bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of the Performance of a Water Treatment Plant in Ecuador: Hydraulic Resizing of the Treatment Units
Authors: Mendez-Ruiz Jonathan I. , Barcia-Carreño María B. , Mejía-Bustamante Lisbeth J. , Cornejo-Pozo Ángela K. , Salas-Vázquez Cristian A. , Valverde-Armas Priscila E.
Published: January 2023

Granting access to drinking water has been a challenge because 47% of the worldwide population is not connected to a drinking water distribution network in rural settlements. This study aimed to evaluate the contaminant removal efficiency in a conventional water treatment facility in the Austro region of Ecuador, Paute, to identify the treatment units requiring hydraulic resizing. Water samples were collected from each treatment unit to characterize the physical-chemical and microbiological parameters, and the dimensions of the treatment ponds for hydraulic evaluation purposes. Water hardness, electrical conductivity, SO42−, and Fe2+ were the main issues found in the water, which failed to comply with Ecuadorian technical guidelines. The treatment units, such as the flocculator, rapid sand filter, and storage tank, were resized to meet the demand of the future population. In addition, the residual free chlorine was measured as insufficient in the community’s tap water, showing an unprotected water distribution system to microbiological contamination. No disinfection by-products were found despite the existence of biodegradable organic matter. The findings of this research propose improvements in the deployed treatment practices to provide the community with drinking water in accordance with the Sustainable Development Objectives (SDG 3 and SDG 6).
Complete Evaporation of Black Holes and Page Curves
Authors: Aref’eva Irina , Volovich Igor
Published: January 2023

The problem of complete evaporation of a Schwarzschild black hole, the simplest spherically symmetric vacuum solution of the Einstein field equation, posed by Hawking, is that when the black hole mass M disappears, an explosion of temperature T=1/8πM takes place. We consider the Reissner–Nordstrom black hole, a static spherically symmetric solution to the Einstein–Maxwell field equations, and show that if mass M and charge QM−CM3, C>0 for small M, then the complete evaporation of black holes without blow-up of temperature is possible. We describe curves on the surface of state equations such that the motion along them provides complete evaporation without temperature explosion. In this case, the radiation entropy follows the Page curve and vanishes at the end of evaporation. Similar results for rotating Kerr, Schwarzschild–de Sitter and Reissner–Nordstrom-(Anti)-de Sitter black holes are discussed.
General Solutions for Some MHD Motions of Second-Grade Fluids between Parallel Plates Embedded in a Porous Medium
Authors: Fetecau Constantin , Vieru Dumitru
Published: January 2023

General solutions are established for an initial boundary value problem by means of the integral transforms. They correspond to the isothermal MHD unidirectional motion of incompressible second-grade fluids between infinite horizontal parallel plates embedded in a porous medium. The fluid motion, which in some situations becomes symmetric with respect to the median plane, is generated by the two plates that apply time-dependent arbitrary shear stresses to the fluid. Closed-form expressions are established both for the fluid velocity and the corresponding non-trivial shear stress. Using an important remark regarding the governing equations of velocity and shear stress, exact general solutions are developed for similar motions of the same fluids when both plates move in their planes with arbitrary time-dependent velocities. The results that have been obtained here can generate exact solutions for any motion with the technical relevance of this type of incompressible second-grade fluids and their correctness being proved by comparing them with the numerical solution or with known results from the existing literature. Consequently, both motion problems of these fluids with shear stress or velocity on the boundary are completely solved.
A Novel Autoencoder-Based Feature Selection Method for Drug-Target Interaction Prediction with Human-Interpretable Feature Weights
Authors: Ozsert Yigit Gozde , Baransel Cesur
Published: January 2023

Drug-target interaction prediction provides important information that could be exploited for drug discovery, drug design, and drug repurposing. Chemogenomic approaches for predicting drug-target interaction assume that similar receptors bind to similar ligands. Capturing this similarity in so-called “fingerprints” and combining the target and ligand fingerprints provide an efficient way to search for protein-ligand pairs that are more likely to interact. In this study, we constructed drug and target fingerprints by employing features extracted from the DrugBank. However, the number of extracted features is quite large, necessitating an effective feature selection mechanism since some features can be redundant or irrelevant to drug-target interaction prediction problems. Although such feature selection methods are readily available in the literature, usually they act as black boxes and do not provide any quantitative information about why a specific feature is preferred over another. To alleviate this lack of human interpretability, we proposed a novel feature selection method in which we used an autoencoder as a symmetric learning method and compared the proposed method to some popular feature selection algorithms, such as Kbest, Variance Threshold, and Decision Tree. The results of a detailed performance study, in which we trained six Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) Networks of different sizes and configurations for prediction, demonstrate that the proposed method yields superior results compared to the aforementioned methods.
Concordance of Lateralization Index for Brain Asymmetry Applied to Identify a Reliable Language Task
Authors: Matsuo Kayako , Yasui-Furukori Norio , Shimoda Kazutaka , Kaji Yasushi , Akiyama Kazufumi
Published: January 2023

How can we determine which language task is relevant for examining functional hemispheric asymmetry? A problem in measuring brain asymmetry using functional magnetic resonance imaging lies in the uncertain reliability of the computed index regarding the “true” asymmetry degree. Strictly speaking, the results from the Wada test or direct cortical stimulation cannot be an exact “ground truth”, specifically for the degree of asymmetry. Therefore, we developed a method to evaluate task performance using reproducibility independent of the phenomenon of functional lateralization. Kendall’s coefficient of concordance (W) was used as the statistical measure. The underlying idea was that although various algorithms to compute the lateralization index show considerably different index values for the same data, a superior language task would reproduce similar individual ranking sequences across the algorithms; the high reproducibility of rankings across various index types would indicate a reliable task to investigate functional asymmetry regardless of index computation algorithms. Consequently, we found specificity for brain locations; a verb-generation task demonstrated the highest concordance across index types along with sufficiently high index values in the inferior frontal gyrus, whereas a narration–listening task demonstrated the highest concordance in the posterior temporo-parietal junction area.
Developing an Evaluation Index System for Enterprise Niche
Authors: Hu Renjie , Conway Steve , Zhang Guangyu , Liu Xueying , Chen Chen
Published: January 2023

With the progress of globalization, the environment for enterprises’ survival and development has become increasingly complex. More and more enterprises realize that their sustainable competitive advantage is closely related to the development of enterprise niche. Based on the ecostate-ecorole theory, an evaluation index system for enterprise niche is developed in this paper. The study selects indicators based on literature research and frequency analysis, adopts factors including market environment, industrial environment, human resources, and technical resources to evaluate ecostate of enterprise niche, and establishes an evaluation model for ecostate; the research uses factors including policy environment, innovation decision-making ability, resource accessibility, and technical management capability to evaluate ecorole of enterprise niche, and sets up an evaluation model for ecorole by catastrophe progression method. The results of the reliability and validity test showed that the evaluation index system is both reliable and effective. The paper provides implications for the evaluation of enterprise niche.
Alkaline pH, Low Iron Availability, Poor Nitrogen Sources and CWI MAPK Signaling Are Associated with Increased Fusaric Acid Production in Fusarium oxysporum
Authors: Palmieri Davide , Segorbe David , López-Berges Manuel S. , De Curtis Filippo , Lima Giuseppe , Di Pietro Antonio , Turrà David
Published: January 2023

Fusaric acid (FA) is one of the first secondary metabolites isolated from phytopathogenic fungi belonging to the genus Fusarium. This molecule exerts a toxic effect on plants, rhizobacteria, fungi and animals, and it plays a crucial role in both plant and animal pathogenesis. In plants, metal chelation by FA is considered one of the possible mechanisms of action. Here, we evaluated the effect of different nitrogen sources, iron content, extracellular pH and cellular signalling pathways on the production of FA siderophores by the pathogen Fusarium oxysporum (Fol). Our results show that the nitrogen source affects iron chelating activity and FA production. Moreover, alkaline pH and iron limitation boost FA production, while acidic pH and iron sufficiency repress it independent of the nitrogen source. FA production is also positively regulated by the cell wall integrity (CWI) mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway and inhibited by the iron homeostasis transcriptional regulator HapX. Collectively, this study demonstrates that factors promoting virulence (i.e., alkaline pH, low iron availability, poor nitrogen sources and CWI MAPK signalling) are also associated with increased FA production in Fol. The obtained new insights on FA biosynthesis regulation can be used to prevent both Fol infection potential and toxin contamination.
Identification of Cyanobacteria and Its Potential Toxins in the Joanes I Reservoir, Bahia, Brazil
Authors: Pinheiro Menescal Maria Teresa Araujo , Almeida Edna dos Santos , Sales Emerson Andrade , Méjean Annick , Yéprémian Claude
Published: January 2023

The Joanes I Reservoir is responsible for 40% of the drinking water supply of the Metropolitan Region of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. For water sources such as this, there is concern regarding the proliferation of potentially toxin-producing cyanobacteria, which can cause environmental and public health impacts. To evaluate the presence of cyanobacteria and their cyanotoxins in the water of this reservoir, the cyanobacteria were identified by microscopy; the presence of the genes of the cyanotoxin-producing cyanobacteria was detected by molecular methods (polymerase chain reaction (PCR)/sequencing); and the presence of toxins was determined by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The water samples were collected at four sampling points in the Joanes I Reservoir in a monitoring campaign conducted during the occurrence of phytoplankton blooms, and the water quality parameters were also analysed. Ten cyanobacteria species/genera were identified at the monitoring sites, including five potentially cyanotoxin-producing species, such as Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii, Cylindrospermopsis cf. acuminato-crispa, Aphanocapsa sp., Phormidium sp., and Pseudanabaena sp. A positive result for the presence of the cylindrospermopsin toxin was confirmed at two sampling points by LC-MS/MS, which indicated that the populations are actively producing toxins. The analysis of the PCR products using the HEPF/HEPR primer pair for the detection of the microcystin biosynthesis gene mcyE was positive for the analysed samples. The results of this study point to the worrisome condition of this reservoir, from which water is collected for public supply, and indicate the importance of the joint use of different methods for the analysis of cyanobacteria and their toxins in reservoir monitoring.
Zearalenone (ZEN) and Its Metabolite Levels in Tissues of Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) from Southern Italy: A Pilot Study
Authors: Longobardi Consiglia , Damiano Sara , Ferrara Gianmarco , Montagnaro Serena , Meucci Valentina , Intorre Luigi , Bacci Samanta , Esposito Luigi , Piscopo Nadia , Rubino Antonio , Raffaele Antonio , Florio Salvatore , Ciarcia Roberto
Published: January 2023

Zearalenone (ZEN) is a non-steroidal estrogenic mycotoxin produced by the fungi of the Fusarium genera, and is a contaminant of cereals and plant products. ZEN and its metabolites are considered endocrine disruptors, and could have various toxic effects on animals and humans. In recent years, there has been a significant demographic increase in wild boar (Sus scrofa) in many mountainous and hilly areas of Italy, including the Campania region, mainly due to global climate change. The wild boar can be defined as a generalist and omnivorous species capable of varying its diet; therefore, it can play a role as an environmental bioindicator towards contaminants such as mycotoxins. This study was conducted to evaluate, for the first time, the concentrations of ZEN and its metabolites in the liver, kidney, and muscle of 82 wild boars shot in their habitat by hunters with hunting permits in different localities of Avellino province (Campania region, Southern Italy) from 2021 to 2022. The samples were collected and analyzed with an SPE clean-up and high-pressure liquid chromatography method with fluorescence detection. The results indicated that ZEN and α-Zearalenol were present in most of the samples, suggesting that a plan to monitor these mycoestrogens is essential to achieve the goals of “One Health”.
Mono-Parasitic and Poly-Parasitic Intestinal Infections among Children Aged 36–45 Months in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
Authors: Athiyyah Alpha F. , Surono Ingrid S. , Ranuh Reza G. , Darma Andy , Basuki Sukmawati , Rossyanti Lynda , Sudarmo Subijanto M. , Venema Koen
Published: January 2023

The prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection remains high in developing countries, especially because of geographic and socio-demographic factors. This study aimed to evaluate intestinal parasitic infection, as well as its risk factors, among children aged 36–45 months in a rural area (North Kodi) and an urban area (Kupang) of East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Anthropometry, socio-demographic factors and personal hygiene practices were assessed. A total of 214 children participated in the study, and 200 stool samples were collected for intestinal parasite examination. Approximately 30.5% (61/200) of the children were infected with one or more intestinal parasites (67.2%; 41/61 being mono-parasitic infections and 32.8%; 20/61 being poly-parasitic infections). A total of 85 intestinal parasites were detected, consisting of 35.3% (30/85) protozoa and 64.7% (55/85) helminths. The predominant protozoa were Giardia lamblia (43%; 13/30) and Blastocystis spp. (33.3%; 10/30), whereas the predominant helminths were Trichuris trichiura (50.9%; 28/55) and Ascaris lumbricoides (43.6%; 24/55). Moreover, intestinal parasitic infection was associated with rural area (OR 4.5; 95%CI 2.3–8.6); the absence of treatment with deworming drugs (OR 2.56; 95%CI 1.3–5.0); sanitation facilities without a septic tank (OR 4.3; 95%CI 2.1–8.5); unclean water as a source of drinking water (OR 4.67; 95%CI 2.4–9.4); no handwashing practice after defecation (OR 3.2; 95%CI 1.4–7.3); and stunted children (OR 4.4; 95%CI 2.3–8.3). In conclusion, poly-parasitic infections were common in this study. Poor personal hygiene practice and sanitation factors contributed to the high prevalence of intestinal parasitic infection in 36–45-month-old children in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia.
PD-L2 Blockade Exacerbates Liver Lesion in Mice Infected with Capillaria hepatica through Reducing Alternatively Activated Macrophages
Authors: Huang Minjun , Li Xiaoli , Zheng Xiaoyan , Wang Fei , Zou Yang , Wang Lei
Published: January 2023

Capillaria hepatica is a seriously neglected zoonotic parasite, which infects the liver of mammalian hosts, causing fibrosis or even hepatic failure. At present, the immune responses elicited by C. hepatica are not fully understood, and the role(s) of the programmed death 1 (PD-1) signaling pathway in the context of C. hepatica-induced pathology are not known. In this study, we identify that the late stage of infection with C. hepatica—especially the egg-derived antigens—modulates the host immune responses to promote alternatively activated macrophage (M2) polarization and programmed death ligand 2 (PD-L2) expression. The PD-L2-expressing alternatively activated M2 macrophages play an important role in maintaining Th2-biased regulatory immune responses, which may facilitate the survival of parasitic worms or eggs within the infected liver and reduce the liver pathology caused by the egg granulomas. Treatment with anti-PD-L2 antibody had no effect on the survival of parasitic eggs but deteriorated the pathology of egg granulomas. The obtained results suggest that PD-1/PD-L2 signaling, which is involved in alternative macrophage polarization, determines the immune response pattern and the immunopathology, consequently determining the outcome of the parasitic infection.
Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections among Antenatal Women in Primary Care Settings in Southern India: Prevalence, Associated Factors and Effect of Anti-Helminthic Treatment
Authors: Ulaganeethi Revathi , Saya Ganesh Kumar , Rajkumari Nonika , Kumar Swetha S. , Ganapathy Kalaiselvan , Dorairajan Gowri
Published: January 2023

Community-based studies from India on prevalence of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections have reported estimates as high as 50% in children. However, prevalence estimates during pregnancy in India are lacking. We aimed to describe the burden, associated factors of STH and cure rate after deworming in primary care settings. Pregnant women were recruited from four urban and five rural centers in Puducherry, South India, from December 2019 to April 2022. One stool sample was collected from each participant before deworming and one repeat sample was collected from STH positive woman after three weeks of deworming. The samples were processed with saline; iodine wet mount, and microscopic concentration techniques. Cure rate (CR) was assessed using Kato–Katz thick smear. Of 650 women included, 49 (7.5%, 95% CI 5.6–9.8) had one of the STH infections; the prevalence of Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworm and Strongyloides was 5.4%, 1.8% and 0.3%, respectively. The prevalence of any STH was higher among ages 26–30 years (9.1%), working women (8.3%), multigravida (8.3%), urban setting (8.3%), those who did not wash their hands before food (9%) and anemic women (8.9%), compared to their counterparts, but not statistically significant. The CR for hookworm was 100% and Ascaris lumbricoides was 88.6%. To conclude, the prevalence of STH was low among pregnant women compared to school aged children. Continued deworming activities along with improved sanitation could further reduce the burden.
Search for Manifestations of Spin–Torsion Coupling
Authors: Trukhanova Mariya Iv. , Andreev Pavel , Obukhov Yuri N.
Published: January 2023

We investigate the axial vector spin–torsion coupling effects in the framework of the Poincaré gauge theory of gravity with the general Yang–Mills type Lagrangian. The dynamical equations for the “electric” and “magnetic” components of the torsion field variable are obtained in the general form and it is shown that the helicity density and the spin density of the electromagnetic field appear as the physical sources. The modified Maxwell’s equations for the electromagnetic field are derived, and the electromagnetic wave propagation under the action of the uniform homogeneous torsion field is considered. We demonstrate the Faraday effect of rotation of the polarization for such a wave and establish the strong bound on the possible cosmic axial torsion field from the astrophysical data.
Development of Oncolytic Vectors Based on Human Adenovirus Type 6 for Cancer Treatment
Authors: Osipov Ivan D. , Vasikhovskaia Valeriia A. , Zabelina Daria S. , Kutseikin Sergei S. , Grazhdantseva Antonina A. , Kochneva Galina V. , Davydova Julia , Netesov Sergey V. , Romanenko Margarita V.
Published: January 2023

Human Adenovirus type 6 (HAdV-C6) is a promising candidate for the development of oncolytic vectors as it has low seroprevalence and the intrinsic ability to evade tissue macrophages. However, its further development as a therapeutic agent is hampered by the lack of convenient cloning methods. We have developed a novel technology when a shuttle plasmid carrying the distal genome parts with modified E1A and E3 regions is recombined in vitro with the truncated HAdV-C6 genome. Using this approach, we have constructed a novel Ad6-hT-GM vector controlled by the hTERT promoter and expressing granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) instead of 6.7K and gp19K E3 proteins. We have demonstrated that control by the hTERT promoter may result in delayed viral replication, which nevertheless does not significantly change the cytotoxic ability of recombinant viruses. The insertion of the transgene by displacing the E3-6.7K/gp19K region does not drastically change the expression patterns of E3 genes; however, mild changes in expression from major late promoter were observed. Finally, we have demonstrated that the treatment of human breast cancer xenografts in murine models with Ad6-hT-GM significantly decreased the tumor volume and improved survival time compared to mock-treated mice.
Risk of Premature Ovarian Insufficiency after Human Papilloma Virus Vaccination: A PRISMA Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Current Evidence
Authors: Torella Marco , Marrapodi Maria Maddalena , Ronsini Carlo , Ruffolo Alessandro Ferdinando , Braga Andrea , Frigerio Matteo , Amabile Emanuele , Vastarella Maria Giovanna , Rossi Francesca , Riemma Gaetano
Published: January 2023

(1) Background: Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) has been linked to human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination in small case-reports. The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the risk of POI after HPV vaccination. (2) Methods: Electronic searches in MEDLINE Scopus, LILACS, ClinicalTrials.gov, EMBASE, PROSPERO, Cochrane CENTRAL and other registries were searched from inception to September 2022. Inclusion criteria were cohort studies of female children or adolescents vaccinated with quadrivalent (4vHPV), bivalent (2vHPV) or 9-valent (9vHPV) vaccine and compared to unvaccinated, other HPV vaccine, or vaccinated with other childhood vaccine girls. Primary outcome was risk of POI after vaccination. (3) Results: Four studies, including 1,253,758 patients, were included. Overall, there was no significant risk for POI between 4vHPV and controls (unvaccinated or other vaccines) (RR 0.47 (95% CI 0.14 to 1.59) I2 = 75%), or unvaccinated only controls (RR 0.75 (95% CI 0.22 to 2.49) I2 = 26%). One study reported a significant reduction of POI risk for 4vHPV relative to the other childhood vaccinations (RR 0.03 (95% CI 0.00 to 0.21)); meanwhile, one study showed no increased risk with 4vHPV relative to 2vHPV and 9vHPV (RR 0.93 (95% CI 0.33 to 2.64)). (4) Conclusions: 4vHPV vaccination does not seem to increase risk of POI relative to unvaccinated people or other childhood vaccines. No difference was seen with 4vHPV vaccine relative to 2vHPV and 9vHPV. Moreover, the risk of POI after HPV vaccination is relatable to worldwide incidence, giving reassurance about safety.
Protection against Bovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus Afforded by Maternal Antibodies from Cows Immunized with an Inactivated Vaccine
Authors: Meyer Gilles , Foret-Lucas Charlotte , Delverdier Maxence , Cuquemelle Antoine , Secula Aurélie , Cassard Hervé
Published: January 2023

The passive protection afforded by the colostrum from cattle that were vaccinated prepartum with an inactivated combination vaccine against the bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) was evaluated after an experimental challenge of calves. Pregnant cows without or with a low ELISA and neutralizing BRSV antibody titers were twice vaccinated or not vaccinated, the last immunization being at one month prior to calving. Vaccination was followed by a rapid increase in BRSV antibody titers after the second immunization. Twenty-eightnewborn calves were fed during the 6 h following birth, with 4 L of colostrum sourced from vaccinated cows (14 vaccine calves) or non-vaccinated cows (14 control calves) and were challenged with BRSV at 21 days of age. We showed that maternal immunity to BRSV provides a significant reduction in the clinical signs of BRSV in calves, especially for severe clinical forms. This protection was correlated with reduced BRSV detection in the lower respiratory tract but not in nasal swabs, indicating an absence of protection against BRSV nasal excretion. Finally, transcriptomic assays in bronchoalveolar lavages showed no statistical differences between groups for chemokine and cytokine mRNA transcriptions, with the exception of the overexpression of IL-9 at days 6 and 10 post-challenge, and a severe downregulation of CXCL-1 at day 3 post-challenge, in the vaccine group.
Healthcare Workers’ Attitudes toward Influenza Vaccination: A Behaviour and Social Drivers Survey
Authors: Jiang Binshan , Cao Yanlin , Qian Jie , Jiang Mingyue , Huang Qiangru , Sun Yanxia , Dai Peixi , Yi Heya , Zhang Run , Xu Lili , Zheng Jiandong , Yang Weizhong , Feng Luzhao
Published: January 2023

This study aimed to understand the intention and correlation of receiving and recommending influenza vaccine (IV) among healthcare workers (HCWs) in China during the 2022/2023 season using the behavior and social drivers (BeSD) tools. A self-administered electronic survey collected 17,832 participants on a media platform. We investigated the willingness of IV and used multivariate logistic regression analysis to explore its associated factors. The average scores of the 3Cs’ model were compared by multiple comparisons. We also explored the factors that potentially correlated with recommendation willingness by partial regression. The willingness of IV was 74.89% among HCWs, and 82.58% of the participants were likely to recommend it to others during this season. Thinking and feeling was the strongest domain independently associated with willingness. All domains in BeSD were significantly different between the hesitancy and acceptance groups. Central factors in the 3Cs model were significantly different among groups (p < 0.01). HCWs’ willingness to IV recommendation was influenced by their ability to answer related questions (r  =  0.187, p  <  0.001) after controlling for their IV willingness and perceived risk. HCWs’ attitudes towards IV affect their vaccination and recommendation. The BeSD framework revealed the drivers during the decision-making process. Further study should classify the causes in detail to refine HCWs’ education.
Human ELISA Detects anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Cats: Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Virus Spread in Domestic and Stray Cats in Bulgaria
Authors: Sirakov Ivo , Rusenova Nikolina , Rusenov Anton , Gergova Raina , Strateva Tanya
Published: January 2023

The aim of this study was to verify whether the human DR-ELISA for the detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies can be applied in cats, and to assess the risk factors that determine the spread of the virus among the cat population in Bulgaria. The study included 92 serum samples collected from 68 domestic and 24 stray cats aged from 3 months to 20 years of age in the period of January–June 2021. The samples originated from three regions in Bulgaria and from three places of inhabitance. DR-ELISA based on peroxidase-labeled SARS-CoV-2 N protein was employed to detect IgA, IgG and IgM antibodies in the samples. Subsequently, the results were compared with a commercially available multi-species ELISA kit. There was high seroprevalence (83.33%) in stray cats and 41.18% in domestic cats, confirmed by the human and veterinary ELISA kit. The positive cases in the regional cities were 42.86%, in small towns 50% and in villages 78.26%. Cats under 7 years had a five times higher risk than those over 7 years (p = 0.001). The risk was seven times higher for stray cats than for domestic cats (p = 0.001). In addition, the results indicate that the risk was the highest for cats in villages (p = 0.006) compared to cats in other places of inhabitance. This study demonstrates that human DR-ELISA may be successfully applied to monitor the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in cats and other susceptible species. Cats might serve as sentinel animals for tracking the virus in nature and in inhabited areas (strays) and to discover asymptomatic cases in humans/owners.
Epidemiological Investigation of Feline Upper Respiratory Tract Infection Encourages a Geographically Specific FCV Vaccine
Authors: Gao Jindong , Li Yan , Xie Qiyun , Al-zaban Mayasar I. , Al-Saeed Fatimah A. , Shati Ali A. , Al-Doaiss Amin A. , Ahmed Ahmed Ezzat , Nawaz Shah , Ebrahem Hala , Irshad Irfan , Kulyar Muhammad Fakhar-e-Alam , Li Jiakui
Published: January 2023

A total of 1158 cats with feline upper respiratory tract infection were incorporated from twenty animal hospitals in Wuhan, China, from April 2019 to April 2022 to investigate the epidemiology of feline calicivirus (FCV), herpesvirus-1 (FHV-1), Mycoplasma felis (M. felis) and Chlamydia felis (C. felis) for the development of a geographically-specific FCV vaccine with reference to prevalence and risk factors for infection. The 871 samples (75.2%) of kittens were younger than 12 months, of which 693 were males, and 456 were females. Among the samples, 443 were British shorthair cats, accounting for 38.3%, and 252 were Chinese rural cats, accounting for 21.8%. PCR/RT-PCR detection of the above four viruses (FCV, FHV-1, M. felis, and C. felis) in the upper respiratory tract of cats showed that the total positive samples were 744 (64.3%), including 465 positive samples of feline calicivirus, accounting for 40.2% of the total 1158 samples. There were 311 positive samples of M. felis, accounting for 26.9% of the total samples, ranked second in clinical practice. The 180 positive samples of feline herpesvirus accounted for 15.5%, and 85 positive samples of Chlamydia felis accounted for 7.3%. Among them, the number of positive samples of single pathogenic infections was 493, accounting for 66.3% of the total 744 positive samples. Double, triple, and quadruple infections accounted for 28.2%, 5.0%, and 0.5%, respectively, with the highest proportion of single infections. The molecular biological characteristics of the 17 isolated FCVd strains in Wuhan were further analyzed. It was found that the F9 vaccine strain and the antigenic epitopes in the 5’HVR of the E region were collated with the F9 vaccine strain. Moreover, phylogenetic tree analysis showed that the strains related to the F9 and 255 vaccines were distantly related, leading to the failure of the vaccine. In addition, the strains associated with the F9 and 255 vaccines were distant, which might lead to vaccine failure in anticipation of the development of a more phylogenetically close FCV vaccine in China and may require the development of a vaccine for a locally related FCV strain.
Using Single-Species and Whole Community Stream Mesocosm Exposures for Identifying Major Ion Effects in Doses Mimicking Resource Extraction Wastewaters
Authors: Nietch Christopher T. , Smucker Nathan J. , Gains-Germain Leslie , Peck Christopher P. , Guglielmi Stefania , DeCelles Susanna , Lazorchak James , Johnson Brent , Weaver Paul
Published: January 2023

Wastewaters and leachates from various inland resource extraction activities contain high ionic concentrations and differ in ionic composition, which complicates the understanding and effective management of their relative risks to stream ecosystems. To this end, we conducted a stream mesocosm dose–response experiment using two dosing recipes prepared from industrial salts. One recipe was designed to generally reflect the major ion composition of deep well brines (DWB) produced from gas wells (primarily Na+, Ca2+, and Cl−) and the other, the major ion composition of mountaintop mining (MTM) leachates from coal extraction operations (using salts dissociating to Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, SO42− and HCO3−)—both sources being extensive in the Central Appalachians of the USA. The recipes were dosed at environmentally relevant nominal concentrations of total dissolved solids (TDS) spanning 100 to 2000 mg/L for 43 d under continuous flow-through conditions. The colonizing native algal periphyton and benthic invertebrates comprising the mesocosm ecology were assessed with response sensitivity distributions (RSDs) and hazard concentrations (HCs) at the taxa, community (as assemblages), and system (as primary and secondary production) levels. Single-species toxicity tests were run with the same recipes. Dosing the MTM recipe resulted in a significant loss of secondary production and invertebrate taxa assemblages that diverged from the control at all concentrations tested. Comparatively, intermediate doses of the DWB recipe had little consequence or increased secondary production (for emergence only) and had assemblages less different from the control. Only the highest dose of the DWB recipe had a negative impact on certain ecologies. The MTM recipe appeared more toxic, but overall, for both types of resource extraction wastewaters, the mesocosm responses suggested significant changes in stream ecology would not be expected for specific conductivity below 300 µS/cm, a published aquatic life benchmark suggested for the region.
The Geochemical and Environmental Characteristics of Trace Metals in Coastal Sediment Discharge off the Mailiao Industrial Zone of Central Western Taiwan
Authors: Fang Tien-Hsi , Chang Jie-Ren
Published: January 2023

The geochemical fractions of trace metals in the coastal sediments of the central western Taiwan were examined, employing the Tessier sequential extraction method, and the metals contamination status of the analyzed sediments were also evaluated in the present study. Based on the metal fraction present in sediments, trace metals can be divided into three groups: (1) Al, Cr, Fe, Ni and Zn; (2) Cu and Pb and (3) Mn. In group (1) metal, the metals’ total concentrations were chiefly dominated by the residual fraction, exceeding 80% of the total concentration pool. In group (2) metal, the metals’ total concentrations were dominated by three labile fractions, carbonate, Fe-Mn oxides and organic, accounting for nearly 65% of the total pool, and the residual fraction contributed 35% of the total concentrations. Over 90% of Mn total concentrations were shared by three fractions, carbonate, Fe-Mn oxides and the residual fraction. The statistic results indicated that the total organic carbon contents in sediments played a more important role in influencing the metals contents in sediments. The contamination assessment results suggested that the Mailiao coastal sediments were minorly contaminated by trace metals. Lead should be paid more concerns because Pb total concentrations at some sediments exceeded the value (46.7 mg/kg) of effect range low, USA, and Pb was mainly present in the labile fraction.
A Data-Driven Framework for Spatiotemporal Analysis and Prediction of River Water Quality: A Case Study in Pearl River, China
Authors: Lv Mengyu , Niu Xiaojun , Zhang Dongqing , Ding Haonan , Lin Zhang , Zhou Shaoqi , Zhu Yongdong
Published: January 2023

Characterization of the spatiotemporal water quality variation is of utmost importance for water resource management. Changes in water quality have been shown to be significantly affected by uncertain factors such as environmental conditions and anthropogenic activities. However, few studies consider the impact of these variables on water quality prediction while developing statistical methods or machine learning algorithms. To solve the problem, a data-driven framework for the analysis and prediction of water quality in the Guangzhou reach of the Pearl River, China, was constructed in this study. The results provided evidence of a discrepancy in the spatiotemporal dynamics of water quality, with the average water quality index (WQI) values ranging from 52.47 to 83.06, implying “moderate” to “excellent” water quality at different stations. Environmental conditions and anthropogenic activities exerted great influence on the alteration of water quality, with correlation coefficients of 0.6473–0.7903. The relevant environmental factors and anthropogenic drivers combined with water quality variables were taken into account to establish the attention-based long short-term memory (LSTM-attention) model. The proposed LSTM-attention model achieved reliable real-time water quality prediction with up to a 3-day lead-time and a determination coefficient (R2) of 0.6. The proposed hybrid framework sheds light on the development of a decision system for comprehensive water resource management and early control of water pollution.
Pollution Characteristics and Risk Assessment of Typical Antibiotics and Persistent Organic Pollutants in Reservoir Water Sources
Authors: Li Chunwei , Xu Yuan , Song Weiwei
Published: January 2023

The major task of Chinese water governance has gradually shifted away from water environment protection to water ecology remediation, and the governance of trace organic pollutants, including persistent organic pollutants and antibiotics, has attracted growing concern. The present study examined the seasonal distribution and sources of typical persistent organic pollutants and antibiotics in six representative water sources in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, as well as their ecological risk to the environment. Six representative surface water and surface sediment samples were collected at different time intervals, i.e., December 2018, March 2019, and June 2019, and the concentrations of nineteen organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), seventeen polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and eight polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were analyzed by GC-MS. The major findings are listed below: ① Endosulfan sulfate, Beta-endosulfan, and methoxychlor were the major persistent organic pollutants (POPs) detected in the sediments from Gaoyou Lake, Gonghu Lake, and Gehu Lake, with concentrations ranging from 9.0 to 10.6 ng/g. ② The target antibiotics in water sources were at relatively low levels. Occurrences of sulfonamide antibiotics in water and surface sediments were NF~37.4 ng·L−1 and NF~47.3 ng·g−1. Concentrations of quinolone antibiotics in the two media were NF~5.3 ng·L−1, 0.4~32.5 ng·g−1. ③ The combined toxicity of antibiotics (risk quotient, RQ) in Lake Gehu was 0.18, which was at a moderate risk level. There was no obvious ecological risk in most water sources affected by POPs. However, there were certain ecological risks in the water sources of Gaoyou Lake, Gonghu Lake, and Sanjiangying, induced by OCPs and PCBs. This study provides a scientific basis for the treatment of antibiotics and organic pollutants in reservoir water sources.
Performance of Semi-Active Flapping Hydrofoil with Arc Trajectory
Authors: Zhou Junwei , Yan Wenhui , Mei Lei , Shi Weichao
Published: January 2023

The semi-active flapping foil driven by the swing arm is a simple structure to realize the propulsion of the flapping foil. The motion trajectory of this semi-active flapping foil mechanism is a circular arc, and its hydrodynamic characteristics are not clear. This paper systematically investigates the working characteristics and hydrodynamic performance of this semi-active flapping foil with a circular arc track. Compared with the traditional flapping foil structure, the special design parameters of the semi-active flapping foil driven by the swing arm mainly include the length of the swing arm and the stiffness of the torsion spring. In this paper, the three-dimensional fluid-structure coupling method is used by solving the fluid dynamics equation and the structural dynamics equation, and the working characteristics of the structure with different motion and geometric parameters are analyzed. From the results, increasing the swing arm length is beneficial to improving the peak efficiency of the flapping foil, and also to improving the thrust coefficient corresponding to the peak efficiency point. Under a certain swing arm length, reducing the spring stiffness is also conducive to improving the peak efficiency of the propulsion system, but it is adverse to the thrust coefficient. Further analysis shows that the maximum angle of attack is the key factor affecting the efficiency of this flapping foil propulsion. For the flapping foil described in this paper, its peak efficiency is usually concentrated near αmax=0.2 rad. However, for the thrust coefficient of this kind of flapping foil propulsion, the influencing factors are relatively complex, including swinging arm, the spring stiffness, and the advance coefficient. The maximum angle of attack remains the key factor affecting the peak thrust in the range of advance coefficient far from the starting state.
Comparative Analysis of Metagenomic (Amplicon and Shotgun) DNA Sequencing to Characterize Microbial Communities in Household On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems
Authors: de Vries Jacob , Saleem Faizan , Li Enze , Chan Alexander Wing Yip , Naphtali James , Naphtali Paul , Paschos Athanasios , Schellhorn Herb E.
Published: January 2023

The performance of on-site wastewater treatment systems (OWTSs) can be improved by altering digester design and by manipulating environmental variables that affect microbial community composition. Community composition can potentially be assessed using high-throughput DNA sequencing, but the two most common methods of community DNA sequencing (16S and shotgun sequencing) generally yield different taxonomic identification profiles and can perform differently according to the sampled environment. To evaluate the use of these two approaches in monitoring OWTS operation, we conducted a comparative parallel analysis using both 16S rDNA and shotgun sequencing in a controlled field study. Results indicate that when examining microorganisms above 0.1% relative abundance, 16S and shotgun sequencing produced similar results in terms of individual sample species richness and between-sample community similarity. However, shotgun sequencing provided comparatively higher taxonomic richness for the bacterial communities with lower abundance in the OWTSs. In addition, 16S sequencing resolved only 48 out of 188 bacterial communities identified by shotgun sequencing (using a 0.1% abundance cutoff). Three key bacterial genera (Desulfomicrobium, Simplicispira, and Phenylobacterium) in anaerobic digestion processes were differentially abundant for both sequencing methods. These data indicate that both sequencing methods provide similar overall profiles for bacterial communities in anaerobic digestor systems. However, shotgun sequencing provides significantly (p-value < 0.01) higher taxonomic richness overall. Thus, shotgun sequencing provides a more robust taxonomic and functional profile that can be used for the optimization of anaerobic digestor systems.
Study on Factors Influencing Public Participation in River and Lake Governance in the Context of the River Chief System—Based on the Integrated Model of TPB-NAM
Authors: Zhang Xia , Li Liqun , Su Zhaoxian , Li Haohao , Luo Xin
Published: January 2023

Public participation in the context of the river chief system is not only beneficial for long-term river and lake governance (RLG), but it also is an important supplement to the existing governance mode led by the government. On the basis of the integrated model of TPB-NAM, this paper discusses the influencing factors and driving mechanisms of public participation in river and lake governance in the context of the river chief system from aspects of self-interest and altruism. Through the investigation of residents, 508 sample data points were obtained and analyzed by the structural equation model (SEM). The results were as follows: (1) the explanatory power of the TPB-NAM model (R2 = 60.7%) was superior to that of the extended TPB model (R2 = 60.0%) and NAM model (R2 = 50.0%). (2) From the perspective of individual rationality, the intention for public participation in RLG had a significant positive influence on behavior, and behavior attitudes and subjective norms could predict their intentions. However, the roles were different; from the perspective of social rationality, awareness of negative consequences could actively affect positive personal norms through the ascription of responsibility, and positive personal norms could promote public participation in RLG. (3) Government norms were another important factor driving public participating in RLG. The results are of great theoretical significance for further exploring the public intention and behavior related to participation in RLG.
Water Disappearance and Manure Production at Growing–Finishing Commercial Pig Farms in Brazil—A Simplified Model Approach
Authors: Tavares Jorge Manuel Rodrigues , Lopes Janice da Conceição , Belli Filho Paulo , Coldebella Arlei , Oliveira Paulo Armando Victória de
Published: January 2023

The aim of this study was to fit water disappearance and manure production curves at growing–finishing commercial pig farms and compare the curve that best describes the evolution of parameters evaluated, according to three variables: age, body weight, and pigs’ housing period. Accordingly, 33 production cycles were evaluated considering a housing period of 105 days (13,276 pigs—nine weeks old and 24.5 kg average body weight) during 13 months in 15 commercial pig farms located in southern Brazil. The variables analyzed were used to adjust the water disappearance and manure production curves (Brody, Gompertz, Logistic, Richards, and Von Bertalanffy) and to estimate its biological parameters according to the NLMIXED SAS procedures. It was found that the Logistic model was the one that best described both the water disappearance and the manure production, displaying an asymptotic adjustment and estimated values measured in farms, e.g., pigs age (water: R² = 0.989, absolute error: 1.11 L/pig/day, and prediction error = 1.32%; manure: R² = 0.995, absolute error = 0.04 L/pig/day, and prediction error = 0.96%). It is emphasized that the models determined in this research are the basis of the development of an instantaneous measuring device that allows the producer to visualize both the water disappearance (plotting the daily measures) as well as manure production in the farm and compare the values with the estimated curves.
Import Substitution of Marketing Channels and Products in the Field of Perfumery and Cosmetics Retail
Authors:   HSE University., Volodin Arsenii A.
Published: January 2023

This article discusses various aspects of the situation of import substitution in the field of perfumery and cosmetics retail, which has developed in the Russian Federation in the middle of 2022. The author analyzes the changes that have occurred in the market after the tightening of sanctions and restrictions by Western countries. Further trends in the development of the domestic perfumery and cosmetics market are revealed. It is concluded that the events taking place not only have negative aspects, but also provide ample opportunities for domestic producers. The Russian market and the perfume and cosmetics industry itself are waiting for serious internal transformations in the coming years, but the market capacity cannot decrease and will tend to increase, which determines the need for effective import substitution based on the development of own production and increased supplies from friendly countries.
The Wonderland
Authors:   MGIMO University, Ageev Aleksandr I. ,   Institute for Economic Strategies
Published: January 2023

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