Bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the world's most important staple food crop providing 20% global energy and dietary proteins. It is widely grown in sub-tropical and tropical areas and as such exposed to heat-stress especially at grain filling period (GFP). Global warming has further affected its production and productivity in these heat-stressed environments. We examined the effect of heat-stress on 18 morpho-physiological and yield-related traits in 96 bread wheat accessions. Heat susceptibility index (HSI <0.60) and yield stability (i <0.55) used as criteria for selecting the tolerant accessions. Heat-stress, imposed by delayed sowing, decreased crop growth and GFP, and as a result reduced morphological and yield-related traits, namely days to 50% anthesis, plant height, peduncle length, flag-leaf area, spike length, spikelets per spike, grain length and width, thousand grain weight (TGW), harvest index and yield. The reduction in the trait values was severe in susceptible accessions (48.2% yield reduction in IC277741) than the tolerant. Physiological traits like chlorophyll content, canopy temperature depression (CTD), normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), plant waxiness and leaf rolling showed higher expression in the tolerant accessions under heat-stress. Scanning electron microscopy of matured wheat grains revealed ultrastructural changes in endosperm and aleurone cells caused due to heat-stress. The reduction of size and density of large starch granules is the major cause of yield and TGW decrease in the heat-stress susceptible lines. The most stable and high-yielding accessions namely IC566223, IC128454, IC335792, EC576707, IC535176, IC529207, IC446713 and IC416019 were identified as the climate-smart germplasm lines. Germplasm lines possessing desirable traits were selected as po-tential parents for the development of bi-parental and multi-parental populations.

The optical properties and physiology of biological tissue, as well as how near-infrared (NIR) light interacts with the tissue, both play a significant role in interpreting the tissue probing optical measurements, and in solving the inverse problem of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)-based medical imaging modalities such as diffuse optical tomography and functional near-infrared spectroscopy. This paper discusses the optical properties of tissue, specifically in the NIR wavelength range, which influence NIRS measurements in NIRS-based medical imaging. There is an easy-to-understand explanation given in this paper of the NIR light-tissue interaction phenomenon. The mathematical explanation, the processes involved in the interaction, and the rationale for a few approximations are described. Various types of chromophores present in the tissue, their composition in the tissue, and how these chromophores overall affect the scattering and absorption of NIR light are presented. The absorption spectra of these chromophores are shown. Finally, the paper concludes with the author’s perspective on two NIRS-based medical imaging modalities, diffuse optical tomography, and functional near-infrared spectroscopy.

Background: Barleria lupulina Lindl. (Hop-headed) is a small shrub, possess potent anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-leukemic, antitumor, anti-hyperglycemic, anti-amoebic, virucidal, diuretic, bactericidal and antibiotic properties. Methods: Cytotoxicity, bioactive assay and genetic analysis of B. lupulina were investigated in the present communication. The leaf extract was investigated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT), Neutral red uptake (NRU), DNA fragment, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) assay, gene expression analysis and cDNA synthesis to evaluate anti-cancerous potency using cancerous THP-1 cell lines in vitro and in vivo. Results: HPTLC analysis reveals four spots and GC-MS analysis displayed the presence of eleven bioactive compounds among which benzofuranon, hexadecanoic acid, ethyl 9,12,15-octadecatrienoate, and 3,7,11,15-tetramethyl-2-hexadecanoic acid were the most prominent compounds. The ethanolic extract showed significant cytotoxicity (P<0.5) against THP-1 cell line at a concentration of 1mg/mL. The cells were also observed for apoptosis through DNA fragmentation in B. lupulina treated cells. Conclusions: It can be concluded that if the dose range was further refined within the range of 100-1000 µg/mL there could be dose at which the entire population of the THP-1 cell line would be apoptosis induced. The extract induced ROS in the cells after 30 minutes of exposure displaying cytotoxic effects and DNA fragmentation assay.

Metformin use in pregnancy is increasing worldwide as randomised controlled trial (RCT) evidence is emerging demonstrating its safety and efficacy. The Metformin in Gestational Diabetes (MiG) RCT changed practice in many countries demonstrating that metformin had similar pregnancy outcomes to insulin therapy with less maternal weight gain and a high degree of patient acceptability. A multicentre RCT is currently assessing the addition of metformin to insulin in pregnant women with type 2 diabetes. RCT evidence is also available for the use of metformin for women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and for non-diabetic women with obesity. No evidence of an increase in congenital malformations or miscarriages has been observed even when metformin is started before pregnancy and continued to term. Body composition and metabolic outcomes at two, seven and nine years have now been reported for the offspring of mothers treated in the MiG study. In this review, we will briefly discuss the action of metformin and then consider the evidence from the key clinical trials.

Over the years, artificial intelligence (AI) is spreading its roots in different areas by utilizing the concept of making the computers learn and handle complex tasks that previously require substantial laborious tasks by human beings. With better accuracy and speed, AI is helping lawyers to streamline work processing. New legal AI software tools like Catalyst, Ross intelligence, and Matlab along with natural language processing provide effective quarrel resolution, better legal clearness, and superior admittance to justice and fresh challenges to conventional law firms providing legal services using leveraged cohort correlate model. This paper discusses current applications of legal AI and suggests deep learning and machine learning techniques that can be applied in future to simplify the cumbersome legal tasks.

The escalating global demand for clean water has propelled research into sustainable and cost-effective purification methods. Activated carbon (AC) derived from biowaste materials presents an environmentally friendly and economically viable solution for water treatment. This review article provides an extensive overview of the synthesis techniques, characterization methods, and applications of biowaste activated carbon (BAC) for water purification. It discusses the diverse sources of biowaste, such as agricultural residues, food waste, and biomass, and explores various activation methods including physical, chemical, and biological processes. Furthermore, the article examines the adsorption mechanisms, performance factors, regeneration strategies, and emerging trends in BAC synthesis and application. Insights from this review can guide future research endeavors and facilitate the development of sustainable water purification technologies.

This manuscript offers a concise overview of paper microfluidics, emphasizing its sustainable sensing applications in healthcare, environmental monitoring, and food safety. Researchers have developed innovative sensing platforms for detecting pathogens, pollutants, and contaminants by leveraging the paper’s unique properties, such as biodegradability and affordability. These portable, low-cost sensors facilitate rapid diagnostics and on-site analysis, making them invaluable tools for resource-limited settings. The review discusses fabrication techniques, principles, and applications of paper microfluidics, showcasing its potential to address pressing challenges and enhance human health and environmental sustainability.

The current global financial sector is dedicated to providing customers with more advanced and strategic services. With channels like internet banking, mobile phone banking, and telephone banking, the industry delivers multi-channel banking services to satisfy its clients. The COVID-19 pandemic has directly impacted the global economy, as well as the financial sector, with the banking sector facing lockdown initiatives to curb the virus's spread. As a result, mobile payment methods have been favored by people over physical money for transactions. This study analyzes the factors that influenced mobile banking usage during the pandemic in Sri Lanka.. Convenience sampling was used, comprising of 200 online questionnaires conducted among customers in Sri Lanka. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple linear regression through IBM SPSS 25. Research findings revealed that trust and risk were significant factors affecting mobile banking usage in Sri Lanka. Trust had a positive effect while Risk negatively effects to the mobile banking usage. Ease of use and Usefulness were irrelevant factors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka.

Innovation development in healthcare has paved the path towards the improvement in system efficiency, patient care and cost-effective healthcare services, increasing the overall efficiency of the healthcare system in a significant manner. Electronic medical record system has fostered interoperability and collaboration in healthcare departments by enabling different systems to exchange and use patient data. This trend has been accelerated dominantly by the pandemic, leading to increased use of telemedicine, referring specifically to the use of electronic communication to provide healthcare services remotely. Moreover, an increased prevalence towards the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in healthcare has contributed effectively towards the rigorous and informed analysis of large amounts of data as well as to identify patterns or trends that may be useful for improving care delivery or identifying potential issues. A unified electronic medical record System that will generate competitive opportunities and success prospects with reference to enhanced interoperability in US healthcare departments, can contribute towards the improvement in the quality and efficiency of care by making it easier for healthcare providers to access and share patient information as well as reducing the risk of errors in effective patient care.

Literature reported the insulin is an important for the humans and it is secreted in the pancreas and controls, regulates the glucose level. It also controls the mechanism and growth. On decreasing the amount of insulin can caused diabetes, several cancers and other disease. Therefore, there is a need to find promising candidates can binds with insulin and stabilize them. Organic compounds containing hetero atoms have lots of biological potency in different area, therefore, researchers are designing new biological potent compounds. Further, insilico studies attracted the researchers in last one decade mainly to get the drug in less time with a clear strategy. In the present work, authors have designed two types of conjugates, xanthenes with trizole as well benzisoxazole and study their interaction with the insulin using computational methods. The library of compounds was screened through molecules docking in terms of binding energy between the designed compound and the active site of the receptor. Further, their ADME properties are investigated. CMPD19 showed best binding affinity with the insulin and may be considered as oral drug based on the bioactive scores.

Solar energy has emerged as a promising alternative to traditional fossil fuels due to its abundant availability and sustainability. Solar cells, the fundamental units of solar energy conversion, have undergone significant advancements in fabrication techniques to enhance their efficiency, durability, and cost-effectiveness. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of various methods employed in the preparation of solar cells, including thin-film, crystalline silicon, organic, and perovskite-based technologies. By analyzing recent research developments, challenges, and future prospects, this article sheds light on the evolving landscape of solar cell fabrication, contributing to the ongoing efforts in achieving widespread adoption of solar energy.

Species of Acacia have been extensively entrenched in the tropical, and semi-arid regions as well as in the southern hemisphere. Acacia species have been bounteous faces the pest and pathogenic pressure. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an immensely important aspect of producing a healthy Acacia plantation without harmful impacts on the environment. Here an attempt was made to determine the possibilities of integrated pest management for Acacia. Overall, this information will be helpful to increase awareness about the integrated pest management of the members of the genus Acacia.

In this scientific research, thermally stable nickel nanoparticles were synthesized and characterized. Nickel nanoparticles were synthesized using phenol –formaldehyde by chemical method followed by calcination. The polymer metal complex was confirmed by FTIR and NMR. The spherical morphology of nickel nanoparticles confirmed by SEM. The crystallographic structure is confirmed by XRD and size of cobalt nanoparticles is 24.0 nm. The TGA analysis was performed over a range of 29-600OC. The TGA thermograph predicts mass decomposition of 11%, for nickel phenol-formaldehyde nanocomposite. The decomposition rate of composites is very low 2% weight loss per 100OC increment in temperature.

Objective: To analyze prevalence of tuberculosis among the people who presented PIMS with complaints of fever, cough, difficulty in breathing during COVID pandemic.Study Design: Retrospective/ Cross-sectional study.Place and Duration: Department of Radiology, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad. 2020-2023. Methods: Total 17121 patients who presented PIMS during COVID pandemic with complaints of high grade fever, cough, difficulty in breathing ,were included in this study. Following the acquisition, the HRCT scans were conducted by a skilled and experienced technician and researcher, utilizing GE Healthcare equipment for HRCT Chest procedures. The scans covered the lung apices to the bases and were executed with maximal inspiration, employing a CT scanner from Toshiba Aquilion. Frequency of TB among all cases was recorded. SPSS 21.0 was used to analyze all data.Results: This study incorporated a total of 17,121 patients, comprising 9,961 (58.1%) males and 7,160 (41.8%) females. The mean age of the enrolled cases was 49.11±7.67 years, demonstrating consistency with the findings of a prior study [33]. This study also examined the prevalence of Tuberculosis in different years based on imaging findings of HRCT chest as follows: in 2020, 582 cases out of 2,450, equivalent to 23.7%; in 2021, 2,377 cases out of 9,584, equivalent to 24.8%; in 2022, 1,099 cases out of 3,913, equivalent to 28.1% and in 2023, 295 cases out of 1,174, equivalent to 25.1%. The average prevalence of TB cases from 2020 to 2023 was determined to be 4,353 cases out of 17,121, which is equal to 25.42%.Conclusion: As per the National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) in Pakistan, the prevalence rate of tuberculosis stands at 340 cases per 100,000 population, equivalent to 0.34%. However, our study reveals an exceptionally high frequency of TB cases. Specifically, the prevalence of Tuberculosis in 2020 was 23.7% (582 out of 2,450), in 2021 it was 24.8% (2,377 out of 9,584), in 2022 it surged to 28.1% (1,099 out of 3,913), and in 2023 it was 25.1% (295 out of 1,174). The average prevalence of TB cases over the period from 2020 to 2023 was calculated at 25.4% (4,353 out of 17,121). Consequently, our findings suggest the presence of a substantial tuberculosis burden in Pakistan, equating to a TB Tsunami in Pakistan.

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a late-onset; progressive, dominantly inherited neurological disorder marked by an abnormal expansion of polyglutamine (poly Q) repeats in Huntingtin (HTT) protein. The pathological effects of mutant Huntingtin (mHTT) are not restricted to the nervous system but systemic abnormalities including immune dysregulation have been evidenced in clinical and experimental settings of HD. Indeed, mutant huntingtin (mHTT) is ubiquitously expressed and could induce cellular toxicity by directly acting on immune cells. However, it is still unclear if selective expression ofmHTT exon1 in neurons could induce immune responses and hemocyte function. In the present study, we intended to monitor perturbations in the hemocytes population and their physiological functions in Drosophila, caused by pan-neuronal expression of mHTT protein. We found that pan-neuronal expression of mHtt significantly alters crystal cells and plasmatocyte count in larvae and adults with disease progression. Interestingly, plasmatocytes isolated from diseased conditions exhibit a gradual decline in phagocytic activity ex vivo at progressive stages of the disease as compared to age-matched control groups. We also observed an increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in plasmatocytes at advanced stages of the disease. In addition, diseased flies displayed elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) in circulating plasmatocytes at the larval stage and in sessile plasmatocytes of hematopoietic pockets at of disease. All the parameters were monitored progressively, targeting the circulation at larvae stage and hematopoietic pockets in adults at different disease stages, and many alterations were documented in the early stage itself. These findings strongly implicate that neuronal expression of mHtt alone is sufficient to induce non-cell-autonomous immune dysregulation in vivo. Based on these findings, we propose that further insight into the mechanisms through which neuronal expression of mHtt might be inflicting the innate immune responses would facilitate therapeutic inventions aimed at amelioration of HD pathology and improving the quality of life of the patients.

In this article, we analyse the computer aid screening method of COVID19 using Xray and CT scan images. The main objective is to set an analytical closure about the computer aid screening of COVID19 among the X-ray image and CT scan image. The computer aid screening method includes deep feature extraction, transfer learning and traditional machine learning image classification approach. The deep feature extraction and transfer learning method considered 13 pre-trained CNN model. The machine learning approach includes three sets of features and three classifiers. The pre-trained CNN models are alexnet, googlenet, vgg16, vgg19, densenet201, resnet18, resnet50, resnet101, inceptionv3, inceptionresnetv2, xception, mobilenetv2 and shufflenet. The features and classifiers in machine learning approaches are GLCM, LBP, HOG and KNN, SVM, Naive bay’s respectively. In addition, we also analyse the different paradigms of classifiers. In total, the comparative analysis is carried out in 65 classification models, i.e. 13 in deep feature extraction, 13 in transfer learning and 39 in machine learning approaches. Finally, all the classification models perform better in X-ray image set compare to CT scan image set.

The detection of coronavirus (COVID-19) is now a critical task for the medical practitioner. The coronavirus spread so quickly between people and approaches 100,000 people worldwide. In this consequence, it is very much essential to identify the infected people so that prevention of spread can be taken. In this paper, the deep feature plus support vector machine (SVM) based methodology is suggested for detection of coronavirus infected patient using X-ray images. For classification, SVM is used instead of deep learning based classifier, as the later one need a large dataset for training and validation. The deep features from the fully connected layer of CNN model are extracted and fed to SVM for classification purpose. The SVM classifies the corona affected X-ray images from others. The methodology consists of three categories of Xray images, i.e., COVID-19, pneumonia and normal. The method is beneficial for the medical practitioner to classify among the COVID-19 patient, pneumonia patient and healthy people. SVM is evaluated for detection of COVID-19 using the deep features of different 13 number of CNN models. The SVM produced the best results using the deep feature of ResNet50. The classification model, i.e. ResNet50 plus SVM achieved accuracy, sensitivity, FPR and F1 score of 95.33%,95.33%,2.33% and 95.34% respectively for detection of COVID-19 (ignoring SARS, MERS and ARDS). Again, the highest accuracy achieved by ResNet50 plus SVM is 98.66%. The result is based on the Xray images available in the repository of GitHub and Kaggle. As the data set is in hundreds, the classification based on SVM is more robust compared to the transfer learning approach. Also, a comparison analysis of other traditional classification method is carried out. The traditional methods are local binary patterns (LBP) plus SVM, histogram of oriented gradients (HOG) plus SVM and Gray Level Co-occurrence Matrix (GLCM) plus SVM. In traditional image classification method, LBP plus SVM achieved 93.4% of accuracy.

Medicinal plants have antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral activities. More or less all plants have medicinal properties. In this research article, we have selected four economically important plants (three fruit plants and an economically important plant), Malus domestica Borkh., Prunus persica L., Ricinus communis L., and Carica papaya L. found in several areas of Indian state Uttarakhand. Using the methanolic extract of leaves, we have screened those four plants against four human pathogenic bacteria, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus and Micrococcus luteus. For our experiment we have screened the methanolic leaf extracts of four plants against the above-mentioned bacteria. Statistical analysis was also performed for validation. Result revealed the said bacteria have potential antibacterial activities. So, these leaves can be used for clinical trial. These plants can also be used for making herbal medicines.

For the past few decades, researchers have been intrigued with glassy polymers, which have applications ranging from gas separations to corrosion protection to drug delivery systems. The techniques employed to examine the sorption and diffusion of small molecules in glassy polymers are the subject of this review. Diffusion models in glassy polymers are regulated by Fickian and non-Fickian diffusion, with non-Fickian diffusion being more prevalent. The characteristics of glassy polymers are determined by sorption isotherms, and different models have been proposed in the literature to explain sorption in glassy polymers during the last few years. This review also includes the applications of glassy polymer. Despite having so many applications, current researchers still have difficulty in implementing coating challenges due to issues like as physical ageing, which is briefly discussed in the review.

A Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) or concussion has become a public health problem in the United State. Sports and recreational activities are major sources of concussions; with the most incidents connected to American football. Recently, many companies and research institutions have started studying concussions and introduced some means of protection and some alarming systems of strong jolts. The major detection and protection system currently available on the market is the electronic helmet (e-helmet) composed of measurement devices to record head impact acceleration. The most commonly used devices in e-helmets are accelerometers to measure linear acceleration and gyroscopes for rotational/angular acceleration. Using smart textiles for concussion detection is currently uncommon and limited due to the lack of literature studying their voltage related errors. Actually, there are few works that characterize some voltage-force related errors for such type of sensors but for small impact forces and under bench testing while the behavior of those sensors was not described for higher ranges of applied forces and in field situations. This paper previews some common techniques used in e-helmets for concussion detection and highlights electronic textiles and smart fabric sensors that could be very useful for these applications. It discusses and validates the general behavior of such type of sensors under high impact forces and on field testing instead of bench testing, and also it characterizes the effect of increasing the thickness of the sensing element layer on the sensor. A custom-made pressure sensor was created of some available fabrics to be embedded within the padding of a football helmet to quantify the impacting force to the head. The sensor is mainly composed a Semi Conductive Polymer Composite SCPC layer with modifiable thickness that was modified three times with 0.2, 0.4, and 1.6mm to characterize the general behavior of the sensor due to a high amount of impacts and correlated with the thickness. A pendulum system was built to test the pressure sensors, while a special camera and an open-source video analysis software, Tracker was used to track the pendulum bob. The speed and the acceleration of the pendulum bob were measured, then the impact force was calculated and a voltage-force response was obtained. The results showed that no meaningful improvement occurs by small increase in the thickness but better sensor behavior could be obtained by significant increment to observe any difference. Despite that at a very high impacts, the suggested sensor with Velostat layers is not giving the real voltage readings that reflect the actual applied forces but it gives a helpful information that illustrate the distribution of the force through identification the place of the highest and lowest voltage readings regardless of the exact values of those readings. However, the proposed smart textile pressure sensor could be applicable in future e-helmet designs with additional research-based improvements especially on the structure of the sensing element layer to be able to withstand such high impacts which in turns improves the overall sensor performance and accurately measures pressure in concussion-inducing ranges.

Microalgae have emerged as potential feed stock for third generation biofuel and other bioactive compounds. In the present investigation we have evaluated the two native strains of Oscillatoria (O. subbrevis MTC-20702 and O. sancta MTC-20703) isolated from two different fresh water biotopes of Meerut, U.P., India and were subjected for the characterization of generation time, biomass, bio-molecules including Chlorophyll-a, carotenoids, carbohydrate, lipids, phycobilins and proteins. Both strains of Oscillatoria were grown in batch culture till the initiation of declining phase and were harvested on every 10th day of incubation till the starting of declining phase. Result of the present investigation revealed that O. subbrevis MTC-20702 can be potentially exploited for the production of high algal biomass, feed stock for biofuel, Chl-a, carotenoids, c-Allophycocyanin and maximum yield of these bioactive compounds can be achieved on 20th day. However, O. santa could be very good source for c-Phyocyanin, c-Phycoerythrin, carbohydrate and protein and these also can be achieved highest on 20th day of incubation. In addition, as these two strains were isolated from water reservoirs and they can be cultivated in large scale for the production of desired bio-molecules.

Due to rising cyber threats, IoT devices’ security vulnerabilities are expanding. However, these devices cannot run complicated security algorithms locally due to hardware restrictions. Data must be transferred to cloud nodes for processing, giving attackers an entry point. This research investigates distributed computing on the edge, using AI-enabled IoT devices and container orchestration tools to process data in real time at the network edge. The purpose is to identify and mitigate DDoS assaults while minimizing CPU usage to improve security. It compares typical IoT devices with and without AI-enabled chips, container orchestration, and and assesses their performance in running machine learning models with different cluster settings. The proposed architecture aims to empower IoT devices to process data locally, minimizing the reliance on cloud transmission and bolstering security in IoT environments. The results correlate with the update in the architecture. With the addition of AI-enabled IoT device and container orchestration, there is a difference of 60% between the new architecture and traditional architecture where only Raspberry Pi were being used.

Tree members of the genus Acacia have benefits that are obvious for enhancing soil fertility in farming, forestry and agroforestry in regions with nutrient-poor soils, and for restoring degraded ecosystems and lands. Nevertheless, the species of the genus Acacia have got the potential to bring about significant adverse impacts on biodiversity or ecosystem functioning when it gets invasive. The ecology of the species in nearly all areas of its created range remains poorly understood. Here we have compiled the information regarding the importance, cultivation and the production of important species of genus Acacia. We hope this information will be useful to get awareness about the crucial trees in the genus Acacia.

We enriched and isolated a novel gammproteobacterial methanotroph; strain FWC3, from tropical freshwater wetland, near Nagaon beach, Alibag, India. FWC3 is a coccoid, flesh pink/peach pigmented, non-motile methanotroph and the cells are present in pairs and as tetracocci. The culture can grow on methane (20%) as well as on a wide range of methanol from concentrations (0.02%-5%). Based on the comparison of genome data, FAME analysis, morphological characters and biochemical characters, FWC3 belongs to the tentatively and newly but not validly described genus ‘Methylotetracoccus’ of which only a single species strain was described, Methylotetracoccus oryzae C50C1. The ANI index between FWC3 and C50C1 strains is 94%, and the DDH value is 55.7%, less than the cut-off values 96% and 70%, respectively. The genome size of FWC3 is smaller (3.4 Mbp) compared to that of C50C1 (4.8 Mbp). Additionally, the FAME profile of FWC3 shows differences in cell wall fatty acid profiles compared to Methylotetracoccus oryzae C50C1. Also, there are other differences on the morphological, physiological and genomic levels. We propose FWC3 to be a member of a novel species of the genus Methylotetracoccus, for which the name Methylotetracoccus aquaticus is proposed. Also, an amended description of the genus Methylotetracoccus gen. nov. is given here. FWC3 is available in two international culture collections with the accession numbers: MCC 4198 (Microbial Culture collection, India) and JCM 33786 (Japan Collection of Microorganisms, Japan).

Emerging research has revealed a complex bidirectional interaction between the gut microbiome and cannabis. Preclinical studies have demonstrated that the gut microbiota can significantly influence the pharmacological effects of cannabinoids. One notable finding is the ability of the gut microbiota to metabolise cannabinoids, including Δ^9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). This metabolic transformation can alter the potency and duration of cannabinoid effects, potentially impacting their efficacy in cancer treatment. Additionally, the capacity of gut microbiota to activate cannabinoid receptors through the production of secondary bile acids underscores its role in directly influencing the pharmacological activity of cannabinoids. While the literature reveals promising avenues for leveraging the gut microbiome-cannabis axis in cancer therapy, several critical considerations must be accounted for. Firstly, the variability in gut microbiota composition among individuals presents a challenge in developing universal treatment strategies. The diversity in gut microbiota may lead to variations in cannabinoid metabolism and treatment responses, emphasising the need for personalised medicine approaches. The growing interest in understanding how the gut microbiome and cannabis may impact cancer has created a demand for up-to-date, comprehensive reviews to inform researchers and healthcare practitioners. This review provides a timely and invaluable resource by synthesizing the most recent research findings and spotlighting emerging trends. A thorough examination of the literature on the interplay between the gut microbiome and cannabis, specifically focusing on their potential implications for cancer, is presented in this review to devise innovative and effective therapeutic strategies for managing cancer.

The open hole tensile and flexural test of composites holds immense importance in aerospace and structural engineering. These tests provide critical insights into how composites perform under real-world conditions, allowing for the development of materials that meet rigorous standards, thereby ensuring the safety and durability of aircraft and other applications. This study investigates the influence of hole size on the open hole tensile (OHT) and flexural properties (OHF) of plane woven aramid/epoxy (AFRP), basalt/epoxy (BFRP), and aramid-basalt/epoxy (ABFRP) sandwiched laminates. Specimens with three different hole sizes viz., 4 mm, 6 mm, 8 mm were prepared and tested according to ASTM D5766 and ASTM D7264 for OHT and OHF performance respectively. Results indicated that the hybridization of aramid-basalt layers in a sandwich lay up significantly improved the mechanical performance when compared to only aramid laminate. However, with the increase in hole size the mechanical properties declined irrespective of the material. Basalt fibres showed higher hole sensitivity under tensile loading due to its brittle fracture mechanism while aramid fibres exhibited higher hole sensitivity under flexural loading which can be attributed to its the poor compressive strength. The effect of hole size on the damage mechanism has also been highlighted through scanning electron microscope (SEM). Major failure modes observed are delamination around the hole edges, ductile and brittle fibre fractures, and delamination.

Plant pathogens utilize effectors to subvert host cell biology for facilitating infection. However certain effectors, called as the avirulence proteins, trigger immune responses in the host. AvrPi54 is an avirulence protein from fungus Magnaporthe oryzae which induces the defense reactions in rice cells that contain Pi54 resistance gene. The characterization of such proteins and elucidation of their function facilitate the understanding of the mechanism of disease establishment. In present study, physiochemical properties of AvrPi54 were analysed using computational methods. We found that mature AvrPi54 is a small, hydrophobic and secretary protein with 134 amino acids. It is rich in small amino acids with no significant homology with other proteins in databases. The gene ORF was cloned in pET28a(+) vector and expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3)pLysS. The protein was purified using affinity chromatography. Transient expression of the gene in epidermal cells of onion bulb is a powerful tool to predict the subcellular localization in plant cells. We fused AvrPi54 to eYFP and transformed epidermal cell layer of onion bulb. Fused protein localized to the plasma membrane and nucleus of plant cells. Therefore, AvrPi54 might be functioning in the host cell as transcription factor or chromatin remodelling factor to modify pathogenesis-related processes.

(1) Background: Many malignancies are driven by mutations which affect the gene for fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) 1. Previously we have documented that signal transduction from FOP2–FGFR1 fusion protein in KG1 cells downregulated the expression of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene. In this paper we investigated if also other FGFRs were responsible for the regulation of the VDR expression. (2) Methods: We used human myeloid leukemia cells U937, and bone cancer cell line U2OS, and cell transfection methods in order to address the above questions. (3) Results: In myeloid leukemia cells overexpression of FGFR 1-4 caused shift to granulocytic differentiation, upregulated expression of VDR, and sensitized these cells to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25D)-induced monocytic differentiation, while in bone cells, signal transduction activated by FGF1 was not responsible for regulation of VDR expression and activity. (4) Conclusions: Since the overexpression of FGFRs occurs in many neoplasms, it may be reasonable to use 1,25D analogs in these cancers, in which overexpression of FGFRs leads to VDR upregulation.

The timely and accurate detection of HIV infection is pivotal in stemming the tide of this global pandemic and facilitating early treatment initiation. This review offers a comprehensive examination of the diverse array of methods employed for HIV detection, spanning traditional serological assays to cutting-edge technologies such as nucleic acid amplification, biosensor innovations, and artificial intelligence-driven diagnostics. Each method is scrutinized in terms of its principles, applications, strengths, and limitations. By integrating these complementary approaches and fostering collaboration across disciplines, researchers and clinicians gain a multifaceted understanding of HIV infection, enabling them to navigate the complexities of the virus with precision and insight. Through a multidisciplinary lens, encompassing immunology, molecular biology, engineering, and public health, this review aims to inform future directions in HIV detection, ultimately guiding efforts towards personalized, precise, and accessible diagnostics for all individuals affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Cancer cells exhibit aberrant extracellular matrix mechanosensing due to altered expression of mechanosensory cytoskeletal proteins. Aberrant mechanosensing of the tumor microenvironment (TME) by cancer cells has been shown to be associated with cancer development and progression. Recent studies show that altered mechanosensing changes the mechanobiological properties of cells, and, in turn, cells become susceptible to mechanical perturbations. Due to an increasing understanding of cell biomechanics and cellular machinery, several approaches have emerged to target the mechanobiological properties of cancer cells and cancer-associated cells to inhibit cancer growth and progression. In this review, we summarize the progress that happened in the development of mechano-based approaches to target cancer by interfering with the cellular mechanosensing machinery and overall TME.

Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) are essential to most electronic devices. Digitalization and upgradation of gadget generates lots of PCB-containing electronic waste. Conserving resources and protecting the environment requires recycling such e-waste. The present paper is focused on the recovery of metals from PCBs by physical pretreatment and hydrometallurgical processes. Initially, the waste PCBs were pre-treated to separate metallic and non-metallic fractions. The metallic concentrate was leached using nitric acid (strong oxidative agent) for dissolution of metals. The system was fully jacketed with scrubber and condenser so that no emission of toxic gases to the environment. The process parameters viz. effect of acid concentration, pulp density, temperature, time, etc. were optimized and the obtained data were scientifically validated. Kinetics leaching fitted well with the Shrinking core model, XB = kc.t for Cu, (1-(1-XB)1/2) for Ni and 1-3(1-XB)2/3 + 2(1-XB) for Pb. The optimized conditions derived from these studies will be useful for recovery of metals from waste PCBs, and tin left in the residue could be further treated for the purpose of safe disposal or the utilization in an environmentally friendly manner. The developed process provides environmental benefits and has potential to be commercialized after scale-up studies.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome novel coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused the global pandemic as COVID-19, which is the most notorious global public health crisis in the last 100 years. SARS-CoV-2 is composed of four structural proteins and several non-structured proteins. The multi-facet nucleocapsid (N) protein is the major component of structural proteins of CoVs, However, there are no dedicated genomic, sequences and structural analyses focusing on potential roles of N protein. Hence, there is an urgent requirement of a detailed study on N protein of SARS-CoV-2. Herein, we are presenting a comprehensive study on N protein from SARS-CoV-2. We have identified seven motifs conserved in the three major domains namely N-terminal domain, linker regions and the C-terminal domains. Out of seven motifs, six motifs are conserved across different members of coronaviridae, while motif4 is specific for SARS CoVs with potential amyloidogenic properties. Additionally, we report this protein has large patches of disordered regions flanking with these seven motifs. These motifs are hubs of epitopes with 67 experimentally verified epitopes from related viruses. We report the presence of three nuclear localization signals (NLS1-NLS3 mapped to 36-41, 256-26, and 363-389 residues, respectively) and two nuclear export signals (NES1-NLS2 from 151-161 and 217-230 residues, respectively) in the N protein of SARS-CoV-2. These deciphered two Q-patches as Q-patch1 and Q-patch2, mapped in the regions of 266-306, and 361-418 residues, which potentially help in the aggregation of the viral proteins along with ²¹⁹LALLLLDR²²⁶ patch. Additionally, we have identified 14 antiviral drugs potentially binding to seven motifs of N-proteins using docking-based drug discovery methods.

The study addresses the management of kitchen waste by transforming it into biofertilizer formulations utilizing an effective in-house developed multi-enzyme preparation. A separate hydrolysis and fermentation bioprocessing approach which in particular relates to the application of a separate enzyme preparation from Aspergillus niger P-19 to separately hydrolyze kitchen waste, followed by the growth of Klebsiella pneumoniae AP-407 in the liquid hydrolysate as well with simultaneous production of carrier-based biofertilizer. In liquid and carrier-based biofertilizers, the viable cell count reaches 3.00 × 1012 CFU/ml and 3.00 × 1012 CFU/g, respectively. The current study adopts a novel process technique for the manufacturing of both carrier and liquid biofertilizers, adopting a zero-waste approach to the management of kitchen waste.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most lethal forms of cancers with 5-year mean survival rate of less than 10%. Most of the PC associated deaths are due to metastasis to secondary sites. Calcium (Ca²⁺) signaling plays a critical role in regulating hallmarks of cancer progression including cell proliferation, migration and apoptotic resistance. Store operated Ca²⁺ entry (SOCE) mediated by Orai1/2/3 channels is a highly regulated and ubiquitous pathway responsible for Ca²⁺ influx into non-excitable cells. In this study, we performed extensive bioinformatic analysis of publicly available datasets and observed that Orai3 expression is inversely associated with the mean survival time of PC patients. Orai3 expression analysis in a battery of PC cell lines corroborated its differential expression profile. We then carried out thorough Ca²⁺ imaging experiments in 6 PC cell lines and found that Orai3 forms a functional SOCE in PC cells. Our in vitro functional assays show that Orai3 regulates PC cell cycle progression, apoptosis and migration. Most importantly, our in vivo xenograft studies demonstrate a critical role of Orai3 in PC tumor growth and secondary metastasis. Mechanistically, Orai3 controls G₁ phase progression, matrix metalloproteinase expression and epithelial-mesenchymal transition in PC cells. Taken together, this study for the first time reports that Orai3 drives aggressive phenotypes of PC cells i.e. migration in vitro and metastasis in vivo. Considering that Orai3 expression is inversely associated with the PC patients survival time, it appears to be a highly attractive therapeutic target.

The Pygmy hog (Porcula Salvania), till recently, classified as a critically endangered suid, is facing the threat of extinction globally due to habitat degradation. Efforts are being made to protect the pygmy hogs from extinction and breed them in captivity under Pygmy Hog Conservation Pro-gramme (PHCP). However, very little information is available on the reproductive physiology of pygmy hogs. Therefore, the present study aimed to standardize enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) for monitoring pregnancy and reproductive status using progesterone and testosterone metabolites. A total of 785 faecal samples were collected from five females and two males over a period of one year from PHCP Research and Breeding Centre, Guwahati, Assam. High-pressure liquid chro-matography (HPLC) analysis revealed the presence of immunoreactive progesterone and testos-terone metabolites in faeces. Mating was observed in all the five females and four of them gave birth successfully. We were able to detect pregnancy using faecal progesterone metabolites. Based on mating and parturition, the mean gestation period was estimated to be 153.25 days from four females. The breeding centre recorded 172 births between 1996 and 2000 and found strong sea-sonality in births and most of the births were between May and June. Faecal testosterone metabo-lites were significantly higher in the breeding season than the non-breeding season. This is the first study and will help in future breeding programs in other captive breeding centres and reproduc-tive monitoring of reintroduced populations.

The Genotype-Phenotype Working Group was established in November 2021 as part of the AgBioData Consortium (https://www.agbiodata.org) with the goal of identifying current challenges in annotating and integrating large-scale genotype and phenotype data. Over the course of the year, the members of this working group identified different types of data sets, explored experimental platforms and methods for data generation, and examined how these data are annotated including the metadata requirements. We conducted a thorough review of publicly funded repositories for raw and processed data for each data type. We also examined several secondary databases and knowledgebases that enable the integration of heterogeneous data types in the context of the Genome Browser, Pathway Networks and tissue-specific gene expression. The review revealed a need for additional infrastructural support, standards, and tools to connect Genotype to Phenotype data and enhance data interoperability for knowledge synthesis and to foster translational research.

The increasing environmental and human health concerns associated with medical waste have led to the development of environmental biotechnology as a means of mitigating its negative effects. This review paper discusses the various types of medical waste generated in healthcare facilities, as well as the potential environmental and health impacts of improper handling and disposal. It also provides an overview of the different environmental biotechnologies that have been developed to treat medical waste, including bioreactor systems, microbial treatment, and composting. The benefits and drawbacks of these technologies are also discussed. Bioremediation is a promising environmental biotechnology that can be used to treat medical waste contaminated with hazardous chemicals. Case studies from around the world demonstrate the successful application of environmental biotechnologies to medical waste management. These case studies highlight the challenges encountered, the methods used, and the results obtained. The findings of this review paper highlight the need for a comprehensive strategy for managing medical waste that includes environmental biotechnologies. Further research and development are needed to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability of medical waste management.

The current economic development paradigm, which is based on steadily rising resource consumption and pollution emissions, is no longer viable in a world with limited resources and ecological capacity. The "green economy" idea has presented this context with a chance to alter how society handles the interplay between the environmental and economic spheres. The related concept of "green nanotechnology" aims to use nano-innovations within the fields of materials science and engineering to generate products and processes that are economically and ecologically sustainable, enabling society to establish and preserve a green economy. Many different economic sectors are anticipated to be impacted by these applications, including those related to corrosion inhibitor nano fertilizers, nano remediation, biodegradation, heavy metal detection, biofuel, insecticides & pesticides, and catalytic CO2 reduction. These innovations might make it possible to use non-traditional water sources safely and to create construction materials that are enabled by nanotechnology, improving living and ecological conditions. Therefore, our aim is to highlight how nanotechnology is being used in the green economy and to present promises for nano applications in this domain. Additionally, we want to critically examine the practical difficulties these applications raise, especially in consideration of any possible implications for the health and safety of those employed within this innovative sector. In the end, it emphasizes how critical it is to attain a really sustainable advancement in nanotechnology.

Fruits are commonly used, fresh or processed, to prepare different industrial products with superior nutritional and health-promoting properties. Currently, the demand for processed fruit products has motivated the rapid growth of the fruit processing industries, persuading them to produce an enormous amount of by-products with less utilization. Furthermore, people's shifting dietary habits and lack of awareness of nutritional properties result in an avoidable load of fruit by-products. The knowledge of the value of by-products urges exploration with proper documentation, emphasizing the health benefits of some such products. Hence, this review is prepared by carefully analyzing the recent literature on industrial applications of fruit by-products and their nutritional and health-promoting properties. The use of fruit by-products in food industries for various purposes has been reported in the past and has been reviewed and described here. Fruit by-products are a good source of nutrients and bioactive components, including polyphenols, dietary fibers, and vitamins, implying that they could have an important role for novel, value-added functional food properties. Furthermore, fruit by-products are used as the substrate for the production of organic acids, essential oils, enzymes, fuel, biodegradable packaging materials, and preservatives.

Developing a biomolecular detection method that minimizes photodamage while maintaining an environment suitable for biological constituents to maintain their physiological state is expected to drive new diagnostic and mechanistic breakthroughs. In addition, ultra-sensitive diagnostic platforms are needed for rapid and point-of-care technologies for various diseases. Considering this, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is proposed as a non-destructive and sensitive approach to address the limitations of fluorescence, electrochemical, and other optical detection techniques. However, to advance the applications of SERS, novel approaches to enhance the signal of substrate materials are needed to improve reproducibility and costs associated with manu-facture and scale-up. Due to their physical properties and synthesis, semiconductor-based nanostructures have gained increasing recognition as SERS substrates; however, low signal en-hancements have offset their widespread adoption. To address this limitation and assess the po-tential for use in biological applications, zinc oxide (ZnO) was coated with different concentra-tions (0.01-0.1 M) of gold (Au) precursor. When crystal violet (CV) was used as a model target with the synthesized substrates, the highest enhancement was obtained with ZnO coated with 0.05 M Au precursor. This substrate was subsequently applied to differentiate exosomes derived from three cell types to provide insight into their molecular diversity. We anticipate this work will serve as a platform for colloidal hybrid SERS substrates in future bio-sensing applications.

UPF3B is a constituent of the classical nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) pathway that degrades both the aberrant transcripts and a set of physiological transcripts. In higher eukaryotes, UPF3B have significant biochemical functions in diverse cellular processes including NMD and translation. UPF3B plays a crucial role in neuronal development and differentiation. Next-generation sequencing technologies identified several loss-of-function mutations in the UPF3B gene that results in neuro-developmental disorders in humans. To uncover the mechanistic role of UPF3B in neuronal functions, we have generated the UPF3B-knockout mammalian cell line model system using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing method. RNA-Sequencing Analysis of cellular transcriptome from UPF3B-KO cells identified specific genes involved in cell growth and neuronal functions. Altered expression of genes related to the axon guidance pathway delineated the UPF3B function to regulate the neuron-specific genes. Functional enrichment analysis identified the genes involved in the disorders related to mental health and intellectual disability. Our study has the potential to identify the direct players of intellectual disability and will have broader implications.

Globally, the gastroenteritis or diarrhoea has become a more significant problem today due to infection caused by foodborne/ waterborne pathogen Vibrio cholera. In this concern, an investigation was carried out to evaluate the vibriocidal potential of the different solvent extracts of leaf and rhizome of Maranta arundinacea under in vitro condition. For this, aqueous, methanolic, ethanolic and hexane extracts of both leaf and rhizome of M. arundinacea were tested against the pre-isolated strains of Vibrio cholerae such as SPAB1, SPAB4 and SPAB5 by agar well diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method. All the solvent extracts of both leaf and rhizome were found to be active against the tried strains of V. cholera however, ethanolic extract showed maximum inhibitory effect against SPAB1 strain with an inhibition zone of 26.23 ± 0.53 mm (MIC of 80.00 ± 10.06 µg/ ml) and 24.27 ± 0.12 mm (MIC of 100.00 ± 12.82 µg/ ml) in rhizome and leaf samples, respectively. Then, the effectiveness was followed in SPAB4 and SPAB5 however, it was not much more significant to that of SPAB1. Therefore, it was suggested that the rhizome and leaf extracts which proved to be potentially effective can be used as the natural alternative for the treatment of diarrhoea caused by Vibrio infection.

Background: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) affects human respiratory function causing COVID-19 disease. Safe natural products with potential antiviral phytochemicals with benefits to control high-altitude sickness could be adopted as adjunct therapy for COVID-19. The red petals of Rhododendron arboreum, commonly available and consumed in the Himalayan region may have phytochemicals with potential antiviral properties against COVID-19 targets.Purpose: This study was aimed to profile the secondary metabolites of R. arboreum petals, to assess their absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination (ADME) properties and evaluate their antiviral potential by docking against COVID-19 targets such as SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M^pro PDB ID: 6LU7) and Human Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor (PDB ID: 1R4L) that mediates the viral replication and entry into the host respectively.Methods: The phytochemicals of R. arboreum petals were mainly profiled using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) and ¹H-NMR. In addition, the phytochemicals reported from the literature were tabulated. The ADME properties of the phytochemicals were predicted using SwissADME tool. Molecular docking simulation of the phytochemicals against SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M^pro PDB ID: 6LU7) and Human Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor (PDB ID: 1R4L) were carried out using PyRx.Results: R. arboreum petals were found to be rich in appreciable proportions of secondary metabolites such as Quinic acid, 3-Caffeoyl-quinic acid, 5-O-Coumaroyl-D-quinic acid, 5-O-Feruloylquinic acid, 2,4-Quinolinediamine, Coumaric acid, Caffeic acid, Epicatechin, Catechin, 3-Hydroxybenzoic acid, Shikimic acid, Protocatechuic acid, Epicatechin gallate, Quercetin, Quercetin-O-pentoside, Quercetin-O-rhamnoside, Kaempferol-O-pentoside and Kaempferol. Several of these phytochemicals were reported to exhibit inhibitory activities against a range of viruses. From the molecular docking studies, 5-O-Feruloylquinic acid, 3-Caffeoyl-quinic acid, 5-O-Coumaroyl-D-quinic acid, Epicatechin and Catechin showed strong binding affinity with SARS-CoV-2 M^pro and human ACE2 receptor.Conclusion: This report showed that R. arboreum petals are rich in several antiviral phytochemicals that also docked against SARS-CoV-2 M^Pro and Human ACE2 receptor. This is the first report highlighting R. arboreum petals as a reservoir of antiviral phytochemicals with potential for synergetic activities. The outcomes merit further in vitro, in vivo and clinical studies on R. arboreum phytochemicals to develop natural formulations against COVID-19 disease for therapeutic benefits.

Introduction: Endoscopic biliary stenting is a widely utilized procedure in the realm of interventional gastroenterology, primarily employing plastic stents for short-term biliary drainage. This case series endeavours to investigate the occurrence and ensuing clinical ramifications of forgotten or retained biliary stents. Methods: Carried out over an 8-month duration at King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam, this case series encompasses 12 patients diagnosed with forgotten biliary stents. Diagnostic confirmation was established through a combination of X-ray, abdominal ultrasound, and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP). Four patients experienced complications such as fractured distal pigtails and obstructed stents, thwarting retrieval efforts via endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and cholangioscopy. Results: This case series featured 12 patients with a median age of 48 years (range: 18-76), comprising 7 females (58.3%) and 5 males (41.7%). The primary indication for initial stent placement was choledocholithiasis in 10 instances (83.3%), while benign biliary strictures accounted for 3 cases (25%). On average, patients presented 31.3 months post-initial stenting, primarily manifesting cholangitis symptoms (83.3%). ERCP succeeded in stent removal in 8 cases (66.6%), while the remaining cases necessitated advanced procedures such as cholangioscopy, with two patients being referred for surgical intervention. It is noteworthy that there were no instances of mortality. Conclusion: This case series, conducted against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, highlights an increased prevalence of neglected plastic biliary stents. The principal complication encountered was cholangitis, often coexisting with common bile duct (CBD) stones. Standard ERCP techniques demonstrated reduced efficacy in instances characterized by fractured, obstructed, or displaced stents, necessitating the exploration of alternative strategies like cholangioscopy or surgical intervention. This compilation of cases underscores the pressing imperative for prompt stent retrieval and the enhancement of management protocols to proactively mitigate the potential for complications.

Light-gated ion channel and ion pump rhodopsins are widely used as optogenetic tools and these can control the electrically excitable cells as: (1) they are a single-component system i.e., their sensor and effector functions are encoded by the 7-transmembrane domains and (2) they show fast kinetics with small dark-thermal recovery time. In cellular signaling, a signal receptor, modulator and effector components are involved for attaining synchronous multicomponent regulation. Optical modulation of this network requires either receptor to effector encoded in a single ORF or direct modulation of the effector domain through bypassing all upstream players. Recently discovered modular rhodopsins like rhodopsin guanine cyclase (RhoGC) and rhodopsin phosphodiesterase (RhoPDE) paves the way to establish proof of concept. Light sensor coupled modular system could be expressed in a precise cell type and which holds great potential in the advancement of optogenetics 2.0. It would enable manipulating entire relevant cell signaling system. Here, we had identified 50 novels modular rhodopsins with variant rhodopsins domain and its diverse cognate signaling cascades encoded in a single ORF, which are associated with specialized functions in the cells. These novel modular algal rhodopsins have been characterized functionality based on their sequence and structural homology with previously characterized rhodopsins. Presented novel modular rhodopsins with various effector domains hold potential to expand optogenetics tool kit to regulate various cellular signaling pathways across the diverse biological model systems.

Cannabis, renowned for its historical medicinal use, harbours various bioactive compounds—cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids. While major cannabinoids like THC and CBD have received extensive scrutiny for their pharmacological properties, emerging evidence underscores the collaborative interactions among these constituents, suggesting a collective therapeutic potential. This comprehensive review explores the intricate relationships and synergies between cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids in cannabis. Cannabinoids, pivotal in cannabis's bioactivity, exhibit well-documented analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects. Terpenes, aromatic compounds imbuing distinct flavours, not only contribute to cannabis's sensory profile but also modulate cannabinoid effects through diverse molecular mechanisms. Flavonoids, another cannabis component, demonstrate anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective properties, particularly relevant to neuroinflammation. The entourage hypothesis posits that combined cannabinoid, terpene, and flavonoid action yields synergistic or additive effects, surpassing individual compound efficacy. Recognizing the nuanced interactions is crucial for unravelling cannabis's complete therapeutic potential. Tailoring treatments based on the holistic composition of cannabis strains allows optimization of therapeutic outcomes while minimizing potential side effects. This review underscores the imperative to delve into the intricate roles of cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids, offering promising prospects for innovative therapeutic interventions and advocating continued research to unlock cannabis's full therapeutic potential within the realm of natural plant-based medicine.

The GAI‐RGA ‐ and ‐SCR (GRAS) proteins belong to the plant-specific transcription factor gene family and involved in several developmental processes, phytohormone and phytochrome signaling, symbiosis, stress responses etc. GRAS proteins have a conserved GRAS domain at C-terminal and hypervariable N-terminal. The C-terminal conserved domain directly affects the function of the GRAS proteins. For instance, in Arabidopsis, mutations in this domain in Slender rice 1 (SLR1) and Repressor of GA (RGA) proteins cause significant phenotypic changes. GRAS proteins have been reported in more than 30 plant species and till now it has been divided into 17 subfamilies. This review highlighted GRAS protein's importance during several biological processes in plants, structural features of GRAS proteins, their expansion and diversification in the plants, GRAS-interacting proteins complexes and their role in biological processes. We also summarized available recent research that utilized CRISPR-Cas9 technology to manipulate GRAS genes in a plant for different traits. Further, the exploitation of GRAS genes in crop improvement programs has also been discussed

Globally, the demand for plant-based alternative food is increasing rapidly as these products are getting quite popular in vegan and vegetarians. However, it is still in the early stage and faces various technological challenges, but the imitation of sensory profile is the most challenging part as the products are meant to be an alternative of meat. The development of similar product to meat requires an accurate selection of ingredients and processing. An understanding about the sensory profile can help to construct the product and technologies that are consumer centric and sustainable. In this review, we focus on the comparative differences in the sensory profile of animal meat and plant-based meat alternative specially in the color, texture and flavor, along with the method used to resemble them. The paper also explains about the sensory evaluation and how it affects the consumer preference and acceptability. Additionally, a direction to further research for developing better plant-based alternative products has also been suggested.

The aim of this work is to broaden the theory of computation by making use of fuzzy sets and multisets, which are generalization of ordinary sets. We study fuzzy multiset finite automata (FMFA), which are characterized by the incorporation of vagueness when it comes to the choice of the next state and multiple occurrences of the same input symbol. The resulting automaton is a genaralization of both classical automata and fuzzy automata. We discuss the algebraic characteristics of FMFA sub-automata—separatedness, strongly connectedness, cyclic, directable, and triangular FMFA in terms of equivalence classes induced by an equivalence relation defined on state set of FMFA. Intrestingly, for a given FMFA, a new FMFA can be constructed that is a homomorphic image of the original FMFA. We define different posets structures that can be associated with a given FMFA and show that some of them are upper semilattices and discuss the inter-relationship of a given poset, a finite upper semilattice (FUSL), a FMFA and a posets/FUSL associated with a given FMFA. Finally, we introduce the concept of decomposition of a FMFA in two different ways and characterize the strongly connected, triangular and directable FMFA.

The bioindicator potential of seagrass ecosystems in coastal trace metal monitoring is low for tropical island ecosystems. This study evaluated the bioindicator potential of six seagrass species exposed to anthropogenic trace metal pollution in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) of India. Sediment and seagrass biomass, samples were analyzed for trace metals (Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn) from four locations of ANI exposed to anthropogenic contamination. Geo accumulation Index values indicated moderate trace metal contamination in seagrass sediment. Seagrass trace metal accumulation from sediment was both species-specific and location- specific for ANI. Small seagrass species such as H. ovalis, H. beccarii and H. uninervis accumulated the maximum concentration of six trace metals (Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Zn) in their tissues compared to big seagrass species like T. hemprichii and E. acoroides of ANI. This study indicates leaves of small seagrass and roots of big seagrass species can serve as short- and long-term bioindicators respectively, of coastal trace metal contamination in tropical islands of ANI.

Developing prosperous and inclusive societies requires a reformulation of the business-society nexus toward sustainability. This means that all economically motivated behaviors of firms need to also consider their social and environmental impact, and all social and environmental policies need to also consider their impact on the economy. With the Companies Act 2013, the Indian government adopted a legislative approach to reconfigure the business-society nexus. Mandating what has been considered discretionary elicited an extensive academic debate. We employ Content Configuration Analysis on 70 local and international English-language book chapters, research articles, reports, reviews, and expert commentaries published between 2013 and 2019 to develop a typology of the advantages and disadvantages associated with the Companies Act 2013. We find that, among the large set of arguments for and against the Act, specific arguments extolling its advantages concurrently appear as disadvantages in other texts. This paradox is indicative of the difficulties of satisfying stakeholder expectations, as well as the complexities corporate responsibility programs face in India. By systematizing the opportunities and challenges associated with the Companies Act 2013, we reveal how, similar to China, context and culture influence India’s socioeconomic development trajectory beyond the conventional market economy canon.

Exosomes are nano-sized extracellular vesicles released by cells that contain nucleic acids, proteins, lipids, and other bioactive compounds that play a role in the body's physiological and pathological processes. Exosomes have significant and distinct benefits over synthetic carriers such as liposomes and nanoparticles in the realm of illness diagnostics and therapy due to their endogeneity and heterogeneity. Exosomes are classified as either natural or designed, depending on whether they have been deliberately altered. Natural exosomes are further classified as either animal-derived or plant-derived exosomes. Plant-derived exosome-like nanoparticles (PDENs) are comprised of numerous kinds of bioactive biomolecules. As an alternative cell-free therapeutic strategy, they have the ability to transfer nano-bioactive chemicals to the human body, resulting in diverse anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-tumour effects. This review focuses on the beneficial effects of plant-derived exosomes against a range of inflammatory conditions, including as periodontitis, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), autoimmune skin disorders, and inflammation of the liver, lungs, and intestines. Inflammatory disorders are a major issue because of their widespread influence on both personal health and public healthcare systems. Since these illnesses are persistent, the affected people's quality of life is negatively impacted and long-term morbidity is exacerbated. The complicated interaction of genetic, environmental, and immunological variables in the development of various disorders makes effective prevention and therapy more challenging. Plant exosomes present a promising avenue for developing novel therapeutic strategies against inflammatory diseases, offering unique advantages over other alternatives. In order to exploit this efficient carrier, future research will concentrate on creating a PELNV delivery system with high stability, transdermal volume, and ease of administration. Plant exosomes have the potential to become reliable therapeutic agents for a range of common disorders if they are targeted and generated with interdisciplinary expertise.

The livelihood of most of the fishers in Indian Sundarbans is dependent on Penaeus monodon post larvae fishing. These post larvae collectors are socially backward lacking economic security. The activity of collecting Penaeus monodon post larvae for rearing in aquaculture, destroy other aquatic species. Many other juveniles of shellfish and fin fish were destroyed in the process of collection of Penaeus monodon post larvae. The removal of juveniles before they reach maturity disturbs the ecological chain by hampering breeding processes and may cause extinction of some fish species in the long run. The present study is an attempt to estimate the economic value of juveniles destroyed in the collection of (Penaeus monodon) post larvae. In total 32 species were identified in P.monodon the post larval by-catch. The economic loss is assessed based on estimating biomass by taking a length-weight relationship from published literature. Further, the paper illustrates how does a profit enterprise is linked with natural resource exploitation. The paper explores government policy and nature conservation issues for social justice and effective conservation.In conclusion, suggestions are given to reduce the burden of livelihood on natural resources to the extent of exploitation and to strengthen institution and policy-making considering socio-ecological vulnerabilities of the area.

Current generation witnesses a huge interest in optical waveguide due to their salient feature such as low cost, immune to electromagnetic interference, easy to multiplex, compact size, etc. These features of the optical fibers makes it an useful tool for various sensing applications including medicine, automotive, biotechnology, food quality control, aerospace, physical and chemical monitoring etc. Among all the reported application, the device has been widely exploited to measure the physical and chemical variation in surrounding environment. Optical fiber based temperature sensor plays a crucial role in this decade to detect high fever and tackle COVID like pandemic. Recognizing the major developments in the field of the optical fibers, this article aims to provide recent progress in temperature sensor utilizing several sensing configuration including standard fiber, photonic crystal fiber, and Bragg grating fibers. Additionally, the article also highlights the advantages, limitations, and future possibilities in this area.

Counterfeiting electronic components is a serious problem for the security and reliability of any electronic systems. Unfortunately, the number of counterfeit components has increased considerably after the introduction of horizontal semiconductor supply chain. In this paper, we propose a new method for detecting recycled Flash memory, a major target of the counterfeiters due to its ubiquitous usage. Proposed method is based on measurement of change in Flash array characteristics (such as erase time, program time, fail bit count, etc.) with its usage. We find that erase time is the best metric to distinguish a used Flash chip from a fresh one for the following reasons: (1) erase time shows minimal variation among different fresh memory blocks/chip and (2) erase time increases significantly with usage. We verify our method for a wide range of commercial off the shelf Flash chips from several vendors, technology nodes, storage density and storage type (single-bit per cell and multi-bit per cell). The minimum detectable chip usage varies from 0.05% to 3.0% of its total lifetime depending on the exact details of the chip.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a highly heterogeneous brain tumor with limited treatment options and a poor prognosis. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have emerged as a critical factor in GBM resistance and management, contributing to tumor growth, heterogeneity, and immunosuppression. The transcription factor FOXM1 has been identified as a key player in the progression, spread, and therapy resistance of various cancers, including GBM. In this study, researchers conducted structure-based in silico screening to identify natural compounds that could target the DNA-binding domain (DBD) of the FOXM1 protein. Through molecular docking analyses, identified Silybin B as a potential inhibitor of FOXM1, exhibiting strong interaction with the protein. MD simulations were performed to validate the binding stability of the FOXM1-Silybin B complex. The study provides valuable insights into the potential of Silybin B as a FOXM1 inhibitor and its ability to induce senescence in GBM stem cells. These findings contribute to the development of structure-based design strategies for FOXM1 inhibitors and innovative therapeutic approaches for the treatment of Glioblastoma.

Background: Trichomoniasis is the most common non-viral STI globally and yet is not a reportable disease. Trichomonas Vaginalis is an important source of reproductive morbidity and may increase risk of acquisition and transmission of HIV. WHO and CDC recommend various regimens of Nitro-Imidazoles for treatment. The common Nitro-Imidazoles used for Trichomoniasis are Metronidazole and Tinidazole, which vary in their cost, efficacy and side effect profile and it is relevant to study these factors, for better management of the patients. Objectives: This study aims to compare and study the efficacy, compliance of various treatment regimens, their outcomes and side-effects for Trichomoniasis, among STI clinic attendees in Trinidad. Methods: A clinical trial study was designed and after obtaining the informed consent a routine clinical examination was conducted and the swabs for Trichomoniasis tests were collected for diagnosis from the 692 participants. Out of 692 participants, Eighty two (82) patients with established diagnosis of Trichomonas infection were quasi-randomly treated using different regimens. Compliance to treatment, side effects and outcome were evaluated. Results: The prevalence of the Trichomoniasis in population attending our STI clinic is 11.9% and prevalence of HIV is 9%. Of the total 82 participants for the treatment, 80% were females; nearly 90% of the patients belonged to age group 15-45 years and over 60% were below 30 yrs. Among those diagnosed for Trichomonas vaginalis, 13.3% had associated HIV infection. The compliance with respect to single dose treatment was significantly better than the long duration oral regimen and has significant relation with side effects of the treatment. The outcome is generally better and comparable and shows no significant difference between different treatment regimens used in the study. Conclusions: Metronidazole and Tinidazole are commonly used drugs in various regimens. compliance is better with those treated with Tinidazole and Metronidazole stat, than with other groups. Outcome is comparable between these regimens, especially when combined with other important factors like abstinence and treatment of the partners. The treatment regimens mainly differ in the compliance and side effects profile, which suggests that to improve the compliance the drugs with less side effects, short course regimen would be a preferred choice.

The development in information technology has played an influential role in transforming the restaurant industry services. Therefore, this research’s main agenda is to investigate factors that motivate employees to adopt and continue using information technology services by integrating two famous information system (IS) theories, namely, task technology fit (TTF) and technology continuance theory (TCT). The extant integrative perspective model details the cause-effect relationship between technology adoption and continuance intention. The positivist paradigm forms the basis of this research design, and the approach followed is quantitative research. Using the stratified random sampling technique, the empirical data was collected from 417 restaurant industry employees in the US (United States) on a five-point Likert scale. The PLS-SEM technique was utilized to analyze data while using Smart PLS 3 because of its suitability and wider application currently in the hospitality sector. Results suggest that the recently developed integrated technology continuance research model has considerable influence on predicting pre- and post-adoption behavior with continuance intention for technology usage within the restaurant industry. All hypotheses were found significant except one for the direct association of hedonic motivation and continuance intention of technology adoption. Moreover, the results revealed that factors like perceived security & information privacy and assisting conditions were the most important factors in determining the usage of information technology with continuance intention. Unlike previous research studies that focus majorly only on issues before adoption of informational technology usage, the current focus on investigating continuance intention toward information technology usage by focusing on factors that can also boost post-adoption behavior and pre-adoption usage information technology.

Water borne pathogens present a threat to human health and their disinfection from water poses a challenge, prompting search for newer methods and newer materials. Disinfection of Gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli and Gram-positive coccal bacterium Staphylococcus aureus in aqueous matrix was achieved within 60 and 90 minutes respectively at 35⁰C using solar-photocatalysis mediated by sonochemically synthesized Ag@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles. The efficiency of the process increased with increase in temperature and at 55⁰C the disinfection could be achieved in 45 and 60 min respectively for the two bacteria. A new ultrasound assisted chemical precipitation technique was used for the synthesis of Ag@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles. The characteristics of the synthesized material were established using physical techniques. The material remained stable even at 400o C. Disinfection efficiency of the Ag@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles was confirmed in case of real world water samples from pond, river, municipal tap and was found to be better than that of pure ZnO and TiO2 (Degussa P25). When the nanoparticle based catalyst was recycled and reused for subsequent disinfection experiments, its efficiency did not change remarkably even after three cycles. The sonochemically synthesized Ag@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles have a good potential for application in solar photocatalytic disinfection of water borne pathogens.

Aim: Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) is a prevalent brain cancer which accounts for 80% of cases globally with a noticeably short life expectancy subsequent diagnosis. There are several factors associated with GBM including alterations and over expressions of oncoproteins. Analysis of SEC61G expression in GBM patient’s favor tumour progression, which promotes an environment of oxidative stress, while preventing apoptosis. Methods: In this article using in silico tools including GEPIA2, ULCAN, LinkedOmics, Gene MANIA and mirTEd, we observed the role of SEC61G gene in GBM progression by analyzing the expression, positive correlation associated with metabolic, mitochondrial gene, immune cell infiltration level, gene interaction networks, miRNA association as well as survival analysis. Results: The expression of the mitochondrial, metabolic genes PGLS, PGK1, EIF6, and EIF3K which are involved in redox metabolism and CD63 immunoregulation, as well as other genes that promote tumour progression and invasion, including EGFR, LANCL2, BCL2L12, SEC61G-DT, KDELR1, CDKN2A, IFNA16, IFNA10, and BCL7C were positively correlated with the increased/high expression of SEC61G.We also found hsa-mir-380-5p to be unregulated in glioblastoma phenotypes. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that SEC61G associated redox metabolism, complement system and immunoregulation, as well as miRNA expression can be targeted to develop a potential therapeutic approach for GBM patients.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of healthcare professionals regarding adverse drug reaction [ADR] monitoring and pharmacovigilance [PV] in India. Materials and Methods: It was a questionnaire based cross sectional observational study. Data was collected with the help of data collection Google form that included the demographics and twenty two survey based questions. Data were analysed by using Microsoft Excel sheet, further analysed for results, including frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation. Result: The questionnaire was filled by two hundred ten healthcare professionals in which 52.9 % were male and 47.10% of female. Most of the respondents were pharm d students (50.47%). Out of the total 91.4% responded to the definition of pharmacovigilance correctly. 87.6% participants said all ADR should be reported. 86.20% participants think Pharmacovigilance should be taught in detail to healthcare professionals. Most of the respondents (43.8%) always informed the patients about ADR while prescribing the medicines. Conclusion: Study revealed most of the participants have good knowledge about ADR and pharmacovigilance. Difficult to decide whether ADR occur or not and extra work load being major factors responsible for under reporting.

Antibiotic residues in aquatic environment have the possibility to induce resistance in environmental bacteria, which ultimately might get transferred to pathogens making treatment of diseases difficultand poses a serious threat to public health. If antibiotic residues in the environment can be eliminated or reduced, it has the possibility to contribute antibiotic resistance. Towards this objective, water containing ciprofloxacin was treated with sunlight assisted photocatalysis using Fe doped ZnOnanoparticles for assessing the degradation potential of this system.Parameters like pH, temperature, catalytic dosage were assessed for the optimum performance of the system. To evaluate degradation of ciprofloxacin,both spectrophotometricas well as microbiological (loss of antibiotic activity)methods were employed. 100 mg/L Fe doped ZnO nanoparticle catalyst and sunlight intensity of 120,000–135,000 lux system gave optimum performance at pH 9 at 30 °C and 40 °C. At these conditions spectrophotometric analysis showed complete degradation of ciprofloxacin (10mg/L) by 210 min. Microbiological studies showed loss of antibacterial activity of the photocatalytically treated ciprofloxacin containingwater against Staphylococcus aureus (10⁸ CFU) in 60 min and for Escherichia coli (10⁸ CFU) in 75 min. Thedeveloped system, thus possess a potential for treatment of antibiotic contaminated waters for eliminating/reducing antibiotic residues from environment.

HIV-1 Tat protein interacts with TAR RNA and recruits CDK9/cyclin T1 and other host factors to induce HIV-1 transcription. Thus Tat-TAR RNA interaction, which is unique for HIV-1, represents an attractive target for anti-HIV-1 therapeutics. To target Tat-TAR RNA interaction, we used a crystal structure of TAR RNA with acetylpromazine bound to the bulge of TAR RNA, to dock compounds from Enamine database containing 1.6 million individual compounds. Docking identified 173 compounds that were analyzed for the inhibition of HIV-1 infection. Top ten inhibitory compounds with IC50 ≤ 6 µM were selected and the three least toxic compounds, T6780107 (IC50=2.97 μM), T0516-4834 (IC50=0.2 μM) and T5628834 (IC50=3.46 μM), were further tested for HIV-1 transcription inhibition. Only T0516-4834 compound showed selective inhibition of Tat-induced HIV-1 transcription, whereas T6780107 compound inhibited equally basal and Tat-induced transcription and T5628834 compound only inhibited basal HIV-1 transcription. The T0516-4834 compound also showed strongest inhibition of HIV-1 gag RNA expression and p24 production in CEM T cells infected with HIV-1 IIIB. Of the three compounds, only the T0516-4834 compound disrupted Tat-TAR RNA interaction indicating that it might target TAR RNA. Also, of the three tested compounds, T5628834 but not T6780107 or T0516-4834 disrupted Tat-CDK9/cyclin T1 interaction. Taken together, our study identified novel compound T0516-4834 that disrupted Tat-TAR RNA interaction and inhibited Tat-induced transcription and HIV-1 infection suggesting that this compound might serve as a new lead for anti-HIV-1 therapeutics.

We report diagnosis of Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis Type 2 (CLN2), a rare, hereditary neurodegenerative disease of childhood, in a four and a half year old girl, the first child of non-consanguineous parents with no family history. Despite extensive efforts by the parents, her clinical condition remained undiagnosed and without management, until recently. Our published “Bottom-up Approach”, based on comprehensive and multidisciplinary clinical, pathological, radiographical and genetic evaluations, played key role in diagnosis of the disease. Detailed analyses involving Next Generation Sequencing confirmed a missense variation NC_00011.10:g.6616374C>T (NP_000382.3:p.Arg339Gln; rs765380155) in exon 8 of TPP1 gene. In silico analyses predicted it to be highly pathogenic. Further family screening (including her both unaffected parents and asymptomatic, one year old younger sister) of the identified variation through Sanger Sequencing, revealed a perfect autosomal recessive segregation in the family. This study is the first case report on classic CLN2 from Jammu and Kashmir-India. This study is also indicating the effectiveness of our “Bottom-up Approach” in understanding rare disorders in low resource regions and the importance of timely diagnosis. Like in the proband, had diagnosis been established a bit early, the family might have benefitted at least with reference to their second child through counselling programmes.

Context: COVID-19 pandemic and the Lockdown implemented as a measure to contain the virus spread has taken a toll over the psychological well-being of the people especially the young adults, the confinement along with the environment of a highly infectious pandemic around the induvial are put under great stress.Aims: The current study aims to assess the psychological impact and perceived stress due to COVID-19 lockdown in Young Adult population of India.Settings and Design: It is a cross sectional, observational study.Methods and Material: The survey was conducted using Google forms involving snowball sampling technique which obtained 267 responses in total. (IES-R) and (PSS) scales were used for the study.Statistical analysis used: Descriptive analysis were performed on the sociodemographic parameters and the comparison of means were done by Chi-square test in SPSS Statistic 21.0 (IBM SPSS Statistics, New York, United States). Results: The mean IES-R and PSS scores obtained for the population in this study was 25.64±18.95 and 18.27±6.10 respectively. Out of the 267 respondents in total 61.4% (n=164) of them were males. Maximum of the respondents 62.54%(n=167) belonged to the age group of 18-23 with mean age being 23.14± 2.913. 92.5% of the respondents were unmarried and only 26.6% belonged to the rural part of India. Females, younger individuals were found to have higher IES-R and PSS scores. Conclusions: There is significant psychological burden and stress on the young Indian population with females and younger individuals particularly students are the most vulnerable population.

Objectives: Aim to assess the perceptions of virtual learning among dental residents and faculty and employ Regulatory Focus Theory (RFT) to understand the impact of motivational orientations on virtual learning during COVID pandemic. Methods: 46 dental residents and 10 faculty in Upstate New York participated in the study (June -August 2021). Questionnaires were used to collect demographics, perceptions of virtual learning, burnout, and RFT types (promotion and prevention focus). Multiple regression analyses were used to examine factors associated with perceptions of virtual learning and burnout. Results: Overall, 70% of residents and 44% of faculty found virtual learning effective. Younger residents with less experience preferred virtual learning more than their older, experienced peers. Residents trained outside the U.S. and Canada favored in-person learning more than those trained within. Furthermore, residents with a higher promotion focus score found virtual learning more interactive for didactic courses. Additionally, 52% of residents experienced burnout, with a higher incidence among females (p=0.044). Conclusions: Virtual learning is well-received by dental residents and faculty, with potential for continued use post-pandemic. Future efforts should focus on creating an inclusive and supportive educational environment that meets the motivational and well-being needs of dental residents and faculty.

Klebsiella pneumoniae (Kp) has gained prominence in the last two decades due to its global spread as a multi-drug resistant (MDR) pathogen. Further, Carbapenem-Resistant Kp are emerging at an alarming rate. The objective of this study was (1) to evaluate the prevalence of β-lactamases, especially carbapenemases in Kp isolates from India, (2) determine the most prevalent sequence type (ST) & plasmids, and their association with β-lactamases. Clinical samples of K. pneumoniae (n=65) were collected from various pathology lab, drug susceptibility and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were detected. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was done for (n=22) resistant isolates and WGS analysis was performed using various bioinformatics tools. Additional Indian MDR Kp genomes (n=187) were retrieved using Pathosystems Resource Integration Center (PATRIC) database. Detection of β-lactamase genes, location, plasmid replicons, and ST type of genomes were carried out using CARD, mlplasmids, PlasmidFinder, and PubMLST respectively. All data were analyzed and summarized using iTOL tool. ST231 was highest, followed by ST147, ST2096 & ST14 among Indian isolates. blaAmpH was detected as the most prevalent gene followed by blaCTX-M-15, blaTEM-1. Among carbapenemase genes, blaOXA-232 was prevalent and associated with ST231, ST2096 and ST14, which was followed by blaNDM-5 which was observed to prevalent in ST147, ST395 &ST437. ST231 genomes were most commonly found to carry Col440I and ColKP3 plasmids. ST16 carried mainly ColKP3, and Col (BS512) was abundantly present in ST147 genomes. One Kp isolate with novel MLST profile was identified, which carried blaCTX-M-15, blaOXA-1 and blaTEM-1. ST16 &ST14 from this study, which is mostly dual producer of carbapenem and ESBL genes, could be emerging high-risk clones in India.

Curcumin, as the main active component of Turmeric (Curcuma Longa), has been demonstrated with various bioactivities. However, its potential therapeutic applications are hindered by challenges such as poor solubility and bioavailability, rapid metabolism, and pan-assay interference properties. Recent advancements have aimed to overcome these limitations by developing novel curcumin analogues and modifications. This brief review critically assesses recent studies on synthesising different curcumin analogues, including metal complexes, nano particulates, and other curcumin derivatives, focused on the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects of curcumin and its modified analogues. Exploring innovative curcumin derivatives offers promising strategies to address the challenges associated with its bioavailability and efficacy and valuable insights for future research directions.

Industrial effluents contain contaminants that pose threats to the environment and human health. Bioremediation is an environmentally friendly, sustainable, and cost-effective approach to degrade or transform pollutants using microbial enzymes. Laccase is a versatile enzyme that oxidizes a wide range of substrates, such as dyes, phenolic compounds, pesticides, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), with the consumption of molecular oxygen. Laccase can also remove heavy metals by forming complexes with organic ligands or reducing them to fewer toxic forms. However, the application of laccase in bioremediation is limited by its low production, stability, and specificity. Recombinant technology has been employed to enhance the expression, activity, and stability of laccase in various bacterial hosts. Immobilization techniques have been developed to improve the reusability and stability of laccase in different environmental conditions. This review summarizes the recent developments in the production optimization of recombinant laccase enzymes and their role in the bioremediation of industrial effluents. It also discusses the challenges of laccase-based biocatalytic systems for environmental cleanup.

The concept of omics-based technological approaches has promoted translational research by integrating knowledge from diverse areas to understand their dynamics by exploring the molecular mechanisms underlying various processes paving the way for further improvements in the crops quality by providing sound knowledge on controlling plant diseases. This area is not profoundly investigated a decade back and hence this knowledge has become exceedingly important in modern times as it has got potential for being utilized in crop improvement programs. In this review, the contributions of different omics technologies including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics in understanding and materializing the ways involved in the plant pathogen interaction (PPI) is discussed. Furthermore, opportunities, challenges, and perspectives of omics linked to signaling mechanisms have also been highlighted that are significantly linked to plant-microbe interactions.

Host ribosome-associated scaffold protein Receptor for Activated C Kinase 1 (RACK1) is utilized by a diverse group of human viruses for Internal Ribosomal Entry Sites (IRES) – mediated translation of viral mRNAs. We recently reported inhibition of herpes virus by small molecules targeting the RACK1 functional site. Here, we tested these molecules against HIV-1 and HCV, as HIV-1 contains two potential IRES sites and HCV translation occurs exclusively through IRES. Compounds significantly downregulated activities of HIV-1- and HCV-related dicistronic reporter constructs in transfected HEK293T cells. The compounds also strongly downregulated production of the HIV-1 capsid protein p24 in HIV-infected cells, as well as production of HIV-1 Gag precursor p55 and p55-derived proteins p24 and p17 in cells infected with the HIV-1 virus. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) IRES activities were also significantly inhibited by RACK1 inhibitor compounds. Since a number of human and plant pathogenic viruses are reported to use IRES, the RACK1 compounds can be established as broad host-targeted antivirals.

Background: Cytokines are multifunctional glycoproteins playing a vital role in the tumor microenvironment and in the progression of breast cancer. The immune responses in the tumors restrained by pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine expressions could be influenced by genetic polymorphisms. Hence, the present study evaluated the contribution of IL6 (rs1800797, rs1800796, and rs1800795), and IL18 (rs1946518, rs187238, and rs549908) genotypes and its haplotypes with risk and progression of breast cancer in south Indian population. Methods: The polymorphisms of IL6 gene -597G>A, -572G>C, -174G>C and IL18 gene -607C>A, -137G>C, and 105A>T were genotyped through PCR-RFLP and As-PCR assays in blood DNA of 600 subjects. We have performed haplotype, LD, univariate, multivariate logistic regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses for the obtained data. Results: The frequency of AA genotype & A-allele of IL6 -597G>A, and CC genotype & C allele of IL6 -174G>C polymorphism was higher in breast cancer patients and was found to be significantly associated with TNM staging, late (advanced) stage, metastasis, etc. While, CG and GG genotypes of IL6 -572 C>G polymorphism had a protective role against breast cancer. Further, IL18 -607C>A, -137G>C & 105A>T polymorphisms were found to be associated with lobular carcinoma subtype, PR-ve and HER2+ve breast cancer patients. Perfect LD was observed between all SNPs of IL6 & IL18 genes under study; G-C-C, A-G-G and A-C-C haplotype combination of IL6 genes had conferred 2.09, 2.25 and 4.72 folds risk for breast cancer respectively. In survival analysis, we observed that the C allele of rs 1800795 was found to be significantly associated with 5years overall survival in breast cancer subjects. Conclusions: Overall, our results suggest the importance of genotypic and haplotype analysis of IL6, and IL18 gene variants in progression and risk identification of breast cancer.

The SARS-CoV-2 is a recently identified positive sense single stranded RNA virus and member of the coronavirus family of viruses. It is thought to be the etiological factor for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This virus is thought to have originated from bats and acquired ability of human-to-human transmission. While SARS-CoV-2 is relatively benign, it has infected more than half a million people (as of March 29^th 2020) worldwide and the number of infected people continues to rise. More than 170 countries have reported COVID-19 positive cases. With a mortality rate of less than both the previous coronavirus outbreaks, COVID-19 has (conversely) caused the death of over 33,980 (as of 29^th March, 2020 at 22.00 hours EDT) people worldwide and the number is increasing. Given the enormous impact of this virus on human health and wellbeing and consequent devastating impacts on world trade, economics and quality of life, it is important to understand this virus better and get insight into its pathogenic mechanisms which will aid in devising effective measure to curb its spread and predict future pattern of its interaction with humans. Though very little is known about this SARS-CoV-2 but its mechanisms and patterns of spread can be speculated (with caution, nevertheless) from what we know about its closest relatives SARS-CoV-1 (responsible for SARS-2002 epidemic) and MERS-CoV (responsible for MERS-2012 epidemic). In the present review, we aim at bringing together the coherent and peer reviewed literature about the SARS-CoV-2 and its close relatives and try to understand its infection patterns and reconstruct its pathogenic mechanisms with anecdotes on diagnosis and future directions. We hope that this paper will serve the purpose of being a reliable source of information to scientists, clinicians and general public.

Recent research has implicated the gut microbiota in the development of lymphoma. Dysbiosis of the gut microbial community can disrupt the production of gut microbial metabolites, thereby impacting host physiology and potentially contributing to lymphoma. Dysbiosis-driven release of gut microbial metabolites such as lipopolysaccharides can promote chronic inflammation, potentially elevating the risk of lymphoma. In contrast, gut microbial metabolites, such as short-chain fatty acids, have shown promise in preclinical studies by promoting regulatory T-cell function, suppressing inflammation, and preventing lymphoma. Another metabolite, urolithin A, exhibited immunomodulatory and antiproliferative properties against lymphoma cell lines in vitro. While research on the role of gut microbial metabolites in lymphoma is limited, this article emphasizes the need to comprehend their significance, including therapeutic applications, molecular mechanisms of action, and interactions with standard chemotherapies. The article also suggests promising directions for future research in this emerging lymphoma and gut microbiome investigation field.

Land resources have been under tremendous anthropogenic pressure with the consequence of their degradation. It is therefore necessary that the land resources must be managed effectively for sustainable development. Different from the developed countries, carbon inventories and data bank to monitor carbon sequestration potential of different ecosystems are unavailable in India. Micro-level studies are essential for sustainable land use management for a land scarce nation like India. To achieve the desirable goal of the present study, a total of 33 tree-based land uses were identified from forested and agricultural landscapes. Of these total land uses, five were in forest landscapes and rest in agricultural landscapes categorized into forest tree plantations (8 land uses), agroforestry (nine land uses), commercial crop plantations (six land uses) and fruit orchards (five land uses). A stratified random nested quadrate sampling method was adopted for vegetation analysis of the different land uses. The SOC, biomass and carbon accumulation in the tree-based land uses were significantly different from each other. Mixed forest soil had the highest amount of SOC, primary nutrients, standing biomass carbon, and ecosystem carbon. Positive correlations were observed between SOC, total standing biomass, litter production, and ecosystem carbon. The sequence of best tree based land uses in terms of total SOC (up to 60 cm depth), total plant biomass, total plant biomass carbon and ecosystem carbon was mixed species forest (126.67, 781.21, 390.61 and 517.27) > sole tree species stands in forest landscape (109.71, 192.56, 96.28 and 205.98) > tea plantations (103.19, 77.07, 38.54 and 141.74) > homegardens (90.34, 97.38, 48.69 and 139.02) > mixed plantation of Anthocephalus cadamba + Swietenia macrophylla (60.07, 111.86, 55.93 and 116.02) > Swietenia macrophylla based agroforestry (62.49, 83.82, 41.91 and 104.40) > mixed plantation of Tectona grandis + Milvus migrans (60.0, 85.97, 42.99 and 102.90). Similarly, the order of the major land uses was forest > commercial crop plantation > forest tree plantations > agroforestry > fruit orchards. The overall average ecosystem carbon accumulation in forests was 3.24 times more than the land uses in agricultural landscapes. The ecosystem carbon accumulation in the tree-based land uses in both forest and agricultural landscape was highly variable and was significantly different from each other. Land use conversion from forest to agriculture can reduce more than half of the carbon stock, but converting into homegardens, tree plantations or agroforestry enhanced carbon storage of the land use systems. The present findings can be used as baseline information for developing prediction models for probable effects of different land use, future intervention and sustainable management of land use systems.

Fluorinated compounds and co-enzymes are being widely researched and employed throughout research community because of their versatile physical, chemical and biological properties. In this work, we synthesized NiS-NiO/S-g-C3N4, a highly effective photocatalyst for C(sp3)-F bond activation and the regeneration of coenzyme (1,4-NADH) employing a new and ecologically acceptable route. The obtained photocatalyst exhibited important photocatalytic properties, such as good solar light harvesting ability, suitability of the optical band-gap, and facilitating efficient charge migrations. As a result, the newly designed NiS-NiO/S-g-C3N4 photocatalyst shows the excellent yield for regenerations of 1,4-NADH (51%). Further, a method of combining C(sp3)-F bond activation with photocatalysis has been demonstrated that represents a very powerful and sustainable approach, that can be a major breakthrough for the field of pharmaceutical.

Nanoporous materials, such as Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs), are renowned for their high selectivity as gas adsorbents due to their specific surface area, nanoporosity, and active surface chemistry. A significant challenge for their widespread application is their behavior and reduced gas uptake in wet conditions, attributed to competitive adsorption between gas and water. The current understanding of gas adsorption in wet materials is constrained by studies that utilize only small amounts of powdered porous materials (in the milligram range) within very small reactors (1-5 mL). This leaves a significant gap in knowledge about gas adsorption behaviors in larger reactors and when MOF sample sizes are increased (to the gram scale) for scaling up the process. Additionally, there is a notable dearth of experimental research in situations where MOFs are heavily saturated with water. To address these gaps, this study measures CH4 adsorption in MOFs under conditions of high moisture content, using larger samples of MOFs (in grams) and a large volume reactor. We selected commercially available MOFs, including HKUST-1, ZIF-8, MOF-303, and activated carbon. A high-pressure isotherms (at T = 274.15 K) using volumetric approach were measured to qualitatively compare the moles of gas adsorbed under both dry and wet conditions across different MOFs and weights. Experimental results show that the presence of water led to a decrease in total CH4 mmol adsorption in MOFs, with a more significant decrease observed in hydrophilic MOFs compared to hydrophobic ones. For hydrophilic MOFs, presence of crossover isotherms at crossover pressure provided evidence of water's conversion to hydrate and its positive role in enhancing total gas uptake, which varied among different hydrophilic MOFs. Oversaturated MOFs showed a larger deviation between dry and wet cases at higher pressures. The high-pressure isotherm data confirm the positive role of hydrophilic MOFs in the conversion of water to hydrate in oversaturated MOFs when MOFs sample size is large.

The world is suffering from the Coronavirus pandemic and is undergoing some drastic changes in day to day lives. The survey was conducted to analyze the situation of Pharmacy students in India. What are the types of challenges being faced by them during this lockdown due to the Pandemic COVID-19 and how are they getting adapted to the situations? A cross sectional survey was conducted via snowball sampling technique in which 226 participants submitted their response. The chief issue of concern to students was the change in the study pattern which has made the process much difficult for both the faculties and students. Online examination was also be reported as a point of concern. The normal life that we used to have is not acceptable in today’s scenario, hence, the institutions have to make the students more comfortable and adaptable towards the online studies and make the most out of it.

We attempted to understand the cervical cancer patient samples through Whole Exome Sequencing. We derived the variants from raw reads via our in-house benchmarked pipeline and validated the variants by IGV. This is the first cervical cancer exome data from the Indian cohort. Background: Cervical cancer (CC) is caused mainly by persistent infections of high-risk HPV, reduced parity, and factors like a decrease in average socioeconomic levels. We keep this because no cervical cancer exome data is available from the Indian cohort. Methods: The CC patient clinical samples were initially subjected to preparation using Qiagen DNA extraction, quantified, and the library preparation using the Agilent target enrichment system. Further, exome capture by Illumina platform (100X), quality check, alignment, and variant calling followed by the downstream analysis and finally visualized by IGV. Results: We observed a large number of SNVs or mutations from an Indian perspective, such as KMT2C, OR4M1, PDPR2P, EPHB1, FAS, OPCML, MGST1, C1QTNF9, HS6ST3, OR4K2, PRPSAP2, KCNJ12, FIGNL1, SFXN1, BAGE2, ARVCF, NAMPT variants of significance, unknown significance and possibly significant are reported. Conclusion: For the first time, KMT2C is observed as a novel potent mutation and pathogenic, showing the variant position at (7:152265091, T>A, SNV 62478356) from the Indian context in CC. Further, we visualized and validated the mutations using the Integrative Genomic Viewer (IGV) browser. Finally, we discuss the inherent challenges through KMT2C mutations.

The paper focuses on the application of a multilevel, integrative and territorial approach to the protection of cultural heritage through planning instruments in Serbia. It points out the problems of the sectoral approach and discusses international recommendations that can be integrated into the planning methodology. The case study is the area of Djerdap National Park, which has an already established international and national importance. The research suggests that the cultural heritage in the area, with the exception of the Roman limes, is still recognized at the level of individual localities. The study emphasizes the importance of aligning all levels of governance to safeguard the whole spatial entity rather than focusing solely on its particular areas. The interna-tional and national importance of the planning area contributes to the strengthening of awareness of heritage and its institutional protection. However, the vitality of the area, which is key to its sustainable development, comes from the local level. Planning documents contribute to the inte-gration of local values and local communities into development programs and projects.

Glycosidic linkage analysis was conducted on the unfractionated polysaccharides in the alcohol-insoluble residues (AIRs) prepared from six red seaweeds (Gracilariopsis sp., Prionitis sp., Mastocarpus papillatus, Callophyllis sp., Mazzaella splendens, and Palmaria palmata) using GC-MS/FID analysis of partially methylated alditol acetates (PMAAs). The cell walls of P. palmata primarily contained mixed-linkage xylans and small amounts of sulfated galactans and cellulose. In contrast, the unfractionated polysaccharides of the other five species were rich in galactans displaying diverse 3,6-anhydro-galactose and galactose linkages with varied sulfation patterns. Different levels of cellulose were also observed. This glycosidic linkage method offers advantages for cellulose analysis over traditional monosaccharide analysis that is known for underrepresenting glucose in crystalline cellulose. Relative linkage compositions calculated from GC-MS and GC-FID measurements showed that anhydro sugar linkages generated more response in the latter detection method. This improved linkage workflow presents a useful tool for studying polysaccharide structural variations across red seaweed species. Furthermore, for the first time, relative linkage compositions from GC-MS and GC-FID measurements, along with normalized FID and total ion current (TIC) chromatograms without peak assignments, were analyzed using principal component analysis (PCA) as a proof-of-concept demonstration of the technique's potential to differentiate various red seaweed species.

Background: Educating college students about the importance of good sleep habits could lead to the adoption of healthier sleep routines, including sufficient sleep duration and sleep quality. The current pre-post study examines the impact of completing a sleep education program called “Sleep 101” on (1) sleep hygiene practices, (2) sleep quality, and (3) weekday and weekend sleep behaviors among college students. “Sleep 101” is an interactive online course developed to educate college students about the importance of sleep by addressing basic sleep physiology, the impact of sleep on mood, academic and physical performance, the interactions between sleep and various substances, and common sleep disorders. Methods: 338 college students were recruited from a midsized public university in the US and invited to participate in “Sleep 101”, of which 25 participants completed the baseline and post-intervention questionnaire. The Sleep Hygiene Index (SHI) was utilized to evaluate sleep hygiene practices, while standard questions were employed to assess weekday and weekend sleep behaviors and overall sleep quality. Results: Those who completed the study demonstrated a significant increase in weekday sleep duration and were less likely to engage in negative prior bedtime activities. In addition, 40% of those who completed baseline and post-intervention assessments noticed improvements in their sleep quality. Conclusion: These findings suggest that a brief online program is beneficial in improving sleep behaviors among college and could be a scalable approach to addressing current sleep issues and preventing future sleep problems in college students.

The profile of secondary metabolites occurring in apple cuticular layer is not only characteristic for particular apple cultivar, but also dynamically reflects various external factors in growing environment. In this study, the possibility to authenticate apple samples based on analysis of their cuticular layer extracts was investigated. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS/MS) was employed for obtaining metabolomic fingerprints. In total, 274 authentic apple samples, four cultivars harvested within the seasons 2020 to 2022 in the Czech Republic and Poland were analysed. The generated complex data processed by univariate and multivariate statistical methods enabled to build classification models for discrimination of apple cultivars as well as their geographical origin. The models showed very good performance in differentiation of Czech and Polish samples for three of four cultivars: ‘Gala’, ‘Golden Delicious’ and ‘Idared’, moreover, the validity of the models was verified over harvest seasons. The diagnostic markers, besides metabolites of triterpene biosynthetic pathway, mainly represented wax esters. ‘Jonagold’, which is known to be susceptible to mutations, was the only cultivar for which the unambiguous classification of geographical origin was not possible.

Strawberry root rot caused by Neopestalotiopsis clavispora is one of the main diseases of strawberry and significantly impacts the yield and quality of strawberry fruit. There are now no effective control techniques available except for fungicide sprays, which may directly impact consumers. Biological control is becoming an alternative method for the control of plant diseases to replace or decrease the application of traditional synthetic chemical fungicides. Trichoderma is widely used as a biological agent for controlling strawberry root rot. In order to provide resources for screening the highly effective biocontrol fungus for controlling strawberry root rot caused by Neopestalotiopsis clavispora, the biocontrol mechanism,the control effects of Trichoderma asperellum CMT10 against strawberry root rot and growth-promoting effects on strawberry seedlings were investigated by plate culture, microscopy observation and root drenching methods.The results showed that CMT10 had obvious competitive, antibiotic and hyperparasitism effects on Neopestalotiopsis clavispora CMGF3. The CMT10 could quickly occupy nutritional space, and the inhibition rates of CMT10 against CMGF3 in confrontation culture on 7 d was 65.49%. The inhibition rates of volatile metabolite and fermentation metabolite produced by CMT10 against CMGF3 were 79.67% and 69.84%, respectively. The mycelium of strain CMT10 can act as hyperparasites by making contacting, winding and penetrating hyphae of CMGF3. Pot experiment showed that the biocontrol efficacy of CMT10 on strawberry root rot caused by Neopestalotiopsis clavispora was 63.00%. CMT10 had obvious promotion effect on strawberry growth, the plant height, root length, total fresh weight, root fresh weight, stem fresh weight and root dry weight, with the promotion rates were 20.09%, 22.39%, 87.11%, 101.58%, 79.82% and 72.33%, respectively. Overall, this study showed the ability of Trichoderma asperellum CMT10 to control strawberry root rot and their potential to develop as novel biocontrol agents to replace chemical fungicides for eco-friendly, sustainable agriculture.

Curcumin (CUR) is a phytochemical with potent anticancer activities as demonstrated by both preclinical and clinical studies. CUR bioformulations, including loading in biodegradable polymers, have been explored to increase CUR’s solubility and chemical stability, control its release, and improve its delivery to cancer cells. In this study, copolymers comprising poly (L-lactide)-poly (ethylene glycol)-poly (L-lactide) (PLA-PEG-PLA) and poly (ethylene glycol)-poly (L-lactide)-poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG-PLA-PEG) were designed and synthesized to assess and compare their curcumin delivery capacity and inhibitory potency on MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Molecular dynamics simulations indicated that PLA-PEG-PLA has a higher propensity to interact with the cell membrane and more negative free energy, suggesting it is the better carrier for cell membrane penetration. Our characterization indicated that the microsphere copolymers were synthesized successfully. Of the two formulations, PLA-PEG-PLA experimentally exhibited better results, with an initial burst release of 17.5%, followed by a slow, constant release of the encapsulated drug up to 80%. PLA-PEG-PLA-curcumin showed a significant increase in cell death in MCF-7 cancer cells (IC50 = 23.01 ± 0.85 µM) based on the MTT assay. These data were consistent with gene expression studies of Bax, Bcl2, and hTERT which showed that PLA-PEG-PLA-CUR induced apoptosis more efficiently in these cells. Our study integrates in vitro and in silico approaches to identify an optimal co-polymer for the delivery of CUR to cancer cells.

Apis mellifera, especially weak ones, are highly vulnerable to Carpoglyphus lactis mites, which can rapidly infest and consume stored pollen, leading to weakened colonies and potentially colony collapse. This study aimed to ascertain and investigate the prevalence of this mite in honeybee colonies across 9 provinces in the Republic of Korea (ROK). A total of 615 honeybee colonies were collected, from 66 apiaries during the spring and 58 apiaries during the summer of 2023. A 1,242 bp segment of the the Cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene was amplified using the polymerase chain reaction method. The detection levels of C. lactis in the honeybees were compared between winter and summer. Based on the COI sequence analysis, the nucleotide sequence similarity of C. lactis mites isolated in the ROK with those from China (NC048990.1) was found to be 99.5%, and with those from the United Kingdom (KY922482.1) was 99.3%. This study is the first report of C. lactis in Korean apiaries. The findings in this study demonstrate a significantly higher detection rate in winter, which is 4.1 times greater than that in summer (p &lt; 0.001). Furthermore, the results underscore the usefulness of molecular diagnostic techniques for detecting C. lactis mites.

COX II containing a dual core CuA active site is one of the three core subunits of mitochondrial Cco, which plays a significant role in the physiological process. In this report, the full-length cDNA of COXⅡ gene was cloned from Sitophilus zeamais, which had an ORF of 684 bp encoding 227 amino acids residues. The predicted COXⅡ protein had a molecular mass of 26.2 kDa with pI value of 6.37, and multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis indicated that Sitophilus zeamais COXⅡ had high sequence identity 78.51% with the COXⅡ of other insect species, especially similarity to sitophilus oryzae. This gene was subcloned into the prokaryotic expression vector pET-32a, and induced by IPTG in E.coli Transetta (DE3) expression system. Finally the COXⅡ with 6-His tag was purified using affinity chromatography with Ni²⁺-NTA agarose. WB showed the recombinant COXⅡ was about 44 kD, and the concentration of fusion protein was 50μg/mL. UV-spectrophotometer and infrared spectrometer analysis showed that recombinant COXⅡ could catalyze the oxidation of substrate Cytc, and influenced by AITC. It was found that AITC could form a hydrophobic region with COXⅡ protein via molecular docking, besides, a sulfur atom of AITC structure could form a length of 2.9 Å hydrogen bond with Leu-31. These results will provide valuable information for elucidating the role of COXⅡ in Sitophilus zeamais responses to AITC, meanwhile, it will helpful to carry out a point mutation in AITC binding sites for the future research.

The properties of the annual, semiannual and triennial oscillations (AO, SAO and TO) in the middle atmosphere have been investigated using the TIMED/SABER temperature data. The Lomb-Scargle and wavelet spectra were used to determine the dominant oscillations in the background temperature field. The AO is prominent at the mid-latitudes. The AO amplitudes present an asymmetry between the two Hemispheres, being larger in the mesosphere than in the stratosphere. The SAO dominates the tropical regions, with three amplitude maxima at altitudes of 45, 75, and 85 km. The SAOs in the upper mesosphere (75 km) are out of phase with those in the mesopause (85 km) in the tropical regions, which can generate an enhancement of 11 K at each equinox, contributing to the lower mesospheric inversion layer. The TO is significant in the tropical region, with amplitude being maximum at 35, 45 and 85 km. Result shows that there may be potential interaction by the TO with SAO at 85km at the equator. The relation between ENSO and TO has also been discussed. The ENSO signal may modulate the amplitude of the TO, mainly in the lower stratosphere. The real origin of the TO may lie in the wave-mean-flow interaction.

This paper is focused on typical rural settlements in the Stara Planina Mountain area in Serbia. They are distinguished by their authenticity, identity and character, and they have still not been destroyed by inappropriate development as is the case in some other mountain areas in Serbia, where the effects of urbanization, globalization and homogenization are obvious. Consequently, there is a need to prevent these effects in mountain areas where there is a threat of disbalance between development and the inherited natural and cultural values. The paper starts from several important concepts that relate contemporary approaches to cultural heritage preservation, place morphology and planning future development. The concept definitions from recent documents from related fields are used. These concepts are then applied to the area of Stara Planina Mountain and its rural settlements. The necessity for an integrative approach to planning this area with significant natural and anthropogenic potential is pointed out, including its integration into international programs of sustainable development.

The research reported on this paper was aimed at improving the overall efficiency of a PDO certified artisanal cheese production process. Being a PDO certified foodstuff by the EU, it is considered to have properties and qualities determined by the geographical environment in which is made, with its production taking place in a specific and determined geographical location, in this case the Serra da Estrela region. In that sense, the authors conducted a mapping according to a systemic perspective of the processes involved in the context of manufacturing and distribution of certified Serra da Estrela cheese. Numerous methods were used throughout the process, such as a systemic design analysis, and techniques derived from ethnographic methods, which led to the collection of data in the field and consequently provided the immersion of the researcher in genuine work situations. Critical points were identified and emphasized in the systemic map with the purpose of encouraging initiatives to address and overcome the gaps and inefficiencies detected. The systemic design analysis triggered the development of design work. Observations following an ethnographic approach identified ergonomic risks in cheese making during the process of cutting excess chips, fostering the emergence of musculoskeletal disorders at the wrist. A tool that fits best to the task at hand was developed. A prototype of the new tool enabled collecting feedback from use in the work context, in order to inform product development. The domains of agricultural production and microbiology, considering the specific microorganisms developed trough the ripening process of the cheese, turned out to be aspects of high importance for the issue under focus, contributing to a broader understanding of the ripening process and its risks, simultaneously improving the efficiency and success of cheese production. If it were not for the systemic analysis, which served as a link between the boundaries of distinct domains such as the risk of microorganism contamination, ergonomics, energy efficiency, legislation and regulation policies, transportation challenges and economic viability, approached throughout the research. Simultaneously creating bridges between them, the various problems might not have been detected in the first place, as they are usually addressed in specialized disciplines, predetermined by the restrictions of each specific area of knowledge. As a consequence of the development of this research, which was based on an analysis that sought to establish possible connections between various disciplines and tried to constantly maintain a holistic perspective, making new connections and observing the issues from a new angle, apart from the already established methodologies. All this allowed to lay out the seeds for the development of a plan to tackle the critical points identified by the systemic analysis reported in this paper.

Promoting green development has become an important way to optimize the ecological and economic structure and promote sustainable development. The Yangtze River Economic Belt is an important economic corridor in China, and it remains to be examined whether the implementation of environmental regulations has enhanced the green total factor productivity (GTFP) of cities. This paper calculates the green total factor productivity of 107 cities within the Yangtze River Economic Belt by using the super-efficient SBM model and the GML index with Chinese city panel data from 2007-2019 and measures the intensity of environmental regulations through textual analysis. The bidirectional fixed-effects model constructed in this paper suggests an inverted U-shaped relationship between environmental regulation and GTFP, which is confirmed by a series of robustness tests. Green technology innovation and advanced industrial structure play a mechanism role in this. In regions with lower levels of green technology and industrial structure, the inverted U-shaped relationship between environmental regulation and green total factor productivity is more significant. In addition, the phenomenon of GTFP rising and then falling because of environmental regulation is more obvious in cities in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River and outside the urban agglomerations. Therefore, when formulating environmental regulation policies, it is necessary to balance the relationship between economic development and environmental protection and harmonize the environment and economic development of the entire Yangtze River Basin.

The wetlands in northeastern Bangladesh are home to some of the most prolific and valuable ecosystems on the planet, offering a wide range of benefits to both the local and wider communities. A limited number of research on this topic have been carried out in various wetlands in coastal hilsa, but none have been located in the northeastern region of Bangladesh. Thus, the goal of this study was to better understand the most commercially relevant species (anadromous hilsa) in northeastern Bangladesh as well as to assess the wetland ecosystem services more thoroughly with the contribution of their fish genetic resources. In addition to laboratory studies, fieldwork was done in the fishing settlements along the Surma River, Hakaluki Haor, and Tanguar Haor. The study classified 77 fish species into 21 subcategories of ecosystem services, of which 56% were not threatened, 17% were vulnerable, and 10% were highly endangered. The species Hilsa was found to be the most economically significant, accounting for 1% of the GDP overall. The study determined if the hilsa stock of the examined wetlands maintains a single or several subpopulations in comparison to other parts of the country when they migrate from saline water to northeastern Bangladesh (freshwater). But when compared to other groups, the FST score was between 0.000 to 0.017, indicating that the populations are identical and that there is genetic material sharing between them. Additionally, these statistics imply that the Sylhet haor and adjacent river systems contain a single stock of Hilsa fish. Nevertheless, a number of stresses and risks, including overexploitation, illicit and destructive fishing, siltation, and natural disasters like flash floods, have been linked to changes in the supply of hilsa and other ecosystem services. This study also emphasizes the necessity of policy attention and research to address the concerns.

In this paper, we introduce a specialized, fully automated experimental arrangement designed for assessing the effectiveness of augmented and virtual reality technologies in healthcare setting and explore its design principles focusing on depth sensor characterization. The main goal of this project is to establish a robust benchtop platform for the quantitative evaluation of extended reality technologies in a controlled environment, emphasizing the practical assessment of augmented reality head-mounted devices. We outline a design concept and considerations for an experimental configuration aimed at creating a realistic testing environment. This apparatus comprises an observation platform mounted on a three-degree-of-freedom motorized system and a test phantom stage. Focusing on real-case scenarios, we utilized a range of sensors, including readily available range-sensing cameras and commercial augmented reality headsets, such as the Intel RealSense L515 LiDAR camera, mounted on the motion control system. The setup enabled automated data collection and facilitates controlled assessments and validation of various facets of augmented reality technologies, including object, hand, and head tracking, as well as static and dynamic image registration. This paper describes the system architecture, the process of automated data collection, and presents several evaluation studies conducted with this setup, providing insights into the quality and temporal noise associated with static or moving objects or observers in augmented reality applications.

Tumor microenvironment (TME) is composed of various cellular components such as tumor cells, stromal cells including fibroblasts, adipocytes, mast cell, lymphatic vascular cells and infiltrating immune cells, macrophages, dendritic cells and lymphocytes. The intricate interplay between these cells influences tumor growth, metastasis and therapy failure. Significant advancements in breast cancer therapy have resulted in a substantial decrease in mortality. However, existing cancer treatments frequently result in toxicity and nonspecific side effects. Therefore, improving targeted drug delivery and increasing the efficacy of drugs are crucial for enhancing the treatment outcome and reducing the burden of toxicity. In this review, we provided an overview of how tumor and stroma-derived osteopontin (OPN) plays a key role in regulating the oncogenic potential of various cancers including breast. Next, we have dissected the signalling network by which OPN regulates tumor progression through interaction with selective integrins and CD44 receptors. This review addresses the latest advancement in role of various splice variants of OPN in cancer progression and OPN-mediated tumor-stromal interaction, EMT, CSCs enhancement, immunomodulation, metastasis, chemoresistance, metabolic reprogramming and further suggest that OPN might be a potential therapeutic target and prognostic biomarker for the evolving landscape of cancer management.

To conduct high-precision and high-resolution numerical simulation of complex flow structures in turbomachinery, a high-order finite volume weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO) scheme for the large eddy simulation (LES) is improved and embedded into the three-dimensional viscous unsteady CFD solver NUAA-Turbo. Firstly, the spectral characteristics and unsteady convergence of the improved WENO scheme are studied. Compared with the classical WENO scheme, the improved WENO scheme has better dissipation and dispersion characteristics and faster convergence speed. Then, the coefficient CW of the Wall-Adapting Local Eddy-viscosity (WALE) model is calibrated by decaying homogeneous isotropic turbulence (DHIT) test case. Finally, the scheme is applied to conduct high-precision LES calculations of turbulent boundary layer flow, supersonic compression corner flow, and low-pressure turbine cascade separation flow. The numerical simulation results show that this WENO scheme has excellent shock wave capture ability and turbulence resolution and can capture more flow field details with less mesh size, greatly reducing the computational cost and laying a foundation for large-scale engineering application of LES.

To secure logic circuits against the illegal copying the insertion of the so-called key bit inputs using XOR/XNOR gates has been proposed in . The inserted gates modify (lock) the behavior of the original circuit and only the correct choice of the secret key bits guarantees the equivalent behaviour of the locked circuit to the original circuit. To break this kind of security, i.e. to find the secret key bits, there was a SAT solver based attack proposed in . The aim of this work is to experimentally verify this attack on several locked circuits with various number of primary inputs and outputs and with various number of gates. Except for the random placement of the key gates we evaluate also the positioning with chaining elimination. The obtained and presented results show that we were able to unlock 10 of 11 circuits within few minutes on a common PC.

Intermetallic compounds are increasingly being expected to utilize in tribological environments, but to date the works are hindered by insufficient ductility at low and medium temperature. This paper presents a novel multiphase intermetallic alloy with the chemical composition of Mo-40Ni-13Si (at.%). Microstructure characterization reveals that a certain amount of ductile Mo phases formed during the solidification process of ternary Mo-Ni-Si alloy melt, which is undoubtedly beneficial to the ductility improvement of intermetallic alloy. Tribological properties of the designed alloy, including wear resistance, friction coefficient and metallic tribological compatibility, were evaluated under dry sliding wear test conditions at room temperature. Results suggested that the multiphase alloy possesses an excellent property for room-temperature wear applications, which is attributed to the unique microstructural features and thereby good combination in hardness and ductility. The corresponding wear mechanism is also reported by observing the worn surface, subsurface and wear debris of alloy, which to be found is soft abrasive wear.

With the integrated development of the Internet, wireless sensor technology, cloud computing, and mobile Internet, there has been a lot of attention given to research about and applications of the Internet of Things. A Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is one of the important information technologies in the Internet of Things; it integrates multi-technology to detect and gather information in a network environment by mutual cooperation, using a variety of methods to process and analyze data, implement awareness, and perform tests. This paper mainly researches the localization algorithm of sensor nodes in a wireless sensor network. Firstly, a multi-granularity region partition is proposed to divide the location region. In the range-based method, the RSSI (Received Signal Strength indicator, RSSI) is used to estimate distance. The optimal RSSI value is computed by the Gaussian fitting method. Furthermore, a Voronoi diagram is characterized by the use of dividing region. Rach anchor node is regarded as the center of each region; the whole position region is divided into several regions and the sub-region of neighboring nodes is combined into triangles while the unknown node is locked in the ultimate area. Secondly, the multi-granularity regional division and Lagrange multiplier method are used to calculate the final coordinates. Because nodes are influenced by many factors in the practical application, two kinds of positioning methods are designed: the unknown node is in the positioning unit or not. When the unknown node is on the side of the positioning unit, we use the method of vector similarity. Moreover, we use the centroid algorithm to calculate the ultimate coordinates of unknown node. When the unknown node is not on the side of the positioning unit, we establish a Lagrange equation containing the constraint condition to calculate the first coordinates. Furthermore, we use the Taylor expansion formula to correct the coordinates of the unknown node. In addition, this localization method has been validated by establishing the real environment.

The electroencephalogram (EEG) is a record of brain activity. Brain Computer Interface (BCI) technology formed by the EEG signal has become one of the hotspots at present. How to extract the feature signal of EEG is the most basic research of BCI technology. In this paper, A new method of recognizing fatigue, conscious, concentrated state of human brain is proposed by the combination of discrete wavelet transform and the neural network based on EEG signal. First of all, the law signal is preprocessed by the wavelet denoising method because the law EEG signal contains a large number of high frequency noise, which is decomposed into multi-layer high frequency signal and low frequency signal. thus, δ wave, θ wave, α wave, β wave are obtained by the wavelet transform. And then, frequency band energy of the different wave is regards as the feature signal of EEG. In the experiment, the feature signal is classified by radial basic function (RBF) and annealed chaotic competitive learning network (ACCLN). RBF and ACCLN networks are trained with 500 sets of sample data and are tested by 100 sets of samples in different mental states. The experimental results show that the average accuracy of RBF network under three conditions are 88.75%, 88.25%, 88.5%, respectively, and the correct rate of ACCLN network is 97%, 98%, 98%, respectively.

Early discharge after childbirth has led to a rise in neonatal readmission, becoming a major concern in recent decades. Our research aimed to identify the risk factors and incidence of neonatal readmission, as well as explore preventive measures. Our study at the Clinical Hospital of Pediatrics in Ploiești, Romania included 108 neonates admitted during the neonatal period. This accounted for 2.06% of all admissions (5226). The most prevalent cases were malnutrition (25%), fever (20.3%) and bronchiolitis (17.5%). Diarrhea and infectious gastroenteritis were also observed (14.8%), along with acute rhinoconjunctivitis (9.2%) and late onset sepsis (3.7%). No deaths were recorded. The most significant characteristics identified were number of children (p&lt;0.001) and age at maternity discharge (p&lt;0.001). By following the prevention rules, malnutrition, feeding errors, and infections can be avoided. This includes practicing proper hand hygiene for both mothers and medical staff, as well as educating and demonstrating to mothers the benefits of breastfeeding. In addition, all newborns discharged from the maternity ward should benefit from follow-up at 7-10 days of life. Our results confirm the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary team and endorse promoting breastfeeding. Implementing quality control measures and regularly evaluating the surveillance program will help improve its effectiveness.