bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ingestion of Bean Leaves Reduces Metabolic Complications and Restores Intestinal Integrity in C57BL/6 Mice with Obesity Induced by a High-Fat and High-Fructose Diet
Authors: Ocampo-Anguiano Perla Viridiana , Victoria-Ruiz Laura Lizeth , Reynoso-Camacho Rosalía , Olvera-Ramírez Andrea Margarita , Rocha-Guzmán Nuria Elizabeth , Ramos-Gómez Minerva , Ahumada-Solórzano Santiaga Marisela
Published: January 2024

Consumption of foods with fiber and compounds can promote gastrointestinal health and reduce obesity complications. Therefore, treatment with common bean leaves (BL) against obesity was evaluated in mice with a high-fat and high-fructose diet (HFFD) for 14 weeks. The bromatological and phytochemical characterization of BL were determined. Afterwards, the animals were supplemented with BL (10%) or a standard diet (SD) as a strategy to encourage a healthy diet for 12 additional weeks. Changes in body composition, lipid profile, and intestinal integrity were analyzed. The characterization of BL stood out for its content of 27.2% dietary fiber, total phenolics (475.04 mg/100 g), and saponins (2.2 mg/100 g). The visceral adipose tissue (VAT) decreased in the BL group by 52% compared to the HFFD group. Additionally, triglyceride levels were 23% lower in the BL consumption group compared to the HFFD group. The improvement in lipid profile was attributed to the 1.77-fold higher fecal lipid excretion in the BL consumption group compared to the HFFD group and the inhibition of pancreatic lipase by 29%. Furthermore, BL supplementation reduced the serum levels of IL-6 (4.4-fold) and FITC–dextran by 50% compared with those in the HFFD group. Metabolic endotoxemia was inhibited after BL supplementation (−33%) compared to the HFFD group. BL consumption as a treatment in obese mice reduces adipose tissue accumulation and improves the lipid profile. Furthermore, we report for the first time that BL consumption improves intestinal integrity.
Olive (Olea europaea L.) Seed as New Source of Cholesterol-Lowering Bioactive Peptides: Elucidation of Their Mechanism of Action in HepG2 Cells and Their Trans-Epithelial Transport in Differentiated Caco-2 Cells
Authors: Bartolomei Martina , Li Jianqiang , Capriotti Anna Laura , Fanzaga Melissa , d’Adduzio Lorenza , Laganà Aldo , Cerrato Andrea , Mulinacci Nadia , Cecchi Lorenzo , Bollati Carlotta , Lammi Carmen
Published: January 2024

The production of olive oil has important economic repercussions in Mediterranean countries but also a considerable impact on the environment. This production generates enormous quantities of waste and by-products, which can be exploited as new raw materials to obtain innovative ingredients and therefore make the olive production more sustainable. In a previous study, we decided to foster olive seeds by generating two protein hydrolysates using food-grade enzymes, alcalase (AH) and papain (PH). These hydrolysates have shown, both in vitro and at the cellular level, antioxidant and antidiabetic activities, being able to inhibit the activity of the DPP-IV enzyme and modulate the secretion of GLP-1. Given the multifunctional behavior of peptides, both hydrolysates displayed dual hypocholesterolemic activity, inhibiting the activity of HMGCoAR and impairing the PPI of PCSK9/LDLR, with an IC50 equal to 0.61 mg/mL and 0.31 mg/mL for AH and PH, respectively. Furthermore, both samples restored LDLR protein levels on the membrane of human hepatic HepG2 cells, increasing the uptake of LDL from the extracellular environment. Since intestinal bioavailability is a key component of bioactive peptides, the second objective of this work is to evaluate the capacity of AH and PH peptides to be transported by differentiated human intestinal Caco-2 cells. The peptides transported by intestinal cells have been analyzed using mass spectrometry analysis, identifying a mixture of stable peptides that may represent new ingredients with multifunctional qualities for the development of nutraceuticals and functional foods to delay the onset of metabolic syndrome, promoting the principles of environmental sustainability.
A 14-Day Double-Blind, Randomized, Controlled Crossover Intervention Study with Anti-Bacterial Benzyl Isothiocyanate from Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) on Human Gut Microbiome and Host Defense
Authors: Pfäffle Simon P. , Herz Corinna , Brombacher Eva , Proietti Michele , Gigl Michael , Hofstetter Christoph K. , Mittermeier-Kleßinger Verena K. , Claßen Sophie , Tran Hoai T. T. , Dawid Corinna , Kreutz Clemens , Günther Stefan , Lamy Evelyn
Published: January 2024

Despite substantial heterogeneity of studies, there is evidence that antibiotics commonly used in primary care influence the composition of the gastrointestinal microbiota in terms of changing their composition and/or diversity. Benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC) from the food and medicinal plant nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) is known for its antimicrobial activity and is used for the treatment of infections of the draining urinary tract and upper respiratory tract. Against this background, we raised the question of whether a 14 d nasturtium intervention (3 g daily, N = 30 healthy females) could also impact the normal gut microbiota composition. Spot urinary BITC excretion highly correlated with a weak but significant antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli. A significant increase in human beta defensin 1 as a parameter for host defense was seen in urine and exhaled breath condensate (EBC) upon verum intervention. Pre-to-post analysis revealed that mean gut microbiome composition did not significantly differ between groups, nor did the circulating serum metabolome. On an individual level, some large changes were observed between sampling points, however. Explorative Spearman rank correlation analysis in subgroups revealed associations between gut microbiota and the circulating metabolome, as well as between changes in blood markers and bacterial gut species.
Development of a Gold Nanoparticle-Based ELISA for Detection of PCV2
Authors: Basso Caroline Rodrigues , Cruz Taís Fukuta , Vieira Larissa Baldo , Pedrosa Valber de Albuquerque , Possebon Fábio Sossai , Araujo Junior João Pessoa
Published: January 2024

In this new methodology, plasmonic ELISA (pELISA) was used to detect Circovirus porcine2 (PCV2) in serum samples without the need for plate reading equipment. This process occurs by adapting the conventional ELISA test with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to promote a color change on the plate and quickly identify this difference with the naked eye, generating a dark purple-gray hue when the samples are positive and red when the samples are negative. The technique demonstrated high efficiency in detecting samples with a viral load ≥ 5 log10 copies/mL. Plasmonic ELISA offers user-friendly, cost-effective, and reliable characteristics, making it a valuable tool for PCV2 diagnosis and potentially adaptable for other pathogen detection applications.
Comparative Study of a Novel Lateral Flow Rapid Test with Conventional Serological Test Systems for the Diagnosis of Canine Leishmaniosis in Croatia and Brazil
Authors: Mahdavi Rouzbeh , Martinkovic Franjo , Shams-Eldin Hosam , Pereira Ingrid E. , Reis Alexandre B. , Latz Andreas , Heinz Daniela , Aira Cristina , Fresco-Taboada Alba , Abass Elfadil , Romero-Olmedo Jelena , Teixeira Henrique C. , Steinhoff Ulrich
Published: January 2024

Control of canine infections with Leishmania infantum (L. infantum), a major zoonotic disease in Brazil and southern Europe, is becoming increasingly important due to its close proximity to humans, the increasing import of dogs from endemic regions and the impact of climate change on vector spreading. Simple, rapid and reliable diagnostic tests are therefore needed to detect infected dogs. Here, we re-evaluated different serological methods for the diagnosis of canine leishmaniosis (CanL) in Croatia and Brazil. The diagnostic performance of the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA (GSD Frankfurt, Germany) was compared with three rKLi8.3-based diagnostic test systems, the rKLi8.3 ELISA (GSD Frankfurt, Germany), the INgezim® Leishma CROM (GSD Madrid, Spain) lateral flow test (LFT) and the VetBlot® Leishmania LineBlot (GSD Frankfurt, Germany). CanL symptomatic dogs were efficiently diagnosed by all tests, except the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA, which is based on whole Leishmania antigens. The advantage of rKLi8.3 was also observed in oligo- and asymptomatic dogs from Brazil and Croatia, although with reduced diagnostic efficiency compared to symptomatic dogs. Similar to IFAT and rKLi8.3 ELISA, the LFT did not cross-react with other common canine pathogens; it showed very high specificity for healthy dogs from endemic regions in both countries and did not react with healthy, vaccinated dogs in Brazil. In conclusion, serodiagnostic tests based on the rKLi8.3 antigens are superior to whole parasite antigens, and the LFT has the advantage of providing a laboratory-independent, rapid and specific diagnosis of CanL.
Tuberculous Pericarditis in Childhood: A Case Report and a Systematic Literature Review
Authors: Venuti Laura , Condemi Anna , Albano Chiara , Boncori Giovanni , Garbo Valeria , Bagarello Sara , Cascio Antonio , Colomba Claudia
Published: January 2024

Tuberculous pericarditis (TBP) is an important cause of pericarditis worldwide while being infrequent in childhood, especially in low-TB-incidence countries. We report a case of TBP and provide a systematic review of the literature, conducted by searching PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane to find cases of TBP in pediatric age published in the English language between the year 1990 and the time of the search. Of the 587 search results obtained, after screening and a backward citation search, 45 studies were selected to be included in this review, accounting for a total of 125 patients. The main signs and symptoms were fever, cough, weight loss, hepatomegaly, dyspnea, and increased jugular venous pressure or jugular vein turgor. A definitive diagnosis of TBP was made in 36 patients, either thanks to microbiological investigations, histological analysis, or both. First-line antitubercular treatment (ATT) was administered in nearly all cases, and 69 children underwent surgical procedures. Only six patients died, and only two died of TBP. TBP in childhood is relatively uncommon, even in high-TB-prevalence countries. Clinical manifestations, often suggestive of right-sided cardiac failure, are subtle, and diagnosis is challenging. TBP has an excellent prognosis in childhood; however, in a significant proportion of cases, invasive surgical procedures are necessary.
Fluorescent Graphitic Carbon Nitride (g-C3N4)-Embedded Hyaluronic Acid Microgel Composites for Bioimaging and Cancer-Cell Targetability as Viable Theragnostic
Authors: Suner Selin S. , Sahiner Mehtap , Demirci Sahin , Umut Evrim , Sahiner Nurettin
Published: January 2024

Fluorescent graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) doped with various heteroatoms, such as B, P, and S, named Bg-C3N4, Pg-C3N4, and Sg-C3N4, were synthesized with variable band-gap values as diagnostic materials. Furthermore, they were embedded within hyaluronic acid (HA) microgels as g-C3N4@HA microgel composites. The g-C3N4@HA microgels had a 0.5–20 μm size range that is suitable for intravenous administration. Bare g-C3N4 showed excellent fluorescence ability with 360 nm excitation wavelength and 410–460 emission wavelengths for possible cell imaging application of g-C3N4@HA microgel composites as diagnostic agents. The g-C3N4@HA-based microgels were non-hemolytic, and no clotting effects on blood cells or cell toxicity on fibroblasts were observed at 1000 μg/mL concentration. In addition, approximately 70% cell viability for SKMEL-30 melanoma cells was seen with Sg-C3N4 and its HA microgel composites. The prepared g-C3N4@HA and Sg-C3N4@HA microgels were used in cell imaging because of their excellent penetration capability for healthy fibroblasts. Furthermore, g-C3N4-based materials did not interact with malignant cells, but their HA microgel composites had significant penetration capability linked to the binding function of HA with the cancerous cells. Flow cytometry analysis revealed that g-C3N4 and g-C3N4@HA microgel composites did not interfere with the viability of healthy fibroblast cells and provided fluorescence imaging without any staining while significantly decreasing the viability of cancerous cells. Overall, heteroatom-doped g-C3N4@HA microgel composites, especially Sg-C3N4@HA microgels, can be safely used as multifunctional theragnostic agents for both diagnostic as well as target and treatment purposes in cancer therapy because of their fluorescent nature.
Classical Scattering of High-Energy Electrons off Ultra-Intense Laser Beams Taking into Account Radiation Reaction
Authors: Pastor Ignacio , Álvarez-Estrada Ramón F. , Roso Luis , Castejón Francisco
Published: January 2024

The head-on scattering of electrons with energies from a few MeV to 5 GeV off ultrashort and ultra-intense laser pulses at petawatt intensities is investigated. Radiation reaction (RR) effects are included through the correction terms given by the Landau–Lifshitz equation. Full paraxial fields for the laser are used, including their longitudinal electric and magnetic components, and both the fundamental Gaussian TEM00 mode as well as the orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode with (l,p)=(1,0) are studied. We compare the expected behavior, as regards the influence of RR, at near-infrared (NIR) and at vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) or X-ray wavelengths.
A Microwave Photonic Frequency-Doubling Phase Shifter Based on Dual-Parallel Mach–Zehnder Modulators
Authors: Su Jun , Chen Wenkai
Published: January 2024

A microwave photonic frequency-doubling phase shifter with a broad bandwidth and large tuning range is proposed in this paper. Frequency doubling and phase shifting are realized by processing the input microwave signal in the optical domain at a dual-drive dual-parallel Mach–Zehnder modulator (DD-DPMZM) and a dual-parallel Mach–Zehnder modulator (DPMZM). The input signal is split into two branches through a 90-degree hybrid splitter. One signal is sent to the DD-DPMZM to achieve a phase-shifted carrier-suppressed up-sideband by tuning the bias voltage, and the other is sent to the DPMZM to realize a carrier-suppressed down-sideband. By beating the phase-shifted up-sideband and the down-sideband at a photodetector (PD), the input signal is frequency doubled and phase shifted. The proposed frequency-doubling phase shifter is simulated. The results show that the frequency-doubled signal has a phase-tuning range from 0 to 360 degrees. In addition, the influence of the amplitude and phase unbalance of the 90-degree hybrid splitter on the magnitude variation and phase deviation of the frequency-doubling phase shifter is studied.
New Prospects for Improving Microspore Embryogenesis Induction in Highly Recalcitrant Winter Wheat Lines
Authors: Dubas Ewa , Krzewska Monika , Surówka Ewa , Kopeć Przemysław , Springer Agnieszka , Janowiak Franciszek , Weigt Dorota , Mikołajczyk Sylwia Katarzyna , Telk Anna , Żur Iwona
Published: January 2024

Among various methods stimulating biological progress, double haploid (DH) technology, which utilizes the process of microspore embryogenesis (ME), is potentially the most effective. However, the process depends on complex interactions between many genetic, physiological and environmental variables, and in many cases, e.g., winter wheat, does not operate with the efficiency required for commercial use. Stress associated with low-temperature treatment, isolation and transfer to in vitro culture has been shown to disturb redox homeostasis and generate relatively high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), affecting microspore vitality. The aim of this study was to investigate whether controlled plant growth, specific tiller pre-treatment and culture conditions could improve the potential of microspores to cope with stress and effectively induce ME. To understand the mechanism of the stress response, hydrogen peroxide levels, total activity and the content of the most important low-molecular-weight antioxidants (glutathione and ascorbate), as well as the content of selected macro- (Mg, Ca, NA, K) and micronutrients (Mn, Zn, Fe, Cu, Mo) were determined. These analyses, combined with the cytological characteristics of the microspore suspensions, allowed us to demonstrate that an increased microspore vitality and stronger response to ME induction were associated with higher stress resistance based on more efficient ROS scavenging and nutrient management. It was shown that a modified procedure, combining a low temperature with mannitol and sodium selenate tiller pre-treatment, reduced oxidative stress and improved the effectiveness of ME in winter wheat lines.
Microbiome-Mediated Strategies to Manage Major Soil-Borne Diseases of Tomato
Authors: Meshram Shweta , Adhikari Tika B.
Published: January 2024

The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is consumed globally as a fresh vegetable due to its high nutritional value and antioxidant properties. However, soil-borne diseases can severely limit tomato production. These diseases, such as bacterial wilt (BW), Fusarium wilt (FW), Verticillium wilt (VW), and root-knot nematodes (RKN), can significantly reduce the yield and quality of tomatoes. Using agrochemicals to combat these diseases can lead to chemical residues, pesticide resistance, and environmental pollution. Unfortunately, resistant varieties are not yet available. Therefore, we must find alternative strategies to protect tomatoes from these soil-borne diseases. One of the most promising solutions is harnessing microbial communities that can suppress disease and promote plant growth and immunity. Recent omics technologies and next-generation sequencing advances can help us develop microbiome-based strategies to mitigate tomato soil-borne diseases. This review emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary approaches to understanding the utilization of beneficial microbiomes to mitigate soil-borne diseases and improve crop productivity.
The Position of Lophozia dubia (Lophoziaceae, Marchantiophyta) in the Phylogenetic System of Lophozia and the Distribution of Lophozia in Southeast Eurasia, Extending to Indonesia
Authors: Bakalin Vadim A. , Maltseva Yulia D. , Troitsky Aleksey V.
Published: January 2024

Lophozia pallida, the commonly used name for a rare and little-known Sino-Himalayan species, was found to be a synonym of Lophozia dubia, a forgotten and previously misinterpreted species known in Indonesia. A comparative study of herbarium materials and our collections made it possible to ‘extend’ the distribution of Lophozia s. str. southward to Indonesia. The description of oil bodies from the species is provided for the first time. The position of the species in the Lophozia phylogenetic system demonstrates its clear differences from the morphologically similar Lophozia guttulata and its phylogenetic relationship with the Japanese–Korean Lophozia koreana.
Physiological Responses to Salt Stress at the Seedling Stage in Wild (Oryza rufipogon Griff.) and Cultivated (Oryza sativa L.) Rice
Authors: Trotti Jacopo , Trapani Isabella , Gulino Federica , Aceto Maurizio , Minio Miles , Gerotto Caterina , Mica Erica , Valè Giampiero , Barbato Roberto , Pagliano Cristina
Published: January 2024

Domesticated rice Oryza sativa L. is a major staple food worldwide, and the cereal most sensitive to salinity. It originated from the wild ancestor Oryza rufipogon Griff., which was reported to possess superior salinity tolerance. Here, we examined the morpho-physiological responses to salinity stress (80 mM NaCl for 7 days) in seedlings of an O. rufipogon accession and two Italian O. sativa genotypes, Baldo (mildly tolerant) and Vialone Nano (sensitive). Under salt treatment, O. rufipogon showed the highest percentage of plants with no to moderate stress symptoms, displaying an unchanged shoot/root biomass ratio, the highest Na+ accumulation in roots, the lowest root and leaf Na+/K+ ratio, and highest leaf relative water content, leading to a better preservation of the plant architecture, ion homeostasis, and water status. Moreover, O. rufipogon preserved the overall leaf carbon to nitrogen balance and photosynthetic apparatus integrity. Conversely, Vialone Nano showed the lowest percentage of plants surviving after treatment, and displayed a higher reduction in the growth of shoots rather than roots, with leaves compromised in water and ionic balance, negatively affecting the photosynthetic performance (lowest performance index by JIP-test) and apparatus integrity. Baldo showed intermediate salt tolerance. Being O. rufipogon interfertile with O. sativa, it resulted a good candidate for pre-breeding towards salt-tolerant lines.
The Tensile, Thermal and Flame-Retardant Properties of Polyetherimide and Polyetherketoneketone Processed via Fused Filament Fabrication
Authors: Glaskova-Kuzmina Tatjana , Dejus Didzis , Jātnieks Jānis , Vīndedze Elīna , Bute Irina , Sevcenko Jevgenijs , Aniskevich Andrey , Stankevich Stanislav , Boobani Behnam
Published: January 2024

Polymer materials are increasingly widely used in high-fire-risk applications, such as aviation interior components. This study aimed to compare the tensile, thermal, and flame-retardant properties of test samples made from ultra-performance materials, polyetherimide (PEI) and polyetherketoneketone (PEKK), using the fused filament fabrication process (FFF). The tensile tests were performed for these materials at different raster angles (0, 45, and 90°). The thermomechanical tests were done in the axial, perpendicular, and through-thickness directions to the extruded filaments. The impact of printing parameters on the flame retardancy of 3D-printed samples was investigated in vertical burn tests with varying specimen thicknesses and printing directions. Experimentally, it was testified that PEKK had better isotropic behaviour than PEI for mechanical performance, thermal expansion, and fire-resistant properties, which are essential in fabricating intricately shaped products.
Treatment of Monochlorobenzene from Polymers Process through Electrochemical Oxidation
Authors: Wang Baiqi , Yue Yanmin , Wang Siyi , Fu Yu , Yin Chengri , Jin Mingji , Quan Yue
Published: January 2024

With the rapid development of the economy and the demands of people’s lives, the usage amount of polymer materials is significantly increasing globally. Chlorobenzenes (CBS) are widely used in the industrial, agriculture and chemical industries, particularly as important chemical raw materials during polymers processes. CBS are difficult to remove due to their properties, such as being hydrophobic, volatile and persistent and biotoxic, and they have caused great harm to the ecological environment and human health. Electrochemical oxidation technology for the treatment of refractory pollutants has been widely used due to its high efficiency and easiness of operation. Thus, the electrochemical oxidation system was established for the efficient treatment of monochlorobenzene (MCB) waste gas. The effect of a single factor, such as anode materials, cathode materials, the electrolyte concentration, current density and electrode distance on the removal efficiency (RE) of MCB gas were first studied. The response-surface methodology (RSM) was used to investigate the relationships between different factors’ conditions (current density, electrolyte concentration, electrode distance), and a prediction model was established using the Design-Expert 10.0.1 software to optimize the reaction conditions. The results of the one-factor experiments showed that when treating 2.90 g/m3 MCB gas with a 0.40 L/min flow rate, Ti/Ti4O7 as an anode, stainless steel wire mesh as a cathode, 0.15 mol/L NaCl electrolyte, 10.0 mA/cm2 current density and 4.0 cm electrode distance, the average removal efficiency (RE), efficiency capacity (EC) and energy consumption (Esp) were 57.99%, 20.18 g/(m3·h) and 190.2 (kW·h)/kg, respectively. The results of the RSM showed that the effects of the process parameters on the RE of MBC were as follows: current density > electrode distance > electrolyte concentration; the interactions effects on the RE of MBC were in the order of electrolyte concentration and current density > current density and electrode distance > electrolyte concentration and electrode distance; the optimal experimental conditions were as follows: the concentration of electrolyte was 0.149 mol/L, current density was 18.11 mA, electrode distance was 3.804 cm. Under these conditions, the RE achieved 66.43%. The response-surface variance analysis showed that the regression model reached a significant level, and the validation results were in agreement with the predicted results, which proved the feasibility of the model. The model can be applied to treat the CBS waste gas of polymer processes through electrochemical oxidation.
Evaluation of Key Success Factors in the Visual Optimization of the 3D Forming of Soil-Shaping Ability
Authors: Shih Fu-Chi , Tsai Chi-Jui , Chang Shu-Hsuan
Published: January 2024

Improving the quality of the manufacturing process is an important goal of professional technicians. This study systematically explored the key success factors in the product-forming ability and visual optimization of 3D forming in the clay-shaping process through actual manufacturing and implementation. The purpose of this study was to identify the forming technology and technical indicators that can successfully achieve a high degree of completeness and maturity in the manufacturing process, increasing the shaping performance of the end products and enabling the evaluation of optimization. In this study, we evaluated soil shaping, material use, the manufacturing process, and product forming. The key success factors were studied and analyzed via expert interviews. The research and analysis were summarized into 4 dimensions with 48 sub-dimensions. These included: (1) soil material, with 12 sub-dimensions; (2) the design concept, with 12 sub-dimensions; (3) the prototype process, comprising 12 sub-dimensions; and (4) kiln firing, comprising 12 sub-facets. A research team composed of 13 scholars and experts conducted three surveys on the evaluation dimensions of the Delphi technique. They analyzed the mean (M), mode (Mo), and standard deviation (SD) of various dimension options. They used the Kolmogorov–Smirnov one-sample test research and analysis to analyze the appropriateness and consistency of the survey results. The results of this study showed that 15 sub-dimensions met the appropriateness and consistency conditions, based on which 15 key factors were established. The results of this study provide reference indicators for the manufacturing process, forming process, and forming technology optimization quality for follow-up research.
Bayesian Fusion of Degradation and Failure Time Data for Reliability Assessment of Industrial Equipment Considering Individual Differences
Authors: Fu Guo-Zhong , Zhang Xian , Li Wei , Guo Junyu
Published: January 2024

In the field of industrial equipment reliability assessment, dependency on either degradation or failure time data is common. However, practical applications often reveal that single-type reliability data for certain industrial equipment are insufficient for a comprehensive assessment. This paper introduces a Bayesian-fusion-based methodology to enhance the reliability assessment of industrial equipment. Operating within the hierarchical Bayesian framework, the method innovatively combines the Wiener process with available degradation and failure time data. It further integrates a random effects model to capture individual differences among equipment units. The robustness and applicability of this proposed method are substantiated through an in-depth case study analysis.
Research on the Optimization of a Diesel Engine Intercooler Structure Based on Numerical Simulation
Authors: Jiang Hongfeng , Wang Haichang , Jiang Feng , Hu Jie , Hu Lingling
Published: January 2024

As a device for cooling charged air before it enters the cylinder, the intercooler is an indispensable part of the regular operation of a booster diesel engine. To solve the problem of the insufficient cooling performance of an intercooler for a high-power supercharged diesel engine, in this study, the flow field in the intercooler is simulated using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of porous media, and the performance data measured using the steady flow test bench are used to provide boundary conditions for the calculation. The effects of the charged air mass flow rate and the tube bundle’s transverse spacing on the heat dissipation performance of the intercooler are analyzed and compared. The calculation results show that, under the condition of satisfying the regular operation of the diesel engine, the heat transfer coefficient of the intercooler heat dissipation belt increases with the increase in air mass flow and the spacing of cooling pipes, and the heat transfer coefficient can be increased by up to 57%. Still, excessive spacing of the cooling water pipes increases pressure loss in the charged air. Finally, the transverse spacing of the tube bundle is set to 17 mm, ensuring the pressure drop in the charged air, and the heat dissipation performance of the intercooler is increased by 6.04%. This paper provides a feasible solution for further optimizing the heat dissipation performance of intercoolers. Finally, grey correlation theory is used to study the correlation between air mass flow, cooling water pipe spacing, and intercooler heat dissipation performance. The correlation values are 0.8464 and 0.8497, respectively, indicating a significant relationship between air mass flow, cooling water pipe spacing, and intercooler heat dissipation performance.
Impact Assessment of Climate Change on Hailstorm Risk in Spanish Wine Grape Crop Insurance: Insights from Linear and Quantile Regressions
Authors: Zhou Nan , Vilar-Zanón José L.
Published: January 2024

There is growing concern that climate change poses a serious threat to the sustainability of the insurance business. Understanding whether climate warming is a cause for an increase in claims and losses, and how this cause–effect relationship will develop in the future, are two significant open questions. In this article, we answer both questions by particularizing the geographical area of Spain, and a precise risk, hailstorm in crop insurance in the line of business of wine grapes. We quantify climate change using the Spanish Actuarial Climate Index (SACI). We utilize a database containing all the claims resulting from hail risk in Spain from 1990 to 2022. With homogenized data, we consider as dependent variables the monthly number of claims, the monthly number of loss costs equal to one, and the monthly total losses. The independent variable is the monthly Spanish Actuarial Climate Index (SACI). We attempt to explain the former through the latter using regression and quantile regression models. Our main finding is that climate change, as measured by the SACI, explains these three dependent variables. We also provide an estimate of the increase in the monthly total losses’ Value at Risk, corresponding to a future increase in climate change measured in units of the SACI. Spanish crop insurance managers should carefully consider these conclusions in their decision-making process to ensure the sustainability of this line of business in the future.
3D Reconstruction of Ancient Buildings Using UAV Images and Neural Radiation Field with Depth Supervision
Authors: Ge Yingwei , Guo Bingxuan , Zha Peishuai , Jiang San , Jiang Ziyu , Li Demin
Published: January 2024

The 3D reconstruction of ancient buildings through inclined photogrammetry finds a wide range of applications in surveying, visualization and heritage conservation. Unlike indoor objects, reconstructing ancient buildings presents unique challenges, including the slow speed of 3D reconstruction using traditional methods, the complex textures of ancient structures and geometric issues caused by repeated textures. Additionally, there is a hash conflict problem when rendering outdoor scenes using neural radiation fields. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a 3D reconstruction method based on depth-supervised neural radiation fields. To enhance the representation of the geometric neural network, the addition of a truncated signed distance function (TSDF) supplements the existing signed distance function (SDF). Furthermore, the neural network’s training is supervised using depth information, leading to improved geometric accuracy in the reconstruction model through depth data obtained from sparse point clouds. This study also introduces a progressive training strategy to mitigate hash conflicts, allowing the hash table to express important details more effectively while reducing feature overlap. The experimental results demonstrate that our method, under the same number of iterations, produces images with clearer structural details, resulting in an average 15% increase in the Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) value and a 10% increase in the Structural Similarity Index Measure (SSIM) value. Moreover, our reconstruction model produces higher-quality surface models, enabling the fast and highly geometrically accurate 3D reconstruction of ancient buildings.
Detecting Weak Underwater Targets Using Block Updating of Sparse and Structured Channel Impulse Responses
Authors: Yang Chaoran , Ling Qing , Sheng Xueli , Mu Mengfei , Jakobsson Andreas
Published: January 2024

In this paper, we considered the real-time modeling of an underwater channel impulse response (CIR), exploiting the inherent structure and sparsity of such channels. Building on the recent development in the modeling of acoustic channels using a Kronecker structure, we approximated the CIR using a structured and sparse model, allowing for a computationally efficient sparse block-updating algorithm, which can track the time-varying CIR even in low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) scenarios. The algorithm employs a conjugate gradient formulation, which enables a gradual refinement if the SNR is sufficiently high to allow for this. This was performed by gradually relaxing the assumed Kronecker structure, as well as the sparsity assumptions, if possible. The estimated CIR was further used to form a residual signal containing (primarily) information of the time-varying signal responses, thereby allowing for the detection of weak target signals. The proposed method was evaluated using both simulated and measured underwater signals, clearly illustrating the better performance of the proposed method.
A Multichannel, Multipulse, Multiweight Block-Adaptive Quantization (3MBAQ) Algorithm Based on Space-Borne Multichannel SAR Doppler Domain A-BAQ
Authors: Jiang Tao , Zhang Chengwei , Zhang Fubo , Wan Yangliang , Chen Longyong
Published: January 2024

Amid the conflict between the current huge data volumes and the requirement for large-compression-ratio compression in space-borne multichannel SAR, this paper proposes a data compression method that uses the adaptive bit allocation BAQ method in the Doppler domain of space-borne multichannel SAR. Specifically, 3MBAQ, which denotes multichannel, multipulse, multiweight block-adaptive quantization, performs signal reconstruction through a Krieger filter to obtain the Doppler spectrum under azimuthal multichannel and multipulse conditions and then achieves nonuniform bit allocation by using the multiple weight contributions between subband spectra. Furthermore, large-compression-ratio compression can be realized in homogeneous scenarios by using the adaptive bit allocation BAQ method together with the improved bit error control (BEC) algorithm. In this paper, the effectiveness of the 3MBAQ method is verified on GF3 measured data. Moreover, compared to the SQNR and NMSE of the BAQ, A-BAQ, A-BAQ-BEC, MCBAQ-ASQ, and MCBAQ-BEC methods under the same conditions, it is shown that there is an optimal 1.3434 dB improvement in SQNR and a 0.0241 improvement in NMSE using the 3MBAQ algorithm, and the complexity of the algorithm for 3MBAQ is O(N2log(N)), which is within acceptable limits, clearly proving the superiority of the 3MBAQ method.
Hyperspectral Image Classification on Large-Scale Agricultural Crops: The Heilongjiang Benchmark Dataset, Validation Procedure, and Baseline Results
Authors: Zhang Hongzhe , Feng Shou , Wu Di , Zhao Chunhui , Liu Xi , Zhou Yuan , Wang Shengnan , Deng Hongtao , Zheng Shuang
Published: January 2024

Over the past few decades, researchers have shown sustained and robust investment in exploring methods for hyperspectral image classification (HSIC). The utilization of hyperspectral imagery (HSI) for crop classification in agricultural areas has been widely demonstrated for its feasibility, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. However, numerous coexisting issues in agricultural scenarios, such as limited annotated samples, uneven distribution of crops, and mixed cropping, could not be explored insightfully in the mainstream datasets. The limitations within these impractical datasets have severely restricted the widespread application of HSIC methods in agricultural scenarios. A benchmark dataset named Heilongjiang (HLJ) for HSIC is introduced in this paper, which is designed for large-scale crop classification. For practical applications, the HLJ dataset covers a wide range of genuine agricultural regions in Heilongjiang Province; it provides rich spectral diversity enriched through two images from diverse time periods and vast geographical areas with intercropped multiple crops. Simultaneously, considering the urgent demand of deep learning models, the two images in the HLJ dataset have 319,685 and 318,942 annotated samples, along with 151 and 149 spectral bands, respectively. To validate the suitability of the HLJ dataset as a baseline dataset for HSIC, we employed eight classical classification models in fundamental experiments on the HLJ dataset. Most of the methods achieved an overall accuracy of more than 80% with 10% of the labeled samples used for training. Furthermore, the advantages of the HLJ dataset and the impact of real-world factors on experimental results are comprehensively elucidated. The comprehensive baseline experimental evaluation and analysis affirm the research potential of the HLJ dataset as a large-scale crop classification dataset.
Geolocalization from Aerial Sensing Images Using Road Network Alignment
Authors: Li Yongfei , Yang Dongfang , Wang Shicheng , Shi Lin , Meng Deyu
Published: January 2024

Estimating the geographic positions in GPS-denied environments is of great significance to the safe flight of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In this paper, we propose a novel geographic position estimation method for UAVs after road network alignment. We discuss the generally overlooked issue, namely, how to estimate the geographic position of the UAV after successful road network alignment, and propose a precise robust solution. In our method, the optimal initial solution of the geographic position of the UAV is first estimated from the road network alignment result, which is typically presented as a homography transformation between the observed road map and the reference one. The geographic position estimation is then modeled as an optimization problem to align the observed road with the reference one to improve the estimation accuracy further. Experiments on synthetic and real flight aerial image datasets show that the proposed algorithm can estimate more accurate geographic position of the UAV in real time and is robust to the errors from homography transformation estimation compared to the currently commonly-used method.
HAVANA: Hard Negative Sample-Aware Self-Supervised Contrastive Learning for Airborne Laser Scanning Point Cloud Semantic Segmentation
Authors: Zhang Yunsheng , Yao Jianguo , Zhang Ruixiang , Wang Xuying , Chen Siyang , Fu Han
Published: January 2024

Deep Neural Network (DNN)-based point cloud semantic segmentation has presented significant breakthrough using large-scale labeled aerial laser point cloud datasets. However, annotating such large-scaled point clouds is time-consuming. Self-Supervised Learning (SSL) is a promising approach to this problem by pre-training a DNN model utilizing unlabeled samples followed by a fine-tuned downstream task involving very limited labels. The traditional contrastive learning for point clouds selects the hardest negative samples by solely relying on the distance between the embedded features derived from the learning process, potentially evolving some negative samples from the same classes to reduce the contrastive learning effectiveness. This work proposes a hard-negative sample-aware self-supervised contrastive learning algorithm to pre-train the model for semantic segmentation. We designed a k-means clustering-based Absolute Positive And Negative samples (AbsPAN) strategy to filter the possible false-negative samples. Experiments on two typical ALS benchmark datasets demonstrate that the proposed method is more appealing than supervised training schemes without pre-training. Especially when the labels are severely inadequate (10% of the ISPRS training set), the results obtained by the proposed HAVANA method still exceed 94% of the supervised paradigm performance with full training set.
A Lightweight SAR Image Ship Detection Method Based on Improved Convolution and YOLOv7
Authors: Tang Hongdou , Gao Song , Li Song , Wang Pengyu , Liu Jiqiu , Wang Simin , Qian Jiang
Published: January 2024

The airborne and satellite-based synthetic aperture radar enables the acquisition of high-resolution SAR oceanographic images in which even the outlines of ships can be identified. The detection of ship targets from SAR images has a wide range of applications. Due to the density of ships in SAR images, the extreme imbalance between foreground and background clutter, and the diversity of target sizes, achieving lightweight and highly accurate multi-scale ship target detection remains a great challenge. To this end, this paper proposed an attention mechanism for multi-scale receptive fields convolution block (AMMRF). AMMRF not only makes full use of the location information of the feature map to accurately capture the regions in the feature map that are useful for detection results, but also effectively captures the relationship between the feature map channels, so as to better learn the relationship between the ship and the background. Based on this, a new YOLOv7-based ship target detection method, You Only Look Once SAR Ship Identification (YOLO-SARSI), was proposed, which acquires the abstract semantic information extracted from the high-level convolution while retaining the detailed semantic information extracted from the low-level convolution. Compared to the deep learning detection methods proposed by previous authors, our method is more lightweight, only 18.43 M. We examined the effectiveness of our method on two SAR image public datasets: the High-Resolution SAR Images Dataset (HRSID) and the Large-Scale SAR Ship Detection Dataset-v1.0 (LS-SSDD-V1.0). The results show that the average accuracy (AP50) of the detection method YOLO-SARSI proposed in this paper on the HRSID and LS-SSDD-V1.0 datasets is 2.6% and 3.9% higher than that of YOLOv7, respectively.
Arctic Sea Ice Surface Temperature Inversion Using FY-3D/MWRI Brightness Temperature Data
Authors: Meng Xin , Chen Haihua , Liu Jun , Ni Kun , Li Lele
Published: January 2024

The Arctic plays a crucial role in the intricate workings of the global climate system. With the rapid development of information technology, satellite remote sensing technology has emerged as the main method for sea ice surface temperature (IST) observation. To obtain Arctic IST, we used the FengYun-3D Microwave Radiation Imager (FY-3D/MWRI) brightness temperature (Tb) data for IST inversion using multiple linear regressions. Measured data on IST parameters in the Arctic are difficult to obtain. We used the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) MYD29 IST data as the baseline to obtain the coefficients for the MWRI IST inversion function. The relation between MWRI Tb data and MODIS MYD29 IST product was established and the microwave IST inversion equation was obtained for the months of January to December 2019. Based on the R2 results and the IST inversion results, we compared and analyzed the MWRI IST data from the months of January to April, November, and December with the Operation IceBridge KT19 IR Surface Temperature data and the Northern High Latitude Level 3 Sea and Sea Ice Surface Temperature (NHL L3 SST/IST). We found that compared MWRI IST with NHL L3 IST, the correlation coefficients (Corr) > 0.72, mean bias ranged from −1.82 °C to −0.67 °C, and the standard deviation (Std) ranged from 3.61 °C to 4.54 °C; comparing MWRI IST with KT19 IST, the Corr was 0.69, the bias was 0.51 °C, and the Std was 4.34 °C. The obtained error conforms to the precision requirement. From these results, we conclude that the FY-3D/MWRI Tb data are suitable for IST retrieval in the Arctic using multiple linear regressions.
Mucoadhesive Vaginal Tablets Containing Metronidazole: Screening of Optimal Natural Polymer in the Composition
Authors: Bartoníková Kamila , Špaglová Miroslava , Papadakos Martina , Hanko Michal , Macho Oliver
Published: January 2024

(1) Background: The study aimed to compare the impact of various natural polymers–sodium alginate, acacia gum, carrageenan, guar gum, xanthan gum, and tragacanth on the formulation and the physical properties of mucoadhesive vaginal tablets containing metronidazole (167 mg/g). (2) Methods: The quality of the tablets prepared by direct compression was evaluated by pharmacopoeia tests (uniformity of mass, resistance to crushing, friability). Mucoadhesion of the tablets was characterized by swelling capacity and mucoadhesive strength, i.e., the force required to detach the tablet from the rabbit mucosa. In vitro drug release was performed by a modified dissolution method in paddle apparatus containing the simulated vaginal fluid (pH 4.5). Scanning electron microscopy observed morphological changes on the swollen tablets’ surface. (3) Results: Pharmacopoeia tests have shown that all prepared tablets met the requirements on quality. The highest mucoadhesive strength was noted in tablets containing guar and xanthan gum. The highest swelling capacity was possessed by tablets containing carrageenan. (4) Conclusions: Summarizing all tests’ results, sodium alginate can be considered the most suitable natural polymer in tablet formulation. The combination of polymers providing higher mucoadhesiveness and at the same time a prolonged release, e.g., xanthan or guar, together with sodium alginate, could also be of interest.
Researching Playfully? Assessing the Applicability of LEGO® Serious Play® for Researching Vulnerable Groups
Authors: Kriszan Agnes , Nienaber Birte
Published: January 2024

Although in recent years plenty of work was published on LEGO® Serious Play®, there are only a manageable number of publications about its applicability in a research context. Undoubtedly, LEGO® Serious Play® can be a methodological enrichment particularly for participatory research with people in vulnerable conditions. However, its utilization in research should always be well reflected and adapted to the specific research context. Based on experiences gained in the H2020 project “MIMY – EMpowerment through liquid integration of Migrant Youth in vulnerable conditions”, the following article depicts the potentials and limitations of LEGO® Serious Play® and critically assesses its value for research purposes.