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  • Frontiers Media SA  (2,472)
  • Molecular Diversity Preservation International  (1,428)
  • American Physical Society
  • Institute of Physics
  • 2020-2024  (4,213)
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  • 1
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  Frontiers for Young Minds vol. 12
    Publication Date: 2024-02-21
    Description: When parents of two dierent species have babies together, those \nbabies are called hybrids. In nature, hybrids are often born in the \nregion where the ranges of their parent species meet. This region is \ncalled a hybrid zone. We know that species change their ranges all the \ntime, and we also know that some species compete with each other \nfor food or living space. This means that, if one of the two parent \nspecies manages to expand its range, the other species may be forced \nto retreat. If that were to happen, the hybrid zone between the two \nspecies\xe2\x80\x99 ranges should move, right? Even though researchers used \nto think that hybrid zone movement was rare, recent studies suggest \notherwise. In this article, we will tell you what hybrid zones are, how \nthey form, why their position may shift over time, and what we can \nlearn from this movement
    Repository Name: National Museum of Natural History, Netherlands
    Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
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  • 2
    Publication Date: 2024-04-30
    Description: Current understanding of the kinetic-scale turbulence in weakly collisional plasmas still remains elusive. We employ a general framework in which the turbulent energy transfer is envisioned as a scale-to-scale Langevin process. Fluctuations in the sub-ion range show a global scale invariance, thus suggesting a homogeneous energy repartition. In this Letter, we interpret such a feature by linking the drift term of the Langevin equation to scaling properties of fluctuations. Theoretical expectations are verified on solar wind observations and numerical simulations, thus giving relevance to the proposed framework for understanding kinetic-scale turbulence in space plasmas.
    Description: Published
    Description: L042014
    Description: OSA3: Climatologia e meteorologia spaziale
    Description: JCR Journal
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
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  • 3
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  Frontiers for Young Minds vol. 12 no. 1122119 |
    Publication Date: 2024-06-13
    Description: Lots of creatures live in coral reefs, including some tiny ones you might never have heard of. In this article, we will tell you about the importance of Foraminifera (also called forams), unicellular organisms with shells, that contribute to coral reefs in many ways. Just like corals, some forams living on the seafloor live closely together with microalgae. Some forams also thrive in similar environmental conditions (sunlight, temperature, salt) as corals. For this reason, forams can be used as reef “sensors”, to keep track of the overall health of coral reefs. They can even help to detect poor environmental conditions that might harm coral growth in the future. In this article, we will look at a study of an Indonesian reef ecosystem in which the foram communities living on the seafloor were monitored between 1997 and 2018.
    Repository Name: National Museum of Natural History, Netherlands
    Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
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  • 4
    Publication Date: 2024-01-03
    Description: As an expansion of a time-series study on meiobenthos in the Arctic deep sea, the diversity of free-living nematode communities along nine stations along a bathymetric transect was investigated morphologically in taxonomic and functional regards (feeding-type composition, life-history traits, tail-shape composition) and compared with previous studies of the same transect to investigate possible changes in the nematode community composition. Special emphasis was given on the analysis of sedimentary environmental parameters, which are used as proxies for food availability and sediment porosity. Multivariate statistics performed on nematode abundance data revealed a bathymetric zonation into four bathymetric zones: upper bathyal (1300 – 2000 m), lower bathyal (2500 - 3500 m), abyssal (5100 – 5600 m) and an additional ‘outgroup’ consisting of two stations with low nematode densities. Nematode densities generally decreased with increasing depth. Taxonomic diversity (EG〈jats:sub〉(50)〈/jats:sub〉, H’〈jats:sub〉(log2)〈/jats:sub〉, J’) decreased in a unimodal pattern peaking in the lower bathyal zone. A distance-based linear model revealed that 44% of the total variation in nematode abundances could be explained by the measured environmental parameters. Microbial feeders are the dominant feeding type along the transect with increasing dominance in the abyssal zone. The maturity index, a measure of environmental disturbance, decreased with depth, indicating a more colonizer-dominated community in the abyssal zone. Nematodes with long conico-cylindrical tails also become more dominant in the abyssal zone. A previous study of the same transect conducted in 2005 found a similar bathymetric zonation, but with a strikingly different dominant feeding type, i.e. epistrate feeders. Between the 2005 study and the year 2010 we conducted our study, the composition of the plankton community in the Fram Strait changed significantly due to a warm water anomaly in the region. We argue that through bentho-pelagic coupling, effects of this warm water anomaly on plankton communities could be a reason for the drastic change in dominant nematode feeding types.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
    Type: Article , peerRev
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  • 5
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution vol. 11 no. 1274762, pp. 1-19
    Publication Date: 2024-01-12
    Description: Modern humans are the only fully terrestrial ape. All other apes are \npartially arboreal, particularly as infants and juveniles. Precocial locomotor \ndevelopment, high frequency of arboreal locomotion in early ontogeny, and \nincreased terrestriality throughout development are ubiquitous amongst the \nhominines and likely represent the ancestral state. The role of climbing in \nhominin evolution has been debated for decades, but if hominins climbed \nregularly then subadults likely relied on it most frequently. Investigating the \nrole of climbing throughout hominin evolution requires reliable developmentally \nplastic traits that are responsive to locomotor loading and can be identified in the \nfossil record. Chimpanzees and gorillas provide a natural experiment to examine \nthe relationship between age-related variation locomotor activities and bone \nstructure. Chimpanzees and gorillas are most arboreal during infancy and \nbecome more terrestrial throughout development. Gorillas are comparatively \nmore terrestrial and transition to predominantly terrestrial locomotion at an \nearlier age. This paper has two main objectives. First, to examine if interspecific \ndifferences in the rate of locomotor development is reflected in bone structure. \nSecond, to determine if ontogenetic reductions in the frequency of arboreal \nlocomotion correspond to age-related variation in bone structure.
    Keywords: ontogeny ; locomotion ; primates ; hominin evolution ; bone ; life history
    Repository Name: National Museum of Natural History, Netherlands
    Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
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  • 6
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  EPIC3Frontiers in Marine Science, Frontiers Media SA, 10, pp. 1082109-1082109, ISSN: 2296-7745
    Publication Date: 2023-03-24
    Description: In the past decades the Arctic has experienced stronger temperature increases than any other region globally. Shifts in hydrological regimes and accelerated permafrost thawing have been observed and are likely to increase mobilization of organic carbon and its transport through rivers into the Arctic Ocean. In order to better quantify changes to the carbon cycle, Arctic rivers such as the Lena River in Siberia need to be monitored closely. Since 2018, a sampling program provides frequent in situ observations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) of the Lena River. Here, we utilize this ground truth dataset and aim to test the potential of frequent satellite observations to spatially and temporally complement and expand these observations. We explored all available overpasses (~3250) of the Ocean and Land Colour Instrument (OLCI) on Sentinel-3 within the ice-free periods (May – October) for four years (2018 to 2021) to develop a new retrieval scheme to derive concentrations of DOC. OLCI observations with a spatial resolution of ~300 m were corrected for atmospheric effects using the Polymer algorithm. The results of this study show that using this new retrieval, remotely sensed DOC concentrations agree well with in situ DOC concentrations (MAPD=10.89%, RMSE=1.55 mg L−1, r²=0.92, n=489). The high revisit frequency and wide swath of OLCI allow it to capture the entire range of DOC concentrations and their seasonal variability. Estimated satellite-derived DOC export fluxes integrated over the ice-free periods of 2018 to 2021 show a high interannual variability and agree well with flux estimates from in situ data (RMSD=0.186 Tg C, MAPD=4.05%). In addition, 10-day OLCI composites covering the entire Lena River catchment revealed increasing DOC concentration and local sources of DOC along the Lena from south to north. We conclude that moderate resolution satellite imagers such as OLCI are very capable of observing DOC concentrations in large/wide rivers such as the Lena River despite the relatively coarse spatial resolution. The global coverage of remote sensing offers the expansion to more rivers in order to improve our understanding of the land-ocean carbon fluxes in a changing climate.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
    Type: Article , isiRev
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  • 7
    Publication Date: 2023-03-09
    Description: 〈jats:p〉Sexually produced juvenile scleractinian corals play a key role in the adaptation process of coral reefs, as they are considered to possess an innate plasticity and thus can adjust to changing environmental parameters within a certain range. In this study we investigated in detail the early life stages of the brooding species 〈jats:italic〉Leptastrea purpurea〈/jats:italic〉 to identify, categorize and visualize the critical steps of the complex transformation process from a swimming coral larva to a sessile coral recruit and later to a coral colony. For that, we performed settlement experiments using previously known cues: cycloprodigiosin (CYPRO) and crustose coralline algae (CCA) as well as novel cues: crude extracts of 〈jats:italic〉Pseudoalteromonas espejiana〈/jats:italic〉 and 〈jats:italic〉P. piscicida〈/jats:italic〉 to identify a general, cue-independent settlement pathway. We monitored the development of 〈jats:italic〉L. purpurea〈/jats:italic〉 over 12 months using bright field and fluorescence microscopy. Also we identified the fluorescence signals of 〈jats:italic〉L. purpurea〈/jats:italic〉 with confocal microscopy at four crucial development steps: (A) swimming larva, (B) metamorphosing larva, (C) coral recruit and (D) adult coral. Our methodological approach allowed us to observe an ontogenetic shift of fluorescence signals which provokes the hypothesis that certain fluorescence patterns might be connected to distinct sequential functions in the early life cycle of scleractinian corals. Our observations showed great similarities to the early development of other brooding and spawning corals, making 〈jats:italic〉L. purpurea〈/jats:italic〉 a prospective candidate to be used as a model organism for coral research. Furthermore, our in-depth picture series provides a robust monitoring reference for coral nurseries or field applications and demonstrates the potential of fluorescence as an indicator to instantly determine the growth stage of a developing coral recruit.〈/jats:p〉
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 8
    Publication Date: 2023-06-23
    Description: Antarctic sea ice prediction has garnered increasing attention in recent years, particularly in the context of the recent record lows of February 2022 and 2023. As Antarctica becomes a climate change hotspot, as polar tourism booms, and as scientific expeditions continue to explore this remote continent, the capacity to anticipate sea ice conditions weeks to months in advance is in increasing demand. Spurred by recent studies that uncovered physical mechanisms of Antarctic sea ice predictability and by the intriguing large variations of the observed sea ice extent in recent years, the Sea Ice Prediction Network South (SIPN South) project was initiated in 2017, building upon the Arctic Sea Ice Prediction Network. The SIPN South project annually coordinates spring-to-summer predictions of Antarctic sea ice conditions, to allow robust evaluation and intercomparison, and to guide future development in polar prediction systems. In this paper, we present and discuss the initial SIPN South results collected over six summer seasons (December-February 2017-2018 to 2022-2023). We use data from 22 unique contributors spanning five continents that have together delivered more than 3000 individual forecasts of sea ice area and concentration. The SIPN South median forecast of the circumpolar sea ice area captures the sign of the recent negative anomalies, and the verifying observations are systematically included in the 10-90% range of the forecast distribution. These statements also hold at the regional level except in the Ross Sea where the systematic biases and the ensemble spread are the largest. A notable finding is that the group forecast, constructed by aggregating the data provided by each contributor, outperforms most of the individual forecasts, both at the circumpolar and regional levels. This indicates the value of combining predictions to average out model-specific errors. Finally, we find that dynamical model predictions (i.e., based on process-based general circulation models) generally perform worse than statistical model predictions (i.e., data-driven empirical models including machine learning) in representing the regional variability of sea ice concentration in summer. SIPN South is a collaborative community project that is hosted on a shared public repository. The forecast and verification data used in SIPN South are publicly available in near-real time for further use by the polar research community, and eventually, policymakers.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 9
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  EPIC3Frontiers in Marine Science, Frontiers Media SA, 10, pp. 1092939-1092939, ISSN: 2296-7745
    Publication Date: 2023-03-06
    Description: 〈jats:p〉Plastic debris is ubiquitous in all ecosystems and has even reached locations that humans will hardly reach such as the deep ocean floor and the atmosphere. Research has highlighted that plastic debris is now pervasive even in remote Arctic regions. While modeling projections indicated local sources and long-distance transport as causes, empirical data about its origin and sources are scarce. Data collected by citizen scientists can increase the scale of observations, especially in such remote regions. Here, we report abundance and composition data of marine debris collected by citizen scientists on 14 remote Arctic beaches on the Spitsbergen archipelago. In addition, citizen scientists collected three large, industrial sized canvas bags (hereafter: big packs), filled with beached debris, of which composition, sources and origin were determined. A total debris mass of 1,620 kg was collected on about 38,000 m〈jats:sup〉2〈/jats:sup〉 (total mean = 41.83 g m〈jats:sup〉-2〈/jats:sup〉, SEM = ± 31.62). In terms of abundance, 23,000 pieces of debris were collected on 25,500 m〈jats:sup〉2〈/jats:sup〉 (total mean = 0.37 items of debris m〈jats:sup〉-2〈/jats:sup〉, SEM = ± 0.17). Although most items were plastic in both abundance and mass, fisheries waste, such as nets, rope, and large containers, dominated in mass (87%), and general plastics, such as packaging and plastic articles, dominated in abundance (80%). Fisheries-related debris points to local sea-based sources from vessels operating in the Arctic and nearby. General plastics could point to both land- and ship based sources, as household items are also used on ships and debris can be transported to the north 〈jats:italic〉via〈/jats:italic〉 the oceans current. Overall, 1% of the items (206 out of 14,707 pieces) collected in two big packs (2017 and 2021), bore imprints or labels allowing an analysis of their origin. If the categories ‘global’ and ‘English language’ were excluded, most of identifiable items originated from Arctic states (65%), especially from Russia (32%) and Norway (16%). But almost a third of the items (30%) was of European provenance, especially from Germany (8%). Five percent originated from more distant sources (e.g. USA, China, Korea, Brazil). Global measures such as an efficient and legally binding plastic treaty with improved upstream measures and waste management are urgently needed, to lower the amount of plastic entering our environments and in turn lifting the pressure on the Arctic region and its sensitive biota.〈/jats:p〉
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 10
    Publication Date: 2023-02-22
    Description: 7 Figures, 20 pages
    Description: The search of hardware-compatible strategies for solving NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems (COPs) is an important challenge of today s computing research because of their wide range of applications in real world optimization problems. Here, we introduce an unconventional scalable approach to face maximum satisfiability problems (Max-SAT) which combines probabilistic computing with p-bits, parallel tempering, and the concept of invertible logic gates. We theoretically show the spintronic implementation of this approach based on a coupled set of Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equations, showing a potential path for energy efficient and very fast (p-bits exhibiting ns time scale switching) architecture for the solution of COPs. The algorithm is benchmarked with hard Max-SAT instances from the 2016 Max-SAT competition (e.g., HG-4SAT-V150-C1350-1.cnf which can be described with 2851 p-bits), including weighted Max-SAT and Max-Cut problems.
    Description: Published
    Description: 024052
    Description: 3IT. Calcolo scientifico
    Description: JCR Journal
    Keywords: Physics - Mesoscopic Systems and Quantum Hall Effect; Physics - Mesoscopic Systems and Quantum Hall Effect
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
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  • 11
    Publication Date: 2023-04-17
    Description: We utilize a nudged simulation with the coupled regional atmosphere-ocean-sea ice model HIRHAM–NAOSIM over the Arctic to conduct an in-depth analysis of the impact of a sequence of three intense cyclones on the sea ice cover in the Barents and Kara Seas in February 2020. To clarify the underlying mechanisms we decompose changes in sea ice concentration (SIC) and thickness (SIT) into their dynamic and thermodynamic contributions and analyze them in concert with simulated changes in the wind forcing and the surface energy budget. Our findings reveal that changes in SIT during and after the cyclone passages are mostly driven by dynamic processes such as increased ice drift and deformation. With respect to SIC, the relative importance of dynamics and thermodynamics depends on the considered time scale and on the general conditions of the cyclone passages. If cyclones follow on each other in rapid succession, dynamic mechanisms dominate the SIC response for time scales of more than 2 weeks and thermodynamic effects via advection of warm-moist/cold-dry air masses on the cyclone’s front/back side only play a secondary role. However, if sufficiently long time elapses until the arrival of the next storm, thermodynamic SIC increase due to refreezing under the influence of cold and dry air at the backside of the cyclone becomes the dominating mechanism during the days following the cyclone passage.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 12
    Publication Date: 2023-01-04
    Description: Despite the well-known limitations of linear stability theory in describing nonlinear and turbulent flows, it has been found to accurately capture the transitions between certain nonlinear flow behavior. Specifically, the transition in heat flux scaling in rotating convective flows can be well predicted by applying a linear stability analysis to simple profiles of a convective boundary layer. This fact motivates the present study of the linear mechanisms involved in the stability properties of simple convective setups subject to rotation. We look at an idealized two-layer setup and gradually add complexity by including rotation, a bounded domain, and viscosity. The two-layer setup has the advantage of allowing for the use of wave interaction theory, traditionally applied to understand stratified and homogeneous shear flow instabilities, in order to quantify the various physical mechanisms leading to the growth of convective instabilities. We quantitatively show that the physical mechanisms involved in the stabilization of convection by rotation take two different forms acting within the stratified interfacial region, and in the homogeneous mixed layers. The latter of these we associate with the tendency of a rotating flow to develop Taylor columns (TCs). This TC mechanism can lead to both a stabilization or destabilization of the instability and varies depending on the parameters of the problem. A simple criterion is found for classifying the influence of these physical mechanisms.
    Type: Article , PeerReviewed
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  • 13
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  EPIC3Frontiers in Earth Science, Frontiers Media SA, 10, pp. 814027-814027, ISSN: 2296-6463
    Publication Date: 2023-05-25
    Description: The energy and mass balance of mountain glaciers translate into volume changes that play out as area changes over time. From this, together with former moraines during maximum advances, information on past climate conditions and the climatic drivers behind during glacier advances can be obtained. Here, we use the distributed COupled Snowpack and Ice surface energy and mass balance model in PYthon (COSIPY) to simulate the present state of an Italian glacier, named Fürkeleferner, for the mass balance years 2013–2017. Next, we investigate the local climate during the time of the last “Little Ice Age” (LIA) maximum glacier advance using COSIPY together with the LIA glacier outline retrieved from moraine mapping and a digital elevation model (DEM) adapted for the glacier’s geometry at the time of the LIA as a benchmark. Furthermore, the glacier’s sensitivity to future air temperature increase of +1 K and +2 K is investigated using the same model. For all simulations, meteorological data of closely located climate stations are used to force the model. We show the individual monthly contribution of individual energy and mass balance components. Refreezing during the summer months is an important component of the energy and mass balance, on average about 9 % relative to total annual ablation. The results from simulating past climate show a 2.8 times larger glacier area for Fürkeleferner during the LIA than today. This further implies a 2.5 K colder climate, assuming that the amount of precipitation was 10 %–20 % in excess of today’s value. Concerning further temperature increase of 2 K, the glacier would only consist of the ablation area implying sustained mass loss and eventual total mass loss. Even under current climatic conditions, the glacier area would have to decrease to 17 % of its current area to be in a steady state. We discuss the reliability of the results by comparing simulated present mass balance to measured mass balances of neighboring glaciers in the European Alps and with short-term measurements on Fürkeleferner itself. In conclusion, we are able to show how the glacier responds to past and future climate change and determine the climatic drivers behind.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 14
    Publication Date: 2023-01-24
    Description: The concepts of CO2 emission, global warming, climate change, and their environmental impacts are of utmost importance for the understanding and protection of the ecosystems. Among the natural sources of gases into the atmosphere, the contribution of geogenic sources plays a crucial role. However, while subaerial emissions are widely studied, submarine outgassing is not yet well understood. In this study, we review and catalog 122 literature and unpublished data of submarine emissions distributed in ten coastal areas of the Aegean Sea. This catalog includes descriptions of the degassing vents through in situ observations, their chemical and isotopic compositions, and flux estimations. Temperatures and pH data of surface seawaters in four areas affected by submarine degassing are also presented. This overview provides useful information to researchers studying the impact of enhanced seawater CO2 concentrations related either to increasing CO2 levels in the atmosphere or leaking carbon capture and storage systems.
    Description: Published
    Description: 775247
    Description: 6V. Pericolosità vulcanica e contributi alla stima del rischio
    Description: JCR Journal
    Keywords: CO2 emissions ; submarine gas vents ; geogenic degassing ; environmental impac ; Greek Islands ; gas flux
    Repository Name: Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
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  • 15
    Publication Date: 2023-06-21
    Description: 〈jats:p〉Persistent cold temperatures, a paucity of nutrients, freeze-thaw cycles, and the strongly seasonal light regime make Antarctica one of Earth’s least hospitable surface environments for complex life. Cyanobacteria, however, are well-adapted to such conditions and are often the dominant primary producers in Antarctic inland water environments. In particular, the network of meltwater ponds on the ‘dirty ice’ of the McMurdo Ice Shelf is an ecosystem with extensive cyanobacteria-dominated microbial mat accumulations. This study investigated intact polar lipids (IPLs), heterocyte glycolipids (HGs), and bacteriohopanepolyols (BHPs) in combination with 16S and 18S rRNA gene diversity in microbial mats of twelve ponds in this unique polar ecosystem. To constrain the effects of nutrient availability, temperature and freeze-thaw cycles on the lipid membrane composition, lipids were compared to stromatolite-forming cyanobacterial mats from ice-covered lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys as well as from (sub)tropical regions and hot springs. The 16S rRNA gene compositions of the McMurdo Ice Shelf mats confirm the dominance of Cyanobacteria and Proteobacteria while the 18S rRNA gene composition indicates the presence of Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, Ciliophora, and other microfauna. IPL analyses revealed a predominantly bacterial community in the meltwater ponds, with archaeal lipids being barely detectable. IPLs are dominated by glycolipids and phospholipids, followed by aminolipids. The high abundance of sugar-bound lipids accords with a predominance of cyanobacterial primary producers. The phosphate-limited samples from the (sub)tropical, hot spring, and Lake Vanda sites revealed a higher abundance of aminolipids compared to those of the nitrogen-limited meltwater ponds, affirming the direct affects that N and P availability have on IPL compositions. The high abundance of polyunsaturated IPLs in the Antarctic microbial mats suggests that these lipids provide an important mechanism to maintain membrane fluidity in cold environments. High abundances of HG keto-ols and HG keto-diols, produced by heterocytous cyanobacteria, further support these findings and reveal a unique distribution compared to those from warmer climates.〈/jats:p〉
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 16
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    Frontiers Media SA
    In:  EPIC3Frontiers in Physiology, Frontiers Media SA, 13, pp. 809929-, ISSN: 1664-042X
    Publication Date: 2023-06-21
    Description: 〈jats:p〉Climate change combined with anthropogenic stressors (e.g. overfishing, habitat destruction) may have particularly strong effects on threatened populations of coastal invertebrates. The collapse of the population of European lobster (〈jats:italic〉Homarus gammarus〈/jats:italic〉) around Helgoland constitutes a good example and prompted a large-scale restocking program. The question arises if recruitment of remaining natural individuals and program-released specimens could be stunted by ongoing climate change. We examined the joint effect of ocean warming and acidification on survival, development, morphology, energy metabolism and enzymatic antioxidant activity of the larval stages of the European lobster. Larvae from four independent hatches were reared from stage I to III under a gradient of 10 seawater temperatures (13–24°C) combined with moderate (∼470 µatm) and elevated (∼1160 µatm) seawater 〈jats:italic〉p〈/jats:italic〉CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 treatments. Those treatments correspond to the shared socio-economic pathways (SSP), SSP1-2.6 and SSP5-8.5 (i.e. the low and the very high greenhouse gas emissions respectively) projected for 2100 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Larvae under the elevated 〈jats:italic〉p〈/jats:italic〉CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 treatment had not only lower survival rates, but also significantly smaller rostrum length. However, temperature was the main driver of energy demands with increased oxygen consumption rates and elemental C:N ratio towards warmer temperatures, with a reducing effect on development time. Using this large temperature gradient, we provide a more precise insight on the aerobic thermal window trade-offs of lobster larvae and whether exposure to the worst hypercapnia scenario may narrow it. This may have repercussions on the recruitment of the remaining natural and program-released specimens and thus, in the enhancement success of future lobster stocks.〈/jats:p〉
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 17
    Publication Date: 2023-06-21
    Description: Arctic amplification (AA) is a coupled atmosphere-sea ice-ocean process. This understanding has evolved from the early concept of AA, as a consequence of snow-ice line progressions, through more than a century of research that has clarified the relevant processes and driving mechanisms of AA. The predictions made by early modeling studies, namely the fall/winter maximum, bottom-heavy structure, the prominence of surface albedo feedback, and the importance of stable stratification have withstood the scrutiny of multi-decadal observations and more complex models. Yet, the uncertainty in Arctic climate projections is larger than in any other region of the planet, making the assessment of high-impact, near-term regional changes difficult or impossible. Reducing this large spread in Arctic climate projections requires a quantitative process understanding. This manuscript aims to build such an understanding by synthesizing current knowledge of AA and to produce a set of recommendations to guide future research. It briefly reviews the history of AA science, summarizes observed Arctic changes, discusses modeling approaches and feedback diagnostics, and assesses the current understanding of the most relevant feedbacks to AA. These sections culminate in a conceptual model of the fundamental physical mechanisms causing AA and a collection of recommendations to accelerate progress towards reduced uncertainty in Arctic climate projections. Our conceptual model highlights the need to account for local feedback and remote process interactions within the context of the annual cycle to constrain projected AA. We recommend raising the priority of Arctic climate sensitivity research, improving the accuracy of Arctic surface energy budget observations, rethinking climate feedback definitions, coordinating new model experiments and intercomparisons, and further investigating the role of episodic variability in AA.
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 18
    Publication Date: 2024-04-20
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 19
    Publication Date: 2024-04-22
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
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  • 20
    Publication Date: 2024-06-21
    Description: 〈jats:p〉Modern pollen–vegetation–climate relationships underpin palaeovegetation and palaeoclimate reconstructions from fossil pollen records. East Siberia is an ideal area for investigating the relationships between modern pollen assemblages and near natural vegetation under cold continental climate conditions. Reliable pollen-based quantitative vegetation and climate reconstructions are still scarce due to the limited number of modern pollen datasets. Furthermore, differences in pollen representation of samples from lake sediments and soils are not well understood. Here, we present a new pollen dataset of 48 moss/soil and 24 lake surface-sediment samples collected in Chukotka and central Yakutia in East Siberia. The pollen–vegetation–climate relationships were investigated by ordination analyses. Generally, tundra and taiga vegetation types can be well distinguished in the surface pollen assemblages. Moss/soil and lake samples contain generally similar pollen assemblages as revealed by a Procrustes comparison with some exceptions. Overall, modern pollen assemblages reflect the temperature and precipitation gradients in the study areas as revealed by constrained ordination analysis. We estimate the relative pollen productivity (RPP) of major taxa and the relevant source area of pollen (RSAP) for moss/soil samples from Chukotka and central Yakutia using Extended 〈jats:italic〉R〈/jats:italic〉-Value (ERV) analysis. The RSAP of the tundra-forest transition area in Chukotka and taiga area in central Yakutia are ca. 1300 and 360 m, respectively. For Chukotka, RPPs relative to both Poaceae and Ericaceae were estimated while RPPs for central Yakutia were relative only to Ericaceae. Relative to Ericaceae (reference taxon, RPP = 1), 〈jats:italic〉Larix〈/jats:italic〉, 〈jats:italic〉Betula〈/jats:italic〉, 〈jats:italic〉Picea〈/jats:italic〉, and 〈jats:italic〉Pinus〈/jats:italic〉 are overrepresented while 〈jats:italic〉Alnus〈/jats:italic〉, Cyperaceae, Poaceae, and 〈jats:italic〉Salix〈/jats:italic〉 are underrepresented in the pollen spectra. Our estimates are in general agreement with previously published values and provide the basis for reliable quantitative reconstructions of East Siberian vegetation.〈/jats:p〉
    Repository Name: EPIC Alfred Wegener Institut
    Type: Article , NonPeerReviewed
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  • 21
    Publication Date: 2024-06-13
    Description: Shallow-water rhodolith beds are rare in the Mediterranean Sea and generally poorly known. The Punta de la Mona rhodolith bed extends for 16,000 square meters in shallow and oligotrophic waters at the southern coast of Spain, off Almuñecar in the Alborán Sea. We present a detailed analysis of the structure (rhodolith cover and density, rhodolith size and shape, sediment granulometry) and morphospecies composition of the bed along a depth gradient. A stratified sampling was carried out at six depths (9, 12, 15, 18, 21, and 24 m), estimating rhodolith cover and abundance; rhodoliths were collected from one 30 by 30 cm quadrat for each transect, resulting in 18 samples and a total of 656 rhodoliths. The collected rhodoliths were measured and the coralline algal components identified morphoanatomically through a stereomicroscope and SEM. Sediment on the seafloor mainly consisted of pebbles and cobbles; the highest rhodolith cover occurred between 15 and 18 m, and the lowest at the shallowest and deepest transects (9 and 24 m). Mean Rhodolith size was similar throughout the depth range (23–35 mm) with a slight increase at 24 m, although the largest rhodoliths occurred at 21 m. In monospecific rhodoliths, size depended more on the forming species than on depth. We found 25 non-geniculate coralline morphospecies, nearly all rhodolith-forming morphospecies reported in the Mediterranean Sea in recent accounts. The highest morphospecies richness (18–19) and proportional abundance were found at intermediate depths (15–18 m), where rhodolith cover is also highest. Lithophyllum incrustans and Lithophyllum dentatum dominated at shallow depths (9–12 m), whereas Lithothamnion valens was the dominant species at intermediate and greater depths. Overall, the latter species was the most common in the rhodolith bed. The shallow-water rhodolith bed in Punta de la Mona is probably the most diverse in the Mediterranean Sea. This highlights the importance of the conservation of this habitat and, in general, emphasizes the role of the Alborán Sea as a diversity center of coralline algae. The Punta de la Mona example contradicts the common assumption in the geological literature that rhodolith beds are indicative of oligophotic environments with high nutrients levels.
    Keywords: coralline red algae ; depth-gradient patterns ; rhodolith cover and size ; rhodolith diversity ; Alboran sea
    Repository Name: National Museum of Natural History, Netherlands
    Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
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  • 22
    Publication Date: 2024-06-13
    Description: Traditional morphological methods for species identification are highly time consuming, especially for small organisms, such as Foraminifera, a group of shell-building microbial eukaryotes. To analyze large amounts of samples more efficiently, species identification methods have extended to molecular tools in the last few decades. Although a wide range of phyla have good markers available, for Foraminifera only one hypervariable marker from the ribosomal region (18S) is widely used. Recently a new mitochondrial marker cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) has been sequenced. Here we investigate whether this marker has a higher potential for species identification compared to the ribosomal marker. We explore the genetic variability of both the 18S and COI markers in 22 benthic foraminiferal morphospecies (orders Miliolida and Rotaliida). Using single-cell DNA, the genetic variability within specimens (intra) and between specimens (inter) of each species was assessed using next-generation sequencing. Amplification success rate was twice as high for COI (151/200 specimens) than for 18S (73/200 specimens). The COI marker showed greatly decreased intra- and inter-specimen variability compared to 18S in six out of seven selected species. The 18S phylogenetic reconstruction fails to adequately cluster multiple species together in contrast to COI. Additionally, the COI marker helped recognize misclassified specimens difficult to morphologically identify to the species level. Integrative taxonomy, combining morphological and molecular characteristics, provides a robust picture of the foraminiferal species diversity. Finally, we suggest the use of a set of sequences (two or more) to describe species showing intra-genomic variability additionally to using multiple markers. Our findings highlight the potential of the newly discovered mitochondrial marker for molecular species identification and metabarcoding purposes.
    Keywords: protist ; high-throughput sequencing ; metabarcoding ; intra-genomic variation ; benthic foraminifera
    Repository Name: National Museum of Natural History, Netherlands
    Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
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  • 23
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: A new transducer based on a screen-printed carbon electrode has been developed for the quantification of thiram. Detection of this fungicide is based on the performance of two enzymes: (1) aldehyde dehydrogenase catalyzes the aldehyde oxidation using NAD+ as a cofactor and simultaneously, (2) diaphorase reoxidizes the NADH formed in the first enzymatic process due to the presence of hexacyanoferrate(III) which is reduced to hexacyanoferrate(II). Taking into account that aldehyde dehydrogenase is inhibited by thiram, the current decreases with pesticide concentration and thiram can be electrochemically quantified below legal limits. The transducer proposed in this work involves the modification of the carbon WE with the co-factors (NAD+ and hexacyanoferrate(III)) required in the enzymatic system. The new device employed in this work allows the detection of 0.09 ppm thiram, a concentration below legal limits (Maximum Residue Limits 0.1–10 ppm).
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-9040
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 24
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: This paper studies the power of online search intensity metrics, measured by Google, for examining and forecasting exchange rates. We use panel data consisting of quarterly time series from 2004 to 2018 and ten international countries with the highest currency trading volume. Newly, we include various Google search intensity metrics to our panel data. We find that online search improves the overall econometric models and fits. First, four out of ten search variables are robustly significant at one percent and enhance the macroeconomic exchange rate models. Second, country regressions corroborate the panel results, yet the predictive power of search intensity with regard to exchange rates vary by country. Third, we find higher prediction performance for our exchange rate models with search intensity, particularly in regard to the direction of the exchange rate. Overall, our approach reveals a value-added of search intensity in exchange rate models.
    Print ISSN: 1911-8066
    Electronic ISSN: 1911-8074
    Topics: Economics
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  • 25
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: Daily use of wholegrain foods is generally recommended due to strong epidemiological evidence of reduced risk of chronic diseases. Cereal grains, especially the bran part, have a high content of dietary fiber (DF). Cereal DF is an umbrella concept of heterogeneous polysaccharides of variable chemical composition and molecular weight, which are combined in a complex network in cereal cell walls. Cereal DF and its distinct components influence food digestion throughout the gastrointestinal tract and influence nutrient absorption and other physiological reactions. After repeated consumption of especially whole grain cereal foods, these effects manifest in well-demonstrated health benefits. As cereal DF is always consumed in the form of processed cereal food, it is important to know the effects of processing on DF to understand, safeguard and maximize these health effects. Endogenous and microbial enzymes, heat and mechanical energy during germination, fermentation, baking and extrusion destructurize the food and DF matrix and affect the quantity and properties of grain DF components: arabinoxylans (AX), beta-glucans, fructans and resistant starch (RS). Depolymerization is the most common change, leading to solubilization and loss of viscosity of DF polymers, which influences postprandial responses to food. Extensive hydrolysis may also remove oligosaccharides and change the colonic fermentability of DF. On the other hand, aggregation may also occur, leading to an increased amount of insoluble DF and the formation of RS. To understand the structure–function relationship of DF and to develop foods with targeted physiological benefits, it is important to invest in thorough characterization of DF present in processed cereal foods. Such understanding also demands collaborative work between food and nutritional sciences.
    Electronic ISSN: 2304-8158
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 26
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: Railway vehicle makers manufacture the bogie frame by welding medium-strength carbon steel sheets. It has been a long-standing practice to perform post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) to remove welding-residual stress, but rail car manufacturers are moving toward producing bogie frames without PWHT. Since securing the fatigue strength of the bogie frame is essential for vehicle operation safety, it is necessary to systematically evaluate the effects of PWHT on hardness, microstructure, mechanical properties, corrosion, fatigue strength, etc. In this study, small-scale welding specimens and full-size components were produced using S355JR used in general structures, automobiles, shipbuilding, railroad vehicles, etc. The effect of PWHT on material properties-the hardness of the base material, heat-affected zone and weld metal, microstructure, shock absorption energy, yield strength, tensile strength, and fatigue were investigated. When the weld specimen was annealed at 590 °C and 800 °C for 1 h, the yield strength and tensile strength of the specimen decreased, but the elongation increased. For specimens not heat-treated, the parent material’s yield strength, the yield strength in HAZ, and the yield strength of the weld metal were 350 MPa, 345 MPa, and 340 MPa. For specimens heat-treated at 590 °C, they were 350 MPa, 345 MPa, and 340 MPa. For specimens heat-treated at 800 °C, they were 350 MPa, 345 MPa, and 340 MPa. Annealing heat treatment of the specimen at 800 °C homogenized the structure of the weldments similar to that of the base material and slightly improved the shock absorption energy. For specimens not heat-treated, the Charpy impact absorption energies at 20 °C of the parent material and weld metal were 291.5 J and 187 J. For specimens heat-treated at 590 °C, they were 276 J and 166 J. For specimens heat-treated at 800 °C, the Charpy impact absorption energy at 20 °C of the parent material was 299 J. PWHT at 590 °C had the effect of slightly improving the fatigue limit of the specimen but lowered the fatigue limit by 10.8% for the component specimen.
    Electronic ISSN: 2075-4701
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 27
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: The significant growth in the use of the Internet and the rapid development of network technologies are associated with an increased risk of network attacks. Network attacks refer to all types of unauthorized access to a network including any attempts to damage and disrupt the network, often leading to serious consequences. Network attack detection is an active area of research in the community of cybersecurity. In the literature, there are various descriptions of network attack detection systems involving various intelligent-based techniques including machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) models. However, although such techniques have proved useful within specific domains, no technique has proved useful in mitigating all kinds of network attacks. This is because some intelligent-based approaches lack essential capabilities that render them reliable systems that are able to confront different types of network attacks. This was the main motivation behind this research, which evaluates contemporary intelligent-based research directions to address the gap that still exists in the field. The main components of any intelligent-based system are the training datasets, the algorithms, and the evaluation metrics; these were the main benchmark criteria used to assess the intelligent-based systems included in this research article. This research provides a rich source of references for scholars seeking to determine their scope of research in this field. Furthermore, although the paper does present a set of suggestions about future inductive directions, it leaves the reader free to derive additional insights about how to develop intelligent-based systems to counter current and future network attacks.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 28
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: A basic assumption of many scientific theories on the topic of decision making is rational behaviour. However, previous authors assume the existence of behavioural biases in freight transport which impede rational decision making. Hardly any research exists on behavioural biases in freight transport. To address this gap, we carry out a systematic literature review on the influencing factors of freight mode choice and provide empirical evidence for the occurrence of behavioural biases in the logistics sector. Fifteen logistics service providers and six shippers are involved in interviews and a focus group to understand their mode choice process and derive information on the existence of behavioural biases. Several biases showed to exist in the practical decision-making process. For example, decision makers tend to avoid complex options (principle of least effort), they stick to already tried and tested options (status quo bias, zero-risk bias) and they tend to make decisions based on immediate and easily accessible information (availability bias). These biases distort the demand for sustainable freight transport. We therefore conclude with several motivational, cognitive and technological debiasing strategies to reduce the negative impact of behavioural biases in freight transport.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 29
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: The increasing use of magnetic nanoparticles as heating agents in biomedicine is driven by their proven utility in hyperthermia therapeutic treatments and heat-triggered drug delivery methods. The growing demand of efficient and versatile nanoheaters has prompted the creation of novel types of magnetic nanoparticle systems exploiting the magnetic interaction (exchange or dipolar in nature) between two or more constituent magnetic elements (magnetic phases, primary nanoparticles) to enhance and tune the heating power. This process occurred in parallel with the progress in the methods for the chemical synthesis of nanostructures and in the comprehension of magnetic phenomena at the nanoscale. Therefore, complex magnetic architectures have been realized that we classify as: (a) core/shell nanoparticles; (b) multicore nanoparticles; (c) linear aggregates; (d) hybrid systems; (e) mixed nanoparticle systems. After a general introduction to the magnetic heating phenomenology, we illustrate the different classes of nanoparticle systems and the strategic novelty they represent. We review some of the research works that have significantly contributed to clarify the relationship between the compositional and structural properties, as determined by the synthetic process, the magnetic properties and the heating mechanism.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 30
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Textile effluent containing azo dyes such as C.I. Acid Violet 1 (AV1) can be degraded to toxic aromatic amines in the environment. Thus, there is a legitimate need to treat such effluents before they are discharged to surface waters. Two methods were proposed to remove AV1 from aqueous solutions: adsorption and advanced oxidation processes (AOPs). The sorption capacity of the strongly basic anion exchanger Purolite A520E of the polystyrene matrix determined from the Langmuir isotherm model was found to be 835 mg/g, while that of Lewatit S5428 of the polyacrylamide matrix Freundlich model seems to be more appropriate for describing the experimental data. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model and external diffusion are the rate limiting steps of adsorption. The removal efficiency of AV1 by the anion exchangers was higher than 99% after 40 min of phase contact time. AOPs involved the usage of hydrogen peroxide and peracetic acid (PAA) as oxidizing agents, while Fe2+ and simulated sunlight were used as oxidizing activators. AV1 oxidation followed the pseudo-first-order kinetics, and the systems with the highest values of the rate constants turned out to be those in which Fe2+ was present. The efficiency of oxidation measured by the degree of decolorization in the systems with Fe2+ was higher than 99% after 10–60 min. AV1 mineralization was slower, but after 120 min of oxidation it was higher than 98% in the H2O2/Fe2+, PAA/Fe2+ and PAA/Fe2+/sunlight systems.
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-9717
    Topics: Biology , Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 31
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: This paper presents the results of an experimental program aimed at the assessment of the freeze–thaw (F–T) resistance of concrete based on the evaluation of fracture tests accompanied by acoustic emission measurements. Two concretes of similar mechanical characteristics were manufactured for the experiment. The main difference between the C1 and C2 concrete was in the total number of air voids and in the A300 parameter, where both parameters were higher for C1 by about 35% and 52%, respectively. The evaluation of the fracture characteristics was performed on the basis of experimentally recorded load–deflection and load–crack mouth opening displacement diagrams using two different approaches: linear fracture mechanics completed with the effective crack model and the double-K model. The results show that both approaches gave similar results, especially if the nonlinear behavior before the peak load was considered. According to the results, it can be stated that continuous AE measurement is beneficial for the assessment of the extent of concrete deterioration, and it suitably supplements the fracture test evaluation. A comparison of the results of fracture tests with the resonance method and splitting tensile strength test shows that all testing methods led to the same conclusion, i.e., the C1 concrete was more F–T-resistant than C2. However, the fracture test evaluation provided more detailed information about the internal structure deterioration due to the F–T exposure.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 32
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: A novel 1D/2D Bi2O2CO3–BiOI heterojunction photocatalyst with high-quality interfaces was synthesized through a hydrothermal method by using Bi2O2CO3 nanorods and KI as raw materials. Two-dimensional (2D) BiOI nanosheets uniformly and vertically grow on the 1D porous Bi2O2CO3 rods. Bi2O2CO3–BiOI heterojunctions exhibit better photocatalytic activity than pure Bi2O2CO3 nanorods and BiOI nanosheets. Cr(VI) (30 mg/L), MO (20 mg/L) and BPA (20 mg/L) can be completely degraded in 8–15 min. The superior photocatalytic performance of 1D/2D Bi2O2CO3–BiOI heterojunction is ascribed to the synergistic effects: (a) vertical 2D on 1D multidimensional structure; (b) the formation of the Bi2O2CO3–BiOI p–n heterojunction; (c) high-quality interfaces between Bi2O2CO3 and BiOI.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4344
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 33
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Energy Transition (ET) needs actors to perform independent actions on multiple levels of governance. These actors may need to write and read their data, and at the same time they want to protect their data from unauthorized access. This is particularly the case for positive energy districts (PED), a growing trend in the EU that requires actors to perform, write and read operations on a neighborhood scale where governance competences are typically absent. This paper presents a decentralized privacy-aware data management framework that enables actors to store, read, and modify data in PEDs. Our framework design integrates blockchain with a Distributed Hash Table (DHT), role-based access control, ring signature, and different encryption techniques. The proposed framework stores encrypted data on the DHT, and metadata and hash key are sent to the blockchain, which allows the data owner to keep track of their data. The proposed framework components handle multi-level data access in PEDs and enable data security at run-time. Moreover, we show security and privacy analysis and performance evaluation in time overhead. The results show that the proposed solution is effective, secure, and scalable.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1073
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 34
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Copper(II) complexes with 1,1,1-trifluoro-4-(4-methoxyphenyl)butan-2,4-dione (HL1) were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR spectroscopy, and single crystal X-ray diffraction. The biological properties of HL1 and cis-[Cu(L1)2(DMSO)] (3) were examined against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and opportunistic unicellular fungi. The cytotoxicity was estimated towards the HeLa and Vero cell lines. Complex 3 demonstrated antibacterial activity towards S. aureus comparable to that of streptomycin, lower antifungal activity than the ligand HL1 and moderate cytotoxicity. The bioactivity was compared with the activity of compounds of similar structures. The effect of changing the position of the methoxy group at the aromatic ring in the ligand moiety of the complexes on their antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity was explored. We propose that complex 3 has lower bioavailability and reduced bioactivity than expected due to strong intermolecular contacts. In addition, molecular docking studies provided theoretical information on the interactions of tested compounds with ribonucleotide reductase subunit R2, as well as the chaperones Hsp70 and Hsp90, which are important biomolecular targets for antitumor and antimicrobial drug search and design. The obtained results revealed that the complexes displayed enhanced affinity over organic ligands. Taken together, the copper(II) complexes with the trifluoromethyl methoxyphenyl-substituted β-diketones could be considered as promising anticancer agents with antibacterial properties.
    Electronic ISSN: 1420-3049
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 35
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Physical activity is associated with enhanced sleep quality and optimal body composition, as well as a reduction in cardiovascular risk factors in the general population. Although earlier research has established a link between physical exercise and excellent sleep quality as well as an optimum BMI in adults, little is known about the relationship in the young adult populations. The purpose of this study is to discover if there is a relationship between sleep quality, blood pressure, waist circumference, socio-demographic variables with physical activity among young adult in Kuala Lumpur. A cross-sectional sample of 120 university students was recruited for this study. Physical activity and sleep quality were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, respectively. Blood pressure, Body mass index, and waist circumference were also measured. Approximately 36% of university students engage in moderate to vigorous physical exercise. The average physical activity was 2430.37 ± 2509.16 MET-minutes each week, which meets the minimal need. The median difference in MET-minutes per week between gender was not significant, with males having greater MET than females (p 〉 0.05). However, there was no statistically significant variation in MET-minutes each week between study year and mode of transportation. (p 〉 0.05). Approximately 40.3% of university students were classified as having good sleep quality. The average sleep quality is 5.37 ± 2.38, indicating that the students have slightly a poor sleep quality. There was no statistically significant variation in sleep score between gender, year of study, and mode of transportation (p 〉 0.05). The waist circumference (WC) has a significant relationship with body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). According to multinomial logistic regression, there was a significant association between level of physical activity (PA) and BMI and year of study when comparing moderate and low PA. Physical activity is essential because it may alter a young adult’s lifestyle, encouraging active commuting to work or other short-distance destinations. Attention must be given to this particular population to encourage regular and sustainable participation in physical activity to achieve lifelong health benefits. Other variables, such as body fat, energy intake, stress level and muscle mass, can also be examined for future research.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 36
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: Exercise plays an important role in rehabilitating people with chronic low back pain. Aerobic exercise and resistance training are general exercise strategies to manage chronic low back pain, but these strategies require longer intervention period to achieve clinical outcomes in pain reduction and functional improvements. Directional preference is recognised as an important exercise strategy in managing low back pain. The Clinical Pilates exercise method leverages on the directional preference of an individual to achieve clinical outcomes faster. Clinical Pilates is a hybrid of two of the best exercise interventions for low back pain, which are general Pilates and the McKenzie method. Due to the scarcity of Clinical Pilates literature, a review of its theory and studies was undertaken to provide a structured guide to the technique in managing people with chronic low back pain. Hypothetical algorithms are developed to support translation into clinical practice and future research studies. These algorithms are useful in the management of complex cases involving multiple directional trauma. Although limited, current evidence suggests that the Clinical Pilates exercise method is safe and provides faster functional recovery in the early stage of rehabilitation and similar longer term outcomes as general exercises.
    Electronic ISSN: 2079-7737
    Topics: Biology
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  • 37
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: The uncertainties in quality evaluations of rock mass are embedded in the underlying multi-source data composed by a variety of testing methods and some specialized sensors. To mitigate this issue, a proper method of data-driven computing for quality evaluation of rock mass based on the theory of multi-source data fusion is required. As the theory of multi-source data fusion, Dempster–Shafer (D-S) evidence theory is applied to the quality evaluation of rock mass. As the correlation between different rock mass indices is too large to be ignored, belief reinforcement and Murphy’s average belief theory are introduced to process the multi-source data of rock mass. The proposed method is designed based on RMR14, one of the most widely used quality-evaluating methods for rock mass in the world. To validate the proposed method, the data of rock mass is generated randomly to realize the data fusion based on the proposed method and the conventional D-S theory. The fusion results based on these two methods are compared. The result of the comparison shows the proposed method amplifies the distance between the possibilities at different ratings from 0.0666 to 0.5882, which makes the exact decision more accurate than the other. A case study is carried out in Daxiagu tunnel in China to prove the practical value of the proposed method. The result shows the rock mass rating of the studied section of the tunnel is in level III with the maximum possibility of 0.9838, which agrees with the geological survey report.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 38
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Estimation of probability density functions (pdf) is considered an essential part of statistical modelling. Heteroskedasticity and outliers are the problems that make data analysis harder. The Cauchy mixture model helps us to cover both of them. This paper studies five different significant types of non-parametric multivariate density estimation techniques algorithmically and empirically. At the same time, we do not make assumptions about the origin of data from any known parametric families of distribution. The method of the inversion formula is made when the cluster of noise is involved in the general mixture model. The effectiveness of the method is demonstrated through a simulation study. The relationship between the accuracy of evaluation and complicated multidimensional Cauchy mixture models (CMM) is analyzed using the Monte Carlo method. For larger dimensions (d ~ 5) and small samples (n ~ 50), the adaptive kernel method is recommended. If the sample is n ~ 100, it is recommended to use a modified inversion formula (MIDE). It is better for larger samples with overlapping distributions to use a semi-parametric kernel estimation and more isolated distribution-modified inversion methods. For the mean absolute percentage error, it is recommended to use a semi-parametric kernel estimation when the sample has overlapping distributions. In the smaller dimensions (d = 2) and a sample is with overlapping distributions, it is recommended to use the semi-parametric kernel method (SKDE) and for isolated distributions, it is recommended to use modified inversion formula (MIDE). The inversion formula algorithm shows that with noise cluster, the results of the inversion formula improved significantly.
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-7390
    Topics: Mathematics
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  • 39
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Mycotic keratitis is common in warm, humid regions with a varying profile of pathogenic fungi according to geographical origin, socioeconomic status, and climatic condition. Clinical diagnosis can be challenging in difficult cases and those refractory to treatment. Fungal hyphae on microscopic examination and culture isolation have been the gold standard in the laboratory diagnosis of fungal keratitis. A culture isolate of the aetiological fungus is essential to perform antifungal susceptibility testing. As the culture isolation of fungi is time-consuming, causing delays in the initiation of treatment, newer investigative modalities such as in vivo confocal microscopy and molecular diagnostic methods have recently gained popularity. Molecular diagnostic techniques now help to obtain a rapid diagnosis of fungal keratitis. Genomic approaches are based on detecting amplicons of ribosomal RNA genes, with internal transcribed spacers being increasingly adopted. Metagenomic deep sequencing allows for rapid and accurate diagnosis without the need to wait for the fungus to grow. This is also helpful in identifying new emerging strains of fungi causing mycotic keratitis. A custom-tear proteomic approach will probably play an important diagnostic role in future in the management of mycotic keratitis. Positive repeat cultures are being suggested as an important gauge indicative of a poor prognosis. Positive repeat fungal cultures help to modify a treatment regimen by increasing its frequency, providing the addition of another topical and oral antifungal agent along with close follow-up for perforation and identifying need for early therapeutic keratoplasty. The role of collagen crosslinking in the treatment of fungal keratitis is not convincingly established. Rapid detection by multiplex PCR and antifungal susceptibility testing of the pathogenic fungi, adopted into a routine management protocol of fungal keratitis, will help to improve treatment outcome. Early therapy is essential in minimizing damage to the corneal tissue, thereby providing a better outcome. The role of conventional therapy with polyenes, systemic and targeted therapy of antifungal agents, newer azoles and echinocandins in fungal keratitis has been widely studied in recent times. Combination therapy can be more efficacious in comparison to monotherapy. Given the diversity of fungal aetiology, the emergence of new corneal pathogenic fungi with varying drug susceptibilities, increasing the drug resistance to antifungal agents in some genera and species, it is perhaps time to adopt recent molecular methods for precise identification and incorporate antifungal susceptibility testing as a routine.
    Electronic ISSN: 2309-608X
    Topics: Biology
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  • 40
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Mastering the lodging risk of planting environment is of great significance to the optimal layout of maize varieties and the breeding of lodging resistant varieties. However, the existing lodging risk models are still at the stage of single or multi-factors independent analysis, and lack of assessment for different lodging types. To address this issue, based on the mechanism of different lodging types, the Archimedean copula function was used to describe the joint probability distribution of wind speed and precipitation, and the lodging risk assessment model of maize was established. By comparing the goodness of fit, when the rank correlation coefficient of these two is positive and negative, the corresponding optimal joint probability distribution functions are the Gumbel copula and Frank copula. According to the spatial distribution of lodging risk, the area from Liaodong Bay northward to Tongyu, Jilin province in the Northeast and the North China Plain has a high frequency of lodging, in which the probability of stalk lodging is two to four times that of root lodging. Finally, we discussed how to apply the lodging risk distribution results to optimize the maize variety test sites to improve the efficiency and reliability of the existing test system. The method proposed in this paper comprehensively considers the synergistic effect of multiple factors and can provide technical support for other risk assessment.
    Electronic ISSN: 2220-9964
    Topics: Architecture, Civil Engineering, Surveying , Geosciences
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  • 41
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: The intent of this review is to survey physiological, psychological, and societal obstacles to the control of eating and body weight maintenance and offer some evidence-based solutions. Physiological obstacles are genetic and therefore not amenable to direct abatement. They include an absence of feedback control against gaining weight; a non-homeostatic relationship between motivations to be physically active and weight gain; dependence of hunger and satiation on the volume of food ingested by mouth and processed by the gastrointestinal tract and not on circulating metabolites and putative hunger or satiation hormones. Further, stomach size increases from overeating and binging, and there is difficulty in maintaining weight reductions due to a decline in resting metabolism, increased hunger, and enhanced efficiency of energy storage. Finally, we bear the evolutionary burden of extraordinary human capacity to store body fat. Of the psychological barriers, human craving for palatable food, tendency to overeat in company of others, and gullibility to overeat when offered large portions, can be overcome consciously. The tendency to eat an unnecessary number of meals during the wakeful period can be mitigated by time-restricted feeding to a 6–10 hour period. Social barriers of replacing individual physical work by labor-saving appliances, designing built environments more suitable for car than active transportation; government food macronutrient advice that increases insulin resistance; overabundance of inexpensive food; and profit-driven efforts by the food industry to market energy-dense and nutritionally compromised food are best overcome by informed individual macronutrient choices and appropriate timing of exercise with respect to meals, both of which can decrease insulin resistance. The best defense against overeating, weight gain, and inactivity is the understanding of factors eliciting them and of strategies that can avoid and mitigate them.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-6643
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition , Process Engineering, Biotechnology, Nutrition Technology
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  • 42
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Aquafaba (AQ) emulsification properties are determined by genetics and seed processing conditions. The physicochemical properties and hydration rates of chickpea (CDC Leader) as a control with proven emulsifying properties were recently reported. Here, we identify correlations between soybean (Backtae, Seoritae, and Jwinunikong) physical, chemical, and hydration properties as well as AQ yield from seed and functional (emulsion and foaming) properties. In addition, a total of 20 compounds were identified by NMR including alcohols (isopropanol, ethanol, methanol), organic acids (lactic acid, acetic acid, succinic acid, citric acid, and malic acid), sugars (glucose, galactose, arabinose, sucrose, raffinose, stachyose), essential nutrients (choline, phosphocholine), amino acids (alanine, glutamine), and polyphenols (resveratrol, glycitin). The process used in this study utilizes a soaking step to hydrate the seed of the selected Korean soybean cultivars. The product, AQ, is an oil emulsifier and foaming agent, which is suitable for use as an egg substitute with improved emulsion/foam formation properties when compared with a chickpea-based AQ.
    Electronic ISSN: 2304-8158
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 43
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Aluminothermic combustion synthesis was conducted with Fe2O3–Al–Fe–Si reaction systems under Fe/Si stoichiometry from Fe-20 to Fe-50 at. % Si to investigate the formation Fe3Si/FeSi–Al2O3 composites. The solid-state combustion was sufficiently exothermic to sustain the overall reaction in the mode of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). Dependence of iron silicide phases formed from SHS on Fe/Si stoichiometry was examined. Experimental evidence indicated that combustion exothermicity and flame-front velocity were affected by the Si percentage. According to the X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, Fe3Si–Al2O3 composites were synthesized from the reaction systems with Fe-20 and Fe-25 at.% Si. The increase of Si content led to the formation of both Fe3Si and FeSi in the final products of Fe-33.3 and Fe-40 at.% Si reaction systems, and the content of FeSi increased with Si percentage. Further increase of Si to Fe-50 at.% Si produced the FeSi–Al2O3 composite. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images revealed that the fracture surface morphology of the products featured micron-sized and nearly spherical Fe3Si and FeSi particles distributing over the dense and connecting substrate formed by Al2O3.
    Electronic ISSN: 2075-4701
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 44
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: A generalized proportional vector-order fractional derivative in the Caputo sense is defined and studied. Two types of existence results for the mild solutions of the initial value problem for nonlinear Caputo-type generalized proportional vector-order fractional differential equations are obtained. With the aid of the Leray–Schauder nonlinear alternative and the Banach contraction principle, the main results are established. In the case of a local Lipschitz right hand side part function, the existence of a bounded mild solution is proved. Some examples illustrating the main results are provided.
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-7390
    Topics: Mathematics
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  • 45
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Over the last decades, growing interest has been devoted to employees’ perceptions of Human Resource Management Practices because of their positive influence on individual attitudes and behaviors as well as on organizational performance. Furthermore, assuming the mutual benefits coming from a people-based management of the human capital in organizations, both in terms of employees’ increased motivation, engagement and commitment, and consequently enhanced performance and competitive advantage, recent research in the field concentrated on the impact of HRM practices perceptions on some distinctive individual attitudes and behaviors driving the success of organizations especially in times of radical change like the present ones. Moving from these assumptions, the aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between HRM practices perception and objective career success, considering the mediating role played by employability and extra-role behaviors. Participants were 960 Italian employees who filled an online self-report questionnaire available through the web platform Google Forms. The questionnaire encompassed socio-demographic information and self-report scales assessing the study variables. Results showed that HRM practices perception was positively related to employability, objective career success, and extra-role behaviors. Implications for theory and practice, limitations, and future research directions were also discussed.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 46
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Traffic congestion and the occurrence of traffic accidents are problems that can be mitigated by applying cooperative adaptive cruise control (CACC). In this work, we used deep reinforcement learning for CACC and assessed its potential to outperform model-based methods. The trade-off between distance-error minimization and energy consumption minimization whilst still ensuring operational safety was investigated. Alongside a string stability condition, robustness against burst errors in communication also was incorporated, and the effect of preview information was assessed. The controllers were trained using the proximal policy optimization algorithm. A validation by comparison with a model-based controller was performed. The performance of the trained controllers was verified with respect to the mean energy consumption and the root mean squared distance error. In our evaluation scenarios, the learning-based controllers reduced energy consumption in comparison to the model-based controller by 17.9% on average.
    Electronic ISSN: 2076-0825
    Topics: Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology , Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 47
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Regardless of the efforts of the European Union, freshwaters are in a state of environmental crisis. The Water Framework Directive has established a basis for the protection and restoration of European inland and coastal waters. In parallel, the Birds and Habitats Directives protect, maintain or restore, at favourable conservation status, selected species and habitats under a representative network of protected areas. Hence, the interplay between the EU regulations is of high scientific interest and practical relevance. In this article, Greece is used as a case study to explore whether anticipated synergies between the Water Framework Directive and the Nature Directives result in a better ecological status in the protected areas than in the non-protected ones. We investigated whether the ecological qualities that are defined by three biological quality elements (BQEs) differ between the WFD monitoring sites that are located within the Natura 2000 protected areas and those that are not. We identified a total of 148 river monitoring sites that are located within the Natura 2000 network, which corresponds to 30% of the WFD monitoring network. By employing ordered logit models for each BQE, we found that the ecological quality has the same likelihood to fail the WFD target of “good” quality for sites that are located within and outside the Natura 2000 protected areas. Our results confirmed our hypothesis that the EU directives have little synergy when it comes to restoration of ecological status of Greek running waters, according to the WFD.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 48
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Curcumin positively affects performance during exercise and subsequent recovery. However, curcumin has limited bioavailability unless consumed in larger doses. In the current study, we examined the impact of a new formulation of curcumin, Next-Generation Ultrasol Curcumin (NGUC), which is relatively more bioavailable than natural curcumin on exhaustion time, grip strength, muscle damage parameters, and serum and muscle proteins. A total of 28 rats were randomly grouped as control (C, non-supplemented), exercise (E, non-supplemented), E+NGUC100 (supplemented with 100 mg/kg BW NGUC), and E+NGUC200 (supplemented with 200 mg/kg NGUC). Grip strength and exhaustion time were increased with NGUC supplementation (p 〈 0.0001). Creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), lactic acid (LA), myoglobin, malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations were reduced in serum, and muscle tissue in NGUC supplemented groups (p 〈 0.05). In contrast, NGUC supplementation elevated the antioxidant enzyme levels compared to the non-supplemented exercise group (p 〈 0.01). Additionally, inflammatory cytokines were inhibited with NGUC administration (p 〈 0.05). NGUC decreased PGC-1α, p-4E-BP1, p-mTOR, MAFbx, and MuRF1 proteins in muscle tissue (p 〈 0.05). These results indicate that NGUC boosts exercise performance while reducing muscle damage by targeting antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and muscle mass regulatory pathways.
    Electronic ISSN: 2076-3921
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 49
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: The simple act of walking can occasionally cause ankle sprains. Traditionally, the rehabilitation of a sprained ankle involves physical therapy. Physical therapy is one of the health professions that help regain mobility through manual exercises. Aquatic therapy is one of the most potent water-based anti-inflammatory methods currently employed that increases local blood circulation, decreases pain and swelling, and promotes speedy healing. Several studies have demonstrated that ankle rehabilitation robots have immense potential in patients’ rehabilitation and recovery; however, these robots cannot be used underwater. This paper introduces the design, development, and control of a therapeutic robot incorporating aquatic therapy for ankle rehabilitation. Its primary objective is to design and control a one degree of freedom ankle rehabilitation robot that can be used in water and can recirculate hot water to simultaneously perform physical therapy and aquatic therapy. To conduct this study, an ankle rehabilitation robot was designed, modeled, developed, and controlled. The design and control techniques were evaluated by means of simulation and experimental results.
    Electronic ISSN: 2075-1702
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 50
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Calmodulin (CaM), as an important factor in the calcium signaling pathway, is widely involved in plant growth and development regulation and responses to external stimuli. In this study, the full-length sequence of the ScCaM gene (GenBank: GQ246454) was isolated from the leaves of a Saccharum spp. hybrid. Prokaryotic expression showed that ScCaM could be solubly expressed and purified in Escherichia coli BL21. Subcellular localization confirmed that ScCaM was localized in the plasma membrane and nucleus of cells. A quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis revealed that ScCaM can be induced by various stresses, including sodium chloride (NaCl), chromium trichloride (CrCl3), salicylic acid (SA), and methyl jasmonate (MeJA). Ectopic expression in Arabidopsis thaliana demonstrated that ScCaM can affect the growth and development of transgenic plants. Moreover, the qRT-PCR analysis indicated that the overexpression of the allogenic ScCaM gene inhibits the expression of AtSTM, leading to the phenomenon of multiple-tillering in transgenic A. thaliana. The present study provided valuable information and facilitates further investigation into the function of ScCaM in the future.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4395
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition , Economics
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  • 51
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Effective gas dispersion and liquid mixing are significant parameters in the design of an inert-particle spouted-bed reactor (IPSBR) system. Solid particles can be used to ensure good mixing and an efficient rate of mass and heat transfer between the gas and liquid. In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) coupled with the discrete phase model (DPM) were developed to investigate the effect of the feed gas velocity (0.5–1.5 m/s), orifice diameter (0.001–0.005 m), gas head (0.15–0.35 m), particle diameter (0.009–0.0225 m), and mixing-particle-to-reactor-volume fraction (2.0–10.0 vol.%) on the solid mass concentration, average solid velocity, and average solid volume fraction in the upper, middle, and conical regions of the reactor. Statistical analysis was performed using a second-order response surface methodology (RSM) with central composite design (CCD) to obtain the optimal operating conditions. Selected parameters were optimized to maximize the responses in the middle and upper regions, and minimize them in the conical region. Such conditions produced a high interfacial area and fewer dead zones owing to good particle dispersion. The optimal process variables were feed gas velocity of 1.5 m/s, orifice diameter of 0.001 m, gas head of 0.2025 m, a particle diameter of 0.01 m, and a particle load of 0.02 kg. The minimum average air velocity and maximum air volume fraction were observed under the same operating conditions. This confirmed the novelty of the reactor, which could work at a high feed gas velocity while maintaining a high residence time and gas volume fraction.
    Electronic ISSN: 2227-9717
    Topics: Biology , Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 52
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are innovative biopharmaceutical products in which a monoclonal antibody is linked to a small molecule drug with a stable linker. Most of the ADCs developed so far are for treating cancer, but there is enormous potential for using ADCs to treat other diseases. Currently, ten ADCs have been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and more than 90 ADCs are under worldwide clinical development. Monoclonal antibodies have evolved from research tools to powerful therapeutics in the past 30 years. Tremendous strides have been made in antibody discovery, protein bioengineering, formulation, and delivery devices. This manuscript provides an overview of the biology, chemistry, and biophysical properties of each component of ADC design. This review summarizes the advances and challenges in the field to date, with an emphasis on antibody conjugation, linker-payload chemistry, novel payload classes, drug-antibody ratio (DAR), and product development. The review emphasizes the lessons learned in the development of oncology antibody conjugates and look towards future innovations enabling other therapeutic indications. The review discusses resistance mechanisms to ADCs, and give an opinion on future perspectives.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4468
    Topics: Biology , Chemistry and Pharmacology , Medicine
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  • 53
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are emerging therapeutic tools but there are barriers to their translation to clinical practice. Key issues concern the specificity of the targets, the delivery of the molecules, and their stability, while avoiding “on-target” and “off-target” side effects. In this “ncRNA in therapeutics” issue, we collect several studies of the differential expression of ncRNAs in cardiovascular diseases, bone metabolism-related disorders, neurology, and oncology, and their potential to be used as biomarkers or therapeutic targets. Moreover, we review recent advances in the use of antisense ncRNAs in targeted therapies with a particular emphasis on their basic biological mechanisms, their translational potential, and future trends.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 54
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: The aim of this work is to investigate niche variations in endemic Silene velutina (Caryophyllaceae, Angiosperms) on Mediterranean islands that differ in size. Six populations on both large and small islands were sampled across the geographic range of the species. For each population, 10 plots (1 × 2 m, with a 25 cm grill) were randomly placed to quantify environmental (abiotic and biotic factors and disturbance) and population (demographic structure and reproductive success) parameters. Niche parameters related to substrate, plant cover, community diversity and composition and disturbance showed significant variation in relation to island size. At the regional scale, we detected a broader niche on large islands associated with spatial heterogeneity and island size. In contrast, at the local scale, populations on small islands showed a broader niche, potentially due to a release from competition (low diversity and plant cover and absence of phanerophytes). Populations on large islands had a demographic structure biased towards vegetative individuals (seedlings and juveniles) with few reproductive individuals, while those on small islands had a majority of adults. Together, the results on niche breadth and demographic structure concord with the idea of a strategy based on adult persistence on small islands.
    Electronic ISSN: 2223-7747
    Topics: Biology
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  • 55
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Opioids are widely used as therapeutic agents against moderate to severe acute and chronic pain. Still, these classes of analgesic drugs have many potential limitations as they induce analgesic tolerance, addiction and numerous behavioural adverse effects that often result in patient non-compliance. As opium and opioids have been traditionally used as painkillers, the exact mechanisms of their adverse reactions over repeated use are multifactorial and not fully understood. Older adults suffer from cancer and non-cancer chronic pain more than younger adults, due to the physiological changes related to ageing and their reduced metabolic capabilities and thus show an increased number of adverse reactions to opioid drugs. All clinically used opioids are μ-opioid receptor agonists, and the major adverse effects are directly or potentially connected to this receptor. Multifunctional opioid ligands or peripherally restricted opioids may elicit fewer adverse effects, as shown in preclinical studies, but these results need reproducibility from further extensive clinical trials. The current review aims to overview various mechanisms involved in the adverse effects induced by opioids, to provide a better understanding of the underlying pathophysiology and, ultimately, to help develop an effective therapeutic strategy to better manage pain.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8247
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 56
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Hot pepper (Capsicum annum L.) is a major spice crop and is used worldwide for its nutritional value. In the field, its plant is susceptible to various fungal diseases, including fusarium wilt, caused by soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. capsici, which can survive in the soil for several years. The infected plant can be recognized by the yellowing of older leaves and downward curling of apical shoots, followed by plant wilting and ultimately the death of the plant. The resistance mechanism in plants is controlled by a single dominant gene, and conventional plant breeding techniques are used to develop a wilt-resistant germplasm. Non-conventional techniques such as gene pyramiding and expression enhancement of antifungal genes could be used to shorten the time to develop resistance against fusarium wilt in hot peppers. In this review, we discuss different aspects of the disease and the molecular basis of resistance in chili/hot pepper plants. Furthermore, this review covers the scope of conventional and non-conventional breeding strategies and different management approaches used to tackle the disease.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4395
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition , Economics
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  • 57
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Background: Several immunotherapy (IT) agents are FDA approved for treatment of melanoma and non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The addition of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) or stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) to immunotherapy looks promising. A systematic review was conducted to evaluate the possible synergistic effects of immune checkpoints inhibitors (ICIs) and stereotactic radiation therapy in melanoma and NSCLC. Materials and methods: Pubmed databases from January 2010 to December 2020 were reviewed to identify English language studies reporting control of local and abscopal effect of the combination of ICI-SBRT/SRS in metastatic NSCLC and melanoma cancer. The inclusion criteria were followed according to PICO criteria. Results: Thirty-nine articles were included of the 2141 initial results. The reported rates for local control were 16.5–100% and 40–94% in brain and extracerebral metastases, respectively. Distant/abscopal response rates were 1–45% in extracerebral metastases. Abscopal effect could not be evaluated in brain metastases because it was not reported in studies. Treatments were well tolerated with few grade 4 toxicities and no grade 5. Conclusions: The combined treatment of ICI-SBRT/SRS achieves high local control and non-negligible abscopal response in patients with extracerebral metastases, with its benefit in cerebral metastases being more controversial. Clinical trials are needed to better characterize the potential synergism.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 58
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: We are reporting on the impact of air annealing temperatures on the physicochemical properties of electrochemically synthesized cadmium selenium telluride (CdSe0.6Te0.4) samples for their application in a photoelectrochemical (PEC) solar cell. The CdSe0.6Te0.4 samples were characterized with several sophisticated techniques to understand their characteristic properties. The XRD results presented the pure phase formation of the ternary CdSe0.6Te0.4 nanocompound with a hexagonal crystal structure, indicating that the annealing temperature influences the XRD peak intensity. The XPS study confirmed the existence of Cd, Se, and Te elements, indicating the formation of ternary CdSe0.6Te0.4 compounds. The FE-SEM results showed that the morphological engineering of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 samples can be achieved simply by changing the annealing temperatures from 300 to 400 °C with intervals of 50 °C. The efficiencies (ƞ) of the CdSe0.6Te0.4 photoelectrodes were found to be 2.0% for the non-annealed and 3.1, 3.6, and 2.5% for the annealed at 300, 350, and 400 °C, respectively. Most interestingly, the PEC cell analysis indicated that the annealing temperatures played an important role in boosting the performance of the photoelectrochemical properties of the solar cells.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 59
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Feature Pyramid Network (FPN) is used as the neck of current popular object detection networks. Research has shown that the structure of FPN has some defects. In addition to the loss of information caused by the reduction of the channel number, the features scale of different levels are also different, and the corresponding information at different abstract levels are also different, resulting in a semantic gap between each level. We call the semantic gap level imbalance. Correlation convolution is a way to alleviate the imbalance between adjacent layers; however, how to alleviate imbalance between all levels is another problem. In this article, we propose a new simple but effective network structure called Scale-Equalizing Feature Pyramid Network (SEFPN), which generates multiple features of different scales by iteratively fusing the features of each level. SEFPN improves the overall performance of the network by balancing the semantic representation of each layer of features. The experimental results on the MS-COCO2017 dataset show that the integration of SEFPN as a standalone module into the one-stage network can further improve the performance of the detector, by ∼1AP, and improve the detection performance of Faster R-CNN, a typical two-stage network, especially for large object detection APL∼2AP.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 60
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The exposure to extreme temperatures in workplaces involves physical hazards for workers. A poorly acclimated worker may have lower performance and vigilance and therefore may be more exposed to accidents and injuries. Due to the incompatibility of the existing standards implemented in some workplaces and the lack of thermoregulation in many types of protective equipment that are commonly fabricated using various types of polymeric materials, thermal stress remains one of the most frequent physical hazards in many work sectors. However, many of these problems can be overcome with the use of smart textile technologies that enable intelligent thermoregulation in personal protective equipment. Being based on conductive and functional polymeric materials, smart textiles can detect many external stimuli and react to them. Interconnected sensors and actuators that interact and react to existing risks can provide the wearer with increased safety, protection, and comfort. Thus, the skills of smart protective equipment can contribute to the reduction of errors and the number and severity of accidents in the workplace and thus promote improved performance, efficiency, and productivity. This review provides an overview and opinions of authors on the current state of knowledge on these types of technologies by reviewing and discussing the state of the art of commercially available systems and the advances made in previous research works.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4360
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics , Process Engineering, Biotechnology, Nutrition Technology
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  • 61
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Several investigations on senescence and its causative role in aging have underscored the importance of developing senotherapeutics, a field focused on killing senescent cells and/or preventing their accumulation within tissues. Using polyphenols in counteracting senescence may facilitate the development of senotherapeutics given their presence in the human diet, their confirmed tolerability and absence of severe side effects, and their role in preventing senescence and inducing the death of senescent cells. Against that background, we evaluated the effect of piceatannol, a natural polyphenol, on the senescence of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), which play a key role in the body’s homeostasis. Among our results, piceatannol reduced the number of senescent cells both after genotoxic stress that induced acute senescence and in senescent replicative cultures. Such senotherapeutics activity, moreover, promoted the recovery of cell proliferation and the stemness properties of MSCs. Altogether, our findings demonstrate piceatannol’s effectiveness in counteracting senescence by targeting its associated pathways and detecting and affecting P53-dependent and P53-independent senescence. Our study thus suggests that, given piceatannol’s various mechanisms to accomplish its pleiotropic activities, it may be able to counteract any senescent phenotypes.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 62
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Hypoxia is the leading cause of death in cardiomyocytes. Cells respond to oxygen deprivation by activating cytoprotective programs, such as mitochondrial connexin43 (mCx43) overexpression and the opening of mitochondrial KATP channels, aimed to reduce mitochondrial dysfunction. In this study we used an in vitro model of CoCl2-induced hypoxia to demonstrate that mCx43 and KATP channels cooperate to induce cytoprotection. CoCl2 administration induces apoptosis in H9c2 cells by increasing mitochondrial ROS production, intracellular and mitochondrial calcium overload and by inducing mitochondrial membrane depolarization. Diazoxide, an opener of KATP channels, reduces all these deleterious effects of CoCl2 only in the presence of mCx43. In fact, our results demonstrate that in the presence of radicicol, an inhibitor of Cx43 translocation to mitochondria, the cytoprotective effects of diazoxide disappear. In conclusion, these data confirm that there exists a close functional link between mCx43 and KATP channels.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 63
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis (Linford and Oliveira), remains a common, widespread nematode pest of cotton across the southern United States. Trials were conducted during 2017 at three non-irrigated locations: one location in Hamilton, MS, and two locations in Tchula, MS, in field settings with a history of cotton production and documented economically-damaging reniform nematode populations. Trials were designed to evaluate the response of two cotton cultivars to in-furrow nematicides consisting of aldicarb, 1,3-dichloropropene, and a non-treated control applied for nematode suppression. No significant interactions between cotton cultivar and nematicide were observed. However, treatment with 1,3-dichloropropene produced greater plant biomass, and plant height compared to aldicarb-treated cotton and the nontreated. Nematode densities were suppressed with the use of 1,3-dichloropropene compared to aldicarb and the non-treated control. The use of 1,3-dichloropropene resulted in positive early-season plant growth responses; however, these responses did not translate into greater yield.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4395
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition , Economics
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  • 64
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: This paper is focused on the analysis of unfairness of random media access in Local Operating Networks (LON), which is one of the commercial platforms of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). The unfairness in accessing the LON channel is introduced by a collision avoidance mechanism in the predictive p-persistent CSMA protocol adopted at the media access control layer. The study on the bandwidth share in predictive p-persistent CSMA calls for the analysis of multiple memoryless backoff. In this paper, it is shown that the channel access in LON systems is unfair in the short term for medium traffic load conditions, and in the long term for heavy loaded networks. Furthermore, it is explained that the average bandwidth allocated to a particular node is determined implicitly by the load scenario, while an actual node bandwidth fluctuates in time according to stochastic dynamics of the predictive p-persistent CSMA. Next, it is formally proven that the average bandwidth available to a node is a linear function of its backoff state and does not depend on backoff states of the other stations. Finally, it is demonstrated that possibly unfair bandwidth share in LON networks determined implicitly by load scenario is stable because, with lowering a fraction of actual network bandwidth accessible by a given station, the probability to decrease it in the future also drops.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 65
    Publication Date: 2021-10-28
    Description: For the sound field reconstruction of large conical surfaces, current statistical optimal near-field acoustic holography (SONAH) methods have relatively poor applicability and low accuracy. To overcome this problem, conical SONAH based on cylindrical SONAH is proposed in this paper. Firstly, elementary cylindrical waves are transformed into those suitable for the radiated sound field of the conical surface through cylinder-cone coordinates transformation, which forms the matrix of characteristic elementary waves in the conical spatial domain. Secondly, the sound pressure is expressed as the superposition of those characteristic elementary waves, and the superposition coefficients are solved according to the principle of superposition of wave field. Finally, the reconstructed conical pressure is expressed as a linear superposition of the holographic conical pressure. Furthermore, to overcome ill-posed problems, a regularization method combining truncated singular value decomposition (TSVD) and Tikhonov regularization is proposed. Large singular values before the truncation point of TSVD are not processed and remaining small singular values representing high-frequency noise are modified by Tikhonov regularization. Numerical and experimental case studies are carried out to validate the effectiveness of the proposed conical SONAH and the combined regularization method, which can provide reliable evidence for noise monitoring and control of mechanical systems.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8220
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology
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  • 66
    Publication Date: 2021-08-01
    Print ISSN: 0036-0279
    Electronic ISSN: 1468-4829
    Topics: Mathematics
    Published by Institute of Physics
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  • 67
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Peptides are increasingly being developed for use as therapeutics to treat many ailments, including cancer. Therapeutic peptides have the advantages of target specificity and low toxicity. The anticancer effects of a peptide can be the direct result of the peptide binding its intended target, or the peptide may be conjugated to a chemotherapy drug or radionuclide and used to target the agent to cancer cells. Peptides can be targeted to proteins on the cell surface, where the peptide–protein interaction can initiate internalization of the complex, or the peptide can be designed to directly cross the cell membrane. Peptides can induce cell death by numerous mechanisms including membrane disruption and subsequent necrosis, apoptosis, tumor angiogenesis inhibition, immune regulation, disruption of cell signaling pathways, cell cycle regulation, DNA repair pathways, or cell death pathways. Although using peptides as therapeutics has many advantages, peptides have the disadvantage of being easily degraded by proteases once administered and, depending on the mode of administration, often have difficulty being adsorbed into the blood stream. In this review, we discuss strategies recently developed to overcome these obstacles of peptide delivery and bioavailability. In addition, we present many examples of peptides developed to fight cancer.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4409
    Topics: Biology
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  • 68
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Two of the main problems encountered in flexible pavements are the stripping of coarse aggregates and the formation of rut depth due to increases in the volume of road traffic and heavy vehicle loads, especially in areas where speeds are low. The existence of rut depth also affects the comfort and safety of road users due to the water accumulation on the pavement surface and reducing tire/pavement friction, which can lead to hydroplaning phenomena. In this research, it was proven that the use of fillers of different origins influences the affinity between aggregates and the binder. The effect of an adhesion promoter in the mix design (such as the amine included in cellulosic fiber pellets) was also studied. Several tests were carried out to determine the binder/aggregate adhesiveness, water sensitivity and resistance to permanent deformation, to evaluate the performance of different blends. It was found that the addition of this additive increased 10% of the aggregate surfaces covered with bitumen when compared with the aggregates without this addition. As expected, the water sensitivity tests showed that the mixture with granitic filler had the lowest indirect tensile strength ratio (ITSR) value (70%), while the mixtures with limestone filler led to the highest percentages (ranging from 83 to 93%). As for the results of the wheel tracking tests (WTT), it was confirmed that the use of limestone filler translates into an improvement in the performance against the permanent deformation of the asphalt mixtures. The mixture with higher bitumen content and adhesion promoter revealed the best average results.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 69
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Musculoskeletal ailments affect millions of people around the world and place a high burden on healthcare. Traditional treatment modalities are limited and do not address underlying pathologies. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as an exciting therapeutic alternative and Wharton’s jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJSCs) are some of these. This review reports the clinical and functional outcomes of the applications of WJSCs in orthopedic surgery. A systematic review was conducted utilizing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The studies that used culture-expanded, mesenchymal stem or stromal cells, MSCs and/or connective tissues procured from Wharton’s jelly (WJ), from January 2010 to October 2021, were included. Conventional non-operative therapies and placebos were used as comparisons. Six studies that directly discussed WJSCs use in an animal model or the basic scientific testing using an injury model were identified. Five publications studied cartilage injury, three studied degenerative disc disease, one was related to osteoarthritis, and one was related to osteochondral defects. The results of these studies suggested the benefits of WJSCs in the management of these orthopedic pathologies. To adequately assess the safety and efficacy of WJSCs in orthopedic surgery, further randomized controlled clinical studies are necessary.
    Electronic ISSN: 1424-8247
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 70
  • 71
    Publication Date: 2021-10-26
    Description: Copolymers based on 4,4′-dihydroxydiphenyl, phenolphthalein and 4,4′-dichlorodiphenyl sulfone were synthesized by the method of high temperature polycondensation. The structure of the synthesized copolymers was confirmed by IR spectroscopy. Their physical, mechanical and thermal properties were investigated. It is shown that increases in the content of carded fragments lead to higher glass transition temperatures and heat resistance of the copolymers, as well as higher elastic and strength properties.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4360
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics , Process Engineering, Biotechnology, Nutrition Technology
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  • 72
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: A novel, environmentally friendly, fast, and flexible polishing process for Nitinol parts is presented in this study. Nitinol samples with both superelastic and shape memory properties at room temperature were investigated. The chemical contamination and surface roughness of superelastic Nitinol plates were examined before and after plasma electrolytic polishing. The shift in phase transformation temperature and tensile strength before and after the polishing process were analysed using Nitinol wire with shape memory properties. The obtained experimental results were compared to the data obtained on reference samples examined in the as-received condition. It was found that plasma electrolytic polishing, when the right process parameters are applied, is capable of delivering Nitinol parts with extremely high surface quality. Moreover, it was experimentally proven that plasma electrolytic polishing does not have a negative impact on functionality or mechanical properties of polished parts.
    Electronic ISSN: 1996-1944
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 73
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Voltage-dependent anion channels (VDACs) are highly conserved proteins that are involved in the translocation of tRNA and play a key role in modulating plant senescence and multiple pathways. However, the functions of VDACs in plants are still poorly understood. Here, a novel VDAC gene was isolated and identified from alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.). MsVDAC localized to the mitochondria, and its expression was highest in alfalfa roots and was induced in response to cold, drought and salt treatment. Overexpression of MsVDAC in tobacco significantly increased MDA, GSH, soluble sugars, soluble protein and proline contents under cold and drought stress. However, the activities of SOD and POD decreased in transgenic tobacco under cold stress, while the O2- content increased. Stress-responsive genes including LTP1, ERD10B and Hxk3 were upregulated in the transgenic plants under cold and drought stress. However, GAPC, CBL1, BI-1, Cu/ZnSOD and MnSOD were upregulated only in the transgenic tobacco plants under cold stress, and GAPC, CBL1, and BI-1 were downregulated under drought stress. These results suggest that MsVDAC provides cold tolerance by regulating ROS scavenging, osmotic homeostasis and stress-responsive gene expression in plants, but the improved drought tolerance via MsVDAC may be mainly due to osmotic homeostasis and stress-responsive genes.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4425
    Topics: Biology
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  • 74
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the receptor used by SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 coronaviruses to attach to cells via the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of their viral spike protein. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, several structures of protein complexes involving ACE2 and RBD as well as monoclonal antibodies and nanobodies have become available. We have leveraged the structural data to design peptides to target the interaction between the RBD of SARS-CoV-2 and ACE2 and SARS-CoV and ACE2, as contrasting exemplar, as well as the dimerization surface of ACE2 monomers. The peptides were modelled using our original method: PiPreD that uses native elements of the interaction between the targeted protein and cognate partner(s) that are subsequently included in the designed peptides. These peptides recapitulate stretches of residues present in the native interface plus novel and highly diverse conformations surrogating key interactions at the interface. To facilitate the access to this information we have created a freely available and dedicated web-based repository, PepI-Covid19 database, providing convenient access to this wealth of information to the scientific community with the view of maximizing its potential impact in the development of novel therapeutic and diagnostic agents.
    Print ISSN: 1661-6596
    Electronic ISSN: 1422-0067
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 75
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Protein binding to the non-coding regions of mRNAs is relatively well characterized and its functionality has been described in many examples. New results obtained by high-throughput methods indicate that binding to the coding sequence (CDS) by RNA-binding proteins is also quite common, but the functions thereof are more obscure. As described in this review, CDS binding has a role in the regulation of mRNA stability, but it has also a more intriguing role in the regulation of translational efficiency. Global approaches, which suggest the significance of CDS binding along with specific examples of CDS-binding RBPs and their modes of action, are outlined here, pointing to the existence of a relatively less-known regulatory network controlling mRNA stability and translation on yet another level.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4409
    Topics: Biology
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  • 76
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Print ISSN: 2470-0045
    Electronic ISSN: 2470-0053
    Topics: Physics
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  • 77
    Publication Date: 2021-10-25
    Description: Faced with the biggest virus outbreak in a century, world governments at the start of 2020 took unprecedented measures to protect their healthcare systems from being overwhelmed in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic. International travel was halted and lockdowns were imposed. Many nations adopted measures to stop the transmission of the virus, such as imposing the wearing of face masks, social distancing, and limits on social gatherings. Technology was quickly developed for mobile phones, allowing governments to track people’s movements concerning locations of the virus (both people and places). These are called contact tracing applications. Contact tracing applications raise serious privacy and security concerns. Within Europe, two systems evolved: a centralised system, which calculates risk on a central server, and a decentralised system, which calculates risk on the users’ handset. This study examined both systems from a threat perspective to design a framework that enables privacy and security for contact tracing applications. Such a framework is helpful for App developers. The study found that even though both systems comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Europe’s privacy legislation, the centralised system suffers from severe risks against the threats identified. Experiments, research, and reviews tested the decentralised system in various settings but found that it performs better but still suffers from inherent shortcomings. User tracking and re-identification are possible, especially when users report themselves as infected. Based on these data, the study identified and validated a framework that enables privacy and security. The study also found that the current implementations using the decentralised Google/Apple API do not comply with the framework.
    Electronic ISSN: 2076-3417
    Topics: Natural Sciences in General
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  • 78
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: In the last decades, silk fibroin and wool keratin have been considered functional materials for biomedical applications. In this study, fabrics containing silk fibers from Bombyx mori and Tussah silk fibers from Antheraea pernyi, as well as wool keratin fabrics, were grafted with phosmer CL and phosmer M (commercial names, i.e., methacrylate monomers containing phosphate groups in the molecular side chain) with different weight gains. Both phosmers were recently proposed as flame retarding agents, and their chemical composition suggested a possible application in bone tissue engineering. IR and Raman spectroscopy were used to disclose the possible structural changes induced by grafting and identify the most reactive amino acids towards the phosmers. The same techniques were used to investigate the nucleation of a calcium phosphate phase on the surface of the samples (i.e., bioactivity) after ageing in simulated body fluid (SBF). The phosmers were found to polymerize onto the biopolymers efficiently, and tyrosine and serine underwent phosphorylation (monitored through the strengthening of the Raman band at 1600 cm−1 and the weakening of the Raman band at 1400 cm−1, respectively). In grafted wool keratin, cysteic acid and other oxidation products of disulphide bridges were detected together with sulphated residues. Only slight conformational changes were observed upon grafting, generally towards an enrichment in ordered domains, suggesting that the amorphous regions were more prone to react (and, sometimes, degrade). All samples were shown to be bioactive, with a weight gain of up to 8%. The most bioactive samples contained the highest phosmers amounts, i.e., the highest amounts of phosphate nucleating sites. The sulphate/sulphonate groups present in grafted wool samples appeared to increase bioactivity, as shown by the five-fold increase of the IR phosphate band at 1040 cm−1.
    Electronic ISSN: 1420-3049
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 79
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Port resilience has become a crucial topic to achieve port sustainability. To assist ports to successfully develop policies to improve resilience, this study aims to develop a framework for measuring port resilience. This paper conceptualizes the framework to assess port resilience based on relevant literature by conducting exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis using 199 samples collected from port stakeholders in South Korea. As a result, it is validated that the framework is a multi-hierarchical structure based on nine factors, i.e., robustness, redundancy, visibility, flexibility, collaboration, agility, information sharing, response, and recovery. Our findings would serve as a theoretical footstep for further studies on the relations between port resilience and sustainability and also contribute to implement policies to strengthen port resilience.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 80
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The manipulation of light intensity by shade nets can lead to exchanges in the phytochemical quality and antioxidants ofsome herbs. This study aimed to determine whether shading by pearl nets (50% shade index) could improve the bioactive compounds in several medicinal herbs such as thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.), marjoram (Origanum majorana L.), oregano (Origanum vulgare L.), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.), and peppermint (Mentha piperita L.), and their correspondingherbal extracts during a four-week maceration process in ethanol. Oregano and thyme provided the highest yield of total extractive substances (TES) from both shaded and non-shaded plants. Among all studied herbs, the highest level of antioxidants, expressed as total phenolic content (TPC) was found in extracts from shaded plants of lemon balm. Herbal extracts produced from non-shaded thyme and marjoram had higher flavonoid contents compared to herbal extracts from shaded plants. Accumulation of the investigated secondary metabolites depends more on the specificity of a plant species rather than light intensity. This study was an initial step in the production of medicinal plants with an increased quantity of antioxidant and other bioactive compounds during the maceration process in extracts, aimed to be used as natural alcoholic productwith added value.
    Electronic ISSN: 2311-7524
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 81
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Electronic ISSN: 2643-1564
    Topics: Physics
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  • 82
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Print ISSN: 2469-9950
    Electronic ISSN: 2469-9969
    Topics: Physics
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  • 83
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Print ISSN: 0031-9007
    Electronic ISSN: 1079-7114
    Topics: Physics
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  • 84
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Electronic ISSN: 2643-1564
    Topics: Physics
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  • 85
  • 86
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Print ISSN: 0022-3727
    Electronic ISSN: 1361-6463
    Topics: Physics
    Published by Institute of Physics
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  • 87
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Recent technological developments have paved the way to the employment of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) for monitoring and exploration activities of marine environments. Traditionally, in information gathering scenarios for monitoring purposes, AUVs follow predefined paths that are not efficient in terms of information content and energy consumption. Informative Path Planning (IPP) represents a valid alternative, defining the path that maximises the gathered information. This work proposes a Genetic Path Planner (GPP), which consists in an IPP strategy based on a Genetic Algorithm, with the aim of generating a path that simultaneously maximises the information gathered and the coverage of the inspected area. The proposed approach has been tested offline for monitoring and inspection applications of Posidonia Oceanica (PO) in three different geographical areas. The a priori knowledge about the presence of PO, in probabilistic terms, has been modelled utilising a Gaussian Process (GP), trained on real marine data. The GP estimate has then been exploited to retrieve an information content of each position in the areas of interest. A comparison with other two IPP approaches has been carried out to assess the performance of the proposed algorithm.
    Electronic ISSN: 2077-1312
    Topics: Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Production Engineering, Mining and Metallurgy, Traffic Engineering, Precision Mechanics
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  • 88
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: In recent years, the production and consumption of thermally modified wood (TMW) has been increasing. Offcuts and other waste generated during TMWs processing into products, as well as already disposed products based on TMWs can be an input recycled raw material for production of particleboards (PBs). In a laboratory, 16 mm thick 3-layer PBs bonded with urea-formaldehyde (UF) resin were produced at 5.8 MPa, 240 °C and 8 s pressing factor. In PBs, the particles from fresh spruce wood and mixed particles from offcuts of pine, beech, and ash TMWs were combined in weight ratios of 100:0, 80:20, 50:50 and 0:100. Thickness swelling (TS) and water absorption (WA) of PBs decreased with increased portion of TMW particles, i.e., TS after 24 h maximally about 72.3% and WA after 24 h maximally about 64%. However, mechanical properties of PBs worsened proportionally with a higher content of recycled TMW—apparently, the modulus of rupture (MOR) up to 55.5% and internal bond (IB) up to 46.2%, while negative effect of TMW particles on the modulus of elasticity (MOE) was milder. Decay resistance of PBs to the brown-rot fungus Serpula lacrymans (Schumacher ex Fries) S.F. Gray increased if they contained TMW particles, maximally about 45%, while the mould resistance of PBs containing TMW particles improved only in the first days of test. In summary, the recycled TMW particles can improve the decay and water resistance of PBs exposed to higher humidity environment. However, worsening of their mechanical properties could appear, as well.
    Electronic ISSN: 1999-4907
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
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  • 89
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Wheat production under rainfed conditions is restrained by water scarcity, elevated temperatures, and lower nutrient uptake due to possible drought. The complex genotype, management, and environment (G × M × E) interactions can obstruct the selection of suitable high yielding wheat cultivars and nitrogen (N) management practices prerequisite to ensure food security and environmental sustainability in arid regions. The agronomic traits, water use efficiency (WUE), and N use efficiencies were evaluated under favorable and unfavorable weather conditions to explore the impacts of G × M × E on wheat growth and productivity. The multi-N rate (0, 70, 140, 210, and 280 kg N ha−1) field experiment was conducted under two weather conditions (favorable and unfavorable) using three wheat cultivars (AUR-809, CHK-50, and FSD-2008) in the Pothowar region of Pakistan. The experiments were laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD), with split plot arrangements having cultivars in the main plot and N levels in the subplot. The results revealed a significant decrease in aboveground biomass, grain yield, crop N-uptake, WUE, and N use efficiency (NUE) by 15%, 22%, 21%, 18%, and 8%, respectively in the unfavorable growing season (2014–2015) as compared to favorable growing season (2013–2014) as a consequence of less rainfall and heat stress during the vegetative and reproductive growth phases, respectively. FSD-2008 showed a significantly higher aboveground biomass, grain yield, crop N-uptake, WUE, and NUE as compared to other wheat cultivars in both years. Besides, N140 appeared as the most suitable dose for wheat cultivars during the favorable growing season. However, any further increase in N application rates beyond N140 showed a non-significant effect on yield and yield components. Conversely, the wheat yield increased significantly up to 74% from N0 to N70 during the unfavorable growing season, and there was no substantial difference between N70–N280. The findings provide opportunities for maximizing yield while avoiding excessive N loss by selecting suitable cultivars and N application rates for rainfed areas of Pothowar Plateau by using meteorological forecasting, amount of summer rainfall, and initial soil moisture content.
    Electronic ISSN: 2223-7747
    Topics: Biology
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  • 90
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Photocatalysis is proven to be the most efficient and environmentally friendly method for the degradation of organic pollutants in water purification. To meet the requirement of large-scale water treatment, there are two important points: One is the lifetime and chemical stability of the photocatalyst material, especially in the complex and harsh aqueous conditions. The other is the ease of synthesis of such photocatalysts with specific nano-morphology. In this work, two common photocatalyst materials, zinc oxide (ZnO) and titanium dioxide (TiO2), are selected to form more sustainable photocatalysts with high chemical stability. This involves the combination of both TiO2 and ZnO in a two-step simple synthesis method. It appears advantageous to exploit the conformal deposition of atomic layer deposition (ALD) to achieve nanometer-thick TiO2 coating on ZnO nanowires (NWs) with a high aspect ratio, which are firmly anchored to a substrate and exhibit a large specific surface area. The high chemical stability of the ALD TiO2 coating has been investigated in detail and proven to be effective under both strong acid and strong alkaline aqueous solutions. In addition, photocatalysis experiments with organic dyes show that via this simple two-step synthesis method, the produced ZnO/TiO2 tandem photocatalysts does indeed exhibit improved chemical stability in a harsh environment, while allowing efficient photodegradation.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4344
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 91
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Floods are a known natural hazard in Germany, but the amount of precipitation and ensuing high death toll and damages after the events especially from 14 to 15 July 2021 came as a surprise. Almost immediately questions about failure in the early warning chains and the effectiveness of the German response emerged, also internationally. This article presents lessons to learn and argues against a blame culture. The findings are based on comparisons with findings from previous research projects carried out in the Rhein-Erft Kreis and the city of Cologne, as well as on discussions with operational relief forces after the 2021 events. The main disaster aspects of the 2021 flood are related to issuing and understanding warnings, a lack of information and data exchange, unfolding upon a situation of an ongoing pandemic and aggravated further by critical infrastructure failure. Increasing frequencies of flash floods and other extremes due to climate change are just one side of the transformation and challenge, Germany and neighbouring countries are facing. The vulnerability paradox also heavily contributes to it; German society became increasingly vulnerable to failure due to an increased dependency on its infrastructure and emergency system, and the ensuing expectations of the public for a perfect system.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4441
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 92
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The aim of the study was to determine the effectiveness of selected seven commercial essential oils (EsO) (grapefruit, lemongrass, tea tree (TTO), thyme, verbena, cajeput, and Litsea cubeba) on isolates of common Central European parasitic fungal species of Fusarium obtained from infected wheat kernels, and to evaluate the oils as potential natural fungicides. The study was conducted in 2 stages. At each stage, the fungicidal activity of EsO (with concentrations of 0.025; 0.05; 0.125; 0.25; 0.50; 1.0, and 2.0%) against Fusarium spp. was evaluated using the disc plate method and zones of growth inhibition were measured. At the first stage, the fungistatic activity of EsO was evaluated against four species of Fusarium from the Polish population (F. avenaceum FAPL, F. culmorum FCPL, F. graminearum FGPL and F. oxysporum FOPL). The correlation coefficient between the mycelial growth rate index (T) and the fungistatic activity (FA) was calculated. At the second stage, on the basis of the mycelium growth rate index, the effectiveness of the EsO in limiting the development of Fusarium isolates from the German population (F. culmorum FC1D, F. culmorum FC2D, F. graminearum FG1D, F. graminearum FG2D and F. poae FP0D) was assessed. The first and second stage results presented as a growth rate index were then used to indicate essential oils (as potential natural fungicides) effectively limiting the development of various common Central European parasitic species Fusarium spp. Finally, the sensitivity of four Fusarium isolates from the Polish population and five Fusarium isolates from the German population was compared. The data were compiled in STATISTICA 13.0 (StatSoft, Inc, CA, USA) at the significance level of 0.05. Fusarium isolates from the German population were generally more sensitive than those from the Polish population. The sensitivity of individual Fusarium species varied. Their vulnerability, regardless of the isolate origin, in order from the most to the least sensitive, is as follows: F. culmorum, F. graminearum, F. poae, F. avenaceum and F. oxysporum. The strongest fungicidal activity, similar to Funaben T, showed thyme oil (regardless of the concentration). Performance of citral oils (lemongrass and Litsea cubeba) was similar but at a concentration above 0.025%.
    Electronic ISSN: 1420-3049
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology
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  • 93
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: This article aims to assess how fiscal and financial incentives and government support conditioned the profitability of Portuguese SMEs between 2010 and 2019. The high tax and financial burdens on SMEs have consequences for sustainability and business development. Thus, the study analyzes different incentives provided by the Portuguese government to ease this burden and improve business profitability. The study uses panel data with fixed effects using five different sources of information from five internal tax grant types, three different European Union program financial subventions, and three national budget-specific expenses. The results obtained suggest that tax incentives influence the profitability of SMEs; however, government incentives do not have any impact. The QREN (financial) incentives positively decide the ROA and negatively impact the ROE, contributing to sustainable performance. Portugal 2020 incentives have a weak effect on the first years, improving in the following years. However, the incentive related to R&D is not relevant. This work aims to contribute to decision making for managers, shareholders, and government entities, allowing them to choose those measures that could increase the company’s added value, and for governments, as a tool to select incentives that will most benefit SMEs’’ profitability. This work identifies the key incentives that impact companies’ profitability.
    Electronic ISSN: 2071-1050
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
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  • 94
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Although the negative effect of social media use among youth on body image and eating concerns has been established, few classroom-based resources that can decrease these effects through targeting social media literacy skills have been developed. This study aimed to test the efficacy of SoMe, a social media literacy body image, dieting, and wellbeing program for adolescents, through a cluster randomized controlled trial. Participants (n = 892; Mage = 12.77, SD = 0.74; range 11–15; 49.5% male) were randomized by school (n = 8) to receive either weekly SoMe (n = 483) or control sessions (lessons as usual; n = 409) over 4 weeks in their classroom. Participants completed surveys at four timepoints (baseline, 1-week post-intervention, and 6- and 12-month follow-up) assessing body dissatisfaction, dietary restraint, strategies to increase muscles (primary outcomes), self-esteem and depressive symptoms (secondary outcomes), and internalization of appearance ideals and appearance comparison (exploratory outcomes). Modest positive intervention effects were found in dietary restraint and depressive symptoms at 6-month follow-up in girls but few positive effects emerged for boys. The findings provide only preliminary support for a social media literacy intervention, but suggest the usefulness of both identifying those who benefit most from a universally delivered intervention and the need to refine the intervention to maximize intervention effects.
    Electronic ISSN: 2072-6643
    Topics: Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition , Process Engineering, Biotechnology, Nutrition Technology
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  • 95
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: Gene mutations in PIK3CA, PIK3R1, KRAS, PTEN, and PPP2R1A commonly detected in type I endometrial cancer lead to PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway activation. Bimiralisib (PQR309), an orally bioavailable selective dual inhibitor of PI3K and mTOR, has been studied in preclinical models and clinical trials. The aim of this study is to evaluate the anticancer effect of PQR309 on endometrial cancer cells. PQR309 decreased cell viability in two-dimensional and three-dimensional cell culture models. PQR309 induced G1 cell cycle arrest and little cell death in endometrial cancer cell lines. It decreased CDK6 expression and increased p27 expression. Using the Proteome Profiler Human XL Oncology Array and Western blot assay, the dual inhibitor could inhibit the expressions of c-Myc and mtp53. KJ-Pyr-9, a c-Myc inhibitor, was used to prove the role of c-Myc in endometrial cancer survival and regulating the expression of mtp53. Knockdown of mtp53 lowered cell proliferation, Akt/mTOR pathway activity, and the expressions of c-Myc. mtp53 silence enhanced PQR309-inhibited cell viability, spheroid formation, and the expressions of p-Akt, c-Myc, and CDK6. This is the first study to reveal the novel finding of the PI3K/mTOR dual inhibitor in lowering cell viability by abolishing the PI3K/Akt/mTOR/c-Myc/mtp53 positive feedback loop in endometrial cancer cell lines.
    Electronic ISSN: 2073-4409
    Topics: Biology
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  • 96
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of high levels of knowledge, positive attitude, and good practice on evidence-based medicine (EBM) and identify the associated factors for practice score on EBM among emergency medicine doctors in Kelantan, Malaysia. This cross-sectional study was conducted in government hospitals in Kelantan. The data were collected from 200 emergency physicians and medical officers in the emergency department using the Noor Evidence-Based Medicine Questionnaire. Simple and general linear regressions analyses using SPSS were performed. A total of 183 responded, making a response rate of 91.5%. Of them, 49.7% had a high level of knowledge, 39.9% had a positive attitude and 2.1% had good practice. Sex, race, the average number of patients seen per day, internet access in workplace, having online quick reference application, and attitude towards EBM were significantly associated with EBM practice scores. It is recommended that appropriate authorities provide emergency doctors with broader access to evidence resources. EBM skill training should be enhanced in the current medical school curriculums.
    Print ISSN: 1661-7827
    Electronic ISSN: 1660-4601
    Topics: Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering , Medicine
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  • 97
    Publication Date: 2021-10-29
    Print ISSN: 2469-9926
    Electronic ISSN: 2469-9934
    Topics: Electrical Engineering, Measurement and Control Technology , Physics
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  • 98
    Publication Date: 2021-10-01
    Print ISSN: 1475-7508
    Electronic ISSN: 1475-7516
    Topics: Physics
    Published by Institute of Physics
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  • 99
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous single-stranded non-coding small RNAs of 20–24 nucleotides and play important roles in many plant biological and metabolic processes. Wax gourd is an important vegetable of Cucurbitacea family, with great economic and medicinal value. Although miRNAs have been extensively studied in model plant species, less is known in wax gourd (Benincasa hispida). In this study, in order to identify miRNAs in wax groud, five independent small RNA libraries were constructed using leaf, root, stem, flower, and fruit of B227. Based on high-throughput Illumina deep sequencing. In total, 422 known and 409 novel miRNAs were identified from five libraries. Comparative analysis revealed that many miRNAs were differentially expressed among different tissues, indicating tissue-specific expression of some miRNAs. qRT-PCR verified the reliability of small RNA sequencing results. Furthermore, miRNAs with similar expression patterns among five tissues were clustered into the same profile, among which many miRNAs were found with relatively high expression in the fruit of wax gourd. MiR164-x had the highest expression in fruit than in other tissues and many NAC transcription factors were predicted as its target genes. We propose that miR164 might regulate fruit development by forming miR164-NAC module in wax gourd. Taken together, this study provides the first global miRNAs profiling of wax gourd, and lays the foundation for understanding the regulatory roles of miRNAs in the growth and development processes of wax gourd.
    Electronic ISSN: 2076-3417
    Topics: Natural Sciences in General
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  • 100
    Publication Date: 2021-10-27
    Description: The possibility of contemporary mural paintings to be “tagged” by vandals, with spray and/or markers, represents a serious problem for the conservation of urban art. The present study aims to define the applicability of a protective coating on murals’ surface to preserve them against vandalism. The research has been focused on anti-graffiti products currently used in the field of cultural heritage conservation. These products represent an optimum start point to preserve mural artwork from vandal actions. The commercially available anti-graffiti products have been compared with an innovative product, PRO-ART, specifically formulated by YOCOCU in collaboration with Pelicoat, for the conservation of murals. At the same time, it has tested the cleaning of contemporary murals by using different mixtures of solvents and surfactants. The experimentations have been carried out on external walls, followed by the conducting of in situ tests (application tests, empirical evaluations and colorimetric analysis), as well as laboratory investigations (contact angle and optical/electronic microscopy).
    Electronic ISSN: 2079-6412
    Topics: Chemistry and Pharmacology , Process Engineering, Biotechnology, Nutrition Technology
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