ALBERT

Description: In the year 2020, the world suffered the effects of a global pandemic. COVID-19 is a disease that mainly affects the respiratory system of patients, even causing a disproportionate response of the immune system and further spreading the damage to other vital organs. The main means by which health care services detected this viral disease was through the use of Polymerase Chain Reactions (PCRs). These PCRs allow the detection of known chains of the genetic code of the virus in samples of sputum. In this work, we study PCR signal features that allow to automatize the analysis of hundreds of PCRs. The findings obtained from the study have shown these features to be capable of obtaining successful results in the detection of COVID-19 in PCR samples, with only a small fraction of the information extracted by the clinicians for that purpose.

Description: The aim of this work is to search for binary stars associated to planetary nebulae (ionized stellar envelopes in expansion), by mining the astronomical archive of Gaia DR2, that is composed by around 1.7 billion stellar sources. For this task, we selected those objects with coincident astrometric parameters (parallaxes and proper motions) with the corresponding central star, among a sample of 211 planetary nebulae. By this method, we found eight binary systems, and we obtained their components positions, separations, temperatures and luminosities, as well as some of their masses and ages. In addition, we estimated the probability for each companion star of having been detected by chance and we analyzed how the number of false matches increase as the separation distance between both stars gets larger. All these procedures have been carried out making use of data mining techniques.

Description: The Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of the United Nations mentions that extreme rainfalls might increase their intensity and frequency in most mid-latitude locations and tropical regions by the end of this century, as a consequence of the rise of the average global surface temperature. Human action has given way to global warming which manifests with an increase in extreme rainfall. If these climatic conditions are added to the waterproofing that cities have been experiencing as a result of urban development, a scenario of growing concern for the managers of drainage systems is generated. The objective of drainage networks is preventing the accumulation of rainwater on the surface. Under the new conditions of climate change, these need to be modified and adapted to provide cities with the security they demand. The following article describes a method for flood control by using a rehabilitation model that connects the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) 5 model with a genetic algorithm to find the best solutions to the flood problem. The final analysis is performed using the Pareto efficiency criteria. The innovation of this method is the inclusion of a local head loss in the drainage network, allowing the upstream flow to be retained by decreasing the downstream concentration time. These elements called hydraulic controls improve system performance and are installed in the initial part of some pipes coming out of storm tanks. As a case study, the developed method has been applied in a section of the drainage network of the city of Bogotá.

Description: West Nile virus (WNV) is an emerging arbovirus that causes infections worldwide. Clinical manifestations of the infection vary from asymptomatic to fatal illness when it reaches the central nervous system. To date, vaccine and specific antiviral treatments are not available. Teicoplanin is already used to treat Gram-positive bacterial infections. Furthermore, it has been reported to block the entry of pseudotyped Ebola, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus. Moreover, teicoplanin derivatives showed anti-influenza virus, anti-human immunodeficiency virus, anti-hepatitis C virus, and anti-dengue virus activity. In total, 12 teicoplanin derivatives have been tested against our West Nile virus isolate. Vero E6 cells were simultaneously treated with 50 µM of teicoplanin derivatives and infected with WNV at the same time. Virus-induced cytopathic effect and cytotoxicity were examined 4 days post-infection. One compound completely blocked virus pathogenesis, while five compounds reduced the viral titer. Further studies will be conducted to unravel the mode of action of these promising derivatives.

Description: “Concept” is a commonly used word, but there are different opinions on what a “concept” is. There are those who study “concepts” from the field of cognitive science and those who study “concepts” from the field of philosophy. In recent years, people in the field of artificial intelligence have also begun to study “concept learning” related to “concept”. What is “concept learning” in artificial intelligence? Can artificial intelligence really have the same “concept” that humans have? Around these questions, this paper will analyze “concept learning of artificial intelligence” and “concept” respectively, so as to preliminarily answer the question “does artificial intelligence have concept”.

Description: Numerous interventions are currently in the process of clinical development for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, including the use of small molecules that target viral transcription and replication. These processes are catalyzed by a complex comprising the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (L) and the tetrameric phosphoprotein (P). The RSV P performs many functions, including the recruitment of viral proteins to the polymerase complex. Despite their critical roles in RSV transcription and replication, the structures of L and P have remained elusive, though RSV P is thought to be intrinsically disordered in solution, with the exception of its oligomerization domain. Here, we describe the 3.2 Å cryo-EM structure of RSV L bound to the tetrameric P. The structure reveals a striking tentacular arrangement of P in which each of the four monomers adopts a distinct conformation. The structure also provides a rationale for the inhibitor-escape mutants and mutations observed in live attenuated vaccine candidates. These results provide a framework for determining the molecular underpinnings of RSV replication and transcription and should facilitate the design of effective RSV inhibitors.

Description: Introduction: Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a severe disease of humans caused by CCHF orthonairovirus (CCHFV), a class 4 pathogen. Hyalomma ticks are the viral reservoir, and they represent the main vector. CCHFV can be transmitted to its hosts during tick blood feeding. We have previously shown that CCHFV can persistently infect Hyalomma-derived tick cell lines without any cytopathic effect. However, the mechanism allowing for the establishment of a persistent viral infection in ticks is still unknown. It has been recently reported that Hazara orthonairovirus (HAZV) can be used as a BSL-2 model virus instead of CCHFV to study viral/vector interaction. The aim of our study is to elucidate the mechanism that allows establishment of persistent CCHFV infection in ticks using HAZV as a model. Methods: We used classical and molecular methods applied to virology to characterize the establishment of persistent HAZV infection in two Hyalomma anatolicum-derived cell lines—HAE/CTVM8 and HAE/CTVM9. Results: As for CCHFV, we showed that HAZV persistently infects tick cells without any sign of cytopathic effect and that infected cells can be cultured for more than one year. The persistent infection is characterized by a low viral titer compared to the initial time points. Interestingly, short viral-derived DNA forms (vDNAs) start to be detected in parallel with the beginning of viral replication and are maintained in persistently-infected cells. Experiments with the antiretroviral drug AZT suggest that vDNAs are produced by retrotranscriptase activity. Furthermore, we collected evidence that vDNAs are not integrated and seem to be involved in the downregulation of viral replication by promoting cell survival. Conclusion: vDNA synthesis might represent a strategy to control the replication of RNA viruses in ticks, as recently demonstrated in insects, allowing for persistent infection of virus vectors.

Description: Whichever definition of autonomy is used, it is usually formulated in a negative way by the absence, rather than presence, of the defining factors. Some definitions refer to the absence of external causes, physical determination, coercion or control. If positive factors are used, autonomy is associated with the shift from effective causes to final ones. Both approaches, the former of which is based on the elimination of determinism to secure free choice, and the latter of which is based on the replacement of determination by the past by determination by the future, are inconsistent with the scientific description of reality. This paper is an attempt to provide the positive, constructive characterization of autonomy consistent with the scientific view of reality, which can guide us in our search for its implementation in artefacts.

Description: This paper collected 128 information science definitions circulating in China from three different sources. By counting the word frequency and generating a word cloud map of the 128 definitions, the high frequency words in the definitions of information science and scholars’ understanding of information science are analyzed. Through an analysis of the characteristics of the 128 information science definitions, this paper summarizes the four basic patterns and three compound patterns of information science definitions, and analyzes the connotations and development characteristics of these definitions of information science in China.

Description: The subject of the paper is a description of how discursive space exists as a space of knowledge. The paper assumes that discourses as retention and articulation of knowledge travel across a multidimensional space, the dimensions of which determine knowledge (i.e., its contents). In this way, discourse achieves the status of a (dynamic) unit of knowledge that is autonomous. Discursive space exists as the realization of the world of affairs (the world of facts by Wittgenstein). Because of the holistic nature of the world so defined, it contains everything, and thus also various discourses and various discursive spaces.

Description: The viral order Mononegavirales consist of eight virus families. Members of these families include some of the most infectious (Measles, lethal (Ebola and Rabies), and most common viruses (Respiratory syncytial virus, RSV). Despite their medical importance, few vaccines and no antiviral treatments are available for treating infections with these viruses. Being obligate cellular parasites, viruses must rely on the cellular machinery for their replication. One example of this is the widespread use of molecular chaperones, which assist the correct folding of newly synthesized proteins, refold misfolded or aggregated proteins, and play key roles in maintaining proteostasis in cells. Targeting chaperones required for viral replication may, therefore, provide an antiviral approach. In this work, we set out to identify all the members of the cytoplasmic chaperone network that are involved in the replication of RSV using an RNA interference screen. Among our hits is valosin-containing protein (VCP; also known as p97), a chaperone involved in ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation, which has been shown to play a role in the life cycle of several viruses. We investigated the role of VCP during RSV and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) infections using specific VCP inhibitors. Our results suggest that VCP activity is necessary for RSV and VSV replication and may constitute a promising antiviral approach for the Mononegavirales.

Description: Single-stranded RNA viral genomes (gRNA) are dynamic molecules that permit packaging into virions and their subsequent extrusion during infection. For viruses with such genomes, we discovered a previously unsuspected mechanism that regulates their assembly. This regulation is the result of multiple cognate coat protein (CP)–gRNA contacts distributed across the RNA. Collectively, these interactions make the assembly highly efficient and specific. The regions of the gRNA packaging signals (PSs) driving this assembly are potential drug targets, whilst the manipulation of PS–CP contacts with nonviral RNA cargos is a route towards bespoke virus-like particles. Infectivity depends on the virions being able to transfer their gRNAs into host cells. The starting point for this transfer appears to be an encapsidated RNA with a defined three-dimensional structure, especially around the PSs. A combination of asymmetric cryo-electron microscopy structure determination and X-ray synchrotron footprinting were used to define these contacts and structures in a number of viral examples, including hepatitis B virus and enteroviruses. These tools allow us to look beyond the outer CP layer of the virion shell and to see the functional, asymmetric components that regulate viral infectivity. This revealed yet more unexpected aspects of critical infection mechanisms, such as the RNA conformational changes required for encapsidation, the details of PS–CP contacts regulating the assembly, and the conformational “memory” imposed by encapsidation.

Description: The goal of this work is to explain a novel information paradigm claiming that all information results from a process, intrinsic to living beings, of self-production; a sensory commensurable, self-referential feedback process immanent to Bateson’s difference that makes a difference. To highlight and illustrate this fundamental process, a simulation based on one-parameter feedback is presented. It simulates a homeorhetic process, innate to organisms, illustrating a self-referenced, autonomous system. The illustrated recursive process is sufficiently generic to be the only basis for information in nature: from the single cell, to multi-cellular organisms, to consideration of all types of natural and non-natural phenomena, including tools and artificial constructions.

Description: Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is transmitted to humans through mosquitoes and causes Chikungunya fever. Nonstructural protein 2 (nsP2) contains an N-terminal RNA helicase with both nucleotide triphosphatase and RNA triphosphatase activities, and a C-terminal cysteine protease that is responsible for polyprotein processing. Both N-terminal RNA helicase and C-terminal cysteine protease are connected through a flexible linker. Although the structure of the C-terminal cysteine protease has been solved, the structure and the conformational arrangement of full-length nsP2 remains elusive. Here, we determined the crystal structure of the helicase part of the CHIKV nsP2 (nsP2h) bound to the conserved 3′-end of the genomic RNA and the nucleotide analogue ADP-AlF4. The structure of this ternary complex revealed the molecular basis for viral RNA recognition and ATP hydrolysis by the nsP2h. Unique hydrophobic protein–RNA interactions play essential roles in viral RNA replication. We also determined the solution structure of full-length nsP2 using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The solution architecture of the nsP2 was modeled using the available high-resolution structures and program CORAL (complexes with random loops). The CORAL model revealed that nsP2 is partially unfolded and the N-terminal protease domain is arranged near the N-terminal domain of the helicase domain. These findings expand our knowledge of CHIKV and related alphaviruses and might also have broad implications for antiviral and vaccine developments against pathogenic alphaviruses.

Description: A comparison of different machine learning techniques for eye state identification through Electroencephalography (EEG) signals is presented in this paper. (1) Background: We extend our previous work by studying several techniques for the extraction of the features corresponding to the mental states of open and closed eyes and their subsequent classification; (2) Methods: A prototype developed by the authors is used to capture the brain signals. We consider the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) and the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) for feature extraction; Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) for state classification; and Independent Component Analysis (ICA) for preprocessing the data; (3) Results: The results obtained from some subjects show the good performance of the proposed methods; and (4) Conclusion: The combination of several techniques allows us to obtain a high accuracy of eye identification.

Description: During the late phase of the HIV-1 replication cycle, the Gag polyproteins are transported to the plasma membrane (PM) for assembly. Gag targeting and assembly on the PM is dependent on interactions between its matrix (MA) domain and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2). Subsequent to Gag assembly, the envelope (Env) protein is recruited to the PM for incorporation into virus particles. Evidence suggests that the incorporation of the Env protein is mediated by interactions between the MA domain of Gag and the cytoplasmic tail of the gp41 subunit of Env (gp41CT), a mechanism that remains to be elucidated. Trimerization of the MA domain of Gag appears to be an obligatory step for this interaction. The interplay between gp41CT, the MA trimer, and the membrane has yet to be determined. Our lab has pioneered methods and approaches to investigate, at the molecular level, how the retroviral MA domains of Gag interact with membranes, a key requirement for understanding the Gag assembly and Env incorporation. Herein, we devised innovative approaches that will enable the structural characterization of the gp41CT–MA–membrane interactions. We employed structural biology (NMR and cryo-electron microscopy, biophysical methods, and biochemical tools to generate a macromolecular picture of how the MA domain of Gag binds to the membrane and how it interacts with gp41CT. To this end, we: (i) determined the three-dimensional structure of HIV-1 gp41CT and characterized its interaction with the membrane, (ii) engineered trimeric constructs of gp41CT and the MA to recapitulate the native and functional states of the proteins, and (iii) utilized membrane nanodisc technology to anchor the MA and gp41CT proteins. Our studies will allow for a detailed structural characterization of the gp41CT–MA–membrane interactions, which will advance our knowledge of HIV-1 Gag assembly and Env incorporation.

Description: RNA viruses are characterized by their extreme mutation rates, which play key roles in their biology and give them the ability to rapidly adapt to new environments. However, non-synonymous mutations tend to be largely deleterious to protein function, raising the question of how the proteins of RNA viruses maintain functionality in the face of high mutation rates. This is of particular relevance to the capsids of non-enveloped RNA viruses, which form highly complex protein structures that assemble from numerous subunits, interact with cellular host factors to mediate entry and uncoating, and are under strong immune selection. To better understand how viral capsids accommodate mutations, we generated viral populations harboring a large fraction of all possible single amino acid mutations in a picornavirus capsid. We then used high-fidelity next-generation sequencing to derive the relative fitness of these mutations compared to the wildtype sequence. Combining our results with available structural, genetic, and phenotypic data, we are able to provide a comprehensive understanding of the ability of a viral capsid to accommodate mutations.

Description: Similar to other flaviviruses, Zika virus (ZIKV) produces abundant subgenomic flavivirus RNA (sfRNA) derived from the 3’ untranslated region. The molecular mechanisms that determine the functions of sfRNA are currently not completely understood. Here, we created ZIKV mutants deficient in sfRNA production and employed them to investigate the role of this RNA in virus interactions with mammalian and insect hosts. We found that in mosquitoes, sfRNA facilitates virus replication and is required for ZIKV dissemination into saliva and virus transmission. The production of sfRNA was found to have no effect on the RNAi pathway, but instead downregulated the expression of genes involved in the regulation of apoptosis. The terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) of histological sections from infected mosquitoes confirmed that sfRNA prevents the apoptotic death of infected cells, thus identifying inhibition of apoptosis as a novel mechanism of sfRNA action in mosquitoes. We also found that sfRNA facilitates ZIKV replication in mammalian cells, mice, and human brain organoids. Moreover, ZIKV mutants deficient in sfRNA production were unable to form plaques, cause the death of human brain organoids, or establish infection in the mouse foetal brain. We then found that the proviral activity of sfRNA in mammalian cells relies on its ability to suppress type I interferon signalling. We showed that this is achieved via the inhibition of phosphorylation and the nuclear translocation of STAT1. In addition, we found that the production of sfRNA in the ZIKV infection of human brain organoids is associated with the suppression of multiple genes involved in brain development, indicating that sfRNA can be involved in the disruption of brain development associated with ZIKV infection.

Description: Paternally expressed gene 10 (PEG10) is a human retrotransposon-derived imprinted gene. Previous works have demonstrated that a mutation in the coding sequence of this gene is lethal with regard to embryological age due to defects of placental development. In addition, PEG10 is implicated in several malignancies, such as pancreatic cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma. The PEG10 gene encodes two protein isoforms, which are translated by a typical retroviral frameshift mechanism. The Gag-like protein (RF1PEG10) is encoded by reading frame 1, whilst reading frames 1 and 2 accounts for the Gag-Pol-like polyprotein (RF1/RF2PEG10). The protease (PR) domain of RF2PEG10 contains an -Asp-Ser-Gly- sequence, which refers to the conservative -Asp-Ser/Thr-Gly- active-site motif of retroviral aspartic proteases. The function of the aspartic protease domain of RF2PEG10 remains unclear. In order to further investigate the function of the PEG10 protease (PRPEG10), a frameshift mutant was generated (fsRF1/RF2PEG10) for comparison with the RF1/RF2PEG10 form. To study the effects of PRPEG10 on cellular proliferation and viability, mammalian HEK293T and HaCaT cells were transfected with plasmids encoding for either the frameshift mutant (fsRF1/RF2PEG10) or a PR active-site (D370A) mutant fsRF1/RF2PEG10. Based on our findings, an fsRF1/RF2PEG10 overexpression resulted in an increased cellular proliferation, compared to the mutant form. Interestingly, transfection with fsRF1/RF2PEG10 had a detrimental effect on cell viability. We hypothesize that PRPEG10 may play a cardinal role in the function of this retroviral remnant, possibly implicated in cellular proliferation and the inhibition of apoptosis.

Description: The vast majority of the world’s population is exposed to beta-herpesviruses during early childhood. After the primary infection, human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) can establish a lifelong persistence. The role of HHV-6 in the development of neurodegenerative disorders is not completely clarified. Postmortem samples of brain tissue obtained from 24 elderly subjects with unspecified encephalopathy were used in the study. Nested (nPCR) and real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT PCR) were used for the qualitative and quantitative detection of viral genomic sequences in isolated DNA from frontal lobe samples. For ultrastructural examination, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nPCR, and immunohistochemically confirmed HHV-6-positive tissue samples were used. Immunogold (IG) labeling using anti-HHV-6 (20) mouse monoclonal antibodies, raised against viral lysate (Santa Cruz Biotechnology, dilution 1:30), was performed. HHV-6 DNA was detected in 38% (9/24) of the frontal lobe tissue samples. The HHV-6 load in the nPCR-positive samples ranged from 10 to 3878.5 (copies/106 cells). A TEM examination of the frontal cortex revealed lipofuscin containing neurons, glial cells, unmyelinated and small myelinated axons, and symmetric synapses. Subcortical brain regions revealed glial cells interspersed by myelinated axons. The expression of viral proteins was found in the nuclei of neurons, demonstrating disarranged chromatin. HHV-6 positivity was detected between the adjacent cisternae of the rough endoplasmic reticulum of neurons displaying IG labeling. Furthermore, products of IG labeling were found in nuclei and cytoplasm of oligodendrocytes. The cytoplasm of astrocytes was IG labeled as well. IG labeling was used to determine the presence and intracellular localization of HHV-6 proteins in the human brain. HHV-6 possibly contributes to the demyelination process via entry into and affection of oligodendrocytes. Finally, neural susceptibility to HHV-6 may be linked to an invalid cellular immune response, followed by the development of a persistent viral infection.

Description: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) have declared Radon gas a human carcinogen. Spain has several regions with high radon concentrations, Galicia (northwestern Spain) being one with the highest Radon concentration. In this work, we present the development of an open-source and low-cost radon monitoring and alert system. The system has two parts: devices and the backend. The devices integrate a Radon sensor, capable of measuring Radon levels every 10 min, and several environmental sensors capable of measuring temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, and air pollution. The devices send all the information to the backend, which stores it, exposes it in a web interface, and uses the historical data to predict the radon levels for the following hours. If the radon levels are predicted to overpass the threshold in the next hour, the system issues an alert via several channels (email and MQTT) to the configured recipients for the corresponding device, allowing them to take measures to lower the Radon concentration. The results of this work indicate that the system allows the radon levels to be greatly reduced and makes the development of a low cost and open-source radon monitoring system feasible. The system scalability allows a network of sensors to be created that can help mitigate the health hazard that high radon concentrations create.

Description: The article is an attempt to capture the problem of changes occurring in the last dozen or so years in the architecture of energy-efficient houses in Europe, including Poland, in the light of economic and legal conditions. In the studies subordinated to the analysis of the literature, the focus was on those features of energy-efficient buildings that are derived from the logic of solutions of traditional country houses. The genesis of the form of the modern energy-saving house can be found in the principles of building and situating houses developed through the experience of previous generations. These principles took into account the specificity of the climate and existing local conditions. Modern energy-saving construction adds new technologies and new building materials to the traditional form.

Description: In computer vision, current feature extraction techniques generate high dimensional data. Both convolutional neural networks and traditional approaches like keypoint detectors are used as extractors of high-level features. However, the resulting datasets have grown in the number of features, leading into long training times due to the curse of dimensionality. In this research, some feature selection methods were applied to these image features through big data technologies. Additionally, we analyzed how image resolutions may affect to extracted features and the impact of applying a selection of the most relevant features. Experimental results show that making an important reduction of the extracted features provides classification results similar to those obtained with the full set of features and, in some cases, outperforms the results achieved using broad feature vectors.

Description: The application of electroencephalography electrodes in Virtual Reality (VR) glasses allows users to relate cognitive, emotional, and social functions with the exposure to certain stimuli. The development of non-invasive portable devices, coupled with VR, allows for the collection of electroencephalographic data. One of the devices that embraced this new trend is Looxid LinkTM, a system that adds electroencephalography to HTC VIVETM, VIVE ProTM, VIVE Pro EyeTM, or Oculus Rift STM glasses to create interactive environments using brain signals. This work analyzes the possibility of using the Looxid LinkTM device to perceive, evaluate and monitor the emotions of users exposed to VR.

Description: This study proposes solutions to help people with phobias through the use of virtual environments that allow a contact between the subjects and these phobias. Using neurofeedback, the systems, depending on the emotional state of the user, adapt the scenarios allowing more or less intensity. The phobias these systems treat are social phobia, entomophobia and claustrophobia. The solutions have been developed using Unity, Muse 2 and Vive HTC.

Description: The segmentation of the retinal vasculature is fundamental in the study of many diseases. However, its manual completion is problematic, which motivates the research on automatic methods. Nowadays, these methods usually employ Fully Convolutional Networks (FCNs), whose success is highly conditioned by the network architecture and the availability of many annotated data, something infrequent in medicine. In this work, we present a novel application of self-supervised multimodal pre-training to enhance the retinal vasculature segmentation. The experiments with diverse FCN architectures demonstrate that, independently of the architecture, this pre-training allows one to overcome annotated data scarcity and leads to significantly better results with less training on the target task.

Description: Health monitoring of civil and industrial structures has been gaining importance since the collapse of the bridge in Genoa (Italy). It is vital for the creation and maintenance of reliable infrastructure. Traditional manual inspections for this task are crucial but time consuming. We present a novel approach for combining Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and artificial intelligence to tackle the above-mentioned challenges. Modern architectures in Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) were adapted to the special characteristics of data streams gathered from UAV visual sensors. The approach allows for automated detection and localization of various damages to steel structures, coatings, and fasteners, e.g., cracks or corrosion, under uncertain and real-life environments. The proposed model is based on a multi-stage cascaded classifier to account for the variety of detail level from the optical sensor captured during an UAV flight. This allows for reconciliation of the characteristics of gathered image data and crucial aspects from a steel engineer’s point of view. To improve performance of the system and minimize manual data annotation, we use transfer learning based on the well-known COCO dataset combined with field inspection images. This approach provides a solid data basis for object localization and classification with state-of-the-art CNN architectures.

Description: Hadrontherapy has been constantly evolving in leaps and bounds since the 1950s, when the use of heavy particles was proposed as an alternative treatment to radiotherapy with gamma rays or electrons. The main objective of this treatment is to maximize the dose applied to the tumour, avoiding damage to the surrounding tissue. One of the keys to the success of hadrontherapy is to achieve instantaneous monitoring of the energy deposition in the environment. Since energy deposition leads to the generation of a thermoacoustic pulse, acoustic technologies have been tested with successful results. However, for this purpose, it is essential to increase the sensitivity of the sensors for the acoustical signal and, therefore, to optimize their geometry as a function of the beam that would be used. We have studied a PTZ material in volumetric and surface volumes through experimental measures and FEM methods. In this text, we start with numerical studies which determine the dependence of the thermoacoustic signal frequency with the energy and duration of the hadron beam.

Description: A full chain simulation of the acoustic hadron therapy monitoring for brain tumors is presented in this work. For the study, a proton beam of 100 MeV was considered. In the first stage, Geant4 was used to simulate the energy deposition and to study the behavior of the Bragg peak. The energy deposition in the medium produced local heating that can be considered instantaneous with respect to the hydrodynamic time scale producing a sound pressure wave. The resulting thermoacoustic signal was subsequently obtained by solving the thermoacoustic equation. The acoustic propagation was simulated by the Finite Element Method (FEM) in the brain and the skull, where a set of piezoelectric sensors were placed. Lastly, the final received signals in the sensors were processed in order to reconstruct the position of the thermal source and, thus, to determine the feasibility and accuracy of acoustic beam monitoring in hadron therapy.

Description: Three-phase induction motors (IMs) are electrical machines used on a large scale in industrial applications because they are versatile, robust and low maintenance devices. However, IMs are significantly affected when fed by unbalanced voltages. Prolonged operation under voltage unbalance (VU) conditions degrades performance and shortens machine life by producing imbalances in stator currents that abnormally raise winding temperature. With the development of new technologies and research on non-destructive techniques (NDT) for fault diagnoses in IMs, it is relevant to obtain economically accessible, efficient and reliable sensors capable of acquiring signals that allow the identification of this type of failure. The objective of this study is to evaluate the application of low-cost piezoelectric sensors in the acquisition of acoustic emission (AE) signals and the identification of VU through the analysis of short-term Fourier transform (STFT) spectrograms. The piezoelectric sensor makes NDT feasible, as it is an affordable and inexpensive component. In addition, STFT allows time-frequency analyses of acoustic emission signals. In this NDT, two sensors were coupled on both sides of an induction motor frame. The AE signals obtained during the IM operation were processed and the resulting spectrograms were analyzed to identify the different VU levels. After comparing the AE signals for faulty conditions with the signals for the IM operating at balanced voltages, it was possible to obtain a desired identification that confirmed the successful application of low-cost piezoelectric sensors for VU condition detection in three-phase induction machines.

Description: Robot mapping and exploration is basic to many robotic applications such as search and rescue operations in disaster scenarios, warehouse management, service robotics, patrolling and autonomous driving. With recent advances in robot navigation and sensor compactness, single robot systems can accurately model the environment and perform complex autonomous navigation tasks. On the other hand, multi-robot systems can speed up mapping and exploration tasks in emergency situations, such as rescue missions, by making use of distributed sensors, thereby increasing the range of exploration tasks to an extent that is not possible with a single robot. Each robot explores and maps different areas of the same environment that are finally merged and connected to make a global map. To build a map of an unknown environment, each robot must perform SLAM, or Simultaneous Localization and Mapping. A big challenge with a multi-robot SLAM system is the transfer of shared map information between multiple robots. There is a possibility of transferring individual measurement errors to the global map, resulting in excess computation and memory required to store such maps. To overcome this problem, we propose to use topological feature map representation that can store information into nodes and edges and does not have any large memory requirements. We present a combined metric-topological mapping approach to multi-robot SLAM. This method maintains a topological pose graph with sensor information stored in nodes and edges that can be optimized globally with reduced information sharing. By combining local metric and topological maps built by individual robots, the reduced graph structure can be merged and extended to map large areas effectively. To robustly merge local maps into global one, we used visual features from each robot that are matched in a distributed system. The graph node-edge structure is used for path planning and navigation. At the same time information sharing between robots results in optimized task distribution between multi-robots.

Description: Development of indoor location systems that use smartphone sensors has been a topic of interest to industry and academia. In this paper, we describe an experiment that was performed to evaluate the feasibility of creating a mobile indoor localization model based on data from participatory sensing. To achieve it, seven smartphone users used their integrated magnetometers to collected magnetic field information on a building. The data collected are utilized to train three machine learning algorithms: The k Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Decision Trees (J48), and Naïve Bayes algorithms. The performance of the algorithms was measured through the accuracy and kappa statistics. Our results indicate that it is possible to create an infrastructure-less indoor localization model at room level using data from participatory sensing. The model with the most significant performance was obtained with the KNN, since it offers an accuracy of 97.12%, while the model with the most reduced performance was Naïve Bayes, since it offers an accuracy of 50.79%.

Description: Multiphase gravity separators are widely used in the petroleum industry to separate the produced stream of oil, water and natural gas into pure (single-phase) streams. These equipment work based on the density differences of each fluid which tend to settle into layers when dwelled for some time in the separator. It is fundamental to monitor the levels of these phases inside the vessel, so that this information can be used in control strategies in order to increase the efficiency and safety of the process. In this work, we present a novel multiphase level sensor based on capacitance and inductance measurements of planar multi-electrodes and multi-coils. The sensor is low-cost, fast and does not apply ionizing radiation, being therefore simple to operate. The prototype sensor was constructed in standard printed-circuit board (PCB) technology and highly sensitive capacitance and inductance measurements are acquired with modern integrated circuit devices. Since the capacitive sensor readings depend on the water salinity, we perform simultaneous inductance measurements to compensate for such dependence. We have tested the prototype from two different approaches: varying the water salinity and for different water/oil mixtures. Preliminary results have shown the capability of the sensor to differentiate each one of the produced fluids, i.e., salty water, oil and gas, as well as the interfaces between them. A 16 electrodes capacitive-only sensor prototype was also built and tested.

Description: Following the success of our first therapeutic discovery conference in 2017 and the selection of King Abdullah International Medical Research Centre (KAIMRC) as the first Phase 1 clinical site in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we organized our second conference in partnership with leading institutions in academic drug discovery, which included the Structural Genomic Constorium (Oxford, UK), Fraunhofer (Germany) and Institute Material Medica (China); the participation of members of the American Drug Discovery Consterium; European Biotech companies; and local pharma companies, SIPMACO and SudairPharma. In addition, we had European and Northern American venture capital experts attending and presenting at the conference. The purpose of the conference was to bridge the gap between biotech, pharma and academia regarding drug discovery and development. Its aim primarily was to: (a) bring together world experts on academic drug discovery to discuss and propose new approaches to discover and develop new therapies; (b) establish a permanent platform for scientific exchange between academia and the biotech and pharmaceutical industries; (c) entice national and international investors to consider funding drugs discovered in academia; (d) educate the population about the causes of diseases, approaches to prevent them from happening and their cure; (e) attract talent to consider the drug discovery track for their studies and career. During the conference, we discussed the unique academic drug discovery disrupting business models, which can make their discoveries easily accessible in an open source mode. This unique model accelerates the dissemination of knowledge to all world scientists to guide them in their research. This model is aimed at bringing effective and affordable medicine to all mankind in a very short time. Moreover, the program discussed rare disease targets, orphan drug discovery, immunotherapy discovery and process, the role of bioinformatics in drug discovery, anti-infective drug discovery in the era of bad bugs, natural products as a source of novel drugs and innovative drug formulation and delivery. Additionally, as the conference was organized during the surge of the epidemic, we dedicated the first day (25 February) to coronavirus science, detection and therapy. The day was co-organized with the King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia(KSA) Ministry of Education to announce the grant winner for infectious diseases. Simultaneously, intensive courses were delivered to junior scientists on the principle of drug discovery, immunology and clinical trials, as well as rare diseases. The second therapeutics discovery forum provided a platform for interactive knowledge sharing and the convergence of researchers, governments, pharmaceuticals, biopharmaceuticals, hospitals and non-profit organizations on the topic of academic drug discovery. The event presented showcases on global drug discovery initiatives and demonstrated how collaborations are leading to successful new therapies. In line with the KSA 2030 vision on becoming world leaders with an innovative economy and healthy population, therapeutic discovery is becoming an area of interest to science leaders in the kingdom, and our conference gave us the opportunity to identity key areas of interest as well as potential future collaborations.

Description: Wireless networks are technologies with a growing interest in the area of telecommunications, such as the case of MANETs. Despite its advantages, MANETs present several challenges in the transmission of information due to the limited bandwidth, high error rate, energy consumption restriction, and variable topologies. The transmission power can significantly influence some of the aforementioned issues. This paper proposes Density Power Control Mechanism (DPCM), which employs a cross-layering approach between AODV (Ad-hoc On-Demand Distance Vector) routing protocol and the physical layer to adapt power transmission. DPCM aims to reduce collisions, maintain or improve the performance of AODV as well as to save power in the nodes. Our results indicate that our proposal can improve the performance of the network and save power at the same time. Moreover, it is especially useful for low- and medium-density scenarios.

Description: An inertial measurement unit (IMU) typically has three accelerometers and three gyroscopes. The output of those inertial sensors is used by an inertial navigation system to calculate the navigation solution–position, velocity and attitude. Since the sensor measurements contain noise, the navigation solution drifts over time. When considering low cost sensors, multiple IMUs can be used to improve the performance of a single unit. In this paper, we describe our designed 32 multi-IMU (MIMU) architecture and present experimental results using this system. To analyze the sensory data, a dedicated software tool, capable of addressing MIMUs inputs, was developed. Using the MIMU hardware and software tool we examined and evaluated the MIMUs for: (1) navigation solution accuracy (2) sensor outlier rejection (3) stationary calibration performance (4) coarse alignment accuracy and (5) the effect of different MIMUs locations in the architecture. Our experimental results show that 32 IMUs obtained better performance than a single IMU for all testcases examined. In addition, we show that performance was improved gradually as the number of IMUs was increased in the architecture.

Description: A summary of the eighth World Health Organization (WHO) Global Initiative for Emergency and Essential Surgical Care (GIEESC) Biennial Meeting, which was held in conjunction with the Royal Australian College of Surgeons (RACS) eighty-eighth Annual Scientific Congress in Bangkok, Thailand.

Description: Rail inspections are required and used to ensure safety and preserve the availability of railway infrastructure. According to the statistics published by railroad administrations worldwide, the transverse fissure appearing in railhead is the principal cause of rail accidents. These particular defects are initiated inside the railhead. Detection of these cracks has always been challenging because a defect signature remains mostly small until the defect size reaches a significant value. The present work deals with the theoretical analysis of an integrated contact-less system for rail diagnosis, which is based on ultrasounds. The generation of these waves was performed through non-ablative laser sources. Rotational laser vibrometry was used to achieve the reception of the echoes. Detection of flaws in the rail was monitored by considering special ultrasound wave signal based indicators. Finite element modeling of the rail system was performed, and transverse defect detection of the rail was analyzed.

Description: A Linear Fresnel Reflector (LFR) is a recent technology with good potential in small-scale solar power applications. It is composed of many long rows of mirrors that focus the sunlight onto a fixed elevated tubular receiver. Mirror segments are aligned horizontally and track the sun such that the receiver does not need to be moved. The efficiency with which the LFR can convert solar to thermal energy depends on the accuracy of the sun tracking system. To maximize the degree of sunlight capture, precise solar tracking is needed so that incident solar rays can be adequately focused to the focal point given by the location of the tubular receiver. The tilt angles of each row are relevant for the tracking controller to achieve correct positioning. Encoders are generally employed in closed-loop tracking systems as feedback signals used to inform the controller with the actual position of collector mirrors. Recently, inclinometers have begun to replace encoders as the most viable and cost-effective sensor technology solution; they offer simpler and more precise feedback, as they measure the angle of tilt with respect to gravity and provide the ability to adjust the system to the optimal angle for maximum output. This paper presents the research results on the development of remote measurements for the precise control of an LFR tracking system, by using distributed angle measurements. The applied methodology enables precision measurement LFR inclination angles through the fusion of data from multiple accelerometers, supported by low-cost wireless transceivers in a wireless sensor network, capable of exchanging information in a cloud infrastructure.

Description: Advanced ceramics are widely used in industry due to their unique properties. However, the machining of ceramic components by conventional methods is difficult due to their high level of hardness and brittleness. In this sense, laser beam machining (LBM) is presented as an alternative to conventional methods, enabling the machining of workpieces through more accurate and less invasive techniques. Despite the advantages of laser machining, the process still needs to be studied in detail, as advanced ceramic machining is considered a stochastic process. Thus, real-time monitoring systems are required in order to optimize the ceramic laser machining. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel method for monitoring the cutting kerf in the laser cutting process of ceramic components using a low-cost piezoelectric transducer (PZT) and digital signal processing. Tests were performed on the surface of an alumina ceramic workpiece under different machining conditions. The cutting kerf was measured by a digital microscope and the raw signals from the PZT transducer were collected at a sampling rate of 2 MHz. Time domain and frequency domain analyses were performed in order to find a frequency band that best correlates with the process conditions. Finally, a linear regression was calculated in order to correlate the PZT signal and the measured kerf. The results showed that the piezoelectric transducer was sensitive to the acoustic activity generated during the process, allowing the real-time monitoring of the cutting kerf. Thus, the approach proposed in this paper can be used efficiently in the monitoring of the laser cutting process.

Description: Crack initiation and propagation vary the mechanical properties of the asphalt pavement and further alter its designate function. As such, this paper describes a numerical study of a multi-layered strain sensor for the structural health monitoring (SHM) of asphalt pavement. The core of the sensor is an H-shaped Araldite GY-6010 epoxy-based structure with a set of polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) piezoelectric transducers in its center beam, which serve as a sensing unit, and a polyurethane foam layer at its external surface which serves as a thermal insulation layer. Sensors are coated with a thin layer of urethane casting resin to prevent the sensor from being corroded by moisture. As a proof-of-concept study, a numerical model is created in COMSOL Multiphysics to simulate the sensor-pavement interaction, in order to design the strain sensor for SHM of asphalt pavement. The results reveal that the optimum thickness of the middle polyurethane foam is 11 mm, with a ratio of the center beam/wing length of 3.2. The simulated results not only validate the feasibility of using the strain sensor for SHM (traffic load monitoring and damage detection), but also to optimize design geometry to increase the sensor sensitivity.

Description: This work shows the possibility of using arrays of ZnO nanorods grown on a glass substrate as a sensitive element for measuring air flow velocity. Since oxide semiconductors have a temperature dependence of resistance, a theoretical and experimental assessment was made of the influence of air velocity on the increase in resistance of a sensitive element. It has been theoretically shown that when air is blown through, the temperature of the free end of the ZnO nanorod can decrease by several degrees. An experimental evaluation showed that when gas is blown at a speed of 12.5 cm/s, the resistance of the sensing element increases by about 20%, which is equivalent to a temperature increase of about 4 degrees. In addition, it was found that the dependence of the increase in the resistance of the sensitive element when exposed to an air flow from 0 to 12.5 cm / s is close to linear.

Description: Road Traffic Noise (RTN) is one of the main pollutants in urban and suburban areas, negatively affecting the quality of life of their inhabitants. In the context of the European LIFE DYNAMAP project, two Wireless Acoustic Sensor Networks (WASN) have been deployed to monitor RTN: one in District 9 of Milan, and another along the A90 motorway of Rome. Since the dynamic mapping system should be able to identify and remove those Anomalous Noise Events (ANEs) unrelated to regular road traffic (e.g., sirens, horns, speech, and doors), an Anomalous Noise Event Detector (ANED) has been included in the dynamic noise mapping pipeline to avoid biasing the computation of the equivalent RTN levels. After deploying the 24 low-cost acoustic sensor networks in both pilot areas, WASN-based acoustic datasets were built to adapt the previous version of the ANED algorithm to run in real-operation conditions. In this work, we describe the preliminary results of the analysis of the 154 h WASN-based urban acoustic dataset obtained from the Milan city in terms of the main characteristics of ANEs. The results confirm the unbalanced nature of the problem (83.7% of the data corresponds to RTN), showing the urban WASN-based dataset a larger number of ANEs with higher local predominance than what was observed in the previous expert-based recording campaign, which underlines the importance of the accurate modeling of the urban acoustic environment to train the ANED properly.

Description: Recently, Lidl had to set a recall action due to dangerous pieces of plastic found in the cheese products. The plastic shards, if swallowed, can cut the oral cavity or obstruct breathing. Current inspection techniques in the cheese industry are for the detection of metals using X-ray that does not offer a complete solution, as many foreign bodies can go undetected. This paper demonstrates the use of a portable real-time microwave sensing technique for the nondestructive detection of plastic in cheese. The electromagnetic (EM) patch antenna was designed and tested on five Cheddar cheese samples. Different sizes of plastic shards, 1 × 10 mm, 2 × 15 mm and 5 × 20 mm, were inserted into the samples, and measurements were taken with and without foreign objects. The initial results demonstrated that the patch antenna at 4GHz was able to detect and classify Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) shards with an R2 = 0.95. The initial results are promising, and further investigation will be undertaken to detect different shapes and types of foreign objects in food products.

Description: In some parts of the world, climate change has led to periods of drought that require managing efficiently the scarce water and energy resources. This paper proposes an IoT smart irrigation system specifically designed for urban areas where remote IoT devices have no direct access to the Internet or to the electrical grid, and where wireless communications are difficult due to the existence of long distances and multiple obstacles. To tackle such issues, this paper proposes a LoRaWAN-based architecture that provides long distance and communications with reduced power consumption. Specifically, the proposed system consists of IoT nodes that collect sensor data and send them to local fog computing nodes or to a remote cloud, which determine an irrigation schedule that considers factors such as the weather forecast or the moist detected by nearby nodes. It is essential to deploy the IoT nodes in locations within the provided coverage range and that guarantee good speed rates and reduced energy consumption. Due to this reason, this paper describes the use of an in-house 3D-ray launching radio-planning tool to determine the best locations for IoT nodes on a real medium-scale scenario (a university campus) that was modeled with precision, including obstacles such as buildings, vegetation, or vehicles. The obtained simulation results were compared with empirical measurements to assess the operating conditions and the radio planning tool accuracy. Thus, it is possible to optimize the wireless network topology and the overall performance of the network in terms of coverage, cost, and energy consumption.

Description: Data collection plays an important role in pavement health monitoring, which is usually performed using costly devices, including point-based lasers and laser scanners. The main aim of this study measures pavement characteristics using an RGB-D sensor. By recording the depth and color images simultaneously, the sensor benefits the data fusion. By mounting the sensor on a moving cart, and fixing the vertical distance from the ground, data were collected along 100 m of the asphalt pavement using MATLAB. At each stop point, multiple frames were collected, the central region of interests was stored, and a low pass filter was subsequently applied to the data. To create a 3D surface of the pavement, sensor calibration was performed to map the RGB and depth infrared images. The SURF (speeded-up robust features) and MSAC (M-estimator sample consensus) algorithms were used to match the stitched images along the longitudinal profile. A case study of measuring roughness and rutting is applied to test the validity of the method. The result confirms that the proposed system is capable of measuring such indices with acceptable accuracy.

Description: Human-robot collaboration combines the extended capabilities of humans and robots to create a more inclusive and human-centered production system in the future. However, human safety is the primary concern for manufacturing industries. Therefore, real-time motion tracking is necessary to identify if the human worker body parts enter the restricted working space solely dedicated to the robot. Tracking these motions using decentralized and different tracking systems requires a generic model controller and consistent motion exchanging formats. In this work, our task is to investigate a concept for a unified real-time motion tracking for human-robot collaboration. In this regard, a low cost and game-based motion tracking system, e.g., HTC Vive, is utilized to capture human motion by mapping into a digital human model in the Unity3D environment. In this context, the human model is described using a biomechanical model that comprises joint segments defined by position and orientation. Concerning robot motion tracking, a unified robot description format is used to describe the kinematic trees. Finally, a concept of assembly operation that involves snap joining is simulated to analyze the performance of the system in real-time capability. The distribution of joint variables in spatial-space and time-space is analyzed. The results suggest that real-time tracking in human-robot collaborative assembly environments can be considered to maximize the safety of the human worker. However, the accuracy and reliability of the system regarding system disturbances need to be justified.

Description: The current technological trends associated with Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT) require an interconnected network of sensor nodes providing distributed information on the environment in order to enable intelligent action to be taken by control systems. Typical examples are the condition monitoring of machines or industrial equipment, or the detection of hazardous environmental conditions (e.g., in chemical plants). Such sensors need to be distributed in areas that are difficult to reach for wiring or to exchange batteries, and thus need to be self-powered and energy-independent. In this work, we provide an overview of possible strategies to realise a positive energy balance in autonomous sensor nodes without the use of batteries, focussing on gas sensors for air-quality monitoring as a use case. We will first present ways to reduce the power budget of sensing elements using self-heating nanowires made of CMOS-compatible metal oxides. We will then concentrate on energy harvesting and storage, showing state-of-the-art possibilities in both cases: broadband piezoelectric harvesters, perovskite-based photovoltaic elements, and high-energy density ceramic capacitors. Finally, we will discuss the possibility of integrating all sensor node elements in a single device using advanced interconnect technologies.

Description: Wind energy is one of the most promising forms of renewable energy. For the constant evolution of power generation technology, the use of sensors is fundamental to the development of wind turbine emulators. A wind turbine emulator allows tests and evaluations of a wind power system, regardless of weather conditions. Therefore, to further improve this technology, this work focuses on the application of a torque transducer and a rotary encoder for the implementation of a closed-loop wind turbine emulator. The sensors provide the torque and speed feedback signals to the computational model so that the model could plot the power curves and produce the set point voltage used by a variable-frequency drive (VFD) to control a three-phase induction motor (TIM). The emulator was implemented using a control algorithm designed on LabVIEW, with an NI 6211 for the data acquisition. Finally, the system emulates the behaviour of a wind turbine, considering the variations in wind speed, aerodynamic phenomena, load effects, and pitch angle. Experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of using the TIM-VFD assembly for emulating a wind turbine since the wind turbine emulator behaved like a wind turbine in real-time.

Description: Epilepsy affects approximately 67 million people worldwide with up to 75% from developing countries. Diagnosing epilepsy using electroencephalogram (EEG) is complicated due to its poor signal-to-noise ratio, high sensitivity to various forms of artifacts, and low spatial resolution. Laplacian EEG signal via novel and noninvasive tripolar concentric ring electrodes (tEEG) is superior to EEG via conventional disc electrodes due to its unique capabilities, which allow automatic attenuation of common movement and muscle artifacts. In this work, we apply exponentially embedded family (EEF) to show feasibility of automatic detection of gamma band high-frequency oscillations (HFOs) in tEEG data from two human patients with epilepsy as a step toward the ultimate goal of using the automatically detected HFOs as auxiliary features for seizure onset detection to improve diagnostic yield of tEEG for epilepsy. Obtained preliminary results suggest the potential of the approach and feasibility of detecting HFOs in tEEG data using the EEF based detector with high accuracy. Further investigation on a larger dataset is needed for a conclusive proof.

Description: Smartphone mode classification is essential to many applications, such as daily life monitoring, healthcare, and indoor positioning. In the latter, it was shown that knowledge of the smartphone location on pedestrians can improve the positioning accuracy. Most of the research conducted in this field is focused on pedestrian motion in a horizontal plane. In this research, we use supervised machine learning techniques to recognize and classify the smartphone mode (text, talk, pocket and swing) while accounting for the movement up and downstairs. We distinguish between the going up and the down motion, each with four different smartphone modes, making eight states in total. This classification is based on the use of an optimal set of sensors that varies according to battery life and the energy consumption of each sensor. The classifier was trained and tested on a dataset constructed from multiple user measurements (total of 94 min) to achieve robustness. This provided an accuracy of more than 90% in the cross validation method and 91.5% if the texting mode is excluded. When considering only stairs motion, regardless of the direction, the accuracy improves to 97%. These results may assist many algorithms, mainly in pedestrian dead reckoning, in improving a variety of challenges such as speed and step length estimation and cumulative error reduction.

Description: In soybean cropping, sulfonylurea (SU) herbicides are a potentially useful alternative to glyphosate-based herbicides. Normally, soybeans are susceptible to SU herbicides, but two unlinked non-GMO genes (ALS1 and ALS2), have been identified that confer SU tolerance. In this project, we explored the effectiveness of these genes in Australian soybean genetic backgrounds. Four lines, carrying both ALS1 and ALS2, were derived by backcrossing different Australian genotypes to a SU-tolerance donor line ‘W4-4’ and then using molecular markers, plants homozygous for both ALS genes were selected. The W4-4 donor and the four derived lines were evaluated in a hydroponic system at increments up to 4× the recommended field rate of metsulfuron-methyl. The ALS genes provided high levels of tolerance, with evidence of some minor interaction with the genetic background. To further test whether there was an effect of background, the five lines were crossed together in a half-diallel mating design and the resulting ten F2 populations were screened hydroponically for tolerance to metsulfuron-methyl herbicide at 4× the recommended field rate. Analyses of seedling dry weight of the five parental lines and their F2 progeny in response to the herbicide, identified differences among the crosses. These results indicated that the development of commercial varieties with maximum herbicide tolerance requires incorporation of both ALS genes, and if combined with selection in segregating populations in the presence of SU herbicide may capture additional tolerance from background genes of minor effect.

Description: Fireweed (Senecio madagascariensis Poir), is a weed of National significance and one of the worst weeds of coastal pastures in South Eastern Australia. Chemical control has been found to be effective in killing plants but there is no information on the effect of herbicides on the seeds that may be present on plants at the time of application. Consequently, a study was undertaken to determine the effect of five selective herbicides (1) on plant mortality at different life stages and (2) on the viability (as assessed by germination) of fireweeds seeds at different stages of maturity. Potted plants of the required growth stages were obtained through several collections of different sized seedlings from a field site near Brisbane. Before herbicide application, in the mature plant cohort the inflorescences were tagged according to their maturity as being either immature (IM) or intermediate (INT). Plants were sprayed with either fluroxypyr/aminopyralid (HotShot™) (A), bromoxynil (Bromicide® 200) (B), metsulfuron-methyl (Brush-Off®) (C), triclopyr/picloram/aminopyralid (Grazon™ extra) (D), triclopyr/picloram/aminopyralid (TordonTM regrowthMaster) (E) at the recommended rates with untreated control plants of the three growth stages also included for comparison. All herbicides killed fireweed seedlings and juvenile plants, but only treatments A, D and E gave high plant mortality (〉80%) of mature plants. All herbicides also caused nil germination of seeds collected 30 days after spraying, except for a small percentage (8% germination) of mature seeds from Bromoxynil treated plants. These results have identified several herbicides capable of killing mature fireweed plants and minimizing replenishment of soil seed reserves.

Description: Yellow canopy syndrome (YCS) is a condition that affects sugarcane crops throughout Queensland, and is most apparent in the warmer summer months when plants are actively growing. Key symptoms of YCS include a yellowing of the mid-canopy leaves, and the accumulation of sucrose and α-glucans in the lamina, midrib and sheath tissue. As no cause for the syndrome has yet been found, a biomarker test for identifying YCS, as distinct from other conditions that cause leaf yellowing, is important to enable early detection before any signs of visual yellowing. This will inform YCS management practices, and drive the research forward. We used an RNAseq and bioinformatic approach to identify six YCS-specific biomarker candidate plant transcripts that were uniquely and consistently up-regulated in YCS. We designed primers against these transcripts, and developed a novel reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test to identify sugarcane plants affected by YCS. The YCS biomarker test is showing early signs of success and is undergoing further validation, with the aim of correctly identifying YCS-affected sugarcane plants before symptoms become apparent. This poster outlines the biomarker candidate discovery and test development process.

Description: Sugarcane has a high potential to support second-generation ethanol production and environmentally friendly by-products for use in chemical, pharmaceutical, medical, cosmetic and food industries. A crucial challenge for a long-term economic viability is to optimise the crop for production of a biomass composition that will ensure maximum economic benefit. Transcriptome data analysis provides a relevant explanation of phenotypic variances and gives a more accurate prediction of phenotypes than genomic information. This multi-omic approach, with an integrated transcriptomics and metabolomics analysis may reveal details of biological mechanisms and pathways. A global view of transcriptional regulation and the identification differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and metabolites may help the feasibility of tailoring engineering targeted biosynthetic pathways to improve the production of these bio-products from sugarcane. We propose a profiling analysis workflow (pipeline) to generate empirical correlations between gene expression, metabolites, proteins and phenotypic traits and pathway analysis, with a highlight focus on data visualisation. This study of genetic variation in gene expression and correlations with metabolic and protein phenotype relies on high-throughput methodology, measurement and analysis of 360 samples, 24 commercial sugarcane cultivars with different phenotypic characteristics at 5 different development stages with 3 replicates.

Description: Plants are sessile organisms requiring mechanisms that enable them to balance water supply and demand in dry environments. Demand (D) is largely driven by canopy size (transpirational leaf area), although differences in transpiration per unit leaf area also occur. Supply (S) is primarily driven by water capture via the root system. Drought stress can be defined as the situation where supply of water cannot meet demand of the crop, such that water availability is the limiting factor for biomass accumulation. Under such conditions, plants will need to reduce D in order to meet the limited S, access more water to increase S, or increase the efficiency with which water is utilised. We used sorghum, a model C4 crop species, to demonstrate how the stay-green trait can modulate canopy development and root architecture to enhance adaptation. We show how stay-green positively impacts the balance between S and D under post-flowering drought, including insights at the molecular level. We provide examples of how canopy and root traits impact the S/D balance in other cereals under water limitation. For example, on the supply side, the extent of genetic variation for root angle (RA) has been evaluated in sorghum, wheat and barley, and genomic regions associated with RA have been mapped. Furthermore, the relationship between RA and grain yield has been explored in barley and sorghum field trials. The capacity to manipulate components of S and D to optimise the S/D balance should assist crop improvement programs to develop enhanced ideotypes for dry environments.

Description: Zeaxanthin is a dietary carotenoid accumulated in the macula in order to reduce photoreceptor oxidation by blue light. Damage caused to photoreceptor cells in the human eye leads to macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of blindness in developed countries. Zeaxanthin, an orange pigment, is rarer in western diets as compared to the yellow pigment, lutein, the other important macular carotenoid. Orange capsicums (Capsicum annuum) have been reported to be an excellent source of zeaxanthin, but there are limited reports about its occurrence both within, and in other closely related species (C. baccatum, C. chinense). In the current investigation, yellow, orange and red coloured accessions of C. annuum, C. chinense and C. baccatum were analysed for their carotenoid profiles to identify high zeaxanthin accessions. A carotenoid extraction protocol and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-photometric diode array-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-PDA-MS) analysis was optimised to identify and quantify carotenoids in the capsicum accessions both before and after saponification. Interestingly, out of 22 varieties tested, only the ‘Orange Belle’ orange capsicum demonstrated a high accumulation of zeaxanthin. Other accessions exhibiting orange colour accumulated different orange carotenoid pigments to zeaxanthin, such as violaxanthin, beta-carotene, and beta-cryptoxanthin. Yellow coloured accessions accumulated a high concentration of lutein or alpha-carotene, while red cultivars were highest in capsanthin and capsorubin. The present findings suggests a need for further studies to identify high zeaxanthin germplasm which can be cross-bred with orange capsicums for future biofortification, in order to help increase the daily dietary intake of zeaxanthin in western diets.

Description: The increasing health threat arising from emerging infectious disease requires an urgent global response. The accelerated development of vaccines, diagnostics and treatments requires facilitated access to and timely transfer of pertinent research reagents between scientists, especially those from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) which are frequently the worst affected. To meet this global need, we propose to establish a Centre for Emerging Disease Research Reagents (CEDRR) which will support research on those emerging diseases that pose the greatest threat. This initiative will be based on the model of the Centre for AIDS Reagents, a not-for-profit repository based at the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC), UK, which has been providing a sustained HIV research reagent resource to scientists worldwide for 30 years. CEDRR will encourage leading scientists to donate research materials under an established transfer agreement, that will enable onward supply of samples to requesting laboratories in a manner that protects intellectual property. In addition, we will prepare and commission novel research materials including non-infectious subgenomic clones, recombinant proteins, peptides and antibodies. All the reagents will be characterized and provided individually or as all-in-one packages for specific assays along with detailed data sheets and corresponding standard operating procedures. They will be available globally and access will be prioritized with the objective to help build research capacity in LMICs. In order to provide a service that will meet the scientific community need, CEDRR will actively participate in existing networks and consortia on emerging pathogens, provide frequent newsletters and held regular meetings to discuss reagent requirements. By building an infrastructure that will provide quality research reagents to scientists worldwide, CEDRR hopes to speed up the development of much needed vaccines, diagnostics and treatments to fight emerging pathogens.

Description: We compared the thermotolerance of Dorper (D) and second cross (SC) (Poll Dorset x Merino/Border Leicester) lambs by assessing physiological and biochemical responses. After acclimatization, 4–5 month old lambs of each breed were exposed to either thermo-neutral (18 °C–21 °C, 40%–50% RH, n = 12/group) or cyclic heat stress (HS) (28 °C–40 °C; 40%–60% RH, n = 12/group) for 2 weeks in climatic chambers. The HS involved exposure to temperatures of 38 °C–40 °C between 0800 and 17.00 h daily; otherwise the temperature was maintained at 28 °C. Elevated temperature increased rectal temperature (p 〈 0.01), respiration rate (p 〈 0.01) and skin temperature (p 〈 0.01) in both breeds, (data for 12.00 and 16.00 h pooled), but to a lesser extent in D than in SC lambs (p 〈 0.01). The HS increased (p 〈 0.01) water intake to a greater extent in SC than in D lambs and HS reduced (p 〈 0.05) food intake in SC lambs but not in D lambs. There were no treatment effects on blood glucose and lactate levels in either breed. Significant effects of breed (p 〈 0.01) and treatment (p 〈 0.01) were observed in blood creatinine levels, being higher in SC lambs. Higher pH (p 〈 0.01) and lower pCO2 (p 〈 0.01) were recorded under HS in both breeds. Among blood electrolytes, Cl−, Na+ and base excess were significantly (all p 〈 0.01) reduced under HS, with no breed differences. In conclusion, the attenuated physiological responses to HS in Dorper lambs indicates better adaptation of this breed to high environmental temperature.

Description: Improving vegetable production in Cambodia offers a pathway to grow domestic consumption and exports, and improve nutrition, profits, and livelihoods. Interviews with 120 growers and 5 focus group discussions within 5 villages investigated growers’ capacity to change soil and irrigation management in their Chinese cabbage, Petsai, Cucumber, Cauliflower, Lettuce and other vegetable crops. Low or no profitability (34% participants), insect pests (59%) and dry periods (18%) were growers’ major limitations, with small farm size (0.08 ha) and limited schooling (21–36% had no schooling) contributing to the scenario. High cost of inputs is a limitation to making farming system changes, with most growers using their own funds and less than 10% borrowing funds to pay for crop inputs. Communication and planning for vegetable growing occurred almost exclusively within families (93%), with 7.5% of participants discussing with other farmers. Lack of time (43%) and knowledge about farmer group activities (30%) limited ongoing group learning opportunities. Although very traditional, 28% of participants had tried new practices; 42% of participants indicated they will try new practices after exposure to a soil and irrigation research trial. The participants were keen learners, and after exposure to the research, 58% believed that liming improves yields and 18% prefer to evaluate this on their farms. Information sources about vegetable growing are limited, and growers had complex information needs. Facilitating and mentoring ongoing local support and technical information networks, and enhancing capacity and communication are seen as key strategies for empowering long term ability to change.

Description: Close-to-market weight grain fed cattle experience high heat loads during summer. There are health, welfare and production impacts on these high value animals. Two cohorts of 600 kg Black Angus steers (n = 12) were subjected to heatwave conditions during a thermal challenge in climate chambers. Frequent blood sampling enabled a detailed description of the metabolic and endocrine trajectories during high heat load and recovery in feedlot cattle. In high heat load ruminants, blood flow is diverted from the major organs impacting metabolic rate and cellular functions. The metabolic rate will slow with falls in the thyroid hormone plasma concentrations. Insulin and the adipokines gave an indifferent response. The high heat load cattle were hypoglycaemic and oxidising fatty acids. Liver involvement was evidenced by the build-up of bilirubin in plasma, and reduced release of cholesterol and ALP. Thermal challenge saw markedly increased plasma creatinine and urea implicating reduced glomerular filtration; although the kidneys were working to retain chloride ions to balance the loss of bicarbonate from the increased respiration rate. As heat load reduced during recovery, rumen temperature and respiration rate normalised and feed intake gradually returned. Plasma glucose levels increased also. With increased blood supply to the organs, there was a rise in liver enzymes into the blood, although liver function had not fully restored during the recovery period; plasma bilirubin concentrations were still high, and ALP and cholesterol levels low. Twelve days after the thermal challenge, most blood parameters had returned to normal and the steers had gained weight.

Description: The reuse of shipping containers in architecture has grown in global popularity. However, few studies focus on understanding its thermodynamic behavior. The present study addresses, through numerical simulations, the transitory behavior of a typical house built with containers under different climates, both cold and warm. We examined container with different build construction and observed their effect, from completely naked to those that are coated with materials of different insulation and thermal inertia. Additionally, orientation and other design resources, such as height with respect to the ground, shadow elements, and the position of the windows, were considered. With all these multiparametric studies, quantitative conclusions were obtained that can be considered in design.

Description: Beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.) was subjected to extraction procedures in order to obtain the respective extracts containing the natural dyes and subjected to cytotoxicity assays in AGS cell line. Encapsulation of the extracts in nanosystems based on soybean lecithin and maltodextrin was performed. Lyophilized extracts before and after encapsulation in maltodextrin were applied in the formulation of leg ham and used in pilot scale of production. The colour of ham samples from the different assays was evaluated visually and by colorimetry.

Description: Jojoba (Simmondsia Chinensis) is a perennial stress tolerant desert shrub that has oil containing seeds and inhabits the Sonoran desert in the southwest of the United States and northwest Mexico. It has attracted a growing worldwide interest for multi-purpose uses. However, the most attractive characteristics of Jojoba are the richness of the oil content of the seed and the superior stress tolerance of the plant. Little has been done towards Jojoba genetic improvement. The exploration of jojoba genetic resources will define a molecular and biochemical fingerprint for jojoba and will aid sustainable crop commercialisation define. In this research, we aim to establish a reference genome database for Jojoba, which will help to facilitate crop improvement. Besides, the contribution to reveal the molecular background of its outstanding drought tolerance using transcriptional profiling during a water stress. RNA sequencing will be performed for samples collected under moderate and severe stress. The genetic database of jojoba will help to reveal the genetic mechanism of response and identify the genes responsible for the drought tolerant phenotype of this crop. Application of this knowledge will support the researchers, farmers, and the Jojoba industry.

Description: Growing vegetables after rice harvest allows Cambodian farmers to use land that would otherwise be unproductive between rice crops. Producing vegetables on these soils is limited by low soil pH, low cation exchange capacity and limited nutrient retention capacity. Soil pH in the top 20 cm is generally low (pH 5.5 H2O) and may limit the availability of nutrients. Farm-based trials in Siem Reap and Kampot provinces assessed the effect of lime and fertiliser on leafy vegetable crop growth and yield. At lime-only sites, lime was applied at rates of 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 tonnes per hectare (t/ha) in conjunction with farmer practice fertiliser rates. For sites with lime and fertiliser treatments, combinations of farmer practice and optimal fertiliser rates, no lime and 2.0 t/ha of lime were applied. Two consecutive crops were planted at one site to examine the residual effect of lime on soil pH and crop yield. At lime-only sites, all crops responded to lime application with yield increases of up to 100%. For sites that assessed combinations of lime and fertiliser, the treatment of lime and optimum fertiliser rates showed the highest yield increase (92%). Application of 2.0 t/ha lime increased soil pH by approximately 1.0 unit. This effect was still evident after a second crop of Bok Choy. For the 0.5 t/ha lime treatment, an initial soil pH increase of 0.4 units had reduced to 0.2 units after the second crop. The first crop yield was higher than the second crop yield. Long-term field trials are needed to examine residual lime effects.

Description: Hand harvested crops, such as brassicas and lettuce, are prone to high levels of variability during growth and at harvest. This necessitates multiple harvest passes and substantially increased labour costs for the grower. Both biotic and abiotic factors contribute to this lack of field uniformity. The main objective was to evaluate the impact of broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. Italica) seed size variability on germination, subsequent crop growth and harvest uniformity. An initial experiment was conducted where germination counts across three seed-size categories including, 2.0mm (SS1), 2.3 mm (SS2) and 2.45 mm (SS3), were recorded at 3, 7, 10 and 14 days after sowing (DAS). At 14 DAS, germination was greater in the SS1 (95%) and SS2 (91%) than the SS3 (66%) (P 〈 0.005). A second experiment evaluated the same seed categories planted under direct seeded (DS) and transplanted (TR) conditions to identify differences in crop growth and development. At 49 DAS, DS plant counts per plot were lowest for the SS3 (54.5 plants plot−1) compared with the SS1 (70.5 plants plot−1) and SS2 (64 plants plot−1). This could be attributed to the reduced seed coat thickness evident in the SS3 (66.3 μm) which can potentially lead to increased damage and mortality of the seed, compared with the SS1 (79.3 μm) and SS2 (73.1 μm). The TR treatment gave greater uniformity with no significant difference (P 〈 0.05) in plant populations across seed size categories (SS1 = 95, SS2 = 90 and SS3 = 96 plants plot−1).

Description: The agricultural sector in Tanzania is mainly dryland and dominated by smallholder farmers. Unreliable rainfall, short than normal duration of cropping season and fluctuations of onset and end of cropping season are main challenges facing farmers. The increased frequency and intensity of droughts, unpredictability of weather, shorter than normal duration of cropping seasons have significant impact on farmers’ productivity, profitability and resilience. This paper report study on Conservation agriculture for Sustainable Intensification (CASI) technology package tested on farm for productive, resilient and sustainable smallholder maize-legume cropping systems across five districts in Tanzania. Three practices namely Conservation practice (CA), Current applied recommended practice (CONV. or sometimes referred to as IMPROV) and primitive farmers practice (FP) were compared in experimental plots on farmers’ fields. Improved (DT maize and Pigeonpeas) was intercropped in all practices. Only CA and CONV practices were statistically compared, whereas FP was for farmer’s visual observations and comparisons. Data recorded were, soil carbon, moisture, yields and economic analysis. Results showed that, the average maize yields for four seasons in CA and CONV doubled and for tripled. An average of 30.5% hours of labour were saved in CASI relative to non CASI practice. The benefit cost ratio of maize-pigeonpea intercrops under CASI was 2.1 as compared to 1.4 in conventional agriculture investments. The institutionalization of CASI at local and national policy decision levels will be required for the scaling of CASI technologies across Tanzania.

Description: Animal health measures mainly rely on vaccination or chemical control for major pests and pathogens, causing issues of residue, toxicity and development of resistance. For example, control of Sheep flystrike and lice-infestation affecting the Australia’s sheep/wool industry (〉3.5 B) have developed resistance to nearly all control chemicals used in the past. Topicals RNAi provides an innovative clean-green, non-toxic, environmentally sustainable biological control solution. Biodegradable clay particles as carriers can be used to deliver double stranded RNA (dsRNA), the key trigger molecule of RNA interference pathway. As an early proof of concept, we investigated the stability dsRNA loaded on two types of Clay particles: Clay 1 (releases dsRNA under acidic conditions) and Clay 2 (releases dsRNA under alkaline conditions) on cattle hide. Cattle skin was treated with Cy3 labelled dsRNA alone and Cy3 labelled dsRNA loaded on Clay1 or Clay2. The skin samples treated with the Cy3 formulations were imaged using confocal microscopy. Once imaged, the skin samples were washed and stored at room temperature for 5 days, later the samples were re-imaged to detect the fluorescent signal (Figure 1). The dsRNA loaded on clay particles was stable unlike naked Cy3-dsRNA which degraded and was not visible after washing. This increased inherent stability of the dsRNA molecules, combined with the environmental stability afforded by the Clay particles, offers promise to provide a sustainable solution for animal health. Topical RNAi can reduce reliance on trade withholding periods of meat/wool without chemical residues, enhance animal welfare and increase production of premium quality meat/wool, improve export potential, competitiveness and long-term profitability of livestock industry.

Description: Members of the Fusarium oxysporum species complex include pathogenic and non-pathogenic isolates and infect a broad range of plant species. F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc) causes the destructive Fusarium wilt of banana, and the recently emerged Foc tropical race 4 strain threatens the global banana industry. Secreted in xylem (SIX) genes encode for F. oxysporum effector proteins that are associated with virulence in pathogenic F. oxysporum, however they have rarely been reported from non-pathogenic F. oxysporum isolates. Our recent survey of asymptomatic banana plants grown in Foc-infested fields in Queensland and northern NSW revealed that diverse Fusarium spp, including F. oxysporum, reside in the plant roots and pseudostem without causing obvious damage to the plant. Intriguingly, we amplified SIX genes from several of the putative endophytic F. oxysporum isolates identified in the survey and found that they differ in their profile to known Foc SIX genes. To study the role of the endophytic F. oxysporum isolates in planta and the biological function of their SIX genes in more detail, we will re-inoculate cultivated and wild diploid banana lines with the endophytic F. oxysporum strains under glasshouse conditions to assess if they are non-pathogenic on banana. Secondly, we will determine whether the endophytic F. oxysporum SIX genes are expressed in planta and/or in vitro and look at the transcriptome changes occurring in the host following infection. Finally, endophytic F. oxysporum strains transformed with GFP will be used to investigate the extent of fungal colonisation in the plant.

Description: Accurate pre-harvest yield estimation of high value fruit tree crops provides a range of benefits to industry and growers. Currently, yield estimation in Avocado (Persea americana) and Mango (Mangifera indica) orchards is undertaken by a visual count of a limited number of trees. However, this method is labour intensive and can be highly inaccurate if the sampled trees are not representative of the spatial variability occurring across the orchard. This study evaluated the accuracies of high resolution WorldView (WV) 2 and 3 satellite imagery and targeted field sampling for the pre-harvest prediction of yield. A stratified sampling technique was applied in each block to measure relevant yield parameters from eighteen sample trees representing high, medium and low vigour zones (6 from each) based on classified normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) maps. For avocado crops, principal component analysis (PCA) and non-linear regression analysis were applied to 18 derived vegetation indices (VIs) to determine the index with the strongest relationship to the measured yield parameters. For mango, an integrated approach of geometric (tree crown area) and optical (spectral vegetation indices) data using artificial neural network (ANN) model produced more accurate predictions. The results demonstrate that accurate maps of yield variability and total orchard yield can be achieved from WV imagery and targeted sampling; whilst accurate maps of fruit size and the incidence of phytophthora can also be achieved in avocado. These outcomes offer improved forecasting than currently adopted practices and therefore offer great benefit to both the avocado and mango industries.

Description: For many emerging economies, rapid land use change from forest to farmland is resulting in high levels of land degradation. Farming systems such as maize cultivation under conventional tillage after slash and burn degrade the soil resource through declining soil structural stability. Cultivation enhances mineralisation and hence loss of soil organic matter, which in turn reduces soil structures stability and promotes further carbon losses through soil erosion. Alternative land uses such as fruit tree plantations, or practise change to reduced tillage or conservation agriculture have the potential to counter this spiral of accelerated soil degradation through improving soil structural stability and build-up of soil organic matter. This project assessed how land use influences soil structural stability in Cambodia near Battambang and the North-Western Mountain regions of Vietnam where maize based system are most common. Soil properties measured were: (1) total carbon and nitrogen content analysis, (2) particle and aggregate size distribution using laser refraction, (3) hydraulic conductivity, (4) bulk density and (5) microbial CO2 respiration. Information on land use history was also collected through farmer surveys. Land use significantly influenced aggregate stability and hydraulic conductivity. This was largely associated with differences in soil organic carbon content. Forest system had the highest, and conventional maize systems had the lowest amount of large aggregates. Fruit tree plantations are relatively new to these regions but they already showed improved soil aggregate sizes though the level of improvement varied and depended on remnant soil.

Description: Glucosinolates (GSLs) are secondary metabolites produced by members of the genus Brassica. These compounds impart the pungency to brassica vegetables and oils. Due to their health benefits, which include anti-cancer and anti-fungal properties, they have been attracting interest in research. Indian mustard (B. juncea L.), used as condiment and oil crop has high natural levels of seed glucosinolates and displays exploitable natural variation in this trait. In this study a diverse collection of 161 mustard lines originating from 21 countries, will be genotyped and phenotyped. Traits of interest include seed GSLs (sinigrin, gluconapin, progroitin, epi-progoitin and glucoiberin), oil and protein content, as well as basic agro-morphological performance such as height, flowering time and yield. Current knowledge on GSL biosynthesis and its genetic regulation mostly relies on data from Arabidopsis thaliana. We aim to elucidate the genetic architecture of GSL content and composition in relation to other seed traits (oil and protein content) in our diversity panel through association mapping. Additionally, we are aiming to resolve genome complexity of GSL genes in mustard genome in contrast to A. thaliana by identifying gene copy number through in silico analysis. Outcome of this study will help streamline the breeding and product development for either high GSL mustard lines for condiment use or low GSL lines for canola-type oil use. Our preliminary data on seed GSLs seems to reflect the historical use of mustard in different geographical regions. Chinese and European lines featured higher GSL while lines from the Indian subcontinent displayed lower GSL contents.

Description: Mung beans (Vigna radiata) are a potential crop in rotation with rice on the south coast of east Timor. When Mung beans are planted after rice, the soil is cultivated after rice harvest, before mung beans are planted by hand with the use of a dibble stick. This paper looks at the cost and benefits of broadcasting mung beans into rice just prior to or just after rice harvest. Broadcast mung beans requires much less labour than planted by dibble stick. Broadcast mung beans require more seed, and can be more difficult to weed. Based on a gross margin analysis mung bean yield could be 35% lower and be as profitable as conventionally grown mung beans.

Description: The Eastern Gangetic Plains (EGPs) has the potential to become a major contributor to South Asian regional food security, despite the world’s highest concentration of rural poverty and a strong dependence on agriculture. A regional project entitled ‘Sustainable and Resilient Farming Systems Intensification (SRFSI), managed by CIMMYT with over 20 partners with ACIAR/DFAT funding was launched in May 2014 to sustainably reduce the poverty. A total of 436 farmer-participatory on-farm trials comparing the performance of three conservation agriculture based sustainable intensification (CASI) technologies like Zero/Strip till as base (ZT/ST) over the conventional tillage (CT; T1) practices were conducted across eight districts in northwest Bangladesh, Bihar and West Bengal in India, and eastern Terai of Nepal for two consecutive years i.e. 2015/16 and 2016/17. The three CASI treatments comprised a “partial CASI” option (T2: at least one crop in the cropping system established with ZT management) and two “full CASI” options (T3 and T4: all crops established with ZT/ST management; in T3 rice was direct seeded (DSR) while in T4, it was unpuddled transplanted (UPTR)). Multicriteria assessment showed an increase in rice equivalent system yield (RESY) by 4%, gross margin by 19–20%, input water productivity by 7–9% and energy productivity by 13–14% while decrease in requirements for irrigation water, energy, labor and the production cost by 15–17%, 10–11%, 32–38% and 15–18% respectively, and reduction in CO2 equivalent emission by 8–13% in full CASI over CT. CASI has shown great promise for food security and livelihood improvement at small scale.

Description: A shortage of nutrients during the final period of gestation can decrease secretion of colostrum, which is critical to newborn calf survival. The physiological mechanism modulating the nutritional control of colostrum secretion is poorly understood. Because the decline in progesterone before parturition is required for lactogenesis to occur, the objective was to evaluate the correlation between prepartum progesterone in cows and plasma immunoglobulin-G1 (IgG1) concentration in neonatal calves. From 135 pregnant cows, successful data on both prepartum progesterone and calf IgG1 was collected from 59 cow/calf pairs (animal ethics approval SA2018/05/638). The cow/calf pairs were classified into three categories according to the transfer of passive immunity: low (n = 19), medium (n = 18), or high (n = 22). Plasma IgG1 was 1025, 2395, and 3347 mg/dL for the low, medium, and high groups, respectively. Plasma progesterone 1 day prepartum was 18.3, 14.2, and 12.4 nmol/L for the low, medium and high groups, respectively. This indicates that calves with failure of passive transfer were born from cows with higher prepartum progesterone, compared to calves with high IgG1 (P = 0.05). Non-linear modelling of the progesterone data indicated the moment that progesterone started to decline (change-point). Change-point was 0.8, 2.5, and 2.4 days before parturition for the low, medium, and high groups, respectively. There was a delay in progesterone decline in the Low group compared with the High group (P 〈 0.05). These results corroborate the hypothesis that the delay in progesterone decline before parturition is responsible for the failure of IgG1 transfer from cows to calves.

Description: We depend on wild and managed bees for the pollination of a third of fruits, vegetables and nuts for human consumption. Consequently, the details of the interactions between bees and flowers are of utmost concern to growers and seed producers. However, due to the increasing variability of our climate, the loss of bees’ natural habitat, the use of pesticides and the industrialisation of agriculture, the interactions between bees and our flowering crops are changing in complex ways. Traditional field trials are one approach helping to establish how these changes are impacting on food production, but these techniques are time-consuming, season-limited, and susceptible themselves to the same rapid and dynamic disruptions the ecosystems are subject to. Instead, we propose an iterative experimental approach, in which detailed computer simulations that predict how best to run field trials, are repeatedly informed by field observations and field trial outcomes. The simulations account for bee species’ unique perceptual, behavioural, physiological and morphological characteristics, and realistically model the bees’ foraging environments, including open fields, protected crops, and natural ecosystems. We explain how our simulations work, and provide case studies detailing the results of experiments with planting layout to boost pollination. These models lead to improved plant/pollinator interaction management. They have the potential to boost yield, quality, and shelf-life for a variety of crops, to raise food security generally, and to improve the sustainability of our farm and natural ecosystem management practices.

Description: Underutilised crops have potential to play an increasing role in the diet of many who may lack adequate nutrition. At present, there appears to be no comprehensive or systematic effort to collate and analyse nutritional composition data, although this is likely to make a significant contribution to global food and nutritional security. For example, determining intra- and inter- species variation for nutritional components would enable direct comparison with commodity crops. Using bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea; BG) as a use-case, we present a systematic work-flow that facilitates comparison of nutritional composition and function for underutilised crops. This includes (i) critical literature review of available data sources for the target and comparator crops, to determine the extent of variation reported for a range of nutritional components; (ii) development of a Crop Dietary Nutritional Data Framework (CDN-DF) to assist in data curation; (iii) de novo analysis of seed nutritional components for a subset of BG accessions selected to represent the global genepool. The CDN-DF includes controlled vocabularies organised in a hierarchical structure that represent a simplified subset of relationships for nutritional composition and dietary function This facilitates comparison of datasets between species and can help identify data gaps. This framework is currently guiding establishment of a formal nutritional ontology that more fully represents the complex relationships between nutritional components. Based on our analysis, it appears that BG seed protein, lipid and fibre concentrations cover a similar range in chickpea and mungbean. Variation in BG protein concentration indicates scope for developing high protein cultivars.

Description: Giant taro (Alocasia macrorrhiza var. Tonga) grows wild in Pacific Island countries and has become invasive in most countries. Proximate analysis of giant taro (GT) corm at USP Alafua Central Laboratory showed ~12 MJ ME/kg, 127 g crude protein/kg DM. Currently however, the crop has low food value in the region and its use in poultry feeding is still limited because of the acrid taste due to the presence of calcium (Ca) oxalate. Two preliminary studies (PS) were conducted to evaluate the feeding value of GT for poultry. Study 1 investigated the effect of coconut oil addition on the utilsation of GT corm meal by layers and broilers. Replacing dietary maize with whole GT corm meal at 200 g/kg adversely affected performance of broilers and layers (P 〈 0.05). Addition of coconut oil at 9:1 (corm meal: oil) improved utilisation of the meal by laying hens but not in broilers. Study 2 investigated the effect of peeling and inorganic calcium addition on the utilisation of GT corm meal by laying hens. Results showed that feeding whole GT corm meal at 200 g/kg diet had adverse effects on egg production and egg qualities (P 〈 0.05) but peeling or increasing dietary Ca carbonate level from 40 to 60 g/kg improved the utilisation of whole or peeled corm in terms of egg production and egg qualities. In view of the ready availability and low food value, more research is recommended into processing and diet formulation to improve the utilsation of GT corm meal by poultry.

Description: Production of leafy vegetables, such as lettuce, in Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) is limited by low nutrient soils. Organic fertilisers or composts made from agricultural residues may provide Lao PDR farmers with economical and environmentally sustainable alternatives to chemical fertilisers. Research is needed to increase awareness and knowledge of organic fertilisers suited to vegetable production in Lao PDR. An experiment at the Horticultural Research Centre (HRC) in Vientiane assessed the effect of four organic fertilisers on growth and yield of lettuce. Two commercially available fertilisers (fermented manure compost and an organic fertiliser) were compared with a mixture of cow manure plus rice husks, and a fourth compost made from vegetable leaves, straw and cow manure at the HRC. The experimental design was a randomised block with four replicates for each fertiliser treatment. Lettuce was grown in raised beds with 10 tonnes per hectare (t/ha) fertiliser applied before seedlings were transplanted. The fermented manure compost treatment had the highest yield (1.95 kg/m2) and was significantly higher than the other three treatments (p 〈 0.001). Growth rates were also highest for the fermented manure compost at all measured growth intervals (14, 28 and 45 days after transplanting). Rapid nutrient release from fertiliser is important for short-term crops. The higher growth rates and yields found for the fermented manure compost indicate that nutrients were released sooner and were more readily available compared to the other treatments. Mature compost releases nutrients more rapidly than compost that contains partially decomposed rice husks, vegetable leaves and straw.

Description: Animal temperament evaluation can be included in the cattle selection program also because of an existing correlation with performance. However, there are different assessment methods such as flight speed (time and speed that an animal takes to leave the crush) and exit score (indicating in which pace it does). Flight zone (FZ) refers to the distance that an animal allows human proximity without signs of fear (e.g., moving away and/or aggression) and it was used in this study as an alternative approach to measure temperament without putting cattle through the crush. Apparently, there is no study correlating FZ with performance. Therefore, a pilot trial was conducted to evaluate the correlation between average daily gain (ADG), dry matter intake (DMI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) of ten Brahman steers. Steers were classified into temperament groups (Docile

Description: The development of systematic coarse-grained mesoscopic models for complex molecular systems is an intense research area. Here we first give an overview of different methods for obtaining optimal parametrized coarse-grained models, starting from detailed atomistic representation for high dimensional molecular systems. We focus on methods based on information theory, such as relative entropy, showing that they provide parameterizations of coarse-grained models at equilibrium by minimizing a fitting functional over a parameter space. We also connect them with structural-based (inverse Boltzmann) and force matching methods. All the methods mentioned in principle are employed to approximate a many-body potential, the (n-body) potential of mean force, describing the equilibrium distribution of coarse-grained sites observed in simulations of atomically detailed models. We also present in a mathematically consistent way the entropy and force matching methods and their equivalence, which we derive for general nonlinear coarse-graining maps. We apply, and compare, the above-described methodologies in several molecular systems: A simple fluid (methane), water and a polymer (polyethylene) bulk system. Finally, for the latter we also provide reliable confidence intervals using a statistical analysis resampling technique, the bootstrap method.

Description: Wheat production in southern Queensland, Australia is adversely affected by soil sodicity. Crop phenotyping could be useful to improve productivity in such soils. This research focused on adapting high-throughput phenotyping of crop biophysical attributes to monitor crop health, nutrient deficiencies and plant moisture availability. We conducted an aerial and ground-based campaign during several wheat growing stages to capture crop information for 18 wheat genotypes at a moderately sodic site near Goondiwindi in southern Queensland. Three techniques were employed (multispectral, hyperspectral, and 3D point cloud) to monitor crop characteristics and predict biomass and yield. Spectral information and vegetation indices (VI) such as, normalized different vegetation index (NDVI), modified soil adjusted vegetation index (MSAVI), and leaf area index (LAI) were derived from multispectral imagery and compared with ground-based agronomic data for biomass, leaf area, and yield. Significant correlations were observed between NDVI and yield (R2 = 0.81), LAI (R2 = 0.74), and biomass (R2 = 0.65). Partial least square regression (PLS-R) modelling using hyperspectral spectroscopy data provided crop yield predictions that correlated significantly with observed yield (R2 = 0.65). The 3D point cloud technique was effective with comparison to in field manual measurements of crop architectural traits height and foliage cover (e.g., for height R2 = 0.73). For, this study multispectral techniques showed a greater potential to predict biomass and yield of wheat genotypes under moderately sodic soils than hyperspectral and 3D point cloud techniques. In future, the genotypes will be tested under more severely sodic soils to monitor crop performance and predicting yield.

Description: Zeaxanthin is one of only two dietary carotenoids accumulated in the human macula. A key role of zeaxanthin is to protect the eyes’ photoreceptors from damage induced by blue light. Photoreceptor damage can lead to macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of blindness in Australia. Unfortunately, zeaxanthin is fairly rare in our diet. Popcorn (Zea mays var. everta) is a good dietary source of zeaxanthin, but the creation of zeaxanthin-biofortified popcorn potentially allows less popcorn to be consumed for an increased dietary dose of zeaxanthin. As zeaxanthin is an orange pigment, breeding for zeaxanthin gives popped kernels a naturally buttery colour, unlike standard popcorn, which is virtually white. The creation of naturally buttery-coloured popcorn potentially negates the practise of adding artificial butter-colourants, while also providing an excellent source of dietary zeaxanthin. The action of popping involves a combination of high-temperature and high-pressure, sufficient enough for starch to liquefy, and for the tiny beads of moisture within starch bodies to reach an extremely high pressure. Eventually, the kernel pericarp can no longer withstand this pressure, and an explosion occurs, resulting in butterfly-shaped popcorn. These extreme conditions, however, lead to an approximate 50% decline in zeaxanthin concentration following popping, and a gradual further 25% reduction over the next 24 h. Consequently, in order to optimise zeaxanthin intake, popcorn should be eaten as soon as possible after popping. Zeaxanthin-biofortified popcorn provides an additional dietary source of zeaxanthin, potentially reaching a sector of the community more prone to low zeaxanthin intake.

Description: Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is a major component of agricultural systems and diets of the urban and rural populations of East and Central Africa, providing Fe and Zn essential to the health and well-being of African women and children, and protein essential for the entire household. However, bean consumption is limited by constraints such as long cooking time (CT). Cooking demands large amounts of water, fuel and time. It has negative effects on the environment, livelihoods, security and health. Genetic variability in cooking time is documented. Recent development of new breeding methods based on pedigree and genomic selection together with optimal contribution selection (OCS) offers an opportunity to accelerate breeding for rapid CT and higher Fe and Zn grain content. Genotypic and phenotypic data of an African diversity pool, representing key bean market classes, were used to generate genomic estimated breeding values (GEBVs) for grain yield, CT, Fe and Zn. GEBV’s were weighted to maximise the desired outcome in an economic index. From 161 candidate bean genotypes with GEBVs, 67 were chosen for 80 matings within six major grain market classes. An additional 22 breeder nominated matings were included. The predicted outcomes in the first cycle showed a major improvement in population mean for index (+286.77 US$/ha), 6.2% increase in GY and 7.3% reduction in CT, with an achieved increase in population co-ancestry of 0.0753. A 30% reduction in the mean population CT and improved Fe (15%) and Zn (10%), is expected after 5 cycles of annual recurrent selection.

Description: Sucrose and fibre in sugarcane share a very dynamic relationship depending largely upon the genetic makeup of the genotypes and growth environment. To investigate the molecular basis of carbon flux into sucrose and fibre that makes the genotypes high sugared or high fibred, or dual purposed, an extensive transcriptomics study was undertaken using a set of sugarcane genotypes differing in sugar and fibre contents. Differential gene expression analyses were performed using 50 transcriptomes revealing a complex network of transcripts associated with growth, defence, vacuole, sucrose and fibre. Rather than merely being a storage sugar of the culms, sucrose might play a significant regulatory role in controlling the expression of several thousand genes including those related to fibre. The high sugar genotypes were not always low in fibre and the fibre might to an extent provide structural framework for maintaining high sugar levels as seen by the high expression of fibre related genes. The study suggests that there could exist certain threshold levels of sugar or fibre contents beyond which an inverse relation would occur. In addition, analysis of the transcriptomes resulted in the identification of a new isoform of sucrose synthase genes, SuSy 7 that was not reported earlier. With the availability of a monoploid reference genome, there is a need for in-depth transcriptome studies to understand and identify finer details of genes, and their transcripts in entirety and regulatory elements of sugarcane genome which is challenging the current capabilities of sequencing technologies unlike any other plant genomes sequenced thus far.

Description: In the Northwest Vietnam, traditional maize (Zea mays) cultivation practices of farmers mainly based on sole cropping, intensive tillage combined with burning crop residues on steep slopes. These cultivation practices resulted in severe erosion, soil degradation, reducing crop production and un-sustainable production systems. It requires assessing of the impact of agroforestry practice on the soil conservation in the context of the upland areas in Northwest Vietnam. This study has been carried out since 2017 to present the actual impact of agroforestry practice including longan (Dimocarpus longan)+mango (Mangifera indica L.)+maize+forage grass strips (Guinea-Panicum maximum) on soil conservation. The assessment based on quantifying soil loss by soil traps and evaluating terrace’s formation by erosion pins placing above forage grass strips. The sole maize system had been using for the comparison. The initial results showed that the evaluated agroforestry practice reduced soil loss from 18.3 to 37.4% in compared with the sole maize system in 2017 and 2018, respectively. In the second year (2018), the deposition of sediment on the front and rear pins at the above grass trips was 0.81 and 0.41 cm, respectively. It indicated the increment in soil surface at the above grass strips. In contrast, the negative value of the deposition of sediment was recorded in the sole maize system. We are continuing to monitor the impact of agroforestry practices on reducing soil loss and terrace formation, and evaluate the function of the system on soil fertility improvement, nutrient use efficiency and economic profitability.

Description: Rice brown spot (BS), caused by Bipolaris oryzae (Breda de Haan) Shoemaker, is a serious disease causing infection in all growth stages of rice and significantly affect to yield and grain quality losses. This study aimed to find effective antagonistic microorganisms to control BS, hundreds of microbial isolates were obtained from rice paddy fields across Thailand. A total number of 31 antagonistic microbes were selected and screened against B. oryzae by dual culture technique. The results showed that CRI_15183 has highly percentage of inhibition (67.35%) followed by ACKB03, CRI_15059, CRI_15010, No.33, CRI_15186 and BUDN027 with 57.25, 54.01, 53.28, 52.94, 52.65 and 51.26%, respectively. Then, sequencing of 16S rDNA confirmed two species of Bacillus amongst the isolates, B. subtilis and B. amyloliquefaciens. Three isolates including CRI_15183, CRI_15186 and ACKB03 were formulated with talcum based powder, stored at room temperature and sampled to test their shelf life monthly. In greenhouse experiment, the results revealed that CRI_15186 has highest effective with 14.08 percent of disease incidence followed by CRI_15183 and ACKB03 with 15.06 and 15.98%, respectively. The field experiments will be conducted in wet season this year. There have been only a few reports on the improvement of rice brown spot control involving biological control agents. However, the use of antagonistic microbes can reduced the used of fungicides and developed environmentally safe for the management of rice brown spot disease.

Description: The agriculture sector is deemed as more vulnerable to climate change as its variation can directly affect the crop’s productivity. However, climate change impact and farmers adaptation strategies were not figured out in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan by previous researchers and formed the rationale for this research endeavor. This research has assessed the Climate Change impact on wheat productivity and farmers adaptability strategies. The non-climatic variables (wheat yield and area under wheat cultivation) and climatic variables (temperature, precipitation and humidity) were taken into consideration. The Panel Data of thirty years (1985–2015) about non climatic and climatic variables was obtained from different secondary sources; however, primary data was collected from sampled farmers. The econometric diagnostic tests were encompassed to confirm the validity of the data. Chow test was used to underscore the structural breaks. Fixed Effect Model was adopted as suggested by Hausman Test. The salient findings express that temperature has inverse relationship with wheat productivity. This implies that by soaring one Celsius degree Centigrade (°C) temperature can plunge down the wheat productivity by 0.074 percent. Similarly, the association of precipitation was also observed negative with wheat. Contrary to this, humidity is observed as positively associated with wheat. The study concludes the substantial association of climate change with wheat crop, whereas, farmers had less awareness about the adoptability strategies. It is recommended that high temperature resistant wheat varieties may be provided to farmers and disseminates the exalted adaptation strategies with respect to climate change to overhaul their existing crop management practices.

Description: : Insects have the ability to convert biowaste into valuable functional compounds, such as proteins, fat and chitin. Currently, unlike with conventional commodities, there are few fractionation methods to isolate these compounds for diversification of use. Enzymatic hydrolysis is a possible method to fractionate Hermetia illucens larvae, into protein, fat and chitin. This method is a particularly attractive due to the milder process conditions required compared to chemical methods, the relative ease to control the reaction and minimal formation of unpalatable and toxic by-products. A central composite design was used to help identify the optimum hydrolysis conditions for fractionation. At these conditions the fat recovery was ?~81%; substantially more than previous attempts and the fatty acid profile stayed unchanged from the original larvae material. The protein solubility was ~57%, with a degree of hydrolysis of ~22%, and was on par with previous studies. The amino acid profile of the soluble proteins differed from the original larvae material with a slight decrease in the ratio of essential to total amino acids. The insoluble proteins were accounted for with the chitin. A washing-and-sieving step, as means to recover the insoluble proteins from the chitin is envisaged. Also, the spray drying of the protein hydrolysate produced and its functional properties allows for future investigation. This technology allows for higher margins to be made, both environmentally as well as financially, compared to the use of the ‘intact’ biomass.

Description: Noted for its unique herbaceous flavour which is imbued from a diet of indigenous fragrant plants, Karoo lamb is marketed as one of South Africa’s finest meat products and enjoys Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status in South Africa and the European Union. Its distinct quality is imparted through natural grazing of the sheep on the Karoo veld that has a significant influence on the sensory and chemical profile of the meat. Descriptive sensory analysis, fatty acid analysis, solid-phase microextraction, isotope ratio mass spectrometry, portable near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy and proton transfer reaction-mass spectrometry proved to be very successful analytical tools for the authentication of regionally unique lamb meat, distinguishing Karoo from Non-Karoo lamb. Characteristic volatiles, specifically terpenes, present in both the Karoo bushes and the Karoo lamb meat and fat were detected. The dominant terpenes were tentatively identified as α-pinene, β-pinene, limonene and trans-caryophyllene, and they were particularly prominent in the fat tissue. Within the Karoo, regional differences were apparent as Hantam Karoo lamb had the highest ratings for herbaceous aroma and flavour and contained the greatest concentration of terpenes. Herbaceous aroma and flavour attributes associated with a diet rich in fragrant Karoo plants were verified with stable isotope ratio analysis. The results confirm that Karoo bushes are responsible for the distinct aroma and flavour of Karoo lamb, thereby providing vital evidence for its certification and to justify the protection of its indicator status.

Description: Terminal drought stress is currently a major constraint in many wheat production regions. This is predicted to worsen with future climate change. The stay-green phenotype allows crops to remain green and photosynthesize for longer after anthesis, potentially improving yields in terminal drought environments. Root systems with greater root length density at depth can contribute by increasing access to deep soil moisture late in the season. To study the genetics of root and stay-green traits in wheat, a multi reference parent nested association mapping (NAM) population was developed. Using the “speed breeding” system of rapid generation advance, over 1500 recombinant inbred lines (RIL) were generated in approximately 18 months. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) using a novel whole-genome NAM method (WG-NAM) identified genetic regions associated with the target traits. High-throughput techniques were developed and used for the NAM lines to (i) phenotype seedling roots in controlled conditions, and (ii) objectively characterize novel stay-green traits for hundreds of genotypes in standard yield plots in the field. NAM lines were phenotyped for yield and stay-green traits at multiple water-stressed and non-stressed environments during 4 seasons. Particular traits were associated with superior adaptation to certain environments. Many lines with adaptive root and stay-green traits exhibited superior yield to the reference parent in relevant target environments and 54 such lines have been provided to commercial Australian wheat breeders for cultivar development. This combination of technologies is increasing understanding of physiological adaptation to water-limited environments in wheat and helping accelerate genetic progress.

Description: We present microwave-assisted synthesis and in vitro acetylcholinesterase inhibition of di-PRLC4OAzo, a new azoderivative designed on the basis of aza-stilbene active compounds, already reported by the group. From the total series of azoderivatives synthetized, di-PRLC4OAzo showed the powerful in vitro enzymatic response for its (E) isomer (IC50: 1.08 µM) by Ellman’s assay, beside a stable photostationary state monitored by UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy, indicating it might be an efficient photo-responsible probe to remote control the activity of the enzyme.

Description: A serie of 2-tetrazolylmethyl-2,3,4,9-tetrahydro-1H-β-carbolines were synthesized via a one pot Ugi-azide/Pictet–Spengler process under mild ultrasound-assisted conditions. The products containing two privileged heterocyclic frameworks: 1,5-disubstituted-1H-tetrazole and tetrahydro-β-carboline, which are present in a variety of bioactive compounds and commercial drugs.

Description: In this article, a new perspective on the Kauzmann point is presented. The “ideal glass transition” that occurs at the Kauzmann temperature is the point at which the configurational entropy of an undercooled metastable liquid equals that of its crystalline counterpart. We model solidifying liquids by using a quaternion orientational order parameter and find that the Kauzmann point is a critical point that exists to separate crystalline and non-crystalline solid states. We identify the Kauzmann point as a first-order critical point, and suggest that it belongs to quaternion ordered systems that exist in four- or three-dimensions. This “Kauzmann critical point” can be considered to be a higher-dimensional analogue to the superfluid-to-Mott insulator quantum phase transition that occurs in two- and one-dimensional complex ordered systems. Such critical points are driven by tuning a non-thermal frustration parameter, and result due to characteristic softening of a `Higgs’ type mode that corresponds to amplitude fluctuations of the order parameter. The first-order nature of the finite temperature Kauzmann critical point is a consequence of the discrete change of the topology of the ground state manifold of the quaternion order parameter field that applies to crystalline and non-crystalline solids.

Description: Metal-organic frameworks are a class of attractive materials for fluorescent sensing. Here, we report the exploration of fluorescent Zn-based amine/azine-functionalized MOF, TMU-17-NH2, ([Zn(NH2-BDC)(4-bpdb)].2DMF; NH2-BDC = amino-1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid, 4-bpdb = 1,4-bis(4-pyridyl)-2,3-diaza-2,3-butadiene) for highly selective and sensitive detection of Fe3+ in DMF (N,N-dimethylformamide) solution. TMU-17-NH2 shows fast recognition of Fe3+ ions with a response time of

Description: Systemic risks have to be vigilantly guided against at all times in order to prevent their contagion across stock markets. New policies also may not work as desired and even induce shocks to market, especially those emerging ones. Therefore, timely detection of systemic risks and policy-induced shocks is crucial to safeguard the health of stock markets. In this paper, we show that the relative entropy or Kullback–Liebler divergence can be used to identify systemic risks and policy-induced shocks in stock markets. Concretely, we analyzed the minutely data of two stock indices, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) Composite Index, and examined the temporal variation of relative entropy for them. We show that clustered peaks in relative entropy curves can accurately identify the timing of the 2007–2008 global financial crisis and its precursors, and the 2015 stock crashes in China. Moreover, a sharpest needle-like peak in relative entropy curves, especially for the SSE market, always served as a precursor of an unusual market, a strong bull market or a bubble, thus possessing a certain ability of forewarning.

Description: Soil lead contamination is an environmental health risk that greatly affects children in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Southside Chattanooga Lead Superfund Site was added to the National Priorities List in late 2018 by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA has designated the clean-up threshold for soil lead contamination to be equal to or over 360 parts per million. For the EPA to conduct soil testing and proceed with clean-up, a signed access authorization letter from the tenant or property owner must be submitted. As of 7 May 2019, there are still 4371 properties to test with an estimated 1100 expected to be above the remediation threshold. Despite mailing the letters and having several public meetings, the rate of return is approximately thirty percent for access authorization forms. To increase the response rate, local non-profit agencies, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) Lions Club, and the UTC Master’s in Public Health program have been involved in educating the community. Efforts include community health fairs, grant-funded community-based blood lead testing for children, and a door-to-door canvassing campaign where residents are informed of the issue, provided with educational materials, and asked to sign and return access authorization letters to the EPA. The impact of community engagement is measured by the number/proportion of residents engaged, the number of signed authorization forms submitted, and the number of children tested for elevated blood lead levels. This poster presentation will discuss lead contamination in Chattanooga, and the results of our engagement work in the community.