bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Global poverty estimation using private and public sector big data sources
Authors: Marty Robert , Duhaut Alice
Published: February 2024

Household surveys give a precise estimate of poverty; however, surveys are costly and are fielded infrequently. We demonstrate the importance of jointly using multiple public and private sector data sources to estimate levels and changes in wealth for a large set of countries. We train models using 63,854 survey cluster locations across 59 countries, relying on data from satellites, Facebook Marketing information, and OpenStreetMaps. The model generalizes previous approaches to a wide set of countries. On average, across countries, the model explains 55% (min = 14%; max = 85%) of the variation in levels of wealth at the survey cluster level and 59% (min = 0%; max = 93%) of the variation at the district level, and the model explains 4% (min = 0%; max = 17%) and 6% (min = 0%; max = 26%) of the variation of changes in wealth at the cluster and district levels. Models perform best in lower-income countries and in countries with higher variance in wealth. Features from nighttime lights, OpenStreetMaps, and land cover data are most important in explaining levels of wealth, and features from nighttime lights are most important in explaining changes in wealth.
Downregulation of long noncoding RNA B4GALT1-AS1 is associated with breast cancer development
Authors: ahvaz Samaneh , Amini Mohammad , Yari Amirhossein , Baradaran Behzad , Jebelli Asiyeh , Mokhtarzadeh Ahad
Published: February 2024

The misregulation of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) is related to the progressive evolution of various human cancers, such as Breast cancer (BC). The role of lncRNA B4GALT1-AS1 has been investigated in some human cancers. Therefore, studying B4GALT1-AS1 expression was aimed for the first time in the tumor and marginal tissues of BC in this study. The cancer genome atlas (TCGA) database was utilized to evaluate the relative expression of B4GALT1-AS1 in BC and other cancers. RNA was extracted from twenty-eight paired BC and marginal tissues, and cDNA was synthesized. The quantitative expression level of B4GALT1-AS1 was evaluated using real-time PCR. The bioinformatics analyses were performed to identify co-expression genes and related pathways. B4GALT1-AS1 was significantly downregulated in BC specimens compared to tumor marginal samples. The TCGA data analysis confirmed the downregulation of B4GALT1-AS1 in BC. The bioinformatics analysis discovered the correlation between 700 genes and B4GALT1-AS1 and identified GNAI1 as the high degree gene which was positively correlated with B4GALT1-AS1 expression. It seems B4GALT1-AS1 provides its function, at least partly, in association with one of the hippo pathway components, YAP, in other cancers. This protein has the opposite role in BC and its loss of function can result in poor survival in BC. Further research is needed to investigate the interaction between B4GALT1‐AS1 and YAP in various subtypes of BC.
A pan-cancer analysis uncovering the function of CRHBP in tumor immunity, prognosis and drug response: especially its function in LIHC
Authors: Chen Bangjie , Chen Sanwei , Wang Xinyi , Zhang Jianlin , Wang Hanying , Li Jiajin , Zhang Ziyu , Yu Feng , Kong Weihao
Published: February 2024

Corticotropin-releasing hormone-binding protein (CRHBP) is involved in many physiological processes. However, it is still unclear what role CRHBP has in tumor immunity and prognosis prediction. Using databases such as the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), Tumor Protein Database, Timer Database, and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA), we evaluated the potential role of CRHBP in diverse cancers. Further research looked into the relationships between CRHBP and tumor survival prognosis, immune infiltration, immune checkpoint (ICP) indicators, tumor mutation burden (TMB), microsatellite instability (MSI), mismatch repair (MMR), DNA methylation, tumor microenvironment (TME), and drug responsiveness. The anticancer effect of CRHBP in liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) was shown by Western blotting, EdU staining, JC-1 staining, transwell test, and wound healing assays. CRHBP expression is significantly low in the majority of tumor types and is associated with survival prognosis, ICP markers, TMB, and microsatellite instability (MSI). The expression of CRHBP was found to be substantially related to the quantity of six immune cell types, as well as the interstitial and immunological scores, showing that CRHBP has a substantial impact in the TME. We also noticed a link between the IC50 of a number of anticancer medicines and the degree of CRHBP expression. CRHBP-related signaling pathways were discovered using functional enrichment. Cox regression analysis showed that CRHBP expression was an independent prognostic factor for LIHC. CRHBP has a tumor suppressor function in LIHC, according to cell and molecular biology trials. CRHBP has a significant impact on tumor immunity, treatment, and prognosis, and has the potential as a cancer treatment target and prognostic indicator.
Understanding the role of risk preferences and perceptions in vaccination decisions and post-vaccination behaviors among U.S. households
Authors: Liu Jianhui , Kassas Bachir , Lai John , Kropp Jaclyn , Gao Zhifeng
Published: February 2024

COVID-19 vaccines play a critical role in protecting against infection and transmission of the virus. Therefore, understanding public perceptions of COVID-19 vaccines is essential for successful vaccine promotion. Previous literature reported strong associations between vaccination decisions and several sociodemographic variables. However, knowledge about how behavioral factors, including risk perceptions and preferences, impact individuals’ attitudes towards receiving COVID-19 vaccination is currently lacking. Using data from a nationally representative survey of 1050 US adults, this study investigates the correlation between individuals’ decisions to receive COVID-19 vaccination and both their risk perceptions and preferences. Additionally, we investigate post-vaccination behavior by measuring individuals’ participation in three different groups of activities that vary by their degree of social exposure. We find strong correlations between vaccination decisions and four measures of risk preference and risk perception. We also find associations between the four risk measures and individuals’ behaviors post-vaccination. We shed light on the main factors discouraging the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as public opinions regarding the performance of different organizations in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, and grocery store policies to prevent COVID-19 infections. Our study provides critical information that can help policymakers communicate more effectively with the public and promote vaccine uptake among population groups and geographic areas with higher anti-vaccine sentiments.
Coculture of bacterial levans and evaluation of its anti-cancer activity against hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines
Authors: Wahab Walaa A. Abdel , Shafey Heba I. , Mahrous Karima F. , Esawy Mona A. , Saleh Shireen A. A.
Published: February 2024

This research represents a novel study to assess how coculture affects levan yield, structure, bioactivities, and molecular weight. Among the 16 honey isolates, four bacterial strains recorded the highest levan yield. The Plackett–Burman design showed that the coculture (M) of isolates G2 and K2 had the maximum levan yield (52 g/L) and the effective factors were sucrose, incubation time, and sugarcane bagasse. The CCD showed that the most proper concentrations for maximum levan yield (81 g/L): were 130 g/L of sucrose and 6 g/f of sugarcane bagasse. Levan’s backbone was characterized, and the molecular weight was determined. G2 and K2 isolates were identified based on 16 sRNA as Bacillus megaterium strain YM1C10 and Rhizobium sp. G6-1. M levan had promising antioxidant activity (99.66%), slowed the migration activity to a great extent, and recorded 70.70% inhibition against the hepatoblastoma cell line (HepG2) at 1000 µg/mL. Gene expression analysis in liver cancer cell lines (HePG2) revealed that M levan decreased the expression of CCL20), 2GRB2, and CCR6) genes and was superior to Doxo. While increasing the expression of the IL4R and IL-10 genes. The DNA damage values were significantly increased (P < 0.01) in treated liver cancer cell lines with levan M and Doxo. The results referred to the importance of each of the hydroxyl and carboxyl groups and the molecular weight in levans bioactivities.
Nutritional status of Zombi pea (Vigna vexillata) as influenced by plant density and deblossoming
Authors: Priyadarsini Srija , Nandi Alok , Nedunchezhiyan Maniyam , Choudhari Pushpajeet , Singh Saurabh , Pattnaik Ajoy
Published: February 2024

Feeding billions, a healthy and nutritious diet in the era of climate change is a major challenge before plant breeders, geneticists and agronomist. In this context, the continuous search for adaptive and nutritious crops could be a better alternative to combat the problems of hunger and malnutrition. The zombi pea, a nutritious and underutilized leguminous vegetable, is one of such better alternatives to feed billions a nutritious food besides being a potential gene source for breeding abiotic stress resistant varieties. To evaluate its potential as a wonder crop in the tropical and subtropical regions of India, the nutritional status of tubers, pods and pericarp were investigated under different treatments of plant spacings and deblossoming. The experiment was conducted in split plot design with three replications and eight treatments during 2021–2022 in the coastal regions of India. The nutrient profiling in tubers and pericarp of pods in zombi pea revealed higher accumulation of nutrients viz. potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn) with blossom retention. The zombi pea tubers reflected significantly high protein accumulation with the increase in plant spacing. The results pertaining to nutrient profiling in the pods of zombi pea indicated that the plant spacing has no significant effect on the accumulation of majority of nutrients under study. The above-mentioned findings are conspicuously novel and valuable. The present study would pave the way for understanding nutritional importance and breeding potential of this orphan crop. The blossom retention renders higher nutrient accumulation in tubers, pods and pericarp of zombi pea. Deblossoming has no significant influence on nutritional profile of this wonder crop but, wider spacing is effective in producing tubers with high protein content.
Next generation antibiotic combinations to combat pan-drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae
Authors: Kaur Jan Naseer , Singh Navaldeep , Smith Nicholas M. , Klem Jack F. , Cha Raymond , Lang Yinzhi , Chen Liang , Kreiswirth Barry , Holden Patricia N. , Bulitta Jürgen B. , Tsuji Brian T.
Published: February 2024

Antimicrobial resistance has emerged as one of the leading public health threats of the twenty-first century. Gram-negative pathogens have been a major contributor to the declining efficacy of antibiotics through both acquired resistance and tolerance. In this study, a pan-drug resistant (PDR), NDM-1 and CTX-M-15 co-producing isolate of K. pneumoniae, CDC Nevada, (Kp Nevada) was exposed to the clinical combination of aztreonam + ceftazidime/avibactam (ATM/CAZ/AVI) to overcome metallo-β-lactamases. Unexpectedly, the β-lactam combination resulted in long filamentous cell formation induced by PBP3 inhibition over 168 h in the hollow fiber infection model experiments with eventual reversion of the total population upon drug removal. However, the addition of imipenem to the two drug β-lactam combination was highly synergistic with suppression of all drug resistant subpopulations over 5 days. Scanning electron microscopy and fluorescence microscopy for all imipenem combinations in time kill studies suggested a role for imipenem in suppression of long filamentous persisters, via the formation of metabolically active spheroplasts. To complement the imaging studies, salient transcriptomic changes were quantified using RT-PCR and novel cassette assay evaluated β-lactam permeability. This showed significant upregulation of both spheroplast protein Y (SPY), a periplasmic chaperone protein that has been shown to be related to spheroplast formation, and penicillin binding proteins (PBP1, PBP2, PBP3) for all combinations involving imipenem. However, with aztreonam alone, pbp1, pbp3 and spy remained unchanged while pbp2 levels were downregulated by > 25%. Imipenem displayed 207-fold higher permeability as compared with aztreonam (mean permeability coefficient of 17,200 nm/s). Although the clinical combination of aztreonam/avibactam and ceftazidime has been proposed as an important treatment of MBL Gram-negatives, we report the first occurrence of long filamentous persister formation. To our knowledge, this is the first study that defines novel β-lactam combinations involving imipenem via maximal suppression of filamentous persisters to combat PDR CDC Nevada K. pneumoniae.
Mass spectroscopy reveals compositional differences in copepodamides from limnic and marine copepods
Authors: Arnoldt Sina , Pourdanandeh Milad , Spikkeland Ingvar , Andersson Mats X. , Selander Erik
Published: February 2024

Marine copepods, the most abundant animals in the global ocean, imprint their surrounding waters with chemical cues, called copepodamides. Copepodamides induce defensive traits such as toxin production, bioluminescence, and colony size plasticity in a variety of marine phytoplankton. The role of copepodamides in freshwater ecosystems is, however, unknown. Here we report the consistent presence of copepodamides in copepods from six Swedish freshwater lakes. Copepodamide concentrations in freshwater copepods are similar to those of marine copepods, around 0.1 ppt of dry mass in millimetre sized individuals. The composition substantially overlaps with marine copepodamides but is also distinctly different. Marine copepods commonly contain both subgroups of copepodamides, the copepodamides (CA) and the dihydro-copepodamides (dhCA), whereas freshwater copepods are dominated by the dhCAs. Taxonomic groups had consistent copepodamide profiles across sampling sites and timepoints, supporting the presence of species-specific copepodamide signatures. We describe 10 new copepodamide structures, four of which were found exclusively in freshwater copepods. The presence of copepodamides in limnic copepods also warrants studies into their potential function as predator alarm cues in freshwater systems.
Ciprofloxacin- and levofloxacin-loaded nanoparticles efficiently suppressed fluoroquinolone resistance and biofilm formation in Acinetobacter baumannii
Authors: Aboelenin Alaa M. , El‑Mowafy Mohammed , Saleh Noha M. , Shaaban Mona I. , Barwa Rasha
Published: February 2024

The spread of fluoroquinolone (FQ) resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii represents a critical health threat. This study aims to overcome FQ resistance in A. baumannii via the formulation of polymeric nanoFQs. Herein, 80 A. baumannii isolates were obtained from diverse clinical sources. All A. baumannii isolates showed high resistance to most of the investigated antimicrobials, including ciprofloxacin (CIP) and levofloxacin (LEV) (97.5%). FQ resistance-determining regions of the gyrA and parC genes were the most predominant resistant mechanism, harbored by 69 (86.3%) and 75 (93.8%) of the isolates, respectively. Additionally, plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes aac(6′)-Ib and qnrS were detected in 61 (76.3%) and 2 (2.5%) of the 80 isolates, respectively. The CIP- and LEV-loaded poly ε-caprolactone (PCL) nanoparticles, FCIP and FLEV, respectively, showed a 1.5–6- and 6–12-fold decrease in the MIC, respectively, against the tested isolates. Interestingly, the time kill assay demonstrated that MICs of FCIP and FLEV completely killed A. baumannii isolates after 5–6 h of treatment. Furthermore, FCIP and FLEV were found to be efficient in overcoming the FQ resistance mediated by the efflux pumps in A. baumannii isolates as revealed by decreasing the MIC four-fold lower than that of free CIP and LEV, respectively. Moreover, FCIP and FLEV at 1/2 and 1/4 MIC significantly decreased biofilm formation by 47–93% and 69–91%, respectively. These findings suggest that polymeric nanoparticles can restore the effectiveness of FQs and represent a paradigm shift in the fight against A. baumannii isolates.
Elemental sulfur concentration can be used as a rapid, reliable, and cost-effective predictor of sulfur amino acid content of soybean seeds
Authors: Kim Wonseok , Kim Sunhyung , Mawhinney Thomas P. , Krishnan Hari B.
Published: February 2024

In this study, we have examined the feasibility of using elemental sulfur content of soybean seeds as a proxy for the overall sulfur amino acid content of soybean seeds. Earlier, we have identified by high throughput ionomic phenotyping several high and low sulfur containing soybean lines from the USDA Soybean Germplasm Collection. Here, we measured the cysteine and methionine content of select soybean lines by high-performance liquid chromatography. Our results demonstrate that those soybean lines which had high elemental sulfur content also had a higher cysteine and methionine content when compared to soybean lines with low elemental sulfur. SDS-PAGE and immunoblot analysis revealed that the accumulation of Bowman Birk protease inhibitor and lunasin in soybean seeds may only be marginally correlated with the elemental sulfur levels. However, we found a positive correlation between the levels of trypsin and chymotrypsin inhibitor activities and elemental sulfur and sulfur amino acid content of the seeds. Thus, elemental sulfur content and/or protease inhibitor activity measurement can be utilized as a rapid and cost-effective method to predict the overall sulfur amino acid content of soybean seeds. Our findings will benefit breeders in their endeavors to develop soybean cultivars with enhanced sulfur amino acid content.
Umbilical cord blood thyroid hormones are inversely related to telomere length and mitochondrial DNA copy number
Authors: Ohadi Homa , Khalili Parvin , Abasnezhad Kasrineh Farzaneh , Esmaeili Ozra Sadat , Esmaeili Ranjbar Faeze , Manshoori Azita , Hajizadeh Mohammad Reza , Jalali Zahra
Published: February 2024

Hypothyroidism has been linked to reduced mortality rate and increased lifespan and health span. Telomere shortening, enhanced oxidative stress, and reduced cellular mitochondrial content are important hallmarks of aging shown to be related to age-associated diseases. It was proposed that the status of these markers in early life can be predictive of lifespan and the predisposition to certain age-associated disease in adulthood. Animal studies indicated that prenatal injection of thyroid hormones affects postnatal telomere length. Here, we sought to determine whether thyroid hormones TSH and fT4 are related to the telomere length, mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), and oxidative stress resistance marker GPX in the cord blood of newborns. In this study, we analyzed 70 mothers (18–42 years) and neonate dyads born in 2022 at the Nik Nafs maternity Hospital in Rafsanjan. The relative telomere length (RTL) and mtDNAcn were measured in the genomic DNA of cord blood leukocytes using real-time PCR. GPX enzyme activity was measured in the serum using colorimetric assays. In this study the correlation between these markers and the cord blood TSH and fT4 hormones were assessed using regression models. We found a reverse relationship between TSH levels and RTL in the cord blood of neonates. Additionally, our results displayed increased TSH levels associated with enhanced GPX activity. Regarding the mitochondrial DNA copy number, we found an indirect relationship between fT4 level and mtDNAcn only in male newborns. Future analyses of various oxidative stress markers, mitochondrial biogenesis status, telomerase activity, and the level of DNA damage are warranted to demonstrate the underlying mechanism of our observations.
An 8-week injury prevention exercise program combined with change-of-direction technique training limits movement patterns associated with anterior cruciate ligament injury risk
Authors: Mohr M. , Federolf P. , Heinrich D. , Nitschke M. , Raschner C. , Scharbert J. , Koelewijn A. D.
Published: February 2024

Knee ligament sprains are common during change-of-direction (COD) maneuvers in multidirectional team sports. This study aimed to compare the effects of an 8-week injury prevention exercise program containing COD-specific exercises and a similar program containing linear sprint exercises on injury- and performance-related variables during a 135° COD task. We hypothesized that the COD-specific training would lead to (H1) stronger reductions in biomechanical variables associated with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury risk during COD, i.e. knee abduction moment and angle, hip internal rotation angle and lateral trunk lean, and (H2) more effective improvements in COD performance according to the COD completion time, executed angle, ground contact time, and approach speed. Twenty-two sports science students (40% female) completed biomechanical assessments of COD movement strategies before and after participating in two supervised 25-min training sessions per week over 8 weeks. We observed significant ‘training x group’ interaction effects in support of H1: the COD-specific training but not the linear sprint training led to reduced peak knee abduction moments (interaction, p = 0.027), initial knee abduction (interaction, p < 0.001), and initial lateral trunk lean angles (interaction, p < 0.001) compared to baseline. Although the COD-specific training resulted in sharper executed angles (interaction, p < 0.001), the sprint-specific training group showed reduced COD completion (interaction, p = 0.037) and ground contact times (interaction, p < 0.001). In conclusion, a combination of generic and COD-specific injury prevention training resulted in COD technique adaptations that can help to avoid ACL injury-prone COD movements but may negatively affect COD speed.
Paint booth waste as an alternative aggregate for the production of interlocking concrete blocks
Authors: Câmara Catarina Monteiro , Ferrazzo Suéllen Tonatto , Levandoski William Mateus Kubiaki , da Silva Cristina Vitorino , Korf Eduardo Pavan
Published: February 2024

Inadequate disposal of hazardous waste results risks to the environment and human health. Although the use of hazardous waste in new processes and/or products has received limited attention in the literature, there is still significant potential to be investigated. Reducing the usage of natural resources and waste management are important for sustainable practices during concrete production. This study investigated the mechanical and leaching behavior of paint booth waste (PBW) as a partial substitute (10, 20, 30 and 40%) of coarse aggregate in concrete mixtures for the manufacture of interlocking blocks. A sample of PBW used in this research differs from those in the literature due to its granulometry characterized by aggregates of different sizes. Concrete consistency, compressive strength, water absorption, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and leaching tests were carried out. The PBW did not influence the consistency in the fresh state of the concrete. The blocks with smaller substitutions (10 and 20%) presented denser structures and with greater strengths, surpassing 35 MPa after 28 days. Higher levels of PBW resulted in more porous concrete blocks with greater water absorption. The concrete-PBW mixtures showed no metal toxicity, i.e., the incorporation of this waste in the construction material avoided metal leaching. Concrete blocks with up to 20% PBW demonstrated satisfactory mechanical and environmental performance.
Ascorbic acid prevents stress-induced hypercoagulability in overweight and obese individuals
Authors: Rocha Helena N. M. , Velasco Larissa L. , Batista Gabriel M. S. , Storch Amanda S. , Garcia Vinicius P. , Teixeira Gabriel F. , Mentzinger Juliana , da Nóbrega Antonio C. L. , Rocha Natália G.
Published: February 2024

Ascorbic acid (AA) may contribute to restoring hemostatic balance after mental stress (MS) in overweight/obese adults. We aimed to determine the effects of AA administration on hemostatic responses to MS in overweight/obese men. Fourteen overweight/obesity men (27 ± 7 years; BMI: 29.7 ± 2.6 kg m−2) performed the Stroop color-word stress task for 5 min after non-simultaneous infusion of placebo (PL, 0.9% NaCl) and AA (3 g). Blood was collected at baseline, during MS, and 60 min after MS to measure: activated partial thromboplastin time, prothrombin time, and fibrinogen concentration, by coagulometer; platelet-derived microvesicles (PMV, mv/μL), by flow cytometry; nitrite (μM), by chemiluminescence. In PL session, MS led to decreases in PTs (stress, p = 0.03; 60 min, p < 0.001), PT-INR (stress, p < 0.001; 60 min, p < 0.01), aPTTs (60 min, p = 0.03), aPTT ratio (60 min, p = 0.04) and fibrinogen (60 min, p = 0.04), while increased PT activity (60 min, p = 0.01) when compared to baseline. Furthermore, AA increased PTs (60 min, p < 0.001), PT-INR (60 min, p = 0.03) and decreased PT activity (60 min, p < 0.001) and fibrinogen (stress, p = 0.04) when compared to PL. Nitrite was increased in response to stress during AA session (p < 0.001 vs PL). There was no difference in PMV. Ascorbic acid prevented the impaired hemostatic profile and improved nitrite response to stress in the overweight and obese adults.
Epidemiologic changes of a longitudinal surveillance study spanning 51 years of scrub typhus in mainland China
Authors: Peng Pei-Ying , Duan Hui-Ying , Xu Lei , Zhang Lin-Tao , Sun Ji-Qin , Zu Ya , Ma Li-Juan , Sun Yan , Yan Ting-Liang , Guo Xian-Guo
Published: February 2024

Scrub typhus may be one of the world’s most prevalent, neglected and serious, but easily treatable, febrile diseases. It has become a significant potential threat to public health in China. In this study we used national disease surveillance data to analyze the incidence and spatial–temporal distribution of scrub typhus in mainland China during 1952–1989 and 2006–2018. Descriptive epidemiological methods and spatial–temporal epidemiological methods were used to investigate the epidemiological trends and identify high-risk regions of scrub typhus infection. Over the 51-year period, a total of 182,991 cases and 186 deaths were notified. The average annual incidence was 0.13 cases/100,000 population during 1952–1989. The incidence increased sharply from 0.09/100,000 population in 2006 to 1.93/100,000 population in 2018 and then exponentially increased after 2006. The incidence was significantly higher in females than males (χ2 = 426.32, P < 0.001). Farmers had a higher incidence of scrub typhus than non-farmers (χ2 = 684.58, P < 0.001). The majority of cases each year were reported between July and November with peak incidence occurring during October each year. The trend surface analysis showed that the incidence of scrub typhus increased gradually from north to south, and from east and west to the central area. The spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that a spatial positive correlation existed in the prevalence of scrub typhus on a national scale, which had the characteristic of aggregated distribution (I = 0.533, P < 0.05). LISA analysis showed hotspots (High–High) were primarily located in the southern and southwestern provinces of China with the geographical area expanding annually. These findings provide scientific evidence for the surveillance and control of scrub typhus which may contribute to targeted strategies and measures for the government.
Visible light-induced C(sp3)–H azolation of ethers via radical-polar crossover
Authors: Huang Cheng , Qin Yu-Shu , Wang Chen-Lu , Xiao Peng , Tang Sheng , Liu Hong-Jun , Wei Zhenhong , Cai Hu
Published: February 2024

We report a metal-free and photocatalyst-free strategy for C(sp3)–H azolation of ethers via a hydrogen-atom transfer and radical-polar crossover process.
Unravelling the non-classical nucleation mechanism of an amyloid nanosheet through atomic force microscopy and an infrared probe technique
Authors: Wang Yao , Wang Ziqi , Yang Lujuan , Zhang Wenkai , Ma Gang
Published: February 2024

The non-classical nucleation mechanism of an amyloid nanosheet was revealed through a combined approach of atomic force microscopy and an infrared probe technique.
Probing into the theory of impact sensitivity: propelling the understanding of phonon–vibron coupling coefficients
Authors: Liu Wei-Hong , Zeng Wei , Liu Fu-Sheng , Liu Zheng-Tang , Liu Qi-Jun
Published: February 2024

The impact of the damping factor a and b on phonon–vibron coupling strength.
Operando UV-vis spectroscopy for real-time monitoring of nanoparticle size in reaction conditions: a case study on rWGS over Au nanoparticles
Authors: Negri Chiara , Colombo Riccardo , Bracconi Mauro , Atzori Cesare , Donazzi Alessandro , Lucotti Andrea , Tommasini Matteo , Maestri Matteo
Published: February 2024

Surface plasmon resonance peak probed by operando UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy allows for the monitoring of metal nanoparticles formation on an Au/α-Al2O3 catalyst and for the evaluation of their size and stability in reaction conditions.
A critical review on black phosphorus mediated Z-scheme heterojunctions: properties, synthesis, and mechanistic insights towards solar H2 evolution
Authors: Giri Rasan Kumar , Mansingh Sriram , Priyadarshini Newmoon , Panda Jayashree , Parida Kulamani
Published: February 2024

Over the past few decades, the application of semiconductor-driven photocatalysis has emerged as an emerging tactic addressing the growing sustainable energy demands.
Ambient conversion of CO2 and epoxides to cyclic carbonates using 3D amide-functionalized MOFs
Authors: Khattak Zafar A. K. , Ahmad Nazir , Younus Hussein A. , Ullah Habib , Yu Baoyi , Munawar Khurram S. , Ashfaq Muhammad , Yaseen Muhammad , Danish Muhammad , Al-Abri Mohammed , AlHajri Rashid , Verpoort Francis
Published: February 2024

The amide functionalized 3D zinc(ii)-5,5′-(([1,1′-biphenyl]-4,4′-dicarbonyl)bis(azanediyl))diisophthalate framework (Zn-MOF) efficiently catalyzes the fixation of CO2 into cyclic carbonate under ambient conditions with very low catalyst loading.
Solvent-free chemical upcycling of poly(bisphenol A carbonate) and poly(lactic acid) plastic waste using SBA-15-functionalized basic ionic liquids
Authors: Manal Arjun K. , Saini Garima , Srivastava Rajendra
Published: February 2024

An efficient and solvent-free chemical upcycling of polycarbonate and polylactic acid plastic waste into valuable monomers to promote a circular and resource-efficient economy using SBA-15 functionalized basic ionic liquid catalysts is presented.
Nanoscale sorting of extracellular vesicles via optically-induced dielectrophoresis on an integrated microfluidic system
Authors: Soong Wei-Jen , Wang Chih-Hung , Chen Chihchen , Lee Gwo-Bin
Published: February 2024

We devised an innovative method for automated sorting of extracellular vesicles (EVs) employing optically-induced dielectrophoresis on an integrated microfluidic chip. EVs of three distinct size categories could be isolated in 1 h at a purity of 86%.
Assessing bioartificial organ function: the 3P model framework and its validation
Authors: An Jingmin , Zhang Shuyu , Wu Juan , Chen Haolin , Xu Guoshi , Hou Yifan , Liu Ruoyu , Li Na , Cui Wenjuan , Li Xin , Du Yi , Gu Qi
Published: February 2024

The 3P framework for liver models utilizes machine learning to enhance precision, personalization, and prediction in assessing liver functions, representing a significant advancement in the field of bioartificial organ research.
RuNi single-atom alloy anchored on rGO as an outstanding bifunctional catalyst for efficient electrochemical water splitting
Authors: Yang Mengnan , Wang Jie , Dai Peng , Tang Xuefeng , Li Guang , Yang Li
Published: February 2024

Sub-nanometer RuNi monoatomic alloy particles anchored on rGO achieve efficient overall water splitting.
Cationic lipids via multi-component Passerini reaction for non-viral gene delivery
Authors: Wang Rong , Li Jin , Chen Jia-Jia , Guo Yu , Hu Yue , Yu Xiao-Qi , Zhang Ji
Published: February 2024

A new strategy for the construction of cationic lipid gene vectors for non-viral gene delivery by simple and efficient multi-component Passerini reaction was provided, and relevant structure–activity relationship was studied.
Suitability study of Ag nanosheet SERS substrates as a screening method for imidacloprid after QuEChERS extraction
Authors: Leyton-Soto Felipe , Schultz Zachary D. , Ormazábal-Toledo Rodrigo , Ruiz-León Domingo , Giordano Ady , Isaacs Mauricio
Published: February 2024

SERS substrates with silver nanosheets (AgNS) on a copper surface were synthesized. A quantitative analysis of the pesticide imidacloprid was then performed by applying a PLSR chemometric model.
Specialized metabolite modifications in Brassicaceae seeds and plants: diversity, functions and related enzymes
Authors: Barreda Léa , Brosse Céline , Boutet Stéphanie , Perreau François , Rajjou Loïc , Lepiniec Loïc , Corso Massimiliano
Published: February 2024

Diversity, functions and related enzymes of Specialized Metabolite (SM) modifications from plants and seeds of Brassicaceae are summarized in this review. A particular focus is made on SM plasticity and SM modification enzymes in seeds.
Chiral nanomaterials in tissue engineering
Authors: Yang Zhenxu , Jaiswal Arun , Yin Qiankun , Lin Xiaoqi , Liu Lu , Li Jiarong , Liu Xiaochen , Xu Zhejun , Li Jiao Jiao , Yong Ken-Tye
Published: February 2024

A timely review on chiral nanomaterials in tissue engineering, with a discussion on their evaluation prior to clinical applications.
Deep-learning-assisted spectroscopic single-molecule localization microscopy based on spectrum-to-spectrum denoising
Authors: Xu Dandan , Gu Yuanjie , Lu Jun , Xu Lei , Wang Wei , Dong Biqin
Published: February 2024

A self-supervised deep-learning network (Spec2Spec) can efficiently remove noise and recover low signal-to-noise ratio fluorescence emission spectra from single-molecule emitters, facilitating multiplexed and functional super-resolution imaging.
Computational understanding of the coalescence of metallic nanoparticles: a mini review
Authors: Jiang Liang , Guo Yongxin , Liu Zhihui , Chen Shuai
Published: February 2024

This work provides a mini review on the state-of-the-art modelling and simulation of coalescence kinetics and mechanisms for metallic nanoparticles, including nanoparticles with the same and different elements, alloys and metal oxides.
Synthesis of imidazole-fused nitrogen-bridgehead heterocycles catalysed by lipase and their antifungal and antimicrobial bioactivity
Authors: Singh Manjit , Malviya Manisha , Yadav Vijay B. , Nikhil Aishwarya , Gupta Munesh
Published: February 2024

An effective approach for selective C–N bond formation for synthesising imidazo[1,2-a] pyridine-based heterocycles using porcine pancreatic lipase (PPL) as a biocatalyst has been devised.
Anti-cancer activity of zinc-tetraphenylporphyrin photosensitizer/dextran-graft-polyacrylamide copolymer/Au(Ag) nanoparticle nanohybrids
Authors: Yeshchenko Oleg , Kutsevol Nataliya , Virych Pavlo , Khort Pavlo , Virych Petro , Chumachenko Vasyl , Cekhun Vasyl
Published: February 2024

Anti-cancer photodynamic activities of three-component nanohybrids zinc-tetraphenylporphyrin/dextran-graft-polyacrylamide/Au(Ag) nanoparticle on LNCaP prostate cancer cells was carried out under 420 nm light irradiation with low power.
An innovative Z-type Sb2S3/In2S3/TiO2 heterostructure: superior performance in the photocatalytic removal of levofloxacin and mechanistic insight
Authors: Li Jianrou , Yin Zhuangzhuang , Guo Jun , Gan Wei , Chen Ruixin , Zhang Miao , Sun Zhaoqi
Published: February 2024

In this study, Sb2S3/In2S3/TiO2 (SIT) heterojunction photocatalysts were prepared by a simple two-step hydrothermal method and applied to the photocatalytic degradation of levofloxacin (LEV).
Review on enhancing clinical decision support system using machine learning
Authors: Masood Anum , Naseem Usman , Rashid Junaid , Kim Jungeun , Razzak Imran
Published: February 2024

Clinical decision‐making is a complex patient‐centred process. For an informed clinical decision, the input data is very thorough ranging from detailed family history, environmental history, social history, health‐risk assessments, and prior relevant medical cases. Identifying the need for structured input data to enable clinical decision‐making and quality reporting, such that it is crucial for the end‐users is still a challenge. The Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) enhanced using Machine Learning (ML) approaches are described. CDSS aids in the detection and classification of various diseases but they cannot fully capture the environmental, clinical, and social constraints that are taken into consideration by the clinician in the diagnosis process. The authors provide an overview of state‐of‐the‐art healthcare CDSS. The authors initially collected 3165 research articles for this review out of which approximately 3148 records were identified from databases while 17 records were from other sources. A total of 1309 unique articles obtained from the searches were included in the study which was further rigorously evaluated for final inclusion. A generic architecture of computer‐based decision support systems using ML is provided. However, the study does not include the comparison of these CDSS in terms of their performance because of heterogeneity in the disease type, modality used for diagnosis, and the ML approach used for detection in CDSS.
Adaptive control of BLDC driven robot manipulators in task space
Authors: Ünver Şükrü , Selim Erman , Tatlıcıoğlu Enver , Zergeroğlu Erkan , Alcı Musa
Published: February 2024

In this study, task space tracking control of robot manipulators driven by brushless DC (BLDC) motors is considered. Dynamics of actuators are taken into account and the entire electromechanical system (i.e. kinematic, dynamic, and electrical models) is assumed to include parametric/structured uncertainties. A novel adaptive controller is designed and the stability of the closed loop system is ensured via novel Lyapunov type tools. To demonstrate performance and applicability of the proposed method, a simulation study is conducted using the model of a two degree of freedom, planar robotic manipulator driven by BLDC motors.
PSO‐SMADRC for altitude test facility intake pressure environmental simulation system
Authors: Chuanjian Li , Chao Zhai , Hehong Zhang , Shiqi Zheng
Published: February 2024

To address significant disturbances, including sudden air flow variation, model uncertainty, and unavoidable measurement noises during aeroengine transient tests in the intake environmental pressure simulation system (IEPSS), a sliding mode active disturbance rejection controller (SMADRC) is designed. The sliding mode control in SMADRC can deal with unmatched disturbances that are beyond the capabilities of the extended state observer (ESO) in ADRC. And the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is introduced to tune and optimize the controller parameters to further enhance the performance. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed method, simulations are conducted on the IEPSS software platform. The simulation results clearly demonstrate PSO‐SMADRC can reduce the mean squared error by 60.9%, the input oscillation by 68.7%, and the maximum deviation by 53.9%, compared with LADRC originally applied in the IEPSS.
Radiation behaviour of mm‐wave on‐wafer probes in H‐band and the influence on antenna measurements
Authors: Hebeler Joachim , Zwick Thomas , Bhutani Akanksha
Published: February 2024

This letter presents a comprehensive analysis of the radiation behaviour exhibited by nine distinct on‐wafer radio‐freqeuncy (RF) probes used for device characterization in the mm‐wave bands of integrated circuits and antennas. The tested probes are sourced from two different manufacturers and feature various probe pitches. All probes are intended for use with the WR‐3.4 waveguide band ranging from 220 to 330 GHz. To the best of the authors' knowledge, such a detailed examination of RF probes operating in this band with respect to their radiation behaviour has not been demonstrated before.
Coding techniques for diversity enhancement of dense wavelength division multiplexing MIMO‐FSO fault protection protocols systems over atmospheric turbulence channels
Authors: Elsayed Ebrahim E. , Hayal Mohammed R. , Nurhidayat Irfan , Shah Mohd Asif , Elfikky Abdelrahman , Boghdady Ayman I. , Juraev Davron Aslonqulovich , Morsy M. A.
Published: February 2024

An enhanced transmission is presented in a multiple‐input‐multiple‐output (MIMO) dense‐wavelength division multiplexed (DWDM) free‐space‐optical (FSO) communication link using diversity coding techniques under the effect of turbulent weather phenomenon. The findings show good performance with an (8 channels × 2.5 Gbps data rate/channel) 20 Gbps 1500 m transmission distance. The bit‐error‐rate (BER), outage probability (OP), and signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) of the diversity combining techniques using maximum‐ratio combining (MRC), selection combining (SC), and equal‐gain combining (EGC) technique are evaluated in this work. The obtained results illustrate that Alamouti, space‐time coding (STC), space‐time block coding (STBC), space‐time trellis code (STTC), orthogonal STBC (O‐STBC), and quasi‐orthogonal STBC (QO‐STBC) on the minimum mean‐square‐error, and MRC are worth implementing on the DWDM‐FSO wireless communication systems. The mitigation of atmospheric turbulence is achieved using MIMO diversity combining techniques coding. The simulation results for diversity coding techniques using QO‐STBC/STTC and SC/MRC in the MIMO‐DWDM FSO communication system can improve BER performance, OP, and SNR. The MRC exhibits the lowest OP and BER when compared with the SC and EGC. The numerical results demonstrate that the FSO communication link using DWDM QO‐STBC/STTC improves the power penalty at both BER values under varying atmospheric turbulence conditions for ST, MT, and WT, in comparison to FSO systems without DWDM QO‐STBC/STTC diversity coding techniques.
Primary side control strategies for battery charging regulation in wireless power transfer systems for EV applications
Authors: Vinod Marupuru , Kishan Dharavath , Kannan Ramani , Iqbal Atif , Mohammed Sulthan Sheik
Published: February 2024

Resonant inductive‐based wireless power transfer (WPT) for battery charging has potential applications in electric vehicles (EVs). The EV battery charging process requires the regulation of both charging voltage and current. Duty ratio or frequency control is generally preferred to manage the power flow between the transmitter and receiver coils in the WPT system. In the case of WPT charging, misalignment between the coils and parameter variations are unavoidable issues that result in changes to the output power. Therefore, it is essential to control the power flow to maintain constant current (CC) and constant voltage (CV) modes during battery charging. To address these challenges, various primary‐side control techniques, such as asymmetric clamped mode (ACM), asymmetric duty cycle (ADC), and phase‐shift (PS) fixed frequency control strategies, have been proposed for WPT systems. This paper conducts a comparative analysis of these control methods, considering their output voltage ranges and their ability to maintain zero‐voltage switching (ZVS) for the entire control range. Furthermore, the paper presents a generalized design for reduced‐order small signal modelling, utilizing an extended describing function. The designed controller, based on small signal modelling, will undergo real‐time testing to evaluate its dynamic performance in the series‐series resonant converter.
Robust resilience enhancement strategy for gas‐electricity integrated energy system considering multiple reinforcement levels
Authors: Zhou Shichao , Luo Shuhan , Wang Lingling , Jiang Chuanwen , Xiong Zhan , Gu Jiu , Zhang Ke
Published: February 2024

Natural disasters are extreme events with low probability but strong destructive ability, which have a serious impact on the power system. The gas‐electricity integrated energy system is more likely to be affected by natural disasters due to its complex multi‐energy coupling characteristic. In order to improve the resilience of the gas‐electricity integrated energy system under natural disasters, this paper proposes a three‐layer defence‐attack‐defence robust resilience improvement model with the objective of minimizing the load loss in the gas‐electricity integrated energy system. Firstly, in order to cope with various levels of disaster and improve the economy of line/pipeline reinforcement in the gas‐electricity integrated energy system, a multi‐level line/pipeline reinforcement model is proposed on the basis of load weight in the upper layer. Then, information entropy is introduced to represent the impact of natural disasters in the middle layer. Based on the operation constraints of the gas‐electricity integrated energy system, the optimal allocation of the mobile electricity storage and liquefied gas storage is established in the lower layer. The three‐layer resilience improvement model is solved by the nested column and constraint generation algorithm. Finally, the case study proves the feasibility of the model and the effectiveness of the solution method.
An integrated methodology for significant wave height forecasting based on multi‐strategy random weighted grey wolf optimizer with swarm intelligence
Authors: Dokur Emrah , Erdogan Nuh , Salari Mahdi Ebrahimi , Yuzgec Ugur , Murphy Jimmy
Published: February 2024

While wave energy is regarded as one of the prominent renewable energy resources to diversify global low‐carbon generation capacity, operational reliability is the main impediment to the wide deployment of the related technology. Current experience in wave energy systems demonstrates that operation and maintenance costs are dominant in their cost structure due to unplanned maintenance resulting in energy production loss. Accurate and high performance simulation forecasting tools are required to improve the efficiency and safety of wave converters. This paper proposes a new methodology for significant wave height forecasting. It is based on incorporating swarm decomposition (SWD) and multi‐strategy random weighted grey wolf optimizer (MsRwGWO) into a multi‐layer perceptron (MLP) forecasting model. This approach takes advantage of the SWD approach to generate more stable, stationary, and regular patterns of the original signal, while the MsRwGWO optimizes the MLP model parameters efficiently. As such, forecasting accuracy has improved. Real wave datasets from three buoys in the North Atlantic Sea are used to test and validate the forecasting performance of the proposed model. Furthermore, the performance is evaluated through a comparison analysis against deep‐learning based state‐of‐the‐art forecasting models. The results show that the proposed approach significantly enhances the model's accuracy.