In the last decade, the application of non-Saccharomyces yeasts in oenology as a natural tool to obtain wine diversification and higher quality has aroused great interest. In this work, three M. pulcherrima strains, isolated from vineyard, were characterized through the evaluation of their main technological properties, antimicrobial activity and specific enzymatic activities (β-glucosidase, β-lyase, polygalacturonase and protease). The M. pulcherrima strains did not produce any inhibition against S. cerevisiae, while they were able to exert an antimicrobial action against some unwanted bacteria and yeasts frequently present in grape must and potentially causing alteration of wines. After this preliminary screening, M. pulcherrima AS3C1 has been selected to be used in the winemaking of red grape Vitis vinifera cv. Aglianico on a pilot scale. The effect of sequential inoculation of M. pulcherrima AS3C1 with a commercial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was verified using for comparison a single inoculum with S. cerevisiae and a spontaneous fermentation. Our results showed a higher concentration of anthocyanins and catechins in wines obtained by sequential inoculation of M. pulcherrima AS3C1 and S. cerevisiae. On the basis of the data obtained, M. pulcherrima AS3C1 possesses an enzymatic profile and some oenological properties that could contribute positively to the definition of the chemical composition of wines, suggesting its possible use for red winemaking processes.

Delaying the onset of laminar-turbulent transition is an attractive method in reducing skin friction drag, especially on streamlined bodies where Tollmien-Schlichting instabilities are the dominating mechanism for transition. Miniature vortex generators (MVGs) offer an effective approach to attenuate these instabilities by generating counter-rotating vortex pairs. They are placed in pairs within an array and resemble small winglet-type elements. The conventional methodology involves adjusting MVG parameters and conducting computationally expensive DNS and/or downstream stability analyses to assess their effectiveness. However, analyzing the vortex parameters of MVG-generated vortices can potentially guide a more targeted approach in modifying MVG parameters and identifying critical factors for transition delay. Therefore, this study investigates changes in three primary MVG parameters, namely inner distance, periodicity and height, and utilizes computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis to create a dataset that examines the characteristics of the generated counter-rotating vortex pairs and their potential in drag reduction. The objective is to establish correlations among these parameters and their influence on delaying transition.

Sustainable manufacturing practices are becoming increasingly necessary due to the growing concerns regarding climate change and resource scarcity. Consequently, material recycling technologies have gradually become preferred over conventional processes. This study aimed to recycle waste polylactic acid (PLA) from household-disposed cups and lids to create 3D-printed parts and promote sustainable manufacturing practices. To achieve this, the current study utilised virgin and post-consumer PLA (sourced from household waste) blends. The PC-PLA wastes were shredded and sorted by size with the aid of a washing step, resulting in a filament with a 1.70 ± 0.5 mm diameter without fragmentation or dissolution. A 50:50 wt.% blend of virgin PLA (vPLA) and PC-PLA was selected as the standard recycling percentage based on previous research and resource conservation goals. The study investigated the impact of three 3D printing parameters (layer height (LH), infill density (I), and nozzle temperature (NT))on the quality of 3D-printed parts using a three-level L9 Taguchi orthogonal array. The findings revealed that blending PC-PLA with vPLA led to significant improvements in the tensile, flexural, and impact strengths by 18.40%, 8%, and 9.15%, respectively, compared to those of recycled PLA. This conclusion was supported by the investigation of the fracture surface area, which revealed fractographic features associated with printing parameters, such as plastic deformation and interfilament debonding. An ANOVA analysis revealed a positive influence of larger layer height and high nozzle temperature on the mechanical properties. Subsequently, the optimal printing parameters (LH: 0.3 mm, I: 100%, and NT: 215 °C) were determined using the S/N ratio, and a confirmation test using the optimum printing parameters exhibited a strong correlation with statistically predicted outcomes. Finally, the study used optimum printing parameters to fabricate 100% post-consumer recycled PLA 3D printed parts, demonstrating their potential for low-strength applications. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that virgin and post-consumer recycled PLA blended filament for fabricating 3D printed components is an effective way to support plastic recycling in the context of a circular economy.

The antioxidant properties and polyphenol content of some selected aromatic plants grown in Greece were studied. Plants were refluxed with 60% methanol after acid hydrolysis. The phenolic substances were quantified by HPLC-DAD. The antioxidant capacity of the extracts was determined with the Rancimat test using sunflower oil as substrate. Free radical scavenging activity was measured using the stable free radical 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). Results were compared with standard BHT and ascorbic acid. Total phenol concentration of the extracts was estimated with Folin-Ciocalteu reagent using gallic acid as standard.

Consumption of refined foods and beverages high in sugar make the teeth susceptible to the formation of biofilm, and lead to dental caries and diseases of the oral cavity such as periodontitis and periodontal disease. The aim of the present study was to determine the ability of selected probiotics to inhibit growth and biofilm formation by the cariogenic bacterium Streptococcus mutans in vitro. We screened strains of latic acid bacteria (LAB) (n=120) from the Bioresources Collection and Research Center (BCRC), saliva of healthy adults and infant stool. The antimicrobial activity of LAB in vitro was evaluated by agar spot culture and co-culture of the S. mutans strains. We determined the effect of heating and dilution factors (2- and 4-fold) on the antagonistic activity of LAB. Antagonistic substances in the spent culture suspensions (SCS) of LAB were precipitated by extraction with ammonium sulphate and chloroform to characterise the protein and lipophilic fractions. Results of co-culturing show that the SCS of the three LAB strains (Lactobacillus pentosus 13-1, 13-4 and Lactobacillus crispatus BCRC 14618) subjected to heat treatment showed significantly high antimicrobial activity. We found that substances produced by L. pentosus 13-4 which have the potential to exhibit antimicrobial properties might be lipophilic proteins. Additionally, we infer that the mechanism of reducing biofilm formation by Lactobacillus strains is associated with sucrose-dependent cell–cell adhesion and the gtfC level of glucosyltransferases (Gtfs) in the biofilm. Native LAB strains screened in our study may be used in chewing gums and other processed foods for preventing tooth decay.

Capulus danieli, a distinct member of Capulidae, exhibits a unique ecological behaviour by attaching and drilling onto the pecten, distinguishing itself from other gastropods. Herein, we present the first characterisation of the mitochondrial genome of Capulus danieli. The results showed that the genome spans 15600 base pairs, with an A + T content of 71.12% and a G + C content of 28.88%. Within this genetic makeup, we identified 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, and 2 ribosomal RNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close evolutionary relationship between Capulus danieli and members of the Ficoidea superfamily. The divergence time estimation suggested that Capulus danieli diverged approximately 52.29 million years ago. These findings significantly contribute to our understanding of the evolutionary history and genetic architecture of Capulus danieli, shedding light on its unique ecological adaptations to the marine environment.

To investigate the effect of Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) addition and consequently porosity, two different sets of membranes are manufactured, since PVP is a widely used poring agent which has an impact on the mechanical properties of the membrane material. The first set (PAN 1) includes PAN and the necessary solvent while the second set (PAN 2) is made of PAN and PVP. These membranes are put through several characterisation processes including tensile testing. The obtained data are used to model the static behaviour of the membranes with different geometries, but similar loading and boundary conditions that represent their operating conditions. This modelling process is undertaken by using finite element method. The main idea is to investigate how geometry affects the load-carrying capacity of the membranes. Alongside membrane modelling, their materials are modelled with representative elements with hexagonal and rectangular pore arrays (RE) to understand the impact of porosity on the mechanical properties. Exploring the results, the best geometry is found as the elliptic membrane with the aspect ratio 4 and the better RE as the hexagonal array which can predict the elastic properties with an approximate error of 12%.

Gas flaring is a disposal process widely used in the oil extraction and processing industry. It consists in the burning of unwanted gas at the tip of a stack and due to its thermal characteristic and the thermal emission it is possible to observe and to quantify it from space. Spaceborne observations allows us to collect information across regions and hence to provide a base for estimation of emissions on global scale. We have successfully adapted the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Nightfire algorithm for the detection and characterisation of persistent hot spots, including gas flares, to the Sea and Land Surface Temperature Radiometer (SLSTR) observations on-board the Sentinel- satellites. A hot event at temperatures typical of a gas flare will produce a local maximum in the night-time readings of the shortwave and mid-infrared (SWIR and MIR) channels of SLSTR. The SWIR band centered at 1.61 mmis closest to the expected spectral radiancemaximumand serves as the primary detection band. The hot source is characterised in terms of temperature and area by fitting the sum of two Planck curves, one for the hot source and another for the background, to the radiances from all the available SWIR, MIR and thermal infra-red channels of SLSTR. The flaring radiative power is calculated from the gas flare temperature and area. Our algorithm differs from the original VIIRS Nightfire algorithm in three key aspects: (1) It uses a granule-based contextual thresholding to detect hot pixels, being independent of the number of hot sources present and their intensity. (2) It analyses entire clusters of hot source detections instead of individual pixels. This is arguably a more comprehensive use of the available information. (3) The co-registration errors between hot source clusters in the different spectral bands are calculated and corrected. This also contributes to the SLSTR instrument validation. Cross-comparisons of the new gas flare characterisation with temporally close observations by the higher resolution German FireBIRD TET-1 small satellite and with the Nightfire product based on VIIRS on-board the Suomi-NPP satellite show general agreement for an individual flaring site in Siberia and for several flaring regions around the world. Small systematic differences to VIIRS Nightfire are nevertheless apparent. Based on the hot spot characterisation, gas flares can be identified and flared gas volumes and pollutant emissions can be calculated with previously published methods.

Post-mortem characterisation is a pivotal tool to trace back to the origin of structural failures in modern engineering analyses. This work presents a comparison of both the crack propagation profiles and the rupture roughness profiles based on areal parameters for total fracture area. Notched and smooth samples made of weather-resistant structural steel (10HNAP), popular S355J2 structural steel and aluminium alloy AA2017A under bending, torsion, and combined bending-torsion are investigated. After the fatigue tests, fatigue fractures are measured with an optical profilometer, and the relevant surface parameters are critically compared. The results show a great impact of the loading scenario on both the local profiles and the total fracture areas. In this work, the results of both approaches (local and total fracture zones) for specimens with different geometries are investigated. For all specimens, measured texture parameters decreased in the following order: total area, rupture area, and propagation area.

A complementary characterisation of the Al-alloy EN AW-5454 was carried out, intended for obtaining the laser hybrid welding parameters of sub-assemblies in the automotive industry. The investigation included a microstructural examination, and determination of the alloy's properties using several analytical methods (HV5 hardness measurement, tensile test, Charpy impact toughness, fracture mechanics analysis). Samples were prepared in the longitudinal and transverse directions of a cold-rolled sheet of EN AW-5454 with thicknesses of 3.5 mm and 4 mm. The measured hardness on the thinner sheet was 5% higher than on the thicker sheet. The tensile and yield strength were nominal, while the elongations were smaller by 2.2 - 3.2% for the longitudinal samples and by 2.7 - 13.7% for the transverse samples. The smaller deviations from the nominal values are for the thinner sheet metal. A precise topographical analysis showed brittle fractures of the samples. The Charpy impact toughness results on the thicker plate showed a 20% greater work needed to break it in the longitudinal direction than in the transverse direction. With the thinner sheet metal, 40% greater work was needed. SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) analysis has shown that the intermetallic Al6(Mn,Fe) particles in the longitudinal samples were mostly intact, with evidence of tough areas on the upper part of the fracture, indicating a better toughness than the specimens in the transverse direction. More crushed intermetallic particles were observed at the fractures of the transverse samples, and their distribution appeared to be more oriented in the direction of rolling. Fracture mechanics SENB (single edge notch bending) tests and their analysis showed that the resistance of the material to crack propagation in the longitudinal sample was about 50% greater than that in the transverse sample. SEM analysis of the fractures showed that the state of the intermetallic particles in the fracture mechanics testing, and the fracture mechanism differed from the one in the Charpy fractures.

Abstract: Agarose is known to form a homogeneous thermoreversible gel in aqueous medium over a critical polymer concentration. The solid-liquid phase transitions are thermoreversible but depend on the molecular structure of the agarose sample tested. Then, in a first step, the structure was characterised by 1H and 13C NMR in D2O and in DMSO which is a solvent of agarose whatever the temperature. A low yield in methyl substituent on the D-galactose unit was determined. Then, evolution of the 1H NMR spectrum was followed as a function of temperature in increasing and decreasing temperature process from 25 to 80°C. A large thermal hysteresis is obtained and discussed. It helps to interpret rheological behaviour. In fact, NMR signals are related to proton relaxation and especially to proton involved in H-bonds between water and -OH agarose for tightly bound water and agarose/agarose in chain packing. In a second step, water was exchanged against ethanol which is a non solvent of agarose. A stable gel was demonstrated and characterised by rheology to be compared with aqueous behaviour. Bound water playing the role of plasticizer is probably removed and the gel is much stronger (and brittle) in ethanol with a larger thermal stability. It is the first time that such gel is characterised without phase transition when passing from a good-solvent to a non-solvent. This extends the domains of application of agarose.

Road dust resuspension, especially the particulate matter fraction below 10 µm (PM10), is one of the main air quality management challenges in Europe. Road dust samples were collected from representative streets (suburban and urban) of the city of Viana do Castelo, Portugal. PM10 emission factors (mg veh-1 km-1) ranging from 49 (asphalt) to 330 (cobble stone) were estimated by means of the United Stated Environmental Protection Agency method. Two road dust fractions (< 0.074 mm and from 0.0074 to 1 mm) were characterised for their geochemical, mineralogical and morphological properties. In urban streets, road dusts reveal the contribution from traffic emissions, with higher concentrations of e.g. Cu, Zn, and Pb. In the suburban area, agriculture practices likely contributed to As concentrations of 180 mg kg-1 in the finest road dust fraction. Samples are primarily composed of quartz, but also of muscovite, albite, kaolinite, microcline, Fe-enstatite, graphite and amorphous content. Particle morphology clearly shows the link with natural and traffic related materials, with well-formed minerals and irregular aggregates. The hazard quotient suggests a probability to induce non-carcinogenic adverse health effects in children by ingestion of Zr. Arsenic in the suburban street represents a human health risk of 1.58 x 10-4.

Alkali-Silica Reaction (ASR), which develops over time into a harmful internal reaction in concrete, produces a harmful gel due to the reaction between the reactive silica in the aggregate and the alkalis of the pore solution. Due to the multi-scale nature of this long-term phenomenon, understanding its mechanism in concrete structures remains difficult to assess. Accelerated Mortar Bar Testing (AMBT) ASTM C1260 is among the commonly used methods to understand ASR formation in a short time. In this study, the chemical characterisation of concretes produced from volcanic rock type basalt aggregate was compared with the chemical characterisation of ASR concretes after AMBT was applied. In addition, 20% FA was substituted into the concrete to investigate the effect of fly ash (FA) on ASR. Specimens with limestone aggregate (PL), basalt aggregate (BBC) and 20% basalt aggregate with fly ash substitution instead of cement (BBC20FA) were prepared for the investigation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) techniques were used to characterise the morphology and analytical composition of the concretes. It was determined that basalt aggregate does not cause ASR and its use with fly ash increases the strength and durability of concrete.

This review details the extraction, characterization and utilization of seaweed-derived biopolymers for future packaging applications. The review is contextualized within the broader scope of the challenge of plastic pollution and the current urgent need for more sustainable packaging materials. Macroalgae (or seaweed) has been highlighted as a promising source of biopolymers, most commonly sodium alginate, agar and carrageenan, for reasons such as a rapid growth rate and decreased environmental impact when compared to terrestrial plant-life. Extraction methods detailed include the traditional solvent-based extraction to more sustainable developments such as ultrasound assisted extraction, microwave assisted extraction and bead milling. The review additionally presents the characterization techniques most pertinent in determining the applicability of these biopolymers in packaging applications. Properties of key importance to the development of sustainable packaging materials such as thermal properties, mechanical strength, barrier properties and biodegradability are highlighted in comparison to conventional petroleum-based plastics. This review concludes by realistically identifying the challenges faced by implementing seaweed-based biopolymers into packaging structures, such as cost-effectiveness, scalability, performance while suggesting future directions to mitigate these issues and improve the commercial viability of these materials for the packaging industry.

Background: Wastewater represents a health risk for populations. For sanitary safety, it is important to know their physico-chemical and microbiological qualities in order to better understand the risks incurred by the population. Objective: The aim of this study is to analyse the microbiological and physico-chemical quality of domestic wastewater in Adétikopé. Methodology: 12 wastewater samples were collected in Adétikopé from December 2022 to February 2023. Physico-chemical parameters were determined in accordance with AFNOR T90-105/ T90-023 and French standard NF T 90101. In microbiology, AFNOR was used as a reference for the detection of germs contaminating wastewater. Results were assessed in relation to European Union Criteria 98/83/EC. Results: The wastewater analyzed had a pH close to neutral, with an average pH of 7.05. The pollutant load generated ranged from 32 mg/l to 201 mg/l for BOD5, from 660 mg/l to 900 mg/l for COD and from 408 mg/l to 2080 mg/l for suspended solids. Concentrations of fecal coliforms and fecal streptococci are very high, far exceeding WHO guidelines for population health safety.

In the recent decade, metal-based conductive nano-inks comprising of nanometer-sized metallic particles of high electrical conductivity (mainly Ag and Cu) suspended in a polymer have revolutionized the field of printed electronics. The present review aims to provide an overview of the current state of research in synthesis and characterization techniques for metallic nano-inks and associated challenges. Moreover, the end of the review will discuss future perspectives in this field (from industrial and academic viewpoints).

The analyses of the socio-economic consequences of the 2000s land redistribution in Zimbabwe have always been biased towards the analyses of the ‘production’ and ‘redistributive’ aspects while other equally important features such as ‘social cohesion’, ‘cooperation’, ‘protection’, and ‘accumulation’ amongst beneficiaries are neglected. Using the Sangwe farm in Chiredzi as a case study, this article departs from the conventional use of the political economy, sustainable livelihoods, human rights-based and neo-patrimonial approaches. It experiments with the transformative social policy approach positing that this approach includes the features which are ignored in dominant analyses. Using both quantitative and qualitative data in an exploratory research design, the article shows that viewed from this social policy perspective, the 2000s land reform was not a mere resounding success nor was it a complete disaster. The programme actually produced mixed results. There is therefore, the need to deploy eclectic approaches in the analysis of its consequences.

The use of high strength to weight ratio laminated composites is emerging in marine industry and applications as a very efficient solution for improving productivity. Nevertheless, delamination between the layers is a limiting factor for the wider application of laminated composites, as it reduces the stiffness and strengths of the structure. Interleaving nanofibrous mats between layers of composite laminates has been proved to be an effective method for improving composites delamination resistance. This paper aims to characterize the effect of interleaved nanofiber on mode I interlaminar properties and failure mechanisms when subjected to static and fatigue loadings. For this purpose, virgin and nanomodified woven laminates were subjected to Double Cantilever Beam (DCB) specimens. Static and fatigue tests were performed and the tests were monitored by acoustic emission technique. The mechanical results showed a 130% increase of delamination toughness for nanomodified specimens in the static loadings and more crack growth resistance in the fatigue loading. The AE results revealed that different type of failure mechanisms was the cause of these improvements for the modified specimens compared with the virgin ones.

Kisspeptin (KISS1) and its cognate receptor (KISS1R) are implicated in the progression of various cancers. However, a theranostic radiopharmaceutical targeting the KISS1 receptor (KISS1R) has yet to be explored. A gallium-68 labelled kisspeptin-10 (KP10) has potential as a pan-tumor radiopharmaceutical for the detection of cancers. Furthermore, a lutetium-177 labelled KP10 could find therapeutic application in treating oncological diseases. We attached DOTA to the NH2-terminus of KP10 as we posited that this modification would not impair biological activity and showed that receptor stimulation of inositol phosphate accumulation in HEK293 transfected with the KISS1R gene was similar for KP10 and DOTA-KP10. We describe optimization of radiolabeling with gallium-68 and lutetium-177 and stability in serum, plasma, and whole blood. Pharmacokinetics was established with µPET/CT and ex vivo measurements. Dynamic studies with µPET/CT demonstrated that background clearance for the radiopharmaceutical was rapid with a blood half-life of 18 ± 3 minutes. DOTA-KP10 demonstrated preserved functionality at KISS1R and good blood clearance. These promising results advocate the further development of KP10 structures which have high binding affinity along with proteolytic resistance.

In globe artichoke both the edible portion and the waste biomass are recognized as valuable sources of bioactive compounds. For this study, heads with 30 cm-long floral stems, including 2-3 leaves, were harvested from five genotypes which included two traditional vegetatively-propagated varietal types (‘Brindisino,’ and ‘Violetto di Foggia,’) and three "seed"-propagated hybrids (‘Tempo,’ ‘Opal,’ and ‘Madrigal’). The study aimed to determine the total and individual polyphenolic concentrations (measured spectrophotometrically and by HPLC) and antioxidant activity (AA) in different artichoke parts, namely the "hearts" (H), head waste (HW), stem waste (SW), and leaf waste (LW). ‘Brindisino’ SW exhibited the highest accumulation of luteolin (26,317 mg kg−1 F.W.), while ‘Tempo’ H displayed the highest cynarin content (190 mg kg−1 F.W.). ‘Tempo’ HW and H showed the highest levels of apigenin (640 mg kg−1 F.W.), and the greatest source of chlorogenic acid was found in the HW of ‘Opal’ and the H of ‘Brindisino’ (4,300 mg kg−1 F.W.). The hybrids generally exhibited lower total polyphenolic concentrations than the traditional genotypes, particularly evident in the LW. The SW demonstrated the highest concentration of total polyphenols (18,000 mg kg−1 F.W.), followed by the edible H and non-edible HW (12,000 mg kg−1 F.W.), while the LW exhibited the lowest concentration (2,000 mg kg−1 F.W.). Interestingly, the AA did not precisely align with the total polyphenolic concentration, showing slight variations between the examined parts and genotypes.

Static (SLS) and dynamic (DLS) light scattering techniques are assessed for their capacity to detect colloidal particles with diameters between d = 0.1 and 0.8 µm at very low concentrations in seawater. The detection limit of the apparatus was determined using model monodisperse spherical polystyrene latex particles with diameters 0.2 µm and 0.5 µm. It is shown that the concentration and size of colloids can be determined down to about 10^-6 g/L. Seawater obtained from different locations in western Europe was characterized using light scattering. It was found that seawater filtered through 0.45 µm pore size membrane filters was within the experimental error the same as that of ultrapure Milli-Q water containing the same amount of sea salt and no colloids could be detected with DLS. When the seawater was filtered through 0.8 µm pore size filters, colloidal particles were detected. The measurements show that the concentration of colloids in the seawater samples is not higher than 10^-6 g/L and that they have an average diameter of about 0.6 µm. We stress that these particles are not necessarily nanoplastics.

Bixa orellana dye was extracted from the seed by method of Soxhlet extraction using ethanol and a percentage yield of 4.3 was obtained. Recrystallisation of the dye was performed using chloroform and ethanol. TLC was used to separate the dye into Bixin and Norbixin with R_f values of 0.56 and 0.42 respectively. The extracted dye was pH sensitive, insoluble in water but soluble in some organic solvents like ethanol and acetic acid . Characterisation by UV-spectroscopy showed maximum absorption for Bixin and Norbixin at 457nm and 453nm respectively. FTIR spectrum of Bixin and Norbixin showed bands confirming similar functional groups for both Bixin and Norbixin except for –CO- stretching and methylene vibration which was absent in Norbixin.

Beef has one of the highest climate footprints of all foods, and therefore the hamburger has been targeted for substitution by numerous plant-based alternatives. However, many consumers find the taste of these alternatives lacking, and thus we proposed a hybrid meat and plant-based burger as a lower threshold alternative for these consumers. The burger was made from 50% meat (beef and pork, 4:1) and 50% plant-based ingredients, including texturised legume protein and had a climate footprint less than half that of a beef burger. Texture and sensory properties were evaluated instrumentally and through a consumer survey (n = 381) using the check-all-that-apply (CATA) method. Moisture properties indicated a significantly juicier eating experience for the hybrid compared to a beef burger, which was supported by the CATA survey. From texture profile analysis the hybrid burger was significantly softer and less cohesive than a beef burger. Despite having different CATA term profiles overall liking of the hybrid and a beef burger were not significantly different. Penalty analysis indicated that “meat flavour”, “juiciness”, “spiciness”, and “saltiness” are the most important attributes for a burger. In conclusion, consumers may be open to reducing their meat consumption by way of hybrid meat and plant-based products.

Stratified Taylor Couette Flow (STCF) undergoes transient growth. Recent studies have shown that there exists transient amplification in the linear regime of counter-rotating STCF. It is reported that as Gr increases, the maximum amplification factor ($G_0$) initially decays before it eventually starts growing after reaching a certain critical value Gr$_{c}$. Assuming other parameters of the model are kept constant, the value Gr$_{c}$ changes with respect to different speed ratios of the cylinders. The observed decay/growth pattern of $G_0$ is attributed to the interplay between the induced shear and buoyancy. In this study, the mechanism that triggers this observed pattern is investigated. The kinetic budget of the optimal transient perturbation is analysed numerically to simulate the interaction of the shear production (SP), buoyancy production (BP) and other energy components that contributes to the total optimal transient kinetic energy. These contributions affect the total energy by influencing the perturbation to extract kinetic energy (KE) from the mean flow. The decay of $G_0$ resulted from the positive amplification of both BP and SP, while the growth is attributed to the negative and positive amplification of BP and SP, respectively. The optimal SP is positively amplified, implying that there is the possibility of constant linear growth. These findings agree with the linear growth rate for increasing values of Gr.

Bioactive peptides are sequences of amino acids, cut from the parent protein with en-zymes or high pressure processing that can impart a tertiary health benefit to the con-sumer that goes beyond basic human nutrition. This study explores mesopelagic fish in-cluding Maurolicus muelleri and Benthosema glaciale as sources of peptides with an-ti-inflammatory, heart health beneficial, antioxidant and other bioactivities. Bioactive peptides were generated post-catch using different enzymatic hydrolysis processes ap-plied to mesopelagic species caught from experimental cruises targeting these fish. Maurolicus muelleri and Benthosema glaciale were the dominant species processed. Bi-oactive hydrolysates included a Maurolicus muelleri Alcalase hydrolysate and a Maurolicus muelleri autolysis. Hundreds of peptide sequences were identified using mass spectrome-try from active hydrolysates. In silico analysis was used to rank identified peptide se-quences in terms of overall bioactivity using Peptide Ranker, anti-inflammatory activity using PrepAIP, ability to impart Umami flavours with Umami-MRNN and dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitory potential using AntiDMPpred . Thirty peptides were selected fol-lowing in silico analysis. Several of the selected peptides had sequence homology with peptides derived from other fish proteins including Atlantic salmon (peptide QCPLHR-PWAL) and thin-lipped mullet (peptide FDAFLPM). Seven peptides predicted to have an-ti-inflammatory, anti-type 2 diabetes or Umami potential using in silico strategies were chemically synthesized and their anti-inflammatory activities confirmed using in vitro bioassays with COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes. The peptide QCPLHRPWAL inhibited COX-1 and COX-2 by 82.90% (+/-0.54) and 53.84% respectively and had a selectivity index greater than 10. This peptide warrant further research as a novel anti-inflammatory/pain relief peptide. Other bioactivities associated with DPP-IV inhibition and Umami flavours de-velopment are discussed. Identified peptides offer potential for use in functional foods or topical agents to prevent pain and inflammation associated with diseases like psoriasis, arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease, however further research in vivo is required.

Vegetable oils contain fatty acids, phenolic compounds, natural antioxidants, and fat-soluble vitamins, which are beneficial against different diseases. Oil extraction methods can, however, affect their composition. This study aims to characterize the chemical composition of oils from two Andean seeds, cañihua (Chenopodium pallidicaule) and tarwi (Lupinus mutabilis), extracted with different organic solvents, petroleum ether, hexane, and ethanol. This study compares these oils with commercial sunflower, rapeseed, and olive oils. Results showed that oils extracted with hexane had the highest yield, while those extracted with ethanol had higher antioxidant activity and total phenolic compound content. Additionally, using ethanol makes the process more sustainable than non-green solvents. The composition of tarwi and cañahua oils extracted with ethanol includes fatty acids, tocopherols, antioxidants, and phenolic compounds associated with health benefits.

Aortic aneurysms (AA) occur in 4.8% of people causing 150,000 deaths annually. While endovascular aneurysm repairs reduce surgical morbidity, device-related failures (leak/displacement) are frequent highlighting the need for test models that better represent the mural geometry and compliance changes in human AAs. We aimed to develop and characterise an ex vivo porcine aortic model of AA. The optimal duration of tissue elastase exposure to emulate AA changes in elastin microstructure and content was determined using porcine aortic rings. Elastase-induced changes were quantified morphologically, and mechanical properties assessed via ring tensile testing. Subsequent experiments tested the potential for localised elastase treatment in a 1 cm segment of porcine aorta using a specially designed 3D printed test rig. The effect on pressure-diameter behaviour was investigated via inflation-extension testing. Elastase treatment produced time dependent decreases in elastin, resulting in an increased tensile modulus and circumferential length in the ring samples in the final phase of the J-shaped tissue stress-strain curves. In whole aortic segments, localised elastase-induced luminal degradation was successfully limited to a central region. The degree of elastin degradation achieved was sufficient to cause localised dilation with respect to controls under physiological pressures. Localised elastin degradation in porcine aortic segments is feasible and emulates the changes seen clinically in aortic aneurysms.

The heterogeneity of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes is not well characterized in brain metastasis. To address this, we performed a targeted analysis of immune cell subsets in brain metastasis tissues to test which immunosuppressive routes are involved in brain metastasis. We performed multiplex immunofluorescence (mIF), using commercially available validated antibodies on twenty formalin-fixed paraffin embedded whole sections. We quantitated the subsets of immune cells utilizing a targeted panel of proteins including PanCK, CD8, CD4, VISTA and Iba1, and analyzed an average of 15000 cells per sample. We classified tumours as either high (>30%) or low (<30%) tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and found that increased TILs density correlated with survival. We next sought out to phenotype these TILs using mIF. The tumours with low TILs (n=9) had significantly higher expression of the immune-checkpoint molecule VISTA in tumor cells (p<0.01) as well as in their microenvironment (p<0.001). Contrastingly, the brain metastatic tumours with high TILs (n=8) displayed higher levels of activated microglia, as measured by Iba1 expression. Low TILs-tumours displayed CD8+ T-cells that co-express VISTA (p<0.01) significantly more compared to high TILs group, where CD8+ T-cells significantly co-express Iba1 (p<0.05). Interestingly, no definite phenotypes of CD4+ subsets were observed. These results were supported by RNA analysis of a publicly available, independent cohort. In conclusion, our work contributes to a growing understanding of the immune surveillance escape routes active in brain metastasis.

Abstract: The recent growing attention to energy saving and environmental protection issues has brought to attention the possibility of exploiting syngas from gasification of biomass and coal for the firing of industrial plants included the so called Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle ones. In order to acquire a detailed knowledge about the behaviour of lean turbulent premixed flames, the present work resent the results of an experimental characterisation of a prototypical gas turbine burner operated at atmospheric pressure at condition scaled from real gas turbines ones. The results here presented derive from OH-PLIF measurements carried out at decreasing air equivalence ratio conditions and are analysed together with a mean aerodynamic characterisation of the burner operating in isothermal condition. The OH concentration distributions have been analysed statistically in order to obtain information about the location of the most reactive zones and an algorithm has been applied to the data sets in order to identify the flame fronts. In addition, the flame front locations have been successively interpreted statistically in order to obtain information about their main features and about their dependence on the air to fuel ratio behaviour.

In this study, multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) detached from lighting sector's waste electrical-electronic equipment (WEEE) are characterised for the presence of rare earth elements (REEs) and precious metals (PMs). Their digestion was carried out with HNO3 & aqua regia on a heating plate and characterised with the use of inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) & scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX). The contents of REEs and PMs are 0.84 wt% and 0.60 wt%, respectively, and create an economic stored value in MLCCs that is essentially defined by PMs of 98.67% and by Pd 78.37%. The content of the main elements is: Nd 0.366 wt%, Y 0.220 wt%, Dy 0.131 wt%, Ag 0.467 wt%, and Pd 0.105 wt%. The results confirm the need of selective removal and separate recycling process of MLCCs from WEEE drivers.

Objective: To identify and characterise genomic and phylogenetically isolated SARS-CoV-2 viral isolates in patients from Lambayeque, Peru. Methods: nasopharyngeal swabs were taken from patients from the Almanzor Aguinaga Asenjo Hospital, Chiclayo, Lambayeque, Peru, which have been considered mild, moderate and severe cases of COVID-19. Patients had to have tested positive for COVID-19, using a positive RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2. Subsequently, the SARS-CoV-2 complete viral genome sequencing was carried out using Illumina MiSeq®. The sequences obtained from the sequence were analysed in Nextclade V1.10.0 to assign the corresponding clades, identify mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 genes and perform quality control of the sequences obtained. All sequences were aligned using MAFFT v7.471. The SARS-CoV-2 isolate Wuhan NC 045512.2 was used as a reference sequence to analyse mutations at the amino acid level. The construction of the phylogenetic tree model was achieved with IQ-TREE v1.6.12. Results: it was determined that during the period December 2020 and January 2021, the lineages s C.14, C.33, B.1.1.485, B.1.1, B.1.1.1, B.1.111 circulated, lineage C.14 the most predominant with 76.7% (n=23/30), these lineages were classified in clade 20D mainly and also within clade 20B and 20A. On the contrary, the variants found in the second batch of samples of the period September – October 2021 were Delta Variant (72.7%), Gamma (13.6%), Mu (4.6%), Lambda (9.1%), distributed between clades 20J, 21G, 21H, 21J and 21I. Conclusions: This study reveals updated information on the viral genomics of SARS-CoV-2 in the Lambayeque region, Peru, which is crucial to understanding the origins and dispersion of the virus and provides information on viral pathogenicity, transmission and epidemiology.

Exopolysaccharides-EPS are long-chain biopolymer with branched, recurring unit of sugars and non-carbohydrate constituents connected to exterior of cells. Rhizobial, a legume nodulating organism is capable of producing EPS. This study investigated the characteristics’ of some Rhizobium EPS and their effects in shelf life extension of some Musa spp. Rhizobial-EPS was produced using yeast extract mineral medium purified by standard methods. The EPS was characterized to determine functional group, thermal stability, chemical compounds and the monosaccharide component using Fourier Transform Infra-red, Spectroscopy, thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry and HPLC and their bio-preservative property on post-harvest quality of plantain and different banana was done. The Rhizobial-EPS functional groups were hydroxyl, carboxyl, amine, methyl and ethers associated with polysaccharides. Pentadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid, oleic acid and heptacosanoic acid, and varied concentration of monosaccharides were detected in the exopolysaccharides. The TGA of the EPS shows a constant loss in weight with two quasi-sharp alterations and almost steady plateau. The EPS coated samples had the lowest weight loss across the samples and as such edible coating was effective in delaying weight loss. The weight loss of Musa paradisiaca (plantain) coated with (EPSA obtained from USDA 110), (EPSB USDA 532C) and (EPSC S2) at the first day were 314 and 314.5g. The initial weight loss of coated and uncoated Musa sp. (Apple Banana), Musa acuminata (Lady Finger), and Musa balbisiana (Cooking Banana), ranged from 72 – 72.7g, 96 – 97g and 95 – 98g respectively. The total sugar of EPS Coated Musa sp. ranges from 0.381 – 0.528mg/L, 0.392 – 0.576 mg/L and 0.41 – 0.598 mg/L at days 1, 2 and 3 respectively. The highest Titratable acidity and pH was observed in EPS coated sample. The results obtained from this study proves that EPS solution is a valuable product for fruit preservation and viable for commercial applications.

Development of new techniques of multimodal treatment, diagnostics of various neoplasms and improvement of these techniques can significantly increase the life expectancy of patients with carcinomas of the colon and abdominal cavity organs, since prevention of various side effects of radiation therapy is one of the main problems of oncological care. Electron irradiation is one of the most promising types of radiation therapy. There are no data on proliferation and apoptosis of the colon epithelium after irradiation with electrons, especially in different modes (single and summary). Aim of the study: Morphological evaluation of apoptosis and proliferation of colonic epithelium after local irradiation with electrons at doses 2 Gy and 25 Gy. Materials and methods. Colon fragments from sexually mature Wistar rats (n=50, body weight 200 ± 10 g) were divided into three groups: I - control (n = 10); II - experimental group (n = 20; local single electron irradiation at a dose of 2 Gy), III - experimental group (n=30), local fractional irradiation with electrons at a total dose of 25 Gy. They were studied by light microscopy using hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemical reactions with antibodies to Ki-67 and Cas3. Morphological disorders were accompanied by increased expression of pro-apoptotic molecules (caspase-3), and the period of regeneration by proliferative marker (Ki-67). Conclusions: Local fractional irradiation of the colon with electrons at a dose of 2 Gy and 25 Gy resulted in minor changes in the epithelium, a decrease in the number of goblet cells, but with preservation of regenerative potential, mild degenerative-dystrophic lesions. Intestinal crypts were damaged, leading to a decrease in Ki-67 and an increase in the number of caspase-3-positive epitheliocytes.

Whilst prior works have characterised the affordances of prototyping methods in terms of generating knowledge about a product or process, the types, or ‘dimensions’ of knowledge towards which they contribute are not fully understood. In this paper we adapt the concept of ‘design domains’ as a method to interpret, and better understand the contributions of different prototyping methods to design knowledge in new product development. We first synthesise a set of ten dimensions for design knowledge from a review of literature in design-related fields. A study was then conducted in which participants from engineering backgrounds completed a Likert-type questionnaire to quantify the perceived contributions to design knowledge of 90 common prototyping methods against each dimension. We statistically analyse results to identify patterns in the knowledge contributions of different methods. Results reveal that methods exhibit significantly different contribution profiles, suggesting different methods to be suited to different knowledge generation. Thus, this paper indicates potential for new methods, methodology and processes to leverage such characterisations for better selection and sequencing of methods in the prototyping process.

Galectins are a family of beta-galactoside-binding proteins that are characterised by their carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD) and include galectin-1 and galectin-3. These galectins have been implicated in numerous diseases due to their pleiotropic nature, including cancer and fibrosis, with therapeutic inhibitors being clinically developed to block the CRD. One of the early methods developed to characterise these galectins was hemagglutination of red blood cells. Although insightful this approach has been hampered by a lack of sensitivity and accurate quantification of the agglutination observed. In this study we aimed to validate a more precise and quantitative method to enable further investigation of differences between galectins in respect to agglutination induction in different blood groups as well as characterisation of small molecule inhibitors. Quantification of hemagglutination was shown to be optimal using U-bottom plates imaged and analysed with FIJI ImageJ rather than flat bottom plates read for absorbance on an optical density plate reader. Galectin-3-induced red blood cell agglutination efficacy increased significantly from blood group O to A to B. However, for both the galectin-1 monomer and concatemer a more comparable effect was observed between blood group B and O but with more potent effects than in blood group A. Inhibition assays for both galectin-3 and galectin-1 induced-hemagglutination were able to demonstrate clear concentration-responses and expected selectivity profiles for a set of small molecule glycomimetics, confirming historical profiles obtained in biochemical binding and functional cellular assays.

Hydropericardium hepatitis syndrome (HHS) caused by fowl adenovirus-4 have been frequently reported in commercial chickens from several countries causing significant economical losses. In Azerbaijan, fowl adenovirus infections in broiler and layer breeders flocks cause severe disease and mortality. Here we investigated the pathological lesions and the dissemination of fowl adenovirus-4 into the visceral organs of infected birds. Tissue samples containing liver, heart and spleen from 20 necropsied chickens were collected on the FTA cards and presence of fowl adenovirus was analysed by PCR and sequencing. Postmortem findings of both broiler and layer breeder chickens were similar, and the most affected organs were the liver with hepatitis and the heart with hydropericardium lesions. Other postmortem signs include swollen kidneys with haemorrhages and small white foci on the surface of the spleens. In some birds intestinal congestion and ecchymotic hemorrhages were also apparent. The PCR analysis revealed that all collected organs from 20 birds showed presence of fowl adenovirus-4 genome. The sequence analysis showed that fowl adenovirus-4 prevalent in Azerbaijan carry more closer phylogenetic relationship with the viruses prevalent in the Middle East, Far East and Indian subcontinent. However, a distinct diversity was seen from the strains prevalent in Europe, North and South America. This study will provide evidence the impact of fowl adenovirus-4 on the poultry production and improved preventive disease control strategies are required to reduce the HHS disease in chickens in Azerbaijan.

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is a major health problem within the global cattle industry. This disease has a complex aetiology, with viruses playing an integral role. In this study, metagenomics was used to sequence viral nucleic acids in the nasal swabs of BRD affected cattle. Viruses detected included those well known for their association with BRD in Australia (bovine viral diarrhea virus 1), as well as viruses known to be present but not fully characterised (bovine coronavirus) and viruses that have not been reported in BRD affect cattle in Australia (bovine rhinitis, bovine influenza D, and bovine nidovirus). Nasal swabs from a case control study were subsequently tested for 10 viruses and the presence of at least one virus was found to be significantly associated with BRD. Some of the more recently detected viruses had inconsistent association with BRD. Full genome sequences for bovine coronavirus, a virus increasingly associated with BRD, and bovine nidovirus were complete. Both viruses belong to the Coronaviridae family, which are frequently associated with disease in mammals. This study has provided greater insights into the viral pathogens associated with BRD and highlighted the need for further studies to elucidate more precisely the roles viruses play in BRD.

Regional mechanics of the heart is vital in the development of accurate computational models for the pursuit of relevant therapies. Challenges related to heart dysfunctioning are the most important sources of mortality in the world. For example, myocardial infarction (MI) is the foremost killer in sub-Saharan African countries. Mechanical characterisation plays an important role in achieving accurate material behaviour. Material behaviour and constitutive modelling are essential for accurate development of computational models. In most cases previously, the mechanical properties of the heart myocardium were assumed to be homogeneous. The main objective of this paper is to determine the mechanical material properties of healthy porcine myocardium in three regions, namely left ventricle (LV), mid-wall/interventricular septum (MDW) and right ventricle (RV). The biomechanical properties of the pig heart RV, LV and MDW were characterised using biaxial testing. The biaxial tests show the pig heart myocardium behaves non-linearly, heterogeneously and anisotropically. In this study, it was shown that RV, LV and MDW may exhibit slightly different mechanical properties. Data presented here may be helpful in regional tissue mechanics, especially for the understanding of various heart diseases and development of new therapies.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) represents an extremely aggressive type of cancer due in part to early invasion and metastasis, which in turn involves epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of the tumor cells. Prompted by the discovery that two PDAC-derived tumor cell lines of the quasi-mesenchymal subtype (PANC-1, MIA PaCa-2) exhibit neuroendocrine differentiation (NED), we asked whether NED is associated with EMT. Using quantitative real-time PCR and immunoblot analysis, we initially verified endogenous expression of various NED markers, i.e., chromogranin A (CHGA), synaptophysin (SYP), somatostatin receptor 2 (SSTR2) and SSTR5 in PANC-1 and MIA PaCa-2 cells. In HPDE6c7 normal pancreatic duct epithelial cells and in BxPC-3, another PDAC cell line with an epithelial phenotype, the expression of CHGA, SYP and neuron-specific enolase 2 (NSE) was either undetectable or much lower than in PANC-1 and MIA PaCa-2 cells. Parental cultures of PANC-1 cells exhibit EM plasticity (EMP) and harbor clonal subpopulations with different EMT phenotypes [Ungefroren et al 2022]. Monitoring the NED state of mesenchymal and epithelial PANC-1 subclones showed that the NE phenotype is more pronounced in M-type clones when compared to E-type ones. Inducing EMT in parental cultures of PANC-1 cells by treatment with transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 repressed epithelial genes and co-induced mesenchymal and NED genes, except for SSTR5. Surprisingly, treatment with bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-7 differentially affected gene expression in PANC-1 and MIA PaCa-2 cells. It synergised with TGF-β1 in the induction of vimentin, SNAIL, SSTR2 and NSE but antagonised it in the regulation of CHGA and SSTR5. From these data, we conclude that in EMT of PDAC cells mesenchymal and NED markers are co-regulated, and that mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) is associated with a loss of both the mesenchymal and NED phenotypes. Analysing NED in another tumor type, small cell carcinoma of the ovary hypercalcemic type (SCCOHT), revealed that two model cell lines of this disease (SCCOHT-1, BIN-67) do express CDH1, SNAI1, VIM, CHGA, SYP, ENO2 and SSTR2, but that in contrast to BMP-7 none of these genes was transcriptionally regulated by TGF-β1. We conclude that in PDAC-derived tumor cells, NED is closely linked to EMT and TGF-β signaling, which may have implications for the therapeutic use of TGF-β inhibitors in PDAC management.

During planetary exploration mission operations, one of the key responsibilities of the instrument teams to determine data viability for subsequent analysis. During the 2019 CanMoon Lunar Sample Return Analogue Mission, the Lead Raman Specialist manually examined each spectra to provide quality assurance/validation. This non-trivial process requires years of experience to complete accurately. With the proven efficacy of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) in classification tasks, and the increased use of automation and control loops on planetary space platforms for navigation and science targeting, an opportunity presents itself to approach this validation problem utilising CNNs. We present the Generalised Raman Validation Network (GRaVN), an neural network focused specifically on extracting the generalised structure of Raman spectra for quality assurance/validation. This work demonstrates the viability of utilising a CNN network in validation activities for Raman spectroscopy. Utilising only two hidden layers, a configuration was developed that provided good levels of accuracy on a manually curated dataset. This indicates that such a system could be useful as part of an autonomous control loop during planetary exploration activities.

The recent growing attention to energy saving and environmental protection issues has brought to attention the possibility of exploiting syngas from gasification of biomass and coal for the firing of industrial plants included the so called Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle ones. In order to improve the knowledge about the employ of syngas in lean premixed turbulent flames, a large scale swirl stabilized gas-turbine burner has been operated with a simplified model of H₂ enriched syngas from coal gasification. The experimental campaign has been performed at atmospheric pressure with operating conditions derived from scaling the real gas turbines ones. The results are here reported and consist of OH-PLIF measurements carried out at decreasing air equivalence ratio conditions and are analysed together with the mean aerodynamic characterisation of the burner flowfield in isothermal condition. The OH concentration distributions have been analysed statistically in order to obtain information about the location of the most reactive zones and an algorithm has been applied to the data in order to identify the flame fronts. In addition, the flame front locations have been successively interpreted statistically in order to obtain information about their main features and about their dependence on the air to fuel ratio behaviour.

Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic human pathogen and a leading cause of bloodstream infections. It can acquire different antibiotic resistance genes, leading to treatment failure. Aim: We elaborate on the genomic characteristics; antibiotic resistance, virulence, pathogenicity, phylogenomics and clonal diversity of S. aureus implicated in bloodstream infections. Six multidrug-resistant (MDR) S. aureus, three methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and three methicillin-sensitive S. aureus obtained from blood cultures underwent whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. All isolates carried different permutations and combinations of resistance genes including, blaZ, mecA, aac(6')-aph (2''), ant(9)-Ia, ant(6)-Ia, mepR, fosB, norA, norC, lmrS, arlS, arlR, mgrA, kdpD and sdrM. We found 6 spa types (t9475, t355, t045, t1265, t1257, and t7888) with varying profiles of virulence genes responsible for immune invasion, enterotoxins, adhesion/biofilm, haemolysins, and leukotoxins. Panton-Valentine leukocidin (Luk-PV) was found in one MSSA isolate. Two SCCmec types IVd(2B) and I(1B) were identified. Isolates belonged to four multilocus sequence types (MLSTs), the most common of which was ST5 (n=3). The STs were clustered into two clonal complexes CC5 and CC8. We found two MRSA clones typed as ST5-CC5-t045-SCCmec_I(1B), and the human-associated MRSA endemic clone ST612-CC8-t1257-SCCmec_IVd(2B). The insertion sequences IS30 and IS6 associated with virulence were found in two isolates. The presence of virulent MDR S. aureus in bloodstream infections poses a clinical concern because of limited treatment options and increased risk of mortality.

Due to its high specific surface area and rich porous structure, acacia-derived porous activated carbon is the most potentially effective material for wastewater treatment. This research study aimed to prepare activated carbon using Acacia erioloba seedpods as carbonaceous materials and phosphoric acid as an activating agent. The specific surface area of the prepared activated carbon sample was characterised by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller instrument. The specific surface area value was 387 m²/g. The activated carbon prepared was then sieved into three different particle sizes of 50, 100 and 200 micrometres and characterised using various analytical procedures, including proximate analysis to study moisture content, ash content, volatile matter content and fixed carbon content. The bulk density, SEM, power of hydrogen, iodine number and methylene blue number index were also investigated to determine the adsorption properties of the prepared activated carbon. Batch adsorption dynamics for the removal of organic compounds such as methylene blue and unsaturated character of fatty acid from aqueous solution were also carried out at room temperature to evaluate the prepared activated carbon's applicability in water treatment. The iodine number was 528, 638, and 554 mg/g for the 50, 100, and 200 μm activated carbon particles, respectively. From the results, the adsorption of methylene blue favoured the Freundlich adsorption model, showing higher correlation (R²) values than the Langmuir model. The results indicate that methylene blue particles were adsorbed on heterogeneous surfaces.

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.

Bacteriophages can provide alternative measures for the control of E. coli O157:H7 that is currently an emerging food-borne pathogen of severe public health concern. This study was aimed at characterising E. coli O157:H7 specific phages as potential biocontrol agents for these pathogens. Fifteen phages were isolated and screened against 69 environmental E. coli O157:H7. Only 3 phages displayed broad lytic spectra against environmental shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7 strains. These 3 lytic phages were designated V3, V7 and V8. Subsequent characterization indicated that they displayed very high degree of similarities despite isolation from different locations. Transmission Electron microscopy (TEM) of the phages revealed that they all had isometric heads of about 73 – 77 nm in diameter and short tails ranging from 20 - 25 nm in diameter. Phages V3, V7 and V8 were assigned to the family Podoviridae based on their morphology. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) genome estimation of the 3 phages demonstrated identical genome sizes of ~ 69 nm. The latent periods of these phages were 20 min, 15 min, and 20 min for V3, V7 and V8 respectively while the burst sizes were 374, 349 and 419 PFU/ infected cell respectively. While all the phages were relatively stable over a wide range of salinity, temperatures and pH values, their range of infectivity or lytic profile was rather narrow on environmental E. coli O157:H7 strains isolated from cattle faeces. This study showed that the Podoviridae bacteriophages are the dominant E. coli O57:H7-infecting phages harboured in cattle faeces in the North-West Province of South Africa and due to their favourable characteristics can be exploited in the formulation of phage cocktails for the bio-control of E. coli O157:H7 in meat and other meat products.

In cross-country skiing the time difference between a race winner and the person coming second is typically very small. Since much of the energy is spent on overcoming resistive forces, a relatively small reduction of these can have a significant impact on the results. The resistive forces come partly from the friction in the tribological interface, between the ski and the snow, and as with many tribological applications the characterisation of its origin, plays an important role in determining the frictional properties. Also in cross-country ski friction, there are several scales impacting the frictional performance, with the major contributors being the ski-camber profile and ski-base structure. Macro-scale measurements of the ski's camber profile under load, are often used to determine how adequate the ski is for a specific condition. The characteristic properties usually obtained are, the force required to collapse the ski to a certain camber height, the topography of the kick-wax zone, and by simple means a determined lengths of the frictional interface, i.e., the apparent contact length. To this date, there are some mathematical models, but there is no robust way of determining the macro-scale contact properties between a cross-country ski and a counter surface using simulations. In the present paper an Artificial neural networks (ANN) is trained to predict the ski-camber profile for various loads placed at different positions, and a well established deterministic approach is used to simulate the contact between the ANN-predicted ski-camber profile and a linearly elastic body with a flat surface, representing the snow. The results suggest that this method is feasible for the determination of the apparent contact characteristics of different skis. Moreover, we show that the apparent contact area does not linearly depend on the load, and that the elastic properties of the counter surface also has a large impact on the apparent contact area and the average apparent contact pressure.

Leucyl-aminopeptidase (LAP), an important metallopeptidase, hydrolyses amino acid residues from the N-terminal of polypeptides and proteins, acting preferentially on the peptide bond formed by N- terminus leucine. A new leucyl-aminopeptidase was found in Bacillus cereus CZ. Its gene (bclap) contained a 1485 bp ORF encoding 494 amino acids with a molecular weight of 54 kDa. The bcLAP protein was successfully expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3). Optimal activity is obtained at pH 9.0 and 58°C. The bcLAP displays a moderate thermostability and an alkaline pH adaptation range. Enzymatic activity is dramatically enhanced by Ni2+. EDTA significantly inhibits the enzymatic activity, and bestatin and SDS also show strong inhibition. The three-dimensional model of bcLAP monomer and homohexamer is simulated by Phyre2 server and SWISS-MODEL server. The docking of bestatin, Leu-Trp, Asp-Trp and Ala-Ala-Gly to bcLAP is performed using AutoDock4.2.5 , respectively. Molecular docking results show that the residues Lys260, Asp265, Lys272, Asp283, Asp342, Glu344, Arg346, Gly372, His437 are involved in the hydrogen bonding with the ligands and zinc ions. There may be two nucleophilic catalytic mechanisms in bcLAP, one involving His 437 or Arg346 and the other involving His437 and Arg346. The bcLAP can hydrolyse the peptide bonds in Leu-Trp, Leu-Trp and Ala-Ala-Gly.

An accurate flux measurement of low-energy charged particles trapped in the magnetosphere is necessary for space weather characterization and to study the coupling between the lithosphere and magnetosphere, which allows for the investigation of the correlations between seismic events and particle precipitation from Van Allen belts. In this work, the project of a CubeSat space spectrometer, the Low-Energy Module (LEM), is shown. The detector will be able to perform an event-based measurement of the energy, arrival direction, and composition of low-energy charged particles down to 0.1 MeV. Moreover, thanks to a CdZnTe mini-calorimeter, the LEM spectrometer also allows for photon detection in the sub-MeV range, joining the quest for the investigation of the nature of Gamma-ray bursts. The particle identification of the LEM relies on the ΔE−E technique performed by thin silicon detectors. This multipurpose spectrometer will fit within a 10 × 10 × 10 cm3 CubeSat frame, and it will be constructed as a joint project between the University of Trento, FBK, and INFN-TIFPA. To fulfil the size and mass requirements, an innovative approach, based on active particle collimation, was designed for the LEM; this avoids the heavy/bulky passive collimators of previous space detectors. In this paper, we will present the LEM geometry, its detection concept, the results from the developed GEANT4 simulation, and some characterisations of a candidate silicon detector for the instrument payload.

In winter sports, the equipment often comes into contact with snow or ice, and this contact generates a force that resists motion. In some sports, such as cross-country skiing, this resistive force can significantly affect the outcome of a race, as a small reduction in this force can give an athlete an advantage. Researchers have examined the contact between skis and snow in detail, and to fully understand this friction, the entire ski must be studied at various scales. At the macro scale, the entire geometry of the ski is considered and the apparent contact between the ski and the snow is considered and at the micro scale the contact between the snow and the ski base ski-base textures. In the present work, a method for characterising contact between the ski-base texture and virtual snow will be presented. Six different ski-base textures will be considered. Five of them are stone-ground ski bases, and three of them have linear longitudinal textures with a varying number of lines and peak-to-valley height, and the other two are factory-ground “universal” ski bases. The sixth ski base has been fabricated by a steel-scraping procedure. In general, the results show that a ski base texture with a higher Spk-value has less real contact area, and that the mutual differences can be large for surfaces with similar Sa-values. The average interfacial separation is, in general, correlated with the Sa-value, where a “rougher” surface exhibits a larger average interfacial separation. The results for the reciprocal average interfacial separation, which is related to the Couette type of viscous friction, were in line with the general consensus that a “rougher” texture performs better at high speed than a “smoother” one, and it was found that a texture with high Sa and Spk values resulted in a low reciprocal average interfacial separation and consequently low viscous friction. The reciprocal average interfacial separation was found to increase with increasing real contact area, indicating a correlation between the real area of contact and the Couette part of viscous friction.

Standardised forms for capturing clinical data promote consistency in data collection and analysis across study sites, enabling faster, higher-quality evidence generation. ISARIC and the World Health Organization have developed case report forms (CRFs) for the clinical characterisation of several infectious disease outbreaks. To improve the design and quality of future forms, we analysed the inclusion and completion rates of the 243 fields on the ISARIC-WHO COVID-19 CRF. Data from 42 diverse collaborations, covering 1,886 hospitals and 950,064 patients were analysed. A mean of 129.6 fields (53%) were included in the adapted CRFs implemented across the sites. Consistent patterns of field inclusion and completion aligned with globally recognised research priorities in outbreaks of novel infectious diseases. Outcome status was the most highly included (95.2%) and completed (89.8%) field, followed by admission demographics (79.1% and 91.6%), comorbidities (77.9% and 79.0%), signs &amp; symptoms (68.9% and 78.4%) and vitals (70.3% and 69.1%). Mean field completion was higher in severe patients (70.2%) than in all patients (61.6%). The results indicate that clinical characterisation CRFs can be streamlined to reduce data collection time, including the modularisation of CRFs to offer a choice of data volume collection and the separation of critical care interventions. This data-driven approach to designing CRFs enhances the efficiency of data collection to inform patient care and public health response.

Derelict asbestos mine sites in South Africa pose a considerable risk to human, environmental and socio-economic health. Comprehensive mineralogical and geochemical datasets for the existing hazardous geological materials still exposed in Southern African derelict asbestos mines remain largely non-existent, as very little published and up-to-date literature is available. In this study three representative types of asbestos mineral fibres from derelict asbestos mines in Southern Africa, namely chrysotile from Havelock mine, amosite from Penge mine and crocidolite from Prieska mine are characterized mineralogically and geochemically to critically evaluate real-life hazards in rural and asbestos-fibre contaminated regions. The samples were examined using polarising light microscopy, X-ray fluorescence (major and trace elemental analysis), X-ray diffraction (including Rietveld refinement), specific surface area analyses and bio-durability tests. Data are discussed in view of their potential toxicities on both human health and the environment in the context of developing countries. Finally, information on the mineralogical and geochemical status of asbestos mine waste and its importance as baseline data for rehabilitation considerations is also evaluated.

At the highest level of endurance sports, the differences in finishing times are small, so equipment is constantly being constantly improved to enhance the athletes' performance. For instance, one dominant resistive force in connection with cross-country skiing is the friction between the skis and snow and since the 1930s, research designed to understand and reduce this friction has been ongoing. The mechanisms involved in ski-snow friction include compaction, micro-ploughing, adhesion, viscosity, and water-bridging. Of these, adhesive and viscous friction have been most studied, while much less is presently known about compaction, micro-ploughing, and water-bridging. At the macro-scale, the ski-camber profile plays a key role in determining whether, with respect to friction, a particular cross-country ski is suitable for use under a given set of conditions. Through its influence on where ski-snow contact occurs, this ski-camber profile has a profound impact on adhesive and viscous friction, micro-ploughing, the formation of water bridges, and the rate of compaction. Different contact zones with different apparent areas of contact and pressure have been found to be most suitable for different conditions. In addition, the micro-scale texture of the ski base is also an important determinant of ski-snow friction. Topographical measurements of this texture can be achieved with white-light interferometer and recent characterisation has focused on the mechanical properties of contact. In numerous tribological studies the interactions between features at different scales are modelled. In most tribological systems, features on several scales influence friction and ski-snow contact is certainly no exception. Accordingly, the current investigation was designed to evaluate the multi-scale properties of different combinations of two skis with two different base textures. The real area of contact and the average interfacial separation and total average reciprocal interfacial separation between the ski and snow were taken into consideration. We found that different macro- and micro-scale properties of the ski favour different mechanisms of friction. Both the profile of the ski camber and texture of the base play decisive roles in determining viscous friction. At the same time, the texture of the ski base exerts a greater impact on the average real contact pressure, real contact area and minimal average interfacial separation between the ski and snow than does the ski-camber profile.

Purpose: To improve numerical simulation of the non-contact tonometry test by using Arbitrary Eulerian-Lagrangian deforming mesh in the coupling between computational fluid dynamics model of an air jet and finite element model of the human eye. Methods: Computational fluid dynamics model simulated impingement of the air puff and consisted of 25920 wedge6 elements and employed Spallart-Allmaras model to simulate capture turbulence of the air jet. The time span of the jet wais 30 ms and maximum Reynolds number

Rainfall is the main driver of hydrological processes in dryland environments and characterising the rainfall variability and processes of runoff generation are critical for understanding ecosystem function of catchments. Using remote sensing and in situ data sets, we assess the spatial and temporal variability of the rainfall, rainfall-runoff response, and effects of antecedent soil moisture and ground cover at different spatial scales on runoff coefficients in the Upper Burdekin catchment, northeast Australia, which is a major contributor of sediment and nutrients to the Great Barrier Reef. The high temporal and spatial variability of rainfall exerts significant controls on runoff generation processes. Rainfall amount and intensity are the primary runoff controls, and runoff coefficients for wet antecedent conditions were higher than for dry conditions. The majority of runoff occurred via surface runoff generation mechanisms, with subsurface runoff likely contributing little runoff due to the intense nature of rainfall events. At annual to seasonal temporal scales and for relatively large catchments, we could not detect a significant effect of ground cover on runoff. We conclude that in the range of moderate to large catchments (193 – 36,260 km²) runoff generation processes are sensitive to both antecedent soil moisture and ground cover. A higher runoff-ground cover correlation in drier months with sparse ground cover highlighted the critical role of cover at the onset of the wet season and how runoff generation is more sensitive to cover in drier months than in wetter months. The monthly water balance analysis indicates that runoff generation in wetter months (January and February) is partially influenced by saturation overland flow, most likely confined to saturated soils in riparian corridors, swales, and areas of shallow soil. By March and continuing through October, the soil ‘bucket’ progressively empties by evapotranspiration, and Hortonian overland flow becomes the dominant, if not exclusive, flow generation process. The results of this study can be used to better understand the rainfall-runoff relationships in dryland environments and subsequent exposure of coral reef ecosystems in Australia and elsewhere to terrestrial runoff.

Diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) may be confounded by immunological cross-reactivity to Mycobacterium bovis antigens when animals are sensitised by certain nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTMs). Therefore, this study aimed to investigate NTM species diversity in African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) respiratory secretions and tissue samples, using a combination of novel molecular tools. Oronasal swabs were collected opportunistically from 120 immobilised buffaloes in historically bTB-free herds. In addition, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF; n=10) and tissue samples (n=19) were obtained during post-mortem examination. Mycobacterial species were identified directly from oronasal swab samples using the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra qPCR (14/120 positive) and GenoType CMdirect (104/120 positive). In addition, all samples underwent mycobacterial culture, and PCRs targeting hsp65 and rpoB were performed. Overall, 55 NTM species were identified in 36 mycobacterial culture-positive swab samples with presence of esat-6 or cfp-10 detected in 20 of 36 isolates. The predominant species were M. avium complex and M. komanii. Nontuberculous mycobacteria were also isolated from 6 of 10 culture-positive BALF and 4 of 19 culture-positive tissue samples. Our findings demonstrate that there is a high diversity of NTMs present in buffaloes, and further investigation should determine their role in confounding bTB diagnosis in this species.

Little is understood about the impact of nebulisation on the viability of SARS-CoV-2. In this study, a range of nebulisers with differing methods of aerosol generation were evaluated to determine SARS-CoV-2 viability following aerosolisation. The aerosol particle size distribution was assessed using an aerosol particle sizer (APS) and SARS-CoV-2 viability was determined after collection into liquid media using All-Glass Impingers (AGI). Viable particles of SARS-CoV-2 were further characterised using the Collison 6-jet nebuliser in conjunction with novel sample techniques in an Andersen size-fractioning sampler to predict lung deposition profiles. Results demonstrate that all the tested nebulisers can generate stable, polydisperse aerosols (Geometric standard deviation (GSD) circa 1.8) in the respirable range (1.2 to 2.2µm). Viable fractions (PFU/particle, the virus viability as a function of total particles produced) were circa 5x10^-3 and were not significantly affected by relative humidity. The novel Andersen sample collection methods successfully captured viable virus particles across all sizes; with most particle sizes below 3.3µm. MMADs (Mass Median Aerodynamic Diameters) were calculated from linear regression of log10-log10 transformed cumulative PFU data, and calculated MMADs accorded well with APS measurements and did not differ across collection method types. This data will be vital in informing animal aerosol challenge models, and infection prevention and control policies.

The contamination of areas around solid urban waste dumps is a global challenge for the maintenance of environmental quality in large urban centres in developing countries. This study applied geophysical methods (electrical resistivity) to identify leachate contamina-tion plumes in the subsoil and groundwater, as well as to describe their temporal (2020 and 2021) dynamics in the lithology and groundwater around the Hulene - B waste dump, Maputo, Mozambique. Geophysical methods (electrical resistivity) were applied to identify possible groundwater contamination plumes, their dynamics, mechanisms of their enrichment and dispersion. Eight 400 m electrical resistivity profiles were performed, four profiles in January 2020 and four profiles in May 2021, overlapped, and the data were inverted with RES2D software. The electrical resistivity models indicate an E - W move-ment of large contamination plumes that dilute superficially into the natural surface wa-ter receiving basin and groundwater, creating zones of resistive anomalies. The thickness of the plumes in the subsurface environment was shown to be extensive in summer for profiles 1a and 2b and we associate it with the higher leachate production and migration mechanisms, which are intense in the hot and rainy season. Profile 4b showed the prop-agation of anomalous surface and subsurface areas, which was associated with higher leachate production and migration process in the new deposition zone (west). The spatial distribution of contamination plumes at both stations reduced significantly as we moved further away from the waste deposit, revealing the attenuating effect of groundwater and lithological substrate (Profile 3 a, b, and fig.7).

Black yeasts are a highly specified group of fungi, which are characterized by a high resistance against stress factors. There are several factors enabling the cells to survive harsh environmental conditions. One aspect is the pigmentation, besides the melanin black yeasts often display a highly diverse carotenoid spectrum. Determination and characterization of carotenoids depend on an efficient extraction and separation, therefore especially for black yeast, characterized by thick cell walls specific protocols are needed to ensure analyses regarding stress responses in these fungi. Here we present both, a method to extract and analyze carotenoids and the unusual carotenoid composition of the black yeast Knufia petriola A95. Mechanical treatment combined with an acetonitrile extraction gave us very good extraction rates with a high reproducibility. The presented extraction and elution protocol allows the separation of the main carotenoids (7) in K. petricola A95 and should be suitable for the detection of additional carotenoids in other species. K. petricola A95 displays an unusual carotenoid composition, with mainly didehydrolycopene, torulene and lycopene. The pigment composition varied in dependency to oxidative stress but remained relatively constant if the cells were cultivated under low temperature. Black yeasts are a promising source for carotenoid production and other substances. To unravel the potential of these fungi new methods and studies are needed. The established protocol allows the determination carotenoid composition in black yeasts. Oxidative stress results in an adaptation in pigment composition in K. petricola A95. Future experiments have to be carried out to determine if didehydrolycopene functions as a protective agent itself or if it serves as a precursor for antioxidative pigments like torulene and torularhodin, which could be produced after induction under stress conditions.

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) is the most geographically widespread tick-borne virus. However, African strains are poorly represented in sequence databases. In addition, almost all sequence data have been obtained from cases of human disease, while information regarding circulation of the virus in tick and animal reservoirs is severely lacking. Here, we characterise the complete coding region of a novel CCHFV strain, detected in African blue ticks (Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) decoloratus) feeding on cattle in an abattoir in Kampala, Uganda. These cattle originated from a farm in Mbarara, a major cattle-trading hub for much of Uganda. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that the newly sequenced strain belongs to the African genotype II clade, which predominantly contains the sequences of strains isolated from West Africa in the 1950’s and South Africa in the 1980’s. Whilst, the viral S (nucleoprotein) and L (RNA polymerase) genome segments shared >90% nucleotide similarity with previously reported genotype II strains, the glycoprotein-coding M segment shared only 80% nucleotide similarity with the next most closely related strains, which were from India and China. This segment also displayed a large number of non-synonymous mutations previously unreported in genotype II strains. Characterisation of this novel strain adds to our limited understanding of the natural diversity of CCHFV circulating in both ticks and in Africa. Such data can be used to inform the design of vaccines and diagnostics, as well as studies exploring the epidemiology and evolution of the virus for the establishment of future CCHFV control strategies.

Modern surface analysis techniques are expanding significantly possibilities in description and attribution of historical artifacts. The present study is aimed to compare analytical ability of the X-ray fluorescent analysis (XRF) typically applied for studies ceramic art items with novel surface analysis methods: time-of-flight secondary ions mass spectroscopy (SIMS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) that were applied on measurements of elemental compositions of powder raw materials for porcelain fabrication: pegmatite P-1, Vesco-prima clay, kaolin, bone earth, dolomite, and feldspar. It was shown that SIMS successfully measures light elements unnoticeable for XRF such as lithium, beryllium, boron and heavy impurities not found out by XRF such as cobalt, cerium, copper, rubidium, vanadium. XPS has found thorium in the kaolin sample that was not detected by SIMS and XRF. The paper provides also values of chemical shifts of some XPS lines observed in materials under examination. The obtained information on relations of basic and impurity elements revealed by XRF and SIMS together with XPS chemical shifts data could be used to expose contemporary falsifications of historical porcelain and to attribute porcelain items during conservation process.

Expansins (EXPs) which are the essential components of plant cell wall function as relaxation factors to directly promote turgor-driven expansion of cell wall and control plant growth and development and diverse environmental stress responses. A lot of EXPs genes have been widely identified and characterized in numerous plant species, but not in sweetpotato. In the present study, a total of 59 EXPs genes that unevenly distributed onto 14 of 15 chromosomes were identified from sweetpotato genome, and segmental and tandem duplications were exhibited to act as dominant functions in IbEXPs diversity. Phylogenetic analysis exhibited that IbEXPs members were clustered into four subfamilies according to EXPs in Arabidopsis and rice and the regularity of motif, domain and gene structures was in accordance with the subfamily classification. The collinearity analysis between IbEXPs and related homologous sequences in 9 plants provided the phylogenetic insights of EXPs gene family. Cis-element analysis futhrer revealed the potential roles of IbEXPs in sweetpotato development and stress responses. Evidence from RNA-seq and qRT-PCR analysis of eight selected IbEXPs genes displayed their various tissue specificity in different tissues, and their transcripts were varyingly induced or suppressed under multiple hormone treatments (ABA, SA, JA and ACC) and abiotic stresses (low and high temperature). These results supply worthy foundations to further comprehensively investigate the exact functions of IbEXPs genes, and multiple members may function as promising regulators to control plant development and enhance the stress resistance of transgenic plants.

The aim of this study is to compare different methods used for determination of the DS for sulfonated membranes before and after high dose irradiation. Commercial PEEK was homogenously sulfonated up to DS of 60-90% and the membranes were prepared using solvent casting method. Part of the samples were irradiated with 10 MeV electron beam up to 500 kGy dose to assess the ionising radiation induced effects. Both non-irradiated and irradiated membranes were characterized by Fourier Transformation infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR), electrochemical impedance analysis and for the first time for non-irradiated membranes by spectrophotometric analysis with Cr(III). Comparison of the above-mentioned methods for application for DS assessment was done. It was observed that irradiated membranes presented a higher value of DS. Appearance of different new signals in 1H-NMR and FT-IR spectra of irradiated membranes indicated the effects of radiation induced changes in the structure of SPEEK materials. It was determined that the novel method with Cr(III) is applicable for the determination of SPEEK DS under 80%.

Durability monitoring of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) containing a pyrethroid in combination with a second active ingredient (AI) must be adapted so that the insecticidal bioefficacy of each AI can be monitored independently. An effective way to do this is to measure rapid knock down of a pyrethroid-susceptible strain of mosquitoes to assess the bioefficacy of the pyrethroid component and to use a pyrethroid-resistant strain to measure the bioefficacy of the second ingredient. To allow robust comparison of results across tests within and between test facilities, and over time, protocols for bioefficacy testing must include either characterisation of the resistant strain, standardisation of the mosquitoes used for bioassays, or a combination of the two. Through a series of virtual meetings, key stakeholders and practitioners explored different approaches to achieving these goals. Via an iterative process we decided on the preferred approach and produced a protocol consisting of characterising mosquitoes used for bioefficacy testing before and after a round of bioassays, for example at each time point in a durability monitoring study. We present the final protocol and justify our approach to establishing a standard methodology for durability monitoring of ITNs containing pyrethroid and a second AI.

Even though, graphene family materials (GFMs) hold great promise for various applications, there are still significant knowledge gaps in ecotoxicology and environmental risk assessment associated with their potential environmental impacts. Here, we provide a critical perspective on published ecotoxicity studies of GFMs based on a meticulous bibliometric research. Analysis of the available data revealed that to date, ecotoxicity studies with GFMs have been carried out predominantly using freshwater species (82%), while their effects on marine or terrestrial or-ganisms are understudied. Three groups of organisms were found dominating ecotoxicological research: fish (39%), algae (20%) and arthropoda (20%) predominantly applying small, planktonic crustaceans. It was also revealed that despite their widespread detection in different environ-mental compartments the potential impacts of GFMs in complex test systems with hierarchical trophic organisation or in trophic transfer studies are significantly under-represented. One of the main causes was identified as the difficulties in the physicochemical characterisation of GFMs in complex terrestrial test systems or in aquatic micro- and mesocosm studies containing a sediment phase. The lack of tools for adequate characterisation of GFMs in these complex test systems may discourage researchers from conducting experiments under environmentally relevant test condi-tions. However, in the coming years, fundamental research about these complex test systems will con-tinue to better understand the mechanism behind GFMs toxicity affecting organisms in different environmental compartments and to ensure their safe and sustainable use in the future.

Background: Renal cancers are among the top ten causes of cancer specific mortality; of which the ccRCC subtype is responsible for most of the cases. Grading of ccRCC is important in determining the tumour aggressiveness and clinical management. Objectives: To predict the WHO/ISUP grade of ccRCC pre-operatively and characterise the heterogeneity of tumour subregions using radiomics and ML models including comparison with pre-operative biopsy determined grading in a subgroup. Methods: Data was obtained from multiple institutions across two countries from 391 patients with pathologically proven ccRCC. For analysis, the data were separated into 4 cohorts. Cohort 1 and 2 were data from the respective institutions from the two countries, cohort 3 was the combined data and cohort 4 data was a subset of cohort 1 where both biopsy and subsequent histology from resection (partial or total nephrectomy) was available. 3D image segmentation was done to derive a voxel of interest (VOI) mask. Radiomic features were then extracted from the contrast enhanced images and the data normalised. Correlation coefficients and XGBoost model were used to reduce the dimensionality of the features. Thereafter, 11 ML algorithms were implemented for the purpose of predicting the grade of ccRCC and characterising heterogeneity of subregions in the tumours; Results: For cohort 1, 50% tumor core and 25% tumor periphery exhibited best performance with an average AUC of 77.91% and 78.64% respectively. 50% tumor core had the highest performance in cohort 2 and cohort 3 with an average AUC of 87.64% and 76.91% respectively. Cohort 4 with 25% periphery showed an AUC of 95% and 80% for grade prediction using internal and external validation respectively while biopsy histology had an AUC of 31% for the prediction with final grade of resection histology as a reference standard; Conclusion: Radiomic signatures combined with ML have the potential to predict the WHO/ISUP grade of ccRCC with superior performance compared to pre-operative biopsy. Moreover, tumour subregions contain useful information that should be analysed independently when determining tumour grade. It is therefore possible to distinguish the grade of ccRCC pre-operatively to improve patient care and management.

The determination of the parameters that characterise the air-void system in hardened concrete elements becomes crucial for structures under freezing and thawing cycles. The ASTM C457 standard describes some procedures to accomplish this task, but they are not easy to apply, require specialised equipment such as a stereoscopic microscope and result in highly tedious tasks to be performed. This paper describes an alternative procedure to the modified point-count method described in the Standard that makes use of macro photography. This alternative procedure is successfully applied to a large set of samples and presents some advantages over the traditional method, since the required equipment is less expensive and provides a more comfortable and less tedious procedure for the operator.

Background: Early diagnosis of postoperative complications is an urgent task, allowing timely prescribing of appropriate therapy and reducing the cost of patient treatment. Prognostic models based on various data could help in the early diagnosis of postoperative complications after cardiac surgery. Objectives: The purpose of the study was to determine whether an integrated approach based on clinical data along with metabolites and biomarkers had greater predictive value than the models built on less data. Methods: The study included patients (n=62) admitted for planned cardiac surgery (coronary artery bypass grafting with cardiopulmonary bypass), who were retrospectively divided into two groups depending on the presence (n=26) or absence (n=36) of postoperative complications of all types. Clinical and laboratory data on the first day after surgery were analyzed. Additionally, patients' blood samples were collected before and on the first day after surgery to determine biomarkers (interleukin-6, procalcitonin, NT-proBNP, high-sensitivity troponin T) and metabolites (8 aromatic and 2 dicarboxylic acids were detected using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry). Results: Patients before surgery, compared with healthy donors, differed in the concentration of metabolites (p &lt; 0.05), and had concentrations of a number of biomarkers exceeding the corresponding reference values. Multivariate PLS-DA models, predicting the presence or absence of postoperative complications, were built using clinical data (ROC-AUC=0.71), concentrations of metabolites and biomarkers (ROC-AUC=0.60), and the entire data set (ROC-AUC=0.75). For comparison we built univariate models using the EuroScore2 (ROC-AUC=0.59) and SOFA (ROC-AUC=0.76) scales; concentrations of lactate (ROC-AUC=0.71), the dynamic changes of 4-hydroxyphenyllactic acid (ROC-AUC=0.69), and the sum of three sepsis-associated metabolites (ROC-AUC=0.70). The proposed complex model using entire data set was comparable to the SOFA scale, which confirms the expediency of searching for new predictive models based on a variety of factors.

Milk serves as a crucial source of natural bioactive compounds essential for human nutrition and health. The gastrointestinal digestion of milk proteins releases various biologically active peptides that positively impact human health and enhance physiological performance. With the growing production of cheese, Greek yogurt, and other dairy products, the volume of unutilized acid whey is significantly increasing. Acid whey, containing almost all whey proteins and approximately one-quarter of casein, presents a valuable raw material for generating peptides with potential health benefits. These peptides exhibit properties such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, antihypertensive, antithrombotic, opioid, mineral-binding, and growth-stimulating activities, contributing to improved human immunity and the treatment of chronic diseases. Enzymatic hydrolysis of milk proteins has been developed as a method to produce these peptides, facilitating their use in food fortification. To incorporate whey into functional beverages, it undergoes fermentation by lactic acid bacteria with proteolytic activity. To specifically enrich these beverages with peptides exhibiting targeted bioactivities, it is essential to select lactic acid bacteria strains possessing the requisite protease profiles. Additionally, the sensory properties of the final product can be enhanced using starter cultures with diverse metabolic capabilities, even in the absence of added flavoring agents. Given the imperative to develop waste-free technologies and enhance the profitability of the dairy industry, there is a growing need to efficiently utilize and transform acid whey into a broad spectrum of valuable products and food additives. This approach is justified not only by the nutritional benefits of the bioactive components in whey but also by the commercial potential of safe and health-enhancing products.

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.

The impact of interaction SS with MJO on rainfall along Java Island to East Nusa Tenggara has been studied using daily rainfall observation data from 2140 weather observation stations, which are also equipped with GSMaP, OLR, and ERA5 data. There were 61 SS events found, 17 during active MJO and 44 in inactive MJO. Rainfall increases more in the western study area when the active MJO and more in the eastern study area when the inactive MJO is due to SS. SS reduces rainfall in the Jakarta region, regardless of the activity or inactivity of the MJO. SS causes extreme rainfall to only occur in a small part of certain areas, so it tends to significantly reduce the possibility of extreme rainfall. In the southern part of the IMC, SS predominates over MJO in supporting increased water vapor transport. Large-scale synoptic circulations like the monsoon, SS, and MJO can interact with local land-sea wind circulation to produce spatiotemporal variability in rainfall on Java Island. Rainfall mostly increases in the afternoon and decreases in the morning when SS occurs, whether there is MJO or not. Convective instability analysis indicates that SS increases precipitation, most likely by lowering CIN and raising VIMFC.

In order to shorten the detection time and improve the average precision on embedded devices, A lightweight and high accuracy model is proposed for passion fruit in complex environments (backlight, occlusion, overlap, sunny, cloudy, rainy). Firstly, replacing the backbone network of YOLOv5 with a lightweight GhostNet model reduces the number of parameters and computation while improving detection speed. Secondly, a new feature branch is added to the GhostNet network, and the feature fusion layer in the neck network is reconstructed to effectively combine the lower-level and higher-level features, which not only improves the accuracy of the model but also maintains its lightweight. Finally, the knowledge distillation methods are used to transfer the knowledge from the more capable teacher model to the less capable student model, which significantly improving the detection accuracy. The improved model is denoted as G-YOLO-NK. The average accuracy of the G-YOLO-NK network is 96.00%, which is 1.00% higher than the original YOLOv5s model. Furthermore, the improved model size is 7.14MB, reduced to half of the original model, and the real-time detection frame rate is 11.25 FPS on the Jetson Nano. Compared to the state-of-the-art model, the proposed model outperforms them in terms of average precision and detection performance. The present work provides an effective model for real-time detection of passion fruits in complex orchard scenes, which can provide valuable technical support for the development of orchard picking robots and greatly improve the intelligence level of orchards.

The Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM) scanner is an easy and portable Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) data acquisition device. Its main output is a 3D point cloud covering the scanned scene. Regarding the importance of accuracy in the survey domain, this paper aims to assess the accuracy of two SLAM scanners: the NavVis VLX and the BLK2GO Scanner. This assessment is conducted for both outdoor and indoor environments. In this context, two types of reference data are used: the Total Station (TS) and the static scanner Z+F Imager 5016. To carry out the assessment, four comparisons are tested: cloud to cloud, cloud to mesh, mesh to mesh, and edge detection board assessment. However, the results of the assessments confirm that the accuracy of indoor SLAM scanner measurements (5 mm) is greater than that of outdoor ones (between 10 mm and 60 mm). Moreover, the comparison of cloud to cloud provides the best accuracy regarding direct accuracy measurement without manipulations. Finally, based on the high accuracy, scanning speed, flexibility, and the accuracy differences between tested cases, it is confirmed that SLAM scanners are effective tools for data acquisition.

In recent years, electroencephalogram (EEG) emotion recognition has emerged as a research hotspot in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). Despite advancements in EEG-based emotion recognition, room for enhancing performance persists due to EEG signal redundancy and limitations in feature extraction, leading to inefficient models and emotional information loss. To fully utilize EEG's emotional information and improve recognition accuracy while reducing computational costs, this paper proposes a Convolutional-Recurrent Hybrid Network with a dual-stream adaptive approach and an attention mechanism (CSA-SA-CRTNN). Firstly, the model utilizes a CSAM module to assign corresponding weights to EEG channels. Then, an adaptive dual-stream convolutional-recurrent network (SA-CRNN and MHSA-CRNN) is applied to extract local spatial-temporal features. After that, the extracted local features are concatenated and fed into a temporal convolutional network with a multi-head self-attention mechanism (MHSA-TCN) to capture global information. Finally, the extracted EEG information is used for emotion classification. We conducted binary and ternary classification experiments on the DEAP dataset, achieving 99.26% and 99.15% accuracy for arousal and valence in binary classification, and 97.69% and 98.05% in ternary classification, surpassing relevant algorithms. Additionally, the model's efficiency is significantly higher than other models, achieving better accuracy with lower resource consumption.

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.

Superior fiber quality is one of the most important objectives in cotton breeding. To detect the genetic basis underlying fiber quality, an F2 population containing 413 plants was constructed by crossing Jifeng 914 and Jifeng 173, both of which have superior fiber quality, with Jifeng 173 being better. Five fiber quality traits were investigated in the F2, F2:3, F2:4, and F2:5 populations. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping was conducted based on a high-density genetic map containing 11,488 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and spanning 4,202.12 cM in length. Transgressive segregation patterns and complex correlations in the five tested traits were observed. A total of 108 QTLs were found, including 27 for fiber length (FL), 16 for fiber strength (FS), 24 for micronaire (MC), 17 for fiber uniformity (FU), and 24 for fiber elongation rate (FE). Chromosome A7 contained 12 QTL, ranking the first. No QTL was found on chromosome D1 and D11. Each QTL contributed 1.98%–21.45% to the phenotypic variation (PV), including 13 major effect QTLs that contributed more than 10% toward PV. Two QTLs could be repeatedly detected in three populations, including qFL-D3-2 in F2, F2:4, and F2:5 with 9.18%–21.45% of PV, qFS-A11-1 in F2:3, F2:4 and F2:5 with 6.05%–10.41% of PV. Another seven stable QTLs could be detected in two populations, including four major effect QTLs: qFL-A12-3, qFS-D10-2, qMC-D6-2, and qMC-D8-1. Fourteen QTL-overlapping regions were found, which might explain the complex correlations among the five phenotypic traits. Four regions on chromosome A11, D3, D6, and D10 covered by both stable and major effect QTLs are promising for further fine mapping. The genomic regions of the two QTLs detected in three populations and the four major effect QTLs contain 810 genes. Gene functional analysis revealed that the annotated genes are mainly involved in protein binding and metabolic pathways. Fifteen candidate genes in the qFL-D3-2 region are highly expressed in fiber or ovules during fiber initiation, elongation, secondary cell wall thickening, or maturation stages. qRT-PCR revealed that Ghir_D03G005440.1 and Ghir_D03G011310.1 may play a role in promoting fiber initiation, Ghir_D03G006470.1 may be beneficial for promoting fiber elongation. This study provides more information for revealing the molecular genetic basis underlying cotton fiber quality.

Currently there are fewer depth models applied to pepper picking detection, while the existing generalized neural networks have problems such as large model parameters, long training time, and low model accuracy.In order to solve the above problems, this paper proposes a Yolo-chili target detection algorithm for chili pepper detection. First, the classical target detection algorithm yolov5 is used as a benchmark model, and an adaptive spatial feature pyramid structure combining the attention mechanism and the idea of multi-scale prediction is introduced to improve the model's detection effect on occluded peppers and small target peppers. Secondly, a three-channel attention mechanism module is introduced to improve the algorithm's long-distance recognition ability and reduce the interference of redundant testers. Finally, the quantized pruning method is used to reduce the model parameters and realize the lightweight processing of the model. Applying the method to the homemade chili pepper dataset, the AP value of chili pepper reaches 93.11%; the accuracy rate is 93.51% and the recall rate is 92.55%.The experimental results show that yolo-chili is able to achieve accurate and real-time pepper detection under complex orchards.

The temporary immersion system bioreactor named GreenTray®[2], [3]presents advantages over the existing ones. Firstly, there is no need to use forceps to move the shoots or plantlets in or out of the recipient, neither the use of scalpel to divide them. Secondly, the basis of the shoot can remain in the GreenTray® and can sprout again in several cycles of growth. These two characteristics reduce the costs in the process of micropropagation. Besides, shoots or plantlets development is enhanced by the aeration of the recipient, thus enriching with CO2 the recipient atmosphere. The chapter describes and provides images and values of interest in (1) the micropropagation process of some commercial Prunus or Pyrus rootstocks; (2) the plantlet growth under autotrophic conditions; and (2) the inoculation of plants with pathogens that reproduce in vitro the symptoms observed in vivo, using the GreenTray® bioreactor.

The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the clinical outcomes of treating isolated surgical neck fractures of the humerus using either the intramedullary nail or the MIROS (Minimally Invasive Reduction and Osteosynthesis System®) system. The study included 42 patients who underwent surgical treatment at the Polyclinic from January 2014 to June 2020. The results indicated that both treatments were effective; however, the MIROS system exhibited a higher complication rate. Intramedullary nailing was more reliable, thus recommended as the primary treatment method. This study underscores the importance of selecting the appropriate fixation technique to minimize complications and enhance patient outcomes.

Aiming at the problems of inaccurate segmentation of long object and information loss of small object in real-time semantic segmentation algorithm, this paper proposes a lightweight multi-branch real-time semantic segmentation network based on BiseNetV2. The new auxiliary branch makes full use of spatial details and context information to cover the long object in the field of view. Meanwhile, in order to ensure the inference speed of the model, the asymmetric convolution is used in each stage of the auxiliary branch to design a structure with low computational complexity. In the multi-branch fusion stage, the alignment and fusion module is designed to provide guidance information for deep and shallow feature mapping, so as to make up for the problem of feature misalignment in the fusion of information at different scales, and thus reduce the loss of small target information. In order to further improve the model’s awareness of key information, a global context module is designed to capture the most important features in the input data. The proposed network uses NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Laptop GPU experiment, on the road street view data set Cityscapes and CamVid average occurring simultaneously ratio reached 77.1% and 78.4% respectively, with running speed of 127 frames/s respectively and 112 frames/s. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can achieve real-time segmentation and improve the accuracy significantly, showing good semantic segmentation performance

Excess nitrogen in agricultural drainage poses a serious threat to the water quality safety of the Yellow River basin. Utilizing aquatic plants to modify the rhizosphere microbial community structure and facilitate nitrogen transformation is a crucial strategy for mitigating regional water eutrophication. Our results revealed that the denitrification rate (DR), dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium rate (DNRAR) and nitrogen fixation rate (NFR) of rhizosphere sediments exhibited a significant increase in artificially cultivated ditch. Compared with those in natural ditches, the richness of the bacterial community and the relative abundances of Bacteroidota, Verrucomicrobiota, Firmicutes, Anaeromyxobacter and Geobacter, which are involved mainly in the nitrogen cycle, in the rhizosphere sediments of artificially cultivated ditch were significantly greater due to improvements in environmental conditions. In artificially cultivated ditch, the dominant functional genes affecting DRNARs in the rhizosphere sediments of P. australis were nrfC and nrfA, while DRs were driven mainly by norB and napA, which were influenced by the nitrogen and carbon levels; and the dominant functional genes affecting NFRs in the rhizosphere sediments of T. orientalis were nifD, nifK and nifH. Our results provide a scientific basis for the use of aquatic plants for mitigating excess nitrogen levels in agricultural drainage.

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.

In this paper we study a class of impulsive delayed neural networks with parameter uncertainties and reaction-diffusion terms. Using the properties of M-matrices and some inequality techniques, some sufficient conditions are derived to guarantee the global exponential stability of the given system. The results obtained are presented by simple algebraic inequalities, which are certainly more concise than previous methods. Finally, the validity and usefulness of our results are illustrated by arithmetic examples.

Pyrops candelaria is one of the common pests of fruit trees, but the research on the pathogenic microorganisms it may carry is very limited. Therefore, it is essential to reveal the pathogenic microbes it carries and their potential hazards. This study found a new virus from the transcriptome of P. candelaria, which was first reported in P. candelaria and named as PyCaV (Pyrops candelaria associated virus). RACE and bioinformatics assay revealed that the full-length of PyCaV is 10855 bp with the polyA tail, containing a single open reading frame (ORF) encoding a polyprotein consisting of 3171 amino acid (aa). The virus has a typical Iflavirus structure, including two rhv domains, a RNA helicase domain (HEL), a 3C cysteine protease domain (Pro), and a RNA-dependent RNA polymerase domain (RdRp). Further phylogenetic analysis revealed that this virus belongs to family Iflaviridae and sequence alignements analysis suggedted PyCaV is new member in unassigned genus of family Iflaviridae. Further in-depth analysis of virus-infection-part showed that PyCaV is distributing in the whole longan lanternfly, including its head, chest, and abdomen, but more PyCaV was identified in the chest. The distribution of PyCaV in different parts of P. candelaria was further explored, which showed that more PyCaV were detected in its piercing-sucking mouthparts and chest viscera. Statistical analysis showed that the PyCaV infection was affected by time and locations.

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.

In this paper, we extend the KdVSKR equations in (1+1)-dimension and (2+1)-dimension to fractional KdVSKR equations with modified Riemann-Liouville derivative. The (2+1)-dimensional KdVSKR equation, which is a recent extension of (1+1)-dimensional KdVSKR equation, can model the resonances of solitons in shallow water. By means of the Hirota bilinear method, finite symmetry group method and consistent Riccati expansion method, many new interaction solutions have been derived. Soliton-cnoidal interaction solution of the (1+1)-dimensional fractional KdVSKR equation has been derived for the first time. For the (2+1)-dimensional frac-tional KdVSKR equation, two-wave interaction solutions and three-wave interaction solutions, including dark-soliton-sine interaction solution, bright-soliton-elliptic interaction solution, and lump-hyperbolic-sine interaction solution, have been derived. Impact of the fractional order on the shapes of these solutions has been illustrated by figures. Three-wave interaction solutions of fractional systems have not been reported in the existing references. The research idea in this paper can be applied to other fractional differential equations.

With the burgeoning growth of online retail, the issue of counterfeit products has become a significant threat to both consumer trust and brand integrity, posing challenges to sustainable market practices. Online retail platforms are promoted to redesign their channel structures and enhance brand traceability to tackle counterfeits using blockchain technology. To investigate the interactions between blockchain technology and the channel structures of online retail platforms, we design a game theory model incorporating a manufacturer with(out) blockchain participation selling products via an online retail platform that operates an agency channel and/or a reselling channel. We show that the critical trade-off of blockchain participation comprises the brand assurance effect of the blockchain, the channel competition intensification effect, and the blockchain adoption cost. The platform is capable of strategically designing the channel structure to encourage (while discouraging) blockchain participation by the manufacturer. Our analysis highlights the complementarity between blockchain participation and the channel structure. Furthermore, the effect of the consumer’s belief in the reselling channel, the commission fee in the agency channel, and the substitutability between channels are investigated in depth. The research provides valuable insights for online retail platforms and policymakers seeking to foster a sustainable and trustworthy e-commerce ecosystem.

Antimicrobial peptides represent a promising alternative to traditional drugs in relation to cost, toxicity and, primarily, the growing problem of drug resistance. Here we report on the activity against HSV-1 and HSV-2 of a previously described wide-spectrum synthetic decapeptide, Killer Peptide (KP). As determined by plaque reduction assays, treatment with KP at 100 μg/mL resulted in a reduction in the viral yield titer of 3.5 Logs for HSV-1 and 4.1 Logs for HSV-2. Further evaluation of KP antiviral activity focused on the early stages of virus replicative cycle, including the determination of the residual infectivity of viral suspensions treated with KP. A direct effect of the peptide on viral particles, impairing virus absorption and penetration, was shown. The toxicity profile proved to be extremely good with a selectivity index of 29.6 for HSV-1 and 156 for HSV-2. KP was also active against an acyclovir (ACV)-resistant HSV-1 strain, while HSV-1 subcultures in the presence of sub-inhibitory doses of KP did not lead to the emergence of resistant strains. Finally, the antiviral action of KP proved to be synergistic with that of ACV. Overall, these results demonstrate that KP could represent an interesting addition/alternative to acyclovir for antiviral treatment.

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.

As the world population grows, fulfilling the need for biomaterials in the healthcare system becomes increasingly important. Biomaterials, which include metals, polymers, ceramics, and composites, play an important role in the creation of medical devices that improve people's lives. The European Society for Biomaterials described biomaterials as non-biological materials used in medical devices to interact with biological systems. This definition has developed to encompass materials that treat, assess, or replace tissues or bodily functions. Biocompatibility, as defined by the FDA, is a key feature of biomaterials, as is the requirement to fulfil design requirements such as mechanical performance, geometry, and electrical control. Over the last decade, advances in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering have boosted biomaterials' usage in medical applications dramatically. Despite its promise, scientists, engineers, and physicians continue to face significant challenges due to the complexity of biomaterials. Biomaterials have various benefits, including biodegradability, non-toxicity, and biocompatibility, making them extremely useful for replacing, sustaining, or improving biological activities in damaged tissues. They are used in a wide range of applications, including tissue engineering implants, human tissue healing and regeneration, medication delivery systems, and biosensors. This study gives insights into the fundamental characteristics, case studies, and ethical issues associated with the usage and use of biomaterials, further examining their potential and significance in healthcare and medicine.

The paper describes the new method for image compression based on coordinated group signal transformation. The algorithm is a type of difference coding. Coordinated processing significantly simplifies the difference signal conversion scheme using a single group codec for all signals. The described method considers color channels as correlated signals of a multi-channel communication system. The specifics of the processed data required modification of the coordinated group processing algorithm. First, we changed how to calculate the difference signals to prevent data loss. Secondly, the group codec was supplemented with a neural network to improve the quality of reconstructed images. We considered the following types of neural networks: fully connected, recurrent, convolution, and convolution in the Fourier space. Based on the simulation results, it is best to use fully connected neural networks if the goal is to minimize processing delay time. These networks have a response time of 13 ms. On the other hand, if the priority is to improve quality in cases where delays are not critical, then convolution neural networks in the Fourier space should be used. These networks have a response time of 140 ms and are of significant interest.

In electromagnetic ultrasonic testing, it is difficult to recognize small-size bottom cracks by time of flight (ToF), and the lift-off fluctuation of the probe affects the accuracy and consistency of the inspection results. In order to overcome the difficulty, a novel EMAT (electromagnetic acoustic transducer)-PEC (pulse eddy current) composite sensor is designed. We use amplitude of bottom echo recorded by EMAT to identify the tiny bottom crack as well as the amplitude of PEC signals picked up by the integrated symmetric coils to measure the average lift-off of the probe in real time. Firstly, the effects of lift-off and bottom cracks on amplitude of bottom echo are distinguished combining the theoretical analysis and finite element method (FEM). And then an amplitude correction method based on the fusion of EMAT and PEC signals is proposed to reduce the impact of lift-off on the defect signal. The experimental results demonstrate that the designed composite sensor can effectively detect the bottom crack as small as 0.1mm* 0.3mm. The signal fusion method can accurately correct the amplitude of defect signal and the relative error is less than ±8%.

The studied solar pot is a recent invention, which gained a utility model protection in 2021 from the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office under patent number 5489. The device is made for environmentally friendly cooking or heating (by utilizing solar energy) of foods and liquids. Its structure is similar to a double pipe heat exchanger, it has an outer mantle and an inner cooking tank. The goals of the paper are proposing a new physically-based mathematical model describing the solar pot and carrying out computer experiments with it, assembling an experimental system of the pot connected with a solar collector and performing measurements on it. Based on the results, the solar pot can successfully be used for cooking or sterilizing foods or liquids during the studied time period, in Hungary.

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.

Abstract: Transcription factors are crucial pre-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms that can modulate the expression of downstream genes by binding to their promoter regions. DOF (DNA binding with One Finger) proteins are a unique class of transcription factors with extensive roles in plant growth and development. Our previous research indicated a decrease in iron content in chlorotic bamboo leaves. However, to our knowledge, genes related to iron metabolism pathways in bamboo species have not yet been studied. Therefore, in the current study, we identified iron metabolism-related (IMR) genes in bamboo and determined the transcription factors that significantly influence them. Among these, DOFs were found to have widespread effects and potentially significant impacts on their expression. We identified specific DOF members in Dendrocalamus latiflorus with binding abilities through homology with Arabidopsis DOF proteins, and established connections between some of these members and IMR genes using RNA-seq data. Additionally, molecular docking confirmed the binding interactions between these DlDOFs and the DOF binding sites in the promoter regions of IMR genes. The co-expression relationship between the two gene sets was further validated using q-PCR experiments. This study paves the way for research into iron metabolism pathways in bamboo and lays the foundation for understanding the role of DOF transcription factors in D. latiflorus.

Surgical site infections (SSIs) are a major concern in public healthcare, leading to increased morbidity, pro-longed hospital stays length, and significant economic costs. Understanding the epidemiology and risk fac-tors of SSIs is crucial for developing effective prevention and management strategies. In the last century, CDC ‘s HICPAC improved a bundle for prevention of HAIs based on the use of aseptic procedures, disin-fection of the skin and correct use of antibiotics for SSIs. In our country, Gelli-Bianco law introduced the national health guidelines system that include the prophylaxis antibiotic therapy pre- and post-surgery. The aim of our study is to evaluate adherence and appropriateness of the use of antibiotic-preoperative prophylaxis in a province of southern Italy and to identify risk factors that may influence the development of an SSI. The study found many statistically significant associations among the factors examined, i.e. the timing of administration adherent to guidelines, with 47% of the analyzed files administering antibiotics within 60 min before the intervention and 62.7% using intravenous administration.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to be a global threat due to its ability to evolve and generate new subvariants, leading to new waves of infection. Additionally, other coronaviruses like Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV, formerly known as hCoV-EMC) which first emerged in 2012, persists and continues to present a threat of severe illness to humans. The continued identification of novel coronaviruses, coupled with the potential for genetic recombination between different strains, raises the possibility of new coronavirus clades of global concern emerging. As a result, there is a pressing need for pan-CoV therapeutic drugs and vaccines. After extensive optimization of an HCV protease inhibitor screening hit, a novel 3CLPro inhibitor (MK-7845) was discovered and subsequently profiled. MK-7845 exhibited nanomolar in vitro potency with broad spectrum activity against a panel of clinical SARS-CoV-2 subvariants and MERS-CoV. Furthermore, when administered orally, MK-7845 demonstrated a notable reduction of viral burdens by &gt;6 log orders in the lungs of transgenic mice infected with SARS-CoV-2 (K18-hACE2 mice) and MERS-CoV (K18-hDDP4 mice).

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.