly unexplored. Dysfunctional ATP7B, a copper-transporting ATPase, is involved in the development of monogenic Wilson disease, a disorder characterized by disturbed copper transport. Using in silico prediction, we found that ATP7B contains a number of potential binding sites for LC3, a central protein in autophagy pathway, so-called LC3 interaction regions (LIRs). The conserved LIR3, located at the C-terminal end of ATP7B, was found to directly interact with LC3B in vitro. Replacing the two conserved hydrophobic residues W1452 and L1455 of LIR3 significantly reduced interaction. Furthermore, autophagy was induced in normal human hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) leading to enhanced colocalization of ATP7B and LC3B on the autophagosome membranes. By contrast, HepG2 cells deficient of ATP7B (HepG2 ATP7B-/-) showed autophagy deficiency at elevated copper condition. This phenotype was complemented by heterologous ATP7B expression. These findings suggest a cooperative role of ATP7B and LC3B in autophagy-mediated copper clearance.

Polarisation analysis in the mid-infrared fingerprint region was carried out on thin (∼1μm) Si and SiO2 films evaporated via glancing angle deposition (GLAD) method at 70∘ to the normal. Synchrotron-based infrared microspectroscopic measurements were carried out on the Infrared Microspectroscopy (IRM) beamline at Australian Synchrotron. Specific absorption bands, particularly Si-O-Si stretching vibration, was found to follow the angular dependence of ∼cos2θ, consistent with the absorption anisotropy. This unexpected anisotropy stems from the enhanced absorption in nano-crevices, which have orientation following the cos2θ angular dependence as revealed by Fourier transforming the image of the surface of 3D columnar films and numerical modeling of light field enhancement by sub-wavelength nano-crevices.

The identification of homogeneous flood regions is essential for regional flood frequency analysis. Despite the type of regionalization framework considered (e.g., region of influence or hierarchical clustering), selecting flood-related attributes to reflect flood generating mechanisms is required to discriminate flood regimes among catchments. To understand how different attributes perform across Canada for identifying homogeneous regions, this study examines five distinctive attributes (i.e., geographical proximity, flood seasonality, physiographic variables, monthly precipitation pattern, and monthly temperature pattern) for their ability to identify homogeneous regions at 186 gauging sites. We add an automatic component to enhance identification of homogeneous regions is proposed as an addition to the region of influence framework. Results are presented spatially for Canada to assess patterning of homogeneous regions. Memberships of two selected regions are investigated to provide insight into membership characteristics. Sites in eastern Canada are highly likely to identify homogeneous flood regions, while the western prairie and mountainous regions are not. Overall, it is revealed that the success of identifying homogeneous region is relevant to local hydrological complexities, to whether considered attribute reflects primary flooding mechanism, and to whether catchment sites are clustered in small geographic region. Formation of effective pooling groups affords the extension of record lengths across the Canadian domain (where gauges typically have <50 years of record), facilitating more comprehensive analysis of higher return periods floods need for climate change assessment.

Water resources are threatened nowadays by pollution that comes from domestic, industrial and agricultural discharges without prior treatment. This pollution causes the degradation of water quality. Surface pollutants can seep through the soil into water tables. The objective of our work is to assess and control the physicochemical quality of the Chari Baguirmi groundwater, to protect human health. The quality of 83 boreholes was assessed, while performing analysis for 12 physicochemical parameters at the National Water Laboratory and at the Center for Quality Control of Foodstuffs in Chad. These parameters are: pH, EC, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+, Cl-, SO42-, NH4+ and NO3- , Fe2+ and HCO3-. Also, the results obtained were compared with WHO standards. The geochemical statistical approach has made it possible to characterize the hydro geochemical properties and to understand the major processes of the mineralization of groundwater resources in Chari Baguirmi region in Chad. Some of its waters are acidic and weakly mineralized, rich in Fe2+ and NH4+. The origin of the mineralization is due to the alteration of the host rocks and to the hydrolysis of silicate and ferromagnesian minerals as well as anthropogenic pollution. The ammonium concentrations in N’Djamena boreholes are higher than WHO standards, indicating the presence of pollution which may come from organic waste. These results constitute a preliminary step in understanding hydro geochemical functioning and a basis for monitoring the physicochemical quality of the water in the study area.

The development of dispersed urbanism in Spain ran parallel to the real estate boom and consolidated a new model of city sprawl based on the expansion of suburban areas. This process, which started in the mid 1980s, came to a halt with the onset of the economic crisis in 2007. With it, construction stopped, mobility fell and urban growth came to a standstill. The purpose of this article is to carry out an analysis of the recent evolution and chronology of the expansion of dispersed urbanism in the Barcelona Metropolitan Region (BMR) in order to gain an insight into some of the explanatory factors of such expansion and to deal with the future prospects of middle-term development of dispersed urbanism in the BMR and in Spain. To do this, we examine the trends in the housing market, in residential mobility and we take stock of the impact of business cycles. The conclusion is that dispersed areas retain their appeal in the stages of creation and expansion of households. For this reason, an effective economic recovery and a renewed rise in the price of housing in denser cities may contribute to an upturn in the popularity of the dispersed residential model, which nowadays could be considered to be in a ‘lethargic’ stage, waiting for certain factors to coincide and re-activate its expansion.

One of the biggest problems that the Dominican Republic has had in recent decades is the efficient management of solid waste produced by the population. This problem has worsened in recent years due to the decrease in available areas for the construction of sanitary landfills, the lack of recycling culture in the population, the deficiency in waste collection, and the scarce legal controls aimed at preserving water and air and soil, among other factors. The objective of this study was to explore the management of solid waste by the population and the municipality of Puñal, province of Santiago, to evaluate and analyze the situation and generation of solid waste, municipal solid waste management services, and the attitudes of the population regarding recycling projects and waste management, to evaluate the viability and sustainability of the use organic waste for energy generation. A total of 275 households from 29 localities in the municipality of Puñal were surveyed, which allowed for a significant population sample. According to the results obtained, the most significant type of waste produced by families is organic waste, followed by plastic waste and paper. Of the total organic waste produced in the municipality, 53% of solid waste is disregarded through the municipal waste collection system, while 47% is used as plant fertilizers or animal feed. On the other hand, most households receive the municipal waste collection service and pay for this service. The results of our research show that the implementation of an energy production system based on organic waste would be viable in the municipality of Puñal. However, a more efficient waste collection system would be necessary and the development of programs and projects that allow all households to participate in the system.

Eddy current based approaches have been investigated for a wide range of inspection applications. Dodd-Deeds model and the truncated region eigenfunction expansion (TREE) method are widely applied in various occasions, mostly for the cases that the sample is relatively larger than the radius of the sensor coil. The TREE method converts the integral expressions to the summation of many terms in the truncated region. In a recent work, the impedance of the co-axial air-cored sensor due to a plate of finite radius was calculated by the modified Dodd-Deeds analytical approach proposed by authors. In this paper, combining the modified analytical solution and the TREE method, a new finite region eigenfunction expansion (FREE) method is proposed. This method involves modifying its initial summation point from the first zero of the Bessel function to a value related to the radius of the plate, therefore makes it suitable for plate with finite dimensions. Experiments and simulations have been carried out and compared for the verification of the proposed method. Further, the planar size measurements of the metallic circular plate can be achieved by utilising the measured peak frequency feature.

The epidemic transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil has been identified as a cause of microcephaly and other neurological malformations in babies of ZIKV-infected women. This study provides a descriptive analysis, since the onset of symptoms to the delivery, of a cohort who were registered as having ZIKV infection in pregnancy, from November 2015 to December 2016. Suspected cases were registered at a referral center for infectious and tropical diseases in Manaus, in the Brazilian Amazonian region. A total of 834 women with suspected ZIKV in pregnancy were included, of whom 91.4% had confirmed pregnancy. Reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) confirmed ZIKV infection in 42.2% of the cohort. In 35.2% of the cohort, ZIKV was the sole infection identified. Severe adverse pregnancy outcomes (abortion, stillbirth, or microcephaly) were observed in both RT-PCR ZIKV-positive (4.96%) and ZIKV-negative (2.15%) cases. Women with suspected ZIKV infection were much more likely to have adverse pregnancy outcomes if they were symptomatic during the first trimester of pregnancy (odds ratio 10.5; 95% confidence interval 4.0–27.0; p<0.001). Among pregnant women with suspected ZIKV infection, the occurrence of symptoms in the first trimester is associated with an especially high risk of severe adverse pregnancy outcomes.

There are abundant coal, oil and natural gas resources in "Golden Triangle" energy region. Energy resources development, coal chemical industry, coal power and other industries play an important role in promoting regional economic growth, but facing the insufficient water supply. Under the condition of marginal equilibrium of water resources, the paper firstly analyzes the water utilization, and calculates the potential water-saving amount. Then, the paper constructs a cooperative game model and allocates the newly increased GDP by using the weight distribution method. Finally, the paper puts forward some policy suggestions to reduce the efficiency gap of water utilization among regions.

Metagenomic analysis of mosquitoes allows the genetic characterization of mosquito-associated viruses in different regions of the world. This study applied the metagenomic approach to search for novel viral sequences in seven species of mosquitoes collected from the Novosibirsk region of Western Siberia. Using NGS sequencing, we identified 15 coding-complete viral polyproteins (genomes) and 15 viral-like partial sequences in mosquitoes. The complete sequences for novel viruses or partial sequences of capsid proteins, hypothetical viral proteins, and RdRp were used to identify their taxonomy. The novel viral sequences were classified within the orders Tymovirales and Picornavirales, the families Partitiviridae, Totiviridae, Tombusviridae, Iflaviridae, Nodaviridae, Permutotetraviridae, Solemoviridae, with several attributed to four unclassified RNA-viruses. The main part of the novel putative viruses and viral sequences was associated with Coquillettidia richardii mosquito. This study is intended to increase our understanding of viral diversity in mosquitoes found in the natural habitats of Siberia, characterized by very long, snowy, and cold winters.

The current study was planned to simulate runoff due to the snowmelt in the Lidder River catchment of Himalayan region under climate change scenarios. A basic degree-day model, Snowmelt-Runoff Model (SRM) was utilized to assess the hydrological consequences of change in climate. The SRM model performance during the calibration and validation was assessed using volume difference (Dv) and coefficient of determination (R2). The Dv was found as 11.7, -10.1, -11.8, 1.96, and 8.6 during 2009-2014, respectively, while the R2 is 0.96, 0.92, 0.95, 0.90, and 0.94, respectively. The Dv and R2 values indicating that the simulated snowmelt runoff has a close agreement with the observed value. The simulated findings were also assessed under the different scenarios of climate change: a) increases in precipitation by +20 %, b) temperature rise of +2 °C, and c) temperature rise of +2 °C with a 20 % increase in snow cover. In scenario "b", the simulated results showed that runoff increased by 53 % in summer (April–September). In contrast, the projected increased discharge for scenarios "a" and "c" was 37 % and 67 %, respectively. In high elevation data-scarce mountain environments, the SRM is efficient in forecasting future water supplies due to the snowmelt runoff.

Urban form is associated with both socio-economic and urban physical properties. This study explores the differences among urban forms in the Seoul Metropolitan Region with a comparison between census-based socioeconomic variables and landscape metrics computed from remotely sensed data. To accomplish this, factor analysis and multi-dimensional scaling were used with the selected variables and metrics. When all of the measures are considered together, four types of cities and towns emerged: 1) exurban-fragmented high growth, 2) exurban-fragmented low growth, 3) compact-extensive urban core and 4) sub-urban compact-high growth. The results indicate that the fusion of knowledge of the physical urban layout and that of socio-economic characteristics is beneficial for a better understanding of urban spatial patterns. However, there remain challenges in delineating each urbanized area and with indicator selection for comparing urban form across cities and towns.

Earth Observation (EO) techniques have significantly evolved over time, covering a wide range of applications in different domains. The scope of this study is to review the research conducted on EO in the Eastern Mediterranean, Middle East, and North Africa (EMMENA) region and to identify the main knowledge gaps. We searched through the Web of Science database for papers published between 2018 and 2022 for EO studies in the EMMENA. We categorized the papers in the following thematic areas: Atmosphere, Water, Agriculture, Land, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Cultural Heritage, Energy, Marine Safety and Security (MSS) and Big Earth Data (BED); 6647 papers were found with the highest number of publications in the thematic areas of BED (27%) and Land (22%). Most of the EMMENA countries are surrounded by sea, yet there was a very small number of studies on MSS (0.9% of total number of papers). This study detected a gap in fundamental research in the BED thematic area. Other future needs identified by this study are the limited availability of very high resolution and near real time remote sensing data, the lack of harmonized methodologies and the need for further development of models, algorithms, early warning systems and services.

As solar energy is a low-cost and clean energy source, there has been a great deal of interest in how to harvest it. To absorb solar energy efficiently, we have designed a broadband metamaterial absorber based on the principle of Fabry–Pérot (FP) cavity and surface plasmon resonances (SPRs). We propose a broadband perfect absorber consisting of a four-layer structure of silica-tungsten-silica-titanium (SiO2-W-SiO2-Ti) for the incident light wavelength range of 300–2500 nm. The structure achieves perfect absorption of incident light in the wavelength range of 351.8–2465.0 nm (absorption >90%), with an average absorption of 96.3%. The advantage of our proposed structure is that it combines the characteristics of both high and broadband absorption and has a high overall absorption efficiency for solar radiation. It is also independent of polarization and insensitive to incident angle. We investigated how absorption was affected by different structures, materials, geometrical parameters, and refractive indices for different dielectric materials, and we explored the reasons for high absorption. This structure is refractory and ultra-thin, and it offers a good trade-off between bandwidth and absorption. It therefore has premium application prospects and value.

Stevia rebaudiana (Bert.) is a natural sweetener with diterpenic glycosides, offering 300 times more sweetness than sucrose, and boasting low-calorie content, along with medicinal and therapeutic properties. To address a limited genetic diversity, a germplasm bank comprising 115 segregated lines of stevia was established in Colombia. Notwithstanding, the fungus Athelia rolfsii adversely impacted key stevia lines, leading to wilting and plant mortality. For this reason our study aimed to explore the biocontrol potential of native strains of Trichoderma spp., isolated from productive lots in Colombia's Cordoba department, as a solution to manage A. rolfsii. Soil samples underwent serial dilution technique (103 conidia.mL-1) to obtain Trichoderma spp. isolates, which were thoroughly morphologically and molecularly characterized. A total five native strains were identified through sequencing the PCR products using universal ITS primers, and comparisons with the GENBANK database confirmed their identity (OK310695.1, ON237703.1, ON238106.1, ON237737.1, and ON237923.1). Their biocontrol efficacy against A. rolfsii was evaluated using the dual culture technique. Remarkably, all strains exhibited significant biocontrol capacity against the A. rolfsii isolate INVEPAR-05 (OK271308.1), except for Trichoderma viride INVEPAR-T10 (ON237923.1). These findings suggest that Trichoderma spp. could be a potential option to manage the fungus in stevia.

: Foodshed approaches allow the assessment of the theoretical food self-sufficiency capacity of a specific region based on biophysical conditions. Recent analyses show that the focus needs to be shifted from foodshed size portrayed as an isotropic circle to a commodity-group-specific spatial configuration of the foodshed that takes into account the socio-economic and biophysical conditions essential to the development of local food supply chains. We focus on a specific animal product (beef) and use an innovative modeling approach based on spatial analysis to detect the areas of the foodshed dedicated to beef feeding (forage, pasture, and grassland), considering the foodshed as a complex of complementary areas called an archipelago. We use available statistical data including a census to address the city-region of Avignon (France) covering a 100 km radius. Our results show that the factors driving the use of short supply chains for beef feeding areas are the foodshed archipelago’s number of patches, the connectivity between them, and the rugosity of the boundaries. In addition, our beef self-sufficiency assessment results differ depending on geographical context. For instance, being located within the perimeters of a nature park seems to help orient beef production towards short supply chains. We discuss possible leverage for public action to reconnect beef production areas to consumption areas (the city) via short supply chains (e.g. green, home-grown school food programs) so as to increase local food security through increased local food self-sufficiency.

The transition to sustainable energy systems in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region addresses critical challenges of environmental protection, energy security, and socio-economic resilience. Using neo-institutional theory, this paper examines the intricate relationship between formal and informal institutions and their significant impact on the region’s energy transition. Despite the MENA region’s abundant renewable energy resources, numerous institutional barriers, such as governance inefficiencies, regulatory inconsistencies, and entrenched socio-cultural norms, significantly hinder this transition. Through a review of existing literature, this study presents a comprehensive analytical framework designed to overcome these barriers, with a focus on the Just and Sustainable Energy Transition model. This strategic model emphasizes equity, sustainability, and inclusive governance as pillars for reform. The study offers detailed recommendations for institutional change and underscores the importance of collaborative efforts among governments, industry stakeholders, and international partners to unlock the MENA region’s renewable energy potential, advance global sustainability goals, and ensure a more secure and resilient energy future.

Avian sex chromosomes evolved after the divergence birds and crocodilians from their common ancestor, so they are much younger than the better-studied chromosomes of mammals. It has long been recognized that there may have been several stages to the evolution of avian sex chromosomes. For example, the CHD1 undergoes recombination in paleognaths but not neognaths. Genome assemblies have suggested there may be variation in the timing of barriers to recombination among Neognathae, but there remains little understanding of the extent of this variability. Here, we look at partial sequences of ATP5F1A, which is on the avian Z and W chromosomes. It is known that recombination of this gene has independently ceased in Galliformes, Anseriformes, and at least five neoavian orders, but whether there are other independent cessations of recombination among Neoaves is not understood. We used a combination of data extracted from published chromosomal-level genomes with data collected using PCR and cloning to identify Z and W copies in 22 orders. Our results suggest there may be at least 19 independent cessations of recombination within Neognathae, and 3 clades that may still be undergoing recombination (or have only recently ceased recombination). Analyses of ATP5F1A protein sequences revealed an increased amino acid substitution rate for W chromosome gametologs, suggesting relaxed purifying selection on the W chromosome. Supporting this hypothesis, we found that the increased substitution rate was particularly pronounced for buried residues, which are expected to be more strongly constrained by purifying selection. This highlights the dynamic nature of avian sex chromosomes, and that this level of variation among clades means they should be a good system to understand sex chromosome evolution.

Rabies is a neurological disease that causes between 40,000 and 70,000 deaths every year. Once a rabies patient has become symptomatic, there is no effective treatment for the illness, and in unvaccinated individuals, the case-fatality rate of rabies is close to 100%. French scientists Louis Pasteur and Émile Roux developed the first vaccine for rabies in 1885. If administered before the virus reaches the brain, the modern rabies vaccine imparts long-lasting immunity to the virus and saves more than 250,000 people every year. However, the rabies virus can suppress the host’s immune response once it has entered the cells of the brain, making death likely. This study aims to make use of disorder-based proteomics and bioinformatics to determine the impact that intrinsically disordered protein regions (IDPRs) in the proteome of the rabies virus have on the infectivity and lethality of the disease. This study uses the proteome of Rabies Lyssavirus (RABV) strain Pasteur Vaccins (PV), one of the best understood strains due to its use in the first rabies vaccine, as a model. The study suggests that the high levels of intrinsic disorder in the phosphoprotein (P-protein) and nucleoprotein (N-protein) allow them to participate in creation of the Negri bodies and help this virus suppress the antiviral immune response in the host cells. Additionally, the study suggests that there is a link between disorder in the matrix (M) protein and the modulation of viral transcription. The disordered regions in the M protein have a possible role in initiating viral budding within the cell. Furthermore, we checked the prevalence of functional disorder in a set of 37 host proteins directly involved in the interaction with the RABV proteins. The hope is that these new insights will aid in the development of treatments for rabies that are effective after infection.

The recent rise in ocean temperatures, accompanied by other environmental changes, has notably increased the occurrence and spread of diseases in Octocorallia, of which many species are integral to shallow tropical and subtropical coral reef ecosystems. This study focuses on the understanding of these diseases, which has been largely limited to symptomatic descriptions, with clear etiological factors identified in only a fraction of cases. A key example is the multifocal purple spots syndrome (MPSS) affecting the common Caribbean octocoral sea fan Gorgonia ventalina, linked to the gall-forming copepods of the genus Sphaerippe, a member of the widespread family Lamippidae. The specialized nature of these copepods as endoparasites in octocorals suggests the potential for the discovery of similar diseases across this host spectrum. Our investigation employed four molecular markers to study disease hotspots in Saint Eustatius, Curaçao, northwest and southwest Cuba, and Bonaire. This led to the discovery of a group of copepod species in these varied Caribbean locations. Importantly, these species are morphologically indistinguishable through traditional methods, challenging established taxonomic approaches. The observed diversity of symbionts, despite the host species' genetic uniformity, is likely due to variations in larval dispersal mechanisms. Our phylogenetic analyses confirmed that the Lamippidae copepods belong to the order Poecilostomatoida (Copepoda) and revealed their sister group relationship with the Anchimolgidae, Rhynchomolgidae, and Xarifiidae clades, known for their symbiotic relationships with scleractinian corals. These results add to our understanding of the evolutionary and ecological interactions of copepods and their hosts, and the diseases they cause, important data in a changing climate.

The objective of this research was to evaluate the physicochemical and sanitary parameters of raw cow's milk intended for consumption in the Amazonas region, Peru. We sampled 31 collection centers and dairy processors. We evaluated physicochemical parameters (fat, protein, solids not fat, lactose, ash, pH, and density), somatic cell count, and microbiology (mesophilic aerobic bacteria and total coliforms) of raw milk. We applied an analysis of variance (α=0.05) and the comparison of means between the collection centers and livestock basins (p&lt;0.05). In addition, we performed a cluster analysis, principal components and correlation. Depending on the collection center, we found differences in all the physicochemical parameters, somatic cell count and milk microbiology. In the livestock basin analysis, we found differences for somatic cells, fat, protein, solids, pH, coliforms and bacteria. The Jumbilla basin presented less somatic cells, less fat was found in the Levanto basin and higher protein in the Yambrasbamba basin. Lactose, ash, density, total coliforms and mesophilic aerobic bacteria did not vary according to basin. The cluster analysis yielded four groups, Group 1 is higher in ash and density, Group 2 and 3 are higher in fat, Group 3 with higher protein, but higher in total coliforms and mesophilic aerobic bacteria. Group 4 registered the highest pH and the lowest protein concentration. There was a positive correlation of fat with protein and solids not fat, lactose with solids not fat, ash with density. Negative correlations of somatic cells with fat and, protein and solids not fat with pH.

The morphologically variable moss Trichostomum brachydontium is very common in south and west Europe, particularly under Mediterranean and Atlantic climates. A morphological study was conducted alongside a molecular phylogenetic study based on nr ITS and cp rbcL regions in order to assess if T. brachydontium is an exceptionally polymorphic species as evidenced by the number of described infraspecific taxa from the last century or, alternatively, if it includes more than one species, and if so, to find the valid name for them. Phylogenetic analyses of both nuclear and chloroplast datasets show that there are four well-supported clades. While the ITS based tree is in good agreement with the morphological data, there are a few inconsistencies with reference to the rbcL tree; this may be explained by incomplete lineage sorting or by hybridization. The morphological survey revealed well-defined discriminate differences between the four phylogenetic lineages. The taxonomic conclusions include the recognition of four species: T. brachydontium s.s., T. herzogii (a new name proposed for var. cuspidatum), T. littorale and T. meridionale (a new name proposed for var. densum). Lectotypes are designated for T. brachydontium and T. littorale. Our results underline the ongoing need of integrative studies to examine further the underestimated diversity of the T. brachydontium complex in other regions.

Nucleosomes are non-uniformly distributed across eukarytic genomes, with stretches of ‘open’ chromatin strongly associated with transcriptionally active promoters and enhancers. Understanding chromatin accessibility patterns in normal tissue and how they are altered in pathologies can provide critical insights to development and disease. With the advent of high-throughput sequencing, a variety of strategies have been devised to identify open regions across the genome, including DNase-seq, MNase-seq, FAIRE-seq, ATAC-seq, and NicE-seq. However, the broad application of such methods to FFPE (formalin-fixed paraffin embedded) tissues has been curtailed by the major technical challenges imposed by highly fixed and damaged genomic material. Here we review the most common approaches for mapping open chromatin regions, recent optimizations to overcome the challenges of working with FFPE tissue, and a brief overview of a typical data pipeline with analysis considerations.

Landward displacement of coastal boulders is a morphodynamic signature of inundation and erosion processes. The study of these movements can provide useful elements for coastal hazards assessment. In this note, using open-access remote sensing resources, the 2017 to 2021 annual mobility of medium, coarse, and very coarse boulders spread over about 100 km of the eastern coast of the Gulf of Taranto (Italy) is detected. A large interannual variability was found. As established by multi-temporal object-based image analysis, one hundred and ten boulders changed position between July 2019 and June 2020, no boulder was displaced between July 2017 and July 2018, and few boulders were displaced between July 2018 and July 2019, and June 2020 and September 2021. A hydrodynamic analysis of the investigated boulder displacement led to the estimation of the energy of nearshore waves that hit the coast. The storm Detlef, that crossed over the Mediterranean Sea during 11-13 November 2019, is presumed to be the main cause of the massive displacement phenomenon.

Gradient based methods are popularly used in training neural networks and can be broadly categorized into first and second order methods. Second order methods have shown to have better convergence compared to first order methods, especially in solving highly nonlinear problems. The BFGS quasi-Newton method is the most commonly studied second order method for neural network training. Recent methods have shown to speed up the convergence of the BFGS method using the Nesterov’s acclerated gradient and momentum terms. The SR1 quasi-Newton method though less commonly used in training neural networks, are known to have interesting properties and provide good Hessian approximations when used with a trust-region approach. Thus, this paper aims to investigate accelerating the Symmetric Rank-1 (SR1) quasi-Newton method with the Nesterov’s gradient for training neural networks and briefly discuss its convergence. The performance of the proposed method is evaluated on a function approximation and image classification problem.