bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Chemical Composition of Nanoglobular Material on the Surface of Rubber Regenerate Prepared by Explosive Circulation Technology
Authors: Naumkin Alexander Vasylievich , Misin Vyacheslav Mikhailovich , Maslakov Konstantin Igorevich
Published: November 2022

The rubber crumbs produced by the explosive circular destruction of worn-out automobile tires were studied. The crumbs showed high hydrophilicity. Their surface was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. C, O, S, Zn, and Si were detected on the surface, and their chemical states were determined. The same chemical composition in the rubber crumb surface prepared by the explosive grinding of tires, as well as nanoglobules covering the crumb surface, was revealed. The appearance of polar groups on the crumb surface explains its high hydrophilicity and good compatibility with polymer matrices.
Fabrication of Novel Bentonite-Anthracite@Zetag (BT-An@Zetag) Composite for the Removal of Arsenic (V) from an Aqueous Solution
Authors: El-Aassar Mohamed , Alezbaway Ahmed , Althobaiti Ibrahim , El-Sayed Mohamed , Abu Salem Hend , Hassan Hassan , Alolaimi Rawan , El Agammy Emam , Mohy-Eldin Mohamed , Mohamed Fathy
Published: November 2022

The arsenic (As) pollution of water has been eliminated via intensive scientific efforts, with the purpose of giving safe drinking water to millions of people across the world. In this study, the adsorption of As(V) from a synthetic aqueous solution was verified using a Bentonite-Anthracite@Zetag (BT-An@Zetag) composite. The SEM, FT-IR, XRD, DSC, TGA, and SBET techniques were used to characterize the (BT-An@Zetag) composite. The adsorption of As(V) was explored using batch adsorption under varied operating scenarios. Five kinetic modelswere used to investigate kinetic data, whereas three isotherms had been used to fit empirical equilibrium data. According to the findings, the adsorption mechanism of As(V) was best described by the Freundlich isotherm with a maximum monolayer coverage of 38.6 mg/g showing pseudo-second-order mode. The estimated enthalpy (H°) indicates that the adsorption process is both chemical and endothermic.The calculated free energy (G°) indicates that the reaction is nonspontaneous. After four sequential adsorption cycles, the produced BT-An@Zetag composite demonstrated good reusability and a greater adsorption affinity for As(V) ions. Overall, the BT-An@Zetag composite is suited for removing arsenic from wastewater using adsorption as a cost-effective and efficient technique.
Biodereplication of Antiplasmodial Extracts: Application of the Amazonian Medicinal Plant Piper coruscans Kunth
Authors: Vásquez-Ocmín Pedro G. , Gallard Jean-François , Van Baelen Anne-Cécile , Leblanc Karine , Cojean Sandrine , Mouray Elisabeth , Grellier Philippe , Guerra Carlos A. Amasifuén , Beniddir Mehdi A. , Evanno Laurent , Figadère Bruno , Maciuk Alexandre
Published: November 2022

Improved methodological tools to hasten antimalarial drug discovery remain of interest, especially when considering natural products as a source of drug candidates. We propose a biodereplication method combining the classical dereplication approach with the early detection of potential antiplasmodial compounds in crude extracts. Heme binding is used as a surrogate of the antiplasmodial activity and is monitored by mass spectrometry in a biomimetic assay. Molecular networking and automated annotation of targeted mass through data mining were followed by mass-guided compound isolation by taking advantage of the versatility and finely tunable selectivity offered by centrifugal partition chromatography. This biodereplication workflow was applied to an ethanolic extract of the Amazonian medicinal plant Piper coruscans Kunth (Piperaceae) showing an IC50 of 1.36 µg/mL on the 3D7 Plasmodium falciparum strain. It resulted in the isolation of twelve compounds designated as potential antiplasmodial compounds by the biodereplication workflow. Two chalcones, aurentiacin (1) and cardamonin (3), with IC50 values of 2.25 and 5.5 µM, respectively, can be considered to bear the antiplasmodial activity of the extract, with the latter not relying on a heme-binding mechanism. This biodereplication method constitutes a rapid, efficient, and robust technique to identify potential antimalarial compounds in complex extracts such as plant extracts.
Synthesis and Cytotoxic Activity of 1,2,4-Triazolo-Linked Bis-Indolyl Conjugates as Dual Inhibitors of Tankyrase and PI3K
Authors: Yakkala Prasanna A. , Panda Samir R. , Shafi Syed , Naidu V. G. M. , Yar M. Shahar , Ubanako Philemon N. , Adeyemi Samson A. , Kumar Pradeep , Choonara Yahya E. , Radchenko Eugene V. , Palyulin Vladimir A. , Kamal Ahmed
Published: November 2022

A series of new 1,2,4-triazolo-linked bis-indolyl conjugates (15a–r) were prepared by multistep synthesis and evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against various human cancer cell lines. It was observed that they were more susceptible to colon and breast cancer cells. Conjugates 15o (IC50 = 2.04 μM) and 15r (IC50 = 0.85 μM) illustrated promising cytotoxicity compared to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU, IC50 = 5.31 μM) against the HT-29 cell line. Interestingly, 15o and 15r induced cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase and disrupted the mitochondrial membrane potential. Moreover, these conjugates led to apoptosis in HT-29 at 2 μM and 1 μM, respectively, and also enhanced the total ROS production as well as the mitochondrial-generated ROS. Immunofluorescence and Western blot assays revealed that these conjugates reduced the expression levels of the PI3K-P85, β-catenin, TAB-182, β-actin, AXIN-2, and NF-κB markers that are involved in the β-catenin pathway of colorectal cancer. The results of the in silico docking studies of 15r and 15o further support their dual inhibitory behaviour against PI3K and tankyrase. Interestingly, the conjugates have adequate ADME-toxicity parameters based on the calculated results of the molecular dynamic simulations, as we found that these inhibitors (15r) influenced the conformational flexibility of the 4OA7 and 3L54 proteins.
The p-Phthalates Terephthalic Acid and Dimethyl Terephthalate Used in the Manufacture of PET Induce In Vitro Adipocytes Dysfunction by Altering Adipogenesis and Thermogenesis Mechanisms
Authors: Molonia Maria Sofia , Muscarà Claudia , Speciale Antonio , Salamone Federica Lina , Toscano Giovanni , Saija Antonella , Cimino Francesco
Published: November 2022

Public health concerns associated with the potential leaching of substances from Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) packaging have been raised due to the role of phthalates as endocrine-disrupting chemicals or obesogens. In particular, changes in the environment such as pH, temperature, and irradiation can improve contaminant migration from PET food packaging. In this study, the in vitro effects of p-phthalates terephthalic acid (TPA) and dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) on murine adipocytes (3T3-L1) were evaluated using concentrations that might be obtained in adult humans exposed to contaminated sources. TPA and, in particular, DMT exposure during 3T3-L1 differentiation increased the cellular lipid content and induced adipogenic markers PPAR-γ, C/EBPß, FABP4, and FASN, starting from low nanomolar concentrations. Interestingly, the adipogenic action of TPA- and DMT-induced PPAR-γ was reverted by ICI 182,780, a specific antagonist of the estrogen receptor. Furthermore, TPA and DMT affected adipocytes’ thermogenic program, reducing pAMPK and PGC-1α levels, and induced the NF-κB proinflammatory pathway. Given the observed effects of biologically relevant chronic concentrations of these p-phthalates and taking into account humans’ close and constant contact with plastics, it seems appropriate that ascertaining safe levels of TPA and DMT exposure is considered a high priority.
Molecular Hybrids of Pyazolo[3,4-b]pyridine and Triazole: Design, Synthesis and In Vitro Antibacterial Studies
Authors: Bandaru Narasimha Rao , Makam Parameshwar , Akshinthala Parameswari , Katari Naresh Kumar , Banoth Venkanna , Kolli Balakrishna , Gundla Rambabu
Published: November 2022

Antimicrobial resistance is on the rise, and there aren’t enough new treatments to combat it. This might send the modern world back to the pre-antibiotic age. The molecular hybrids of pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine and triazole have been designed, synthesized, and analyzed for their drug-like molecule nature and in vitro analyses for their inhibition potentials against S. aureus and K. pneumoniae. The compounds 24 and 27 have been identified as the high potential molecules in this series based on in vitro experiments. Compound 24 has zone of inhibition values of 15 ± 0.82 mm and 14 ± 0.7 mm, whilst compound 27 has zone of inhibition values of 18 ± 0.95 mm and 16 ± 0.82 mm against S. aureus and K. pneumoniae, respectively. MIC and MIB values for compounds 24 and 27 against S. aureus and K. pneumoniae are 0.25 and 0.5, respectively.
Efficient Synthesis of Fluorescent Coumarins and Phosphorous-Containing Coumarin-Type Heterocycles via Palladium Catalyzed Cross-Coupling Reactions
Authors: Lyapchev Rumen , Koleva Ana I. , Koleva Iskra Z. , Subev Kristian , Madzharova Ivelina , Simeonova Kristina B. , Petkova-Yankova Nevena , Morgenstern Bernd , Lozanova Vesela , Petrov Petar Y. , Nikolova Rositca D.
Published: November 2022

Quantum-chemical calculations on the spectral properties of some aryl substituted 3-phosphonocoumarins were performed, and the effect of the substituents in the aryl moiety was evaluated. The structures possessing promising fluorescent properties were successfully synthesized via Suzuki and Sonogashira cross-coupling. The synthetic protocol was also applied for the phosphorous chemoisomer of 3-phosphonocoumarin, 1,2-benzoxaphosphorin, and their carboxylate analogues. The optical properties of the arylated and alkynylated products were experimentally determined. The obtained quantum-chemical and experimental results give the possibility for a fine tuning of the optical properties of phosphorous-containing coumarin systems by altering the substituent at its C-6 position.
Ferulic Acid: A Natural Phenol That Inhibits Neoplastic Events through Modulation of Oncogenic Signaling
Authors: Singh Tuli Hardeep , Kumar Ajay , Ramniwas Seema , Coudhary Renuka , Aggarwal Diwakar , Kumar Manoj , Sharma Ujjawal , Chaturvedi Parashar Nidarshana , Haque Shafiul , Sak Katrin
Published: November 2022

Despite the immense therapeutic advances in the field of health sciences, cancer is still to be found among the global leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Ethnomedicinally, natural bioactive compounds isolated from various plant sources have been used for the treatment of several cancer types and have gained notable attention. Ferulic acid, a natural compound derived from various seeds, nuts, leaves, and fruits, exhibits a variety of pharmacological effects in cancer, including its proapoptotic, cell-cycle-arresting, anti-metastatic, and anti-inflammatory activities. This review study presents a thorough overview of the molecular targets and cellular signaling pathways modulated by ferulic acid in diverse malignancies, showing high potential for this phenolic acid to be developed as a candidate agent for novel anticancer therapeutics. In addition, current investigations to develop promising synergistic formulations are also discussed.
Olfactory Stimulation Successfully Modulates the Neurochemical, Biochemical and Behavioral Phenotypes of the Visceral Pain
Authors: Liao Wen-Chieh , Yao Rou-An , Chen Li-You , Renn Ting-Yi , Klimenkov Igor V. , Sudakov Nikolay P. , Mai Fu-Der , Chen Yea-Tzy , Chang Hung-Ming
Published: November 2022

Visceral pain (VP) is the organ-derived nociception in which increased inflammatory reaction and exaggerated activation of the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) may contribute to this deficiency. Considering the amygdala also serves as the integration center for olfaction, the present study aimed to determine whether olfactory stimulation (OS) would effectively depress over-activation and inflammatory reaction in CeA, and successfully relieve VP-induced abnormalities. Adult rats subjected to intraperitoneal injection of acetic acid inhaled lavender essential oil for 2 or 4 h. The potential benefits of OS were determined by measuring the pro-inflammatory cytokine level, intracellular potassium and the upstream small-conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK) channel expression, together with detecting the stress transmitters that participated in the modulation of CeA activity. Results indicated that in VP rats, strong potassium intensity, reduced SK channel protein level, and increased corticotropin-releasing factor, c-fos, and substance P immuno-reactivities were detected in CeA. Enhanced CeA activation corresponded well with increased inflammatory reaction and decreased locomotion, respectively. However, in rats subjected to VP and received OS, all above parameters were significantly returned to normal levels with higher change detected in treating OS of 4h. As OS successfully depresses inflammation and CeA over-activation, application of OS may serve as an alternative and effective strategy to efficiently relieve VP-induced deficiency.
Dual Targeting of MDM4 and FTH1 by MMRi71 for Induced Protein Degradation and p53-Independent Apoptosis in Leukemia Cells
Authors: Lama Rati , Galster Samuel L. , Xu Chao , Davison Luke W. , Chemler Sherry R. , Wang Xinjiang
Published: November 2022

MDM2 and MDM4 are cancer drug targets validated in multiple models for p53-based cancer therapies. The RING domains of MDM2 and non-p53-binder MDM2 splice isoforms form RING domain heterodimer polyubiquitin E3 ligases with MDM4, which regulate p53 stability in vivo and promote tumorigenesis independent of p53. Despite the importance of the MDM2 RING domain in p53 regulation and cancer development, small molecule inhibitors targeting the E3 ligase activity of MDM2-MDM4 are poorly explored. Here, we describe the synthesis and characterization of quinolinol derivatives for the identification of analogs that are capable of targeting the MDM2-MDM4 heterodimer E3 ligase and inducing apoptosis in cells. The structure-activity-relationship (SAR) study identified structural moieties critical for the inhibitory effects toward MDM2-MDM4 E3 ligase, the targeted degradation of MDM4 and FTH1 in cells, and anti-proliferation activity. Lead optimization led to the development of compound MMRi71 with improved activity. In addition to accumulating p53 proteins in wt-p53 bearing cancer cells as expected of any MDM2 inhibitors, MMRi71 effectively kills p53-null leukemia cells, an activity that conventional MDM2-p53 disrupting inhibitors lack. This study provides a prototype structure for developing MDM4/FTH1 dual-targeting inhibitors as potential cancer therapeutics.
Neurite Outgrowth-Promoting Compounds from the Petals of Paeonia lactiflora in PC12 Cells
Authors: Koga Takeru , Ito Hideyuki , Iwaoka Yuji , Noshita Toshiro , Tai Akihiro
Published: November 2022

Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and astragalin, flavonol glucosides, were isolated from the petals of Paeonia lactiflora as neurite outgrowth-promoting compounds. Isoquercitrin, formed by demethylating the B ring of isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside or by adding a hydroxyl group to the B ring of astragalin, was evaluated for neurite outgrowth-promoting activity and was compared with the activities of isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and astragalin. The activities of isorhamnetin, kaempferol, and quercetin, aglycones corresponding to isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside, astragalin, and isoquercitrin, respectively, were also evaluated. Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and astragalin showed much stronger neurite outgrowth-promoting activities than the activities of the other tested flavonoids. They exhibited relatively weak anti-oxidant activities and moderate AChE inhibitory activities compared to the activities of the other tested flavonoids. Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and astragalin promoted morphological neurite outgrowth and the expression of neurofilaments induced by NGF in PC12 cells. Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside and astragalin might be candidate compounds as neural differentiation agents in peripheral nerves and functional food ingredients preventing cognitive decline.
Prevalence of Pathogenic Leptospira spp. in Non-Volant Small Mammals of Hutan Lipur Sekayu, Terengganu, Malaysia
Authors: Shafie Nur Juliani , Halim Najma Syahmin Abdul , Awoniyi Adedayo Michael , Zalipah Mohamed Nor , Md-Nor Shukor , Nazri Mohd Ulul Ilmie Ahmad , Costa Federico
Published: November 2022

Leptospirosis is an important zoonotic disease that is transmitted worldwide through infected small mammals such as rodents. In Malaysia, there is a paucity of information on the animal reservoirs that are responsible for leptospirosis transmission, with only a few studies focusing on leptospirosis risk in recreational areas. Therefore, in this study we characterized the species composition and the prevalence of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in non-volant small mammals of Hutan Lipur Sekayu, Terengganu. We performed ten trapping sessions totaling 3000 trappings between September 2019 and October 2020. Kidney samples from captured individuals were extracted for the PCR detection of pathogenic Leptospira spp. Overall, we captured 45 individuals from 8 species (1.56% successful trapping effort), with 9 individuals testing positive for pathogenic Leptospira, that is, a 20% (n = 9/45) prevalence rate. Rattus tiomanicus (n = 22) was the most dominant captured species and had the highest positive individual with pathogenic Leptospira (44.4%, n = 4/9). Despite the low successful trapping effort in this study, the results show the high diversity of non-volant small mammals in Hutan Lipur Sekayu, and that they could also maintain and transmit pathogenic Leptospira.
A Novel Two-Chamber Setup for Containment Investigations with Special Focus on the Dustiness of Pharmaceutical Powders Depending on the Airflow
Authors: Wirth Steffen , Schöler Martin , Brügmann Jonas , Leopold Claudia S.
Published: November 2022

In the present study, it was shown that a newly developed two-chamber setup (TCS) for containment investigations consisting of an emission and a detection chamber may serve to predict the dustiness of HPAPIs in a sealed system at different flow conditions. These flow conditions include the plain diffusive transport and the diffusive transport with the oppositely directed convective flow of airborne particles of the safe surrogate substance acetaminophen (ACAM). A linear correlation was found between an atomized amount of up to 400 mg of ACAM and the resulting dust emissions. The dust emission was reduced significantly by an oppositely directed convective flow. The results from the examinations, using either atomized ACAM or smoke for the determination of the evacuation time of the detection chamber, indicated that both methods are comparable. Furthermore, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were performed to determine the evacuation time. A time period of 9 min was sufficient for a reproducible evacuation and a reliable detection of most airborne ACAM particles within the detection chamber. CFD simulations were also carried out to simulate the air velocity resulting from various pressure differences and to visualize the flow of the airborne particles within the detection chamber.
Effect of Ice Slurry Ingestion on Post-Exercise Physiological Responses in Rugby Union Players
Authors: Morito Akihisa , Inami Takayuki , Hirata Akihiro , Yamada Satoshi , Shimomasuda Masatsugu , Kato Keita , Tahara Shigeyuki , Kohtake Naohiko
Published: November 2022

Delayed recovery of the core body temperature after exercise adversely affects physiological functions, and the effects of ingesting lower-temperature ice slurry on post-exercise recovery remain unclear. We investigated the effects of ingesting −2 °C ice slurry on physiological recovery after field-based rugby union training. Fifteen university rugby union players participated in our randomized controlled study. The players participated in the training for 60 min in a hot outdoor environment (wet-bulb globe temperature, 30.5 °C). Physiological responses were measured during a physical performance test performed after the players ingested either −2 °C-ice slurry (ICE, N = 7) at 5 g/kg body mass or a 30 °C-fluid (CON, N = 8) during the 15 min recovery period after the training. Tympanic temperatures and heart rates were measured as the physiological indices, as well as heat storage. The ICE group showed significantly decreased tympanic temperatures and heart rates (p < 0.05) during the recovery period and increased heat storage (p < 0.05) but did not show improvement of physiological indices during the performance test compared to the CON group. These results suggest that ingestion of −2 °C ice slurry in even lower amounts than those previously reported is useful for physiological recovery after training in hot outdoor environments.
Using of Essential Oils and Plant Extracts against Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. glycinea and Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens on Soybean
Authors: Tarakanov Rashit I. , Dzhalilov Fevzi S.-U.
Published: November 2022

The bacteria Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. glycinea (Coerper, 1919; Gardan et al., 1992) (Psg) and Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens (Hedges 1922) (Cff) are harmful pathogens of soybean (Glycine max). Presently, there are several strategies to control these bacteria, and the usage of environmentally friendly approaches is encouraged. In this work, purified essential oils (EOs) from 19 plant species and total aqueous and ethanolic plant extracts (PEs) from 19 plant species were tested in vitro to observe their antimicrobial activity against Psg and Cff (by agar diffusion and broth microdilution method). Tested EOs and PEs produced significant bacterial growth inhibition with technologically acceptable MIC and MBC values. Non-phytotoxic concentrations for Chinese cinnamon and Oregano essential oils and leather bergenia ethanolic extract, which previously showed the lowest MBC values, were determined. Testing of these substances with artificial infection of soybean plants has shown that the essential oils of Chinese cinnamon and oregano have the maximum efficiency against Psg and Cff. Treatment of leaves and seeds previously infected with phytopathogens with these essential oils showed that the biological effectiveness of leaf treatments was 80.6–77.5% and 86.9–54.6%, respectively, for Psg and Cff. GC-MS and GC-FID analyzes showed that the major compounds were 5-Methyl-3-methylenedihydro-2(3H)-furanone (20.32%) in leather bergenia ethanolic extract, cinnamaldehyde (84.25%) in Chinese cinnamon essential oil and carvacrol (62.32%) in oregano essential oil.
Study on Degradation of 1,2,4-TrCB by Sugarcane Cellulose-TiO2 Carrier in an Intimate Coupling of Photocatalysis and Biodegradation System
Authors: Zhou Zhenqi , Jiao Chunlin , Liang Yinna , Du Ang , Zhang Jiaming , Xiong Jianhua , Chen Guoning , Zhu Hongxiang , Lu Lihai
Published: November 2022

1,2,4 trichlorobenzene (1,2,4-TrCB) is a persistent organic pollutant with chemical stability, biological toxicity, and durability, which has a significant adverse impact on the ecological environment and human health. In order to solve the pollution problem, bagasse cellulose is used as the basic framework and nano TiO2 is used as the photocatalyst to prepare composite carriers with excellent performance. Based on this, an intimate coupling of photocatalysis and biodegradation (ICPB) system combining photocatalysis and microorganisms is constructed. We use the combined technology for the first time to deal with the pollution problem of 1,2,4-TrCB. The biofilm in the composite carrier can decompose the photocatalytic products so that the removal rate of 1,2,4-TrCB is 68.01%, which is 14.81% higher than those of biodegradation or photocatalysis alone, and the mineralization rate is 50.30%, which is 11.50% higher than that of photocatalysis alone. The degradation pathways and mechanisms of 1,2,4-TrCB are explored, which provide a theoretical basis and potential application for the efficient degradation of 1,2,4-TrCB and other refractory organics by the ICPB system.
Phase Stability Control of Optical Fiber Partial Discharge Ultrasonic Sensing System
Authors: Xing Chao , Zang Qian , He Ruidong , Zhao Jun , Wang Lili , Dai Lujian , Shi Rongbin , Wang Sihan , Ma Guoming
Published: November 2022

Optic fiber interferometers are highly sensitive ultrasonic sensors for partial discharge detection. However, low-frequency vibration and environmental noise will disturb the sensors in the field, and cause a phase fading suppression effect that reduces sensitivity. This paper analyzed the problems existing in the phase feedback control system based on PZT, and an improved scheme incorporating a high-frequency carrier phase demodulation is proposed. Based on an acousto-optic modulator, the proposed phase feedback control system overcomes the phase fading suppression effect. A test is carried out on an ultrasonic calibration platform and a transformer oil discharge platform. The test results show that the stability of the improved phase demodulation system has been significantly improved, and meets the requirements of field applications. Compared with the signal-to-noise ratio at the time of phase fading of the system before the improvement, the signal-to-noise ratio of the improved system is improved by 69 dB.
Wavelet Mutation with Aquila Optimization-Based Routing Protocol for Energy-Aware Wireless Communication
Authors: Alangari Someah , Obayya Marwa , Gaddah Abdulbaset , Yafoz Ayman , Alsini Raed , Alghushairy Omar , Ashour Ahmed , Motwakel Abdelwahed
Published: November 2022

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have been developed recently to support several applications, including environmental monitoring, traffic control, smart battlefield, home automation, etc. WSNs include numerous sensors that can be dispersed around a specific node to achieve the computing process. In WSNs, routing becomes a very significant task that should be managed prudently. The main purpose of a routing algorithm is to send data between sensor nodes (SNs) and base stations (BS) to accomplish communication. A good routing protocol should be adaptive and scalable to the variations in network topologies. Therefore, a scalable protocol has to execute well when the workload increases or the network grows larger. Many complexities in routing involve security, energy consumption, scalability, connectivity, node deployment, and coverage. This article introduces a wavelet mutation with Aquila optimization-based routing (WMAO-EAR) protocol for wireless communication. The presented WMAO-EAR technique aims to accomplish an energy-aware routing process in WSNs. To do this, the WMAO-EAR technique initially derives the WMAO algorithm for the integration of wavelet mutation with the Aquila optimization (AO) algorithm. A fitness function is derived using distinct constraints, such as delay, energy, distance, and security. By setting a mutation probability P, every individual next to the exploitation and exploration phase process has the probability of mutation using the wavelet mutation process. For demonstrating the enhanced performance of the WMAO-EAR technique, a comprehensive simulation analysis is made. The experimental outcomes establish the betterment of the WMAO-EAR method over other recent approaches.
The Effect of Active Stretching Training in Patients with Chronic Venous Insufficiency Monitored by Raster-Stereography
Authors: Menegatti Erica , Mandini Simona , Pagani Anselmo , Mandini Beatrice , Zerbini Valentina , Piva Tommaso , Raisi Andrea , Fabbri Marinella , Fogli Marco , Mazzoni Gianni , Zamboni Paolo , Gianesini Sergio
Published: November 2022

(1) Background: Musculoskeletal disorders can be associated with advanced clinical stages of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI). The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of active stretching (AS) training on lower limb venous function and quality of life in patients affected by CVI. (2) Methods: A prospective two-armed pilot randomized controlled was conducted. Twenty (20) CVI patients were randomly assigned to an AS training or to a control group (C) who did not receive any exercise indication. At baseline and after three months all the participants were tested for leg volumetry (LV), air plethysmography (APG), and quality of life (QoL) measured by a disease specific validated questionnaire (VVSymQ), ankle range of motion (ROM), and postural deformities using an optoelectronic body posture machine. (3) Results: At the end of the training in the AS group a significant leg volume reduction was detected (from 2340 ± 239 mL to 2239 ± 237 mL (4.3%); p < 0.0001), whereas in the C group no significant volume changes were found. The ejection fraction rate (EF%) increased significantly from 49.3 ± 9.3 to 61.1 ± 14.5, p < 0.005. A moderate-strong linear correlation with EF% and ankle ROM variation was found (R2 = 0.6790; p < 0.0034). Several postural outcomes such as pelvic tilt, pelvic torsion, and lordotic angle significantly improved in the AS group (p < 0.01, p < 0.04, p < 0.01 respectively). (4) Conclusion: The AS training impacts on the APG parameters related to the musculoskeletal pump efficiency, opening a further possibility in the management of CVI patients by means of an appropriate adapted physical exercise program.
3D Radiometric Mapping by Means of LiDAR SLAM and Thermal Camera Data Fusion
Authors: De Pazzi Davide , Pertile Marco , Chiodini Sebastiano
Published: November 2022

The ability to produce 3D maps with infrared radiometric information is of great interest for many applications, such as rover navigation, industrial plant monitoring, and rescue robotics. In this paper, we present a system for large-scale thermal mapping based on IR thermal images and 3D LiDAR point cloud data fusion. The alignment between the point clouds and the thermal images is carried out using the extrinsic camera-to-LiDAR parameters, obtained by means of a dedicated calibration process. Rover’s trajectory, which is necessary for point cloud registration, is obtained by means of a LiDAR Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithm. Finally, the registered and merged thermal point clouds are represented through an OcTree data structure, where each voxel is associated with the average temperature of the 3D points contained within. Furthermore, the paper presents in detail the method for determining extrinsic parameters, which is based on the identification of a hot cardboard box. Both methods were validated in a laboratory environment and outdoors. It is shown that the developed system is capable of locating a thermal object with an accuracy of up to 9 cm in a 45 m map size with a voxelization of 14 cm.
Time-Differenced Carrier Phase Technique for Precise Velocity Estimation on an Android Smartphone
Authors: Angrisano Antonio , Cappello Giovanni , Del Pizzo Silvio , Gaglione Salvatore
Published: November 2022

GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receivers are not only able to accurately determine position, but also velocity, knowledge of which could be important in several applications. The most adopted technique for velocity estimation exploits the Doppler shift due to the relative motion between the signal source and the receiver. Alternatively, the TDCP (Time-Differenced Carrier Phase) technique, based on the differences between consecutive carrier-phase measurements, can be used. TDCP is theoretically able to achieve better performance compared with the Doppler-based approach, exploiting the high precision of a carrier-phase observable, and without suffering the ambiguity issue. The main objective of this study is to analyze TDCP performance on a smartphone GNSS chip. Smartphones GNSS receivers are usually characterized by noisy observables owing to the low quality of the antenna used; it is, therefore, interesting to compare the smartphone TDCP performance with that of the Doppler-based technique. To evaluate the benefits that TDCP can provide, especially in terms of the smartphone chip, these two approaches to velocity determination are compared using three different devices: a Novatel geodetic receiver, a u-blox multi-frequency receiver, and a Xiaomi Mi8 smartphone. The results demonstrate a performance degradation in the smartphone GNSS chip when TDCP is used, compared with the performance of higher-grade receivers. In fact, the Xiaomi Mi8 maximum errors are greater than those of the Novatel geodetic receiver, but they are still acceptable as they do not exceed 6 cm/s, making the TDCP technique a valid approach for advanced algorithms; indeed, TDCP velocity demonstrates a few mm/s accuracy with a smartphone. The application of a RAIM algorithm enables error reduction and the achievement of reliable information; the obtained solution reliability is about 89%.
Spread Spectrum Modulation with Grassmannian Constellations for Mobile Multiple Access Underwater Acoustic Channels
Authors: Bernard Christophe , Bouvet Pierre-Jean , Tomasi Beatrice
Published: November 2022

The objective of this study is to evaluate Grassmannian constellations combined with a spread spectrum multiple access scheme for underwater acoustic mobile multiple access communication systems. These communication systems enable the coordination of a fleet of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) from a surface or bottom control unit, e.g., a boat. Due to its robustness against phase rotation, the demodulator of Grassmannian constellations uses non-coherent detection, and the main advantage of such modulation lies in the spectrum efficiency gain with respect to conventional differential modulation. The communication system under study in this paper consists of (i), at the transmitter side, a Grassmannian modulation used in an orthogonal spread spectrum multiple access scheme called Multiuser Hyperbolic Frequency Modulation (MU-HFM) and (ii), at the receiver side, a non-coherent array decoder. The modulation and demodulation are presented as well as the considered spreading sequences. Finally, performances of the proposed transmission scheme are evaluated over replayed underwater acoustic channel responses collected at sea by a multi-sensor acoustic acquisition system.
Evaluation of Unobtrusive Microwave Sensors in Healthcare 4.0—Toward the Creation of Digital-Twin Model
Authors: Khan Sagheer , Saied Imran M. , Ratnarajah Tharmalingam , Arslan Tughrul
Published: November 2022

The prevalence of chronic diseases and the rapid rise in the aging population are some of the major challenges in our society. The utilization of the latest and unique technologies to provide fast, accurate, and economical ways to collect and process data is inevitable. Industry 4.0 (I4.0) is a trend toward automation and data exchange. The utilization of the same concept of I4.0 in healthcare is termed Healthcare 4.0 (H4.0). Digital Twin (DT) technology is an exciting and open research field in healthcare. DT can provide better healthcare in terms of improved patient monitoring, better disease diagnosis, the detection of falls in stroke patients, and the analysis of abnormalities in breathing patterns, and it is suitable for pre- and post-surgery routines to reduce surgery complications and improve recovery. Accurate data collection is not only important in medical diagnoses and procedures but also in the creation of healthcare DT models. Health-related data acquisition by unobtrusive microwave sensing is considered a cornerstone of health informatics. This paper presents the 3D modeling and analysis of unobtrusive microwave sensors in a digital care-home model. The sensor is studied for its performance and data-collection capability with regards to patients in care-home environments.
CMANet: Cross-Modality Attention Network for Indoor-Scene Semantic Segmentation
Authors: Zhu Longze , Kang Zhizhong , Zhou Mei , Yang Xi , Wang Zhen , Cao Zhen , Ye Chenming
Published: November 2022

Indoor-scene semantic segmentation is of great significance to indoor navigation, high-precision map creation, route planning, etc. However, incorporating RGB and HHA images for indoor-scene semantic segmentation is a promising yet challenging task, due to the diversity of textures and structures and the disparity of multi-modality in physical significance. In this paper, we propose a Cross-Modality Attention Network (CMANet) that facilitates the extraction of both RGB and HHA features and enhances the cross-modality feature integration. CMANet is constructed under the encoder–decoder architecture. The encoder consists of two parallel branches that successively extract the latent modality features from RGB and HHA images, respectively. Particularly, a novel self-attention mechanism-based Cross-Modality Refine Gate (CMRG) is presented, which bridges the two branches. More importantly, the CMRG achieves cross-modality feature fusion and produces certain refined aggregated features; it serves as the most crucial part of CMANet. The decoder is a multi-stage up-sampled backbone that is composed of different residual blocks at each up-sampling stage. Furthermore, bi-directional multi-step propagation and pyramid supervision are applied to assist the leaning process. To evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed method, extensive experiments are conducted on NYUDv2 and SUN RGB-D datasets. Experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms the existing ones for indoor semantic-segmentation tasks.
Smart Dimmable LED Lighting Systems
Authors: Petkovic Milica , Bajovic Dragana , Vukobratovic Dejan , Machaj Juraj , Brida Peter , McCutcheon Graeme , Stankovic Lina , Stankovic Vladimir
Published: November 2022

This paper proposes energy-efficient solutions for the smart light-emitting diode (LED) lighting system, which provides minimal energy consumption while simultaneously satisfying illuminance requirements of the users in a typical office space. In addition to artificial light from dimmable LED lamps, natural daylight coming from external sources, such as windows, is considered as a source of illumination in an indoor environment. In order to reduce total energy consumption, the smart LED system has the possibility to dim LED lamps, resulting in reduced LED output power. Additionally, various LED lamps’ functionality, such as semi-angle of the half illuminance and LED tilting, are introduced as an additional parameter to be optimized to achieve greater energy saving of the designed system. In order to properly exploit external lighting, the idea to reduce overall daylight intensity at a users’ location is realized by the option to dim the windows with a shading factor. Based on the users’ requirements for a minimal and desired level of illumination, the proposed optimization problems can be solved by implementing different optimization algorithms. The obtained solutions are able to give instructions to a smart LED system to manage and control system parameters (LEDs dimming levels, semi-angles of the half illuminance, orientation of LEDs, the shading factor) in order to design total illumination, which ensures minimal energy consumption and users’ satisfaction related to illuminance requirements.
An Improved Spatiotemporal Data Fusion Method for Snow-Covered Mountain Areas Using Snow Index and Elevation Information
Authors: Gao Min , Gu Xingfa , Liu Yan , Zhan Yulin , Wei Xiangqin , Yu Haidong , Liang Man , Weng Chenyang , Ding Yaozong
Published: November 2022

Remote sensing images with high spatial and temporal resolution in snow-covered areas are important for forecasting avalanches and studying the local weather. However, it is difficult to obtain images with high spatial and temporal resolution by a single sensor due to the limitations of technology and atmospheric conditions. The enhanced spatial and temporal adaptive reflectance fusion model (ESTARFM) can fill in the time-series gap of remote sensing images, and it is widely used in spatiotemporal fusion. However, this method cannot accurately predict the change when there is a change in surface types. For example, a snow-covered surface will be revealed as the snow melts, or the surface will be covered with snow as snow falls. These sudden changes in surface type may not be predicted by this method. Thus, this study develops an improved spatiotemporal method ESTARFM (iESTARFM) for the snow-covered mountain areas in Nepal by introducing NDSI and DEM information to simulate the snow-covered change to improve the accuracy of selecting similar pixels. Firstly, the change in snow cover is simulated according to NDSI and DEM. Then, similar pixels are selected according to the change in snow cover. Finally, NDSI is added to calculate the weights to predict the pixels at the target time. Experimental results show that iESTARFM can reduce the bright abnormal patches in the land area compared to ESTARFM. For spectral accuracy, iESTARFM performs better than ESTARFM with the root mean square error (RMSE) being reduced by 0.017, the correlation coefficient (r) being increased by 0.013, and the Structural Similarity Index Measure (SSIM) being increased by 0.013. For spatial accuracy, iESTARFM can generate clearer textures, with Robert’s edge (Edge) being reduced by 0.026. These results indicate that iESTARFM can obtain higher prediction results and maintain more spatial details, which can be used to generate dense time series images for snow-covered mountain areas.
Precision Temperature Control System with Low EMI for Applications in Analyzing Thermal Properties of Highly Sensitive Piezoelectric Sensors
Authors: Nowocień Sylwester , Wielgus Radosław Sławomir , Mroczka Janusz
Published: November 2022

A low electromagnetic interference (EMI), precision temperature control system for sensitive piezoelectric sensors stabilization and their thermal characteristics research was proposed. Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) was chosen as the device to be tested. Recently, QCMs found use in many fields of study such as biology, chemistry, and aerospace. They often operate in harsh environments and are exposed to many external factors including temperature fluctuations, to which QCMs are highly susceptible. Such disturbances can cause undesirable resonant frequency shifts resulting in measurement errors that are difficult to eliminate. The proposed solution enables measurements of QCMs thermal characteristics, effectiveness evaluation of temperature compensation methods, and testing of the frequency stability. As a part of the developed solution, two independent temperature regulators were used: first to maintain the QCM crystal at desired temperature, and second to keep the QCM oscillator circuit at fixed temperature. The single regulator consists of a thermoelectric module (TEC) used for both heating and cooling. Two considered TEC driving methods were compared in terms of EMI and their impact on the QCM signal quality. The proposed system was examined for its temperature stabilization capability showing high stability of 11 mKp-p for one hour and the setpoint accuracy of ±15 mK in the full temperature range.
Learning Optimal Time-Frequency-Spatial Features by the CiSSA-CSP Method for Motor Imagery EEG Classification
Authors: Hu Hai , Pu Zihang , Li Haohan , Liu Zhexian , Wang Peng
Published: November 2022

The common spatial pattern (CSP) is a popular method in feature extraction for motor imagery (MI) electroencephalogram (EEG) classification in brain–computer interface (BCI) systems. However, combining temporal and spectral information in the CSP-based spatial features is still a challenging issue, which greatly affects the performance of MI-based BCI systems. Here, we propose a novel circulant singular spectrum analysis embedded CSP (CiSSA-CSP) method for learning the optimal time-frequency-spatial features to improve the MI classification accuracy. Specifically, raw EEG data are first segmented into multiple time segments and spectrum-specific sub-bands are further derived by CiSSA from each time segment in a set of non-overlapping filter bands. CSP features extracted from all time-frequency segments contain more sufficient time-frequency-spatial information. An experimental study was implemented on the publicly available EEG dataset (BCI Competition III dataset IVa) and a self-collected experimental EEG dataset to validate the effectiveness of the CiSSA-CSP method. Experimental results demonstrate that discriminative and robust features are extracted effectively. Compared with several state-of-the-art methods, the proposed method exhibited optimal accuracies of 96.6% and 95.2% on the public and experimental datasets, respectively, which confirms that it is a promising method for improving the performance of MI-based BCIs.
Recognition of Targets in SAR Images Based on a WVV Feature Using a Subset of Scattering Centers
Authors: Lee Sumi , Kim Sang-Wan
Published: November 2022

This paper proposes a robust method for feature-based matching with potential for application to synthetic aperture radar (SAR) automatic target recognition (ATR). The scarcity of measured SAR data available for training classification algorithms leads to the replacement of such data with synthetic data. As attributed scattering centers (ASCs) extracted from the SAR image reflect the electromagnetic phenomenon of the SAR target, this is effective for classifying targets when purely synthetic SAR images are used as the template. In the classification stage, following preparation of the extracted template ASC dataset, some of the template ASCs were subsampled by the amplitude and the neighbor matching algorithm to focus on the related points of the test ASCs. Then, the subset of ASCs were reconstructed to the world view vector feature set, considering the point similarity and structure similarity simultaneously. Finally, the matching scores between the two sets were calculated using weighted bipartite graph matching and then combined with several weights for overall similarity. Experiments on synthetic and measured paired labeled experiment datasets, which are publicly available, were conducted to verify the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method. The proposed method can be used in practical SAR ATR systems trained using simulated images.