Cancer is a complex disease, considered a major public health problem worldwide. Among the types of cancer, melanoma, and leukemias present high mortality rates in Brazil and worldwide. Currently, conventional cytotoxic treatments cause severe side effects by the non-selectivity between normal cells and cancer cells. Therefore, molecules of natural origin with more efficient anticancer properties and that present fewer adverse effects are of extreme importance for cancer therapy and improvement in patients’ quality of life. This study isolated, identified, and characterized the chemical structure of a new anthraquinone present in the extract of the roots of Senna velutina. In addition, we sought to evaluate the anticancer potential of this molecule against melanoma and leukemic cell lines and identify the pathways of cell death involved. To this end, a novel anthraquinone was isolated from the barks of the roots of S. velutina, analyzed by HPLC-DAD, and its molecular structure was determined by NMR. Subsequently, their cytotoxic activity was evaluated by the MTT method against non-cancerous, melanoma, and leukemic cells. The migration of melanoma cells was evaluated by the scratch assay. By flow cytometry technique, the apoptosis process, caspase-3 activation, analysis of mitochondrial membrane potential, and measurement of ROS were evaluated. In addition, the pharmacological cell death inhibitors NEC-1, RIP-1, BAPTA, Z-VAD, and Z-DEVD were used to confirm the related cell death mechanisms. With the results, it was possible to elucidate the novel compound characterized as 2'-OH-Torosaol I. In normal cells, the compound showed no cytotoxicity in PBMC but reduced the cell viability of all melanoma and leukemic cell lines evaluated. 2'-OH-Torosaol I inhibited chemotaxis of B16F10-Nex2, SK-Mel-19, SK-Mel28 and SK-Mel-103. The cytotoxicity of the compound was induced by apoptosis via the intrinsic pathway with reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, increased levels of reactive oxygen species, and activation of caspase-3. In addition, the inhibitors demonstrated the involvement of necroptosis and CA+ in the death process and confirmed caspase-dependent apoptosis death as one of the main programmed-cell death pathways induced by 2'-OH-Torosaol I. Taken together, the data characterize the novel anthraquinone 2'-OH-Torosaol I, demonstrating its anticancer activity and potential application in cancer therapy.

Renewable energy sources are increasingly crucial for meeting global energy demands in an eco-friendly manner, particularly as the world shifts away from fossil fuels and faces higher volatility of the market prices. Portugal, a country with limited fossil fuel reserves and high energy dependency, has heavily invested in renewables in recent years. However, renewables like sunlight, wind, and water are inherently unsteady due to climate influences, resulting in energy production fluctuations. To mitigate this issue, energy storage systems are being deployed to stabilize renewable energy supply during production lulls. This project aims to assess an energy storage system and define technical specification in order to maximize profitability at the Finerge-owned Alto Douro wind farm. To achieve this, we've conducted an energy demand analysis, followed by simulations to assess system performance in relation to energy use and profit, while varying parameters such as power and efficiency. We've also compared commercial proposals from different battery manufacturers utilizing various technologies. Our findings suggest that high-power, quick charge-discharge lithium-ion batteries are the most suitable solution, given their efficiency and modularity. These attributes are vital for achieving current and future profitability.

Soil amendments with composted organic materials are recommended to increase soil organic matter (SOM), promote soil fertility, and the Circular Economy. Growing areas of hedged olive groves in southern Iberia peninsula generate huge amounts of olive leaves whose potential as soil organic amendment is not fully studied. An experimental field trial in a hedged olive grove (cv. “Cobrançosa”) was set up near Portalegre, Portugal, to test a compost of olive leaves plus sheep manure (2:1) applied in the row, at soil surface. Three nominal rates (0 or control, 2.5 and 5.0 kg m-2) were used, in a complete randomized block setup (3 treatments, 3 replicas, 9 plots) and soil chemical properties of layers 0-5, 5-15, and 15-30 cm deep were annually monitored. Results (mainly in layer 0-5 cm) showed increases in total N, carbon of the particulate organic matter (POM-C), permanganate oxidizable carbon (POX-C), extractable phosphorus, and zinc, after one year, and increases in soil organic carbon (SOC), C-stock, pHKCl, extractable phosphorus, and zinc, after two years. POX-C was the most sensitive SOM-related indicator, showing increases up to 30 cm deep after one year. This compost improved soil fertility, but should be monitored over longer periods of time, namely for SOC and extractable zinc content.

Over the last two decades, a considerable amount of equipment has been acquired (spreaders, seeders, sprayers, among others) to respond to the challenges of Precision Agriculture (PA) concept. Most of this equipment has been purchased at a high cost. However, many of them, despite still being functional and equipped with sensors, actuators, and electronic processing units capable of adjusting to variations in speed, have become obsolete in terms of communication, and incompatible with new monitoring and control systems based on the “Isobus” protocol. This work aims to present a solution for updating the control system (“Ferticontrol”) of a “Vicon RS-EDW” spreader with variable rate application (VRA), making it compatible with the “InCommand” system from “Ag Leader”. The solution includes low-cost “Arduino” and “Raspberry Pi” microcontrollers and open-source software. The development shows that it is possible to implement a solution that is accessible to farmers in general. It also provides a niche business opportunity for young researchers to set up small technology-based enterprises associated with universities and research centers. These partnerships guarantee permanent innovation and represent a decisive step towards modern, technological, competitive, and sustainable agriculture.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has recently revised its strategy for shipping de-carbonization, deepening the ambition to reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions until 2050. The accomplishment of this strategy requires the large-scale deployment of alternative maritime fuels, whose diversity and technical characteristics impose transition challenges. While several studies address the production of these fuels, a notable gap lies in the analysis of the required adaptations in vessels and ports for their usage. This study aims to fill this gap through a comprehensive re-view of material compatibility, storage in ports/vessels, and bunkering technology. Firstly, we an-alyze key aspects of port/vessel adaptation: physical and chemical properties; energy conversion for propulsion; fuel feeding and storage; bunkering procedures. Then, we perform a maturity as-sessment, placing each studied fuel on the technological readiness scale, revealing the most prom-ising options regarding infrastructure adaptability. Finally, we develop a case study for Brazil, whose economy is grounded on maritime exports. Findings indicate that multi-product ports may have potential to serve as multi-fuel hubs, while the remaining ports are inclined to specific fuels. In terms of vessel categories, we find that oil tankers, chemical ships and gas carriers are the most ready for conversion in the short-term

During embryonic development stem cells undergo the differentiation process so that they can specialise for different functions within the organism. Complex programs of gene transcription are crucial for this process to happen. Epigenetic modifications and the architecture of chromatin in the nucleus, by the formation of specific regions of active as well as inactive chromatin, allow the coordinated regulation of the genes for each cell fate. In this mini review, we discuss the current knowledge regarding the regulation of three-dimensional chromatin structure during neuronal differentiation. We also focus on the role played in neurogenesis by the nuclear lamina that ensures the tethering of the chromatin to the nuclear envelope.

Senna rugosa is a species found in the Cerrado and used in folk medicine as a vermifuge and in the treatment of poisonous snakebites accidents. In this work, we identified the main secondary metabolites present in ethanolic extracts of the leaves (ELSR) and roots (ERSR) of S. rugosa and evaluated the potential cytoprotective effect against cellular macromolecular damage, as well as the cytotoxic properties of the extracts on the K562 and Jurkat leukemic cell lines. The identification of metabolites was done by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The antioxidant activities were investigated by direct ABTS•+ and DPPH• radical scavenging methods, protection against oxidative damage in proteins and DNA. The cytotoxic properties were investigated against healthy cells, isolated from human peripheral blood (PBMC) and leukemic cell lines. The leaf extract contains catechin, rutin, epigallocatechin derivatives, kaempferol glycosides, luteolin, and dimeric and trimeric procyanidins, while the root extract profile shows obtusichromoneside derivatives, 2-methoxystypandrone, stilbene derivatives, naphthopyranones, and flavanone derivatives. The extracts showed antioxidant activity, with IC50 of 4.86 ± 0.51 µg/mL and 8.33 ± 0.90 µg/mL in the ABTS assay for ELSR and ERSR, respectively. And in the DPPH• assay, the IC50 was 19.98 ± 1.96 µg/mL for ELSR and 13.37 ± 1.05 µg/mL for ERSR. The extracts protected macromolecules against oxidative damage at concentrations of 5 µg/mL. The cytotoxicity test against leukemic strains was observed after 24 and 48 hours of treatment. After 48 h, results against the K562 cell line demonstrate IC50 of 242.54 ± 2.38 µg/mL and 223.00 ± 2.34 µg/mL for ELSR and ERSR , respectively. While against the Jurkat cell line, these extracts showed IC50 of 171.45 ± 2.25 µg/mL and 189.30 ± 2.27 µg/mL, respectively Results on PBMC viability, demonstrate that the extracts showed selectivity for the leukemic cell lines. Together, our results reveal that the leaves and roots of S. rugosa have completely distinct and complex chemical compositions. This study expands the repertoire of identified chemical compounds and underscores their significant pharmacological potential in conditions related to oxidative stress and leukemia.

Vibrational overtones in deeply bound molecules are sensitive probes for variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio μ. In nonpolar molecules, these overtones may be driven as two-photon transitions. Here, we present procedures for experiments with O₂⁺, including state-preparation through photoionization, a two-photon probe, and detection. We calculate transition dipole moments between all X²П_g vibrational levels and those of the A²П_u excited electronic state. Using these dipole moments, we calculate two-photon transition rates and AC-Stark-shift systematics for the overtones. We estimate other systematic effects and statistical precision. Two-photon vibrational transitions in O₂⁺ provide multiple routes to improved searches for μ variation.

In this article we derive a closed form expression for the symmetric logarithmic derivative of Fermionic Gaussian states. This provides a direct way of computing the quantum Fisher Information for Fermionic Gaussian states. Applications range from quantum Metrology with thermal states to non-equilibrium steady states with Fermionic many-body systems.

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) pathophysiology comprises clinical and genetic factors. In fact, GDM has been associated with several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). This study aimed to build a prediction model of GDM combining clinical and genetic risk factors. A total of 1588 pregnant women from the San Carlos Cohort participated in the present study, 1069 (67.3%) Caucasian (CAU) and 519 (32.7%) Latin American (LAT), 255 (16.1%) with GDM. The incidence of GDM was similar in both groups (16.1% CAU and 16.0% LAT). Genotyping was performed by IPLEX Mass ARRAY PCR selecting 110 SNPs based on literature references. The SNPs showing the strongest likelihood of GDM development were the rs10830963, rs7651090 and rs1371614 in CAU and rs1387153 and the rs9368222 in LAT. Clinical variables including age, pre-pregnancy body mass index and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) at 12 gestational weeks predicted the risk of GDM (AUC 0.648, 95%CI 0.601-0.695 in CAU; AUC 0.688, 95%CI 0.628-9.748 in LAT) and adding the SNPs modestly improved prediction (AUC 0.722, 95%CI 0.680-0.764 in CAU; AUC 0.769, 95%CI 0.711-0.826 in LAT). In conclusion, adding genetic variants enhanced the prediction model of GDM risk in CAU and LAT pregnant women. An RCT is underway to demonstrate its usefulness

.With the increasing use of carbon fiber reinforced plastics in various area, carbon fiber composites based on prepregs have attracted attention in industries and academia research. However, prepreg manufacturing processes are costly, and the strength of structures varies depending on the orientation and defects (pores and delamination). For non-contact evaluation of internal defects, we proposed lock-in infrared thermography to investigate orientation angles after a compression test. We also conducted a drop-weight impact test to study the behaviour of the composites after impact according the fibers orientation for composite fabricated using unidirectional carbon fiber prepregs. Using CAI tests, we determined the residual compressive strength and confirmed the damage modes using a thermal camera. The results of the drop weight impact tests show that the specimen laminated at 0° suffered the largest damage because of susceptibility of the resin to impact. In contrast, the specimens oriented in of 0°/90° and +45°/–45° directions transferred more than 90% of the impact energy back to the impactor because of the lamination of fibers in the orthogonal directions. Furthermore, the specimens that underwent complete damage in the impact tests were subjected to the lock-in method and showed internal delamination and cut fibers. With the finite elements analysis, the damage of each ply could be observed. Moreover, the temperature differences in the residual compression tests were not significant.

"Industry 5.0” is the latest industrial revolution. A variety of cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), and others, come together to form it. This new era will bring about significant changes in the way businesses operate, allowing them to become more cost-effective, more efficient, and produce higher-quality goods and services. Because sen-sors are getting better, 5G networks are being put in place, and more industrial equipment and machinery are becoming available, the manufacturing sector is going through a significant period of transition right now. These newly scalable opportunities make it possible to use and spread blockchain architectures on the shop floor, which is made possible by the ever-decreasing costs associated with implementing blockchain technology. Even though modern production models make use of the cloud (both internal and external services), networks and systems can take ad-vantage of the cloud's relatively low cost, scalability, increased computational power, real-time communication, and data transfer capabilities to create much smarter and more autonomous systems. This paper presents the results of an investigation into how blockchain services for large-scale industry networks could benefit from increased levels of security, transparency, and efficiency. We discuss the ways in which decentralized networks that make use of protocols and meshes might make things better with these technologies, which are not going away anytime soon. We emphasize the significance of new design in regards to cybersecurity, data integrity, and storage by using straightforward examples that have the potential to lead to the excellence of distributed systems.

To date, viruses closely related to SARS-CoV-2 have been reported in four bat species: Rhinolophus acuminatus, Rhinolophus affinis, Rhinolophus malayanus, and Rhinolophus shameli. Here, we analysed 343 sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (CO1) from georeferenced bats of the four Rhinolophus species identified as reservoirs of SARS-CoV-2-like viruses. Haplotype networks were constructed in order to investigate patterns of genetic diversity among bat populations of Southeast Asia. No strong geographic structure was found for the four Rhinolophus species, suggesting high dispersal capacity. The ecological niche of SARS-CoV-2 like viruses was predicted using the four localities of bat SARS-CoV-2-like viruses and the localities where bats showed identical or very similar CO1 haplotypes than virus-positive bats. The ecological niche of SARS-CoV-like viruses was deduced from the localities where bat SARS-CoV-like viruses were previously detected. The results show that the ecological niche of SARS-CoV2-like viruses includes several regions of mainland Southeast Asia whereas that of SARS-CoV-like viruses is mainly restricted to China. In agreement with these results, human populations in Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand appear to be much less affected by the Covid-19 pandemic than other countries of Southeast Asia. In the climatic transitional zone between the two ecological niches (southern Yunnan, northern Laos, northern Vietnam, and possibly Hainan and Taiwan), genomic recombination between highly divergent viruses is more likely to occur. Since recombinant viruses can threaten the benefit of vaccination campaigns, these regions should be under surveillance.

Aerobic exercise training (AET) has been used in the management of heart disease. AET may, totally or partially, restore the activity and/or expression of proteins that regulate calcium (Ca2+) handling, optimize intracellular Ca2+ flow, and attenuate cardiac functional impairment in failing hearts. However, the literature presents conflicting data regarding the effects of AET on Ca2+ transit and cardiac function in rats with heart failure resulting from aortic stenosis. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of AET on calcium handling and cardiac function in rats with heart failure due to aortic stenosis. Wistar rats were distributed into two groups: control (Sham; n= 61) and aortic stenosis (AoS; n= 44). After 18 weeks, the groups were redistributed into: non-exposed to exercise training (Sham, n = 28 and AoS, n = 22) and trained (Sham-ET, n = 33 and AoS-ET, n = 22) for 10 weeks. Treadmill exercise training was performed with a velocity equivalent to the lactate threshold. Echocardiogram, isolated papillary muscle, and isolated cardiomyocyte analyzed cardiac function. During isolated papillary muscle assay and isolated cardimyocyte was evaluated Ca2+. The expression of regulatory proteins of diastolic Ca2+ was analyzed via Western Blot. AET attenuated the diastolic dysfunction and benefited the systolic function. AoS-ET animals presented better response to post-rest contraction, and SERCA2a and L-type Ca2+ channels blocked than the AoS. Furthermore, AET was able to improve aspects of the mechanical function and the responsiveness of the myofilaments to the Ca2+ of the AoS-ET animals. AoS animals presented alteration in the protein expression of the SERCA2a and NCX, and AET restored SERCA2a and NCX levels near normal values. Therefore, AET increased SERCA2a activity, improved the cellular Ca2+ influx mechanism, and increased myofilament responsiveness to Ca2+, attenuating cardiac dysfunction at cellular, tissue, and chamber levels in animals with aortic stenosis and heart failure.

Research investigating the neural substrates underpinning parental behaviour has recently gained momentum. Particularly, the hypothalamic medial preoptic area (MPOA) has been identified as a crucial region for parenting. The current study conducted a scientometric analysis of publications from 01 January 1972 to 19 January 2021 using CiteSpace software to determine trends in the scientific literature exploring the relationship between MPOA and parental behaviour. In total, 677 scientific papers were analysed, producing a network of 1509 nodes and 5498 links. Four major clusters were identified: "C-Fos Expression'', "Lactating Rat'', "Medial Preoptic Area Interaction'' and "Parental Behavior''. Their content suggests an initial trend in which the properties of the MPOA in response to parental behavior were studied, followed by a growing attention towards the presence of a brain network, including the reward circuits, regulating such behavior. Furthermore, while attention was initially directed uniquely to maternal behavior, it has recently been extended to the understanding of paternal behaviors as well. Finally, although the majority of the studies were conducted on rodents, recent publications broaden the implications of previous documents to human parental behavior, giving insight into the mechanisms underlying postpartum depression. Potential directions in future works were also discussed.

Increased exposure to artificial light at night can affect human health including disruption of melatonin production and circadian rhythms and extend to increased risks of hormonal cancers and other serious diseases. In addition, multiple negative impacts on fauna and flora are well documented, and it is a matter of fact that artificial light at night is a nuisance for ground-based astronomy. These impacts are frequently linked to the colour of the light or more specifically to its spectral content. Artificial light at night is often mapped by using space borne sensors, but most of them are panchromatic and thus insensitive to the colour. In this paper, we suggest a method that allows high resolution mapping of the Artificial light at night by using ground-based measurements with the LANcube system. The device separates the light detected in four bands (Red, Green, Blue, and Clear) and provides this information for six faces of a cube. We found relationships between the LANcube’s colour ratios and 1- the Melatonin Suppression Index, 2- the StarLight Index and 3- the Induced Photosynthesis Index. We show how such relationships combined with data acquisition from a LANcube positioned on the top of a car can be used to produce spectral indices maps of a whole city in a few hours.

Colombia is the world's leading producer of mild washed arabica coffee and produces 12.6 million bags of green coffee, but at the same time 784,000 tons of waste biomass are dumped in open fields, of which only 5% is recovered or used. The objective of this project was to evaluate the production of platform chemicals from these coffee wastes. To achieve this, biomass characterization was carried out using proximate analysis, ultimate analysis and structural analysis. Hydrothermal valorization was carried out at a temperature range of 120-180 °C (LHW) and 180-260 °C (HTC) for one hour, the platform chemicals obtained were quantified by HPLC-IR, monitored by pH and conductivity, and the solid fraction was characterized by monitoring the functional groups in IR spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. Hydrolysis processes were obtained from 150 °C, production of platform chemicals from 180 °C and maximum concentration at 180 °C-4h, over 200 °C degradation of the products in the liquid fraction starts to take place. Homogeneous basic and acid catalysts were used to improve the yields of the reaction. The kinetics of the hydrolysis of lignocellulosic structures to sugars were also analyzed and described, and reaction orders of 1 (LHW), 3 (HTC) and their respective reaction rate equations were reported.

The coffee industry loses millions of dollars annually worldwide due to the Coffee Berry Borer (CBB); these losses imply a decrease in quality and production. Traps are used to monitor their flight and for pest control. The main objective was to determine the flight pattern and trap capture percentages of the CBB population over time using column traps (CTs) in two independent field experiments. CTs were composed of four traps installed at four different heights 0.5, 1.5, 2.5, and 3.5m above ground. Our results demonstrated a significant difference in CBB capture by traps placed at different heights above the ground. The CT capture maintained a pattern throughout this study's lag; the lower the height, the greater the percentage of CBBs captured. In Experiments A and B, the traps placed at 0.5m caught 67% and 85% of the CBBs captured, respectively. Furthermore, the trap set at 1.5m above the ground in the multi-level CT showed a higher capture percentage than the individually placed trap (also at 1.5m). The pattern of the capture and proportion of the CBB in the CTs were maintained throughout the study despite the season, changes in temperature, and relative air humidity. We suggested that CTs could be explored as a useful tool for capturing the CBB, considering its monitoring and management.

This paper investigates the effect of Fe contamination on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-7Si-0.7Mg-Fe2.5 alloy processed by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) and heat treated in two different conditions: (1) Solution Heat Treatment (SHT) at 520 °C, followed by artificial ageing at 160 °C (T6), and (2) Direct Artificial Ageing of the as-printed material at 160 °C (DAA). Microstructural characterization was carried out by Optical Microscopy (OM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). Mechanical characterization was carried out by tensile tests at room temperature. The formation of fine AlSiFe phases such as α-AlFeSi, β-AlFeSi, and π-Al8Si6Mg3Fe had no deleterious effect on the mechanical properties compared to previous studies for AlSIMg alloys without Fe. However, compared to the as-printed condition, the T6 heat treatment decreased the ultimate tensile strain significantly, while the elongation to the fracture presented a slight improvement.

The overlap of visual items in data visualization techniques is a known problem aggravated by data volume and available visual space issues. Several methods have been applied to mitigate occlusion in data visualizations, such as Random Jitter, Transparency, Layout Reconfiguration, Focus+Context Techniques, etc. This paper aims to present a comparative study to read visual variables values with partial overlap. The study focuses on categorical data representations varying the percentage limits of partial overlap and the number of distinct values for each visual variable: Hue, Lightness, Saturation, Shape, Text, Orientation, and Texture. A computational application generates random scenarios for a unique visual pattern target to perform location tasks. Each scenario presented the visual items in a grid layout with 160 elements (10 x16), each visual variable had from 3 to 5 distinct values encoded, and the partial overlap percentage applied, represented by a gray square in the center o each grid element, were 0% (control), 50%, 60%, and 70%. Similar to the preliminary tests, the tests conducted in this study involved 48 participants organized into four groups, with 126 tasks per participant, and the application captured the response and time for each task performed. The result analysis indicates that the Hue, Lightness, and Shape visual variables are robust to high percentages of occlusion and gradual increase in encoded visual values. The Text visual variable show promising results for accuracy, and resolution time was a bit higher than the last visual variables mentioned. In contrast, the Texture visual variable presented lower accuracy to high levels of occlusion and more different visual encoding values. At last, the Orientation and Saturation visual variables got the highest error and worst perfomance rates during the tests.

The art work of this present paper is to show properly conditions and aspects to reach stability in the process control, as also to avoid instability, by using digital PID controllers, with the intention of help the industrial community. The discussed control strategy used to reach stability is to manipulate variables that are directly proportional to their controlled variables. To validate and to put the exposed principles into practice, it was done two simulations of a continuous fermentation tank process start-up with the yeast strain S. Cerevisiae NRRL-Y-132, in which the substrate feed stream contains different types of sugar derived from cane bagasse hydrolysate. These tests were carried out through the resolution of conservation laws, more specifically mass and energy balances, in which the fluid temperature and level inside the tank were the controlled variables. The results showed the facility in stabilize the system by following the exposed proceedings.

Many of engineering’s problems are about to optimise equations, functions and process models equations which appear on common or even complex science’s cases. Most applied optimisation methods nowadays can only be used on particular cases, so the main objective of this article is to define a computational method that can optimise or even find target values for specified objective functions and variables, by just using computer effort. Chemical plants involve many differential equations and they can be optimised with more facility now. On this paper, there are shown as example, an optimisation for a chemical reactor, which is found the optimal temperature and volumetric flow rate of feed, for the given objective function being the composition of the desired product. Named Domain’s Sweep, it is an algorithm that evaluate given(s) mathematical function(s) and/or equation(s) by varying your(s) independent variable(s) through loops with a given step size and solving it after closing the degrees of freedom, and finally, with some condition statements, store all the optimum values of given or created objective functions with its respective independent variables. In another words, the user create an objective function and this method find the function’s maximum, minimum or a certain chosen target value, even if it does not have an inflection point in the given search interval of the independent variables.

Optical backbone networks constitute the fundamental infrastructure employed today by network operators to deliver services to users. As network capacity is a key factor influencing optical network performance, it is important to understand how topological and physical properties impact its behavior and to have the capability to estimate its value. In this context, we propose here a method to evaluate the network capacity that relies on the optical reach to account for physical layer aspects, in conjunction with constrained routing techniques for traffic routing. As this type of routing can lead to traffic blocking, particularly due to the limitation on the number of wavelengths per fiber, we also propose a fiber assignment algorithm designed to deal with this problem. We apply this method to a set of randomly generated networks using a modified Waxman model, and for a network with 60 nodes, in a scenario without blocking, we obtain capacities of about 2.5 Pbit/s for a symbol rate of 64 Gbaud and about 5 Pbit/s for a symbol rate of 128 Gbaud. Remarkably, this duplication in the total network capacity is achieved by an increase in the total fiber length of only about 51%.

The aim of this work was to classify the business incubators in Spain according to the four phases of startups incubation. Taking into account that the graduation rate implies greater survival and business success of the incubated companies, they have been identified at each stage of the incubation (spread of entrepreneurship, pre-incubation, advanced incubation, and graduation). The activities that present higher impacts on the success of the incubated companies and the activities carried out by the incubator that have a greater relevance on the graduation of the companies have concretely been considered. Principal component (PC) cluster analysis have been applied. All the incubation variables were used simultaneously, reducing their number, and grouping them into factors, finally the cases were grouped according to these latent variables. Principal components analysis reduced dimensionality to 8 factors with a 74 % of explained variance. Factor 1 was positively related to pre-incubation variables, factor 2 was linked to training and collaboration variables within the entrepreneurship diffusion phase. Factor 3 called activity monitoring and control and was related to phase 3 or basic incubation variables. Clusters analysis facilitates the grouping of incubators into three clusters: Group 1 (16 % of the total), incubators with strong deficits in incubation phases 1, 2 and 3. They are small Business Incubators, often located in rural areas or cities and low graduation rate. Group 2 (30 %), business incubators with very high graduation rate, and strongly positive values in factor 1 and 2. Factor 3 although positive is susceptible to improvement. They are the largest incubators and usually located in industrial and technological parks. Group 3 (54 %) is the majority, with values close to cluster 2 and 3.

The supply of mental health processes in primary care has gaps. This study aims to analyze the association of agreement criteria and flows between primary care teams and the Family Health Support Center (NASF) for mental health collaborative care, considering the difference between capital and non-capital cities in Brazil. This cross-sectional study was conducted based on secondary data from the Primary Care Access and Quality Improvement Program. Agreement criteria and flows were obtained from 3883 NASF teams of the matrix support or collaborative care. The Chi-square test and multiple Poisson regression were used; p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Prevalence ratios of negative associations demonstrated protective factors for support actions: follow-up at Psychosocial Care Center, management of psychopharmacotherapy, offer of other therapeutic actions, care process for users of psychoactive substances, and offer of activities to prevent the use of psychoactive substances. Collaborative care in primary care was effective, and capital cities were a protective factor compared with non-capital cities.

In polymer-based dental composites, wear is a three-body wear system mainly abrasive, because of the food particles and wear products suspended in the oral cavity, which are transferred to the microcavities of the surface of the replacements. Due to this fact, the incorporation of nanodiamond as reinforcement in these polymer matrix composites, which promotes the creation of a solid lubricant tribofilm surface could be advantageous. When nanodiamond is added in contents of 0.8, 1.6 and 3.2 wt %, an increase in microhardness from 95 up to 420 %, compared to the one of neat BisGMA/TEGDMA, is observed. Additionally, the incorporation of a content of 1.6 wt % is enough to cause a diminution of ~78 % in the friction coefficient and a reduction of the specific wear rate and Archard’s coefficient of ~50 %. Nevertheless, the addition of relatively high contents reduces the effectiveness of photoinitiation and UV-curing, which is related to the scattering and absorption of UV radiation by ND.

Objective: To identify risk factors(RF) related to abnormal glucose regulation(AGR) 3 years postpartum according to 3-month-postpartum glucose status. Research design: Normoglycemic pregnant women of the St. Carlos Gestational Study included before gestational week 12, during 2015-2017. Of 3,036 eligible women, 2529 were followed-up until delivery: 1400 participated in postpartum follow-up. AGR defined as fasting serum glucose (FSG)>5.6 mmol/L and/or HbA1c >5.7% (39 mmol/mol) and/or 2h-SG ≥140/mg/dL after 75-g OGTT. 12-modifiable and 3-unmodifiable RF were analyzed for associations with glycemic changes. Reinforcement of Mediterranean Diet adherence was provided to all women at the postpartum visit by a dietitian Results: 137/1400(9.8%) women presented AGR 3 years postpartum, 27/137(19.7%) also had at 3 months, whereas 110/137(80.2%) had not. The remaining 1,263(90.2%) women were normoglycemic 3 years postpartum, 1180/1263(84.3%) were at 3 months, while 83/1263(6.08%) had AGR and became normoglycemic. Women with GDM were more likely to progress to AGR 3 years postpartum (OR:1.60[1.33-1.92]) and less likely to remain normoglycemic (OR:0.22[0.15-0.33]) versus non-GDM women. Having >2/3 unmodifiable RF was associated with a reduced rate of maintained normoglycemia (OR:0.56[0.39-0.80]) and an increased risk of progression to AGR (OR:1.90[1.28-2.83]). Having >5/12 modifiable RF was associated with a reduced rate of maintained normoglycemic (OR:0.74[0.51-0.99]) and reversion of AGR (OR:0.49[0.25-0.97]), an increased progression to AGR (OR:1.40[1.00-2.09]), and persistence of AGR (OR:2.57[1.05-6.31]). Pre-gestational BMI≥25kg/m2 (OR:1.80[1.19-2.71]), post-delivery weight gain (OR:2.22[1.10-4.48]), and waist circumference >89.5cm (OR:0.54[0.36-0.79]), (all p<0.05) were the main modifiable RF. Conclusions: RF related to an increased probability for 3-year-postpartum AGR despite 3-month normoglycemia were identified, potentially useful when designing personalized strategies for pregnant women, directed towards minimizing unfavorable outcomes.

Phylogenetic trees of coronaviruses are difficult to interpret because they undergo frequent ge-nomic recombination. Here, we propose a new method, named coloured genomic bootstrap (CGB) barcodes, to highlight the polyphyletic origins of human sarbecoviruses and understand their host and geographic ori-gins. The results indicate that SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 contain genomic regions of mixed an-cestry originating from horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus) viruses. First, different regions of SARS-CoV share exclusive ancestry with five Rhinolophus viruses from Southwest China (RfYNLF/31C: 17.9%; RpF46: 3.3%; RspSC2018: 2.0%; Rpe3: 1.3%; RaLYRa11: 1.0%) and 97% of its genome can be related to bat viruses from Yunnan (China), supporting its emergence in Rhinolophus species of this province. Second, different regions of SARS-Cov-2 share exclusive ancestry with eight Rhi-nolophus viruses from Yunnan (RpYN06: 5.8%; RaTG13: 4.8%; RmYN02: 3.8%), Laos (RpBA-NAL103: 3.3%; RmarBANAL236: 1.7%; RmBANAL52: 1.0%; RmBANAL247: 0.7%), and Cam-bodia (RshSTT200: 2.3%), and 98% of its genome can be related to bat viruses from northern Laos and Yunnan, supporting its emergence in Rhinolophus species of this region. Although CGB barcodes are very useful to retrace the origins of human sarbecoviruses, further investigations are needed to better apprehend the diversity of coronaviruses in bats from Cambo-dia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) remains the most lethal gynecologic malignancy, largely due to metastasis and drug resistant recurrences. Fifteen percent of ovarian tumors carry mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2, rendering them vulnerable to treatment with PARP inhibitors such as olaparib. Recent studies have shown that TGFβ can induce “BRCAness” in BRCA wild-type cancer cells. Given that TGFβ is a known driver of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), and the con-nection between EMT and metastatic spread in EOC and other cancers, we asked if TGFβ and EMT alter susceptibility of EOC to PARP inhibition. Epithelial EOC cells were transiently treated with soluble TGFβ and their clonogenic potential, expression and function of EMT and DNA repair genes, and response to PARP inhibitors compared with untreated controls. A second epithelial cell line was compared to its mesenchymal derivative for EMT and DNA repair gene expression and drug responses. We found that TGFβ and EMT resulted in downregulation of genes responsible for homologous recombination (HR) and sensitized cells to olaparib. HR efficiency was reduced in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, mesenchymal cells displayed sensitivity to olaparib, cis-platin, and the DNA-PK inhibitor Nu-7441. Therefore, treatment of disseminated, mesenchymal tumors may represent an opportunity to expand clinical utility of PARP inhibitors and similar agents.

Count data analysis presents unique challenges due to its discrete nature, often exhibiting excessive zeros and overdispersion. To address these complexities, count models, such as Poisson regression and Negative Binomial regression, have been developed, enabling modeling and prediction of count-based phenomena. Additionally, it’s important to notice that zero inflation, a phenomenon commonly observed in count data, requires specialized techniques for robust analysis. This article provides an overview of count data and count models, explores zero inflation, introduces Likelihood Ratio Tests, and explains how the Vuong Test can be used as a model selection criteria. Furthermore, we created a Vuong Test implementation from scratch using the Python programming language. This implementation enhances the accessibility and applicability of the Vuong Test in real-world scenarios, providing a valuable contribution to the academic community, since Python didn’t have an implementation of this statistical test.

(1) Background: tuberculosis (TB) is considered one of the leading causes of death by a single in-fectious agent worldwide. This study aimed to identify hotspots of people diagnosed with tu-berculosis and abusive use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs in communities through a geo-spatial intelligence application; (2) Methods: ecological study with a spatio-temporal approach. We considered tuberculosis cases diagnosed and registered in the Notifiable Diseases Information System, which presented information on alcoholism, smoking, and other drugs. Spatial Variations in Temporal Trends (SVTT) and scan statistics were applied for the identification of Hotspots; (3) Results: of 29.499 cases of tuberculosis were identified. And when we applied the STTT for al-coholism, three Hotspots were detected, one of which was protective (RR: 0.08 – CI95%: 0.02 – 0.32) and two at risk (RR:1.42 – CI95%: 1.11 – 1.73; RR: 1.39 - CI95%: 1.28 – 1.50). Regarding smoking, two risk clusters were identified (RR: 1.15 - CI95%: 1.01 – 1.30; RR: 1.68 - CI95%: 1.54 – 1.83). For other drugs, a risk cluster was found (RR: 1.13 - CI95%: 0.99 – 1.29) and two protections (RR: 0.70 - CI95%: 0.63 – 0.77; RR: 0.76 – CI95%: 0.65 – 0.89); (4) Conclusions: it was evidenced in the communities a problem of TB and drug addiction. Use disorder perhaps in a person's brain and behavior and leads to an inability to continue their treatment, putting the community at risk for TB.

Virtual reality (VR) can play a key role in automotive marketing research, lowering costs and shortening the time it takes to bring a new product to market. However, there are still few VR applications that support automotive customers' experiences during the early stages of product development. Through a systematic review of literature and patents, this study aims to identify the challenges and opportunities for the application of virtual reality in car clinics, and to categorize them into attributes. We searched through the knowledge databases of PatentScout, ScienceDirect, Springer, and IEEEXplore. We found 72 patents with a high concentration in a few inventors. The United States of America presented the greatest number of records and the most common applications related to the apparatus for automatically reading respondents' reactions in a virtual environment. In terms of articles, we found 19 research papers that discussed sixteen categories identified as challenges and opportunities for automotive marketing research: 1) cost, 2) location to customers, 3) flexibility in interactions, 4) model transportation, 5) depth perception, 6) haptic perception, 7) motion, 8) movement perception/ physical collision, 9) color and texture, 10) sound feedback, 11) product interaction/manipulation, 12) visual-spatial, 13) graphic quality, 14) intuitiveness, 15) cybersecurity and 16) cybersickness. We conclude that the automotive industry can employ virtual reality for marketing research, but relevant elements such as hardware and software definition, stimulus quality, and research objectives, among others, must be considered.

We present a novel approach to quantum theory construction that involves maximizing the Shannon entropy of quantum measurements relative to their initial preparation. By constraining the maximization problem with a phase that vanish under measurements, we obtain quantum mechanics (vanishing U(1)-valued phase), relativistic quantum mechanics (vanishing Spin^c(3,1)-valued phase), and quantum gravity (also a vanishing Spin^c(3,1)-valued phase, but with a dilation constraint replacing the normalization constraint). The first two cases are equivalent to established theory, whereas the later case yields a quantum theory of accelerated reference frames, in which a quantized version of the Einstein field equation lives. Specifically, the spacetime interval is promoted to an observable, effectively building the metric tensor from the underlying quantum structure. Moreover, the SU(3)xSU(2)xU(1) gauge symmetries of the Standard Model arise naturally without additional assumptions. Finally, the solution is consistent only with 3+1 spacetime dimensions, as it encounters obstructions in all other dimensional configurations. This framework integrates quantum mechanics, relativistic quantum mechanics, quantum gravity, spacetime dimensionality, and particle physics gauge symmetries from a simple entropy maximization problem constrained by a vanishing phase.

All fundamental Planck scale symmetries are restored on a global level when a new charge is postulated in a finite, closed, Euclidean discrete space. Gravity emerges as a residual effect of the electromagnetic force in this scenario, resulting in a deterministic toy universe driven by a single input parameter. The model is developed using a constructive approach. Randomness is identified using a Chaintin argument. Aleph0 definite value is tied to the size of the universe. This is not an interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, but a deeper attempt to describe nature.

All fundamental Planck scale symmetries are restored on a global level when a new charge is postulated in a finite, closed, Euclidean discrete space. Gravity emerges as a residual effect of the electromagnetic force in this scenario, resulting in a deterministic toy universe driven by a single input parameter. Randomness is identified using a Chaintin argument. Aleph0 definite value is tied to the size of the universe. This is not an interpretation of Quantum Mechanics, but a deeper attempt to describe nature.

The paper presents the design stages of a single-phase Silicon Carbide bidirectional DC-AC converter. This includes the LCL filter design responsible to meet grid connection requirements. A 3kW laboratory prototype of the power converter is built employing a low-cost phase locked loop and its results are presented. The design of the low-cost phase locked loop and its implementation are depicted in some detail.

Parkinson’s-disease (PD) is an incurable age-related neurodegenerative disease and its global prevalence of disability and death has increased exponentially. Although motor symptoms are the characteristic manifestations of PD, the clinical spectrum also contains a wide variety of non-motor symptoms, which are the main cause of disability and determinants of the decrease in a patient's quality of life. Noteworthy in this regard is the stress on the cardiac system that is often observed in the course of PD, however its effects have not yet been adequately researched. Here, an untargeted metabolomics approach was used to assess changes in cardiac metabolism in the 6-hydroxydopamine model of PD. Beta-sitosterol, campesterol, cholesterol, monoacylglycerol, α-tocopherol, stearic acid, beta-glycerophosphoric acid, o-phosphoethanolamine, myo-inositol-1-phosphate, alanine, valine and allothreonine, are the metabolites that significantly discriminate Parkinsonian rats from sham counterparts. Upon analysis of the metabolic pathways with the aim of uncovering the main biological pathways involved in concentration patterns of cardiac metabolites, biosynthesis of both phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine, glucose-alanine cycle, the glutathione metabolism and plasmalogen synthesis most adequately differentiated sham and Parkinsonian rats. Our results reveal that both lipid and energy metabolism are particularly involved in changes in cardiac metabolism in PD. These results provide insight into cardiac metabolic signatures in PD and indicate potential targets for further investigation.

Background: Evidences on the effects of chemotherapy treatment cycles on measures of muscle, mental state, social and cognitive performance are scarce. Objective: To analyze the effects of chemotherapy cycles on muscle strength and activation, functional capacity, quality of life, fatigue and anxiety of women with breast cancer. Methods: Twenty-two women divided into a treatment group (n = 10; 46.6 ± 9.6 years) and control group (n = 12; 51.6 ± 7.0 years) participated in the study. Analysis of muscle performance, quality of life, fatigue and anxiety after the 2nd and 4th cycle of chemotherapy with anthracyclines and cyclophosphamide were performed in women with breast cancer (TRA) and compared to healthy women (CTR). Two-way ANOVA was used to compare the variance of the means and the significance level was set as p≤0.05. Results: Differences were found in the muscular activation of the vastus medialis between the groups at post time (p = 0.038), as well as in the sit and stand test in the baseline (p<0.001) and post moment (p<0.001). Functional capacity performance was different between baseline (p<0.001) and post-time (p<0.001) groups. Additionally, the TRA group worsened the quality of life in the domains of functional capacity (p<0.001) and limitation of physical aspects (p=0.002), besides presenting negative changes in fatigue. Conclusion: Anthracycline and cyclophosphamide chemotherapy cycles reduce muscular performance and affect biopsychosocial variables in women with breast cancer.

Shrimps are under the influence of several environmental factors such as fluctuation of physical and chemical parameters of the water affected by variations in rainfall, temperature, salinity, and pH. These factors have also been identified as risk factors for shrimp disease outbreaks. Despite the high levels of production, shrimp producers suffered significant economic losses in years, mainly due to the presence of diseases that now plague the industry. In particular, viral diseases have had and will continue to have profound impact on industry growth. In response to stress such environmental or pathophysiological, cells are able to up regulating selectively the expression of a protein group known as Heat Shock Proteins (HSPs). In a recent search at the literature we observed a close relation between HSP70 with apoptotic proteins and others stress proteins such HSP60 and HSP90. Moreover, the response of shrimp to viral stress was examined, some of which are correlated to the reactions of HSP70. Thus, the aim of this review is to describe the current knowledge on the status of stress responses in shrimps, particularly HSP70 responses, triggered by viruses.

COVID-19 is a well-known respiratory disease spreading worldwide since January 2020, causing many deaths and massive pressure on health systems. This pandemic’s appearance compromised the health services’ sustainability and quality as many procedures were postponed or even canceled out, with an expected increase of adverse events like nosocomial infections, in-hospital deaths, and the worsening of the patients’ clinical status. Therefore, assessing whether the healthcare providers’ performance has changed is paramount. In this case, we evaluated the public hospitals in Portugal as the leading secondary health care providers in the country, which in turn has been highly affected by the pandemic. To this end, we developed a network Data Envelopment Analysis model serially relating efficiency and effectiveness. Using 2,795 observations from public hospitals and 18 variables, we observed consistent drops in efficiency when the pandemic started, followed by a recovery to levels above the pre-pandemic ones. Regarding effectiveness, we observed a positive trend during the evaluated period. In short, these results allow us to conclude that, apart from the great resilience of public healthcare providers, the Portuguese State was not prepared for a pandemic like COVID-19, but still the actions taken (including massive vaccination) were beneficial.

In Mexico viticulture represents the second source of employment in the agricultural area after the fruit and vegetable sector. In developed countries, remote sensing is widely used for vineyard monitoring, however, this tool is barely used in developing countries of Iberoamerica. In this re-search, our overall objective is to characterize two vineyards in the state of Queretaro (Mexico) using Sentinel-2 and meteorological data, specifically spectral and thermal indices. Results showed that spectral indices obtained from Sentinel-2 bands have characterized adequately the phenolog-ical evolution of the different varieties of the vineyards. The Modified Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (MSAVI) was adequately used to discriminate the first stages of vineyards, while the Nor-malized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was useful to monitor vineyards during the rest stages of vineyards. Thermal indices have shown that the best grape varieties were those that can adapt to both cooler and warmer temperatures, have a reasonable ripening period, and can produce wines with balanced acidity and flavors. In conclusion, the combination of meteorological (including thermal indices) and remote sensing data (NDVI and MSAVI) provide information for choosing the suitable grape variety for this region.

A novel investigation into the structure-function relationship was undertaken to enhance understanding of the mechanism of action of the vasoactive peptide angiotensin II (AngII) using unconventional substitutions such as AIB (α-aminobutyric acid), CHA (cyclohexylalanine acid), IAP (isonipecotic acid), TOAC (2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl-4-amine-4-carboxylic acid) at position 3, and DMT (2,6-dimethyl-Tyrosine) at position 4. Biological potency assays were conducted on guinea pig ileum, and structural features were analyzed using circular dichroism (CD) and molecular dynamics (MD). CHA3-AngII and AIB3-AngII analogs retained some agonistic activity, whereas IAP3-AngII and TOAC3-AngII derivatives were inactive. CD results indicated low conformational flexibility for AIB3-AngII and CHA3-AngII, and greater conformational restrictions for IAP3-AngII and TOAC3-AngII, consistent with computational modeling analyses. DMT4-AngII exhibited significant agonistic activity compared to the inactive Phe4AngII. Molecular modeling suggested a potential interaction between the hydroxyl group of Tyr4 and the amide bond between positions 7 and 8. AngII showed greater conformational restriction compared to DMT4-AngII and Phe4-AngII, underscoring the importance of tyrosine at position 4.

Cancer is a disease that encompasses multiple and different malignant conditions and is among the leading causes of death in the world. Therefore, the search for new pharmacotherapeutic options and potential candidates that can be used as treatments or adjuvants to control this disease is urgent. Natural products, especially those obtained from plants, have played an important role as a source of specialized metabolites with recognized pharmacological properties against cancer, therefore, they are an excellent alternative to be used. The objective of this research was to evaluate the action of the monoterpene isoespintanol (ISO) against the human tumor cell lines MDA-MB-231, A549, DU145, A2780, A2780-cis and the non-tumor line MRC-5. Experiments with MTT and fluorescence with propidium iodide (PI), DAPI and green plasma revealed the cytotoxicity of ISO against these cells; furthermore, morphological and chromogenic studies revealed the action of ISO on cell morphology and the inhibitory capacity on reproductive viability to form colonies in MDA-MB-231 cells. Likewise, 3D experiments validated the damage in these cells caused by this monoterpene. These results serve as a basis for progress in studies of the mechanisms of action of these compounds and the development of derivatives or synthetic analogues with a better antitumor profile.

Conditions under which compositions of component systems form a well-defined system-of-systems here are formulated at a fundamental level. Statement of what defines a well-defined composition and sufficient conditions guaranteeing such a result offers insight into exemplars that can be found in special cases such as differential equation and discrete event systems. For any given global state of a composition, two requirements can be stated informally as: 1) the system can leave this state, i.e., there is at least one trajectory defined that starts from the state, and 2) the trajectory evolves over time without getting stuck at a point in time. Considered for every global state, these conditions determine whether the resultant is a well-defined system and if so, whether it is non-deterministic or deterministic. We formulate these questions within the framework of iterative specifications for mathematical system models that are shown to be behaviorally equivalent to the Discrete Event System Specification (DEVS) formalism. This formalization supports definitions and proofs of the afore-mentioned conditions. Implications are drawn at the fundamental level of existence where the emergence of a system from an assemblage of components can be characterized. We focus on systems with feedback coupling where existence and uniqueness of solutions is problematic.

Incorporating renewables in the power grid presents challenges for stability, reliability, and operational efficiency. Integrating Energy Storage Systems (ESS) offers a solution by managing unpredictable loads, enhancing reliability, and serving the grid. Hybrid storage solutions have gained attention for specific applications, suggesting higher performance in some respects. This paper compares the performance of hybrid energy storage systems (HESS) to single battery, evaluating their energy supply cost and environmental impact through optimization problems. The model generates an optimized dispatch, minimizing cost or environmental impact of supplying energy to a generic load while considering battery degradation. Seven technologies are assessed, with an example applied to an industrial site contrasting vanadium redox flow (VRFB) and lithium batteries considering the demand of a local load (building). The results also indicates that efficiency and degradation curves have the highest impact in the final costs and environmental functions on the various storage technologies assessed. For the simulations of the example case, a single system only outperforms the hybrid system in cases where lithium efficiency is higher than approximately 87% and vanadium is lower approximately 82%.

Diarrhoea is a serious cause of mortality worldwide that can lead to dehydration, gut barrier function impairment, nutrient malabsorption, and alterations of the gut microbiota (dysbiosis). Current solutions for its management, such as oral rehydration salts (ORS), inhibitors of the gut motility, antibiotics, and living probiotics only partially counteract the mechanisms of the disease and do not provide a full coverage of the problem. Potential risks of the use of living probiotic strains, particularly in immunocompromised patients, can be eliminated with the use of tyndallized (heat-killed) postbiotic bacteria and yeast. ABB C22® is a postbiotic combination of three tyndallized yeasts, namely Saccharomyces boulardii, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Kluyveromyces marxianus. To assess the action of the postbiotic combination on diarrhoea, immune and gut epithelial cell signaling assays, gut barrier formation assay and rotavirus gene expression assay were performed. ABB C22® showed a strong anti-inflammatory effect, an induction of the build-up of the gut epithelium, and a degree of protection against rotavirus infection. These experimental studies support the use of the postbiotic ABB C22® as a solution for the management of diarrhoea and gastrointestinal conditions, alone or in combination with existing but incomplete treatments.

Objective: To evaluate the direct costs of treating patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) in outpatient care, from a hospital and Unified Health System (SUS) perspective. Methods: Observational study with data collection by microfunding, carried out with patients diagnosed with neuromyelitis optics, treated at a university hospital, in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Mann-Whitney tests were performed to measure cost differences between patient groups by disease severity and analysis perspective. Results: Nine individuals with a median age of 48 years (IQR 30 - 59 years) were included. The median total costs for patients with greater severity from the perspective of the SUS and the hospital were R$ 21,638.22 (IIQ: R$ 15,614.63; R$ 25,985.32) and R$ 32,094.11 (IIQ: R$ 25,610 .60; R$ 38,617.25) respectively. For patients with moderate severity the median was R$ 7,339.85 (IIQ: R$ 6,235.45; R$ 11,912.05) from the SUS perspective and R$ 11,505.80 (IIQ: R$ 7,339.85; R$ 22,424.76) from the perspective of the hospital, where the use of medications had a major impact. Conclusion: The main cost drivers were medicines, especially those used off-label, and procedures.

The success of Toxoplasma gondii (intracellular parasite) host cell invasion relies on the apical complex, a specialized microtubule cytoskeleton structure associated with secretory organelles. The genome encodes three isoforms of both α- and β-tubulin which are altered by specific post-translational modifications (PTMs), changing the biochemical/biophysical proprieties of microtubules, and modulating their interaction with associated proteins. Tubulin PTMs are a powerful and evolutionarily conserved mechanism to generate tubulin diversity, forming a biochemical ‘tubulin code’ that can be ‘read’ by microtubule-interacting factors. The T. gondii tubulin PTMs are: α-tubulin acetylation, α-tubulin detyrosination, Δ5α-tubulin, Δ2α-tubulin, α- and β-tubulin polyglutamylation, and α- and α-tubulin methylation. Tubulin glutamylation is a key candidate to assist microtubule remodeling in Toxoplasma, being involved in the regulation of microtubule stability, dynamics, interaction with motor proteins, and severing enzymes. The correct balance of tubulin glutamylation is achieved by the coordinated action of polyglutamylases and deglutamylating enzymes. In this work we will review and discuss the current knowledge on T. gondii tubulin glutamylation. By in silico identification of mammalian protein orthologs we explored and updated the identification of putative proteins related to glutamylation, contributing to a better understanding of the role of tubulin glutamylation in T. gondii.

Obesity is a risk factor for the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). However, the most optimal type of nutritional intervention to prevent GDM in high-risk women is not clearly defined. This study investigates if nutritional treatment based on the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) before 12th gestational week (GW) in women at high risk due to a body mass index (BMI)≥25kg/m2, reduces the rate of GDM and metabolic syndrome (MetS) at 3 years postpartum. We performed a post-hoc analysis of the San Carlos Gestational Prevention Study. A total of 735 women with BMI≥25kg/m2 were evaluated between 2015-2018, 246 in standard diet control group (CG) and 489 in MedDiet intervention group (IG). The rate of GDM was significantly lower in IG compared to CG (25.1%vs31.7%;p=0.037). Postnatal follow-up was completed by 141 women in CG (57%) and 312 women in IG (64%). At 3 years postpartum, we observed a reduction (relative risk 95% confidence interval) in the rates of impaired fasting glucose (IFG) (0.51 (0.28-0.92);p=0.019), obesity (0.51 (0.28-0.92),p=0.041), waist circumference (WC)≥89.5cm (0.54 (0.31-0.94);p=0.022) and MetS (0.56 (0.33-0.94);p=0.003). MedDiet reduces the rate of GDM and postpartum MetS in women with BMI)≥25kg/m2, suggesting that its implementation should be routinely recommended from the first GWs.

New ligand platforms of the type p- or m-Ph{-CR(3,6-tBu2Flu)(Cp)}2 (para-, R = Me (2a), H (2b); meta-, R = Me (2c)) were synthesized via nucleophilic addition of the 3,6-tBu2-fluorenyl-anion onto the parent phenylene-bridged difulvenes (1a‒c). The corresponding discrete homodinuclear zirconium and hafnium bis(dichloro ansa-metallocene) complexes, Ph[{-CR(3,6-tBu2Flu)(Cp)}MCl2]2 (p-, R = Me (3a-Zr2, 3a-Hf2), R = H (3b-Zr2); m-, R = Me (3c-Zr2) were prepared by salt metathesis reactions. An attempt to generate in situ a heterodinuclear complex 3a-Zr-Hf was also undertaken. For the first time, Atmospheric Pressure PhotoIonization (APPI) mass-spectrometric data were obtained for all dinuclear compounds and found to be in excellent agreement with the simulated ones. Preliminary studies on the catalytic performances of these dinuclear complexes, upon activation with MAO, in ethylene homopolymerization and ethylene/1-hexene copolymerization revealed a few differences as compared to those of the monometallic analogues. In particular, slightly lower molecular weights and greater formation of short methyl and ethyl branches were obtained with the dinuclear systems.

The main challenges in oil platforms are how to define optimal setpoints and decision-making for controlling variables due to many existing dynamical production uncertainties while conceding safe operation and minimizing discharge to sea and atmosphere without killing plantwide inventory. A novel scheduling model to optimize the whole essential units of an oil platform production gathering topside and subsea variables is disclosed. A proper topside and subsea scheduling model enables and creates harmony between optimal production, supply chain, costs, and market dynamics, satisfying demands, environmental and operations constraints leading to stability. The interest of the present research lies in determining the optimal topside and subsea operational settings and decision-making, establishing maximum E&P performance and production control setpoints while predicting and manipulating reservoir lifespan and its revitalization. This objective is attained through a novel multiperiod large-scale model for the planning and operational production scheduling and model predictive control (MPC) in oil platforms complying with sustainability, profitability, platform design capacities, and offloading of oil and gas to supply chains or to pipeline exportation. The present model details heat and mass transfer, PVT, flow profiles along a planning horizon and can be used to any oil platform since comprises all the essential unit operations for oil, gas, CO₂, H₂S and water. The model maximizes the total oil production over any planning horizon. The model is versatile, and decision-making can be either linear or nonlinear but rather a MILP or LP as best choice on optimizing large-scale systems. If the model is applied with auto rescheduling on site within variable hours or minutes, it becomes a real-time optimization schedule approach. Due to its high-velocity performance and robustness, a novel multi-objective function strategy, acting as an LP generic plantwide MPC with industrial scope to maximize production while controlling the process is presented, and as an example is here used to control slug flow to avoid equipment trips and inventory instability, at the same time production is maximized. The output from the decision-making was compared to actual plant data, and the results proved compliance to the design capacity with process safety and sustainability. Comparing to official Brazil's government data for oil, the case study showed superiority to the same size platforms, like FPSOs P-75 and MV32, e.g., more than 101.5% more capacity to produce oil in beginning of campaign after first oil, and 10.5% during campaign. The present work indicates that: 1) the production of millions of barrels is being delayed or left aside; 2) not scheduling production harms the environment and diminish process safety; 3) not scheduling production can create stochastic supply chain deliveries instead of organizing it by deterministic offloading days; 4) scheduling is essential to manipulate, revitalize and monitor reservoir's pressure and content under uncertainty; 5) the oil platform can be automatic optimized by a plantwide MPC reducing human activity/dependency; 6) scheduling gives more transparency to stakeholders and contractors by forecasting business data and capability, and can design, develop or enable new businesses.

Human keratinocytes and melanoma can stick together to form clusters after eight days in co-culture. As in dynamic system concepts, one can consider cluster formation as the system attractor, cell seeding as the initial condition, and density change over time as a path within the basin of attraction. Herein, Cellular Automata, which is a class of Agent-Based Models, and Boolean Networks are discrete modeling methods used in population dynamics such that running the dynamics of cellular automata backward reveals an underlying network in terms of basin of attraction, also known as global dynamics. Thus, we hypothesize that one can estimate the local dynamic of an agent-based model from the basin of attraction of a boolean network. Here, we propose an approach to estimating these agent-based model rules, which consists of comparing the density states within each state transition and reaching a consensus among state transitions belonging to a basin of attraction of a boolean network. The objectives of this study are: (1) to infer a boolean network from the co-culture growth curve; (2) to estimate the rules of agent-based models; and (3) to implement spatial dynamics simulations. The binarization of the growth curve shows high population density after four days; the estimated agent-based model rules were compatible with cell proliferation and migration in agreement with literature, so we had to propose individual rules for survival and death. Spatial dynamics shows that (1) keratinocytes exhibit a higher density in neighborhoods where melanoma is present; (2) the chance of keratinocyte migration increases until the fourth day, then decreases, and the probability of survival increases substantially after four days; and (3) cells with low proliferation capacity die and free space for those with high ones. Our approach suggests that the attractor state of cell co-culture is induced mainly by an increase in keratinocyte migration and survival. Our approach has the potential to offer valuable clues about microenvironmental interactions or configurations that drive population dynamics.

Leishmaniasis are neglected diseases that affect regions such as South Asia, South Africa and Latin America, less developed regions. Current treatment, for cutaneous, mucocutaneous and visceral leishmaniosis, which are the main forms of the disease, is based on the administration of pentavalent antimonial and amphotericin B. However, these drugs have low efficacy and high toxicity. For this reason, the search for new treatments for this disease is necessary, based on studies of new molecules and their conformations. The research proposed the conformational study of brominated guanidine compounds with potential antileishmanial activity using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The present study involves the bro-minated molecules, LQOF-G2, LQOF-G30, LQOF-G35 and LQOF-G35-Br. The later was synthesized by the reaction of LQOF-G35 with NBS under IR irradiation at 120 Watts of potency and dichloro-methane as solvent by 12-h of exposition. The obtained results demonstrated the efficiency of the bromination method, since two bromines atoms entered the molecule. Furthermore, NMR analysis showed the occurrence of a conformational change from Z to E when compound LQOF-G35 was brominated to LQOF-G35-Br. This feature was well confirmed by comparative DRX study of the LQOF-G35 and LQOF-G35-Br compounds. The antileishmanial activity of LQOF-G2 e LQOF-G35 motivated the synthesis of new brominated compounds LQOF-G30 e LQOF-G35-Br.

In the end of April nearly 100 cases of children aged between 6 month and 9 years with Kawasaki like disease were reported (mostly in Europe) probably linked to COVID-19. With the increasing awareness of this condition the number of cases reported is increasing worldwide. We aim to sum up the known data about this new entity based on published data (in a case report, a series of 8 cases and in newspapers and society statement) and using our knowledge of classical Kawasaki disease. It seems to be a post infectious disease with an onset between 2-4 weeks after the infection, probably in genetically predisposed children aged between 6 month to 17 years. A very rough estimation of incidence based on current data from Bergamo, Italy, and New York State and a lot assumption is between 0.016% (95% CI:0.013-0.02%) - 0.31% (95% CI: 0.2-0.47%) of infected children. Clinical signs overlaps with Kawasaki disease in some children, but another feature is prominent gastrointestinal manifestations. For the 9 detailed patients most had incomplete presentation for Kawasaki disease (with a mean 1.7 (+/-1.2) criteria per patient for the 5 non fever criterion) and only one had a classical form. In some cases, presentation is closer to toxic shock syndrome or isolated myocarditis. Persistent fever seems to be constant and biological exploration are consistent with inflammation (elevated CRP, ferritin and D-Dimers). Management is described as supportive and children seem to improve rapidly, but can require cardiac or respiratory support. In date of 11 may 2020 there is 4 deaths confirmed linked to these new entities (1 in UK and 3 in New York). Paediatricians and general practitioners need to be aware of these possible evolution following COVID-19 infection. However it seems to be rare and children are probably still spared from most morbidities and mortality linked to COVID-19 infection .There are need of published detailed cohorts to better delineate these entities.

The anti-money laundering (AML) process has failed both in identifying suspicious cases in due time as in assisting the AML analysts in decision making. Starting from a new generic anti-fraud approach, this article presents the main aspects related to the development of a multi-agent system that goes beyond the capture of suspicious transactions, seeking to assist the human expert in the analysis of suspicious behaviour. First, a transactional behavioural profile of clients is obtained in a data mining process. A set of rules, obtained through data mining over a real database, in conjunction with specific rules based on legal aspects and in the expertise of the AML analysts make up the agents' knowledge base. The cases for which the system was unable to suggest a decision are flagged as requiring more detailed analysis. The system analysed 6 months of real transactions and indicated several suspicious profiles, a set of these suspects was investigated by the AML analysts who proved the suspicion of several cases, including some that had not been identified by the systems in execution.

In mobile robotics, laser scanners have a wide spectrum of indoor and outdoor applications, both in structured and unstructured environments, due its accuracy and precision. Most works that use this sensor have their own data representation and their own case-specific modeling strategies, and no common formalism is adopted. To address this issue, this manuscript presents an analytical approach for identification and localization of objects using a 2D LiDARs Our main contribution lies in formally defining laser sensor measurements and their representation, the identification of objects, their main properties and their location in a scene. We validate our proposal with experiments in generic semi-structured environments common in autonomous navigation, and we demonstrate its feasibility on multiple object detection and identification, following strictly its analytical representation. Finally, our proposal further encourages and facilitates the design, modeling and implementation of other applications that use laser scanners as a distance sensor.

Incremental control strategies provide undeniable advantages for controlling Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) due to their reduced model dependency and accurate tracking capacities. This is of particular relevance for hybrid UAVs, specially for tail-sitters, which perform complex manoeuvres when transitioning to and from aerodynamic flight. This paper summarizes the research undertaken in the application of the Incremental Nonlinear Dynamics Inversion (INDI) and Incremental Backstepping (IBKS) to a small tail-sitter UAV. After the application of these control strategies in a simulated scenario, the implementation in a Micro-Controller Unit was validated in a Hardware-in-the-Loop scenario. Following such validation, indoor experimental trials were undertaken in order to evaluate the capacity of these controllers to stabilize and control the real aircraft. The stabilization in the flight trials was successfully implemented and allow to conclude that both INDI and IBKS are control strategies suited to control a tail-sitter in vertical flight, providing accurate tracking capabilities under smooth actuation. Furthermore, it was found that the IBKS is significantly more computationally demanding than the INDI, although having a global proof of stability that is of interest in aircraft control.

Brushless Synchronous Machines (BSM) are replacing conventional synchronous machines with static excitation in generation facilities due to the absence of sparking and lower maintenance. However, this excitation system makes challenging measuring electric parameters in the rotor. This fact highly difficult the detection of ground faults, which are the most common type of electrical fault in electric machines. In this paper, a ground fault detection method for BSM is proposed. It is based on an inductive AC/DC rotating current sensor installed in the shaft. In case of a ground fault in the rotating parts of the BSM, a fault current will flow through the rotor’s sensor, inducing voltage in its stator. Analyzing the frequency components of the induced voltage the detection of a ground fault in the rotating elements is possible. The ground faults detection method proposed covers the whole rotor and discern between DC and AC sides. To corroborate the detection method, experimental tests have been performed using a prototype of this sensor connected to laboratory synchronous machines achieving satisfactory results.

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the success of procedural conscious sedation, using inhaled equimolar nitrous oxide-oxygen (NOIS – EMONO), in patients undergoing routine dental and oral surgery procedures in a Swiss university hospital setting. Materials and methods: The authors conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients that underwent NOIS-supported procedures between 2018 and 2022 at the oral surgery department of the University Hospital of Geneva (HUG), Switzerland. The primary outcome was the measurement of the procedure success and efficacy as defined by the European Society of Anesthesiology. Secondary objectives included the analysis of the types of treatments performed, their indications, patient behavior, and the patient - clinician satisfaction score. Results: 55 patients were included in the study, 85% underwent surgical procedures, the remaining 15% underwent restorative and preventive procedures. The overall treatment success rate was 98.2%, and 97.9% for surgically treated patients. 62% of patients appeared relaxed, calm, and serene, while 16% expressed pain or fear during the procedure. Infiltrative administration of local anesthesia caused stress in 22% of patients, this was significantly lower in sub cohorts who received local topical anesthetics (0%) or a combination of systemic and local topical analgesics (7%). Patients (75%) and clinicians (91%) were satisfied with the procedure. Conclusion: Inhaled equimolar nitrous oxide-oxygen procedural sedation used during dental procedures and oral surgery results in high treatment success and satisfaction rates. The administration of additional topical anesthetics helps reduce the anxiety and stress related to infiltrative anesthesia. Further dedicated studies and prospective trials are needed to confirm these findings.

Drylands are arid and semiarid ecosystems, where the lack of rains imposes harsh conditions for the survival of organisms. These ecosystems are also susceptible to degradation and desertification, and their conservation depends on the understanding of the ecological functioning of vegetation and soil. In drylands, the vegetation is spatially structured as a mosaic of patches (vegetation) and interpatches (bare soil), a consequence of plant-plant interactions (facilitation and competition). Empirical data and modeling approaches reinforce the role of ecological facilitation for the maintenance of all organisms in drylands. However, the actual range of facilitation is still poorly known. Here, we explored data of meso- and micro-arthropods found in soil as bioindicators to infer the range of facilitation provided by plants to soil. We regarded data of abundances and species densities (independent samples) collected in random patches and bare soil places as dependent variables. Data of patch size and distances between bare soil and patches were arranged in a single shuffle, producing a 1-d coordinate system centered at the border of the patch. Discrete portions of this system are taken to calculate averages and variances of abundance and species density, and we investigated how soil communities variate across the patch border. We employ techniques of signal analysis to reduce the data noise and obtain a smooth and continuous behavior, which allowed us to fit a logistic function. Our findings indicate that soil communities suddenly change from simple patterns to numerous and diverse communities in bare soil regions, meaning that the influence of vegetation on soil goes beyond the patch border. We interpreted the variations in fauna as a consequence of the positive influence provided by plants (or its lack) on surrounding bare soil. We observe a fast decaying of fauna quantities at 0.35 m outside the patch border, a threshold that reveals the mean range of facilitation provided by plants. However, the changes in soil communities outside the patches seem not necessarily related to the efficiency of soil processes mediated by arthropods, which seem to be more active inside large patches. Concluding, we found a minimum patch-size (radius ~ 0.5 m) able to maintain high diverse communities in soil, and an average distance of vegetation influence along the patch border (halo between 0.35 and 0.50 m). This information can be interpreted in terms of facilitation provided by plants to soil conditions, which seems to differ from the quantitative functionality of soil processes. Our findings contribute to the general understanding of the ecological functioning of drylands, as well as to better plan conservation actions.

Preventive behavior is one of the main strategies to contain the spread of the coronavirus, understand the factors that influence adherence or hesitation to protective measures and the way the population behaves during a health crisis is of great importance. Aim: To analyze the factors associated with adherence to protection measures against Covid-19 in Brazil. Method: cross-sectional study, survey type online, between the period of August 2020 and February 2021. The population included in the study were Brazilians, aged 18 years or older. Non-probabilistic sampling was used to obtain the sample. The data was stored on the "Redcap" platform and analyzed in a descriptive and inferential approach. Results: The sample consisted of 1,516 people, women adopted 10% more protective measures than men, people with higher education level and higher income, within the age group between 40-59 years, were those who most adhered to the measures imposed by health agencies. Carrier of Asthma, Diabetes Mellitus, Systemic Arterial Hypertension, Obesity and smoking were factors that increased the adherence of protective measures in the fight against COVID-19. Conclusion: Being female, aged between 40 and 59 years, higher education, smoking, not having a religion, having health insurance, and being a carrier of chronic diseases were associated with greater adherence to protective measures against COVID-19.

This work presents a methodology for the generation and classification of phase resolved partial discharges (PRPD) patterns based on the use of a printed UHF monopole antenna and signal con-ditioning circuit to reduce hardware requirements. For this purpose, envelope detection technique was applied. In addition, test objects such as a hydrogenerator bar, dielectric disks with internal cavities in an oil cell, potential transformer, and tip-tip electrodes immersed in oil were used to generate partial discharge (PD) signals. To detect and classify partial discharges, the standard IEC 60270 (2000) method was used as reference. After acquisition of conditioned UHF signals, digital signal filtering threshold technique was used, and peaks of partial discharges envelopes pulses were extracted. Feature selection techniques were used to classify the discharges and choose the best features to train machine learning algorithms, such as multilayer perceptron, support vector ma-chine and decision tree. Accuracies greater than 84% were met, revealing the classification potential of the methodology proposed in this work.

Malaria remains an important and challenging infectious disease, and novel antimalarials are required. Benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC), the main breakdown product of benzyl glucosinolate, is present in all parts of Tropaeolum majus L. (T. majus) and has antibacterial and antiparasitic activities. To our knowledge, there is no information on the effects of BITC against malaria. The present study evaluates the antimalarial activity of BITC and T. majus seeds, leaves, and stems aqueous extracts. We used flow cytometry to calculate the growth inhibition (GI) percentage of the extracts and BITC against unsynchronized cultures of chloroquine-susceptible Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) 3D7-GFP strain. Extracts and/or compounds with at least 70% GI were validated by IC50 estimation against P. falciparum 3D7-GFP and Dd2 (chloroquine-resistant strain) unsynchronized cultures by flow cytometry, and the resistance index (RI) was determined. T. majus aqueous extracts showed some antimalarial activity higher in seeds than in leaves or stems. BITC’s GI was comparable to chloroquine’s. BITC’s IC50 was similar in both strains, thus a cross-resistance absence with aminoquinolines was found (RI < 1). BITC presented features that could open new avenues for malaria drug discovery.

Diarrhoea is a serious cause of mortality worldwide that can lead to dehydration, gut barrier function impairment, nutrient malabsorption, and alterations of the gut microbiota (dysbiosis). Current solutions for its management, such as oral rehydration salts (ORS), inhibitors of the gut motility, antibiotics, and living probiotics only partially counteract the mechanisms of the disease and do not provide a full coverage of the problem. Potential risks of the use of living probiotic strains, particularly in immunocompromised patients, can be eliminated with the use of tyndallized (heat-killed) postbiotic bacteria and yeast. ABB C22® is a postbiotic combination of three tyndallized yeasts, namely Saccharomyces boulardii, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Kluyveromyces marxianus. To assess the action of the postbiotic combination on diarrhoea, immune and gut epithelial cell signaling assays, gut barrier formation assay and rotavirus gene expression assay were performed. ABB C22® showed a strong anti-inflammatory effect, an induction of the build-up of the gut epithelium, and a degree of protection against rotavirus infection. These experimental studies support the use of the postbiotic ABB C22® as a solution for the management of diarrhoea and gastrointestinal conditions, alone or in combination with existing but incomplete treatments.

The Portuguese health system has a universal, public, general National Health Service (NHS), tending towards free healthcare access. Created in 1979, this delivery model developed from the integration and complementarity between the different response levels (primary, hospital, continuing, and palliative care). However, over these 40 years, the initially centralized system underwent a decentralization process with the creation of Regional Health Administrations in the five mainland administrative regions. Since then, the entire NHS has settled around this new organization. The most recent step started in 2018 with decentralizing primary health care skills to 190 municipalities. This paper presents the various critical issues involved in the latest gradual decentralization process in health, intending to bring services closer to the citizens, and more focused on their needs. The article identifies and discusses the implications of this experience based on the steps foreseen in the already published legal texts.

Anthracnose, caused by the fungus Colletotrichum lindemuthianum, poses a significant and widespread threat to the common bean crop. The use of plant genetic resistance has proven to be the most effective strategy for managing anthracnose disease. The Amendoim Cavalo (AC) Andean cultivar has resistance against multiple races of C. lindemuthianum, which is conferred by the Co-AC gene. Fine mapping of this resistance gene to common bean chromosome Pv01 enabled the identification of Phvul.001G244300, Phvul.001G244400, and Phvul.001G244500 candidate genes for further validation. In this study, we assessed the relative expression of Co-AC candidate genes, as well as other putative genes in vicinity of this locus and known resistance genes, in the AC cultivar following inoculation with the race 73 of C. lindemuthianum. Gene expression analysis revealed significantly higher expression levels of Phvul.001G244500. Notably, Phvul.001G244500 encodes a putative Basic Helix-Loop-Helix transcription factor, suggesting its involvement in the regulation of defense responses. Furthermore, we observed a significant modulation of the expression of defense related genes PR1a, PR1b, and PR2, in a time-course experiment. These findings contribute to the development of improved strategies for breeding anthracnose-resistant common bean cultivars, thereby mitigating the impact of this pathogen on crop yields and ensuring sustainable bean production.

The valorization of the large amount of crude glycerol formed from biodiesel industry, is of primordial necessity. One possible direction with high interest to the biorefiniery sector is the production of fuel additives as solketal, though the acetalization of glycerol with acetone. This is a chemical process that conciliates high sustainability and economic interest, since solketal contributes to the fullfilment of a Circular Economy Model through its use in biodiesel blends. The key to guarantee high efficiency and high sustainability for solketal production is the use of a recovery and recyclable heterogeneous catalyst. Some examples are already reported in the literature (first example in 2012), and this review intends to conciliate the information spreaded in this topic and established the most important reacional parameters and the main catalytic characteristics strategies to achieve high solketal production in short reaction time.

The efficient and sustainable management of hospitals is an increasingly relevant challenge in the healthcare sector. With limited financial resources, regulatory pressures and increasing demands for quality services, hospitals are faced with the want to approve sound policies to certify financial and operational sustainability. Management accounting is critical in this instance. In Portugal the DL nº 284, of July 26, 1999, allow us to confirm the need to reinforcement of profitability and efficiency in the provision of healthcare. Management accounting is an essential tool for monitoring and controlling costs, making strategic decisions, efficiently allocating resources and evaluating performance in the hospital environment. It allows a comprehensive view of financial and operational aspects, providing valuable information for management and strategic planning. However, the sustainability of hospital management accounting is a critical and complex topic that deserves special attention. Hospitals face several challenges, such as the complexity of hospital costs, the integration of information systems and the measurement of healthcare value. These challenges can compromise the effectiveness of management accounting and its ability to provide relevant and reliable information for decision making. As a result, it is required to address the sustainability of hospital management accounting by identifying the specific challenges faced in this area and exploring opportunities to overcome them. By addressing these challenges and seizing opportunities, hospitals can strengthen their position in the healthcare sector, improve their operational efficiency, optimize resource allocation and ensure the provision of quality services to patients. In this article, the challenges faced by hospital management accounting will be analysed, such as the complexity of costs, the integration of information systems and the measurement of value in healthcare. Additionally, opportunities to improve financial and operational management will be highlighted through the adoption of advanced technologies, an emphasis on value-based management and collaborative partnerships. By exploring these themes, this essay aims to make a contribution. to the advancement of hospital management accounting and the sustainability of hospitals in the current healthcare scenario.

The pandemic of obesity worldwide has been recognized as a very important challenge. Within its complexity the identification of higher risk patients becomes essential since it seems unsustainable trying to offer access to treatment to all people with obesity. Several new approaches have recently been presented as important tools for risk stratification. This research applied some of these tools in a cross-sectional study involving adults with obesity classes I, II, III and super obesity. The participants had their cardiometabolic risk profile assessed. The study included adults with obesity, aged 18 to 50 years (n=404) who were evaluated for anthropometric, body composition, hemodynamic, physical fitness and biochemical assessments. These variables were used to identify the prevalence of risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases according to the classes of obesity, by gender and age group. The results showed a high prevalence of risk factors, especially among the upper classes of obesity (BMI &gt; 35 kg/m2) using single parameters as the waist circumference with almost 90% above the cut-off point. But there were also smaller numbers as the Glycated Hemoglobin whose prevalence was around 30%. Indexes like the atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) had the highest prevalence, with 100% of the male participants identified with increased risk for cardiovascular diseases.

Abstract: (1) Background: tuberculosis presents an epidemiological trend towards inequality, especially among people in social exclusion and situations of vulnerability. To analyze territories where there is a concentration of people diagnosed with tuberculosis, in a street situation, and who make chronic use of alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs. We will also analyze trends in this health condition in southern Brazil; (2) Methods: Ecological study, developed in the 399 municipalities of Paraná, Southern Brazil, with all tuberculosis cases in the homeless population registered in the Information System of Notifiable Diseases between 2014 to 2018. For data analysis, we used descriptive statistics, for the time series, the Prais-Winsten autoregression method, whereas for spatial analysis, we used the Getis-Ord Gi technique*; (3) Results: in total, 560 cases were reported. We found a predominance of alcohol, smoking, and illicit drugs users, with an increasing trend in the state and clusters of spatial risk in the East health macro-region; (4) Conclusions: We observed territories with critical levels of highly vulnerable people who use psychoactive substances and are in a street situation. The results highlight the importance of incorporating public policies of social protection to these individuals and resolutive health services that receive and assist in eradicating TB.

As digitalization expands across all sectors, the economic toll of software defects on the U.S. economy reaches up to $2.41 trillion annually. High-profile incidents like the Boeing 787-Max 8 crash have shown the devastating potential of these defects, highlighting the critical importance of software testing within quality assurance frameworks. However, due to its complexity and resource intensity, the exhaustive nature of comprehensive testing often surpasses budget constraints. This research utilizes a machine learning (ML) model to enhance software testing decisions by pinpointing areas most susceptible to defects and optimizing scarce resource allocation. Previous studies have shown promising results using cost-sensitive training to refine ML models, improving predictive accuracy by reducing false negatives through addressing class imbalances in defect prediction datasets. This approach facilitates more targeted and effective testing efforts. Nevertheless, the generalizability of these models across different projects (cross-project) and programming languages (cross-language) remained untested. This study validates the model's applicability across diverse development environments by integrating various datasets from distinct projects into a unified, using a more interpretable ML approach. The results demonstrate that ML can support software testing decisions, enabling teams to identify up to seven times more defective modules with the same testing effort as a benchmark.

In this paper, we investigated the capacitive effect and the electromagnetic coupling on the measurement chain induced by the gas gun or the powder gun during impact experiments. Reduced bandwidth and noise have been noticed on experimental signals. Rogowski coil measurements have been added on the cables to characterize the electromagnetic coupling. The perturbation currents on the cables have been quantified depending on the configuration. The gauge, the transmission line and the conditioning system have been modeled. The calculations have reproduced the electrical wave arrival time, the transmission line transfer impedance, the conditioning system transfer impedance and it shows the bandwidth limitation. A capacitive effect with the piezoresistive manganin gauge embedded into the sample has been identified depending on the experimental setup.

The scientific fields of complexity, artificial life (ALife), and artificial intelligence (A.I.) share several commonalities: historic, conceptual, methodological, and philosophical. It was possible to develop them only because of information technology, while their origins can be traced back to cybernetics. In this perspective, I'll revise the expectations and limitations of these fields, some of which have their roots in the limits of formal systems. I will use interactions, self-organization, emergence, and balance to compare different aspects of complexity, ALife, and A.I. The paper poses more questions than answers, but hopefully it will be useful to align efforts in these fields towards overcoming --- or accepting --- their limits.

This study investigates the relationship between clean and dirty energy markets, specifically focusing on clean energy stock indexes and their potential as hedging assets and safe havens during periods of global economic uncertainty. The research analyzes five clean energy indexes and five dirty energy indexes from May 2018 to May 2023, considering events like the global pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The main objective is to examine the causal relationship among different stock indexes pertaining to dirty and clean energy by using the Granger causality test (VAR Granger Causality/Block Exogeneity Wald Test) to determine whether clean energy indexes can predict future prices of dirty energy indexes. However, the findings reveal that clean and dirty energy indexes do not exhibit hedging characteristics or serve as safe havens during times of economic uncertainty, rejecting the research question. These results have important implications for investment strategies, as assets lacking safe haven characteristics may not preserve portfolio efficiency in uncertain times. The study's insights provide valuable guidance for investors, poli-cymakers, and participants in energy financial markets. It highlights the need to adapt investment approaches and seek alternative options to navigate uncertain economic conditions effectively.

Antimony (Sb) has gained significance as a critical raw material (CRM) within the European Union (EU) due to its strategic importance in various industrial sectors, particularly in the textile industry for flame retardants and as a component of Sb-based semiconductor materials. Moreover, Sb is emerging as a potential alternative for anodes used in lithium-ion batteries, a key element in the Energy transition. This study focused on exploring the feasibility of identifying and quantifying Sb mineralizations through the spectral signature of soils using reflectance spectroscopy, a non-invasive remote sensing technique, and by employing deep learning algorithms such as Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs). Common signal preprocessing techniques were applied to the spectral data, and the soils were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Despite achieving high R-squared values, the study faces a significant challenge of generalization of the model to new data. Despite the limitations, this study provides valuable insights into potential strategies for future research in this field.

We present a model of space that considers it to be a quantized dynamical entity which is a component of the universe along with matter and radiation. The theory is used together with thermodynamic data to provide a new view of cosmic evolution and an insight into the nature of dark energy and dark matter. Space is made up of energy quanta. The universe started from an atomic size volume at very high temperature and pressure near the Planck epoch. Upon expansion and cooling, phase transitions occurred resulting in the formation of radiation, fundamental particles, and matter. These nucleate and grow into stars, galaxies, and clusters. From a phase diagram of cosmic composition, we obtained a correlation between dark energy and the energy of space. Using the Friedmann equations, data from WMAP studies of the composition of the universe at 3.0 x 10⁵ (a=5.25 x 10^-2) years and at present (a=1), are well fitted by our model with an equation of state parameter, w= -0.7. The accelerated expansion of the universe, starting at about 7 billion years, determined by BOSS measurements, also correlates well with the dominance of dark energy at 7.25 x 10⁹ years ( a= 0.65). The expansion can be attributed to Quintessence with a space force arising from a quantum space field. From our phase diagram, we also find a correlation suggesting that dark matter is a plasma form of matter similar to that which existed during the photon epoch immediately prior to recombination. Our Quantum Space Model leads to a universe which is homogeneous and isotropic without the need for inflation. The thermodynamics of expansion is consistent with BOSS data that show the process to be adiabatic and the rate of expansion decelerating during the first 6 billion years after the Big Bang. However, it became non-adiabatic and accelerating thereafter. This implies an influx of energy from a source outside the universe; it warrants consideration as a possible factor in the accelerated expansion of the universe.

The computer network world is changing and the NetDevOps approach has brought the dynamics of applications and systems into the field of communication infrastructure. Businesses are changing and businesses are faced with difficulties related to the diversity of hardware and software that make up those infrastructures. The "Intent-Based Networking - Concepts and Definitions" document describes the different parts of the ecosystem that could be involved in NetDevOps. The recognize, generate intent, translate and refine features need a new way to implement algorithms. This is where artificial intelligence comes in.

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have rapidly been gaining traction across the research, policy, and practice spheres, touted as transformative actions to jointly address biodiversity loss and climate change. However, there are multiple, alternative ways to imagine NbS in those three spheres. To inform the NbS discourses across these three spheres, we critically reflect on the prevailing framing of NbS and consider the potential of a different framing of NbS to support transformations towards regenerative relationships between humans and nature. Such reflection is urgently needed to ensure that research, policy, and practice delivers on the transformative ambitions of NbS. We propose a novel “core framing” of NbS, charting two pathways for how such a framing can support a human value-based transformation – first through influencing individual beliefs and values, and second through the communication and application of the NbS concept in research, policy, and practice. We argue that for NbS to support transformation, it must support a reframing of human-nature relationships, one where the interdependencies between people and nature are recognized as essential for social and environmental well-being. We elaborate on how such a framing is key to support inclusivity and collaboration between diverse research perspectives, policy objectives across scales, and implementation practices, to deliver successful NbS.

A Robust Optimization framework with original concepts and fundamentals also admitting a fusion of ideals from relative regret models and static robust optimization, containing conservatism concepts is disclosed. The algorithm uses a fine-tune strategy to tune the model so the robustness and a target ideality can be mutually achieved with a specified risk. The framework comprises original concepts, a mathematical approach and an algorithm. The statistical treatment of the data with the original concepts from the framework make it able to make short, middle or long-term decision-making setting. The framework has high tractability since the algorithm forces the creation of a setting that makes a robust optimization with the specified risk. The framework can be applied in linear and nonlinear mathematical models since that the objective function is monotonic in the domain of the active convex region. Several examples are solved to best understand the framework and all results demonstrated high tractability and performance. There is a wide range of applications. Along all the text, there is a profound discussion about its philosophy, objective, original concepts, fields of application, statistical and probabilistic fundamentals.

We present a thermodynamic approach in modeling the evolution of the universe based on a theory that space consists of energy quanta, the spaceons. From wave-particle duality, they can be treated as an ideal gas. The model is similar to the Big Bang but without Inflation. It provides an insight into the nature of dark energy and dark matter, and an explanation for the accelerated expansion of the universe. The universe started from an atomic size volume of spaceons at very high temperature and pressure. Upon expansion and cooling, phase transitions occurred resulting in the formation of fundamental particles, and matter. These nucleate and grow into stars, galaxies, and clusters due to the action of gravity. From the cooling curve of the universe we constructed a thermodynamic phase diagram of cosmic composition, from which we obtained the correlation between dark energy and the energy of space. Using Friedmann’s equations, our model fits well the WMAP data on cosmic composition with an equation of state parameter, w= -0.7. The dominance of dark energy started at 7.25 x 10⁹ years, in good agreement with BOSS measurements. The expansion of space is attributed to a scalar quantum space field. Dark Matter is identified as a plasma form of matter similar to that which existed during the photon epoch, prior to recombination. The thermodynamics of expansion of the universe was adiabatic and decelerating during the first 7 billion years after the Big Bang; it accelerated thereafter. A negative pressure for Dark Energy is required to sustain the latter. This is consistent with the theory of General Relativity and the law of conservation of energy. We propose a mechanism for the acceleration as due to consolidation of matter forming Dark Energy Stars (DES) and other compact objects. The resulting reduction in gravitational potential energy feeds back energy for the expansion. Space will continue to expand and dark energy will undergo phase transition to a Bose-Einstein condensate, a superfluid form of matter. Self-gravitation can cause a bounce and start a new Big Bang. We show how the interplay of gravitational and space forces leads to a cyclic, maybe eternal, universe.

A via ferrata (from the German “klettersteig”, hereinafter VF) is a sports route located on forest and mountains vertical rock walls equipped with steps, chains, artificial dams, bridges and other fixed elements and which have a steel cable (safety cable) all the way along allowing users to secure their progress and avoid possible falls [1]. This article aims to analyse the state of the art of the VF sector in Spain, especially in terms of the regulations of obligatory compliance, in addition to defining the basic characteristics of the installations to ensure that these are safe for users, providing a previously non-existent summary of the most important recommendations regardless of the country where they are installed.

When we attempt to define life, we tend to refer to individuals, those that are alive. But these individuals might be cells, organisms, colonies... ecosystems? We can describe living systems at different scales. Which ones might be the best ones to describe different selves? I explore this question using concepts from information theory, ALife, and Buddhist philosophy. After brief introductions, I review the implications of changing the scale of observation, and how this affects our understanding of selves at different structural, temporal, and informational scales. The conclusion is that there is no single ``best'' scale for a self, as this will depend on the scale at which decisions must be made. Different decisions, different scales.

Climate change has become a major concern for developing countries given the risk that it posses on energy and food independence, and on general productivity. Despite having an energy system with low carbon intensity when compared to other Latin American countries, Colombia is already facing climate change impacts and requires urgent efforts to mitigate them. As a developing country, the challenge is bigger as policies for economic growth should be in line with the global commitment of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. With the aim of contributing to the design of climate policies, this study assesses the impact of economic development on the environment by examining the validity of the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis for Colombia. Statistically validated and stable autoregressive distributed lag models are estimated for three different environmental indicators: carbon dioxide emissions, methane emissions, and ecological footprint. Moreover, the effects of other variables such as urbanization, foreign direct investment, value added of agricultural and industrial sectors, and energy use are analyzed with dynamic simulations. Empirical evidence supports a long-run equilibrium relationship among investigated variables and the existence of an inverted U-shaped EKC relationship between Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and methane emissions, and GDP and ecological footprint. Shifting to renewable energy sources and leveraging the use of cleaner technologies in agricultural and industrial sectors are found to be key for economic growth without harming the environment.

Information theory has been developed for seventy years with technological applications that have transformed our societies. The increasing ability to store, transmit, and process information is having a revolutionary impact in most disciplines. The goal of this work is to compare the formal approach to information with Buddhist philosophy. Considering both approaches as compatible and complementary, I argue that information theory can improve our understanding of Buddhist philosophy and vice versa. The resulting synthesis leads to a worldview based on information that overcomes limitations of the currently dominating physics-based worldview.

The study aims to explain the different effects between the multiplication, addition, division and subtraction equations. In this sense, multiplication and addition equations develop a new element or fact, meanwhile, division equations express information within the element or fact, subtraction is the selection of element or fact. Furthermore, for a multiplication and addition equation results in the new element or fact, it is necessary to depend on specific physical concepts, without extreme alteration, as it would result in the alteration of the element or fact. It is worth highlighting the importance of fixed values ​​in the equation to describe the specific nature of the element or fact. The study makes it possible to understand open equations (without solutions) in mathematics and physics, in addition to understanding existing equations. The study makes reference to the theory of obligatory necessity and the theory of differences between elements.

We report the case of a 61-year-old woman who was referred to the Oral Surgery and Implantology Unit of the University Hospitals of Geneva to take care edentulous sites after dental avulsions of teeth 11 and 21 following traumatic shock due to endotracheal intubation under general anaesthesia. The dental history revealed that the patient had a history of generalized chronic periodontitis that had been treated several years earlier. Treatment consisted, for the first time to our knowledge, of immediate insertion of implants at sites 11 and 21 with simultaneous bone augmentation in a single surgical procedure and immediate restorations.

A healthy 47-year-old woman consulted the Oral Surgery and Implantology Unit of the University Hospitals of Geneva with a request to treat her painful tooth 11 and replace the missing tooth 21. The dental history revealed that the patient had lost teeth 21 and 22 due to advanced caries. On clinical examination, tooth 11 showed an ill-fitting prosthetic crown with overhanging margins, an increased localized probing depth of 8 mm in the disto-vestibular area and sensitivity to percussion. The edentulous site 21 showed horizontal bone atrophy. Radiological examination revealed a well-defined unilocular radiotransparent lesion surrounded by a thin radiolucent border, located at the apex of tooth 11 and measuring 10 x 8 mm. The treatment consisted of extraction of 11, enucleation of the apical lesion, insertion of implants at sites 11 and 21 with simultaneous bone augmentation in a single surgical procedure with aesthetic and functional results at 3-year follow-up without any complications. Our case highlights that immediate implant placement in case of cystic periapical lesion represents a good valid alternative to standard treatment.

Epidemiological surveillance and phylogenetic studies rely nowadays on processing and analysing huge volumes of data. Processing tasks consist on running and refining a series of intertwined computational tasks. And, despite of existing several web applications for data processing and interactive visualization for phylogenetic studies, integrating many different tools and algorithms, their execution is total or partially on the client side, making them unsuitable for dealing with huge volumes of data. Studies are often also not easy to reproduce. On the other hand, in recent years, data-centric workflow systems have been proposed, allowing to deal better with increasingly larger datasets. The integration of these systems within phylogenetic tools will allow to scale them as required, and will contribute also to promote studies reproducibility. We propose then the FLOWViZ middleware for facilitating the integration of a state of the art data-centric workflow system, Apache Airflow, within web applications for phylogenetic analyses. This framework abstracts contracts and a core API for defining tools and workflows, where tools are assumed to be containerized. FLOWViZ has been tested and evaluated within the PHYLOViZ web application, a tool supporting phylogenetic inference and data visualization.

The primary cilium plays a pivotal role during embryonic development of vertebrates. It acts as a somatic signaling hub for specific pathways, such as sonic hedgehog signaling. In humans, mutations in genes that cause dysregulation of ciliogenesis or ciliary function lead to severe developmental disorders called ciliopathies. Beyond its obvious role in early morphogenesis, growing evidence points towards an essential function of the primary cilium in neural circuit formation in the central nervous system. However, very little is known about a potential role in the formation of the peripheral nervous system. Here, we investigated the presence of the primary cilium in neural crest cells and their derivatives in the trunk of the developing chicken embryo in vivo. We found that neural crest cells, sensory neurons, and boundary cap cells all bear a primary cilium during key stages of early peripheral nervous system formation. Moreover, we described differences in the ciliation of neuronal cultures of different populations from the peripheral and central nervous system. Our results offer a framework for further in vivo and in vitro investigations on specific roles that the primary cilium might play during peripheral nervous system formation.

The predictability of wind information in a given location is essential for the evaluation of a wind power project. Predicting wind speed accurately improves the planning of wind power generation, reducing costs and improving the use of resources. This paper seeks to predict the mean hourly wind speed in anemometric towers (at a height of 50 meters) at two locations: a coastal region and one with complex terrain characteristics. To this end, the Holt-Winters (HW), Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Hybrid time-series models were used. Observational data evaluated by the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications-Version 2 (MERRA-2) reanalysis at the same height of the towers. The results show that the hybrid model had a better performance in relation to the others, including when compared to the evaluation with MERRA-2. For example, in terms of statistical residuals, RMSE and MAE were 0.91 and 0.62 m/s, respectively. As such, the hybrid models are a good method to forecast wind speed data for wind generation.

Construction work is physically demanding. The tasks involved in this professional occupation physically exhaust workers and put them at high risk of injury. This work aims to analyze muscle fatigue in civil construction workers, with and without physical activity historical practice. For this purpose, the muscle activity of the Biceps Femoris, Trapezius Transversalis, Erector Spinae Longissimus, was evaluated using surface electromyography. Eleven male civil construction workers aged 26 to 52 years (38.00 ± 9.60), of whom 7 were untrained (N =7) and 4 were trained (N=4) participated in this study. Each subject completed two assessments at two different times. At the first assessment moment, a questionnaire was completed, and the maximum repetition of the deadlift exercise was assessed. At the second assessment, the subjects were assessed while performing the deadlift in four different situations: 50%RM at rest, 80%RM at rest, 80%RM at fatigue, and 50%RM at fatigue. The trained construction workers have higher levels of muscle activity, and there are no significant differences in muscle activation between the fatigued and non-fatigued sets. There appears to be a strong influence of physical exercise on muscle activity and fatigue in civil construction workers.

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) self-sampling has the potential to increase cervical cancer screening (CCS) and reduce the cervical cancer burden in Medically Underserved Women (MUW). However, interventions promoting self-sampling are limited. We examined the effectiveness of an intervention study in increasing CCS among MUW. We conducted a quasi-experimental intervention study. Face-to-face verbal approach was to recruit MUW (n=85, mean age 48.57±11.02) living in a small city in the US. Behavioral intervention based on reframing, reprioritizing, and reforming (3R model) was used to educate the women about CCS in a group format. The women completed pre-and post-intervention assessments and followed-up interviews. The primary outcome was CCS uptake. Mixed methods analyses were conducted using a t-test for the primary outcome, PROCESS for mediation analysis, and NVivo for interview data. Majority of women (75%) completed self-testing. High-risk HPV prevalent among the women was 11%, and of those, 57% followed-up with physicians for care. We found that the significant increase in the women’s post-intervention screening behaviors was mediated by the increase in knowledge (Indirect Effect [IE] = .1314; 95% CI, .0104, .4079) and attitude (IE = .2167; 95% CI, .0291, .6050) scores, (p&lt;0.001). Interview analyses offered further explanations (see the explanations in parenthesis) why MUW found the intervention messages acceptable (encourages proactive behavior), feasible (simple and easy to understand), and appropriate (helpful and informative). Barriers including lack of trust and fear of results were identified. The findings suggest that an intervention that combines the 3R model and self-sampling may increase CCS among MUW.

We present a Quantum Space Model (QSM) of the evolution of the universe based on the theory that space consists of energy quanta from which it began. We used the Friedmann equations to trace its history and show that Dark Energy is the energy of space which caused its accelerating expansion.The universe started from a quanta of space which was triggered by quantum fluctuations that caused the Big Bang. It then expanded and cooled undergoing phase transitions to radiation, fundamental particles, and matter. Matter grew into galaxies, and was consolidated by gravity into Black Holes, ending in a Big Crunch and Deep Freeze inside a Black hole at 1.380 trillion years. Fluctuations caused a new Bang to start another cycle in its life. If the Law of Conservation of Energy is universal, then the cosmos is eternal. Our results support the theoretical predictions of a cyclic universe by Steinhardt and associates, as well as Penrose. Space and energy are equivalent as embodied in the Planck energy equation. They are the two most fundamental quantities that govern cosmic evolution. The two principal long range forces are the gravitational force and the space force,which maybe the fifth force in the universe. They provide the clockwork mechanism operating our cyclic universe.

The study presents an assertion and explanation that major and minor numerical progressions occur that depend on the representation contained in physical space. In general cases, larger numbers are multiples and smaller numbers are simple, because multiple numbers contain more numbers in many physical spaces than simple numbers. In specific cases, they depend on the statement of what the specific representation is, and different realities from general cases may occur. Also, the theory explains the change in the number of prime numbers.

Reliability assessment in traditional power distribution systems has played a key role in power system planning, design, and operation. Recently, new information and communication technologies have been introduced in power systems automation and asset management, making the distribution network even more complex. In order to achieve efficient energy management, the distribution grid has to adopt a new configuration and operational conditions that are changing the paradigm of the actual electrical system. Therefore, the emergence of the cyber-physical systems concept to face future energetic needs requires alternative approaches for evaluating the reliability of modern distribution systems, especially in the smart grids environment. In this paper, a reliability approach that makes use of failure modes of power and cyber network main components is proposed to evaluate risk analysis in smart electrical distribution systems. We introduce the application of Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) method in future smart grid systems in order to establish the impact of different failure modes on their performance. A smart grid test system is defined and failure modes and their effects for both power and the cyber components are presented. Preventive maintenance tasks are proposed and systematized to minimize the impact of high-risk failures and increase reliability.

EMG analysis is becoming increasingly important in many research and clinical applications, including muscle fatigue detection, control of robotic mechanisms and prostheses, clinical diagnosis of neuromuscular diseases and quantification of force. However, electromyographic signals can be contaminated by various types of noise, interference and artifacts, which can lead to misinterpretation of the data acquired using this method. Even assuming best practices, the collected signal may still be altered by such contaminants. The aim of this paper is to review methods employed to reduce contamination of single channel EMG signals. This review is limited to methods performed directly on the measured EMG signal and those that allow total reconstruction of the EMG signal. Subtraction methods used in the time domain, denoising methods performed after signal decomposition and hybrid methods are assessed. It is defended that individual methods may be more or less suitable for a particular application depending on contaminant(s) present in the signal and on the specific requirements of the application.

The aerospace industry develops prognosis and health management algorithms to ensure better safety on board. Particularly for in-flight controls where jamming is dreaded. For that, vibration signals are monitored to predict future defect occurrences. However, time series are not labeled according to severity level, and the user can only assess the system health from the data mining procedure. To that extent, we developed a clustering algorithm using a deep neural network core. We encoded the time series into pictures to be feed into an artificially trained neural network: U-NET. From the segmented output, one-dimensional information on cluster frontiers is extracted and filtered without any parameter selection. Then, a kernel density estimation finally transforms the signal into an empirical density. Ultimately, a Gaussian mixture model extracts the latter independent components. The method empowered us to reveal different degrees of severity faults in the studied data, with their respective likelihood without prior knowledge. We compared it to state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms. However, internal clustering results evaluation for time series is an open question. As state-of-the-art indexes were not producing relevant results, we built a new indicator to fulfill this task. We applied the whole method to an actuator consisting of an induction machine linked to a ball screw. This study lays the groundwork for future training of diagnosis and prognosis structures in the health management framework.

In the present work, we evaluate the prediction capability of six Pedotransfer functions (PTFs), reported in the literature, for the saturated hydraulic conductivity estimations (Ks). We used a database with 900 measured samples obtained from the Irrigation District 023, in San Juan del Rio, Queretaro, Mexico. Additionally, six new PTFs were construct for Ks from clay percentage, bulk density and saturation water content data. The results show, for the evaluated models, that one model present an overestimation for Ks>0.5 cm h-1 values, three models have a underestimation for Ks>1.0 cm h-1 and two models have a good correlation (R2>0.98) but are necessary more than three parameters. Nevertheless, the last two models requires from three to four parameters in order to get the optimization. By other hand, the models proposed in this work have a similar correlation with a less number of parameters: the fit is seen to be much better than using the existing ones, achieving a correlation of R2 = 0.9822 with only one variable and a R2 = 0.9901 when we use two.

Lymphedema is a chronic and debilitating disease that affects up to 250 million patients worldwide. Recent advances in understanding its pathophysiology, along with improved diagnosis and microsurgical techniques, have enhanced our ability to cope with the challenging task of treating this disease. This review provides an overview of the disease from a surgeon's point of view, including existing imaging modalities used for preoperative assessment, as well as surgical procedures used in its treatment. Advantages and drawbacks of various existing modalities used for pre or intraoperative assessment of lymphatic vessels are discussed. Lymphedema treatment has shifted from palliative debulking procedures (liposuction and direct excision) to those aimed at restoring lymphatic flow and countering the pathophysiology of the disease (lymphaticovenous anastomosis and vascularized lymph node transfer). A combination of both approaches can result in a synergistic benefit for patients and are discussed in this review. Despite recent advances, some controversies persist, and further studies are needed to better define surgical treatment algorithms.

Background: Sensor usage in the classical scientific process has allowed new experimentation in medicine. We report on the design process of a MEMS sensor being used for muscle trauma evaluation in diagnosing acute compartment syndrome (ACS), a medical ailment costing society billions of dollars per year. Objectives: Modeling the disease with scientific process allows a more complete under-standing of the disease. The goal was to formulate a hypothesis that could be tested to aid in making the diagnosis of ACS accurately. Methods: Scientific process was observed throughout the disease modelling process. Background information was improved and clarified, new pre-clinical models were de-signed and verified, a hypothesis built on pressure measurement with MEMS sensors was carried out, and the testing of the model as verified against previous clinical data was accomplished. Results: Scientific process resulted in hypothesis generation around the relationship of intracompartmental pressure measurement and the disease process and therapy. This resulted in new understanding of ACS, accurate modelling, and sensor design resulting in a MEMS device that has an extremely high sensitivity and specificity (over 99%) in treating and diagnosing the disease. Conclusion: MEMS sensor technology defines the new gold standard of implanting a sensor in a muscle compartment that allows accurate diagnosis of ACS with continuous trends in pressure.