bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A comparative analysis on serious adverse events reported for COVID-19 vaccines in adolescents and young adults
Authors: Cappelletti-Montano Beniamino , Demuru Giuseppe , Laconi Ezio , Musio Monica
Published: June 2023

This study aims to assess the safety profile of COVID-19 vaccines (mRNA and viral vector vaccines) in teenagers and young adults, as compared to Influenza and HPV vaccines, and to early data from Monkeypox vaccination in United States.

Methods

We downloaded data from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) and collected the following Serious Adverse Events (SAEs) reported for COVID-19, Influenza, HPV and Monkeypox vaccines: deaths, life-threatening illnesses, disabilities, hospitalizations. We restricted our analysis to the age groups 12–17 and 18–49, and to the periods December 2020 to July 2022 for COVID-19 vaccines, 2010–2019 for Influenza vaccines, 2006–2019 for HPV vaccines, June 1, 2022 to November 15, 2022 for Monkeypox vaccine. Rates were calculated in each age and sex group, based on an estimation of the number of administered doses.

Results

Among adolescents the total number of reported SAEs per million doses for, respectively, COVID-19, Influenza and HPV vaccines were 60.73, 2.96, 14.62. Among young adults the reported SAEs rates for, respectively, COVID-19, Influenza, Monkeypox vaccines were 101.91, 5.35, 11.14. Overall, the rates of reported SAEs were significantly higher for COVID-19, resulting in a rate 19.60-fold higher than Influenza vaccines (95% C.I. 18.80–20.44), 4.15-fold higher than HPV vaccines (95% C.I. 3.91–4.41) and 7.89-fold higher than Monkeypox vaccine (95% C.I. 3.95–15.78). Similar trends were observed in teenagers and young adults with higher Relative Risks for male adolescents.

Conclusion

The study identified a risk of SAEs following COVID-19 vaccination which was markedly higher compared to Influenza vaccination and substantially higher compared to HPV vaccination, both for teenagers and young adults, with an increased risk for the male adolescents group. Initial, early data for Monkeypox vaccination point to significantly lower rates of reported SAEs compared to those for COVID-19 vaccines. In conclusion these results stress the need of further studies to explore the bases for the above differences and the importance of accurate harm-benefit analyses, especially for adolescent males, to inform the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
Exploring potential applications of measles and rubella microarray patches (MR-MAPs): use case identification
Authors: Malvolti Stefano , Ko Melissa , Menozzi-Arnaud Marion , Mantel Carsten , Jarrahian Courtney , Amorij Jean-Pierre , Giersing Birgitte , Hasso-Agopsowicz Mateusz
Published: June 2023

Introduction

Innovative vaccine products will be critical in helping to address the existing implementation barriers that have prevented the achievement of the measles and rubella (MR) vaccine coverage targets. Overcoming those barriers will be necessary to achieve the “Immunization Agenda 2030” goals. Microarray patches (MAPs), an innovative needle-free delivery device currently in clinical development, can be a potential game changer in this respect and contribute to the equitable delivery of vaccines in low- and middle-income countries and pandemic preparedness and response. Developing in-depth knowledge of the most desired and impactful uses of MRMAPs can prove critical to identifying the critical attributes of the target product profile, informing policy and adoption decisions, and helping to evaluate the potential public health and economic value of this technology. The first step in this process is the definition of the potential use cases for MR-MAPs, i.e., where and how this product is most likely to be used within the immunization programme.

Methods

By applying a design-based user-centric approach, we implemented a three-step process, including a desk review, a survey, and interviews, to define the most relevant use cases for MR MAPS.

Results

Six use cases have been identified as relevant across all different countries and immunization programme designs and validated by experts.

Discussion

The identified use cases have already informed the demand estimate for MR-MAPs and provided the foundation for developing an initial full vaccine value assessment. We believe that, in the future, they will be highly valuable in ensuring that the roll-out of this promising innovation is designed in a way that maximizes the impact, particularly in populations and countries that are most in need.
Intradialytic resistance training for short daily hemodialysis patients as part of the clinical routine: a quasi-experimental study
Authors: Baião Victor M. , Duarte Marvery P. , Cunha Vinícius A. , Dourado Gustavo Í. , Leal Diogo V. , Viana João L. , Inda-Filho Antônio J. , Nóbrega Otávio T. , Ferreira Aparecido P. , Ribeiro Heitor S.
Published: June 2023

Background and purpose: Hemodialysis patients have chronic systemic inflammation, musculoskeletal impairments, and body composition changes from several factors and exercise may attenuate. We evaluated the effects of an intradialytic resistance training program on body composition, physical function, and inflammatory markers in patients under short daily hemodialysis treatment.

Materials and methods: A quasi-experimental study in clinical routine was conducted over eight months. Measures of physical function (handgrip strength, five-time sit-to-stand, timed-up and go, and gait speed), body composition (by bioelectrical impedance), and inflammatory markers (interleukin [IL]-1 beta, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12p70, and tumor necrosis factor-α) were assessed at baseline as well as at four and eight months past continued intervention. Patients underwent two intradialytic resistance training sessions per week supervised by exercise professionals.

Results: A total of 18 patients (62 ± 14 years; 55.6% ≥ 60 years; 44% female) were included. Significant increases in body mass index and basal metabolic rate were found at four and eight months compared to baseline. For physical function, timed-up and go performance improved at four and eight months compared to baseline. The other body composition and physical function measures, as well as all inflammatory markers, did not significantly change over time.

Conclusion: A supervised intradialytic resistance training program for patients on short daily hemodialysis treatment, as part of the clinical routine, may induce modest changes in body mass index, basal metabolic rate, and timed-up and go performance.
Clinico-pathological initial outcome of a newly adopted novel surgical technique for nodal metastatic thyroid cancer at a large-volume centre in a high-income developing country
Authors: Hassan Iyad , Hassan Lina , Bacha Farooq , Alsalameh Mohammad , Qatee Omran , Hassan Wiam
Published: June 2023

Introduction

Thyroid cancer is the most common tumour in the endocrine system. In the past decade, the incidence of lymph node metastasis has increased, and so has the patient demand for a smaller scar. This research reports the surgical and patho-oncological short-term outcomes of a novel, minimally invasive neck dissection approach for thyroid carcinoma with lymph node metastases at the UAE's leading endocrine surgery centre.

Methods

This study employed a prospectively maintained surgical database to retrospectively analyse relevant parameters such as surgical complications, including bleeding, hypocalcaemia nerve injury and lymphatic fistula, as well as oncological metrics such as the type of tumour and the ratio of lymph node metastasis to the number of harvested lymph nodes in 100 patients that underwent open minimally invasive selective neck dissection.

Results

The study comprised 50 patients with thyroidectomy, with bilateral central compartment neck dissection (BCCND; 50%); 34 with thyroidectomy, BCCND and selective bilateral lateral compartment neck dissection (BLCND; 34%); and 16 patients with selective unilateral central and lateral compartment neck dissection by recurrent nodal disease (ULCND; 16%). The female-to-male gender ratio was 78:22, with median ages of 36 and 42 years, respectively. Histopathology findings revealed that 92% of patients had papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and 8% had medullary thyroid cancer. The mean total number of lymph nodes removed was 22 in the BLCND group, 17 in the ULCND group and 8 in the BCCND group (p = 0.001). Furthermore, the average lymph node metastasis was significantly higher in the BLCND group (p = 0.002). The percentage of temporary hypoparathyroidism was 29.8% and it persisted for 1.3%. The lateral compartment dissection morbidity was as follows: Four male patients with tall cell infiltrative PTC presented with pre-existing vocal cord paresis, necessitating nerve resection and anastomosis, and two more developed it after surgery (1.1% of the nerve at risk). Lymphatic fistulas occurred in four patients (4%) who were treated conservatively. Two patients were readmitted due to symptomatic neck collection. Horner syndrome was discovered in just one female patient. Male gender, aggressive histology and lateral compartment dissection independently increased surgical morbidity. In a high-volume endocrine centre, the adoption of minimally invasive selective neck dissections to treat nodal metastatic thyroid cancer did not increase specific cervical surgery complications.
Changes in Quality of Life Following SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Jewish and Arab Populations in Israel: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Elsinga Jelte , Kuodi Paul , Shibli Haneen , Gorelik Yanay , Zayyad Hiba , Wertheim Ofir , Abu Jabal Kamal , Dror Amiel , Nazzal Saleh , Glikman Daniel , Edelstein Michael
Published: June 2023

Objectives: The long-term impact of COVID-19 on health inequalities is under-researched. We investigated changes in health-related inequalities following SARS-CoV-2 infection between the Jewish majority and the Arab/Druze minority in Israel.

Methods: Patients with a positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test processed from one of the Northern-Israeli government hospitals between 03/2021 and 05/2022 were invited to participate. We collected socio-demographic, COVID-19-related, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) information using a validated questionnaire. We compared pre- and post COVID-19 HRQoL changes between Jews and Arabs/Druze, up to 12+ months post-infection using an adjusted linear regression model.

Results: Among the 881 included participants the average post-COVID HRQoL score was lower among Arabs/Druze than Jews (0.83 vs. 0.88; p = 0.005). Until 12 months post-infection, HRQoL changes were similar for Arabs/Druze and Jews. After 12 months, HRQoL dropped significantly more among Arabs/Druze than among Jews (0.11 points difference between the groups; p = 0.014), despite adjusting for socioeconomic variables.

Conclusion: 12 months post-infection, COVID-19 affected the HRQoL of Arabs/Druze more than Jews, with the gap not fully explained by socio-economic differences. The COVID-19 pandemic may widen pre-existing long-term health inequalities.
Future Trends in UAV Applications in the Australian Market
Authors: Heiets Iryna , Kuo Yi-Wei , La Jiezhuoma , Yeun Richard C.K. , Verhagen Wim
Published: June 2023

The world has been proactively seeking solutions to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus since 2020. A major defensive action is implementing contactless services into everyday activities to reduce viral spread. Drones can provide contactless services in transporting goods and medical supplies, thus reducing the risk of spreading the virus. This paper aims to investigate the future trends of commercial uses for drones in Australia in the next five years. It will explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) industry and its different applications in Australia over the same timeframe; it also considers whether the use of drones in medical services will increase due to the epidemic. Primary data are gathered and evaluated to consider these issues, supported by a set of secondary data. The research aims to provide a holistic direction for the UAV industry, and in particular, for the Australian drone service providers and regulator to modify their operation strategies.
Comparative Metabolomics Analysis of Weedy Rice (Oryza spp.) across Peninsular Malaysia
Authors: Mahmod Intan Filzah , Jeyasimman Saharshini , Mispan Muhamad Shakirin , Supandi Farahaniza , Khatib Alfi , Saiman Mohd Zuwairi
Published: June 2023

Weedy rice (Oryza spp.) is a notorious weed that invades paddy fields and hampers the rice’s production and yield quality; thus, it has become a major problem for rice farmers worldwide. Weedy rice comprises a diverse morphology and phenotypic variation; however, the metabolome and chemical phenotypes of weedy rice grains have not been explored. Therefore, this study is aimed to investigate the metabolite profiles and chemical diversity of Malaysian weedy rice. Thirty-one biotypes of weedy rice grains were collected from selected rice granaries in different states of Peninsular Malaysia, including Selangor, Perak, Penang, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan, and Terengganu. In addition to the weedy rice samples, four cultivated rice varieties (MR219, MR220, MR220 CL2, and MARDI Siraj 297) were subjected to nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabolomics. The PLS-DA and OPLS-DA models revealed a clear separation between the weedy rice and cultivated rice, which was contributed by the higher level of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), α-glucose, fumaric acid, and phenylalanine in the weedy rice, whilst valine, leucine, isoleucine, fatty acids, 2,3-butanediol, threonine, alanine, butyric acid, choline, γ-oryzanol, fructose, β-glucose, sucrose, ferulic acid, and formic acid were found dominant in the cultivated rice. Interestingly, the models also showed a separation between the weedy rice samples collected from the west coast and east coast regions of Peninsular Malaysia. The metabolites responsible for the separation, i.e., threonine, alanine, butyric acid, fructose, β-glucose, and formic acid, were found higher in the west coast samples, and the east coast samples were discriminated by higher levels of valine, leucine, isoleucine, fatty acids, 2,3-butanediol, choline, GABA, γ-oryzanol, α-glucose, sucrose, fumaric acid, ferulic acid, and phenylalanine. This study is the first to provide insights into the metabolite profiles and chemical phenotypes of Malaysian weedy rice that could be influenced by genotype and environmental conditions. The information on the weedy rice metabolome and omics data is important for further research on weed management and crop improvement.
Plant Growth-Promoting Potential of Entomopathogenic Fungus Metarhizium pinghaense AAUBC-M26 under Elevated Salt Stress in Tomato
Authors: Chaudhary Priyanka J. , B. L. Raghunandan , Patel Hiren K. , Mehta Punit V. , Patel Nainesh B. , Sonth Bandeppa , Dave Anand , Bagul Samadhan Y. , M. Divya , Jain Devendra , Alsahli Abdulaziz Abdullah , Kaushik Prashant
Published: June 2023

Entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium species are generally employed to manage the soil-dwelling stage of insect pests, and are known for their rhizocompetency property. Since this fungus is typically recommended for use in soil, it could potentially be investigated as a bioinoculant to reduce abiotic stress, such as salinity, along with improved plant growth promotion. Salt stress tolerance potential of native Metarhizium isolates was evaluated based on mycelial fresh weight, dry weight, and spore yield. All the isolates were found to tolerate NaCl concentrations (50 mM, 100 mM, 150 mM, 200 mM, 250 mM, and 300 mM) supplemented in the culture medium. Metarhizium anisopliae (AAUBC-M15) and Metarhizium pinghaense (AAUBC-M26) were found to be effective at tolerating NaCl stress up to 200 mM NaCl. These two isolates were analyzed in vitro for plant growth-promoting traits at elevated salt concentrations (100 and 200 mM NaCl). No significant effect on IAA production was reported with the isolate M. pinghaense (AAUBC-M26) (39.16 µg/mL) or in combination with isolate M. anisopliae (AAUBC-M15) (40.17 µg/mL) at 100 mM NaCl (38.55 µg/mL). The salinity stress of 100 mM and 200 mM NaCl had a significant influence on the phosphate solubilization activity, except in the co-inoculation treatment at 100 mM NaCl. The isolates were positive for ACC deaminase enzyme activity. An increase in salt concentration was accompanied by a steady and significant increase in chitinase enzyme activity. Total phenolics (149.3 µg/mL) and flavonoids (79.20 µg/mL) were significantly higher in the culture filtrate of Metarhizium isolates at 100 mM NaCl, and gradual decline was documented at 200 mM NaCl. M. pinghaense (AAUBC-M26) proved to be promising in reducing the salt stress in tomato seedlings during the nursery stage. In the pot culture experiment, the treatment comprising soil application + seedling root dip + foliar spray resulted in improved growth parameters of the tomato plant under salt stress. This study shows that Metarhizium, a fungus well known for controlling biotic stress brought on by insect pests, can also help plants cope with abiotic stress, such as salinity.
Detection of QTL for High-Temperature Tolerance in Rice Using a High-Density Bin Map
Authors: Huang Derun , Zhang Zhenhua , Fan Yeyang , Tang Shaoqing , Zhuang Jieyun , Zhu Yujun
Published: June 2023

Rice is sensitive to high-temperature stress during almost all stages of growth and development. High-temperature stress has become one of the main factors restricting high yield and superior quality of rice. In this study, recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from an indica rice cross between two restorer lines were planted in two years. One sowing date was applied in 2019, and four sowing dates were set in 2020 according to the period of local high temperatures in recent years. Two traits closely related to high-temperature tolerance, heading date (HD), and spikelet fertility (SF) were measured. In each trial, the HD showed a bimodal distribution, whereas SF had a continuous and left-skewed distribution. QTL analysis was performed using a high-density bin map. For HD, a total of six QTL were detected. All of them correspond in position to the cloned genes, among which qHD8 in the DTH8/Ghd8 region showed the largest genetic effect. For SF, a total of eight QTL were detected. Five of them, qSF1, qSF2, qSF3.1, qSF3.2, and qSF8, showed high-temperature tolerance and had an important potential in rice breeding.
Pests Identification of IP102 by YOLOv5 Embedded with the Novel Lightweight Module
Authors: Zhang Lijuan , Zhao Cuixing , Feng Yuncong , Li Dongming
Published: June 2023

The development of the agricultural economy is hindered by various pest-related problems. Most pest detection studies only focus on a single pest category, which is not suitable for practical application scenarios. This paper presents a deep learning algorithm based on YOLOv5, which aims to assist agricultural workers in efficiently diagnosing information related to 102 types of pests. To achieve this, we propose a new lightweight convolutional module called C3M, which is inspired by the MobileNetV3 network. Compared to the original convolution module C3, C3M occupies less computing memory and results in a faster inference speed, with the detection precision improved by 4.6%. In addition, the GAM (Global Attention Mechanism) is introduced into the neck of YOLO5, which further improves the detection capability of the model. The experimental results indicate that the C3M-YOLO algorithm performs better than YOLOv5 on IP102, a public dataset consisting of 102 pests. Specifically, the detection precision P is 2.4% higher than that of the original model, and mAP0.75 increased by 1.7%, while the F1-score improved by 1.8%. Furthermore, the mAP0.5 and mAP0.75 of the C3M-YOLO algorithm are higher than those of the YOLOX detection model by 5.1% and 6.2%, respectively.
A Review of Sperm Ultrastructural Characters in the Opecoelidae (Digenea) and Their Phylogenetic Implications, with New Data on Peracreadium characis, a Parasite of Diplodus puntazzo in Tunisia
Authors: Kacem Hichem , Miquel Jordi
Published: June 2023

The spermatozoon ultrastructure of Peracreadium characis (Stossich, 1886) (Digenea: Opecoelidae), an intestinal parasite of the sheephead bream Diplodus puntazzo (Walbaum, 1792) (Sparidae), is described by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The mature spermatozoon possesses two axonemes of the 9+‘1’ trepaxonematan pattern, an anterior electron-dense material, two mitochondria, a nucleus and parallel cortical microtubules distributed in two bundles. The absence of external ornamentation of the plasma membrane and spine-like bodies are the noteworthy characters that distinguish the spermatozoon of P. characis from those of most opecoelids. In fact, only Helicometra fasciata lacks external ornamentation in the spermatozoon. A comparative study with the remaining opecoelids described so far reveals similarities in the ultrastructural organization of their sperm cells. In addition, the current data on sperm ultrastructure in species of the recognized opecoelid subfamilies are compared, namely the Hamacreadiinae, Helicometrinae, Opecoelinae, Opistholebetinae and Plagioporinae.
Different Methods for Seminal Plasma Removal and Sperm Selection on the Quality and Fertility of Collared Peccary Sperm
Authors: Santos Maria V. O. , Silva Andréia M. , Aquino Leonardo V. C. , Oliveira Lhara R. M. , Moreira Samara S. J. , Oliveira Moacir F. , Silva Alexandre R. , Pereira Alexsandra F.
Published: June 2023

Methods for seminal plasma (SP) removal and the selection of collared peccary sperm for fertilization were compared. The experiments evaluated the following: the (I) impact of centrifugation for SP removal before swim-up for sperm selection and (II) a comparison of different Percoll® gradient densities (PG 45–90% and PG 35–70%). Non-selected sperm served as the control. Sperm quality was assessed based on motility patterns, morphology, membrane functional integrity, viability, reactive oxygen species (ROS), glutathione (GSH), and DNA integrity. Subsequently, the most successful group in the previous experiment and washing by centrifugation (WC) were compared for motility patterns and fertilization using pig oocytes. Swim-up decreased motility and enhanced ROS compared to the control. Centrifugation before swim-up harmed integrity and viability compared to the control. PG 45–90% (96.8 vs. 69.7 vs. 40.7 µm/s) allowed for a better velocity average pathway (VAP), a better velocity straight line, and better linearity (LIN) than those of the control and PG 35–70% (88.4 vs. 56.0 vs. 27.3 µm/s). Thus, PG 45–90% was used for fertilization. PG 45–90% obtained a higher VAP, a higher amplitude of the lateral head, straightness, and higher LIN than those of the control and WC. Cleavage (25.2–26.3%) and morula (8.1–10.5%) rates did not differ between the groups. Therefore, PG 45–90% and WC were efficient in isolating collared peccary sperm capable of fertilizing pig oocytes.
A Review of Posture Detection Methods for Pigs Using Deep Learning
Authors: Chen Zhe , Lu Jisheng , Wang Haiyan
Published: June 2023

Analysis of pig posture is significant for improving the welfare and yield of captive pigs under different conditions. Detection of pig postures, such as standing, lateral lying, sternal lying, and sitting, can facilitate a comprehensive assessment of the psychological and physiological conditions of pigs, prediction of their abnormal or detrimental behavior, and evaluation of the farming conditions to improve pig welfare and yield. With the introduction of smart farming into the farming industry, effective and applicable posture detection methods become indispensable for realizing the above purposes in an intelligent and automatic manner. From early manual modeling to traditional machine vision, and then to deep learning, multifarious detection methods have been proposed to meet the practical demand. Posture detection methods based on deep learning show great superiority in terms of performance (such as accuracy, speed, and robustness) and feasibility (such as simplicity and universality) compared with most traditional methods. It is promising to popularize deep learning technology in actual commercial production on a large scale to automate pig posture monitoring. This review comprehensively introduces the data acquisition methods and sub-tasks for pig posture detection and their technological evolutionary processes, and also summarizes the application of mainstream deep learning models in pig posture detection. Finally, the limitations of current methods and the future directions for research will be discussed.
An Efficient NIDPS with Improved Salp Swarm Feature Optimization Method
Authors: Alabrah Amerah
Published: June 2023

Network security problems arise these days due to many challenges in cyberspace. The malicious attacks on installed wide networks are rapidly spreading due to their vulnerability. Therefore, the user and system information are at high risk due to network attacks. To protect networks against these attacks, Network Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (NIDPS) are installed on them. These NIDPS can detect malicious attacks by monitoring abnormal behavior and patterns in network traffic. These systems were mainly developed using Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms. These intelligent NIDPS are also able to detect the attack type while detecting network attacks. Previous studies have proposed many NIDPS for network security. However, many challenges exist so far such as limited available data for training AI algorithms, class imbalance problems, and automated selection of the most important features. These problems need to be solved first, which will lead to the precise detection of network attacks. Therefore, the proposed framework used the highly imbalanced UNSW-NB15 dataset for binary and multiclass classification of network attacks. In this framework, firstly dataset normalization is applied using standard deviation and the mean of feature columns; secondly, an Improved Salp Swarm Algorithm (ISSA) is applied for automated feature selection separately on binary and multiclass subsets. Thirdly, after applying feature selection, the SMOTE–Tomek class balancing method is applied where at least four different ML classifiers are used for binary and multiclass classification. The achieved results outperformed as compared to previous studies and improved the overall performance of NIDPS.
Integration of Geoscience Information for Disaster Resilience in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Authors: Affandi Elanni , Ng Tham Fatt , Pereira Joy Jacqueline
Published: June 2023

Geoscience information supports strategic development planning for building disaster resilience in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which is a city challenged by issues such as landslides, floods and unfavourable ground conditions. Aspects such as the subsurface setting and susceptibility to hazards offer insights to resolve risks that are expected to worsen with climate change. Geoscience data were collated from field investigation and other sources for spatial integration using geographic information system software. The information on engineering ground conditions and susceptibility to geohazards was then combined to demarcate zones that are suitable for urban development. This approach can be applied to other cities so that relevant geoscience information is integrated for planning and decision making in a changing climate. The findings reveal that 20% of the city has high suitability for development and is generally not prone to climate hazards. About 80% of the land area in Kuala Lumpur has medium to high ground constraint, and this includes around 25% of the city area that is susceptible to landslides and floods. In the worst-case scenario where no action is taken, communities and urban assets within these susceptible areas would be exposed and vulnerable to more landslides and floods due to climate change. Additional development should be limited in such areas, and where already developed, targeted hazard-specific measures can be taken to build resilience.
MRS-Transformer: Texture Splicing Method to Remove Defects in Solid Wood Board
Authors: Zhang Yizhuo , Liu Xingyu , Liu Hantao , Yu Huiling
Published: June 2023

Defects in wood growth affect the product’s quality and grade. At present, the research on texture defects of wood mainly focuses on defect localization, ignoring the splicing problem of maintaining texture consistency. In this paper, we designed the MRS-Transformer network and introduced image inpainting to the field of solid wood board splicing. First, we proposed an asymmetric encoder-decoder based on Vision Transformer, where the encoder uses a fixed mask(M) strategy, discarding the masked patches and using only the unmasked visual patches as input to reduce model calculations. Second, we designed a reverse Swin (RS) module with multi-scale characteristics as the decoder to adjust the divided image patches’ size and complete the restoration from coarse to fine. Finally, we proposed a weighted L2 loss (MSE, mean square error), which assigns different weights to the unmasked region according to the distance from the defective region, allowing the model to make full use of the effective pixels to repair the masked region. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the designed modules, we used MSE (mean square error), LPIPS (learned perceptual image patch similarity), PSNR (peak signal to noise ratio), SSIM (structural similarity), and FLOPs (floating point operations) to measure the quality of the model generated wood texture images and the model computational complexity, we designed relevant ablation experiments. The results show that the MSE, LPIPS, PSNR, and SSIM of the wood images restored by the MRS-Transformer reached 0.0003, 0.154, 40.12, 0.9173, and the GFLOPs is 20.18. Compared with images generated by the Vision Transformer, the MSE and LPIPS were reduced by 51.7% and 30%, PSNR and SSIM were improved by 12.2% and 7.5%, and the GFLOPs were reduced by 38%. To verify the superiority of MRS-Transformer, we compared the image inpainting algorithms with Deepfill v2 and TG-Net, respectively, in which the MSE was 47.0% and 66.9% lower; the LPIPS was 60.6% and 42.5% lower; the FLOPs was 70.6% and 53.5% lower; the PSNR was 16.1% and 26.2% higher; and the SSIM was 7.3% and 5.8% higher. MRS-Transformer repairs a single image in 0.05 s, nearly five times faster than Deepfill v2 and TG-Net. The experimental results demonstrate that the RSwin module effectively alleviates the sense of fragmentation caused by the division of images into patches, the proposed weighted L2 loss improves the semantic consistency of the edges of the missing regions and makes the generated wood texture more detailed and coherent, and the adopted asymmetric encoder-decoder effectively reduces the computational effort of the model and speeds up the training.
An Analysis of the Spatial and Temporal Evolution of the Urban Heat Island in the City of Zhengzhou Using MODIS Data
Authors: Dang Lei , Kim Soobong
Published: June 2023

A rapid increase in urbanization has caused severe urban heat island (UHI) effects in China over the past few years. Zhengzhou is one of the emerging cities of China where residents are facing strong impact of UHI. By utilizing MODIS data on land surface temperature (LST) and employing 3S technology, this study investigates the UHI phenomenon in Zhengzhou over a 10-year period (2012–2021), aiming to analyze the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of the UHI effect and the associated land cover changes. To the best of our knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to investigate annual and seasonal changes in different areas of Zhengzhou. It is noted that in the night-time, the intensity of the heat island is stronger than in daytime, which has moderate and weak heat island areas. Seasonal variation showed that in autumn, Zhengzhou has the strong heat island intensity, followed by summer, and the lowest is in winter and spring. The analysis reveals that built-up (construction) areas exhibit the highest LST, whereas forested land and water bodies have the lowest temperature levels. The findings of this study can serve as reference for reducing UHI and increasing thermal comfort in cities.
Extending the Thermal Comfort Band in Residential Buildings: A Strategy towards a Less Energy-Intensive Society
Authors: Monge Palma Rafael , Sánchez Ramos José , Guerrero Delgado María del Carmen , Palomo Amores Teresa Rocío , Romero Rodríguez Laura , Álvarez Domínguez Servando
Published: June 2023

Extending set-point temperatures in residential buildings has a significant impact on energy demand and thermal comfort. European governments have adopted this strategy to mitigate the energy crisis. Previous studies attempting to quantify energy savings by extending set-point temperatures were limited due to a lack of building stock characterisation, poor climate representation, and the absence of uniformity in the reference set-point temperature. In this study, a large-scale simulation was conducted, which included six building models covering 90% of southern Europe Köppen–Geiger climates, where 20 °C and 25 °C were the reference heating and cooling set-point temperatures, respectively. This also accounted for the thermal characteristics of the older building stock, built more than 15 years ago, and the new buildings built under the latest version of Directive 2010/31/EU. The results show that reducing the heating set-point temperature by 1 °C can lead to an average demand reduction of 20%, while raising the cooling set-point temperature by 1 °C can lead to a 25% cooling demand reduction. The oldest building stock shows a higher absolute savings potential. Adjusting thermostats by 1 °C in Spanish homes during the winter season could represent a saved natural gas volume of 1.8 million normal cubic meters, nearly 40% of the gas demand of households in 2022. These findings suggest that extending the set-point temperatures in residential buildings can be a promising strategy towards a more energy-efficient society without compromising the occupant’s thermal comfort.
An Ensemble Transfer Learning Model for Detecting Stego Images
Authors: Mikhail Dina Yousif , Hawezi Roojwan Sc , Kareem Shahab Wahhab
Published: June 2023

As internet traffic grows daily, so does the need to protect it. Network security protects data from unauthorized access and ensures their confidentiality and integrity. Steganography is the practice and study of concealing communications by inserting them into seemingly unrelated data streams (cover media). Investigating and adapting machine learning models in digital image steganalysis is becoming more popular. It has been demonstrated that steganography techniques used within such a framework perform more securely than do techniques using hand-crafted pieces. This work was carried out to investigate and examine machine learning methods’ critical contributions and beneficial roles. Machine learning is a field of artificial intelligence (AI) that provides the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed. Steganalysis is considered a classification problem that can be addressed by employing machine learning techniques and recent deep learning tools. The proposed ensemble model had four models (convolution neural networks (CNNs), Inception, AlexNet, and Resnet50), and after evaluating each model, the system voted on the best model for detecting stego images. Since active steganalysis is a classification problem that may be solved using active deep learning tools and modern machine learning methods, this paper’s major goal was to analyze deep learning algorithms’ vital roles and main contributions. The evaluation shows how to successfully detect images that contain a steganography algorithm that hides data in images. Thus, it suggests which algorithms work best, which need improvement, and which are easier to identify.
Trajectory Planning in Robot Joint Space Based on Improved Quantum Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm
Authors: Luo Lan , Guo Tongbin , Cui Kangkang , Zhang Qi
Published: June 2023

Trajectory planning is a crucial step in controlling robot motion. The efficiency and accuracy of trajectory planning directly impact the real-time control and accuracy of robot motion. The robot’s trajectory is mapped to the joint space, and a mathematical model of trajectory planning is established to meet physical constraints during motion and avoid joint coupling problems. To enhance convergence speed and avoid local optima, an improved quantum particle swarm optimization algorithm is proposed and applied to solve the mathematical model of robot trajectory planning. The trajectory planning in robot joint space is then tested based on the improved quantum particle swarm optimization algorithm. The results demonstrate that this method can replace the traditional trajectory planning algorithms and offers higher accuracy and efficiency.
Cognitive Computing with a Big Data System in a Secure Internet of Things
Authors: Cheng Xiaochun , Du Ding-Zhu , Sangaiah Arun Kumar , Lu Rongxing
Published: June 2023

This editorial aims to summarize the contents of the ten papers included in the Special Issue entitled “Cognitive Computing with a Big Data System in a Secure Internet of Things” [...]
Degradation Evaluation of Lithium-Ion Batteries in Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles: An Empirical Calibration
Authors: Cai Hongchang , Hao Xu , Jiang Yong , Wang Yanan , Han Xuebing , Yuan Yuebo , Zheng Yuejiu , Wang Hewu , Ouyang Minggao
Published: June 2023

Battery life management is critical for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to prevent dangerous situations such as overcharging and over-discharging, which could cause thermal runaway. PHEVs have more complex operating conditions than EVs due to their dual energy sources. Therefore, the SOH estimation for PHEV vehicles needs to consider the specific operating characteristics of the PHEV and make calibrations accordingly. Firstly, we estimated the initial SOH by combining data-driven and empirical models. The data-driven method used was the incremental state of charge (SOC)-capacity method, and the empirical model was the Arrhenius model. This method can obtain the battery degradation trend and predict the SOH well in realistic applications. Then, according to the multiple characteristics of PHEV, we conducted a correlation analysis and selected the UF as the calibration factor because the UF has the highest correlation with SOH. Finally, we calibrated the parameters of the Arrhenius model using the UF in a fuzzy logic way, so that the calibrated fitting degradation trends could be closer to the true SOH. The proposed calibration method was verified by a PHEV dataset that included 11 vehicles. The experiment results show that the root mean square error (RMSE) of the SOH fitting after UF calibration can be decreased by 0.2–14% and that the coefficient of determination (R2) for the calibrated fitting trends can be improved by 0.5–32%. This provides more reliable guidance for the safe management and operation of PHEV batteries.
Tactically Maximize Game Advantage by Predicting Football Substitutions Using Machine Learning
Authors: Mohandas Alex , Ahsan Mominul , Haider Julfikar
Published: June 2023

Football (also known as Soccer), boasts a staggering fan base of 3.5 billion individuals spread across 200 countries, making it the world’s most beloved sport. The widespread adoption of advanced technology in sports has become increasingly prominent, empowering players, coaches, and team management to enhance their performance and refine team strategies. Among these advancements, player substitution plays a crucial role in altering the dynamics of a match. However, due to the absence of proven methods or software capable of accurately predicting substitutions, these decisions are often based on instinct rather than concrete data. The purpose of this research is to explore the potential of employing machine learning algorithms to predict substitutions in Football, and how it could influence the outcome of a match. This study investigates the effect of timely and tactical substitutions in football matches and their influence on the match results. Machine learning techniques such as Logistic Regression (LR), Decision tree (DT), K-nearest Neighbor (KNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Multinomial Naïve Bayes (MNB), Random Forest (RF) classifiers were implemented and tested to develop models and to predict player substitutions. Relevant data was collected from the Kaggle dataset, which contains data of 51,738 substitutions from 9074 European league football matches in 5 leagues spanning 6 seasons. Machine learning models were trained and tested using an 80-20 data split and it was observed that RF model provided the best accuracy of over 70% and the best F1-score of 0.65 on the test set across all football leagues. SVM model achieved the best Precision of almost 0.8. However, the worst computation time of up to 2 min was consumed. LR showed some overfitting issues with 100% accuracy in the training set, but only 60% accuracy was obtained for the test set. To conclude, based on the time of substitution and match score-line, it was possible to predict the players who can be substituted, which can provide a match advantage. The achieved results provided an effective way to decide on player substitutions for both the team manager and coaches.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Is Associated with Worse Oncologic Outcomes in Early-Stage Resected Pancreatic and Periampullary Cancers
Authors: Huang Rachel , Hammelef Emma , Sabitsky Matthew , Ream Carolyn , Khalilieh Saed , Zohar Nitzan , Lavu Harish , Bowne Wilbur B. , Yeo Charles J. , Nevler Avinoam
Published: June 2023

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the 3rd leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States. Hypoxic and hypercapnic tumor microenvironments have been suggested to promote tumor aggressiveness. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and oncologic survival outcomes in patients with early-stage PDAC and periampullary cancers. In this case-control study, patients who underwent a pancreaticoduodenectomy during 2014–2021 were assessed. Demographic, perioperative, histologic, and oncologic data were collected. A total of 503 PDAC and periampullary adenocarcinoma patients were identified, 257 males and 246 females, with a mean age of 68.1 (±9.8) years and a mean pre-operative BMI of 26.6 (±4.7) kg/m2. Fifty-two percent of patients (N = 262) reported a history of smoking. A total of 42 patients (8.3%) had COPD. The average resected tumor size was 2.9 ± 1.4 cm and 65% of the specimens (N = 329) were positive for lymph-node involvement. Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that COPD was associated with worse overall and disease-specific survival (p < 0.05). Cox regression analysis showed COPD to be an independent prognostic factor (HR = 1.5, 95% CI 1.0–2.3, p = 0.039) along with margin status, lymphovascular invasion, and perineural invasion (p < 0.05 each). A 1:3 nearest neighbor propensity score matching was also employed and revealed COPD to be an independent risk factor for overall and disease-specific survival (OR 1.8 and OR 1.6, respectively; p < 0.05 each). These findings may support the rationale posed by in vitro laboratory studies, suggesting an important impact of hypoxic and hypercapnic tumor respiratory microenvironments in promoting therapy resistance in cancer.
UBL3 Interacts with Alpha-Synuclein in Cells and the Interaction Is Downregulated by the EGFR Pathway Inhibitor Osimertinib
Authors: Chen Bin , Hasan Md. Mahmudul , Zhang Hengsen , Zhai Qing , Waliullah A. S. M. , Ping Yashuang , Zhang Chi , Oyama Soho , Mimi Mst. Afsana , Tomochika Yuna , Nagashima Yu , Nakamura Tomohiko , Kahyo Tomoaki , Ogawa Kenji , Kaneda Daita , Yoshida Minoru , Setou Mitsutoshi
Published: June 2023

Ubiquitin-like 3 (UBL3) acts as a post-translational modification (PTM) factor and regulates protein sorting into small extracellular vesicles (sEVs). sEVs have been reported as vectors for the pathology propagation of neurodegenerative diseases, such as α-synucleinopathies. Alpha-synuclein (α-syn) has been widely studied for its involvement in α-synucleinopathies. However, it is still unknown whether UBL3 interacts with α-syn, and is influenced by drugs or compounds. In this study, we investigated the interaction between UBL3 and α-syn, and any ensuing possible functional and pathological implications. We found that UBL3 can interact with α-syn by the Gaussia princeps based split luciferase complementation assay in cells and immunoprecipitation, while cysteine residues at its C-terminal, which are considered important as PTM factors for UBL3, were not essential for the interaction. The interaction was upregulated by 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium exposure. In drug screen results, the interaction was significantly downregulated by the treatment of osimertinib. These results suggest that UBL3 interacts with α-syn in cells and is significantly downregulated by epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathway inhibitor osimertinib. Therefore, the UBL3 pathway may be a new therapeutic target for α-synucleinopathies in the future.
In Rats, Whole and Refined Grains Decrease Bone Mineral Density and Content through Modulating Osteoprotegerin and Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor Kappa B
Authors: Sakr Hussein , Khired Zenat , Moghadas Marzieh
Published: June 2023

Wheat is a staple grain in most parts of the world and is also frequently used in livestock feed. The current study looked at the impact of a wheat grain diet on bone turnover markers. Thirty male rats (n = 10) were separated into three groups of ten. The rats in Group 1 were fed a chow diet, while the rats in Group 2 were provided whole grains. The rats in Group 3 were fed refined grains. Each rat’s bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD) were measured after 12 weeks in the tibia of the right hind limb. We also looked at the amounts of bone turnover indicators in the blood. TRAP-5b (Tartrate-resistant acid Phosphatase 5b), NTx (N-telopeptide of type I collagen), DPD (deoxypyridinoline), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and osteocalcin (OC), as well as the levels of Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor Kappa B (RANK) and osteoprotegerin (OPG). Rats fed whole and refined grains showed lower BMC and BMD (p < 0.05) than the control group rats. The grain diet resulted in lower OPG, OC, and ALP levels than the chow-fed rats, as well as significantly higher (p < 0.05) levels of RANK, DPD, TRAB 5b, and NTx. In a rat model, an exclusive whole or refined grain diet lowered bone turnover and mass.