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most exciting work published in the various research areas of the journal.
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Ana Caroline Alves da Costa, Laura Patrícia Albarello Gellen, Marianne Rodrigues Fernandes, Rita de Cássia Calderaro Coelho, Natasha Monte, Francisco Cezar Aquino de Moraes, Maria Clara Leite Calderaro, Lilian Marques de Freitas, Juliana Aires Matos, Thamara Fernanda da Silva Fernandes, Kaio Evandro Cardoso Aguiar, Lui Wallacy Morikawa Souza Vinagre, Sidney Emanuel Batista dos Santos and Ney Pereira Carneiro dos Santos
COVID-19 is a systemic disease caused by the etiologic agent SARS-CoV-2, first reported in Hubei Province in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. The SARS-CoV-2 virus has evolved over time with distinct transmissibility subvariants from ancestral lineages. The clinical manifestations of the disease vary
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COVID-19 is a systemic disease caused by the etiologic agent SARS-CoV-2, first reported in Hubei Province in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. The SARS-CoV-2 virus has evolved over time with distinct transmissibility subvariants from ancestral lineages. The clinical manifestations of the disease vary according to their severity and can range from asymptomatic to severe. Due to the rapid evolution to a pandemic, epidemiological studies have become essential to understand and effectively combat COVID-19, as the incidence and mortality of this disease vary between territories and populations. This study correlated epidemiological data on the incidence and mortality of COVID-19 with frequencies of important SNPs in GWAS studies associated with the susceptibility and mortality of this disease in different populations. Our results indicated significant correlations for 11 genetic variants (rs117169628, rs2547438, rs2271616, rs12610495, rs12046291, rs35705950, rs2176724, rs10774671, rs1073165, rs4804803 and rs7528026). Of these 11 variants, 7 (rs12046291, rs117169628, rs1073165, rs2547438, rs2271616, rs12610495 and rs35705950) were positively correlated with the incidence rate, these variants were more frequent in EUR populations, suggesting that this population is more susceptible to COVID-19. The rs2176724 variant was inversely related to incidence rates; therefore, the higher the frequency of the allele is, the lower the incidence rate. This variant was more frequent in the AFR population, which suggests a protective factor against SARS-CoV-2 infection in this population. The variants rs10774671, rs4804803, and rs7528026 showed a significant relationship with mortality rates. SNPs rs10774671 and rs4804803 were inversely related to mortality rates and are more frequently present in the AFR population. The rs7528026 variant, which is more frequent in the AMR population, was positively related to mortality rates. The study has the potential to identify and correlate the genetic profile with epidemiological data, identify populations that are more susceptible to severe forms of COVID-19, and relate them to incidence and mortality.
Full article
Diverse actors, including foreign and national states, international agencies, donors, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and private ventures, demand, fund, and implement anti-trafficking activities worldwide. Bissau-Guinean Quran schoolboys begging in Senegalese cities are defined as victims of child trafficking, and their teachers as traffickers. This
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Diverse actors, including foreign and national states, international agencies, donors, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and private ventures, demand, fund, and implement anti-trafficking activities worldwide. Bissau-Guinean Quran schoolboys begging in Senegalese cities are defined as victims of child trafficking, and their teachers as traffickers. This article aims to explore the Quran teachers’ understanding of begging and their response to being accused of child trafficking. It rests on data collected during anthropological fieldwork in Guinea-Bissau and Senegal since 2009, including interviews and participation in religious events. The Quran teachers, some of whom admit colleagues might exploit their students, highlight four aspects of begging: allowing poor populations economically to study the Quran; contributing to humbleness, humility, and empathy with underprivileged groups; redistributing resources across generations; and allowing the acquisition of knowledge, liberation, and power. They maintain that the NGOs are profiting from funds provided to “rescue” the students and act as real traffickers, and together with funders, they aim to eliminate Islam. Embedded in layers of coloniality, the Quran teachers keep their position as community leaders. Banning begging is bound to fail if the anti-trafficking NGOs ignore their understanding of meaningful suffering and begging, including the economic and religious aspects of alms-seeking and its reciprocal nature.
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Age-related sleep disorders share common pathways with sarcopenia. Prospective data from Latin American populations are scarce, and the association between sleep disorders and sarcopenia in Chileans remains unknown. Thus, we aimed to study the longitudinal association between sleep disorders and sarcopenia in a
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Age-related sleep disorders share common pathways with sarcopenia. Prospective data from Latin American populations are scarce, and the association between sleep disorders and sarcopenia in Chileans remains unknown. Thus, we aimed to study the longitudinal association between sleep disorders and sarcopenia in a cohort study of 1116 community-dwelling Chilean older people ≥60 years old from the ALEXANDROS cohorts. After the exclusion criteria, 318 subjects were followed. Sociodemographic data, self-reported chronic diseases, sedentarism, sleep characteristics, anthropometric measurements, handgrip strength, and muscle performance were assessed. Results indicated that at baseline, the prevalence of sarcopenia was 24.10% without gender differences, and the prevalence of self-reported sleep problems was 23.3%, higher in women (26.46% versus 17.15% in men). The adjusted Cox regression models for sarcopenia showed an association between sarcopenia, sleep disorders (HR = 2.08, 95% IC 1.14–3.80), and long sleep duration (HR = 2.42, 95% IC 1.20–4.91). After 8.24 years of follow-up, there were 2.2 cases of sarcopenia per 100 person-years. This study demonstrates that sleep disorders are an independent risk factor for sarcopenia in Chilean older people. The identification of sleep disorders through self-reported data provides an opportunity for early identification of risk and cost-effective sarcopenia prevention.
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Mathieu Nacher, Aude Lucarelli, Astrid Van-Melle, Célia Basurko, Sébastien Rabier, Malorie Chroum, Thiago Santana, Karine Verin, Ketty Bienvenu, Myriam El Guedj, Tania Vaz, Hawa Cisse, Loïc Epelboin, Paul Le Turnier, Philippe Abboud, Félix Djossou, Roger Pradinaud, Antoine Adenis and Pierre Couppié
The drivers of the HIV epidemic, the viruses, the opportunistic infections, the attitudes and the resources allocated to the fight against HIV/AIDS, vary substantially across countries. French Guiana, at the crossroads between Amazonian South America and the Caribbean, constitutes a singular context with
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The drivers of the HIV epidemic, the viruses, the opportunistic infections, the attitudes and the resources allocated to the fight against HIV/AIDS, vary substantially across countries. French Guiana, at the crossroads between Amazonian South America and the Caribbean, constitutes a singular context with poor populations and rich country health funding, which has allowed researchers to gather lots of information on the particulars of our epidemic. We aimed to focus on the little known story of forty years of HIV research in French Guiana and emphasize how local research intertwined with public health action has yielded continuous progress, despite the difficult social conditions of the affected population. We searched Web of Science and associated local experts who worked through much of the epidemic in selecting the most meaningful products of local research for clinical and public health outcomes in French Guiana. Research tools and facilities included, from 1991 onwards, the HIV hospital cohort and the HIV-histoplasmosis cohort. Ad hoc studies funded by the ANRS or the European Regional Development fund shed light on vulnerable groups. The cumulative impact of prospective routine collection and focused efforts has yielded a breadth of knowledge, allowing for informed decisions and the adaptation of prevention, testing and care in French Guiana. After this overview, we emphasize that the close integration of research and public health was crucial in adapting interventions to the singular context of French Guiana.
Full article
Agricultural insects play a crucial role in transmitting plant viruses and host a considerable number of insect-specific viruses (ISVs). Among these insects, the white-backed planthoppers (WBPH; Sogatella furcifera, Hemiptera: Delphacidae) are noteworthy rice pests and are responsible for disseminating the southern rice
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Agricultural insects play a crucial role in transmitting plant viruses and host a considerable number of insect-specific viruses (ISVs). Among these insects, the white-backed planthoppers (WBPH; Sogatella furcifera, Hemiptera: Delphacidae) are noteworthy rice pests and are responsible for disseminating the southern rice black-streaked dwarf virus (SRBSDV), a significant rice virus. In this study, we analyzed WBPH transcriptome data from public sources and identified three novel viruses. These newly discovered viruses belong to the plant-associated viral family Solemoviridae and were tentatively named Sogatella furcifera solemo-like virus 1-3 (SFSolV1-3). Among them, SFSolV1 exhibited a prevalent existence in different laboratory populations, and its complete genome sequence was obtained using rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) approaches. To investigate the antiviral RNA interference (RNAi) response in WBPH, we conducted an analysis of virus-derived small interfering RNAs (vsiRNAs). The vsiRNAs of SFSolV1 and -2 exhibited typical patterns associated with the host’s siRNA-mediated antiviral immunity, with a preference for 21- and 22-nt vsiRNAs derived equally from both the sense and antisense genomic strands. Furthermore, we examined SFSolV1 infection and distribution in WBPH, revealing a significantly higher viral load of SFSolV1 in nymphs’ hemolymph compared to other tissues. Additionally, in adult insects, SFSolV1 exhibited higher abundance in male adults than in female adults.
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Milan S. G. Keirsebelik, Mariana R. David, Márcio Galvão Pavan, Dinair Couto-Lima, Miriam Palomino, Rafi Ur Rahman, Ary A. Hoffmann, Ana C. Bahia, Guy Caljon and Rafael Maciel-de-Freitas
The mosquito Aedes aegypti is distributed worldwide and is recognized as the primary vector for dengue in numerous countries. To investigate whether the fitness cost of a single DENV-1 isolate varies among populations, we selected four Ae. aegypti populations from distinct localities: Australia
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The mosquito Aedes aegypti is distributed worldwide and is recognized as the primary vector for dengue in numerous countries. To investigate whether the fitness cost of a single DENV-1 isolate varies among populations, we selected four Ae. aegypti populations from distinct localities: Australia (AUS), Brazil (BRA), Pakistan (PAK), and Peru (PER). Utilizing simple methodologies, we concurrently assessed survival rates and fecundity. Overall, DENV-1 infection led to a significant decrease in mosquito survival rates, with the exception of the PER population. Furthermore, infected Ae. aegypti from PAK, the population with the lowest infection rate among those tested, exhibited a noteworthy reduction in egg laying. These findings collectively suggest that local mosquito-virus adaptations may influence dengue transmission in endemic settings.
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The role of heredity in the emergence of the overwhelming majority of human diseases is currently considered proven and has significant importance [...]
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Digital technologies occupy an important place in today’s developing world. They are also strongly related to new trends in educational technologies. In this context, the digital accessibility of this new environment for people with various special needs is of particular concern. A novel
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Digital technologies occupy an important place in today’s developing world. They are also strongly related to new trends in educational technologies. In this context, the digital accessibility of this new environment for people with various special needs is of particular concern. A novel tool for assessment of the technological ecosystem, designed to provide digital accessibility to people with special needs, is described in the paper. The overall structure and the initial test of the system are discussed in the paper. The conceptual framework of the ecosystem and its ontological model are described. Special attention is paid to the accessibility of digital learning and e-learning for people with special needs from a robotic perspective.
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A car seat’s function is to support, protect, and make passengers and drivers feel comfortable during a trip. A more uniform pressure distribution and a larger contact area usually provide less discomfort. Consequently, the seat pan’s material and geometry play an essential role
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A car seat’s function is to support, protect, and make passengers and drivers feel comfortable during a trip. A more uniform pressure distribution and a larger contact area usually provide less discomfort. Consequently, the seat pan’s material and geometry play an essential role in the design process. A shaped pad was opportunely designed and realized, starting from the pressure distributions between the buttocks and the seat pan; pressure data were acquired during an initial experiment involving 41 people, representing a wide range of percentiles. The shaped pad was compared with a standard one by building a special seat with an interchangeable internal pad and testing the standard and the new seat; the second experiment involved 52 people that tested both seats. The tests were conducted to assess comfort (33 subjects were asked to be seated for 1 min each) and discomfort (19 subjects were asked to be seated for 15 min each); during the tests, pressure distribution and contact area data were gathered. The results showed that, for both tests, about 80% of the participants, among which 100% of the female sample, preferred the shaped seat pan pad. Even if the material was exactly the same, the shaped pad seemed to be softer, more comfortable, and more suited to the body’s shape than the standard one. The design methodology was demonstrated to be very useful for granting a more uniform pressure distribution and a wider contact area, i.e., higher comfort and less discomfort.
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The introduction of mercury (Hg) into the environment by anthropogenic activities has resulted in negative implications for ecosystem functions and human health. Unlike the legacy of huge environmental pollution left by historic gold rushes in several developed countries, gold-rich nations in the developing
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The introduction of mercury (Hg) into the environment by anthropogenic activities has resulted in negative implications for ecosystem functions and human health. Unlike the legacy of huge environmental pollution left by historic gold rushes in several developed countries, gold-rich nations in the developing world are currently witnessing what could qualify as a “new gold rush”, conducted primarily by small-scale mining operators and characterized by the use of metallic Hg (Hg0) in the amalgamation process to extract gold from crude ores. Once introduced into the environment, Hg0 can undergo biogeochemical transformations to produce Hg species such as methyl-Hg, with well-established adverse impacts on living organisms. This review summarizes published data on both historical and recent trends of the use of Hg0 in artisanal gold mining (AGM) on a global scale and emphasizes the impacts of AGM on the environment. To achieve this, we used citations from research conducted in North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, obtained from several search engines and databases. Our findings show that, in addition to the well-known environmental and human health adverse effects of gold mining with Hg0, gold extraction by the Hg amalgamation technique is boosting the economy in parts of Africa, South America, and Asia. Unfortunately, this appealing aspect of AGM may not be easily halted, pending the creation of alternative employment. Therefore, there is a clear need for the development of safe and affordable gold extraction and purification technologies. Ultimately, the growth of this specific economic sector should be regulated to help protect both the environment and human health. Information compiled in this review should help to (i) improve the mapping of AGM-impacted soil and aquatic systems on a global scale and (ii) stimulate discussions and research on how to take down current barriers to the development and implementation of safe AGM methods.
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The current paper concentrates on discovering the exact solutions of the singular time-fractional Boussinesq equation and coupled time-fractional Boussinesq equation by presenting a new technique known as the double Sumudu–generalized Laplace and Adomian decomposition method. Here, two main theorems are addressed that are
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The current paper concentrates on discovering the exact solutions of the singular time-fractional Boussinesq equation and coupled time-fractional Boussinesq equation by presenting a new technique known as the double Sumudu–generalized Laplace and Adomian decomposition method. Here, two main theorems are addressed that are very useful in this work. Moreover, the mentioned method is effective in solving several problems. Some examples are presented to check the precision and symmetry of the technique. The outcomes show that the proposed technique is precise and gives better solutions as compared to existing methods in the literature.
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The secure computation of symmetric encryption schemes using Yao’s garbled circuits, such as AES, allows two parties, where one holds a plaintext block m and the other holds a key k, to compute without
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The secure computation of symmetric encryption schemes using Yao’s garbled circuits, such as AES, allows two parties, where one holds a plaintext block m and the other holds a key k, to compute without leaking m and k to one another. Due to its wide application prospects, secure AES computation has received much attention. However, the evaluation of AES circuits using Yao’s garbled circuits incurs substantial communication overhead. To further improve its efficiency, this paper, upon observing the special structures of AES circuits and the symmetries of an S-box, proposes a novel ciphertext reduction scheme for garbling an S-box in the last SubBytes step. Unlike the idea of traditional Yao’s garbled circuits, where the circuit generator uses the input wire labels to encrypt the corresponding output wire labels, our garbling scheme uses the input wire labels of an S-box to encrypt the corresponding “flip bit strings”. This approach leads to a significant performance improvement in our garbling scheme, which necessitates only ciphertexts to garble an S-box and a single invocation of a cryptographic primitive for decryption compared to the best result in previous work that requires ciphertexts to garble an S-box and multiple invocations of a cryptographic primitive for decryption. Crucially, the proposed scheme provides a new idea to improve the performance of Yao’s garbled circuits. We analyze the security of the proposed scheme in the semi-honest model and experimentally verify its efficiency.
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Viorela-I. Caracoti, Costin-Ș. Caracoti, Diana L. Ancuța, Fabiola Ioniță, Andrei-A. Muntean, Mangesh Bhide, Gabriela L. Popa, Mircea I. Popa and Cristin Coman
Background: Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcus) is a Gram-negative bacterium that colonises the nasopharynx of about 10% of the healthy human population. Under certain conditions, it spreads into the body, causing infections with high morbidity and mortality rates. Although the capsule is the key virulence factor,
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Background: Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcus) is a Gram-negative bacterium that colonises the nasopharynx of about 10% of the healthy human population. Under certain conditions, it spreads into the body, causing infections with high morbidity and mortality rates. Although the capsule is the key virulence factor, unencapsulated strains have proved to possess significant clinical implications as well. Meningococcal meningitis is a primarily human infection, with limited animal models that are dependent on a variety of parameters such as bacterial virulence and mouse strain. In this study, we aimed to develop a murine Neisseria meningitidis meningitis model to be used in the study of various antimicrobial compounds. Method: We used a capsule-deficient Neisseria meningitidis strain that was thoroughly analysed through various methods. The bacterial strain was incubated for 48 h in brain–heart infusion (BHI) broth before being concentrated and injected intracisternally to bypass the blood–brain barrier in CD-1 mice. This prolonged incubation time was a key factor in increasing the virulence of the bacterial strain. A total of three more differently prepared inoculums were tested to further solidify the importance of the protocol (a 24-h incubated inoculum, a diluted inoculum, and an inactivated inoculum). Antibiotic treatment groups were also established. The clinical parameters and number of deaths were recorded over a period of 5 days, and comatose mice with no chance of recovery were euthanised. Results: The bacterial strain was confirmed to have no capsule but was found to harbour a total of 56 genes coding virulence factors, and its antibiotic susceptibility was established. Meningitis was confirmed through positive tissue culture and histological evaluation, where specific lesions were observed, such as perivascular sheaths with inflammatory infiltrate. In the treatment groups, survival rates were significantly higher (up to 81.25% in one of the treatment groups compared to 18.75% in the control group). Conclusion: We managed to successfully develop a cost-efficient murine (using simple CD-1 mice instead of expensive transgenic mice) meningococcal meningitis model using an unencapsulated strain with a novel method of preparation.
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The development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) has enabled the discovery of cancer-specific driver gene alternations, making precision medicine possible. However, accurate genetic testing requires a sufficient amount of tumor cells in the specimen. The evaluation of tumor content ratio (TCR) from hematoxylin and
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The development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) has enabled the discovery of cancer-specific driver gene alternations, making precision medicine possible. However, accurate genetic testing requires a sufficient amount of tumor cells in the specimen. The evaluation of tumor content ratio (TCR) from hematoxylin and eosin (H&E)-stained images has been found to vary between pathologists, making it an important challenge to obtain an accurate TCR. In this study, three pathologists exhaustively labeled all cells in 41 regions from 41 lung cancer cases as either tumor, non-tumor or indistinguishable, thus establishing a “gold standard” TCR. We then compared the accuracy of the TCR estimated by 13 pathologists based on visual assessment and the TCR calculated by an AI model that we have developed. It is a compact and fast model that follows a fully convolutional neural network architecture and produces cell detection maps which can be efficiently post-processed to obtain tumor and non-tumor cell counts from which TCR is calculated. Its raw cell detection accuracy is 92% while its classification accuracy is 84%. The results show that the error between the gold standard TCR and the AI calculation was significantly smaller than that between the gold standard TCR and the pathologist’s visual assessment (). Additionally, the robustness of AI models across institutions is a key issue and we demonstrate that the variation in AI was smaller than that in the average of pathologists when evaluated by institution. These findings suggest that the accuracy of tumor cellularity assessments in clinical workflows is significantly improved by the introduction of robust AI models, leading to more efficient genetic testing and ultimately to better patient outcomes.
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Ultra-wide-field optical coherence tomography (UWF-OCT) has been recently introduced into clinical ophthalmological practice. To date, there are few data on the reference values of the retinal thickness (RT) and choroidal thickness (CT) measured with this technique. This study aimed to analyze the variance
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Ultra-wide-field optical coherence tomography (UWF-OCT) has been recently introduced into clinical ophthalmological practice. To date, there are few data on the reference values of the retinal thickness (RT) and choroidal thickness (CT) measured with this technique. This study aimed to analyze the variance in RT and CT in the healthy eyes of white Caucasian patients with UWF-OCT tests performed with the largest available scan size of 23 × 20 mm. The data were analyzed with reference to the patients’ age and gender and the axial length of the eyeball. The results of UWF-OCT scanning enabled us to visualize the shape of the retina and choroid in a large portion of the eyeball. Both anatomical entities became significantly thinner at the periphery. The peripheral CT was greater in the upper and temporal sectors; the RT was higher in the nasal compared to the temporal sectors. Both the choroid and retina showed a reduced thickness with age; however, the CT and RT did not show a statistically significant correlation with the axial length after adjusting for age and gender. Age-related variations in thickness were especially prominent in the choroid. The CT in UWF-OCT testing was significantly greater in females, while the RT was greater in males. UWF-OCT testing provides additional information on the anatomical structure of the retina and choroid compared to standard-field OCT.
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Decentralization is a globally accepted concept of separation, the diversity of structures within the political system, the transfer of resources, activities, and powers in the decision-making process, and the division of tasks from the central government to lower authorities. It is implemented in
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Decentralization is a globally accepted concept of separation, the diversity of structures within the political system, the transfer of resources, activities, and powers in the decision-making process, and the division of tasks from the central government to lower authorities. It is implemented in both developed and developing countries, with different aims and consequences. In Serbia, the urban-centric development model and centralized governance caused rural settlements to become non-viable, and services and opportunities were deprived. This research has been undertaken in order to provide a deeper understanding of the territorial aspect of decentralization in Serbia and how it affects rural areas. It strives to offer a methodological framework for the identification of central settlements in rural areas of Serbia that will serve as a focal point for settlements networking in order to facilitate the spatial integration of rural areas and governance at the local level. This research encompasses (i) the identification of rural nodes as bearers of balanced governance and spatial development; (ii) the delimitation of their gravity sphere; and (iii) the determination of the relationship between settlement organization models and decentralization in Serbia. The research results indicate that identified rural nodes can be valuable to developing a holistic understanding of rural issues, supporting a bottom-up approach and regional disparities mitigation.
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The impact of a tunnel construction on the groundwater system depends on various parameters and cannot be easily predicted. Along these lines, a deep understanding of the hydrological relationship between tunnels and surface water is considered of vital importance for ensuring safety during
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The impact of a tunnel construction on the groundwater system depends on various parameters and cannot be easily predicted. Along these lines, a deep understanding of the hydrological relationship between tunnels and surface water is considered of vital importance for ensuring safety during railway construction. Upon completion, the North Taihang Tunnel will be one of four extra-long railway tunnels running through the natural ecotope and level-3 protection areas of the Tianshengqiao National Geological Park in Fuping County, Hebei Province. It will be 1 km away from the Tianshengqiao Nine Falls, which is known as a breathtaking landscape feature in Northern China. Local government, societies, and railway design units have raised concerns about whether the construction and operation of the North Taihang Tunnel will affect the Tianshengqiao Nine Falls. To effectively address this issue, in this work, hydrogeological mapping and hydraulic potential-energy calculations were performed in conjunction with hydrochemical and geological structure analyses. The groundwater system units in the study area were divided and the water source of the nine-level waterfall was determined retrospectively. In addition, the recharge of groundwater to the nine-level waterfall was calculated, the hydrogeological properties of the linear structure were analyzed, and the dominant channels of underwater discharge in surface water were compared and studied. The extracted results indicated that: (1) The Tianshengqiao Nine Falls represent a seasonal fall landscape, which is mainly supplied by surface water formed by precipitation and a low proportion of groundwater supply. (2) The water bodies of the North Taihang Tunnel project and Tianshengqiao Nine Falls belong to two independent groundwater systems. (3) No linear structure that connects these two groundwater systems has yet been discovered. It is widely accepted that a minor possibility of hydraulic connection might be present between the North Taihang Tunnel and Tianshengqiao Nine Falls. This work analyzed the water quantity of Nine Falls, determined the hydraulic relationship between the tunnel project and the waterhead of the Nine Falls, and addressed all stakeholder concerns. The conclusions could provide technological support for the scheduled construction projects.
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Evapotranspiration is a key link in the water cycle of terrestrial ecosystems, and the partitioning of evapotranspiration is a prerequisite for diagnosing vegetation growth and water use strategies. In this study, we used double-layer eddy covariance (DLEC) measurements within and above the canopy
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Evapotranspiration is a key link in the water cycle of terrestrial ecosystems, and the partitioning of evapotranspiration is a prerequisite for diagnosing vegetation growth and water use strategies. In this study, we used double-layer eddy covariance (DLEC) measurements within and above the canopy of poplar plantations to divide evapotranspiration into transpiration and evaporation during the growing season. We diagnosed the coupling state of airflows in the canopy vertical layer and found that the daytime coupling state at the half-hourly scale can mask nighttime decoupling. Furthermore, we investigated the daytime and nighttime vertical layer airflow coupling states separately and quantified the effects of coupling states on the DLEC of resolved transpiration. The partitioning results of the DLEC method were taken as the standard after the airflow coupling test. Then, the performance and accuracy of evapotranspiration partitioning for the modified relaxed eddy accumulation (MREA), the conditional eddy covariance (CEC), and the flux variance similarity (FVS) with DLEC were compared. Transpiration calculated from MREA showed the best agreement with DLEC, and the other methods showed different degrees of underestimation (1:1 slope = 0.64–0.83). Evaporation calculated from FVS showed the best agreement with DLEC, while CEC and FVS made an overestimation of more than 26% (1:1 slope = 1.26–1.99), but MREA made an underestimation from 5% to 35% (1:1 slope = 0.65–0.95). The correlation coefficients between DLEC and MREA for transpiration were 0.95–0.97 with RMSEs of 15.52–17.04 W m−2, and those between DLEC and FVS for transpiration were 0.73–0.78 with RMSEs of 10–21.26 W m−2 at the daily half-hourly scale. A detailed comparison of the differences between DLEC and evapotranspiration partitioning methods from high-frequency eddy covariance data under the condition of canopy vertical layer airflow mixing provides knowledge about the consistency of results for evapotranspiration partitioning in poplar plantation forests.
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(This article belongs to the Section Ecohydrology)
Surface soil moisture (SSM) reflects the dry and wet states of soil. Microwave remote sensing technology can accurately obtain regional SSM in real time and effectively improve the level of agricultural drought monitoring, and it is of great significance for agricultural precision irrigation
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Surface soil moisture (SSM) reflects the dry and wet states of soil. Microwave remote sensing technology can accurately obtain regional SSM in real time and effectively improve the level of agricultural drought monitoring, and it is of great significance for agricultural precision irrigation and smart agriculture construction. Based on Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, and Landsat-8 images, the effect of vegetation was removed by the water cloud model (WCM), and SSM was retrieved and validated by a radial basis function (RBF) neural network model in bare soil and vegetated areas, respectively. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) calculated by Landsat-8 (NDVI_Landsat-8) had a better effect on removing the influence the of vegetation layer than that of NDVI_Sentinel-2. The RBF network model, established in a bare area (R = 0.796; RMSE = 0.029 cm3/cm3), and the RBF neural network model, established in vegetated areas (R = 0.855; RMSE = 0.024 cm3/cm3), have better simulation effects on SSM than a linear SSM inversion model with single polarization. The introduction of surface parameters to the RBF neural network model can improve the accuracy of the model and realize the high-accuracy inversion of SSM in the study area.
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The accurate assessment of the rise in nitrous oxide (N2O) under global changes in grasslands has been hindered because of inadequate annual observations. To measure the seasonal response of N2O emissions to increased water and nitrogen (N) deposition, one
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The accurate assessment of the rise in nitrous oxide (N2O) under global changes in grasslands has been hindered because of inadequate annual observations. To measure the seasonal response of N2O emissions to increased water and nitrogen (N) deposition, one year round N2O emissions were investigated by chamber weekly in the growing season and every two weeks in the non-growing season in semi-arid temperate grasslands northern China. The results showed the temperate semi-arid grassland to be a source of N2O with greater variability and contribution during the non-growing season. The individual effects of water or N addition increased N2O emissions during the growing season, while the effects of water or N addition depended on the N application rates during the non-growing season. Soil properties, particularly soil temperature and water-filled pore space (WFPS), played key roles in regulating N2O emissions. Structural equation modeling revealed that these factors explained 71% and 35% of the variation in N2O fluxes during the growing and non-growing season, respectively. This study suggested that without observations during the non-growing season it is possible to misestimate the annual N2O emissions and the risk of N2O emissions increasing under global change. This would provide insights for future management strategies for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.
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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a group of sporadic and genetic neurodegenerative disorders that result in losses of upper and lower motor neurons. Treatment of ALS is limited, and survival is 2–5 years after disease onset. While ALS can occur in younger individuals,
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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a group of sporadic and genetic neurodegenerative disorders that result in losses of upper and lower motor neurons. Treatment of ALS is limited, and survival is 2–5 years after disease onset. While ALS can occur in younger individuals, the risk significantly increases with advancing age. Notably, both sporadic and genetic forms of ALS share pathophysiological features overlapping hallmarks of aging including genome instability/DNA damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation, proteostasis, and cellular senescence. This review explores chronological and biological aging in the context of ALS onset and progression. Age-related muscle weakness and motor unit loss mirror aspects of ALS pathology and coincide with peak ALS incidence, suggesting a potential link between aging and disease development. Hallmarks of biological aging, including DNA damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cellular senescence, are implicated in both aging and ALS, offering insights into shared mechanisms underlying disease pathogenesis. Furthermore, senescence-associated secretory phenotype and senolytic treatments emerge as promising avenues for ALS intervention, with the potential to mitigate neuroinflammation and modify disease progression.
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Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2) metabolizes acetaldehyde to acetate. People with ALDH2 deficiency and Aldh2-knockout (KO) mice are more susceptible to alcohol-induced tissue damage. However, the underlying mechanisms behind ALDH2-related gut-associated brain damage remain unclear. Age-matched young female Aldh2-KO and C57BL/6J wild-type
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Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2) metabolizes acetaldehyde to acetate. People with ALDH2 deficiency and Aldh2-knockout (KO) mice are more susceptible to alcohol-induced tissue damage. However, the underlying mechanisms behind ALDH2-related gut-associated brain damage remain unclear. Age-matched young female Aldh2-KO and C57BL/6J wild-type (WT) mice were gavaged with binge alcohol (4 g/kg/dose, three doses) or dextrose (control) at 12 h intervals. Tissues and sera were collected 1 h after the last ethanol dose and evaluated by histological and biochemical analyses of the gut and hippocampus and their extracts. For the mechanistic study, mouse neuroblast Neuro2A cells were exposed to ethanol with or without an Aldh2 inhibitor (Daidzin). Binge alcohol decreased intestinal tight/adherens junction proteins but increased oxidative stress-mediated post-translational modifications (PTMs) and enterocyte apoptosis, leading to elevated gut leakiness and endotoxemia in Aldh2-KO mice compared to corresponding WT mice. Alcohol-exposed Aldh2-KO mice also showed higher levels of hippocampal brain injury, oxidative stress-related PTMs, and neuronal apoptosis than the WT mice. Additionally, alcohol exposure reduced Neuro2A cell viability with elevated oxidative stress-related PTMs and apoptosis, all of which were exacerbated by Aldh2 inhibition. Our results show for the first time that ALDH2 plays a protective role in binge alcohol-induced brain injury partly through the gut–brain axis, suggesting that ALDH2 is a potential target for attenuating alcohol-induced tissue injury.
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Viktor Sincic, Ken F. Arlenhold, Sarah Richtmann, Henrik Lilljebjörn, Pontus Eriksson, Gottfrid Sjödahl, Mats Wokander, Karin Hägerbrand, Peter Ellmark, Thoas Fioretos, Carl A. K. Borrebaeck, Fredrik Liedberg and Kristina Lundberg
Bladder cancer is a heterogenous disease, and molecular subtyping is a promising method to capture this variability. Currently, the immune compartment in relation to subtypes is poorly characterized. Here, we analyzed the immune compartment in bladder tumors and normal bladder urothelium with a
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Bladder cancer is a heterogenous disease, and molecular subtyping is a promising method to capture this variability. Currently, the immune compartment in relation to subtypes is poorly characterized. Here, we analyzed the immune compartment in bladder tumors and normal bladder urothelium with a focus on T cell subpopulations using flow cytometry and RNA sequencing. The results were investigated in relation to tumor invasiveness (NMIBC/MIBC) and molecular subtypes according to the Lund Taxonomy system. Whereas the NMIBC/MIBC differed in the overall immune infiltration only, the molecular subtypes differed both in terms of immune infiltration and immune compartment compositions. The Basal/Squamous (Ba/Sq) and genomically unstable (GU) tumors displayed increased immune infiltration compared to urothelial-like (Uro) tumors. Additionally, the GU tumors had a higher proportion of regulatory T cells within the immune compartment compared to Uro tumors. Furthermore, sequencing showed higher levels of exhaustion in CD8+ T cells from GU tumors compared to both Uro tumors and the control. Although no such difference was detected at the transcriptomic level in Uro tumors compared to the controls, CD8+ T cells in Uro tumors showed higher expression of several exhaustion markers at the protein level. Taken together, our findings indicate that depending on the molecular subtype, different immunotherapeutic interventions might be warranted.
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