bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Efficacy and Safety of Intravitreal Fluocinolone Acetonide Implant for Chronic Diabetic Macular Edema Previously Treated in Real-Life Practice: The REALFAc Study
Authors: Mathis Thibaud , Papegaey Maxence , Ricard Cécile , Rezkallah Amina , Matonti Frédéric , Sudhalkar Aditya , Vartin Cristina , Dot Corinne , Kodjikian Laurent
Published: March 2022

Diabetic macular edema (DME) is the main cause of visual impairment in diabetic patients and a chronic disease requiring long-term treatments. The fluocinolone acetonide (FAc) implant has recently been approved to treat DME in patients considered insufficiently responsive to available therapies. This study evaluates the functional and anatomical efficacy of the FAc implant in real-life practice. A total of 62 eyes with chronic DME were included and followed for a mean of 13.9 (+7.5) months. Previous treatment included at least anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in 83.9% of eyes, dexamethasone implant (DEX-I) in 100% of eyes, vitrectomy in 29.0% of eyes, and laser photocoagulation (either panretinal or focal photocoagulation) in 75.8% of eyes. The mean baseline best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 64.0 (+/−17.2) letters (median: 67.5 letters) with a mean DME duration of 60.3 (+/−30.6) months. The maximum BCVA gain occurred at 21 months with a mean gain of 5.0 (+/−12.7) letters. A total of 50.0% of eyes gained ≥5 letters during follow-up. Patients with lower BCVA at baseline had the lowest final BCVA (p < 0.001) but the highest BCVA gain (p = 0.02). The best overall improvement in mean central macular thickness (CMT) occurred at 18 months (p < 0.0001). The improvement in BCVA was inversely associated with the decrease in CMT and showed a decrease when CMT increased (DME recurrence). According to the history of vitrectomy, we did not find any significant difference in mean final BCVA (p = 0.1) and mean BCVA gain (p = 0.2) between eyes previously vitrectomized or not. A total of 23 eyes (37.1%) required additional treatment for DME, and 17.7% required an IOP-lowering procedure during follow-up. In conclusion, this real-life observational study demonstrated the efficacy and safety of the FAc implant in patients with chronic DME already treated with other available therapies.
Emerging Albumin-Binding Anticancer Drugs for Tumor-Targeted Drug Delivery: Current Understandings and Clinical Translation
Authors: Cho Hanhee , Jeon Seong Ik , Ahn Cheol-Hee , Shim Man Kyu , Kim Kwangmeyung
Published: March 2022

Albumin has shown remarkable promise as a natural drug carrier by improving pharmacokinetic (PK) profiles of anticancer drugs for tumor-targeted delivery. The exogenous or endogenous albumin enhances the circulatory half-lives of anticancer drugs and passively target the tumors by the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect. Thus, the albumin-based drug delivery leads to a potent antitumor efficacy in various preclinical models, and several candidates have been evaluated clinically. The most successful example is Abraxane, an exogenous human serum albumin (HSA)-bound paclitaxel formulation approved by the FDA and used to treat locally advanced or metastatic tumors. However, additional clinical translation of exogenous albumin formulations has not been approved to date because of their unexpectedly low delivery efficiency, which can increase the risk of systemic toxicity. To overcome these limitations, several prodrugs binding endogenous albumin covalently have been investigated owing to distinct advantages for a safe and more effective drug delivery. In this review, we give account of the different albumin-based drug delivery systems, from laboratory investigations to clinical applications, and their potential challenges, and the outlook for clinical translation is discussed. In addition, recent advances and progress of albumin-binding drugs to move more closely to the clinical settings are outlined.
Dermal Absorption of Sesquiterpene Lactones from Arnica Tincture
Authors: Jürgens Franziska M. , Herrmann Fabian C. , Robledo Sara M. , Schmidt Thomas J.
Published: March 2022

Arnica tincture is a traditional herbal medicine used to treat blunt injuries, e.g., bruises and squeezes. In addition, a potential new use in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis is currently under investigation. Therefore, detailed information about the dermal absorption of the tincture and especially its bioactive constituents, sesquiterpene lactones (STLs) of the helenalin- and 11α,13-dihydrohelenalin type, is mandatory. Consequently, this article reports on dermal absorption studies of Arnica tincture using diffusion cells and porcine skin as well as two human skin samples with different permeability. The amounts of STLs on the skin surfaces, in skin extracts and in the receptor fluids were quantified by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). It was found that Arnica STLs permeated into the receptor fluid already 4 h after the application, but the amount was rather low. Within 48 h, a maximum of 8.4%, 14.6% and 36.4% of STLs permeated through porcine skin, human skin A (trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) = 11.518 g·m−2·h−1) and the more permeable human skin B (TEWL = 17.271 g·m−2·h−1), respectively. The majority of STLs was absorbed (penetrated into the skin; 97.6%, 97.8% and 99.3%) after 48 h but a huge portion could not be extracted from skin and is expected to be irreversibly bound to skin proteins. To better visualize the analytes in different skin layers, a fluorescence-labeled STL, helenalin 3,4-dimethoxycinnamate, was synthesized. Fluorescence microscopic images depict an accumulation of the fluorescent derivative in the epidermis. For the treatment of local, cutaneous complaints, an enrichment of the bioactive substances in the skin may be considered beneficial.
Numerical Study on a Bound State in the Continuum Assisted Plasmonic Refractive Index Sensor
Authors: Tang Shulin , Chang Chang , Zhou Peiji , Zou Yi
Published: March 2022

Plasmonic sensors have attracted intensive attention due to their high sensitivity. However, due to intrinsic metallic loss, plasmonic sensors usually have a large full width at half maximum (FWHM) that limits the wavelength resolution. In this paper, we numerically investigate and propose a dielectric grating-assisted plasmonic device, leveraging the bound states in the continuum (BIC) effect to suppress the FWHM of the resonance. We initiate quasi-SP-BIC modes at 1559 nm and 1905 nm wavelengths by slightly tilting the incident angle at 2° to break the symmetry, featuring a narrow linewidth of 1.8 nm and 0.18 nm at these two wavelengths, respectively. Refractive index sensing has also been investigated, showing high sensitivity of 938 nm/RIU and figure of merit (FOM) of 521/RIU at 1559 nm and even higher sensitivity of 1264 nm/RIU and FOM of 7022/RIU at 1905 nm.
The Syngameon Enigma
Authors: Buck Ryan , Flores-Rentería Lluvia
Published: March 2022

Despite their evolutionary relevance, multispecies networks or syngameons are rarely reported in the literature. Discovering how syngameons form and how they are maintained can give insight into processes such as adaptive radiations, island colonizations, and the creation of new hybrid lineages. Understanding these complex hybridization networks is even more pressing with anthropogenic climate change, as syngameons may have unique synergistic properties that will allow participating species to persist. The formation of a syngameon is not insurmountable, as several ways for a syngameon to form have been proposed, depending mostly on the magnitude and frequency of gene flow events, as well as the relatedness of its participants. Episodic hybridization with small amounts of introgression may keep syngameons stable and protect their participants from any detrimental effects of gene flow. As genomic sequencing becomes cheaper and more species are included in studies, the number of known syngameons is expected to increase. Syngameons must be considered in conservation efforts as the extinction of one participating species may have detrimental effects on the survival of all other species in the network.
Near-Isogenic Barley Lines Show Enhanced Susceptibility to Powdery Mildew Infection Following High-Temperature Stress
Authors: Kolozsváriné Nagy Judit , Schwarczinger Ildikó , Király Lóránt , Bacsó Renáta , Ádám Attila L. , Künstler András
Published: March 2022

Barley cultivation is adversely affected by high-temperature stress, which may modulate plant defense responses to pathogens such as barley powdery mildew (Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei, Bgh). Earlier research focused mainly on the influence of short-term heat stress (heat shock) of barley on Bgh infection. In this study, our aim was to investigate the effects of both short- and long-term heat stress (35 °C from 30 s to 5 days) on Bgh infection in the barley cultivar Ingrid and its near-isogenic lines containing different powdery mildew resistance genes (Mla12, Mlg, and mlo5) by analyzing symptom severity and Bgh biomass with RT-qPCR. The expression of selected barley defense genes (BAX inhibitor-1, Pathogenesis- related protein-1b, Respiratory burst oxidase homologue F2, and Heat shock protein 90-1) was also monitored in plants previously exposed to heat stress followed by inoculation with Bgh. We demonstrated that pre-exposure to short- and long-term heat stress negatively affects the resistance of all resistant lines manifested by the appearance of powdery mildew symptoms and increased Bgh biomass. Furthermore, prolonged heat stress (48 and 120 h) enhanced both Bgh symptoms and biomass in susceptible wild-type Ingrid. Heat stress suppressed and delayed early defense gene activation in resistant lines, which is a possible reason why resistant barley became partially susceptible to Bgh.
Monitoring Colletotrichum Colonization and Reproduction in Different Rubber Tree Clones
Authors: Firmino Ana Carolina , Magalhães Izabela Ponso , Gomes Marcela Eloi , Fischer Ivan Herman , Junior Erivaldo José Scaloppi , Furtado Edson Luiz
Published: March 2022

Anthracnose, caused by fungi of the genus Colletotrichum, is present in the major rubber tree crop areas in Brazil, especially in São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, and northern states. This disease can affect different tissues of the rubber tree, leading to production losses. Thus, a better understanding of the pathosystem Colletotrichum x rubber tree can provide evidence to subsequent epidemiological research and phytosanitary management studies of this disease in the field. The present study aimed to investigate C.tamarilloi colonization and reproduction steps in resistant clones (IAC 502, IAC 507, RRIM 937) and in one susceptible clone (RRIM 600) of the rubber tree, verifying the influence of temperature up to 48 h after inoculation of the fungus, under 24 h wetness. Samples were analyzed under a light, a UV and a scanning electron microscope. Data indicated that the fungus had a delay in its development in resistant clones and, although colonization was expressive 48 h after inoculation, the new spore formation rate in the analyzed samples was lower in resistant clones. For RRIM 600, rapid colonization and intensive sporulation could be observed.
Root Na+ Content Negatively Correlated to Salt Tolerance Determines the Salt Tolerance of Brassica napus L. Inbred Seedlings
Authors: Wang Cheng-Feng , Han Guo-Liang , Qiao Zi-Qi , Li Yu-Xia , Yang Zong-Ran , Wang Bao-Shan
Published: March 2022

Soil salinization is a major environmental stressor that reduces the growth and yield of crops. Maintaining the balance of ions under salinity is vital for plant salt tolerance; however, little is known about the correlation between the salt tolerance of crops and the ion contents of their roots and shoots. Here, we investigated the poorly understood salt-tolerance mechanisms, particularly regarding ion contents (particularly Na+), in Brassica napus subsp. napus L., an agriculturally important species. Twenty B. napus inbred lines were randomly chosen from five salt-tolerance categories and treated with increasing concentrations of NaCl (0–200 mmol) for this work. We found that the root Na+ content is the most correlated limiting factor for the salt tolerance of B. napus; the higher the salt tolerance, the lower the root Na+ content. Correspondingly, the Ca2+/Na+ and K+/Na+ ratios of the roots were highly correlated with B. napus salt tolerance, indicating that the selective absorption ability of these ions by the roots and their translocation to the shoots play a pivotal role in this trait. These data provide a foundation for the further study of the molecular mechanisms underlying salt tolerance and for breeding salt-tolerant B. napus cultivars.
Extracellular Vesicle-Mediated Secretion of Protochlorophyllide in the Cyanobacterium Leptolyngbya boryana
Authors: Usui Kentaro , Yamamoto Haruki , Oi Takao , Taniguchi Mitsutaka , Mori Hitoshi , Fujita Yuichi
Published: March 2022

Protochlorophyllide (Pchlide) reduction in the late stage of chlorophyll a (Chl) biosynthesis is catalyzed by two enzymes: light-dependent Pchlide oxidoreductase (LPOR) and dark-operative Pchlide oxidoreductase (DPOR). The differential operation of LPOR and DPOR enables a stable supply of Chl in response to changes in light conditions and environmental oxygen levels. When a DPOR-deficient mutant (YFC2) of the cyanobacterium Leptolyngbya boryana is grown heterotrophically in the dark, Pchlide accumulates in the cells and is secreted into the culture medium. In this study, we demonstrated the extracellular vesicle-mediated secretion of Pchlide. Pchlide fractions were isolated from the culture medium using sucrose density gradient centrifugation. Mass spectrometry analysis revealed that the Pchlide fractions contained porin isoforms, TolC, and FG-GAP repeat-containing protein, which are localized in the outer membrane. Transmission electron microscopy revealed extracellular vesicle-like structures in the vicinity of YFC2 cells and the Pchlide fractions. These findings suggested that the Pchlide secretion is mediated by extracellular vesicles in dark-grown YFC2 cells.
CuO-NPs Improve Biosynthesis of Bioactive Compounds in Lettuce
Authors: Gaucin-Delgado Jazmín M. , Ortiz-Campos Adriel , Hernandez-Montiel Luis G. , Fortis-Hernandez Manuel , Reyes-Pérez Juan J. , Gonzáles-Fuentes José A. , Preciado-Rangel Pablo
Published: March 2022

The application of metallic nanoparticles improves the yield and content of bioactive compounds in plants. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of the foliar application of copper nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) in the yield and content of bioactive compounds in lettuce. Different concentrations of CuO-NPs (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 6 mg mL−1) were applied in lettuce. The yield, nutraceutical quality, and enzymatic activity were determined. Foliar spraying of CuO-NPs induced an increase in the biosynthesis of bioactive compounds. In addition to an increase in the activity of the enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in lettuce plants, there were no negative effects on yield. Therefore, with the application of CuO-NPs, better quality lettuces are produced for the human diet due to the higher production of bioactive compounds.
Effects of Auxin (Indole-3-butyric Acid) on Adventitious Root Formation in Peach-Based Prunus Rootstocks
Authors: Justamante María Salud , Mhimdi Mariem , Molina-Pérez Marta , Albacete Alfonso , Moreno María Ángeles , Mataix Inés , Pérez-Pérez José Manuel
Published: March 2022

Several Prunus species are among the most important cultivated stone fruits in the Mediterranean region, and there is an urgent need to obtain rootstocks with specific adaptations to challenging environmental conditions. The development of adventitious roots (ARs) is an evolutionary mechanism of high relevance for stress tolerance, which has led to the development of environmentally resilient plants. As a first step towards understanding the genetic determinants involved in AR formation in Prunus sp., we evaluated the rooting of hardwood cuttings from five Prunus rootstocks (Adafuel, Adarcias, Cadaman, Garnem, and GF 677) grown in hydroponics. We found that auxin-induced callus and rooting responses were strongly genotype-dependent. To investigate the molecular mechanisms involved in these differential responses, we performed a time-series study of AR formation in two rootstocks with contrasting rooting performance, Garnem and GF 677, by culturing in vitro microcuttings with and without auxin treatment (0.9 mg/L of indole-3-butyric acid [IBA]). Despite showing a similar histological structure, Garnem and GF677 rootstocks displayed dynamic changes in endogenous hormone homeostasis involving metabolites such as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) conjugated to aspartic acid (IAA-Asp), and these changes could explain the differences observed during rooting.
Pistacia Root and Leaf Extracts as Potential Bioherbicides
Authors: Saludes-Zanfaño Marta I. , Vivar-Quintana Ana M. , Morales-Corts María Remedios
Published: March 2022

The allelopathic effect of pistachios was analyzed by field and laboratory tests. The parameters analyzed in the field trials were the biomass, weed density, weed diversity, and specific richness of the weed community. The studies were carried out in the area under the canopy and in the area beyond the influence of the pistachio tree, and the results obtained were compared. In the laboratory, germination bioassays were carried out on seeds of 11 weed species in root water extract, rhizosphere soil, and leaf water extract. The germination percentage, radicle elongation, epicotyl elongation, and germination index were determined. The results obtained show that significantly less biomass was present in the area under the influence of the trees, and fewer different weed species were detected in that area. In addition, germination bioassays showed that the aqueous leaf extract was a potent inhibitor of germination. The total content of flavonoids and phenols according to the organs (roots or leaves) was also studied. Extracts obtained from leaves showed higher concentrations of total phenols and also of flavones and flavanols than roots. Gallic acid, catechin, myricetin, and quercetin were identified in extracts obtained from both leaves and roots, while naringenin and rutin were identified only in the leaf extract. The presence of phenolic compounds in which allelopathic activity has been previously described and the results obtained in the trials seem to indicate that there is an allelopathic effect of the leaf extract, which could be used for weed control, thus facilitating ecological and/or sustainable management.
Utility of EST-SNP Markers for Improving Management and Use of Olive Genetic Resources: A Case Study at the Worldwide Olive Germplasm Bank of Córdoba
Authors: Belaj Angjelina , Ninot Antònia , Gómez-Gálvez Francisco J. , El Riachy Milad , Gurbuz-Veral Melek , Torres Mariela , Lazaj Adhurim , Klepo Tatjana , Paz Sergio , Ugarte Javier , Baldoni Luciana , Lorite Ignacio J. , Šatović Zlatko , de la Rosa Raúl
Published: March 2022

Olive, the emblematic Mediterranean fruit crop, owns a great varietal diversity, which is maintained in ex situ field collections, such as the World Olive Germplasm Bank of Córdoba (WOGBC), Spain. Accurate identification of WOGBC, one of the world’s largest collections, is essential for efficient management and use of olive germplasm. The present study is the first report of the use of a core set of 96 EST-SNP markers for the fingerprinting of 1273 accessions from 29 countries, including both field and new acquired accessions. The EST-SNP fingerprinting made possible the accurate identification of 668 different genotypes, including 148 detected among the new acquired accessions. Despite the overall high genetic diversity found at WOGBC, the EST-SNPs also revealed the presence of remarkable redundant germplasm mostly represented by synonymy cases within and between countries. This finding, together with the presence of homonymy cases, may reflect a continuous interchange of olive cultivars, as well as a common and general approach for their naming. The structure analysis revealed a certain geographic clustering of the analysed germplasm. The EST-SNP panel under study provides a powerful and accurate genotyping tool, allowing for the foundation of a common strategy for efficient safeguarding and management of olive genetic resources.
Electrical Stability and Piezoresistive Sensing Performance of High Strain-Range Ultra-Stretchable CNT-Embedded Sensors
Authors: Khalid Hammad R. , Jang Daeik , Abbas Nadir , Haider M. Salman , Bukhari Syed N. A. , Mirza Cyrus R. , Elboughdiri Noureddine , Ahmad Furqan
Published: March 2022

Highly flexible and stretchable sensors are becoming increasingly widespread due to their versatile applicability in human/robot monitoring sensors. Conductive polymeric composites have been regarded as potential candidates for such sensors, and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are widely used to fabricate such composites. In the present study, CNT-embedded high flexible sensors were fabricated using a facile three-roll milling method, which mitigates the drawbacks of the conventional fabrication methods. CNTs content varied between 0.5 and 4.0 wt.%, and the percolation threshold range was obtained via conductivity/resistivity values of the fabricated sensors. Following this, the electrical stability of the sensors was examined against the various DC and AC signals. Furthermore, the fabricated sensors were stretched up to 500% strain, and their sensitivity against varying strain amplitudes was investigated in terms of the change in resistance and gauge factors. Lastly, the fabricated sensors were applied to human fingers for monitoring finger bending and releasing motions to validate their potential applications. The experimental results indicated that these sensors have a percolation threshold of around 2% CNTs content, and the sensors fabricated with 2 to 4% CNTs content showed measurable resistance changes against the applied strain amplitudes of 50–500%. Among these sensors, the sensor with 2% CNTs content showed the highest sensitivity in the studied strain range, exhibiting a resistance change and gauge factor of about 90% and 1.79 against 50% strain amplitude and about 18,500% and 37.07 against 500% strain amplitude, respectively. All these sensors also showed high sensitivity for finger motion detection, showing a resistance change of between 22 and 69%.
Dielectric Properties in Oriented and Unoriented Membranes Based on Poly(Epichlorohydrin-co-Ethylene Oxide) Copolymers: Part III
Authors: Pascual-Jose B. , Zare Alireza , De la Flor Silvia , Reina José Antonio , Giamberini M. , Ribes-Greus A.
Published: March 2022

The dielectric spectra and conductivity properties of neat poly(epichlorohydrin-co-ethylene oxide)(PECH-co-EO) copolymer and two modified copolymers with a 20% or 40% of dendron 3,4,5-tris[4-(n-dodecan-1-yloxy)benzyloxy] benzoate units were analysed. A process of thermal orientation was applied to the copolymers to fine-tune the molecular motion of the side chains and determine their validity for cation transport materials. The study was conducted using Dielectric Thermal Analysis (DETA). The spectra of the modified unoriented and oriented copolymers consisted of five dielectric relaxations (δ, γ, β, αTg, and αmelting). The analysis of the relaxations processes shows that as the grafting with the dendron units increases, both the lateral and main chains have a greater difficulty moving. The thermal orientation induces in the main chain partial crystallization, including the polyether segments, and modifies the cooperative motion of the main chain associated with the glass transition (αTg). A deep analysis of the electrical loss modulus revealed that the degree of modification only modifies the temperature peak of each relaxation, and this effect is more perceived if the dendron unit content is higher (40%). The thermal orientation process seems equal to the spectra of CP20-O and CP40-O to the point that the degree of modification does not matter. Nevertheless, the fragility index denotes the differences in the molecular motion between both copolymers (40% and 20%) due to the thermal orientation. The study of the electric conductivity showed that the ideal long-range pathways were being altered by neither the thermal orientation process nor the addition of dendrimers. The analysis of the through-plane proton conductivity confirmed that the oriented copolymer with the highest concentration of dendrimers was the best performer and the most suitable copolymer for proton transport materials.
3D Printed Strontium and Zinc Doped Hydroxyapatite Loaded PEEK for Craniomaxillofacial Implants
Authors: Manzoor Faisal , Golbang Atefeh , Dixon Dorian , Mancuso Elena , Azhar Usaid , Manolakis Ioannis , Crawford Daniel , McIlhagger Alistair , Harkin-Jones Eileen
Published: March 2022

In this study, Strontium (Sr) and Zinc (Zn) doped-HA nanoparticles were synthesized and incorporated into polyetheretherketone (PEEK) up to 30 wt.% and processed by a novel approach i.e., fused deposition modelling (FDM) 3D printing for the production of patient specific cranial implants with improved bioactivity and the required mechanical performance. Filaments were produced via extrusion and subsequently 3D-printed using FDM. To further improve the bioactivity of the 3D-printed parts, the samples were dip-coated in polyethylene glycol-DOPA (PEG-DOPA) solution. The printing quality was influenced by filler loading, but was not significantly influenced by the nature of doped-HA. Hence, the printing conditions were optimized for each sample. Micro-CT and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed a uniform distribution of bioceramic particles in PEEK. Although agglomeration of particles increased with increase in filler loadings. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) showed that the melting point and crystallinity of PEEK increased with an increase in doped-HA loading from 343 °C to 355 °C and 27.7% to 34.6%, respectively. Apatite formation was confirmed on the 3D-printed samples after immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF) for 7, 14 and 28 days via SEM, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The tensile strength and impact strength decreased from 75 MPa to 51 MPa and 14 kJ/m2 to 4 kJ/m2, respectively, while Young’s modulus increased with increasing doped-HA content from 2.8 GPa to 4.2 GPa. However, the tensile strengths of composites remained in the range of human cortical bone i.e., ≥50 MPa. In addition, there was a slight increase in mechanical strength after 28 days immersion which was attributed to apatite formation. Water contact angle showed that the hydrophilicity of the samples improved after coating the 3D-printed samples with PEG-DOPA. Hence, based on the results, the 3D-printed PEEK nanocomposites with 20 wt.% doped-HA is selected as the best candidate for the 3D-printing of craniomaxillofacial implants.
DNA–Lysozyme Nanoarchitectonics: Quantitative Investigation on Charge Inversion and Compaction
Authors: Zhang Rongyan , Wang Yanwei , Yang Guangcan
Published: March 2022

The interaction between DNA and proteins is fundamentally important not only for basic research in biology, but also for potential applications in nanotechnology. In the present study, the complexes formed by λ DNA and lysozyme in a dilute aqueous solution have been investigated using magnetic tweezers (MT), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). We found that lysozyme induced DNA charge inversion by measuring its electrophoretic mobility by DLS. Lysozyme is very effective at neutralizing the positive charge of DNA, and its critical charge ration to induce charge inversion in solution is only 2.26. We infer that the high efficiency of charge neutralization is due to the highly positively charged (+8 e) and compact structure of lysozyme. When increasing the concentration of lysozymes from 6 ng·µL−1 to 70 ng·µL−1, DNA mobility (at fixed concentration of 2 ng·µL−1) increases from −2.8 to 1.5 (in unit of 10−4 cm2·V−1·S), implying that the effective charge of DNA switches its sign from negative to positive in the process. The corresponding condensing force increased from 0 pN to its maximal value of about 10.7 pN at concentrations of lysozyme at 25 ng·µL−1, then decreases gradually to 3.8 pN at 200 ng·µL−1. The maximal condensing force occurs at the complete DNA charge neutralization point. The corresponding morphology of DNA–lysozyme complex changes from loosely extensible chains to compact globule, and finally to less compact flower-like structure due to the change of attached lysozyme particles as observed by AFM.
Advanced Ethylene-Propylene-Diene (EPDM) Rubber Composites Filled with Raw Silicon Carbide or Hybrid Systems with Different Conventional Fillers
Authors: Bartosik Dominik , Szadkowski Bolesław , Kuśmierek Małgorzata , Rybiński Przemysław , Mirkhodzhaev Ulugbek , Marzec Anna
Published: March 2022

We studied the effects of silicon carbide (SiC) and SiC hybrid systems with different conventional fillers (silica, carbon black, graphene, hydrotalcite, halloysite) on the rheometric measurements, crosslink density, mechanical performance, aging stability, morphology, thermal behaviour, and flammability of ethylene-propylene-diene (EPDM) rubber composites. The hybrid filler systems showed technically promising synergetic effects on the performance of the EPDM composites. A pronounced reinforcing effect in EPDM composites filled with hybrid SiC filler systems was noted. Tensile strength increased in the systems with carbon black, silica, and graphene nanoplatelets, by 21%, 37%, and 68%, respectively, compared to the neat EPDM. Dynamic-mechanical analysis (DMA) revealed a shift of the glass transition temperature (Tg) of EPDM composites towards higher values following the incorporation of hybrid SiC fillers, indicating that the mobility of the macromolecule chains was restricted by the presence of filler particles. Importantly, the application of SiC as a filler in EPDM rubber composites contributed to a considerable reduction in flammability, as demonstrated by microscale combustion calorimetry (MCC). The most promising results were obtained for HAL/SiC and LDH/SiC hybrid systems, which produced final composites with high flame retardancy and good mechanical performance. The study highlights the significant potential of SiC and SiC hybrid systems as effective fillers improving the properties of elastomer composites.
Dynamics of PHA-Accumulating Bacterial Communities Fed with Lipid-Rich Liquid Effluents from Fish-Canning Industries
Authors: Correa-Galeote David , Argiz Lucia , Val del Rio Angeles , Mosquera-Corral Anuska , Juarez-Jimenez Belen , Gonzalez-Lopez Jesus , Rodelas Belen
Published: March 2022

The biosynthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) from industrial wastes by mixed microbial cultures (MMCs) enriched in PHA-accumulating bacteria is a promising technology to replace petroleum-based plastics. However, the populations’ dynamics in the PHA-accumulating MMCs are not well known. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to address the shifts in the size and structure of the bacterial communities in two lab-scale sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) fed with fish-canning effluents and operated under non-saline (SBR-N, 0.5 g NaCl/L) or saline (SBR-S, 10 g NaCl/L) conditions, by using a combination of quantitative PCR and Illumina sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. A double growth limitation (DGL) strategy, in which nitrogen availability was limited and uncoupled to carbon addition, strongly modulated the relative abundances of the PHA-accumulating bacteria, leading to an increase in the accumulation of PHAs, independently of the saline conditions (average 9.04 wt% and 11.69 wt%, maximum yields 22.03 wt% and 26.33% SBR-N and SBR-S, respectively). On the other hand, no correlations were found among the PHAs accumulation yields and the absolute abundances of total Bacteria, which decreased through time in the SBR-N and did not present statistical differences in the SBR-S. Acinetobacter, Calothrix, Dyella, Flavobacterium, Novosphingobium, Qipengyuania, and Tsukamurella were key PHA-accumulating genera in both SBRs under the DGL strategy, which was revealed as a successful tool to obtain a PHA-enriched MMC using fish-canning effluents.
Effect of Gamma Irradiation on the PLA-Based Blends and Biocomposites Containing Rosemary Ethanolic Extract and Chitosan
Authors: Vasile Cornelia , Pamfil Daniela , Zaharescu Traian , Dumitriu Raluca-Petronela , Pricope Gina Mihaela , Râpă Maria , Vasilievici Gabriel
Published: March 2022

The irradiation of polymeric materials with ionizing radiation (γ-rays, X-rays, accelerated electrons, ion beams, etc.) may lead to disproportion, hydrogen abstraction, arrangements, degradation, and/or the formation of new bonds. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of gamma irradiation on some new poly(lactic acid) (PLA)-based blends and biocomposites, which is crucial when they are used for food packaging or medical purposes. The polymeric blends and biocomposites based on PLA and rosemary ethanolic extract (R) and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) (20 wt%) plasticized PLA, chitosan (CS) (3–6 wt%) and R (0.5 wt%) biocomposites were subjected to gamma irradiation treatment using three low γ-doses of 10, 20, and 30 kGy. The effect of irradiation was evaluated by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetry (TG), chemiluminescence method (CL), migration studies, and antibacterial activity tests. It was found that in comparison with neat PLA, the gamma irradiation in the oxidative conditions of the PLA-based blends and biocomposites, causes modifications in the structure, morphology, and thermal properties of the materials depending on irradiation dose and the presence of natural additives such as rosemary and chitosan. It was established that under a gamma-irradiation treatment with dose of 10–20 kGy, the PLA materials showed minor changes in structure and properties being suitable for application in packaging and in addition after irradiation with such doses their antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella typhimurium is improved.
Fabrication and Characterization of Gelatin/Polyvinyl Alcohol Composite Scaffold
Authors: Sun Mengwen , Wang Yajuan , Yao Lihui , Li Ya , Weng Yunxuan , Qiu Dan
Published: March 2022

In this study, porous scaffold materials based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and gelatin (Gel) were successfully fabricated and characterized. The mechanism of the reaction, morphology, and crystallinity were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In addition, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was performed together with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for examining the thermostability and phase transformation of the scaffolds. Degradation and swelling studies of PVA/Gel composite scaffold materials were performed in phosphate-buffered saline. Finally, the mechanical performances had been determined. According to the results, the polymer matrix that was formed by the combination of PVA and gelatin had better thermal stability. The synthesized composite scaffold was amorphous in nature. The addition of gelatin did not affect the fishbone-like microstructure of PVA, which ensures the excellent mechanical properties of the PVA scaffold. The denaturation temperature and elastic modulus of the PVA scaffold were improved by the gelatin addition, but the physical and chemical properties of the PVA scaffold were weakened when the gelatin content exceeded 10%. In addition, the PVA-10G sample has suitable degradability. Therefore, the PVA/Gel composite scaffold might potentially be applied in the field of tissue engineering that demands high strength.
Coprocessing Corn Germ Meal for Oil Recovery and Ethanol Production: A Process Model for Lipid-Producing Energy Crops
Authors: Jia Yuyao , Kumar Deepak , Winkler-Moser Jill K. , Dien Bruce , Rausch Kent , Tumbleson Mike E. , Singh Vijay
Published: March 2022

Efforts to engineer high-productivity crops to accumulate oils in their vegetative tissue present the possibility of expanding biodiesel production. However, processing the new crops for lipid recovery and ethanol production from cell wall saccharides is challenging and expensive. In a previous study using corn germ meal as a model substrate, we reported that liquid hot water (LHW) pretreatment enriched the lipid concentration by 2.2 to 4.2 fold. This study investigated combining oil recovery with ethanol production by extracting oil following LHW and simultaneous saccharification and co-fermentation (SSCF) of the biomass. Corn germ meal was again used to model the oil-bearing energy crops. Pretreated germ meal hydrolysate or solids (160 and 180 °C for 10 min) were fermented, and lipids were extracted from both the spent fermentation whole broth and fermentation solids, which were recovered by centrifugation and convective drying. Lipid contents in spent fermentation solids increased 3.7 to 5.7 fold compared to the beginning germ meal. The highest lipid yield achieved after fermentation was 36.0 mg lipid g−1 raw biomass; the maximum relative amount of triacylglycerol (TAG) was 50.9% of extracted oil. Although the fermentation step increased the lipid concentration of the recovered solids, it did not improve the lipid yields of pretreated biomass and detrimentally affected oil compositions by increasing the relative concentrations of free fatty acids.
Technical and Economical Investigation of a Centralized and Decentralized Hybrid Renewable Energy System in Cadaado, Somalia
Authors: Coban Hasan Huseyin , Rehman Aysha , Mohamed Abdullah
Published: March 2022

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the feasibility of a wind–solar hybrid system on and off-grid power system for electricity generation at a selected location in Somalia using the renewable energy optimization software HOMER. The simulation model was successfully applied to find the best simulation results based on the energy-efficient system for the specific load. The technical and economic performance of an on-grid and stand-alone combination of 25 kW wind power and 60 kW solar photovoltaic was investigated. Since the city of Cadaado has not yet installed its own standard modern electricity grid and due to the great need to reduce energy costs in Somalia, a feasibility study was conducted on how to supply electricity to a sampled residential consumption. Based on the basic characteristics of renewable energy sources in central Somalia, the on-grid wind and solar photovoltaic systems could be economically feasible.
Unsupervised Infrared Small-Object-Detection Approach of Spatial–Temporal Patch Tensor and Object Selection
Authors: Zhu Ruixi , Zhuang Long
Published: March 2022

In this study, an unsupervised infrared object-detection approach based on spatial–temporal patch tensor and object selection is proposed to fully use effective temporal information and maintain a balance between object-detection performance and computation time. Initially, a spatial–temporal patch tensor is proposed by performing median pooling function on patch tensors generated from consecutive frames to suppress sky or cloud clutter. Then, a contrast-boosted approach that incorporates morphological operations is proposed to improve the contrast between objects and background. Finally, an object-selection approach is proposed based on the cluster center derived from clustering locations and gray values, thereby decreasing the search scope of objects in the detection process. The experiments of five infrared sequence frames confirm that the proposed framework can obtain better results than most previous methods when handling heterogeneous scenes in terms of gray values. Experimental results of five real sequence frames also demonstrate that the spatial–temporal patch tensor, the contrast-boosted approach, and object-selection approach can increase the recall ratio by 6.7, 2.21, and 1.14 percentage units and the precision ratio by 1.61, 3.44, and 11.79 percentage units, respectively. Moreover, the proposed framework can achieve an average F1 score of 0.9804 with about 1.85 s of computation time, demonstrating that it can obtain satisfactory object-detection performance with relatively low computation time.
BES-Net: Boundary Enhancing Semantic Context Network for High-Resolution Image Semantic Segmentation
Authors: Chen Fenglei , Liu Haijun , Zeng Zhihong , Zhou Xichuan , Tan Xiaoheng
Published: March 2022

This paper focuses on the high-resolution (HR) remote sensing images semantic segmentation task, whose goal is to predict semantic labels in a pixel-wise manner. Due to the rich complexity and heterogeneity of information in HR remote sensing images, the ability to extract spatial details (boundary information) and semantic context information dominates the performance in segmentation. In this paper, based on the frequently used fully convolutional network framework, we propose a boundary enhancing semantic context network (BES-Net) to explicitly use the boundary to enhance semantic context extraction. BES-Net mainly consists of three modules: (1) a boundary extraction module for extracting the semantic boundary information, (2) a multi-scale semantic context fusion module for fusing semantic features containing objects with multiple scales, and (3) a boundary enhancing semantic context module for explicitly enhancing the fused semantic features with the extracted boundary information to improve the intra-class semantic consistency, especially in those pixels containing boundaries. Extensive experimental evaluations and comprehensive ablation studies on the ISPRS Vaihingen and Potsdam datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of BES-Net, yielding an overall improvement of 1.28/2.36/0.72 percent in mF1/mIoU/OA over FCN_8s when the BE and MSF modules are combined by the BES module. In particular, our BES-Net achieves a state-of-the-art performance of 91.4% OA on the ISPRS Vaihingen dataset and 92.9%/91.5% mF1/OA on the ISPRS Potsdam dataset.
New Evidence Supporting the Pacific Mantle Outflow: Hints from Crustal Magnetization of the Phoenix Plate
Authors: Catalán Manuel , Martos Yasmina M.
Published: March 2022

Magnetic contributions to the Earth’s magnetic field within the lithosphere are known as magnetic anomalies. Magnetic anomaly maps provide insight on magnetic properties of subsurface rock, geological structures, and plate tectonic history. A small number of studies have analyzed the Phoenix Plate based on magnetic anomaly data. These focused on its tectonic evolution. Here, we study the crustal magnetization of this region and combine the results with additional information from high-resolution bathymetry and complete Bouguer gravity anomalies. We analyzed the horizontal variation of the magnetization in two spectral domains: one that resolves the medium and long wavelengths magnetization components (20–200 km), and another one that focuses on short wavelengths (7–100 km). The obtained magnetization amplitude for the 20–200 km range reveals the presence of NE–SW and NW–SE high trends in magnetization. We attribute these alignments to induced magnetism. For the range of 7–100 km, the magnetization amplitude shows a progressive decrease towards the southern part of the Phoenix Plate. The obtained magnetization pattern and the integration with additional geophysical and geological information indicates a thermal demagnetization of the oceanic crust in the south, possibly caused by the Pacific mantle outflow present in this region.
Feed-Forward Neural Network Denoising Applied to Goldstone Solar System Radar Images
Authors: Rodriguez-Alvarez Nereida , Jao Joseph S. , Munoz-Martin Joan Francesc , Lee Clement G. , Oudrhiri Kamal
Published: March 2022

The study of Near-Earth Asteroids (NEA) is crucial for human safety. Small hazardous asteroids with small radar cross sections are not easy to detect, track, and characterize due to the small signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the radar echo. This manuscript describes the results obtained for the application of a feed-forward neural network (FFNN) denoising methodology to NEA data obtained from the Goldstone Solar System Radar (GSSR). We demonstrate an increase in the signal level of up to ×4 the original value—in terms of sigma above the mean noise—when applying the FFNN denoising technique to radar Z-score normalized Binary Phase Code (BPC) images. This improvement benefits better radar detection of NEAs in general. Reducing the noise background level for antennas that have lower aperture, e.g., 34 m dishes, enables the use of FFNN denoising to improve visual detections on those noisier conditions. In addition, reducing noise level benefits shorter integration times of the data to obtain adequate signal levels. When talking about detection of small bodies crossing the antenna beam, since the asteroids or debris can move across the beam quite fast, it is relevant to reduce the integration time to allow for an increased number of independent pieces of information crossing the target through the antenna beam. The increased distance between the signal level and the noise level enables a better detection of the small-bodies at shorter integration times and therefore would be very useful for the detection of objects in the cis-lunar space.
Real-Time Updating High-Order Extended Kalman Filtering Method Based on Fixed-Step Life Prediction for Vehicle Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Wang Jincheng , Wen Chenglin
Published: March 2022

Lithium-ion batteries have become an important power source in low-carbon transportation energy, and the safe operation and remaining useful life prediction are of great significance. Aiming at the shortcomings of existing methods, such as low prediction accuracy and a short prediction period, this paper proposes a real-time update high-order extended Kalman filter method based on fixed-step life prediction for vehicle lithium batteries based on the principle of combining models and data. First, the state model describing the parameters in the dynamic energy attenuation model is established, and the energy attenuation model is regarded as the observation model of the system to meet the requirements of establishing the Kalman filter. Secondly, the multi-step prediction equation of the state model is established by iterative recursion. At the same time, the multi-step prediction equation between the existing energy output value and the future output value is established based on the multi-dimensional Taylor network (MTN). The multiplicative noise term introduced in the dynamic modeling process is regarded as the hidden variable of the system to meet the requirements of establishing the multi-step linear predictive Kalman filter. Finally, the effectiveness of the new method is verified by digital simulation examples.