This work has its origin in intuitive physical and statistical considerations. The problem of optimizing an artificial neural network is treated as a physical system, composed of a conservative vector force field. The derived scalar potential is a measure of the potential energy of the network, a function of the distance between predictions and targets. Starting from some analogies with wave mechanics, the description of the sys-tem is justified with an eigenvalue equation that is a variant of the Schr˜odinger equation, in which the potential is defined by the mutual information between inputs and targets. The weights and parameters of the network, as well as those of the state function, are varied so as to minimize energy, using an equivalent of the variational theorem of wave mechanics. The minimum energy thus obtained implies the principle of minimum mutual information (MinMI). We also propose a definition of the potential work produced by the force field to bring a network from an arbitrary probability distribution to the potential-constrained system, which allows to establish a measure of the complexity of the system. At the end of the discussion we expose a recursive procedure that allows to refine the state function and bypass some initial assumptions, as well as a discussion of some topics in quantum mechanics applied to the formalism, such as the uncertainty principle and the temporal evolution of the system. Results demonstrate how the minimization of energy effectively leads to a decrease in the average error between network predictions and targets.

Cisplatin is a widely used anticancer drug for treating solid tumors, but it is associated with severe side effects, including nephrotoxicity. Various studies have suggested that the nephrotoxicity of cisplatin could be overcome; nonetheless, an effective adjuvant drug has not yet been established. Oleanolic acid acetate (OAA), a triterpenoid isolated from Vigna angularis, is commonly used to treat inflammatory and allergic diseases. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of OAA against cisplatin-induced apoptosis and necroptosis using TCMK-1 cells and a mouse model. In cisplatin-treated TCMK-1 cells, OAA treatment significantly reduced Bax and cleaved-caspase3 expression, whereas increased Bcl-2 expression. Moreover, in cisplatin-induced kidney injury mouse model, OAA treatment alleviated weight loss in the body and major organs and also relieved cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity symptoms. RNA sequencing analysis of kidney tissues identified lipocalin-2 as the most upregulated gene by cisplatin. Additionally, necroptosis-related genes such as receptor interacting protein kinase (RIPK) and mixed lineage kinase domain like (MLKL) were identified. In vitro study, the phosphorylation of RIPKs and MLKL was reduced by OAA pretreatment in both cisplatin-treated cells and cells boosted by co-treatment with z-VAD-FMK. In conclusion, OAA could protect the kidney from cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity and may serve as an anticancer adjuvant.

Diacylglycerol kinase (DGK) is a lipid kinase that phosphorylates diacylglycerol (DAG) to generate phosphatidic acid (PA). Based on converting one important signaling molecule (DAG) to another (PA), DGK plays an important role in plant responses to abiotic stress including waterlogging stress. However, no studies have been reported on the characterization of the DGK gene family in the waterlogging-tolerant kiwifruit germplasm, Actinidia valvata Dunn. Here, we identified 18 AvDGK genes in the A. valvata genome. The phylogenetic analysis showed that AvDGKs can be classified into three clusters, and members within the same cluster have similar domain distribution, exon-intron structures and conserved motif compositions. Chromosome localization analysis revealed that all the AvDGK genes are located across 18 different chromosomes. There were 29 duplicated gene pairs in kiwifruit and all had undergone purifying selection during evolution. Promoter cis-element analysis revealed that the cis-elements within AvDGK genes are associated with multiple functions, including phytohormone signal transduction, stress response, and plant growth and development. The expression pattern analyses indicated that AvDGK play an important role in the fruit development and plant response to waterlogging stress. AvDGKs gene family in the tetraploid A. valvata genome might promote PA synthesis and subsequent signal transduction both under short-term and long-term waterlogging stress. These results provide information regarding the structural characteristics and potential function of DGK genes within kiwifruit and lay a fundamental basis for further research into breeding for enhancing the kiwifruit’s tolerance to waterlogging stress.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) hold enormous potential in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, benefit from their roles in intercellular signaling, as well as their plentiful presence and stability in body fluids. However, conventional EV isolation methods are labor-intensive, and harvest EVs with low purity and compromised recovery. In addition, the drawbacks, such as limited sensitivity and specificity of traditional EV analysis methods hinder the application of EVs in clinical use. Therefore, it is urgent to develop effective and standardized methods for isolating and detecting EVs. Microfluidics technology is a powerful and rapidly developing technology that has been introduced as a potential solution for the above bottlenecks. It holds the advantages of high integration, short analysis time, low consumption of samples and reagents. In this review, we summarize the traditional techniques alongside microfluidic-based methodologies for the isolation and detection of EVs. We emphasize the separation advantages of microfluidic technology in enhancing EV capture efficiency and precise targeting, while summarizing its analytical role in targeted detection and discussing the significance of EV detection in the tumor microenvironment, providing a direction for achieving automated and high-throughput EV detection in clinical samples.

Injury to the peritoneum during surgery is followed by a healing process that frequently results in the attachment of adjacent organs by a fibrous mass, referred to commonly as adhesions. Because injuries to the peritoneum during surgery are inevitable, one must understand the mechanisms of adhesion formation to prevent its occurrence. This requires a thorough understanding of the molecular sequence that results in the attachment of injured peritoneum and the development of fibrous tissue. Recent data show that fibroblasts from the injured peritoneum may play a critical role in forming adhesion tissues. Therefore, identifying changes in gene expression patterns in the peritoneal fibroblasts during the process may provide clues to the mechanisms by which adhesion develops. This review presents many papers discussing genes implied in peritoneal adhesion.

To characterize the fecal microbiota of lactating Bactrian camels, this study employed a random selection of camels, assigning them to three groups: the first parity group, the third parity group, and the fifth parity group. The fecal microbial community of lactating camels was assessed using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, and the resulting library was sequenced on an Illumina NovaSeq platform. The first parity group was characterized by Verrucomicrobiaceae as a distinctive bi-omarker, whereas Clostridiaceae exhibited a similar role to the third parity group. In terms of functional analysis, the relative abundance of the Steroid biosynthesis pathway was highest in the first parity group, whereas the fifth parity group demonstrated a higher relative abundance of the Tuberculosis pathway compared to the other groups. The first parity group exhibited the greatest presence of seven types of enzymes, whereas the fifth parity group displayed the highest levels of two specific enzymes. Additionally, a positive association was observed between the relative abundance of the Steroid biosynthesis pathway and Verrucomicrobiaceae. Furthermore, the relative abundance of the Tuberculosis pathway displayed positive correlations with 14 enzymes. In conclusion, this study revealed that different parity was associated with distinct fecal microbial ecologies in lactating Bactrian camels.

To enhance the applicability of dual-phase high-entropy alloys (HEAs) like Fe32Cr33Ni29Al3Ti3, fabricated via selective laser melting (SLM), a focus on improving their mechanical properties is essential. As part of this effort, heat treatment was explored. This study compares the microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-printed sample with those cooled in water after undergoing heat treatment at temperatures ranging from 1000 to 1200 ℃ for 1 hour. Both pre- and post-treatment samples reveal a dual-phase microstructure comprising FCC and BCC phases. Although heat treatment led to a reduction in tensile and yield strength, it significantly increased ductility compared to the as-printed sample. This strength-ductility trade-off is related to changes in grain sizes with ultrafine grains enhancing strength and micron grains optimizing ductility, also the influence of the content of FCC/BCC phases and dislocation density. In particular, the sample heat-treated at 1000 °C for 1 hour and then water-cooled exhibited a better combination of strength and ductility, a yield strength of 790 MPa, and an elongation of 13%. This research offers innovative perspectives on crafting dual-phase HEA of Fe32Cr33Ni29Al3Ti3, allowing for tailorable microstructure and mechanical properties through a synergistic approach involving SLM and heat treatment.

To better understand the shape memory materials and self-healing materials, a new series of liquid-crystalline shape memory polyurethane (LC-SMPU) composites, named SMPU-OOBAm, were successfully prepared by incorporating 4-octyldecyloxybenzoic acid (OOBA) into the PEG-based SMPU. The effect of OOBA on the structure, morphology and properties has been carefully investigated. The results demonstrate that SMPU-OOBAm have liquid crystalline properties, triple-shape memory properties and self-healing properties. The incorporated OOBA promotes the crystallizability of both soft and hard segments of SMPU, and the crystallization rate of the hard segment of SMPU decreases when the OOBA-content increases. Additionally, the SMPU-OOBAm forms a two-phase separated structure (SMPU phase and OOBA phase), and it shows two-step modulus changes upon heating. Therefore, the SMPU-OOBAm shows triple-shape memory behavior, and the shape recovery ratio decreases with an increase in the OOBA content. Finally, SMPU-OOBAm shows self-healing properties. The new mechanism can be ascribed to the heating-induced “bleeding” of OOBA in the liquid crystalline state and the subsequent re-crystallization upon cooling. This successful combination of liquid crystalline properties, triple-shape memory properties and self-healing properties make the SMPU-OOBAm composites with many promise applications in smart optical devices, smart electronic devices and smart sensors.

Honey is a sweet substance extensively consumed in the world for its nutritional and healthy properties. However, residues of pesticides and environmental contaminants can compromise its quality. For this reason, the physicochemical parameters, and the organic contamination of monofloral and multifloral honeys from three regions of Algeria (Tiaret, Laghouat and Tindouf) were monitored to evaluate the quality of honey and the safety for consumers. In general, the results obtained from the physicochemical analyses were in line with the EU standards. In terms of contamination, pesticides authorised and used in Algerian agriculture (matalaxyl-M and cyromazine), as well as banned pesticide (carbaryl), were found in almost all the samples. However, only the concentration of cyromazine was higher than the relative EU maximum residue levels. PCB 180, PCB 189, anthracene, fluorene and phenanthrene were mainly detected. All the honeys show traces of DiBP, DBP, DEHP and DEHT, but no traces of bisphenols were found. Moreover, the dietary exposure assessment shows that a small amount of Algerian honey can be safely consumed. Overall, data from this study should motivate the Algerian government to enhance their monitoring activities in beekeeping and to find solutions for implementing more sustainable agricultural practices harmonizing with the international legislation.

Surface initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) is one of the most versatile technique to modify the surface properties of material. Recent developed metal free SI-ATRP makes such technique more widely applicable. Herein photo-induced metal-free SI-ATRP of methacrylates, such as methyl methacrylate, N-isopropanyl acrylamide, and N,N- dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, on the surface of SBA-15 was reported to fabricate organic-inorganic hybrid materials. SBA-15 based polymeric composite with adjustable graft ratio was obtained. The structure evolution during the SI-ATRP modification of SBA-15 was monitored and verified by FT-IR, XPS, TGA, BET, and TEM. The obtained polymeric composite showed enhanced adsorption ability for the model compound toluene in aqueous. This procedure provides a low cost, ready availability, and facile modification way to synthesize the polymeric composites without the contamination of metal.

Background: The purpuse was to investigate the influence induced by magnesium chloride (MgCl2) and zinc gluconate (ZnG) supplementation on liver and kidney injuries experimentally-induced with acetaminophen (AAPh) and potentiated by ciprofloxacin addition in rats. Material and methods: The experiment was performed on 5 animals groups: group 1 – control, treated for 6 weeks with normal saline, 1mL/kg; group 2 – AAPh, treated for 6 weeks with AAPh, 100 mg/ kg/day; group 3 – AAPh+C, treated AAPh 100 mg/kg/ day for 6 weeks and ciprofloxacin, 50mg /kg/day, only in the last 14 days of the experiment; group 4 – AAPh+C+Mg, with the same treatment as group 3, but, and in the last 14 days, MgCl2 10 mg/ kg/day was added; group 5 – AAPh+C+Zn, with the same treatment as group 3, but, and in the last 14 days, zinc gluconate (ZnG),10 mg/kg/day was added. All administrations were performed by oral gavage. At the end of the experiment, the animals were sacrificed and blood samples were collected for biochemistry examinations. Results: Treatment with AAPh for 6 weeks determined an alteration of the liver function (increases in alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, lactic dehydrogenase and, and gamma-glutamyl transferase) and of renal function (increases in serum urea and creatinine) (P < 0.001 group 2 vs. group 1 for all mentioned parameters). Also, the antioxidant defense capacity was impaired in group 2 vs. group 1 (superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activity decreased in group 2 vs. group 1, 0.001 < P < 0.01, respectively 0.01 < P < 0.05). The addition of ciprofloxacin, 50 mg/kg/day during the last 14 days resulted in further increases in alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, urea and creatinine (0.01 < P < 0.05, group 3 vs. group 2). MgCl2 provided a slight protection against liver enzymes increase and a more pronounced protection against the increase in serum urea and creatinine (0.001 < P < 0.01 group 4 vs. group 3). MgCl2 provided a slight protection against the decrease in superoxide dismutase (0.01 < P < 0.05 group 4 vs. group 3), but not against decrease of glutathione peroxidase. The improvement of mentioned parameters could also be seen in case of ZnG, to a higher extent especially in the case of alanine aminotransferase and lactic dehydrogenase (0.01 < P < 0.05 group 5 vs. group 4). Conclusions: This study represents a furthermore proof for beneficial effect of magnesium and zinc salts against toxicity induced by different agents, including antibacterials added to the analgesic and antipyretic acetaminophen; the protection is proven on the liver and kidney’s function; the antioxidant profile improvement has a key role, especially in case of zinc gluconate.

Clifford algebra is unified language and efficient tool for geometry and physics. In this paper, we introduce this algebra to derive the integrable conditions for Dirac and Pauli equations. This algebra shows the standard operation procedure and deep insights into the structure of the equations. Usually, the integrable condition is related to the special symmetry of transformation group, which involves some advanced mathematical tools and its availability is limited. In this paper, the integrable conditions are only regarded as algebraic conditions. The commutators expressed by Clifford algebra have a neat and covariant form, which are naturally valid in curvilinear coordinate system and curved space-time. For Pauli and Schr\"odinger equation, many solutions in axisymmetric potential and magnetic field are also integrable. We get the scalar eigen equation in dipole magnetic field. By the virtue of Clifford algebra, the physical researches may be greatly promoted.

In this paper, carbon nanotubes modified screen-printed electrode (CNTs/SPE) was prepared and the CNTs/SPE was employed for the electrochemical determination of antioxidant substance Chlorogenic acids (CGAs). A pair of well-defined redox peak of CGA was observed at the CNTs/SPE in 0.10 mol∙L^-1 acetic acid-sodium acetate buffer (pH 6.2) and electrode process is adsorption-controlled. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) method for the determination of CGA were proposed based on the CNTs/SPE. Under the optimal conditions, the proposed method exhibited linear ranges from 4.73×10^-7 to 4.45×10^-5 mol∙L^-1, the linear regression equation was Ipa(µA) = 4.1993 C (mol∙L^-1)+1.1039 (r = 0.9976) and the detection limit for CGA could reach 3.25×10^-6 mol∙L^-1. The recovery of matrine was 94.74~106.65% (RSD = 2.92%) in coffe beans. The proposed method is quick, sensitive, reliable, and can be used for the determination of CGA.

The aim of this study was to examine the oxidation of human serum albumin (HSA) caused by oxidative stress after an exhaustive exercise such as ultra-marathon race. Thus, blood samples from 12 adult runners who underwent a 103 km mountain ultra-marathon race were collected pre- and 24, 48 and 72 h post race. HSA was partially purified using affinity chromatography and then was subjected to Western blot analysis for disulfide dimers determination, indicating oxidation. The results were correlated with those from a previous study in which the same samples were analyzed using different oxidative stress markers and a good correlation with protein carbonyls (PC) at all time points was observed. Moreover there was a significant correlation with static oxidation-reduction potential (sORP) at 24 h, and a negative correlation with capacity oxidation-reduction potential (cORP) at 24 and 48 h. In addition, an individual analysis of albumin dimers exhibited great inter-individual differences. This inter-individual variability in the oxidation of HSA may suggest different interventions (e.g. through diet) in order to confront the effects on athletes’ organism after a strenuous exercise. In conclusion, this study supported the importance of the assessment of albumin dimers as a predictive marker for exercise-induced oxidative stress.

The current study was designed to investigate the anti-inflammatory effect of salidroside (SDS) and the underlying mechanism by using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages in vitro and a mouse model of binge drinking induced liver injury in vivo. SDS downregulated protein expression of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and CD14. SDS inhibited LPS-triggered phosphorylation of LPS-activated kinase 1 (TAK1), p38, c-Jun terminal kinase (JNK), and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Degradation of IκB-α and nuclear translocation of nuclear factor (NF)-κB were effectively blocked by SDS. SDS concentration-dependently suppressed LPS mediated inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) protein levels, as well as their downstream products, NO. SDS significantly inhibited protein secretion of interleukin (IL)-1β. Additionally C57BL/6 mice were orally administrated SDS for continuous 5 days, followed by three gavages of ethanol every 30 min. Alcohol binge drinking caused the increasing of hepatic lipid accumulation and serum transaminases levels. SDS pretreatment significantly alleviated liver inflammatory changes and serum transaminases levels. Further investigation indicated that SDS markedly decreased protein level of IL-1β in serum. Taken together, these data implied that SDS inhibits liver inflammation both in vitro and in vivo, and may be a promising candidate for the treatment of inflammatory liver injury.

Spermatogenesis is critical for insect reproduction and is regulated by many different genes. In this study, we found that Forkhead transcription factor Fd59a functions as a key factor in spermatogenesis of Drosophila melanogaster. Fd59a contains a conversed Forkhead domain, and it is clustered to the FoxD subfamily with other FoxD members from some insect and vertebrate species. Mutation in Fd59a caused swelling in the apical region of the testis. More importantly, only a few mature sperm were present in the seminal vesicle of Fd59a mutant flies compared to the control flies, and the fertility of Fd59a2/2 mutant males was significantly lower than that of the control flies. Immunofluorescence staining showed that the homeostasis of testis stem cell niche in Fd59a2/2 mutant and Fd59a RNAi flies was disrupted, and apoptosis of sperm bundles was increased. Furthermore, results from RNA-sequencing and qRT-PCR suggest that Fd59a can regulate expression of genes related to reproductive process and cell death. Taken together, our results indicated that Fd59a plays a key role in the spermatogenesis of Drosophila.

Background: The control of energy metabolism is fundamental for cell growth and function, and anomalies are implicated in complex diseases and ageing. It is important for cells to carefully tune metabolic pathways to optimize their function in response to different nutrient or physiological conditions. Metabolism in yeast cells can be easily manipulated by supplying different carbon sources: on glucose yeast rapidly proliferates by fermentation, analogous to tumour cells growing by aerobic glycolysis, whereas on non-fermentable carbon sources metabolism shifts towards respiration. Results: We screened deletion libraries of fission yeast to identify over 200 genes required for respiratory growth. The growth medium and auxotrophic mutants strongly influenced respiratory metabolism. Most genes uncovered in the mutant screens have not been implicated in respiration in budding yeast. We applied gene expression profiling approaches to compare steady-state fermentative and respiratory growth and to analyse the dynamic adaptation to respiratory growth. The transcript levels of most genes functioning in key energy metabolism pathways were coherently tuned, reflecting anticipated differences in metabolic flows between fermenting and respiring cells. We show that the acetyl-CoA synthase, rather than the citrate lyase, is essential for acetyl-CoA synthesis in fission yeast. We also investigated the transcriptional response to mitochondrial damage by genetic or chemical perturbations, defining a retrograde response that involves the concerted regulation of distinct groups of nuclear genes that may avert harm from mitochondrial malfunction. Conclusions: These systematic and targeted analyses provide a rich framework of the genetic and regulatory basis of fundamental metabolic states to guide future studies on energy metabolism in fission yeast and beyond. Our study pinpoints weaknesses of commonly used auxotroph mutants for investigating energy metabolism. As a model for cellular energy regulation, fission yeast provides an attractive and complementary system to budding yeast.

Background: Previous neuroimaging studies have identified brain regions related to respiratory motor control and perception. However, little is known about the resting-state functional connectivity (FC) associated with respiratory impairment. We aimed to determine the FC involved in mild respiratory impairment without changing the saturation of percutaneous oxygen. Methods: We obtained resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 36 healthy volunteers during normal respiration and mild respiratory impairment induced by resistive load (effort breathing). ROI-to-ROI and seed-to-voxel analyses were performed using Statistical Parametric Mapping 12 and the CONN toolbox. Results: Compared to normal respiration, effort breathing activated FCs within and between the sensory perceptive area of respiration (the postcentral gyrus, anterior insular cortex (AInsula), and anterior cingulate cortex) and visual cortex (the visual occipital, occipital pole (OP), and occipital fusiform gyrus). Graph theoretical analysis showed strong centrality in the visual cortex. A significant positive correlation was observed between the dyspnoea score (modified Borg scale) and FC between the left AInsula and right OP. Conclusions: These results suggested that the FCs within the respiratory sensory area via the network hub may be neural mechanisms underlying effort breathing and modified Borg scale scores.

The AREB/ABF (ABA response element binding) proteins in plants are vital for plant stress responses, but the understanding of AREB/ABFs in orchid species, an important traditional medicinal and ornamental plants, is limited. Here, twelve AREB/ABF genes were identified within three orchids’ complete genome and classified into three groups (groups I, II, and III) via a phylogenetic analysis, which was further supported by the analysis of their conserved motifs and gene structures. The cis-elements analysis showed that hormone response elements followed by light and stress responses were widely rich in AREB/ABFs. A prediction analysis of orchid ABRE/ABF-mediated regulatory network was further constructed through cis-regulatory elements (CREs) analysis of their promoter regions and revealed that several transcriptional factor (TF) gene family were abundant as the potential regulators for orchid AREB/ABFs. Expression profile analysis based on public transcriptomic data showed that most AREB/ABF genes have distinct tissue-specific expression patterns in orchid plants. Additionally, DcaABI5 as the homolog of ABA INSENSITIVE 5 (ABI5) from Arabidopsis was selected for further analysis. The results showed that Arabidopsis transgenic overexpressing DcaABI5 could rescue the ABA insensitive phenotype in the mutant abi5. Collectively, these findings will provide valuable information on AREB/ABF genes in orchids.

Aim: To evaluate the panmacular subthreshold micropulse laser treatment results among patients with central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) and their correlation with functional and morphological parameters. Material and methods: The examined group included 10 non-treated and 41 treated patients with acute, recurrent, and chronic CSC (13 F, 38 M, mean age 44.11±6.5) and 14 healthy controls (6 F, 8 M, mean age 45±9.3). The BCVA examination, ophthalmoscopy, microp-erimetry, angio-OCT and OCT were performed. The medical history regarding chronic general disorders and known risk factors were recorded. Results: Complete resorption of SRF was obtained in 100% aCSC, 86.66% cCSC, and 63.63% r CSC. BCVA and RetSens significantly improved most of the patients treated in aCSC. The lowest BCVA and RetSens, but the largest pachyvessel and disease duration, were found in rCSC. A strong negative correlation between final BCVA and disease duration was found. No patient demonstrated laser lesions following treatment. Conclusions: The panmacular MPLT therapy leads to long-term enhancement of functional and morphological parameters in all CSC patients. The acute CSC patients showed the most significant improvement. The procedure is safe and could be considered a preferred treatment option for all active CSC cases. Timely treatment is crucial for beneficial outcomes.

Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (mTLE) is one of the most common and refractory focal epilepsy syndromes. The molecular mechanisms of TLE are not completely understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression and potential function of plasma exosomal miRNAs (miR-483-5p, miR-671-5p, and miR-150-3p) in a mouse mode and in temporal lobe epilepsy patients. It was found that exosomal miRNAs were differentially expressed in three phases of the mouse mode, and exosomal miRNAs were down-regulated in mTLE patients compared with healthy controls. A bioinformatics analysis showed that target genes of exosomal miRNAs were significantly involved in the apoptotic process, cell adhesion, nervous system development, neurotrophin signaling pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and metabolic pathways. The areas under the curve of miR-483-5p and miR-150-3p were 0.8714 (sensitivity = 75.00%, specificity = 91.65%) and 0.8213 (sensitivity = 67.50%, specificity = 90.00%), respectively. More importantly, the exosomal miRNAs were significantly associated with clinical parameters. Exosomal miRNAs may have the potential to become diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers.

We have carried out a systematic review of the scientific literature published on PM and, more specifically, on its presence in fish and seafood of interest to the population from Mediterranean area. Given its preference and wide acceptability in the scientific community, we followed the PRISMA. The potential functional and clinical toxicity in humans due to MP in fish must be considered by the chemical composition of the microplastics the presence of PM and its additives, associated contaminants and pathogens in fish and shellfish, as well as the possible effects on human health, requires improving legislation on evaluation and providing a basis for consumer protection.

Kinesiophobia (fear of movement) has been recognized as a significant barrier to recovery and rehabilitation in patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Our goal was to identify predictors of kinesiophobia and examine its correlation with early functional outcomes in TKA recipients. On the first and fifth postoperative days (POD1 and POD5), we evaluated pain using the International Pain Outcomes Questionnaire (IPO-Q) and created multidimensional pain composite scores (PCS). Pain Composite Score-total (PCStotal) assesses the overall impact of pain, taking into account outcomes of pain intensity, pain-related interference with function, and emotions and side effects. Functional status on POD 5 was determined by the Barthel index, 6-minute walking test, and knee range of motion. Kinesiophobia was measured on POD5 using the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK) and multivariable logistic regression was used to assess factors associated with kinesiophobia. Among 75 TKA patients, 27% exhibited kinesiophobia. The final regression model highlighted PCStotal on POD5 (OR=6.2, CI=1.9-19.9), PCStotal (OR=2.1, CI=1.2-3.8) on POD1, and the intensity of chronic pain before surgery (OR=1.4, CI=1.1-2.1) as significant kinesiophobia predictors. On POD5, those with kinesiophobia showed increased dependency, slower gait, and poorer knee extension recovery. This study highlights the importance of identifying and addressing kinesiophobia in TKA patients to optimize functional outcomes and improve recovery. Also, it is important to assess not only pain intensity but also the physical and emotional interference caused by pain, which can contribute to the development of kinesiophobia.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) has a poor prognosis and displays resistance to immunotherapy. A better understanding of tumor-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) effects on immune responses might contribute to improved immunotherapy. EVs derived from Capan-2 and BxPC-3 PC cells isolated by ultracentrifugation were characterized by atomic force microscopy, western blot (WB), nanoparticle tracking analysis and label-free proteomics. Fresh PBMCs from healthy donors were treated with PC- or control-derived heterologous EVs followed by flow cytometry analysis of CD8+ and CD4+ lymphocytes. Proteomics of lymphocytes sorted from EV-treated, or -untreated PBMCs was performed and IFN-γ concentration was measured by ELISA. Notably, most of the proteins identified in Capan-2 and BxPC-3 EVs by proteomic analysis were connected in a single functional network (p=1x10-16) and were involved in “Immune System” (FDR: 1.10x10-24 and 3.69x10-19, respectively). Interestingly, treatment of healthy donor-derived PBMCs with Capan-2 EVs, but not with BxPC-3 EVs or heterologous control EVs induced early activation of CD8+ and CD4+ lymphocytes. Proteomics of lymphocytes sorted from EV-treated PBMCs was consistent with their activation by Capan-2 EVs, indicating IFN-γ among major upstream regulators, as confirmed by ELISA. Proteomic and functional analyses indicate that PC-EVs have pleiotropic effects, and some may activate early immune response, which might be relevant for the development of highly needed immunotherapeutic strategies in this immune-cold tumor.

Sea cucumber peptides are small molecular peptides with biological function obtained from fresh sea cucumber as feedstock, which were hydrolyzed by protease, separated ,and purified. As the main product of sea cucumber refinement, it more accurately expresses the nutritional effect of sea cucumber and has a wide range of potential applications. It has been demonstrated that sea cucumber has a certain value-added effect on bone mineral density regulation, but the differences in bone mineral density regulation of extracts from different parts of sea cucumber and the techniques contributing to the efficient isolation of bone sea cucumber peptides have not been reported. Firstly, the aim of this study was to reveal the differences in osteogenic activities of enzymatic peptides from three major parts of sea cucumber: the body wall, the egg protein, and the intestinal protein. Then, the bone-enhancing sea cucumber peptides were isolated based on the characteristics of the dif-ferences in molecular weight distribution, hydrophilicity, and ionisation degree of sea cucumber, and to explore the possible mechanisms of their action. The findings indicated that sea cucumber peptides extracted from three distinct sites exhibited a dose-dependent enhancement of osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. Upon evaluating the three methods of sea cucumber peptide separation based on molecular weight distribution, hydrophilicity, and ionization, it was observed that the fraction isolated by hydrophobicity and

This study focuses on enhancing controllable fibrin-based hydrogels for tissue engineering, addressing existing weaknesses. By integrating a novel copolymer, we improve the foundation for cell-based angiogenesis with adaptable structural features. Tissue engineering often faces challenges like waste disposal and nutrient supply beyond the 200 µm diffusion limit. Angiogenesis breaks through this limitation, allowing the construction of larger constructs. Our innovative scaffold combination significantly boosts angiogenesis, resulting in longer branches and more capillary network junctions. The copolymer attached to fibrin fibers enables precise adjustment of hydrogel mechanical-dynamic properties for specific applications. Our material proves effective for angiogenesis, even under suppression factors like suramin. In our study, we prepared fibrin-based hydrogels with and without the copolymer PVP12400-co-GMA10mol%. Using a co-culture system of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), we analyzed angiogenetic behavior on and within the modified hydrogels. Capillary-like structures were reproducibly formed on different surfaces, demonstrating the general feasibility of three-dimensional endothelial cell networks in fibrin-based hydrogels. This highlights the biomaterial's suitability for in vitro pre-vascularization of biohybrid implants.

Sensory integration is an essential function of human life, and its decline causes difficulties in the quality of life, especially in older adults. In this study, we proposed an arm-reaching task based on a virtual reality head-mounted display (VR-HMD) system to assess sensory integration in daily life, and examined whether reaching task performance was associated with age and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) between the brain regions of interest involved in sensory integration. We hypothesized that performance during a reaching task with multiple cognitive loadings would be affected by aging. The gap angle between the reaching hand and target positions was compared between older and middle-aged adults as a measure of sensory integration function. In addition, rsFC, which was significantly correlated with the gap angles of individual participants in the older adult group, was identified using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data. The mean gap angle was significantly larger in the older adults than in the middle-aged group and was also significantly correlated with connections between the left primary motor area and the left inferior temporal gyrus, temporo-occipital part. Because the connectivity between the areas is known to be related to visuomotor integration, the results suggest the involvement of visuomotor integration in the decline of sensory integration function in old age and the validity of the gap angle during the proposed VR-HMD task as an index for the decline in function.

The BET family of proteins is characterized by the presence of two tandem bromodomains and an extra-terminal domain. The mammalian BET family of proteins comprises Brd2, Brd3, Brd4, and Brdt, which are encoded by paralogous genes that may have been generated by repeated duplication of an ancestral gene during evolution. Bromodomains that can specifically bind acetylated lysine residues in histones serve as chromatin-targeting modules that decipher the histone acetylation code. BET proteins play a crucial role in regulating gene transcription through epigenetic interactions between bromodomains and acetylated histones during cellular proliferation and differentiation processes. On the other hand, BET proteins have been reported to mediate latent viral infection in host cells and be involved in oncogenesis. Human BRD4 is involved in multiple processes of the DNA virus life cycle, including viral replication, genome maintenance, and gene transcription through interaction with viral proteins. Aberrant BRD4 expression contributes to carcinogenesis by mediating hyperacetylation of the chromatin containing the cell proliferation-promoting genes. BET bromodomain blockade using small-molecule inhibitors gives rise to selective repression of the transcriptional network driven by c-Myc. These inhibitors are expected to be potential therapeutic drugs for a wide range of cancers. This review presents an overview of the basic roles of BET proteins and highlights the pathological functions of BET and the recent developments in cancer therapy targeting BET proteins in animal models.

Fractional flow reserve (FFR) is well recognized as a gold standard measure for the estimation of functional coronary stenosis. Technological progressions in image processing have empowered the reconstruction of three-dimensional models of the coronary arteries via both non-invasive imaging modalities, such as Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography (CCTA), and invasive coronary angiography or intravascular imaging. The application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques to coronary 3D anatomical models allows the virtual evaluation of the hemodynamic significance of a coronary lesion with high diagnostic accuracy in comparison to the invasive FFR using pressure wires. These opportunities providing hemodynamic information based on anatomy have given rise to a new era of functional angiography and coronary imaging. However, further validations are needed to overcome several scientific and computational challenges before these methods are applied in everyday clinical practice. This review aims to present all the data on the studies and methodologies that have been presented for the virtual estimation of FFR, and the diagnostic execution of the virtual tools for the hemodynamic assessment of coronary lesions compared to the invasive FFR.

Abstract: A. baumannii exhibits resilience in harsh environments and progressively develops resistance to diverse antibacterial agents over time. This adaptability poses a significant challenge in treating an infection caused by this bacterium within healthcare settings. The presence of peptidoglycan, a crucial precursor for cell wall synthesis, contributes to this challenge. Peptidoglycan serves not only as a structural support in bacterial cells but also provides protection against adverse environmental conditions. The synthesis of the peptidoglycan layer involves a group of substrates such as N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) and N-acetylmuramic acid (MurNAc), within a three-partitioned process occurring in the membrane, periplasmic space, and cytoplasm of each bacterium. Initiated in the cytoplasm and extending to the inner cell membrane, this synthesis starts with the production of nucleotide precursors. The first step involves the synthesis of UDP-GlcNAc, orchestrated by Glm (GlmS, GlmM, and GlmU) enzymes using fructose-6-phosphate. Subsequently, enzymes from the Mur family, namely MurB, MurA, MurD, MurC, MurI, MurF, and MurE, synthesize UDP-N-acetylmuramyl-pentapeptide (UDP-Mpp) from UDP-GlcNAc. Concurrently, on the cytosolic side, the production of membrane-surrounded undecaprenyl phosphate occurs, involving membrane-side proteins MraY and MurG in the biosynthesis of peptidoglycan. This review emphasizes updated information on Mur family proteins, encompassing physicochemical properties, nature of binding site, number and type of binding site residues, functional domain details, three-dimensional structural aspects, and their functions within bacterial cells. Special attention is directed towards their enzymatic role in peptidoglycan biosynthesis due to the limited availability of precursors in the market. Additionally, the review provides a comprehensive summary of existing inhibitors and ongoing efforts in identifying new targeted inhibitors, recognizing these enzymes as potential candidates for antibacterial drug design and discovery.

Psoriasis is a lifelong, systemic, immune mediated inflammatory skin condition, affecting 1-3% of the world’s population, with an impact on quality of life similar to diseases like cancer or diabetes. Genetics are the single largest risk factor in psoriasis, with GWAS studies showing that many psoriasis risk genes lie along the IL23/Th17 axis. Potential psoriasis risk genes determined through GWAS can be annotated and characterised using functional genomics, allowing the identification of novel drug targets and the repurposing of existing drugs. The pathogenesis of psoriasis is complex and focusing on the IL23/Th17 axis can provide insight into key cell types, cytokines and intracellular signaling pathways involved. Examination of currently available biological treatments, time to relapse post drug withdrawal and rates of drug primary/secondary drug failure show the need for greater understanding of the underlying genetic mechanisms of psoriasis and how they can impact treatment. This could allow for patient stratification towards the treatment most likely reduce dis-ease burden for the longest period possible.

Introduction. Intra-abdominal cystic formations represent heterogeneous pathologies with varied localization and clinical manifestation. The first challenge of a giant intra-abdominal cystic lesion is identifying the organ of origin. The clinical presentation of intra-abdominal cystic lesions varies from acute manifestations to non-specific symptoms or accidental discovery. Case presentation: A 2-year-old girl presents to the emergency unit with a fever of 38.5 Celsius, loss of appetite, and apathy. The investigations showed a gigantic intra-abdominal mass whose organ belonging could not be specified. Postoperatively, a giant mesenteric lymphangioma was evident, which was completely excised. Discussions Giant cystic formations modify the anatomical reports and become space-replacing formations, and the starting point is even more challenging to assess preoperatively. Nevertheless, the careful evaluation of the characteristics of the formation, the effect on the adjacent organs, the age of the patient, and the clinical picture can provide elements of differential diagnosis.

Evidence suggests that COVID-19 infection can cause lasting health consequences. Multidiscipli-nary rehabilitation services have been recommended to reduce the sequalae. However, the effec-tiveness of physical exercise interventions remains insufficiently documented. The aim of this study was to develop and implement a specific and well tolerated protocol-based, intervention to reduce muscle weakness in older adults impacted by COVID-19. Forty six older adults random-ized into Intervention and Control Groups. Isometric and isokinetic strength assessments were conducted for selected muscle groups using JBA Staniak® torquemeter and Biodex System 3 dy-namometer. Functional abilities were evaluated with the Time Up and Go test and Chair Stand Tests. Men in intervention group demonstrated a significant improvement in static conditions for knee flexors (KF), trunk extensors (TE) and trunk flexors (TF) and in dynamic conditions for knee extensors (KE). Women in intervention group showed significant improvement in static condition for EF, KF, TE and TF and in dynamic for a KE and for a KF. The interaction GROUP x TESTING SESSION was significant for Chair test (s) and Chair test (n). Our results demonstrate the effec-tiveness of a well-tolerated, protocol-based approach that can be used to diminish long lasting functional deficits in post-covid survivors.

Functional connectivity (FC) is a potential candidate that can increase the performance of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) in the elderly because of its compensatory role in neural circuits. However, it is difficult to decode FC by current machine learning techniques because of a lack of its physiological understanding. To investigate the suitability of FC in BCI for the elderly, we propose the decoding of lower- and higher-order FCs using a convolutional neural network (CNN) in six cognitive-motor tasks. The layer-wise relevance propagation (LRP) method describes how age-related changes in FCs impact BCI applications for the elderly compared to younger adults. Seventeen younger (24.5±2.7 years) and twelve older (72.5±3.2 years) adults were recruited to perform tasks related to hand-force control with or without mental calculation. CNN yielded a six-class classification accuracy of 75.3% in the elderly, exceeding the 70.7% accuracy for the younger adults. In the elderly, the proposed method increases the classification accuracy by 88.3% compared to the filter-bank common spatial pattern (FBCSP). LRP results revealed that both lower- and higher-order FCs were dominantly overactivated in the prefrontal lobe depending on task type. These findings suggest a promising application of multi-order FC with deep learning on BCI systems for the elderly.

The beneficial effects of Lanthanide incorporation into 0.94Na0.5Bi0.5TiO3-0.06BaTiO3 (BNT-BT) matrix on its functional properties were investigated. The conventional solid-state method was used for synthesizing samples. The structural refinement revealed that all samples crystallized in R3c rhombohedral symmetry. Raman spectroscopy study was carried out using green laser excitation and revealed that no clear perceptible variation in frequency is observed. Dielectric measurements unveiled that the introduction of rare earth obstructed the depolarization temperature promoted in BNT-BT with decreasing the diffusive phase transition with increasing the lanthanide size. Only Dysprosium addition showed comparable diffusion constant and dielectric behavior as the unmodified composition. Further, the comparison of the obtained ferroelectric hysteresis and strain-electric field loops revealed that only Dy-phase exhibited interesting properties comparing parent composition. In addition, the incorporation of lanthanides Ln3+ into the BNT-BT matrix led to the development of luminescence characteristics in the visible and near infrared regions, depending on the excitation wavelengths. The simultaneous occurrence of photoluminescence and ferroelectric/piezoelectric properties opens up possibilities for BNT-BT-Ln to exhibit multifunctionality in a wide range of applications.Keywords: Sodium Bismuth Titanate; structural refinement; dielectric properties; ferroelectric properties; piezoelectric properties; Photoluminescence.

The predatory mirids Macrolophus pygmaeus Ramber and Nesidiocoris tenuis Reuter (Heteroptera: Miridae) are used for the biological control of Tuta absoluta Meyrick (Lep.: Gelechiidae) and other pests in tomato greenhouses. The functional response of 1 (young) and 10 (old) days old adult females and males of M. pygmaeus and N. tenuis on eggs of T. absoluta, was determined on tomato at two temperatures (20° and 25°C) and LD 16:8 and found to be Type II. M. pygmaeus females exhibited higher predation efficiency, than males at both tested temperatures. Young M. pygmaeus females had a higher efficiency than old ones, whereas males had a low efficiency irrespective of age. The predation efficiency of N. tenuis was high (but lower than M. pygmaeus) in both young females and males, although old females had a higher efficiency than the respective males. Our results show that the two predatory species have different functional response characteristics to their prey depending mainly on sex and age which may affect their role as biological control agents.

Cancer cells require substantial amounts of energy and substrates for their metabolic hyperactivity, enabling the synthesis of new cells at the expense of healthy ones. Preliminary in vitro data suggest that a mix of free essential amino acids (EAA-mix) can promote cancer cell apoptosis by enhancing autophagy. This study aimed to confirm, both in vitro and in vivo, whether EAA intake could influence the development of colon cancer in mice. We investigated changes in cancer proliferation in CT26 cells treated with EAA-mix, and in mice fed with EAA rich modified diets (EAARD) as compared to those on a standard laboratory diet (StD). CT26 cells were injected subcutaneously (s.c.) or intraperitoneally (i.p.). After 21 days, tumors were removed and measured. In vitro data corroborated that EAA-mix impairs cancer growth by inducing autophagy and apoptosis. In vivo data revealed that mice on StD developed significantly larger (s.c.) and more numerous (i.p.) cancers than those on EAARD. EAA administration appears to influence cancer cell survival with notable anti-proliferative properties.

Smokeless tobacco (ST) products vary significantly in their oral carcinogenicity. Much is known about the differences in chemical, but not bacterial, constituents of these products. In this study, we explore the composition and function of the bacteriome in ST products from 4 countries using q-PCR and 16S rRNA-based next generation sequencing. The bacterial load (16S rRNA copies/gram) was lowest in Swedish snus (3.4E+6) and highest in Yemeni shammah (6.6E+11). A total of 491 species-level taxa, many of which are potentially novel, belonging to 178 genera and 11 phyla were identified. Species richness and diversity were highest for Swedish snus and lowest for Yemeni shammah. Bacillus, Paenibacillus, and Oceanobacillus spp. were the most abundant in American snuff; species of Pseudomonas, Massilia, Propionibacterium, Puniceispirillum and Gloeothece predominated in Swedish snus. In Sudanese toombak, Facklamia, Desemzia, Atopostipes and Lysinibacillus spp. accounted for the majority of the bacteriome. Yemeni shammah exclusively contained Bacillus spp. PICRUSt functional prediction showed that genes encoding cadmium/zinc and nickel transport systems were enriched in the presumptively “high carcinogenicity” products. The bacteriome of ST products thus differed qualitatively, quantitatively and functionally. The relevance of these differences, particularly with respect to nickel and cadmium, to oral carcinogenesis warrants further investigation.

The Dph1•Dph2 heterodimer from yeast is a radical SAM (RS) enzyme that generates the 3-amino-3-carboxy-propyl (ACP) precursor for diphthamide, a clinically relevant modification on eukaryotic elongation factor 2 (eEF2). ACP formation requires SAM cleavage and atypical Cys-bound Fe-S clusters in each Dph1 and Dph2 subunit. Intriguingly, the first Cys residue in each motif locates next to another, ill-defined cysteine that we show in-here is conserved across eukaryotes. As judged from structural modeling, the orientation of these tandem cysteine motifs (TCM) suggests a candidate Fe-S cluster ligand role. Hence, we generated by site-directed DPH1 and DPH2 mutagenesis, Dph1•Dph2 variants with cysteines from each TCM replaced individually or in combination by serines. Assays diagnostic for diphthamide formation in vivo reveal that while single substitutions in the TCM of Dph2 cause mild defects, double mutations almost entirely inactivate the RS enzyme. Based on enhanced Dph1 and Dph2 subunit instability in response to cycloheximide chases, the variants with Cys substitutions in their cofactor motifs are particularly prone to protein degradation. In sum, we identify a fourth functionally cooperative Cys residue within the Fe-S motif of Dph2 and show that the Cys-based cofactor binding motifs in Dph1 and Dph2 are critical for the structural integrity of the dimeric RS enzyme in vivo.

Shoulder tendinopathies produce pain and reduce functionality. The aim of this randomized clinical trial was to analyze the effects of Percutaneous electrolysis (PE), Percutaneous peripheral Nerve Stimulation (PNS) and eccentric exercise (EE), on pain (NPRS), strength, electromyographic activity, ultrasound characteristics of the tendon (echogenicity, thickness and hypervascularization) and functionality (DASH and SPADI) on individuals with supraspinatus tendinopathy. Participants (n=50) were divided into two groups, they received 4 treatment sessions, one per week, of PE and PNS (n=25) or 10 treatment sessions of TENS and US (n=25). Both groups performed EE program consisted of 3 sets of 10 repetitions of each of the 3 exercises, twice a day, during the 4 weeks. Follow-up was carried out at 4, 12 and 24 weeks after the start of the intervention. There are statistically significant differences in the analysis between groups (p&lt;0.001) in the post-treatment and follow-up measurements favorable to the PE+PNS+EE treatment on pain (NPRS), strength, supraspinatus electromyographic amplitude, ultrasound characteristics of the tendon (echogenicity, thickness and hypervascularization) and DASH and SPADI questionnaires. The combined treatment PE, PNS and EE is an effective option in the clinical management of tendinopathies, with positive results in the short and long term on the variables studied.

Managing Water, Energy, and Food (WEF) resources within socio-environmental systems demands innovative strategies that provide decision-makers with actionable insights. This article explores the challenges and potential solutions of employing Focus Maps and choremes as a novel approach for assessing anthropogenic impacts and enhancing the visualization of the WEF Nexus in specific geographic areas. By integrating geospatial data, multi-criteria analysis, and involving stakeholders, our research aims to develop Choreomatic Focus Maps (CFMs) that offer a comprehensive spatial representation of the WEF Nexus, facilitating better-informed decision-making at the community level. Our current work outlines visualization of WEF Nexus, as an initial stages of creating CFMs through a detailed step-by-step process. This includes identifying the main drivers for WEF nexus, such as anthropogenic activities and their distribution, evaluating environmental factors, linking anthropogenic impact with environmental indicators over time, and conducting on-site validation. Our focus is on advancing through these crucial steps, particularly emphasizing field validation within the Local Decision-Makers Tools, visualized here by using Focus Maps. This phase is vital for ensuring our approach is grounded in reality and meets the needs of the communities within the Danube Delta region. By doing so, we aim to provide a visual summary of the WEF Nexus that not only captures the complexity of this fragile ecosystem but also incorporates local insights and priorities, identifying key areas where human activities have significant impacts.

Boundary behavior of a given important function or its limit values are essential in the whole spectrum of mathematics and science. We consider some tractable cases of limit values in which either a difference of two ingredients or a difference equation is used coupled with the relevant functional equations to give rise to unexpected results. This involves the expression for the Laurent coefficients including the residue, the Kronecker limit formulas and higher order coefficients as well as the difference formed to cancel the inaccessible part, typically the Clausen functions. We also state Abelian results which yield asymptotic formulas for weighted summatory function from that for the original summatory function

In vertebrates, oligodendrocytes (OLs) are glial cells of the central nervous system (CNS) responsible for the formation of the myelin sheath that surrounds the axons of neurons. The myelin sheath plays a crucial role in the transmission of neuronal information by promoting the rapid saltatory conduction of action potentials and providing neurons with structural and metabolic support. Saltatory conduction, first described in the peripheral nervous system (PNS), is now generally recognized as a universal evolutionary innovation to respond quickly to the environment: myelin helps us think and act fast. However, the function of myelin in the CNS, particularly in the brain, is not necessarily to act quickly, but rather to act correctly. In this respect, myelin should primarily play a role in synchronizing the different neuronal networks, a synchrony that occurs in the form of oscillations (or rhythms) relevant for specific information processing. Interestingly, myelin has been directly involved in different types of cognitive processes relying on brain oscillations, and myelin plasticity is currently considered to be part of the fundamental mechanisms for memory formation and maintenance. However, despite ample evidence showing the involvement of myelin in cognition and neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by cognitive impairments, the link between myelin, brain oscillations, cognition and disease is not yet fully understood. In this review, we aim to highlight what is known and what remains to be explored to understand the role of myelin in high order brain processes.

In this paper, I investigate Hyers-Ulam-Rassias stabilities of the general quintic functional equation and the general sextic functional equation.

A formulation of the Density Functional Theory (DFT) is constructed as an application of the method of maximum entropy for an inhomogeneous fluid in thermal equilibrium. The use of entropy as a systematic method to generate optimal approximations is extended from the classical to the quantum domain. This process introduces a family of trial density operators that are parametrized by the particle density. The optimal density operator is that which maximizes the quantum entropy relative to the exact canonical density operator. This approach reproduces the variational principle of DFT and allows a simple proof of the Hohenberg-Kohn theorem at finite temperature. Finally, as an illustration, we discuss the Kohn-Sham approximation scheme at finite temperature

Postbiotics are biologically active probiotic microorganisms that have produced non-viable bacterial products in the host. Eating a diet high in probiotic and prebiotic foods may help to ensure that the gut has an appropriate supply of these essential nutrients because postbiotics are produced when probiotics feed on prebiotics. Cell wall components and metabolites produced by living bacteria that have positive effects on the host are referred to as postbiotics. Postbiotics are functional bioactive chemicals that are produced in a matrix during anaerobic fermentation of organic nutrients like prebiotics. Postbiotics are low molecular weight soluble chemicals that are either produced after microbial cell lysis or secreted by live microflora as byproducts of this metabolic process. In general, the producer strains from bacterial and fungal species such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Streptococcus, Akkermansia muciniphila, Saccharomyces boulardii, Eubacterium hallii, Faecalibacterium, etc. When handling and selling food items in an industrial setting, postbiotics can be used as functional components in foods, which has a number of advantages, including the potential to be added to some foods that are known to be harmful to probiotic survival. Postbiotic supplements have grown in popularity among customers because of their numerous health advantages, particularly food, cosmetic, and healthcare industries. Classification of postbiotics depends on various factors including type of microorganism, structural composition, and physiological functions. This review presents a succinct introduction, history, and concept of postbiotics, the salient features of postbiotics, classification, production, purification, characterization, biological functions, and applications of postbiotics in the food industry.

Let $(\Omega, \mu)$, $(\Delta, \nu)$ be measure spaces. Let $(\{f_\alpha\}_{\alpha\in \Omega}, \{\tau_\alpha\}_{\alpha\in \Omega})$ and $(\{g_\beta\}_{\beta\in \Delta}, \{\omega_\beta\}_{\beta\in \Delta})$ be continuous p-Schauder frames for a Banach space $\mathcal{X}$. Then for every $x \in \mathcal{X}\setminus\{0\}$, we show that \begin{align}\label{CUE} \mu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_f x))^\frac{1}{p} \nu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_g x))^\frac{1}{q} \geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle\sup_{\alpha \in \Omega, \beta \in \Delta}|f_\alpha(\omega_\beta)|}, \quad \nu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_g x))^\frac{1}{p} \mu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_f x))^\frac{1}{q}\geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle\sup_{\alpha \in \Omega , \beta \in \Delta}|g_\beta(\tau_\alpha)|}. \end{align} where \begin{align*} &\theta_f: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto \theta_fx \in \mathcal{L}^p(\Omega, \mu); \quad \theta_fx: \Omega \ni \alpha \mapsto (\theta_fx) (\alpha):= f_\alpha (x) \in \mathbb{K},\\ &\theta_g: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto \theta_gx \in \mathcal{L}^p(\Delta, \nu); \quad \theta_gx: \Delta \ni \beta \mapsto (\theta_gx) (\beta):= g_\beta (x) \in \mathbb{K} \end{align*} and $q$ is the conjugate index of $p$. We call Inequality (\ref{CUE}) as \textbf{Functional Continuous Uncertainty Principle}. It improves the Functional Donoho-Stark-Elad-Bruckstein-Ricaud-Torr\'{e}sani Uncertainty Principle obtained by M. Krishna in \textit{[arXiv:2304.03324v1, 2023]}. It also answers a question asked by Prof. Philip B. Stark to the author.

Let $\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n$ and $\{g_k\}_{k=1}^m$ be Parseval p-frames for a finite dimensional Banach space $\mathcal{X}$. Then we show that \begin{align}\label{UE} \log (nm)\geq S_f (x)+S_g (x)\geq -p \log \left(\displaystyle\sup_{y \in \mathcal{X}_f\cap \mathcal{X}_g, \|y\|=1}\left(\max_{1\leq j\leq n, 1\leq k\leq m}|f_j(y)g_k(y)|\right)\right), \quad \forall x \in \mathcal{X}_f\cap \mathcal{X}_g, \end{align} where \begin{align*} &\mathcal{X}_f\coloneqq \{z\in \mathcal{X}: f_j(z)\neq 0, 1\leq j \leq n\}, \quad \mathcal{X}_g\coloneqq \{w\in \mathcal{X}: g_k(w)\neq 0, 1\leq k \leq m\},\\ &S_f (x)\coloneqq -\sum_{j=1}^{n}\left|f_j\left(\frac{x}{\|x\|}\right)\right|^p\log \left|f_j\left(\frac{x}{\|x\|}\right)\right|^p, \quad S_g (x)\coloneqq -\sum_{k=1}^{m}\left|g_k\left(\frac{x}{\|x\|}\right)\right|^p\log \left|g_k\left(\frac{x}{\|x\|}\right)\right|^p, \quad \forall x \in \mathcal{X}_g. \end{align*} We call Inequality (1) as \textbf{Functional Deutsch Uncertainty Principle}. For Hilbert spaces, we show that Inequality (1) reduces to the uncertainty principle obtained by Deutsch \textit{[Phys. Rev. Lett., 1983]}. We also derive a dual of Inequality (1).

Abstract: This review presents current literature on different nanocomposites coatings and surface finishing for different substrates (such as textiles, concrete, plastics, stones, metals and so on). In particular, this study is focused on smart materials, drug delivery systems, and industrial, antifouling and nano/ultrafiltration membrane coatings. Each of these nanostructured coatings shows interesting properties for different fields of application. In this review, particular attention is paid to the synthesis and the consequent physico-chemical characteristics of each coating and, therefore, to the different parameters that influence the substrate deposition process. Several techniques used in the characterization of these surface finishing coatings are also described. In this review, the sol-gel and polymerization method for preparing stimuli-responsive coatings as smart sensor materials is described; functional polymers and nanoparticles sensitive to pH, temperature, phase, light and biomolecules are also treated. Finally, nanomaterials based on phosphorus, borates, hydroxy carbonates and silicones are used and described as flame retardant coatings; organic/inorganic hybrid sol-gel coatings for industrial applications are illustrated, together with functional nanofiller (carbon nanotubes, metallic oxides, etc.) and polymers employed for nano/ultrafiltration membrane and antifouling coatings. In the last decades, several research institutes and industries have collaborated for the advancement of nanotechnology by optimizing conversion processes of conventional materials into coatings with new functionalities for intelligent, innovative, eco-sustainable and advanced applications.

In this paper, we introduce a way of representing a given mapping as the sum of odd and even mappings. Then, by using this representation, we investigate the stability of various forms for the general nonic functional equation.

We prove the non-Archimedean (resp. p-adic) Banach space version of non-Archimedean (resp. p-adic) Welch bounds recently obtained by M. Krishna. More precisely, we prove following results. \begin{enumerate}[\upshape(i)] \item Let $\mathbb{K}$ be a non-Archimedean (complete) valued field satisfying $\left|\sum_{j=1}^{n}\lambda_j^2\right|=\max_{1\leq j \leq n}|\lambda_j|^2$ for all $ \lambda_j \in \mathbb{K}, 1\leq j \leq n$, for all $n \in \mathbb{N}.$ Let $\mathcal{X}$ be a $d$-dimensional non-Archimedean Banach space over $\mathbb{K}$. If $\{\tau_j\}_{j=1}^n$ is any collection in $\mathcal{X}$ and $\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n$ is any collection in $\mathcal{X}^*$ (dual of $\mathcal{X}$) satisfying $f_j(\tau_j) =1$ for all $1\leq j \leq n$ and the operator $S_{f, \tau} : \text{Sym}^m(\mathcal{X})\ni x \mapsto \sum_{j=1}^nf_j^{\otimes m}(x)\tau_j^{\otimes m} \in \text{Sym}^m(\mathcal{X})$, is diagonalizable, then \begin{align}\label{NONFUNCTIONALWELCH} \max_{1\leq j,k \leq n, j \neq k}\{|n|, |f_j(\tau_k)f_k(\tau_j)|^{m} \}\geq \frac{|n|^2}{\left|{d+m-1 \choose m}\right| }. \end{align} We call Inequality (\ref{NONFUNCTIONALWELCH}) as non-Archimedean functional Welch bounds. \item For a prime $p$, let $\mathbb{Q}_p$ be the p-adic number field. Let $\mathcal{X}$ be a $d$-dimensional p-adic Banach space over $\mathbb{Q}_p$. If $\{\tau_j\}_{j=1}^n$ is any collection in $\mathcal{X}$ and $\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n$ is any collection in $\mathcal{X}^*$ (dual of $\mathcal{X}$) satisfying $f_j(\tau_j) =1$ for all $1\leq j \leq n$ and there exists $b \in \mathbb{Q}_p$ such that $ \sum_{j=1}^{n}f_j^{\otimes m}(x) \tau_j^{\otimes m} =bx$ for all $ x \in \text{Sym}^m(\mathcal{X}),$ then \begin{align}\label{PADICFUNCTIONALWELCH} \max_{1\leq j,k \leq n, j \neq k}\{|n|, |f_j(\tau_k)f_k(\tau_j)|^{m} \}\geq \frac{|n|^2}{\left|{d+m-1 \choose m}\right| }. \end{align} We call Inequality (\ref{PADICFUNCTIONALWELCH}) as p-adic functional Welch bounds. \end{enumerate} We formulate non-Archimedean functional and p-adic functional Zauner conjectures.

Whether there is any inclination between structures and functions of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) is a mystery yet to be unraveled. AMPs have various structures associated with many different antimicrobial functions, including antibacterial, anticancer, antifungal, antiparasitic and antiviral activities. However, none has yet reported any antimicrobial functional tendency within a specific category of protein/peptide structures nor any structural tendency of a specific antimicrobial function with respect to AMPs. Here we examine the relationships between structures categorized by three structural classification methods (CATH, SCOP and TM) and seven antimicrobial functions with respect to AMPs using an enrichment analysis. The results show that antifungal activities of AMPs were tightly related to two-layer sandwich structure of CATH, knottin fold of SCOP, and the first structural cluster of TM. The associations with knottin and TM cluster 1 even sustained through the AMPs with a low sequence identity. Besides, another significant mutual enrichment was observed between the third cluster of TM and anti-gram-positive-bacterial/anti-gram-negative-bacterial activities. The findings of the structure-function inclination further our understanding of AMPs and could help us design or discover new therapeutic potential AMPs.

The peptidyl-prolyl isomerases of the cyclophilin type are distributed throughout human cells, including eight found solely in the nucleus. Nuclear cyclophilins are involved in complexes that regulate chromatin modification, transcription, and pre-mRNA splicing. This review collects what is known about the eight human nuclear cyclophilins: PPIH, PPIE, PPIL1, PPIL2, PPIL3, PPIG, CWC27, and PPWD1. Each “spliceophilin” is evaluated in relation to the spliceosomal complex in which it has been studied, and current work studying the biological roles of these cyclophilins in the nucleus are discussed. All eight of the human splicing complexes available in the PDB are analyzed from the viewpoint of the human spliceophilins. Future directions in structural and cellular biology, and the importance of developing spliceophilin-specific inhibitors, are considered.

The spectrum, intensity and overlap of symptoms between FGIDs and other gastrointestinal disorders characterize patients with FIGDs, who are incredibly different in their backgrounds. An additional challenge with regard to the diagnosis and treatment's applicability is the ongoing expansion of the risk factors believed to be connected to these disorders. Many cytokines and inflammatory cells have been found causing the continuous existence of low-inflammation, which is thought to be a basic pathophysiological process. The idea of the gut-brain axis has been created to offer a basic framework for the complex interactions that occur between the nervous system and intestinal functions, including the involvement of the gut bacteria. In this review paper, we intend to promote a hypothesis that FGIDs, should be seen through the perspective of the network of the neuroendocrine, immunological, metabolic and microbiome pathways. Hypothesis arises from an increased understanding of chronic inflammation as a systemic disorder, being omnipresent in chronic health conditions. Better understanding of inflammation role in the pathogenesis of FGIDs can be achieved by clustering markers of inflammation with data indicating symptoms, comorbidities, and psycho-social factors. Finding subclasses among related entities of FGIDs, may reduce patient heterogeneity and help clarify pathophysiology for better treatment.

This comprehensive review delves into the cognitive neuroscience of hypnosis and variations in hypnotizability by examining research employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and electroencephalography (EEG) methods. Key focus areas include functional brain imaging correlations in hypnosis, EEG band oscillations as indicators of hypnotic states, alterations in EEG functional connectivity during hypnosis and wakefulness, drawing critical conclusions, and suggesting future research directions. The reviewed functional connectivity findings support the notion that disruptions in the functional integration between different components of the executive control network during hypnosis may correspond to altered subjective appraisals of the agency during the hypnotic response, as per dissociated and cold control theories of hypnosis. Building upon existing EEG results, a promising exploration avenue involves investigating how frontal lobes' integrated functioning with other cortical regions influences hypnosis and individual differences in hypnotizability during both waking and hypnotic states. Future studies investigating the effects of hypnosis on brain function should prioritize examining distinctive activation patterns across various neural networks. A practical approach entails simultaneously analyzing the causal relationships in functional connectivity linked to cognitive, physiological, and behavioral responses.

: Extra- and intra-cellular activity occurs under the direction of numerous inter-molecular interactions, and in any tissue or cell, molecules are densely packed, thus promoting those molecular interactions. Galectins and chemokines, the focus of this review, are small, protein effector molecules that mediate various cellular functions, in particular cell adhesion and migration, as well as cell signaling/activation. In the past, researchers have reported that combinations of these (and other) effector molecules act separately, yet sometimes in concert, but nevertheless physically apart and via their individual cell receptors. This view that each effector molecule functions independently of the other limits our thinking about functional versatility and cooperation, and, in turn, ignores the prospect of physiologically important inter-molecular interactions, especially when both molecules are present or co-expressed in the same cellular environment. This review is focused on such protein-protein interactions with chemokines and galectins, their homo- and hetero-oligomeric structures that they can form, and the functional consequences of those paired interactions.

Let $(\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n, \{\tau_j\}_{j=1}^n)$ and $(\{g_k\}_{k=1}^n, \{\omega_k\}_{k=1}^n)$ be two p-orthonormal bases for a finite dimensional Banach space $\mathcal{X}$. Let $M,N\subseteq \{1, \dots, n\}$ be such that \begin{align*} o(M)^\frac{1}{q}o(N)^\frac{1}{p}< \frac{1}{\displaystyle \max_{1\leq j,k\leq n}|g_k(\tau_j) |}, \end{align*} where $q$ is the conjugate index of $p$. Then for all $x \in \mathcal{X}$, we show that \begin{align}\label{FGJU} (1) \quad \quad \quad \quad \|x\|\leq \left(1+\frac{1}{1-o(M)^\frac{1}{q}o(N)^\frac{1}{p}\displaystyle\max_{1\leq j,k\leq n}|g_k(\tau_j)|}\right)\left[\left(\sum_{j\in M^c}|f_j(x)|^p\right)^\frac{1}{p}+\left(\sum_{k\in N^c}|g_k(x) |^p\right)^\frac{1}{p}\right]. \end{align} We call Inequality (1) as \textbf{Functional Ghobber-Jaming Uncertainty Principle}. Inequality (1) improves the uncertainty principle obtained by Ghobber and Jaming \textit{[Linear Algebra Appl., 2011]}.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L) gradually becomes a stable food worldwide since it can be treated as practical nutritional supplement and antioxidant, as well as energy provider for human beings. Financially and nutritionally, cultivation and utility of potatoes is worthy enough attention of the world. To further explore functionality and maximize utilization of component parts, also to develop new products based on potato still be an ongoing issue. To maximize the benefits of potato and induce new high-value products while avoiding unfavorable properties of the crop has been a growing trend in food and medical areas. This review intends to summarize the factors that influence the changes in the key functional components of potatoes and discuss referred research focuses, then help further researchers to make efforts into. Afterwards, it summarizes the application of the latest commercial products and potential value of components existing in potato. Particularly, there are several main tasks for the next potato research: preparing starchy foods for special group of people and developing fiber-rich products to supply the dietary fiber intake as well as manufacturing bio-friendly and specific design films/coating in packaging industry; extracting bioactive proteins and potato protease inhibitors with high biological activity, and continue to build new commercial products based on potato protein and examine their health benefits. Noteworthy, the preservation methods play a key role in phytochemicals contents left in foods and potato performs superior to many common vegetables when meeting demand of mineral daily intake and alleviating mineral deficiencies.

For the first time in scientific and engineering practice, it is logically and mathematically substantiated, computationally verified and metrologically confirmed that classic and quantum physics, analytical and quantum chemistry, as well as continuous symbolic and discrete digital mathematical analysis, all have computational limits of information entropy, upper 1/10^16 and lower 1/10^64. Mutual displacement of these limits relatively center of Euclidean three-dimensional and of Cartesian two-dimensional space generate sets of quantum dots of mesh topology and weighted average harmonic units of quantum metrics of internal atomic and outer cosmic space, as well as determines limits of communication speed, clock frequency, calculation power and accuracy for any computing machine with subatomic elements of memory. The matrices of functional density and entropy of energy and information fields reconciles classic and quantum physics with continuous and discrete mathematics of special and general relativity.

Based on the principle of Pancharatnam-Berry phase, we propose an approach to construct dual-functional dielectric metasurface doublets. This type of doublet, which is composed of a substrate and two metasurface layers, performs two different functionalities at two different operating wavelengths. The simulated results of the examples show that the designed dual-functional doublet works well as expected. The proposed approach can be used to design dielectric meta-structures with more layers of meta-surface and thereby with more functionalities, and would be of interest for miniaturization and integration.

The complete structure and connectivity of the Caenorhabditis elegans nervous system was first published in 1986. The ‘mind of a worm’ was the first organism to have its nervous system to be reconstructed at the level of synapses, and represented a critical milestone considering today it remains the only organism to be mapped to that level of connection. Recently, the extrasynaptic connectome of neuropeptides and monoamines has been described. This review discusses recent technological advances used to perturb whole-organism neuronal function, such as: whole brain imaging, optogenetics, sonogenetics and mutant analysis, which have allowed for interrogations of both local and global neural circuits, leading to different behaviors. A better understanding of a whole organism requires combining experimental datasets with biophysical neuronal modelling, and behavioral quantification. Combining these approaches will provide a complete understanding of the worm nervous system and shed light into how networks function and interact with the synaptic network to modulate information processing and behavioral output.

The antimicrobial peptide LRGG (LLRLLRRGGRRLLRLL-NH2) was designed and chemically synthesized in a study conducted by Jia et al. Gram-negative bacteria were found to be sensitive to LRGG and exhibited a high therapeutic index. Genetic engineering methods were used to create the prokaryotic fusion expression vector pQE-GFP-LRGG, and the resulting corresponding fusion protein GFP-LRGG was subsequently expressed and purified. The precursor GFP was then removed by TEV proteolysis, and pure LRGG was obtained after another round of purification and endotoxin removal. The prokaryotic-expressed antimicrobial peptide LRGG displays a broad-spectrum antibacterial effect on gram-negative bacteria and can eliminate 99.99% of E. coli within 100 minutes at the minimal MIC concentration. Compared to the chemically synthesized LRGG, the prokaryotic-expressed LRGG exhibits similar temperature, pH, salt ion, serum stability, and cell selectivity. Furthermore, prokaryotic-expressed LRGG showed excellent therapeutic effects in both the infection model of cell selectivity and no embryotoxicity in a Galleria mellonella infection model. The mechanism by which LRGG causes bacterial death was found to be disruption of Gram-negative cell membrane.

The aging populations observed across numerous countries worldwide necessitate a thorough exploration of interventions aimed at promoting healthy aging. As individuals age, they undergo significant physiological changes that impact their functional capacity and often necessitate increased reliance on external support systems. Enhancing the autonomy and well-being of elderly individuals emerges as a critical imperative, serving not only individual interests but also broader societal goals. This review investigates various interventions designed to optimize the health and independence of aging populations, offering insights into effective strategies for promoting healthy aging and mitigating the societal burdens associated with an aging demographic.

Salvia is a large genus in traditional Chinese medicine with hundreds of species. Tanshinones are a highly representative class of exclusive compounds found in the Salvia genus that exhibit significant biological activity. Tanshinone components have been identified in 16 species of the Salvia genus. The CYP76AH subfamily (P450) is crucial for the synthesis of tanshinone due to its catalytic generation of polyhydroxy structures. 420CYP76AH genes were obtained, clear clustering relationships. In this study 15 CYP76AH genes from 10 Salvia species were cloned and studied from the perspectives of evolution and catalytic efficiency. Structure-function relationship revealed several conserved residues which might be related to the function of CYP76AHs. Amino acids (97I, 116V, and 290T) are conserved in CYP76AH1 group, while amino acids (117G, 208S, 237Y, and 479F) are CYP76AH3 group protein sequence characteristics with unique enzyme function.This research holds significant implications for the classification of the Salvia genus and provide efficient catalytic elements for the synthetic biology production of tanshinones.Keywords: Salvia; CYP76AH; P450; biosynthesis; functional gene

Conditional heteroskedastic financial time series are commonly modelled by (G)ARCH processes. ARCH(1) and GARCH were recently established in C[0,1] and L^2[0,1]. This article provides sufficient conditions for the existence of strictly stationary solutions, weak dependence and finite moments of (G)ARCH processes for any order in C[0,1] and L^p[0,1]. It deduces explicit asymptotic upper bounds of estimation errors for the shift term, the complete (G)ARCH operators and the projections of ARCH operators on finite-dimensional subspaces. The operator estimaton is based on Yule-Walker equations, and estimating the GARCH operators also involves a result estimating operators in invertible linear processes being valid beyond the scope of (G)ARCH. Moreover, our results regarding (G)ARCH can be transferred to functional AR(MA).

Whey proteins have excellent nutritional characteristics due to their levels of essential amino acids with high bioavailability. However, it has a high biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and a considerable polluting potential, thus food manufacturers have opted to add whey to food formulations. The demand for beverages containing vitamins, probiotics, prebiotics, minerals, and bioactive compounds (antioxidants) with health benefits has increased and driven market growth. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a probiotic functional carbonated beverage from cheese whey and evaluate its microbiological, and physicochemical characteristics soon after the production and during storage. The viability and stability of probiotic, the microbiological characteristics, titratable acidity and sedimentation of the beverage were monitored during refrigerated storage for a month. The probiotic to be added to the formulation was established in a preliminary step. The production of this beverage proved to be a simple technology and the product was suitable for incorporation of the probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis. The probiotic showed good viability and stability during storage. The microbiological quality of the beverage met the Brazilian legal standards. The pH and titratable acidity of the probiotic carbonated beverage remained stable during storage, and slight sedimentation was observed after one week of refrigerated storage.

Motivation: 16S rRNA gene amplicon based sequencing has significantly expanded the scope of metagenomics research by enabling microbial community analyses in a cost-effective manner. The possibility to infer functional potential of a microbiome through amplicon sequencing derived taxonomic abundance profiles has further strengthened the utility of 16S sequencing. In fact, a surge in 'inferred function metagenomic analysis' has recently taken place, wherein most 16S microbiome studies include inferred functional insights in addition to taxonomic characterization. Tools like PICRUSt, Tax4Fun, Vikodak and iVikodak have significantly eased the process of inferring function potential of a microbiome using the taxonomic abundance profile. A platform that can enable hosting of inferred function 'metagenomic studies' with comprehensive metadata driven search utilities (of a typical database), coupled with on-the-fly comparative analytics between studies of interest, can be a major improvement to the state of art. ReFDash represents an effort in the proposed direction. Methods: This work introduces ReFDash - a Repository of Functional Dashboards. ReFDash, developed as a significant extension of iVikodak (function inference tool), provides three broad unique offerings in inferred function space - (i) a platform that hosts a database of inferred function data being continously updated using public 16S metagenomic studies (ii) a tool to search studies of interest and compare upto three metagenomic environments on the fly (iii) a community initiative wherein users can contribute their own inferred function data to the platform. ReFDash therefore provides a first-of-its-kind community-driven frame-work for scientific collaboration, data analytics, and sharing in this area of microbiome research. Results: Overall, the ReFDash database is aimed at compiling together a global ensemble of 16S-derived Functional Metagenomics projects. ReFDash currently hosts close to 50 ready-to-use, re-analyzable functional dashboards representing data from approximately 18,000 microbiome samples sourced from various published studies. Each entry also provides direct downloadable links to associated taxonomic files and metadata employed for analysis. Conclusion: The vision behind ReFDash is creation of a framework, wherein users can not only analyze their microbiome datasets in functional terms, but also contribute towards building an information base by submitting their functional analyses to ReFDash database. ReFDash web-server may be freely accessed at https://web.rniapps.net/iVikodak/refdash/

There is evidence that optimal nutrition is fundamental to human health and in the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) later in adult life. The identification, production and consumption of functional foods worldwide can increase health benefits for all who can access and afford such foods subject to advice from nutritionists. Recent meetings organized by the health agencies, give a crucial opportunity to make nutrition, a central part of the post-2015 sustainable human and agricultural development agenda. The aim of discussions in these meetings was to provide functional crops and foods to achieve optimal health by prevention of NCDs. It is possible that these efforts might ensure that the goals and targets set in the agenda are adequate to address the many challenges of global undernutrition as well as obesity which are major risk factors of NCDs. In many developing and middle income countries, food security provided by the governments, in one sense understandably, gave least consideration to functional foods supply and the prevention of obesity and metabolic syndrome, resulting in to emergence of NCDs. The Thailand Declaration reiterates that commitments to eradicate hunger and undernutrition as well as over-nutrition, and to increase investments in effective interventions; designers foods and designers crops. However, in planning coherent policies, our past experience on rapidly absorbed, energy-rich processed foods should be taken in to account while developing sustainable food systems. The food industry should be educated to exploit the expertise of food scientists and health professionals in designing functional foods taking cognizance of manufacturing and processing. Similarly, agriculture scientists may be actively involved in educating farmers so as to grow cash crops providing functional foods. The aim should be to achieve an increase in the availability of functional foods to an extent, or by a policy, by which such foods are available to poors, at affordable cost to prevent hunger and undernutrition and related diseases as well as NCDs. In addition our efforts might help in developing an international consensus on how to approach the development of new designer foods by farmers and food industry to produce low glycemic index foods. Such efforts may establish an international framework for the prevention of NCDs, so that human susceptibility to these diseases is substantially diminished.

Prenylated flavonoids of Humulus lupulus L. have gained attention for their potential health benefits. In this study, Amber ALE and Russian Imperial Stout beers were prepared. In order to increase the content of prenylated flavonoids in beer, there was added ethanol extract of Polaris hops, they were dry hopping with Polaris hops or pure xanthohumol was added. In unfiltered beers, the highest total content of polyphenols (3.60 ± 0.32 g/L gallic acid) was determined on the eighth day of fermentation and maturation in Amber ALE beer without the addition of extract. The highest total antioxidant capacity was determined in Russian Imperial Stout beer with the addition of xanthohumol on the eighth day of fermentation and maturation (0.675 ± 0.008 mmol/L Trolox). This type of beer also had a high antioxidant efficiency (85.96 - 88.00%). Xanthohumol (2.05 mg/L) and isoxanthohumol (2.819 mg/L) were detectable only until the thirteenth day of fermentation and beer maturation. Therefore, the beers were filtered, and the ethanol extract of the Polaris was added to them for 24 hours. This procedure was used to prepare a functional beer of the Amber ALE type (15.210 ± 0.053 mg xanthohumol in 1 L and 0.922 ± 0.077 mg isoxanthohumol in 1 L) and a functional beer of the Russian Imperial Stout type (32.375 ± 0.032 mg xanthohumol in 1 L and 1.877 ± 0.043 mg isoxanthohumol in 1 L).

Brain models present a viewpoint on the fundamental structural components of the brain and their mutual organization, generally relative to a particular concept of the brain axis. A model may be based on adult brain structure or on developmental morphogenetic aspects. Brain models usually have functional implications, depending on which functional properties derive from the postulated organization. This essay examines the present scenario about brain models, emphasizing the contrast between columnar or other longitudinal models and transverse subdivisional neuromeric models. In each case, the main functional implications and apparent problems are explored and commented. Particular attention is given to the modern molecularly based ‘prosomeric model’, which postulates a set of 20 transverse prosomeres as the developmental units that serve to construct all the cerebral parts and the particular typology of many different neuronal populations within the forebrain and the hindbrain, plus a number of additional spinal cord units. These metameric developmental units (serially repeated, but with unique molecular profiles) confer to this model remarkable functional properties based mainly on its multiplicity and modularity. Many important brain functions can be decomposed into subfunctions attended to by combined sets of neuronal elements derived from different neuromeres. Each neuromere may participate in multiple functions. Most aspects related to creation of precise order in neural connections (axonal navigation and synaptogenesis) and function is due to the influence of neuromeric anteroposterior and dorsoventral positional information. Research on neuromeric functionality aspects is increasing significantly in recent times.

Let $\mathcal{X}$ be a Banach space. Let $\{\tau_j\}_{j=1}^n, \{\omega_k\}_{k=1}^m\subseteq \mathcal{X}$ and $\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n$, $\{g_k\}_{k=1}^m\subseteq \mathcal{X}^*$ satisfy $ |f_j(\tau_j)|\geq 1$ for all $ 1\leq j \leq n$, $|g_k(\omega_k)|\geq 1 $ for all $1\leq k \leq m$. If $x \in \mathcal{X}\setminus \{0\}$ is such that $x=\theta_\tau\theta_f x=\theta_\omega\theta_g x$, then we show that \begin{align}\label{FKDB} \|\theta_fx\|_0\|\theta_gx\|_0\geq \frac{\bigg[1-(\|\theta_fx\|_0-1)\max\limits_{1\leq j,r \leq n,j\neq r}|f_j(\tau_r)|\bigg]^+\bigg[1-(\|\theta_g x\|_0-1)\max\limits_{1\leq k,s \leq m,k\neq s}|g_k(\omega_s)|\bigg]^+}{\left(\displaystyle\max_{1\leq j \leq n, 1\leq k \leq m}|f_j(\omega_k)|\right)\left(\displaystyle\max_{1\leq j \leq n, 1\leq k \leq m}|g_k(\tau_j)|\right)}. \end{align} We call Inequality (\ref{FKDB}) as \textbf{Functional Kuppinger-Durisi-B\"{o}lcskei Uncertainty Principle}. Inequality (\ref{FKDB}) improves the uncertainty principle obtained by Kuppinger, Durisi and B\"{o}lcskei \textit{[IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory (2012)]} (which improved the Donoho-Stark-Elad-Bruckstein uncertainty principle \textit{[SIAM J. Appl. Math. (1989), IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory (2002)]}). We also derive functional form of the uncertainity principle obtained by Studer, Kuppinger, Pope and B\"{o}lcskei \textit{[EEE Trans. Inform. Theory, (2012)]}.

Let $(\Omega, \mu)$, $(\Delta, \nu)$ be measure spaces. Let $(\{f_\alpha\}_{\alpha\in \Omega}, \{\tau_\alpha\}_{\alpha\in \Omega})$ and $(\{g_\beta\}_{\beta\in \Delta}, \{\omega_\beta\}_{\beta\in \Delta})$ be continuous 1-Schauder frames for a Banach space $\mathcal{X}$. Then for every $x \in \mathcal{X}\setminus\{0\}$, we show that \begin{align*} \mu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_f x)) \geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle\sup_{\alpha \in \Omega, \beta \in \Delta}|f_\alpha(\omega_\beta)|}, \quad \nu(\operatorname{supp}(\theta_g x))\geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle\sup_{\alpha \in \Omega , \beta \in \Delta}|g_\beta(\tau_\alpha)|}. \end{align*} where \begin{align*} &\theta_f: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto \theta_fx \in \mathcal{L}^1(\Omega, \mu); \quad \theta_fx: \Omega \ni \alpha \mapsto (\theta_fx) (\alpha):= f_\alpha (x) \in \mathbb{K},\\ &\theta_g: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto \theta_gx \in \mathcal{L}^1(\Delta, \nu); \quad \theta_gx: \Delta \ni \beta \mapsto (\theta_gx) (\beta):= g_\beta (x) \in \mathbb{K}. \end{align*} This solves a problem asked by K. M. Krishna in the paper 'Functional Continuous Uncertainty Principle' \textit{[arXiv:2308.00312v1]}.

Photoacoustic technology is a promising tool to provide morphological and functional information in biomedical research. To enhance the imaging efficiency, the reported photoacoustic probes have been designed coaxially involving complicated optical/acoustic prisms to bypass the opaque piezoelectric layer of ultrasound transducers, but leading to bulky probes and hindering the applications in limited space. Though the emergence of transparent piezoelectric materials helps to save the effort on the coaxial design, the reported transparent ultrasound transducers were still bulky. In this work, a miniature photoacoustic probe with an outer diameter of 4 mm was developed, in which an acoustic stack was made of the combination of transparent piezoelectric material and gradient-index lens as a backing layer. The transparent ultrasound transducer exhibited a high center frequency of ~47 MHz and a -6 dB bandwidth of 29.4%, which could be easily assembled with a pigtailed ferrule of a single-mode fiber. The multi-functional capability of the probe was successfully validated through the experiments of fluid flow sensing and photoacoustic imaging.

Background: Differentiating essential tremor (ET) and functional tremor (FT) remains challenging due to their overlapping clinical presentations. Objective: In this study, we aimed to elucidate the demographic and psychometric differences between the aforementioned tremor types to enhance the diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic strategies. Methods: In this prospective study, we included 96 patients diagnosed with ET or FT and analysed their related demographic data, clinical symptoms, and psychometric evaluation scores. Our statistical analysis involved Pearson’s chi-square tests, Fisher’s exact tests, and logistic regression to assess how the different variables impact tremor diagnosis. Results: Our study demonstrated a higher ET prevalence in males (p = 0.015). Furthermore, we demonstrated that patients with ET displayed a significantly lower body mass index and a lower age of onset compared to those with FT (p = 0.050 and p = 0.023, respectively). Our psychometric assessments revealed higher cognitive and body image scores in patients with ET, whereas those with FT scored higher on depression and anxiety scales. The misdiagnosis rate was 14.5%, emphasising the need for improved diagnostic criteria. Conclusions: We established specific demographic and psychometric distinctions between ET and FT, which could potentially benefit clinicians in making accurate diagnoses and tailoring treatment approaches. These findings support the inclusion of comprehensive psychometric evaluations into standard diagnostic procedures to better differentiate tremor types.

The normal ageing process significantly affects resistance arteries, leading to various biological and physiological consequences. Systolic hypertension is a common occurrence in ageing individuals, accompanied by increased large artery stiffening, heightened pulsatility, small artery remodeling, and damage to critical microvascular structures. Starting from young adulthood, there is a progressive elevation in mean arterial pressure, supported by clinical and epidemiological evidence as well as findings from animal models. The myogenic response, a protective mechanism for the microcirculation, may face disruptions during ageing. Dysregulation of calcium entry channels (T-type, L-type, TRP channels), dysfunction in intracellular calcium storage and extrusion mechanisms, altered expression of potassium channels, and a change in smooth muscle calcium sensitization may contribute to age-related dysregulation of myogenic tone. Flow-mediated vasodilatation, a hallmark of endothelial function, is compromised in ageing. This result of endothelial dysfunction is related to oxidative stress, lower nitric oxide bioavailability and a low-grade inflammatory response, further exacerbating vascular dysfunction. Resistance artery remodeling in ageing emerges as a hypertrophic response of the vessel wall, often seen in conjunction with outward remodeling (in normotension), but can also present as inward hypertrophic remodeling (in hypertension). The remodeling process involves oxidative stress, inflammation, reorganization of extracellular matrix fiber proteins and actin cytoskeletal components. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling and chronic low-grade inflammation, often referred to as "inflammaging”, play substantial roles in age-related vascular dysfunction. Due to its role in regulation of vascular tone as well as structural proteins, the RhoA/Rho-kinase pathway becomes a new target in age-related vascular dysfunction and associated diseases. Understanding the intricate interplay of these factors is crucial for developing targeted interventions to mitigate the consequences of ageing on resistance arteries and enhance overall vascular health.

Among young children, parents are a main factor of children's preferences for food served as they are responsible for purchasing and providing Functional Foods (FFs) and they are role models for them. This revies study conducted according PRISMA guidelines and aimed to review the recent data about the consumption of FC into families as part of a balanced diet. The literature search was conducted via online academic search engines PubMed, ResearchGate and Google Scholar. The search process was restricted to research papers published in English in reviewed journals from 2012 to 2023. Thirty six articles were ultimately included in the present review. The results showed that there is a correlation between several socio-demographic and a higher probability of buying FFs for children. There is a positive effect on purchasing frequencies of gender (female), higher household annual income and education level, together with higher levels of nutritional knowledge and trust in positive scientific evidence regarding FFs. Also, parents’ socio-demographic factors affect the children’s F/V consumption. The summary of evidence concludes on the point that parents are the role models about their children’s eating behavior and eating habits.

In this paper, we propose a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) that can dynamically switch the transmission and reflection phase of incident electromagnetic waves in real time to realize the dual-beam or quad-beam and convert polarization of the transmitted beam. Such surfaces can redirect a wireless signal at will to establish robust connectivity when the designated line-of-sight channel is disturbed, thereby enhancing the performance of wireless communication systems by creating an intelligent radio environment. When integrated with a sensing element, they are integral to performing joint detection and communication functions in future wireless sensor networks. In this work, we first analyze the scattering performance of a reconfigurable unit element and then design a RIS. The dynamic field scattering manipulation capability of the RIS is validated by full-wave electromagnetic simulations to realize six different functions. The scattering characteristics of the proposed unit element, which incorporates two p-i-n diodes, have been substantiated through practical implementation. This involved the construction of a simple prototype and the subsequent examination of its scattering properties via the free-space measurement method. The obtained transmission and reflection coefficients from the measurements are in agreement with the anticipated outcomes from simulations.

The inositol triphosphate associated proteins IRAG1 and IRAG2 are cGMP kinase substrate proteins, which regulate intracellular Ca2+. Previously, IRAG1 was discovered as a 125 kDa membrane protein at the endoplasmic reticulum, that is associated with the intracellular Ca2+ channel IP3R-I and the PKGIβ and inhibits IP3R-I upon PKGIβ-mediated phosphorylation. IRAG2 is a 75 kDa membrane protein homologue of IRAG1 and was recently also determined as a PKGI substrate protein. Several (patho-)physiological functions of IRAG1 and IRAG2 were meanwhile and recently elucidated in a variety of human and murine tissues, e.g. of IRAG1 in various smooth muscles, heart, platelets and other blood cells, of IRAG2 in pancreas, heart, platelets and taste cells. Hence, lack of IRAG1 or IRAG2 leads to diverse phenotypes in these organs, e.g. smooth muscle and platelet disorders or secretory deficiency, respectively. This review aims to highlight the recent research regarding these both regulatory proteins to envision its molecular and (patho-)physiological tasks and to unravel its functional interplay as possible (patho-)physiological counterparts.

Abstract: Introduction: A retrospective case-controlled study was performed to evaluate the out-comes of shoulder arthroplasty performed as a day case in carefully selected patients, compared to the traditional inpatient approach. Materials & Methods: Patients who had total or hemiarthro-plasty of the shoulder performed as a day case or inpatient procedure were recruited. The primary outcome compared rates of uneventful recovery, defined by the absence of any complications or readmission to hospital within six months of surgery, between Inpatient and Outpatient groups. Secondary outcomes included examiner-determined functional scores and patient-determined pain scores at one, six, twelve, and twenty-four weeks post-surgery. A further assessment of pa-tient determined pain scores was carried out at a minimum of two years post-surgery (5.8 ± 3.2). Results: 73 patients (36 Inpatients and 37 Outpatients) were included in the study. Within this time frame 25/36 inpatients (69%) had uneventful recoveries compared to 24/37 outpatients (65%) (p = 0.17). Outpatients showed significant improvement over pre-operative baseline levels in more of the secondary outcomes (strength and passive range-of-motion) by six months post-operation. Outpatients also performed significantly better than Inpatients in external rotation (p<0.05) and internal rotation (p=0.05) at six-weeks post-surgery. Both groups showed significant improvement compared to pre-operative baselines in all patient-determined secondary outcomes except level of activity at work and sport. Inpatients, however, less severe pain at rest at six weeks (p=0.03), sig-nificantly less frequent pain at night (p=0.03) and extreme pain (p=0.04) at 24 weeks; and less se-vere pain at night at 24 weeks (p<0.01). By minimum two years postoperation, inpatients were more comfortable repeating their treatment setting for future arthroplasty (16/18) compared to outpatients (7/22) (p = 0.0002). Conclusions: At a minimum of two years follow up, there were no significant differences in rates of complications, hospitalisations, or revision surgeries between pa-tients that underwent shoulder arthroplasty as an inpatient versus as an outpatient. Outpatients demonstrated superior functional outcomes but reported more pain at six months post-surgery. Patients in both groups expressed a preference for inpatient shoulder arthroplasty in future. What is Known About This Subject: Shoulder arthroplasty is a complex procedure, and has tradition-ally been performed on an inpatient basis, with patients admitted for six to seven days post-surgery. One of the primary reasons for this is the high level of postoperative pain, usually treated with hospital-based opioid therapy. Two studies demonstrated outpatient TSA to have a similar rate of complications as inpatient TSA, however these studies only examined patients within a shorter term 90 day postoperative period, and did not evaluate functional outcomes between the two groups or in the longer term. What This Study Adds to Existing Knowledge: This study provides evidence supporting the longer-term results of shoulder arthroplasty done as a day case in carefully selected patients, which are comparable to outcomes in patients that are admitted to hospital post-surgery.

This research focuses on exploring generalized electron emissions in one-dimensional conducting materials, specifically examining field emission and thermionic emission. Additionally, the study investigates one-dimensional thermal radiation. The current density is derived for both one-dimensional thermionic emission and one-dimensional field emission. A generalized current density in one dimension is devised, taking into account arbitrary accelerating fields and temperature conditions. The formula for the one-dimensional current density is depicted with accelerating field and temperature across various work function materials. The current is also represented as a function of both temperature and electric field for various temperatures.

Mee (Madhuca longifolia) is an important economic tree growing throughout the subtropical region of the Indo-Pak subcontinent. Mee seed constituents have distinctive chemical properties and thus provide nutritional and functional characteristics to the mee fat. The mee seed fat is an edible fat which can provide fat requirement of human diet in an economical way. Research on potential utilizations, understanding on the chemical composition, nutritional value and industrial applications of mee fat is important for efficient use mee seed fat. There were some reports available on potential applications of mee fat in food processing industry. But presently mee fat can be considered as an underutilized seed fat. In India mee fat used for edible purposes for a certain extent with compare to Sri Lanka. Therefore, more scientific researches should conduct on Sri Lankan mee varieties on edible purposes and popularized edible uses of Mee fat in Sri Lanka. Scientific knowledge and agricultural tools should effectively apply to make mee fat beneficial for its commercial applications. This chapter summarizes recent research work and studies available on botany, phytochemistry, functional properties, processing as well as food and non-food industrial applications of mee fat and other valuable parts of mee tree.

Microorganisms present in fermented foods and beverages play a vital role in enhancing both nutritive and non-nutritive components. During the fermentation, microorganisms can either naturally occur in the food through spontaneous fermentation or be intentionally added as starter cultures with a variety of species and strains. In this review, the focus is placed on micronutrients, such as vitamins and minerals, and three major macromolecules – prebiotics, bioactive peptides, and functional fatty acids. During fermentation, non-digestible carbohydrates like fructooligosaccharides and galactooligosaccharides are synthesized, imparting prebiotic properties that support gut health. Enzymatic hydrolysis of proteins by microorganisms yields bioactive peptides with diverse health benefits. Furthermore, fermentation facilitates the formation of fatty acids, including short-chain fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, potentially exerting physiological effects. By harnessing the power of microbial fermentation, nutrient-rich and bioactive compounds can be enhanced, offering a promising approach to address global malnutrition concerns.

The release of the active substance from the matrix modified-release tablets based on Kollidon®SR and chitosan depends on its solubility in the dissolution medium and on the composition of the matrix-forming polymers. The study is based on new oral matrix tablets based on Kollidon®SR and chitosan, formulated to optimize the low oral bioavailability of chlorzoxazone, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, a class II Biopharmaceutical Classification System. Nine types of chlorzoxazone matrix tablets were obtained using the direct compression method, and their combination at 1:1, 1:2, 1:3 chlorzoxazone/ excipients, 20%-40% (w/w) Kollidon®SR, 3-7% (w/w) chitosan and the auxiliary substances were formulated in constant concentrations. Pharmaco-technical characterization included the analysis of flowability and compressibility properties (flow time, friction coefficient, angle of repose, Hausner ratio, Carr Index), and of pharmaco-chemical characteristics (mass and dose uniformity, thickness, diameter, mechanical strength, Friability, degree of softening, in vitro release profile) of the tablets. Based on the initial evaluation of the pharmaco-technical analysis, pharmaco-chemical characteristics, and in vitro release profile, only three matrix tablet formulations (F1b, F2b, and F3b) were further tested. They were evaluated through Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry, X-ray Diffraction, thermogravimetry, differential scanning calorimetry, and in vitro dissolution tests. The three formulations were comparatively studied regarding the release kinetics of active substances using in vitro release testing. The results were analyzed by fitting into four representative mathematical models for the modified release oral formulations. In vitro kinetic study reveals a complex mechanism of release occurring in the first (0 - 2 hours) and second (2.0 hours – 36 hours) steps of drug release. Two factors have been calculated to assess the release profile of chlorzoxazone: f1 - the similarity factor and f2 - the factor difference. The results have shown that both Kollidon®SR and chitosan may be used as matrix-forming agents when combined with chlorzoxazone. In vitro dissolution tests revealed the F2b sample, data suggesting a faster drug release. The three formulations showed optimum pharmaco-technical properties and in vitro kinetic study, and they had tremendous potential to be used in oral pharmaceutical products for the controlled delivery of chlorzoxazone.

Cestrum parqui L'Herit. (Solanaceae family) is a species of forest shrub, self-incompatible and specialized in pollination, widespread in the subtropical area of the planet and now widely dis-tributed also in the Mediterranean area. The constituents of its leaves have antimicrobial, anti-cancer, insecticidal, antifeedant, and herbicidal properties. The spread of this species represents a valuable source of compounds with high biological value. Research on potential uses, under-standing of the nutritional and functional composition, and applications of C. parqui extracts is important and very promising for its commercial use. To date, there are some reports on the potential applications of C. parqui extracts as selective natural pesticides and for their potential phytotoxic role. Scientific knowledge and the use of extraction techniques for these components are essential for commercial applications. This article summarizes the research and recent studies available on the botany, phytochemistry, functional properties, and commercial applications of C. parqui as a biopesticide.

Landraces are considered a crucial component of biodiversity conservation, serving as a reservoir of genetic diversity. Consequently, the collection, cultivation and detailed characterization of such landraces constitute an inherent aspect of the world’s natural resource heritage. This effort holds promise for the development of elite varieties capable of thriving amidst continuous global climate fluctuations. In this context, we conducted a comprehensive assessment of the main agronomic attributes, physico-chemical properties, and functional quality traits of the major hot pepper landraces adapted to diverse climatic conditions in Tunisia. These landraces include ‘Dhirat’, ‘Semmane’, ‘Beldi’, ‘Nabeul’, ‘Jerid’, ‘Mahdia’, ‘Cayenne’, ‘Kairouan’ and ‘Baklouti’. Most of the pepper landraces exhibited satisfactory yields, ranging from 1163.25 to 1841.67 g plant-1 in ‘Jerid’ and ‘Kairouan’, respectively, indicating robust productivity, especially under prevailing climatic changes and high temperatures. Landraces such as ‘Baklouti’, ‘Beldi’, ‘Nabeul’, ‘Semmane’, ‘Kairouan’ and ‘Mahdia’ appear suitable for both fresh consumption and processing, owing to their favorable average fruit weight and soluble solids content. Functional quality and the levels of antioxidants, as well as radical scavenging activity, emerged as key discriminating factors among pepper landraces. Irrespective of genotype, capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin constituted the major capsaicinoids, accounting for at least 87% of the total. Total capsaicinoids ranged from 1.81 µg g−1 to 193.71 µg g−1, with ‘Baklouti’ and ‘Jerid’ identified as the most pungent landraces. Total carotenoids ranged from 45.94 µg g−1 to 174.52 µg g−1 with ‘Semmane and ‘Jerid’ exhibiting the highest levels. Considerable variation was observed in β-carotene content, spanning from 3% to 24% of the total carotenoids. α-Tocopherol content ranged from 19.03 µg g-1 fw in ‘Kair-ouan’ to 30.93 µg g-1 fw in ‘Beldi’, exerting a notable influence on the overall tocopherol content. Conversely, the other isomers were detected at very low concentrations. The total vitamin C content ranged from 132 mg 100g-1 fw in ‘Mahdia’ to 200 mg 100 g-1 fw in ‘Nabeul’, indicating relatively low genetic variability. However, large variability was detected in total phenolics content, ranging from 168.58 mg GAE kg-1 fw in ‘Beldi ‘to 302.98 mg GAE kg-1 fw in ‘Cayenne’. Among the pepper landraces tested, ‘Cayenne’ achieved the highest value of radical scavenging activity in both hydrophilic and lipophilic fractions (RSAHF and RSALF), with variations rang-ing from 59% to 120% for RSAHF and from 4% to 64% for RSALF. This study aims to: 1) preserve and enhance the value of local genetic resources, 2) identify desiderable traits for incorporation into breeding programs, and 3) develop high-quality, high-yielding cultivars capable of with-standing climate variations.

Nereis as a mudflat organism has a variety of uses, in the history of China as a Chinese herbal record, because of its body contains rich amino acids, fatty acids and other nutrients, it can be used for therapeutic treatment and treatment can also be used as health care products. acids, fatty acids and other nutrients, it can be used for therapeutic treatment and treatment can also be used as health care products. In modern times, more and more researchers have studied the protease extract of Nereis as a mudflat organism. In modern times, more and more researchers have studied the protease extracted from the body of nereis and found that there are a variety of functional proteins in nereis, including superoxide dismutase, superoxide dismutase, superoxide dismutase and superoxide dismutase. More and more researchers have studied the proteases extracted from the body of nereis and found that there are a variety of functional proteins in nereis, including superoxide dismutase, adenylate cyclase, glycosidase, and plasminase. In this paper, the functional proteases in the extracts of nereis were summarized, and the functions and characteristics of proteases in nereis were discussed from the perspective of molecular structure.

The Rényi entropy functional was optimised for the novel findings of this investigation under various conditions. Their research's findings suggest that the complete spectrum of Lévy stable distributions is covered by generalised t-distributions. Additionally, an exposition was undertaken to prove that the Lévy distribution generalizes Tsallisian distribution, rather than the reverse. The current study is a strong generalization of an existing research work in the literature.

Interhemispheric and frontoparietal functional connectivity have been reported to increase during explicit information processing. However, it is unclear how and when interhemispheric and frontoparietal functional connectivity interact during explicit semantic processing. Here, we tested the neural coupling hypothesis that explicit semantic processing promotes neural activity in the nondominant right hemispheric areas owing to synchronization with enhanced frontoparietal functional connectivity at later processing stages. We analyzed electroencephalogram data obtained using a semantic priming paradigm, which comprised visual priming and target words successively presented under direct or indirect attention to semantic association. Scalp potential analysis demonstrated that the explicit processing of congruent targets reduced negative event-related potentials, as previously reported. Current source density analysis showed that explicit semantic processing activated the right temporal area during later temporal intervals. Subsequent dynamic functional connectivity and neural coupling analyses revealed that explicit semantic processing increased the correlation between right temporal source activities and frontoparietal functional connectivity in later temporal intervals. These findings indicate that explicit semantic processing increases neural coupling between the interhemispheric and frontoparietal functional connectivity during later processing stages.

Fabry disease (FD) is a X-linked inheritable storage disease caused by deficiency of al-pha-galactosidase causing lysosomal overload of sphingolipids. FD cardiomyopathy is character-ized by left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy and should be considered in differential diagnosis with all the other causes of LV hypertrophy. An early diagnosis of FD is very important because the enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) may change the fate of patients by blocking both cardiac and systemic involvement and improving prognosis. Diagnosis may be relatively easy in young patients with the typical signs ans symptoms of FD, but in male patients with late onset of disease and in females, diagnosis may be very challenging. Morphological and functional aspects are not specific for FD, which cannot be diagnosed or excluded by echocardiography. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with tissue characterization capability, is the preferred technique for the differential diagnosis of LV hypertrophy. The finding of decreased myocardial T1 value in LV hypertrophy is very specific for FD. Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) is found in late stage of disease but it is useful to predict the cardiac response to ERT and to stratify the prognosis.

Modern day construction is widely influenced using concrete-steel composite columns. A lot of research on concrete-steel composite columns is being carried out around the world. The rapid growth in concrete-steel composite construction has widely decreased the use of conventional reinforced cement concrete construction (R.C.C), and the steel construction practices. The concrete-steel composite construction has obtained an extensive receiving around the globe. As Pakistan is a developing country, so, it is relatively a new concept for its construction industry when compared with the developed countries around the globe. Although, the R.C.C construction is suitable and economical for construction of framing systems of low-rise buildings, however, the increased dead load, span restrictions, less stiffness and risky formwork makes it uneconomical and unviable when it comes across the construction of intermediate to high-rise buildings. This research is an effort to learn the cost effectiveness, increased or decreased stiffness, and change on the functionality of the composite construction for intermediate to high-rise buildings constructed in Pakistan. A Base + Ground + 11 storey commercial building is selected for this study. A comparison is made between conventional R.C.C columns structure and concrete-encased composite columns structure. The equivalent static nonlinear analysis is performed using ETABS 2017 software. Although, for Base + Ground + 11 storey building, the construction cost of concrete-encased composite structure is 7.7% more than the conventional R.C.C columns structure, but the concrete-encased composite structure will have 13.013% more constructed floor area. This increased floor area helps to settle the cost difference between the two structures.

The involvement of macular function in its preganglionic elements, during the neurodegenerative process of multiple sclerosis (MS), is controversial. In this case-control observational and retrospective study, we assessed multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG) responses from 41 healthy Controls, 41 relapsing-remitting MS patients without optic neuritis (ON) (MS-noON Group), 47 MS patients with ON: 27 with full recovery of high-contrast best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) (MS-ON-G Group) and 20 with poor recovery of BCVA (MS-ON-P Group). MfERG N1 and P1 implicit times (ITs), and N1-P1 response amplitude densities (RADs) were measured from concentric rings (R) with increasing foveal eccentricity: 0-5° (R1), 5-10° (R2), 10-15° (R3), 15-20° (R4), 20- 25° (R5), and from retinal sectors [superior, nasal, inferior and temporal] between 0-15° and 0- 25°. In MS-ON-P Group, mean mfERG RADs detected from R1 (0-5°) and from the central nasal quadrant (0-15°) were significantly reduced (p<0.01) with respect to those of Control, MS-noON and MS-ON-G Groups. No other significant differences between Groups for any mfERG parameters were found. Our results suggest that in MS, exclusively after ON with poor recovery of BCVA, the neurodegenerative process can induce dysfunctional mechanisms involving photoreceptors and bipolar cells of the fovea and of the more central nasal macular area.

Neurotrophins play a principal role in neuronal survival and differentiation during development, but also in the maintenance of appropriate adult neuronal circuits and phenotypes. In the oculomotor system, we have demonstrated that neurotrophins are key regulators of developing and adult neuronal properties, but with peculiarities depending on each neurotrophin. For instance, the administration of NGF, BDNF or NT-3 protects neonatal extraocular motoneurons from cell death after axotomy, but only NGF and BDNF prevent the downregulation in ChAT. In the adult, in vivo recordings of axotomized extraocular motoneurons have demonstrated that the delivery of NGF, BDNF or NT-3 recovers different components of the firing discharge activity of these cells, with some particularities in the case of NGF. All neurotrophins have also synaptotrophic activity, although to different degrees. Accordingly, neurotrophins can restore the axotomy-induced alterations acting selectively on different properties of the motoneuron. In this review we summarize these evidences and discuss them in the context of other motor systems.

Let $(\{f_j\}_{j=1}^n, \{\tau_j\}_{j=1}^n)$ and $(\{g_k\}_{k=1}^n, \{\omega_k\}_{k=1}^n)$ be two p-orthonormal bases for a finite dimensional Banach space $\mathcal{X}$. If $ x \in \mathcal{X}\setminus\{0\}$ is such that $\theta_fx$ is $\varepsilon$-supported on $M\subseteq \{1,\dots, n\}$ w.r.t. p-norm and $\theta_gx$ is $\delta$-supported on $N\subseteq \{1,\dots, n\}$ w.r.t. p-norm, then we show that \begin{align}\label{ME} &o(M)^\frac{1}{p}o(N)^\frac{1}{q}\geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle \max_{1\leq j,k\leq n}|f_j(\omega_k) |}\max \{1-\varepsilon-\delta, 0\},\\ &o(M)^\frac{1}{q}o(N)^\frac{1}{p}\geq \frac{1}{\displaystyle \max_{1\leq j,k\leq n}|g_k(\tau_j) |}\max \{1-\varepsilon-\delta, 0\},\label{ME2} \end{align} where \begin{align*} \theta_f: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto (f_j(x) )_{j=1}^n \in \ell^p([n]); \quad \theta_g: \mathcal{X} \ni x \mapsto (g_k(x) )_{k=1}^n \in \ell^p([n]) \end{align*} and $q$ is the conjugate index of $p$. We call Inequalities (\ref{ME}) and (\ref{ME2}) as \textbf{Functional Donoho-Stark Approximate Support Uncertainty Principle}. Inequalities (\ref{ME}) and (\ref{ME2}) improve the finite approximate support uncertainty principle obtained by Donoho and Stark \textit{[SIAM J. Appl. Math., 1989]}.

This literature review was aimed to collect investigations on the in vivo evidences for bacteria associated to fermented dairy foods to behave as probiotics with beneficial effects in the prevention and treatment of various diseases. All main bacterial groups commonly present in high numbers in fermented milks or cheeses were taken into account, namely starter lactic acid bacteria (SLAB) Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and lactis, L. helveticus, Lactococcus lactis, Strepto-coccus thermophilus, non starter LAB (NSLAB) Lacticaseibacillus spp., Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, dairy propionibacteria and other less frequently encountered species. Only studies regarding strains of proven dairy origin were considered. Studies in animal models and clinical studies showed that dairy bacteria ameliorate symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), mucositis, metabolic syndrome, aging and oxidative stress, cancer, bone diseases, atopic dermatitis, allergies, infections and damages caused by pollutants, mild stress and depression. Immunomodulation and changes in the intestinal microbiota were the mechanisms most often involved in the observed effects. The results of the studies considered indicated that milk and dairy products are a rich source of beneficial bacteria that should be further exploited to the advantage of human and animal health.

Complex biological systems consist of large numbers of interconnected units, characterized by emergent properties such as collective computation. In spite of all the progress in the last decade, we still lack a deep understanding of how these properties arise from the coupling between the structure and dynamics. Here, we introduce the multiscale emergent functional state, which can be represented as a network where links encode the flow exchange between the nodes, calculated using diffusion processes on top of the network. We analyze the emergent functional state to study the distribution of the flow among components of 92 fungal networks, identifying their functional modules at different scales and, more importantly, demonstrating the importance of functional modules for information content of networks, quantified in terms of network spectral entropy. Our results suggest that the topological complexity of fungal networks guarantees the existence of functional modules at different scales keeping the information entropy, and functional diversity, high.

Many marine species use different habitats at different stages of their life cycle. Functional connectivity, the degree to which the seascape facilitates or impedes movement between habitat patches, is poorly studied in marine systems. We reviewed the scientific literature to explore the various barriers preventing functional connectivity between marine habitats and how the removal of these barriers may restore connectivity. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic review to investigate functional connectivity between life cycle habitats for a range of marine species. A total of 4,499 records were identified and screened, leaving 69 publications eligible for review. The results highlighted a range of distances between nursery and adult habitats that limited functional connectivity for a number of species, predominantly reef fishes. For some species, adults were absent on reefs >9km from the closest nursery habitat, suggesting a threshold for connectivity. Similarly, increased distance between spawning and settlement habitats decreased settling success of larvae of various taxa. Pelagic larval duration, seascape topography and climate change were also shown to impact functional connectivity during the larval phase. The removal and mitigation of barriers preventing functional connectivity, including dams and habitat fragmentation, restored connectivity between disconnected life cycle habitats, but the efficacy of these approaches differed between species and studies. The results of this review deepen our understanding of marine functional connectivity between life cycle habitats via larval, juvenile, and adult dispersal. These findings have implications for the design and management of marine reserve networks.

Ribonucleoproteins (RNP) condensates often contain intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) able to confer an exceptional multifunctionality necessary for gene expression, a process that defines cell types and enables cellular adaptation in metazoans. Centosomes, the microtubule-organizing centers of animal cells, are particularly enriched in disordered proteins but the role of RNPs surrounding the centrosome and the ciliary basal body remains largely unknown. By refining and integrating the existing protein-protein interaction network, spatial proteomics and transcriptomic data, we here report the subcellular and genomic proximity between the spliceosome, a huge nuclear RNP complex that removes introns from a transcribed pre-mRNA, and centrosome/cilia components. We present a comprehensive map of pre-RNA processing factors and other RNA-binding proteins playing a role in the regulation of splicing but localized to the centrosome and cilia. Protein-protein interactions studies reveal that a large number of spliceosome components interact with both centrosome linker and centriolar satellites elements, necessary for cellular division and ciliogenesis. RNAseq data from mouse Embryonic Stem Cells (mESC) and human tissues revealed a co-transcriptional coordination program of splicing and centrosome-related genes with relevance to tissue-specific neurosensory disorders and cancer types. Additionally, we found that centrosome and spliceosome genes form linearly and spatially colocalized genomic loci (CEP250, RBBM39, DHX35, and CTNNBL1) conserved in human and mouse genome, then explaining similarities in co-modification and subcellular distribution. Our results suggest that centrosome and cilia constitute cytoplasmic sites for the exchange of molecular machinery with nucleus, storage of RNA splicing and spliceosome condensates previously unrecognized. These complexes in response to external signals, could play an integral part in ciliogenesis and nuclear division to establish and maintain cellular identity in metazoans.

COVID-19 pandemic in first seven months has led to more than 15 million confirmed infected cases and 600,000 deaths. SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent for COVID-19 has proved a great challenge for its ability to spread in asymptomatic stages and a diverse disease spectrum it has generated. This has created a challenge of unimaginable magnitude not only affecting human health and life but also potentially generating a long-lasting socioeconomic impact. Both medical sciences and biomedical research have also been challenged consequently leading to a large number of clinical trials and vaccine initiatives. While known proteins of pathobiological importance are targets for these therapeutic approaches, it is imperative to explore other factors of viral significance. Accessory proteins are one such trait that have diverse roles in coronavirus pathobiology. Here we analyze certain genomic characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 accessory protein ORF8, predict upon its protein features and review current available literature regarding its function. We have also undertaken review of ORF8 homolog ORF8ab from SARS-CoV with a purpose of developing holistic understanding of these proteins for reason that coronaviruses have been infecting humans repeatedly and might continue to do so. Despite low nucleotide and protein identity and differentiating genome level characteristics, there appears to be significant structural integrity and functional proximity between these proteins pointing towards their high significance. There is further need for comprehensive genomics and structural-functional studies to lead towards definitive conclusions regarding their criticality and that can eventually define their relevance to therapeutics development.

Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon) is a medium-size carnivore that in Europe is restricted to Iberia. The bio-ecology of this species remains to be elucidated in several dimensions, including gut microbiota that is nowadays recognized as a fundamental component of mammals. In this work, we investigated the gut microbiota of this herpestid by single-molecule real-time sequencing of twenty paired male (n=10) and female (n=10) intestinal samples. This culture-independent approach enabled microbial profiling based on 16S rDNA and investigation of taxonomical and functional features. The core gut microbiome of the adult subpopulation was dominated by Firmicutes, Fusobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria. Eight genera were uniquely found in adults and five in non-adults. When comparing gut bacterial communities across sex, four genera were exclusive of females and six uniquely found in males. Despite these compositional distinctions, alpha- and beta-diversity analyses showed no statistically significant differences across sex or between adult and non-adult specimens. However, males presented a significantly higher abundance of amino acid and citrate cycle metabolic pathways, compared to the significant overrepresentation in females of galactose’ metabolic pathways. Adults showed a significantly higher abundance of cationic antimicrobial peptide resistance pathways, while non-adults bared a significant overrepresentation of two-component systems associated with antibiotic synthesis, flagellin production and chemotaxis control. This study adds new insights into mongoose bio-ecology palette, highlighting taxonomical and functional microbiome dissimilarities across sex and age classes, possibly related to primary production resources and life-history traits that impact on behavior, diet and gut ecosystem.

The bacterial flagellum is a motility organelle, consisting of a long helical filament as a propeller and a rotary motor that drives rapid filament rotation to produce thrust. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium has two genes of flagellin, fljB and fliC, for flagellar filament formation and autonomously switches their expression at a frequency of 10^-3–10^-4 per cell per generation. We report here differences in their structures and motility functions under high viscosity conditions. A Salmonella strain expressing FljB showed a higher motility than the one expressing FliC under high viscousity. To examine the reasons for this motility difference, we carried out structural analyses of the FljB filament by electron cryomicroscopy and found that the structure is nearly identical to that of the FliC filament except for the position and orientation of the outermost domain D3 of flagellin. The density of domain D3 was much lower in FljB than FliC, suggesting that domain D3 of FljB is more flexible and mobile than that of FliC. These differences suggest that domain D3 plays an important role not only in changing antigenicity of the filament but also in optimizing motility function of the filament as a propeller under different conditions.