bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Overview of Circulating Biomarkers in Neuroendocrine Neoplasms: A Clinical Guide
Authors: Bevere Michele , Masetto Francesca , Carazzolo Maria Elena , Bettega Alice , Gkountakos Anastasios , Scarpa Aldo , Simbolo Michele
Published: August 2023

Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) are a heterogeneous group of diseases that are characterized by different behavior and clinical manifestations. The diagnosis and management of this group of tumors are challenging due to tumor complexity and lack of precise and widely validated biomarkers. Indeed, the current circulating mono-analyte biomarkers (such as chromogranin A) are ineffective in describing such complex tumors due to their poor sensitivity and specificity. In contrast, multi-analytical circulating biomarkers (including NETest) are emerging as more effective tools to determine the real-time profile of the disease, both in terms of accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. In this review, we will analyze the capabilities and limitations of different circulating biomarkers focusing on three relevant questions: (1) accurate and early diagnosis; (2) monitoring of disease progression and response to therapy; and (3) detection of early relapse.
Diagnostic Performance of Multispectral SWIR Transillumination and Reflectance Imaging for Caries Detection
Authors: Zhu Yihua , Ng Chung , Le Oanh , Ho Yi-Ching , Fried Daniel
Published: August 2023

The aim of this clinical study was to compare the diagnostic performance of dual short wavelength infrared (SWIR) occlusal transillumination and reflectance multispectral imaging with conventional visual assessment and radiography for caries detection on premolars scheduled for extraction for orthodontics reasons. Polarized light microscopy (PLM) and micro-computed tomography (microCT) performed after tooth extraction were used as gold standards. The custom-fabricated imaging probe was 3D-printed and the imaging system employed a SWIR camera and fiber-optic light sources emitting light at 1300 nm for occlusal transillumination and 1600 nm for reflectance measurements. Teeth (n = 135) on 40 test subjects were imaged in vivo using the SWIR imaging prototype in the study and teeth were extracted after imaging. Our study demonstrates for the first time that near-simultaneous real-time transillumination and reflectance video can be successfully acquired for caries detection. Both SWIR imaging modalities had markedly higher sensitivity for lesions on proximal and occlusal surfaces compared to conventional methods (visual and radiographic). Reflectance imaging at 1600 nm had higher sensitivity and specificity than transillumination at 1300 nm. The combined SWIR methods yielded higher specificity but the combined sensitivity was lower than for each individual method.
Fast Opium Poppy Detection in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Imagery Based on Deep Neural Network
Authors: Zhang Zhiqi , Xia Wendi , Xie Guangqi , Xiang Shao
Published: August 2023

Opium poppy is a medicinal plant, and its cultivation is illegal without legal approval in China. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is an effective tool for monitoring illegal poppy cultivation. However, targets often appear occluded and confused, and it is difficult for existing detectors to accurately detect poppies. To address this problem, we propose an opium poppy detection network, YOLOHLA, for UAV remote sensing images. Specifically, we propose a new attention module that uses two branches to extract features at different scales. To enhance generalization capabilities, we introduce a learning strategy that involves iterative learning, where challenging samples are identified and the model’s representation capacity is enhanced using prior knowledge. Furthermore, we propose a lightweight model (YOLOHLA-tiny) using YOLOHLA based on structured model pruning, which can be better deployed on low-power embedded platforms. To evaluate the detection performance of the proposed method, we collect a UAV remote sensing image poppy dataset. The experimental results show that the proposed YOLOHLA model achieves better detection performance and faster execution speed than existing models. Our method achieves a mean average precision (mAP) of 88.2% and an F1 score of 85.5% for opium poppy detection. The proposed lightweight model achieves an inference speed of 172 frames per second (FPS) on embedded platforms. The experimental results showcase the practical applicability of the proposed poppy object detection method for real-time detection of poppy targets on UAV platforms.
HE-YOLOv5s: Efficient Road Defect Detection Network
Authors: Liu Yonghao , Duan Minglei , Ding Guangen , Ding Hongwei , Hu Peng , Zhao Hongzhi
Published: August 2023

In recent years, the number of traffic accidents caused by road defects has increased dramatically all over the world, and the repair and prevention of road defects is an urgent task. Researchers in different countries have proposed many models to deal with this task, but most of them are either highly accurate and slow in detection, or the accuracy is low and the detection speed is high. The accuracy and speed have achieved good results, but the generalization of the model to other datasets is poor. Given this, this paper takes YOLOv5s as a benchmark model and proposes an optimization model to solve the problem of road defect detection. First, we significantly reduce the parameters of the model by pruning the model and removing unimportant modules, propose an improved Spatial Pyramid Pooling-Fast (SPPF) module to improve the feature signature fusion ability, and finally add an attention module to focus on the key information. The activation function, sampling method, and other strategies were also replaced in this study. The test results on the Global Road Damage Detection Challenge (GRDDC) dataset show that the FPS of our proposed model is not only faster than the baseline model but also improves the MAP by 2.08%, and the size of this model is also reduced by 6.07 M.
Nighttime Image Stitching Method Based on Image Decomposition Enhancement
Authors: Yan Mengying , Qin Danyang , Zhang Gengxin , Tang Huapeng , Ma Lin
Published: August 2023

Image stitching technology realizes alignment and fusion of a series of images with common pixel areas taken from different viewpoints of the same scene to produce a wide field of view panoramic image with natural structure. The night environment is one of the important scenes of human life, and the night image stitching technology has more urgent practical significance in the fields of security monitoring and intelligent driving at night. Due to the influence of artificial light sources at night, the brightness of the image is unevenly distributed and there are a large number of dark light areas, but often these dark light areas have rich structural information. The structural features hidden in the darkness are difficult to extract, resulting in ghosting and misalignment when stitching, which makes it difficult to meet the practical application requirements. Therefore, a nighttime image stitching method based on image decomposition enhancement is proposed to address the problem of insufficient line feature extraction in the stitching process of nighttime images. The proposed algorithm performs luminance enhancement on the structural layer, smoothes the nighttime image noise using a denoising algorithm on the texture layer, and finally complements the texture of the fused image by an edge enhancement algorithm. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm improves the image quality in terms of information entropy, contrast, and noise suppression compared with other algorithms. Moreover, the proposed algorithm extracts the most line features from the processed nighttime images, which is more helpful for the stitching of nighttime images.
Systems of Precision: Coherent Probabilities on Pre-Dynkin Systems and Coherent Previsions on Linear Subspaces
Authors: Derr Rabanus , Williamson Robert C.
Published: August 2023

In the literature on imprecise probability, little attention is paid to the fact that imprecise probabilities are precise on a set of events. We call these sets systems of precision. We show that, under mild assumptions, the system of precision of a lower and upper probability form a so-called (pre-)Dynkin system. Interestingly, there are several settings, ranging from machine learning on partial data over frequential probability theory to quantum probability theory and decision making under uncertainty, in which, a priori, the probabilities are only desired to be precise on a specific underlying set system. Here, (pre-)Dynkin systems have been adopted as systems of precision, too. We show that, under extendability conditions, those pre-Dynkin systems equipped with probabilities can be embedded into algebras of sets. Surprisingly, the extendability conditions elaborated in a strand of work in quantum probability are equivalent to coherence from the imprecise probability literature. On this basis, we spell out a lattice duality which relates systems of precision to credal sets of probabilities. We conclude the presentation with a generalization of the framework to expectation-type counterparts of imprecise probabilities. The analogue of pre-Dynkin systems turns out to be (sets of) linear subspaces in the space of bounded, real-valued functions. We introduce partial expectations, natural generalizations of probabilities defined on pre-Dynkin systems. Again, coherence and extendability are equivalent. A related but more general lattice duality preserves the relation between systems of precision and credal sets of probabilities.
Defining the Scale to Build Complex Networks with a 40-Year Norwegian Intraplate Seismicity Dataset
Authors: Pavez-Orrego Claudia , Pastén Denisse
Published: August 2023

We present a new complex network-based study focused on intraplate earthquakes recorded in southern Norway during the period 1980–2020. One of the most recognized limitations of spatial complex network procedures and analyses concerns the definition of adequate cell size, which is the focus of this approach. In the present study, we analyze the influence of observational errors of hypocentral and epicentral locations of seismic events in the construction of a complex network, looking for the best cell size to build it and to develop a basis for interpreting the results in terms of the structure of the complex network in this seismic region. We focus the analysis on the degree distribution of the complex networks. We observed a strong result of the cell size for the slope of the degree distribution of the nodes, called the critical exponent γ. Based on the Abe–Suzuki method, the slope (γ) showed a negligible variation between the construction of 3- and 2-dimensional complex networks. The results were also very similar for a complex network built with subsets of seismic events. These results suggest a weak influence of observational errors measured for the coordinates latitude, longitude, and depth in the outcomes obtained with this particular methodology and for this high-quality dataset. These results imply stable behavior of the complex network, which shows a structure of hubs for small values of the cell size and a more homogeneous degree distribution when the cell size increases. In all the analyses, the γ parameter showed smaller values of the error bars for greater values of the cell size. To keep the structure of hubs and small error bars, a better range of the side sizes was determined to be between 8 to 16 km. From now on, these values can be used as the most stable cell sizes to perform any kind of study concerning complex network studies in southern Norway.
AI-Supported Academic Advising: Exploring ChatGPT’s Current State and Future Potential toward Student Empowerment
Authors: Akiba Daisuke , Fraboni Michelle C.
Published: August 2023

Artificial intelligence (AI), once a phenomenon primarily in the world of science fiction, has evolved rapidly in recent years, steadily infiltrating into our daily lives. ChatGPT, a freely accessible AI-powered large language model designed to generate human-like text responses to users, has been utilized in several areas, such as the healthcare industry, to facilitate interactive dissemination of information and decision-making. Academic advising has been essential in promoting success among university students, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Unfortunately, however, student advising has been marred with problems, with the availability and accessibility of adequate advising being among the hurdles. The current study explores how AI-powered tools like ChatGPT might serve to make academic advising more accessible, efficient, or effective. The authors compiled a list of questions frequently asked by current and prospective students in a teacher education bachelor’s degree program in the United States. Then, the questions were typed into the free version of ChatGPT, and the answers generated were explored and evaluated for their content and delivery. ChatGPT generated surprisingly high-quality answers, written in an authoritative yet supportive tone, and it was particularly adept at addressing general and open-ended career-related questions, such as career outlook, in a clear, comprehensive, and supportive manner using plain language. We argue that AI-powered tools, such as ChatGPT, may complement but not necessarily replace human academic advisers and that these tools may very well serve to promote educational equity by empowering individuals from a wide range of backgrounds with the means to initiate effective methods of seeking academic advice.
Unauthorized Access Detection for Network Device Firmware WEB Pages
Authors: Peng Minwei , Wei Qiang , Ma Rongkuan , Geng Yangyang , Yang Yahui , Zhang Shichao , Zhang Yali
Published: August 2023

WEB technology is utilized for the configuration, interaction, and management of network equipment, which has become ubiquitous in the intelligent industry and consumer electronics field. Unauthorized access on WEB allows unauthorized users to access authorized information, causing security vulnerabilities such as information leakage and command execution. However, commonly used vulnerability detection techniques for WEB unauthorized access face increasing challenges and more efficiently identify potentially sensitive pages. We propose WEBUAD, a WEB Unauthorized Access Detection framework, for the vulnerability detection of WEB service IoT network devices. WEBUAD utilizes the depth-first search algorithm to fully mine available information on device firmware and generate a potential-visit page set as well as a similarity–matching algorithm of machine learning to calculate the similarity of the responses of a web request. Finally, we evaluate WEBUAD on 9 real physical devices from four vendors and 190 device firmware from seven vendors. The result shows that compared with the state-of-the-art tool such as IoTScope, WEBUAD discovered 5007 potentially available pages, of which 658 were accessible and 9 sensitive pages existed, taking 50 s. Furthermore, WEBUAD exposed 13 security-critical vulnerabilities. Our approach can be used to automate the discovery of the WEB unauthorized access vulnerabilities of IoT devices.
Stability Analysis and Control Strategy Optimization of a Paralleled IPOS Phase-Shifted Full-Bridge Converters System Based on Droop Control
Authors: Qin Zhenghao , Cai Huafeng , Lin Xinchun
Published: August 2023

The application of high-power DC equipment further increases the power supply scale of DC systems. But, it is difficult for a single converter to support high transmission power, so multiple converters must operate in parallel for efficient power transmission. In a parallel system comprising many IPOS phase-shifting full-bridge converters, current sharing can be realized via droop control. However, the stability of the parallel system using current-sharing control will appear poor in light load conditions, so it is necessary to analyze the stability of parallel systems in light load conditions. Firstly, a single IPOS phase-shifted full-bridge control system is modeled; on this basis, the state space model of the n-module paralleled IPOS phase-shifted full-bridge converters system is derived. Then, the influence of load power and the number of parallel IPOS phase-shifted full-bridge converters on the system stability is analyzed via eigenvalue analysis, and an optimal control strategy based on a particle swarm optimization algorithm is proposed. The control parameters are optimized for the parallel system of eight IPOS phase-shifted full-bridge converters. Finally, the above results are simulated to verify the accuracy of the stability analysis and the feasibility of the optimized control strategy.
Leveraging Memory Copy Overlap for Efficient Sparse Matrix-Vector Multiplication on GPUs
Authors: Zeng Guangsen , Zou Yi
Published: August 2023

Sparse matrix-vector multiplication (SpMV) is central to many scientific, engineering, and other applications, including machine learning. Compressed Sparse Row (CSR) is a widely used sparse matrix storage format. SpMV using the CSR format on GPU computing platforms is widely studied, where the access behavior of GPU is often the performance bottleneck. The Ampere GPU architecture recently from NVIDIA provides a new asynchronous memory copy instruction, memcpy_async, for more efficient data movement in shared memory. Leveraging the capability of this new memcpy_async instruction, we first propose the CSR-Partial-Overlap to carefully overlap the data copy from global memory to shared memory and computation, allowing us to take full advantage of the data transfer time. In addition, we design the dynamic batch partition and the dynamic threads distribution to achieve effective load balancing, avoid the overhead of fixing up partial sums, and improve thread utilization. Furthermore, we propose the CSR-Full-Overlap based on the CSR-Partial-Overlap, which takes the overlap of data transfer from host to device and SpMV kernel execution into account as well. The CSR-Full-Overlap unifies the two major overlaps in SpMV and hides the computation as much as possible in the two important access behaviors of the GPU. This allows CSR-Full-Overlap to achieve the best performance gains from both overlaps. As far as we know, this paper is the first in-depth study of how memcpy_async can be potentially applied to help accelerate SpMV computation in GPU platforms. We compare CSR-Full-Overlap to the current state-of-the-art cuSPARSE, where our experimental results show an average 2.03x performance gain and up to 2.67x performance gain.
A Trading Mode Based on the Management of Residual Electric Energy in Electric Vehicles
Authors: Wang Xiuli , Wei Junkai , Wen Fushuan , Wang Kai
Published: August 2023

Aiming at the distributed resources of electric vehicles with photovoltaics (PVs) on the user side, a trading mode of surplus energy sharing for electric vehicles based on the user-side PVs is proposed by utilizing the bidirectional mobility of information and energy. Power transfer can be implemented between different electric vehicle users through vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology with a reasonable distribution of benefits taken into account. First, the operational framework of electric energy trading is presented, and the transmission architecture of each body of interest in the system is analyzed. Second, the portraits of EV users’ charging behaviors are established considering their different charging habits, and electric vehicle users are divided into electricity buyers and sellers in each trading time period. An electricity transaction model based on “multi-seller–multi-buyer” is established, and all electricity transactions are realized through blockchain-based decentralized technology. Finally, the benefit to each interest group is maximized using the improved Northern Goshawk Optimization (NGO) algorithm. Simulation results of a sample system indicate that the new power trading mode proposed in this study could lead to reasonable reuse of the electric energy of private electric vehicles and can achieve a win–win situation for all stakeholders.
Large-Scale Ex Situ Tests for CO2 Storage in Coal Beds
Authors: Wiatowski Marian , Kapusta Krzysztof , Stańczyk Kamil , Szyja Marcin , Masum Shakil , Sadasivam Sivachidambaram , Thomas Hywel Rhys
Published: August 2023

This publication discusses the experiments and findings of project ROCCS (Establishing a Research Observatory to Unlock European Coal Seams for Carbon Dioxide Storage), which aimed to investigate the potential for carbon dioxide storage in coal seams. The project involved large-scale ex situ laboratory tests, where CO2 was injected into an experimental coal seam using a high-pressure reactor at the Central Mining Institute in Poland. The reactor simulated underground conditions, and the experimental coal seam measured 3.05 m in length with a cross-section of 0.4 × 0.4 m. Parameters such as gas flow, temperatures, and pressures were monitored during the experiments. In the study conducted, the sorption capacity of coal from the Polish mine “Piast-Ziemowit” for CO2, at a sorption pressure of 30 bar, was determined to be 4.8% by weight relative to the raw coal mass. The data collected from these ex situ tests can support the design of a potential commercial-scale CO2 storage installation.
Prediction of Carbon Price in EU-ETS Using a Geometric Brownian Motion Model and Its Application to Analyze the Economic Competitiveness of Carbon Capture and Storage
Authors: Lee Gwang Goo , Ham Sung-Won
Published: August 2023

To achieve carbon neutrality, many countries and regions are making efforts to promote the commercialization of greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation technologies using emissions trading systems (ETSs). Accurate predictions of when the cost of GHG reduction technologies will become competitive below carbon prices could be invaluable to engineers and policy makers. In this study, carbon price movement in the EU-ETS was analyzed using a geometric Brownian motion (GBM) model. Using daily price data for the last 10 years, it tested whether the price pattern of the latter three years could be predicted by applying the first seven years of data to the GBM model. The results showed that the GBM model could well predict the upper and lower bounds of the actual carbon price. Based on the acceptable predictability of the GBM model, simulations were performed using carbon price data over the last decade, showing that carbon prices would reach around 200 EUR/tCO2 by the start of 2026. This is higher than the cost of CO2 avoided evaluated from the costs of commercial-scale carbon capture facilities for coal-fired power plants. This means that carbon capture technologies in the coal-fired power sector could become economically competitive within the next several years.
Predicting Residential Photovoltaic Adoption Intention of Potential Prosumers in Thailand: A Theory of Planned Behavior Model
Authors: Huansuriya Thipnapa , Ariyabuddhiphongs Kris
Published: August 2023

The current study investigates economic expectations and socio-psychological factors influencing individuals’ residential photovoltaic (RPV) adoption intentions in Thailand. The theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the diffusion of innovation theory provide a framework for our predictor selection. We obtained the data from a nationwide survey on electricity prosumer infrastructure. RPV non-users (N = 760) were asked to rate their RPV knowledge, attitudes, perceived behavioral controls (PBCs), norms, and innovativeness. They then read scenarios describing the current RPV installation cost and payback rate. They rated their adoption intention and specified their intended system capacity, affordable installation cost, and desirable payback period. The gaps between the actual and desired installation costs and the internal rate of return were calculated. These economic expectation gaps, attitudes based on financial benefits, PBC based on perceived financial barriers, social norms, and innovativeness significantly predicted the adoption intention. On the other hand, perceived knowledge, attitudes based on environmental and image benefits, and PBC based on anticipated troubles and inconveniences failed to predict intention. The implications of the TPB model for RPV adoption were discussed.
Merging Smart and Healthy Cities to Support Community Wellbeing and Social Connection
Authors: Thompson Susan , Rahmat Homa , Marshall Nancy , Steinmetz-Weiss Christine , Bishop Kate , Corkery Linda , Park Miles , Tietz Christian
Published: August 2023

Urban planning has long pursued the improvement of health and wellbeing through the rapidly evolving scholarship and practice of health-supportive environments, underpinned by the seminal World Health Organization’s Healthy Cities Framework. Although a much more recent development, technology has been informing urban planning, as well as advancing healthcare and personal wellbeing monitoring and assessment. Known as the Smart City movement, it has much to offer regarding life in towns and cities, as well as how they are managed, maintained, and developed. There is also a growing appreciation of the potential for smart city technology to enhance human and environmental health in the context of urban planning and public place making. This has been reinforced by the COVID-19 pandemic with its reawakening of community interest in health and wellbeing, including mental illness, a greater awareness of the importance of local environments, and an explosion of technological knowhow in the embrace of remote working, online shopping, and education. Using the example of the authors’ “Smart Social Spaces” project, this entry discusses the potential benefits of an evolving integrative concept called “Smart Healthy Social Spaces”. The aim is to support community wellbeing as part of everyday living, especially associated with social connection, in densely populated and culturally diverse urban environments, where locally situated public spaces are increasingly important for all citizens.
Strategies for Supplying Precursors to Enhance the Production of Secondary Metabolites in Solid-State Fermentation
Authors: Méndez-Hernández Jazmín E. , Rodríguez-Durán Luis V. , Páez-Lerma Jesús B. , Soto-Cruz Nicolás O.
Published: August 2023

The production of secondary metabolites can be improved with the supply of precursors both in submerged and solid-state fermentation (SSF). Microorganisms assimilate the precursors and biotransform them to excrete compounds of commercial interest. The raw materials used in SSF, frequently agro-industrial residues, may contain molecules that serve as precursors for secondary metabolites. However, supplying a precursor can dramatically improve crop production. Commonly, precursors are added as part of the liquid with which the solid material to be fermented is moistened. However, recently it has been proposed to take advantage of the oxygen supply for the gradual supply of volatile precursors. It can help to avoid toxicity problems with the precursors. The present work reviews the strategies to supply precursors to improve the production of secondary metabolites in solid-state fermentation.
Investigating the Genetic and Dietary Factors Influencing Foot Muscle Color and Growth in Haliotis gigantea
Authors: Ke Yizhou , Zeng Wencui , Gao Xiaolong , Cai Mingyi , You Weiwei
Published: August 2023

Haliotis gigantea, a commercially cultivated abalone in China, predominantly displays the pale-yellow-footed trait. However, a limited occurrence of the orange-footed muscle trait makes it a valuable candidate for breeding programs. In our research, we examined the inheritance pattern of the orange-footed trait and conducted a 90-day feeding trial for H. gigantea to compare the influence of formulated feed and macroalgae on pigment enrichment and growth rates. Our results suggest that the orange-footed trait has a recessive nature relative to its common counterpart and demonstrates stable inheritance. We also identified a significant correlation between color-difference values (a*) and total carotenoid content (TCC) (R2 = 0.955, p < 0.05), suggesting the TCC in abalone foot muscle can be estimated using the a* value. Furthermore, introducing carotenoids to formulated feed imparts an orange hue to the foot muscle, but this effect is inferior compared to using Gracilariopsis lemaneiformis with a similar carotenoid content. This suggests that H. gigantea has a higher absorption efficiency for the carotenoids from the macroalgae G. lemaneiformis compared to formulated feed. Growth assessments indicate that the formulated feed, enriched with higher crude protein than G. lemaneiformis, optimally supports H. gigantea growth. Our findings furnish valuable insights that could steer breeding strategies and feeding practices towards achieving the orange-footed muscle trait in H. gigantea.
Are Chokeberry Products Safe for Health? Evaluation of the Content of Contaminants and Health Risk
Authors: Olechno Ewa , Puścion-Jakubik Anna , Soroczyńska Jolanta , Socha Katarzyna , Zujko Małgorzata Elżbieta
Published: August 2023

The health-promoting properties of chokeberry fruit have been confirmed in numerous scientific studies. It has been shown that the consumption of these fruits, due to the high content of bioactive compounds, has beneficial effects in neurodegenerative diseases, in addition to having hypolipemic, hypotensive, hypoglycemic, and anti-inflammatory properties. However, different conditions and methods of fruit cultivation, as well as methods of juice and fiber production, may result in a high content of toxic substances, which reduce the health value of chokeberry products. Many substances are environmental pollutants. In this study, for the first time, we examined the content of toxic elements (As, Hg, Cd, Pb), nitrates, and nitrites in all chokeberry juices (organic, conventional, from concentrate, and not from fruit concentrate) without additives and in all chokeberry fibers available in Poland. In addition, risk indicators of adverse health effects were calculated. The median content of the contaminants tested in juices was 0.461 µg/kg for As, 1.170 µg/kg for Cd, 0.427 µg/kg for Hg, 1.404 µg/kg for Pb, 4.892 mg/kg for NO2−, and 41.788 mg/kg for NO3−. These values did not exceed the permissible standards for the calculated indicators. There were also no statistically significant differences in the content of Cd, Hg, and Pb, as well as nitrates (III) and nitrates (V), in the tested juices depending on the method of cultivation and juice production. However, statistically significant differences in As content were found between juices from conventional and organic cultivation (1.032 µg/kg vs. 0.458 µg/kg) and juices from concentrate and not from concentrate (1.164 µg/kg vs. 0.460 µg/kg). There were no statistically significant differences with respect to impurities in fibers. It is shown that the consumption of chokeberry juice and fiber in the amount normally consumed does not pose a health risk associated with the intake of toxic substances; in the case of long-term fiber consumption, the Pb content should be monitored. In particular, organic juices and those not from fruit concentrate are recommended due to the lower As content.
Controlled Release of Phycocyanin in Simulated Gastrointestinal Conditions Using Alginate-Agavins-Polysaccharide Beads
Authors: Londoño-Moreno Alejandro , Mundo-Franco Zayra , Franco-Colin Margarita , Buitrago-Arias Carolina , Arenas-Ocampo Martha Lucía , Jiménez-Aparicio Antonio Ruperto , Cano-Europa Edgar , Camacho-Díaz Brenda Hildeliza
Published: August 2023

C-phycocyanin (CPC) is an antioxidant protein that, when purified, is photosensitive and can be affected by environmental and gastrointestinal conditions. This can impact its biological activity, requiring an increase in the effective amount to achieve a therapeutic effect. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a microencapsulate of a complex matrix, as a strategy to protect and establish a matrix for the controlled release of CPC based on polysaccharides such as agavins (AGV) using ionic gelation. Four matrices were formulated: M1 (alginate: ALG), M2 (ALG and AGV), M3 (ALG, AGV, and κ-carrageenan: CGN), and M4 (ALG, AGV, CGN, and carboxymethylcellulose: CMC) with increasing concentrations of CPC. The retention and diffusion capacities of C-phycocyanin provided by each matrix were evaluated, as well as their stability under simulated gastrointestinal conditions. The results showed that the encapsulation efficiency of the matrix-type encapsulates with complex composites increased as more components were added to the mixtures. CMC increased the retention due to the hydrophobicity that it provides by being in the polysaccharide matrix; CGN enabled the controlled diffusive release; and AGV provided protection of the CPC beads under simulated gastrointestinal conditions. Therefore, matrix M4 exhibited an encapsulation efficiency for CPC of 98% and a bioaccessibility of 10.65 ± 0.65% after the passage of encapsulates through in vitro digestion.
Effect of Sodium Nitrite, Nisin and Lactic Acid on the Prevalence and Antibiotic Resistance Patterns of Listeria monocytogenes Naturally Present in Poultry
Authors: Rodríguez-Melcón Cristina , Esteves Alexandra , Carballo Javier , Alonso-Calleja Carlos , Capita Rosa
Published: August 2023

The impact of treating minced chicken meat with sodium nitrite (SN, 100 ppm), nisin (Ni, 10 ppm) and lactic acid (LA, 3000 ppm) on the levels of some microbial groups indicating hygiene quality were investigated. Specifically, aerobic plate counts and culture-based counts of psychrotrophic microorganisms and enterobacteria were obtained. Additionally, the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes and the resistance of 245 isolates from this bacterium to 15 antibiotics were documented. L. monocytogenes was isolated using the ISO 11290-1:2017 method and confirmed with polymerase chain reaction using the lmo1030 gene. Antibiotic resistance was established using the disc diffusion technique (EUCAST and CLSI criteria). Twenty-four hours after treatment, the microbial load (log10 cfu/g) was reduced (p < 0.05) relative to controls in those samples treated with LA, with counts of 5.51 ± 1.05 (LA-treated samples) vs. 7.53 ± 1.02 (control) for APC, 5.59 ± 1.14 (LA) vs. 7.13 ± 1.07 (control) for psychrotrophic microorganisms and 2.33 ± 0.51 (LA) vs. 4.23 ± 0.88 (control) for enterobacteria. L. monocytogenes was detected in 70% (control samples), 60% (samples receiving SN), 65% (Ni) and 50% (LA) (p > 0.05) of samples. All strains showed resistance to multiple antimicrobials (between 3 and 12). In all, 225 isolates (91.8%) showed a multi-drug resistant (MDR) phenotype, and one isolate (0.4%) showed an extensively drug-resistant (XDR) phenotype. The mean number of resistances per strain was lower (p < 0.01) in the control samples, at 5.77 ± 1.22, than in those receiving treatment, at 6.39 ± 1.51. It is suggested that the use of food additives might increase the prevalence of resistance to antibiotics in L. monocytogenes, although additional studies would be necessary to verify this finding by analyzing a higher number of samples and different foodstuffs and by increasing the number of antimicrobial compounds and concentrations to be tested.
Improving the Technology of Primary Purification of the Safflower Oil Using Secondary Products of Processing on a Biological Basis
Authors: Iskakov Bauyrzhan , Kakimov Mukhtarbek , Kudelski Rafał , Mursalykova Maigul , Kassenov Amirzhan , Satayeva Zhuldyz , Kardenov Serik , Kalibekkyzy Zhanar , Mustafayeva Ayaulym , Igenbayev Aidyn , Bembenek Michał
Published: August 2023

Safflower oil is a very valuable product for the body and human health. It is rich in macro- and microelements, vitamins and minerals, and also has antioxidant properties. The primary purification of safflower oil is an important stage of its production and directly affects the quality of the final product and its storage ability. Purifying safflower oil using a combination of filtration and sedimentation processes in an experimental cone-shaped centrifuge is a new direction in its processing. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of flax fiber as a filter material for safflower oil. The Akmai variety of the safflower was tested. The results showed that the quality indicators of safflower oil before and after filtration through flax fiber are different. The amount of unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic (18.31 ± 0.874%) and cis-linoleic acid (82.52 ± 1.854%) increased, as well as the content of arginine (2.1), tyrosine (0.57), methionine (0.4), cystine (2.5), tryptophan (2.6), and other amino acids (in oil g per 100 g of protein). The increase in the total amount of phenols (322.12 ± 6 mgEAG/kg of oil) was observed, which directly caused the higher antioxidant activity (42.65 ± 8%) of the safflower oil. These results demonstrate that flax fiber can enrich safflower oil. To find the optimal conditions for safflower oil centrifugation in a cone-shaped sedimentary-filtering centrifuge, the thickness of the flax fiber and the distance between the inner and outer perforated filter rotor were tested. It was found that the optimal and effective thickness of the flax fiber is 1.5 × 107 nm, while the thickness of the sediment is 0.5 × 107 nm.
Collocation-Based Approximation for a Time-Fractional Sub-Diffusion Model
Authors: Lätt Kaido , Pedas Arvet , Soots Hanna Britt , Vikerpuur Mikk
Published: August 2023

We consider the numerical solution of a one-dimensional time-fractional diffusion problem, where the order of the Caputo time derivative belongs to (0, 1). Using the technique of the method of lines, we first develop from the original problem a system of fractional ordinary differential equations. Using an integral equation reformulation of this system, we study the regularity properties of the exact solution of the system of fractional differential equations and construct a piecewise polynomial collocation method to solve it numerically. We also investigate the convergence and the convergence order of the proposed method. To conclude, we present the results of some numerical experiments.
Correlation between Parental Hostility and Child Self-Control and Aggression
Authors: Yoo Sun Yee , Ahn Hye Young
Published: August 2023

(1) Background: Child aggression is not easily reduced as children grow up, and it is a serious problem that can develop into a life of crime if left unaddressed. (2) Methods: This study was conducted among elementary school children and their parents in C and K provinces and D city. Data were collected through a survey. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to analyze parental hostility and each child’s self-control and aggression. (3) Results: Child aggression had a significant negative correlation with self-control and a significant positive correlation with parental hostility. In particular, there was a significant positive correlation between physical aggression and revenge, which are sub-factors of parental hostility. In addition, the children’s self-control was significantly negatively correlated with parental hostility. (4) Conclusions: Since there is a positive correlation between children’s aggression and self-control, it is necessary to develop strategies to improve self-control when seeking intervention measures for children’s aggression. In addition, since there is a significant quantitative correlation between children’s aggression and parental hostility, it is necessary to deal with parental hostility in order to control children’s aggression. Since there is a significant negative correlation between parental hostility and children’s self-control, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of parental attitudes and behaviors to improve children’s self-control.
Assessment of the Extent of Intracerebral Hemorrhage Using 3D Modeling Technology
Authors: Chwał Joanna , Kostka Paweł , Tkacz Ewaryst
Published: August 2023

The second most common cause of stroke, accounting for 10% of hospital admissions, is intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), and risk factors include diabetes, smoking, and hypertension. People with intracerebral bleeding experience symptoms that are related to the functions that are managed by the affected part of the brain. Having obtained 15 computed tomography (CT) scans from five patients with ICH, we decided to use three-dimensional (3D) modeling technology to estimate the bleeding volume. CT was performed on admission to hospital, and after one week and two weeks of treatment. We segmented the brain, ventricles, and hemorrhage using semi-automatic algorithms in Slicer 3D, then improved the obtained models in Blender. Moreover, the accuracy of the models was checked by comparing corresponding CT scans with 3D brain model cross-sections. The goal of the research was to examine the possibility of using 3D modeling technology to visualize intracerebral hemorrhage and assess its treatment.
Sink Drains in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Retrospective Risk Assessment and Evaluation
Authors: Schneider Julia S. , Froböse Neele J. , Kuczius Thorsten , Schwierzeck Vera , Kampmeier Stefanie
Published: August 2023

Water systems in health care facilities can form reservoirs for Gram-negative bacteria. While planning a new neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), we performed a retrospective evaluation of potential risks from water-diverting systems on the existing NICU of our tertiary care University Hospital. During 2017 to 2023, we recorded nine nosocomial cluster events with bacterial pathogens in our NICU. Of these, three clusters of Gram-negative bacteria were potentially related to sink drains: A Klebsiella oxytoca, a Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and an Enterobacter hormaechei cluster were uncovered by clinical routine screening of patients and breastmilk samples. They were confirmed using whole-genome sequencing and a subsequent core genome multilocus sequence typing (cgMLST) algorithm. Our observations highlight that the implementation of sink drains in a NICU may have negative effects on patients’ safety. Construction planning should concentrate on the avoidance of washbasins in patient rooms when redesigning sensitive areas such as NICUs.
Changes in Thermal Stress in Korea Using Climate-Based Indicators: Present-Day and Future Projections from 1 km High Resolution Scenarios
Authors: Sung Hyun Min , Lee Jae-Hee , Kim Jin-Uk , Shim Sungbo , Chung Chu-Yong , Byun Young-Hwa
Published: August 2023

Among the various thermal stress indices, apparent temperature (AT) is closely related to public health indicators, and consequently is widely used by weather agencies around the world. Therefore, in this paper we estimate the changes in AT and contributing components in Korea as a whole and in five major cities (Seoul, Gwanju, Daegu, Daejeon, and Busan) using national standard climate scenarios based on the coupled model inter-comparison project (CMIP6). In the present day, high AT occurs in major cities due to high temperature (TAS) and relative humidity (RH). Our findings reveal that even when TAS is relatively low, large AT occurs with higher humidity. Notably, in future warmer climate conditions, high AT may first appear in the five major cities and then extend to the surrounding areas. An increase in TAS and RH during the pre-hot season (March to June) may lead to earlier occurrence of thermal risks in future warmer climate conditions and more frequent occurrence of high thermal stress events. Our study can serve as a reference for future information on thermal risk changes in Korea. Considering those who have not adapted to high temperature environments, our findings imply that thermal risks will become more serious and that heat adaptation strategies will be needed during the pre-hot season under future warmer climate conditions.
The Health and Nutritional Status of Children (10–18 years) Belonging to Food Insecure Households: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2012–2019)
Authors: Jung Sowon , Shin Jieun , Lee Myoungsook
Published: August 2023

To research the health and nutritional status in Korean children and adolescents belonging to food insecure households (FI), the preregistered secondary data of 18 items from the Food Security Evaluation in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES; 2012–2019) were used. Comparative analyses (food security group [FS], (n = 3150) vs. FI, (n = 405) of household characteristics, health status (anthropometrics, clinics, mentality), and nutritional status (nutrient intake, diet-quality, and pattern) were performed in children (boys: 1871, girls: 1684) aged 10–18 years. The FI comprised higher proportions of participants from low-income families, basic livelihood-security recipients, and vulnerability (characteristics: female household heads, aged ≥50, single, unemployed, with low education and unmet healthcare needs). Compared to FS, boys had higher abdominal obesity and alcohol use, whereas girls had lower high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc) and mental vulnerability (self-perceived obesity despite FS-similar anthropometry) in FI. Inadequate protein intake among boys and girls, and high carbohydrate and inadequate fat intake among girls were especially found in the FI status. From the results of a nutrition quality test, Vit-A in boys, and protein, niacin, and iron intakes in girls were insufficient, respectively. Health-nutritional policies to improve children’s lifestyles should reinforce FI-based intake of deficient nutrients.
An Uncharacterised lncRNA Coded by the ASAP1 Locus Is Downregulated in Serum of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients
Authors: Barbagallo Cristina , Stella Michele , Di Mauro Stefania , Scamporrino Alessandra , Filippello Agnese , Scionti Francesca , Di Martino Maria Teresa , Purrello Michele , Ragusa Marco , Purrello Francesco , Piro Salvatore
Published: August 2023

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a complex and multifactorial disease characterised by high blood glucose. Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), the most frequent clinical condition accounting for about 90% of all DM cases worldwide, is a chronic disease with slow development usually affecting middle-aged or elderly individuals. T2D represents a significant problem of public health today because its incidence is constantly growing among both children and adults. It is also estimated that underdiagnosis prevalence would strongly further increase the real incidence of the disease, with about half of T2D patients being undiagnosed. Therefore, it is important to increase diagnosis accuracy. The current interest in RNA molecules (both protein- and non-protein-coding) as potential biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment lies in the ease and low cost of isolation and quantification with basic molecular biology techniques. In the present study, we analysed the transcriptome in serum samples collected from T2D patients and unaffected individuals to identify potential RNA-based biomarkers. Microarray-based profiling and subsequent validation using Real-Time PCR identified an uncharacterised long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) transcribed from the ASAP1 locus as a potential diagnostic biomarker. ROC curve analysis showed that a molecular signature including the lncRNA and the clinicopathological parameters of T2D patients as well as unaffected individuals showed a better diagnostic performance compared with the glycated haemoglobin test (HbA1c). This result suggests that the application of this biomarker in clinical practice would help to improve the diagnosis, and therefore the clinical management, of T2D patients. The proposed biomarker would be useful in the context of predictive, preventive, and personalised medicine (3PM/PPPM).