bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Bioactive Amines in Wines. The Assessment of Quality Descriptors by Flow Injection Analysis with Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Authors: Mir-Cerdà Aina , Saurina Javier , Sentellas Sònia
Published: December 2022

Biogenic amines (BAs) occur in a wide variety of foodstuffs, mainly from the decomposition of proteins by the action of microorganisms. They are involved in several cellular functions but may become toxic when ingested in high amounts through the diet. In the case of oenological products, BAs are already present in low concentrations in must, and their levels rise dramatically during the fermentation processes. This paper proposes a rapid method for the determination of BAs in wines and related samples based on precolumn derivatization with dansyl chloride and further detection by flow injection analysis with tandem mass spectrometry. Some remarkable analytes such as putrescine, ethanolamine, histamine, and tyramine have been quantified in the samples. Concentrations obtained have shown interesting patterns, pointing out the role of BAs as quality descriptors. Furthermore, it has been found that the BA content also depends on the vinification practices, with malolactic fermentation being a significant step in the formation of BAs. From the point of view of health, concentrations found in the samples are, in general, below 10 mg L−1, so the consumption of these products does not represent any special concern. In conclusion, the proposed method results in a suitable approach for a fast screening of this family of bioactive compounds in wines to evaluate quality and health issues.
Combination of Docking-Based and Pharmacophore-Based Virtual Screening Identifies Novel Agonists That Target the Urotensin Receptor
Authors: Li Na , Yin Lin , Chen Xi , Shang Jiamin , Liang Meidai , Gao Li , Qiang Guifen , Xia Jie , Du Guanhua , Yang Xiuying
Published: December 2022

The urotensin receptor (UT receptor), a G-protein-coupled receptor mediating urotensin-II and urotensin-II-related peptide signaling in the urotensinergic system, has multiple pharmacological activities. However, there is no drug targeting the UT receptor currently in clinical use, and the discovery of new leads is still important. The complete crystal structure of the UT receptor has not yet been resolved and a screening strategy combining multiple methods can improve the accuracy and efficiency of drug screening. This study aimed to identify novel UT receptor agonists using a combination of docking-based, pharmacophore-based, and cell-based drug screening. First, the three-dimensional structures of the UT receptor were constructed through single-template, multi-template homologous modeling and threading strategies. After structure evaluation and ligand enrichment analysis, a model from the threading modeling was selected for docking-based virtual screening based on stepwise filtering, and 1368 positive compounds were obtained from our compound library. Second, the pharmacophore models were constructed using known ligands targeting the UT receptor for pharmacophore-based virtual screening. A model was selected after model validation, and 300 positive compounds were retrieved. Then, after intersecting the results of two different virtual screening methods with 570 compound entities from our primary screening, 14 compounds were obtained. Finally, three hits were obtained after in vitro confirmation. Furthermore, preliminary evaluation of the hits showed that they influenced glucose consumption. In summary, by integrating docking-based, pharmacophore-based, and in vitro drug screening, three new agonists targeting the UT receptor were identified which may serve as promising therapeutic agents for urotensinergic system disorders.
Recent Advancement in Drug Design and Discovery of Pyrazole Biomolecules as Cancer and Inflammation Therapeutics
Authors: Alam Md. Jahangir , Alam Ozair , Naim Mohd. Javed , Nawaz Farah , Manaithiya Ajay , Imran Mohd , Thabet Hamdy Khamees , Alshehri Sultan , Ghoneim Mohammed M. , Alam Prawez , Shakeel Faiyaz
Published: December 2022

Pyrazole, an important pharmacophore and a privileged scaffold of immense significance, is a five-membered heterocyclic moiety with an extensive therapeutic profile, viz., anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-anxiety, anticancer, analgesic, antipyretic, etc. Due to the expansion of pyrazolecent red pharmacological molecules at a quicker pace, there is an urgent need to put emphasis on recent literature with hitherto available information to recognize the status of this scaffold for pharmaceutical research. The reported potential pyrazole-containing compounds are highlighted in the manuscript for the treatment of cancer and inflammation, and the results are mentioned in % inhibition of inflammation, % growth inhibition, IC50, etc. Pyrazole is an important heterocyclic moiety with a strong pharmacological profile, which may act as an important pharmacophore for the drug discovery process. In the struggle to cultivate suitable anti-inflammatory and anticancer agents, chemists have now focused on pyrazole biomolecules. This review conceals the recent expansion of pyrazole biomolecules as anti-inflammatory and anticancer agents with an aim to provide better correlation among different research going around the world.
Bimetallic Nanomaterials: A Promising Nanoplatform for Multimodal Cancer Therapy
Authors: Niu Guiming , Gao Fucheng , Wang Yandong , Zhang Jie , Zhao Li , Jiang Yanyan
Published: December 2022

Bimetallic nanomaterials (BMNs) composed of two different metal elements have certain mixing patterns and geometric structures, and they often have superior properties than monometallic nanomaterials. Bimetallic-based nanomaterials have been widely investigated and extensively used in many biomedical fields especially cancer therapy because of their unique morphology and structure, special physicochemical properties, excellent biocompatibility, and synergistic effect. However, most reviews focused on the application of BMNs in cancer diagnoses (sensing, and imaging) and rarely mentioned the application of the treatment of cancer. The purpose of this review is to provide a comprehensive perspective on the recent progress of BNMs as therapeutic agents. We first introduce and discuss the synthesis methods, intrinsic properties (size, morphology, and structure), and optical and catalytic properties relevant to cancer therapy. Then, we highlight the application of BMNs in cancer therapy (e.g., drug/gene delivery, radiotherapy, photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, enzyme-mediated tumor therapy, and multifunctional synergistic therapy). Finally, we put forward insights for the forthcoming in order to make more comprehensive use of BMNs and improve the medical system of cancer treatment.
Sodium Butyrate Attenuates AGEs-Induced Oxidative Stress and Inflammation by Inhibiting Autophagy and Affecting Cellular Metabolism in THP-1 Cells
Authors: Yan Man , Li Xiang , Sun Chang , Tan Jiajun , Liu Yuanyuan , Li Mengqi , Qi Zishang , He Jiayuan , Wang Dongxu , Wu Liang
Published: December 2022

In recent years, sodium butyrate has gained increased attention for its numerous beneficial properties. However, whether sodium butyrate could alleviate inflammatory damage by macrophage activation and its underlying mechanism remains unclear. The present study used an advanced glycosylation products- (AGEs-) induced inflammatory damage model to study whether sodium butyrate could alleviate oxidative stress, inflammation, and metabolic dysfunction of human monocyte-macrophage originated THP-1 cells in a PI3K-dependent autophagy pathway. The results indicated that sodium butyrate alleviated the AGEs-induced oxidative stress, decreased the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS), increased malondialdehyde (MDA) and mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines of interleukin (IL)-1β and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and increased the content of superoxide dismutase (SOD). Sodium butyrate reduced the protein expression of the NLR family, pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) and Caspase-1, and decreased the nucleus expression of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB). Sodium butyrate decreased the expression of light-chain-associated protein B (LC3B) and Beclin-1, and inhibited autophagy. Moreover, sodium butyrate inhibited the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway in AGEs-induced THP-1 cells. In addition, the metabolomics analysis showed that sodium butyrate could affect the production of phosphatidylcholine, L-glutamic acid, UDP-N-acetylmuraminate, biotinyl-5’-AMP, and other metabolites. In summary, these results revealed that sodium butyrate inhibited autophagy and NLRP3 inflammasome activation by blocking the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB pathway, thereby alleviating oxidative stress, inflammation, and metabolic disorder induced by AGEs.
Synthesis of a Triazaisotruxene-Based Porous Organic Polymer and Its Application in Iodine Capture
Authors: Gao Rong , An Bohang , Zhou Cen , Zhang Xiao
Published: December 2022

A new triazaisotruxene-based porous organic polymer (POP) was designed and successfully synthesized by a FeCl3-promoted crosslinking reaction. As a result of its porosity and good thermal stability, the designed POP can be utilized as a promising adsorbent for iodine, not only in the gaseous phase, but also in organic and aqueous solutions. Compared to its triazatruxene (TN) analogue, the ITN-based POP shows equal iodine uptake in the gaseous phase and in hexane solution, and better uptake in aqueous solution.
ZnO Nanostructures Doped with Various Chloride Ion Concentrations for Efficient Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue in Alkaline and Acidic Media
Authors: Alshgari Razan A. , Ujjan Zaheer Ahmed , Shah Aqeel Ahmed , Bhatti Muhammad Ali , Tahira Aneela , Shaikh Nek Muhammad , Kumar Susheel , Ibupoto Mazhar Hussain , Elhawary Amal , Nafady Ayman , Vigolo Brigitte , Ibhupoto Zaffar Hussain
Published: December 2022

In this study, chloride (Cl−) ions were successfully doped into ZnO nanostructures by the solvothermal method. The effect of various Cl− concentrations on the photocatalytic activity of ZnO towards the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) under the illumination of ultraviolet light was studied. The as-prepared Cl−-doped ZnO nanostructures were analyzed in terms of morphology, structure, composition and optical properties. XRD data revealed an average crystallite size of 23 nm, and the XRD patterns were assigned to the wurtzite structure of ZnO even after doping with Cl−. Importantly, the optical band gap of various Cl ion-doped ZnO nanostructures was successively reduced from 3.42 to 3.16 eV. The photodegradation efficiency of various Cl− ion-doped ZnO nanostructures was studied for MB in aqueous solution, and the relative performance of each Cl ion-doped ZnO sample was as follows: 20% Cl−-doped ZnO > 15% Cl−-doped ZnO > 10% Cl−-doped ZnO > 5% Cl−-doped ZnO > pristine ZnO. Furthermore, the correlation of the pH of the MB solution and each Cl ion dopant concentration was also investigated. The combined results of varying dopant levels and the effect of the pH of the MB solution on the photodegradation process verified the crucial role of Cl− ions in activating the degradation kinetics of MB. Therefore, these newly developed photocatalysts could be considered as alternative materials for practical applications such as wastewater treatment.
Correction: Godugu et al. Nanoformulated Ajwa (Phoenix Dactylifera) Bioactive Compounds Improve the Safety of Doxorubicin without Compromising Its Anticancer Efficacy in Breast Cancer. Molecules 2020, 25, 2597
Authors: Godugu Kavitha , El-Far Ali H. , Al Jaouni Soad , Mousa Shaker A.
Published: December 2022

In the original publication [...]
The Effect of Combined Atmospheric Plasma/UV Treatments on Improving the Durability of Flame Retardants Applied to Cotton
Authors: Ayesh Maram , Horrocks Arthur Richard , Kandola Baljinder K.
Published: December 2022

Application of a combined atmospheric plasma/UV laser to cotton fabrics impregnated with selected non-durable flame retardants (FRs) has shown evidence of covalent grafting of the latter species on to cotton fibre surfaces. As a result, an increase in their durability to water-soaking for 30 min at 40 °C has been recorded. Based on previous research plasma gases comprising Ar80%/CO220% or N280%/O220% were used to pre-expose cotton fabric prior to or after FR impregnation to promote the formation of radical species and increased –COOH groups on surface cellulosic chains, which would encourage formation of FR-cellulose bonds. Analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and thermal analysis (TGA) suggested that organophosphorus- and nitrogen- containing flame retarding species in the presence of the silicon-containing molecules such as 3-aminopropyltriethoxy silane (APTS) resulted in formation of FR-S-O-cellulose links, which gave rise to post-water-soaking FR retentions > 10%. Similarly, the organophosphorus FR, diethyl N, N bis (2-hydroxyethyl) aminomethylphosphonate (DBAP), after plasma/UV exposure produced similar percentage retention values possibly via (PO).O.cellulose bond formation, While none of the plasmas/UV-treated, FR-impregnated fabrics showed self-extinction behaviour, although burning rates reduced and significant char formation was evident, it has been shown that FR durability may be increased using plasma/UV treatments.
Methods of Identifying Gordonia Strains in Clinical Samples
Authors: Frantsuzova Ekaterina , Bogun Alexander , Vetrova Anna , Delegan Yanina
Published: December 2022

Gordonia spp. are members of the family Gordoniacea in the suborder Corynebacteriales; their habitat, in most cases, is soil. Many representatives of this genus are human or veterinary pathogens. The main cause of the lack of a standardized approach to dealing with infections caused by Gordonia is their erroneous identification and little information regarding their susceptibility to antimicrobial drugs. This review presents the most common methods for identifying Gordonia strains, including modern approaches for identifying a species. The main prospects and future directions of this field of knowledge are briefly presented.
Liver Proteome Alterations in Red Deer (Cervus elaphus) Infected by the Giant Liver Fluke Fascioloides magna
Authors: Šimonji Karol , Konjević Dean , Bujanić Miljenko , Rubić Ivana , Farkaš Vladimir , Beletić Anđelo , Grbavac Lea , Kuleš Josipa
Published: December 2022

Liver fluke infections are recognised as diseases with worldwide distribution and considerable veterinary and public health importance. The giant liver fluke, Fascioloides magna, is an important non-native parasite which has been introduced to Europe, posing a threat to the survival of local wildlife populations such as red deer (Cervus elaphus). The aim of the study was to analyse differences in liver proteomes between F. magna-infected and control red deer groups using a label-based high-throughput quantitative proteomics approach. The proteomics analysis identified 234 proteins with differential abundance between the control and infected groups. Our findings showed that F. magna infection in this definitive host is associated with changes in the metabolism of proteins and fatty acids, oxidative stress, fibrosis, and signaling pathways. The identified proteins and associated biological pathways represent a valuable contribution to the understanding of host–parasite interactions and the pathogenesis of liver fluke infection.
Generation of Multiple Arbovirus-like Particles Using a Rapid Recombinant Vaccinia Virus Expression Platform
Authors: Wang Yuxiang , Griffiths Anthony , Brackney Douglas E. , Verardi Paulo H.
Published: December 2022

As demonstrated by the 2015 Zika virus outbreak in the Americas, emerging and re-emerging arboviruses are public health threats that warrant research investment for the development of effective prophylactics and therapeutics. Many arboviral diseases are underreported, neglected, or of low prevalence, yet they all have the potential to cause outbreaks of local and international concern. Here, we show the production of virus-like particles (VLPs) using a rapid and efficient recombinant vaccinia virus (VACV) expression system for five tick- and mosquito-borne arboviruses: Powassan virus (POWV), Heartland virus (HRTV), severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV), Bourbon virus (BRBV) and Mayaro virus (MAYV). We detected the expression of arbovirus genes of interest by Western blot and observed the expression of VLPs that resemble native virions under transmission electron microscopy. We were also able to improve the secretion of POWV VLPs by modifying the signal sequence within the capsid gene. This study describes the use of a rapid VACV platform for the production and purification of arbovirus VLPs that can be used as subunit or vectored vaccines, and provides insights into the selection of arbovirus genes for VLP formation and genetic modifications to improve VLP secretion and yield.
An Unknown Hidden Target Localization Method Based on Data Decoupling in Complex Scattering Media
Authors: Wang Chen , Zhuang Jiayan , Ye Sichao , Liu Wei , Yuan Yaoyao , Zhang Hongman , Xiao Jiangjian
Published: December 2022

Due to the effect of the complex scattering medium, the photons carrying target information will be attenuated when passing through scattering media, and target localization is difficult. The resolution of the target-position information from scattered images is crucial for achieving accurate target localization in environments such as dense fog in military applications. In this paper, a target localization network incorporating an attention mechanism was designed based on the robust feature resolution ability of neural networks and the characteristics of scattering formation. A training dataset with basic elements was constructed to achieve data decoupling, and then realize the position estimation of targets in different domains in complex scattering environments. Experimental validation showed that the target was accurately localized in speckle images with different domain data by the above method. The results will provide ideas for future research on the localization of typical targets in natural scattering environments.
Exploring Quantum Geometry Created by Quantum Matter
Authors: Ashtekar Abhay
Published: December 2022

Exactly soluble models can serve as excellent tools to explore conceptual issues in non-perturbative quantum gravity. In perturbative approaches, it is only the two radiative modes of the linearized gravitational field that are quantized. The goal of this investigation is to probe the ‘Coulombic’ aspects of quantum geometry that are governed entirely by matter sources. Since there are no gravitational waves in three dimensions, 3-dimensional (3-d) gravity coupled to matter provides an ideal arena for this task. The analysis presented here reveals novel aspects of quantum gravity that bring out limitations of classical and semi-classical theories in unforeseen regimes: non-linearities of general relativity can magnify small quantum fluctuations in the matter sector to large effects in the gravitational sector. Finally, this analysis leads to thought experiments that bring out rather starkly why understanding of the nature of physical reality depends sensitively on the theoretical lens with which it is probed. As theories become richer, new scales emerge, triggering novel effects that could not be imagined before. The model provides a concise realization of this well-known chain.
Acute and Rapid Response of Melissa officinalis and Mentha spicata to Saline Reclaimed Water in Terms of Water Relations, Hormones, Amino Acids and Plant Oxylipins
Authors: Gómez-Bellot María José , Lorente Beatriz , Medina Sonia , Gil-Izquierdo Ángel , Durand Thierry , Galano Jean-Marie , Vicente-Sánchez Sergio , Ortuño María Fernanda , Sánchez-Blanco María Jesús
Published: December 2022

The use of reclaimed water is considered an efficient tool for agricultural irrigation; however, the high salinity associated to this water could compromise plant quality and yields. Balm and spearmint plants were submitted for 15 days to three irrigation treatments in a controlled chamber: control with EC: 1.2 dS m−1 (control), reclaimed water from secondary effluent (EC: 1.6 dS m−1) (S) and water from secondary effluent with brine (EC: 4.4 dS m−1) (SB). The plant water status, stomatal and hormonal regulation, nutritional response, concentration of amino acids and plant oxidative stress-based markers, as well as growth were evaluated. Both species irrigated with saline reclaimed water reduced leaf water potential and gas exchange in comparison with control plants, following 2 days of exposure to irrigation treatments. Nevertheless, spearmint plants recovered photosynthetic activity from the seventh day onwards, maintaining growth. This was attributed to hormonal changes and a greater accumulation of some amino acids and some plant oxylipins (phytoprostanes) in comparison to balm plants, which contributed to the improvement in the organoleptic and health-promoting properties of spearmint. A longer irrigation period with saline reclaimed water would be necessary to assess whether the quality of both species, especially spearmint, could further improve without compromising their growth.
Modifications of Phytohormone Metabolism Aimed at Stimulation of Plant Growth, Improving Their Productivity and Tolerance to Abiotic and Biotic Stress Factors
Authors: Nowicka Beatrycze
Published: December 2022

Due to the growing human population, the increase in crop yield is an important challenge for modern agriculture. As abiotic and biotic stresses cause severe losses in agriculture, it is also crucial to obtain varieties that are more tolerant to these factors. In the past, traditional breeding methods were used to obtain new varieties displaying demanded traits. Nowadays, genetic engineering is another available tool. An important direction of the research on genetically modified plants concerns the modification of phytohormone metabolism. This review summarizes the state-of-the-art research concerning the modulation of phytohormone content aimed at the stimulation of plant growth and the improvement of stress tolerance. It aims to provide a useful basis for developing new strategies for crop yield improvement by genetic engineering of phytohormone metabolism.
Saudi Arabian Plants: A Powerful Weapon against a Plethora of Diseases
Authors: El-Seedi Hesham R. , Kotb Safaa M. , Musharraf Syed G. , Shehata Awad A. , Guo Zhiming , Alsharif Sultan M. , Saeed Aamer , Hamdi Omer A. A. , Tahir Haroon Elrasheid , Alnefaie Rasha , Verpoorte Rob , Khalifa Shaden A. M.
Published: December 2022

The kingdom of Saudi Arabia (SA) ranks fifth in Asia in terms of area. It features broad biodiversity, including interesting flora, and was the historical origin of Islam. It is endowed with a large variety of plants, including many herbs, shrubs, and trees. Many of these plants have a long history of use in traditional medicine. The aim of this review is to evaluate the present knowledge on the plants growing in SA regarding their pharmacological and biological activities and the identification of their bioactive compounds to determine which plants could be of interest for further studies. A systematic summary of the plants’ history, distribution, various pharmacological activities, bioactive compounds, and clinical trials are presented in this paper to facilitate future exploration of their therapeutic potential. The literature was obtained from several scientific search engines, including Sci-Finder, PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Scopus, MDPI, Wiley publications, and Springer Link. Plant names and their synonyms were validated by ‘The Plant List’ on 1 October 2021. SA is home to approximately 2247 plant species, including native and introduced plants that belong to 142 families and 837 genera. It shares the flora of three continents, with many unique features due to its extreme climate and geographical and geological conditions. As plants remain the leading supplier of new therapeutic agents to treat various ailments, Saudi Arabian plants may play a significant role in the fight against cancer, inflammation, and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. To date, 102 active compounds have been identified in plants from different sites in SA. Plants from the western and southwestern regions have been evaluated for various biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-cancer, antimicrobial, antimalarial, anti-inflammatory, anti-glycation, and cytotoxic activities. The aerial parts of the plants, especially the leaves, have yielded most of the bioactive compounds. Most bioactivity tests involve in vitro assessments for the inhibition of the growth of tumour cell lines, and several compounds with in vitro antitumour activity have been reported. More in-depth studies to evaluate the mode of action of the compounds are necessary to pave the way for clinical trials. Ecological and taxonomical studies are needed to evaluate the flora of SA, and a plan for the conservation of wild plants should be implemented, including the management of the protection of endemic plants.
Assisted Phytostabilization of Mine-Tailings with Prosopis laevigata (Fabaceae) and Biochar
Authors: Ramírez-Zamora Juan , Mussali-Galante Patricia , Rodríguez Alexis , Castrejón-Godínez María Luisa , Valencia-Cuevas Leticia , Tovar-Sánchez Efraín
Published: December 2022

Phytoremediation is a cost-effective technique to remediate heavy metal (HM) polluted sites. However, the toxic effects of HM can limit plant establishment and development, reducing phytoremediation effectiveness. Therefore, the addition of organic amendments to mine wastes, such as biochar, improves the establishment of plants and reduces the bioavailability of toxic HM and its subsequent absorption by plants. Prosopis laevigata can establish naturally in mine tailings and accumulate different HM; however, these individuals show morphological and genetic damage. In this study, the effect of biochar on HM bioaccumulation in roots and aerial tissues, HM translocation, morphological characters and plant growth were evaluated, after three and six months of exposure. Plants grown on mine tailings with biochar presented significantly higher values for most of the evaluated characters, in respect to plants that grew on mine tailing substrate. Biochar addition reduced the bioaccumulation and translocation of Cu, Pb, and Cd, while it favored the translocation of essential metals such as Fe and Mn. The addition of biochar from agro-industrial residues to mine tailings improves the establishment of plants with potential to phytoextract and phytostabilize metals from polluted soils. Using biochar and heavy metal accumulating plants constitutes an assisted phytostabilization strategy with great potential for HM polluted sites such as Cd and Pb.
Osmanthus-Loaded PVP/PVA Hydrogel Inhibits the Proliferation and Migration of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells CAL-27
Authors: Huang Bin , Wu Chizhou , Hu Yuzhu , Rao Lu , Yang Mingzhe , Zhao Mengyao , Chen Huangqin , Li Yuesheng
Published: December 2022

Conventional medical agents for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) with some adverse effects no longer meet the needs of the public. In this study, the prognosis-related hub genes of osmanthus-targeted therapy for OSCC were predicted and analyzed by network pharmacology and molecular docking. Osmanthus was extracted using the ethanol reflux method and osmanthus-loaded PVP/PVA (OF/PVP/PVA) hydrogel was prepared by electron beam radiation. The molecular structure, crystal structure and microscopic morphology of hydrogels were observed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. OSCC cells CAL-27 were cultured with OF/PVP/PVA hydrogel at different concentrations of extract to discover cell proliferation by MTT assay. The scratching test and JC-1 staining were used to observe the migration and mitochondrial membrane potential. Through experimental exploration, we found that a total of six prognosis-related targets were predicted, which are PYGL, AURKA, SQLE, etc., and osmanthus extract had good binding activity to AURKA. In vitro, except for proliferation inhibition, OF/PVP/PVA hydrogel prevented cell migration and changed the mitochondrial membrane potential of CAL-27 cells at a concentration equal to or greater than 50 μg/mL (p < 0.05). The addition of autophagy inhibitor chloroquine and 3-methyladenine weakened the migration inhibition of hydrogel (p < 0.05).
Novel Fuzzy Measurement Alternatives and Ranking according to the Compromise Solution-Based Green Machining Optimization
Authors: Shanmugasundar G. , Mahanta Tapan K. , Čep Robert , Kalita Kanak
Published: December 2022

Due to the increase in the impact of different manufacturing processes on the environment, green manufacturing processes are the prime focus of many current pieces of research. In the current article, a green machining process for stainless steel and SS304 and AISI1045 steel has been optimized using newly developed Fuzzy Measurement Alternatives and Ranking according to the COmpromise Solution (F-MARCOS) method in the form of two case studies. In the first case study, nose radius, cutting speed, depth of cut, and feed rate are selected as the process parameters whereas surface roughness, consumption of electrical energy, and power factor are the outputs. In the second case study width of cut, depth of cut, feed rate, and cutting speed were the process parameters and material removal rate (MRR), active energy consumption (ACE), and surface roughness (Ra) are the response variables. The MARCOS method ranks the alternatives based on the ideal and anti-ideal solutions for the different criteria. The inclusion of fuzzy logic adds worth to the model by using a linguistic scale to make the method more practical and flexible. Based on the detailed analysis, it ranked the best alternative in case study one which results in a power factor of 0.862, 26.68 kJ of electrical energy consumption, and surface roughness of 0.36 μm. In the second case study, the best alternative selected by this method gave an MRR of 2400 mm3/min and Ra of 2.29 μm and utilizes 53.988 kJ ACE.
Vehicle Dispatch and Route Optimization Algorithm for Demand-Responsive Transit
Authors: Guan Deyong , Wu Xiaofang , Wang Ke , Zhao Jie
Published: December 2022

Giving priority to the development of public transit is an important way to achieve efficient, convenient, safe, comfortable, economic, reliable, green and low-carbon sustainable development. In view of the highly dispersed and regular passenger flow, demand responsive transit is an important complementary means for traditional public transport to improve passenger satisfaction. However, high operating costs and low load factor will have a bad impact on the operation of public transport and reduce passenger satisfaction. In this work, firstly, by analyzing the demand frequency of historical travel stations, the stations with high demand are extracted by time periods as high probability travel points; On this basis, a dynamic vehicle dispatching optimization model is established, and the static vehicle dispatching is carried out with the goal of minimizing the running mileage of the bus system; Finally, based on the initial static route and the later real-time travel demand, the accurate dynamic planning algorithm is used to optimize the dynamic route with the goal of minimizing the change of the system mileage, so as to achieve timely response to the demand. The results show that the two-phase scheduling optimization model based on the station extraction strategy can provide a reasonable real-time vehicle scheduling and route optimization scheme, improve the utilization rate of vehicles and the passenger load factor, and provide a theoretical basis and application guidance for actual vehicle scheduling.
Lateglacial to Mid-Holocene Vegetation History in the Eastern Vale of Pickering, Northeast Yorkshire, UK: Pollen Diagrams from Palaeolake Flixton
Authors: Simmons Ian G. , Cummins Gaynor E. , Taylor Barry , Innes James B.
Published: December 2022

Palaeolake Flixton, in the eastern Vale of Pickering in northeast Yorkshire, UK, existed as open water during the Lateglacial and early to mid-Holocene, until hydroseral succession and gradual terrestrialisation changed it to an area of fen and basin peatland by the later mid-Holocene. The environs of the lake were occupied by Late Palaeolithic and Mesolithic people over thousands of years and many Early Mesolithic sites, in particular, have been found located along the ancient lake edge, including the paradigm site for the British Early Mesolithic at Star Carr, where occupation occurred over several centuries. We have analysed eleven sediment cores, distributed in most parts of the palaeolake area, for pollen and stratigraphic data with which to reconstruct lake development and vegetation history. These new diagrams augment earlier pollen studies from the western part of the lake, particularly in the Star Carr area and near other major Mesolithic sites around Seamer Carr. Especially informative are a long core from the deepest part of the lake; cores that document the Lateglacial as well as early Holocene times, and evidence for the later Mesolithic that helps to balance the high density of Late Mesolithic sites known from research in the adjacent uplands of the North York Moors. There are many records of charcoal in the deposits but, especially for the earliest examples, it is not always possible to tie them firmly to either human activity or natural causes. Overall, the new and previously existing diagrams provide evidence for the spatial reconstruction of vegetation history across this important wetland system, including (a) for the progression of natural community successions within the wetland and on the surrounding dryland (b) the influence of climate change in bringing about changes in woodland composition and (c) for discussion of the possibility of human manipulation of the vegetation in the Late Upper Palaeolithic, Early and Late Mesolithic. Results show that climate was the main driver of longer-term vegetation change. Centennial-scale, abrupt climate events caused significant vegetation reversals in the Lateglacial Interstadial. The Lateglacial vegetation was very similar throughout the lake hinterland, although some areas supported some scrubby shrub rather than being completely open. Immigration and spread of Holocene woodland taxa comprised the familiar tree succession common in northern England but the timings of the establishment and the abundance of some individual tree types varied considerably around the lake margins because of edaphic factors and the effects of fire, probably of human origin. Woodland successions away from proximity to the lake were similar to those recorded in the wider landscape of northern England and produced a dense, homogenous forest cover occasionally affected by fire.
Transferability of Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE)-Derived Feature Sets for Support Vector Machine Land Cover Classification
Authors: Ramezan Christopher A.
Published: December 2022

Remote sensing analyses frequently use feature selection methods to remove non-beneficial feature variables from the input data, which often improve classification accuracy and reduce the computational complexity of the classification. Many remote sensing analyses report the results of the feature selection process to provide insights on important feature variable for future analyses. Are these feature selection results generalizable to other classification models, or are they specific to the input dataset and classification model they were derived from? To investigate this, a series of radial basis function (RBF) support vector machines (SVM) supervised machine learning land cover classifications of Sentinel-2A Multispectral Instrument (MSI) imagery were conducted to assess the transferability of recursive feature elimination (RFE)-derived feature sets between different classification models using different training sets acquired from the same remotely sensed image, and to classification models of other similar remotely sensed imagery. Feature selection results for various training sets acquired from the same image and different images widely varied on small training sets (n = 108). Variability in feature selection results between training sets acquired from different images was reduced as training set size increased; however, each RFE-derived feature set was unique, even when training sample size was increased over 10-fold (n = 1895). The transferability of an RFE-derived feature set from a high performing classification model was, on average, slightly more accurate in comparison to other classification models of the same image, but provided, on average, slightly lower accuracies when generalized to classification models of other, similar remotely sensed imagery. However, the effects of feature set transferability on classification accuracy were inconsistent and varied per classification model. Specific feature selection results in other classification models or remote sensing analyses, while useful for providing general insights on feature variables, may not always generalize to provide comparable accuracies for other classification models of the same dataset, or other, similar remotely sensed datasets. Thus, feature selection should be individually conducted for each training set within an analysis to determine the optimal feature set for the classification model.
Precipitable Water Vapor and Fractional Clear Sky Statistics within the Big Telescope Alt-Azimuthal Region
Authors: Shikhovtsev Artem Yu. , Kovadlo Pavel G. , Khaikin Vladimir B. , Kiselev Alexander V.
Published: December 2022

The development of a network of ground-based telescopes requires detailed astroclimatic studies. This paper presents the spatial distributions of precipitable water vapor (PWV), total cloud cover (TCC) and cloud base height (CBH). With the aim of a representative description of the precipitable water vapor, a method for correcting this characteristic which takes into account the underlying surface is proposed. The method uses the exponential decrease in the water vapor content with the altitude and is based on the calculation of the averaged elevation of the grid nodes around the site. By applying this correction method, the seasonal changes in the median PWV values at the sites of Ali, Muztag-Ata and Suffa, as well as within the Chajnantor area are estimated. We show that the decrease of PWV with the altitude is exponential with a height scale of 1000 m for the sites in South America and Eurasia. The astroclimatic characteristics within the Big Telescope Alt-azimuthal (BTA) region (40∘N–50∘N; 35∘E–55∘E) are estimated. In this region, the sites suitable for the millimeter and submillimeter (mm/submm) observations are revealed. New sites are Mt. Horai and Mt. Kurapdag. In addition, we show that the Era-5 reanalysis data overestimate the PWV values by 1–2 mm and describe changes in the monthly medians of PWV. Comparison of the calculated medians with the measured PWV show that the correlation coefficient between these characteristics is 0.97.
A New Automated Ship Wake Detector for Small and Go-Fast Ships in Sentinel-1 Imagery
Authors: Grosso Elena , Guida Raffaella
Published: December 2022

In the field of maritime surveillance with satellite imagery, ship detection with Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is largely successful with the exception of those cases where the target Radar Cross Section (RCS) results very low and hard to detect. The paper presents an automatic algorithm that tackles the problem of ship detection in situations where the ship’s RCS is not measurable but its wake is. At this purpose, the algorithm proposed uses a combination of image processing techniques in order to identify ships exclusively by detecting the wakes they leave behind. Once a ship is identified through its wake, its position in the image, its heading and its speed are determined. The algorithm was developed, tested and validated on SAR imagery from the European Space Agency mission Sentinel-1; the results are here presented and discussed. The algorithm was validated on a total of 43 images and resulted in a ship detection rate of 93% with wakes’ components recognized in more than 80% of the cases analysed.
Subset Selection Strategies Based on Target Positioning Characteristics for Anti-Jamming Technology
Authors: Liu Jieyi , Gong Maoguo , Nie Zhao , Li Hao , Liu Jingyao , Zhao Shanshan
Published: December 2022

For the discrimination of false targets, the discrimination probability can be improved by increasing the number of radar stations. However, that may result in a serious waste of equipment resources when too many radars are involved. An asymptotic subset selection strategy based on target positioning characteristics is proposed to address the above issues. Several effective strategies are considered to select some transmitters and receivers to form a radar subset, such as the rapid shrinkage method, global shrinkage method, and predetermined size method, which can guarantee the preset discrimination performance of limited equipment resources and reduce the waste of resources. All of the selected stations have good spatial distribution or strong discrimination capacity in multistatic radar system. Compared with the exhaustive search, the proposed subset selection strategy affords a significant reduction in terms of time complexity. The simulation results show that the radar subset can maintain approximate discrimination performance with the original multistatic radar systems. At the same time, the proposed method optimizes the number of radar stations and reduces data processing time and required communication links, thus effectively saving operating costs.
GNSS Data Processing and Validation of the Altimeter Zenith Wet Delay around the Wanshan Calibration Site
Authors: Zhai Wanlin , Zhu Jianhua , Lin Mingsen , Ma Chaofei , Chen Chuntao , Huang Xiaoqi , Zhang Yufei , Zhou Wu , Wang He , Yan Longhao
Published: December 2022

The Wanshan calibration site (WSCS) is the first in-situ field for calibration and validation (Cal/Val) of HY-2 satellite series in China. It was built in December, 2018 and began business operation in 2020. In order to define an accurate datum for Cal/Val of altimeters, the permanent GNSS station (PGS) data of the WSCS observed on Zhiwan (ZWAN) and Wailingding (WLDD) islands were processed using GAMIT/GLOBK software in a regional solution, combined with 61 GNSS stations distributed nearby, collected from the GNSS Research Center, Wuhan University (GRC). The Hector software was used to analyze the trend of North (N), East (E), and Up (U) directions using six different noise models with criteria of maximum likelihood estimation (MLE), Akaike Information Criteria (AIC), and the Bayesian Information Criteria (BIC). We found that the favorite noise models were white noise plus generalized Gauss–Markov noise (WN + GGM), followed by generalized Gauss–Markov noise (GGM). Then, we compared the PGS velocities of each direction with the Scripps Orbit and Permanent Array Center (SOPAC) output parameters and found that there was good agreement between them. The PGSs in the WSCS had velocities in the N, E, and U directions of −10.20 ± 0.39 mm/year, 31.09 ± 0.36 mm/year, and −2.24 ± 0.66 mm/year for WLDD, and −10.85 ± 0.38 mm/year, 30.67 ± 0.30 mm/year, and −3.81 ± 0.66 mm/year for ZWAN, respectively. The accurate datum was defined for Cal/Val of altimeters for WSCS as a professional in-situ site. Moreover, the zenith wet delay (ZWD) of the coastal PGSs in the regional and sub-regional solutions was calculated and used to validate the microwave radiometers (MWRs) of Jason-3, Haiyang-2B (HY-2B), and Haiyang-2C (HY-2C). A sub-regional PGS solution was processed using 19 continuous operational reference stations (CORS) of Hong Kong Geodetic Survey Services to derive the ZWD and validate the MWRs of the altimeters. The ZWD of the PGSs were compared with the radiosonde-derived data in the regional and sub-regional solutions. The difference between them was −7.72~2.79 mm with an RMS of 14.53~18.62 mm, which showed good consistency between the two. Then, the PGSs’ ZWD was used to validate the MWRs. To reduce the land contamination of the MWR, we determined validation distances of 6~30 km, 16~28 km, and 18~30 km for Jason-3, HY-2B, and HY-2C, respectively. The ZWD differences between PGSs and the Jason-3, HY-2B, and HY-2C altimeters were −2.30 ± 16.13 mm, 9.22 ± 22.73 mm, and −3.02 ± 22.07 mm, respectively.
Cascading Alignment for Unsupervised Domain-Adaptive DETR with Improved DeNoising Anchor Boxes
Authors: Geng Huantong , Jiang Jun , Shen Junye , Hou Mengmeng
Published: December 2022

Transformer-based object detection has recently attracted increasing interest and shown promising results. As one of the DETR-like models, DETR with improved denoising anchor boxes (DINO) produced superior performance on COCO val2017 and achieved a new state of the art. However, it often encounters challenges when applied to new scenarios where no annotated data is available, and the imaging conditions differ significantly. To alleviate this problem of domain shift, in this paper, unsupervised domain adaptive DINO via cascading alignment (CA-DINO) was proposed, which consists of attention-enhanced double discriminators (AEDD) and weak-restraints on category-level token (WROT). Specifically, AEDD is used to aggregate and align the local–global context from the feature representations of both domains while reducing the domain discrepancy before entering the transformer encoder and decoder. WROT extends Deep CORAL loss to adapt class tokens after embedding, minimizing the difference in second-order statistics between the source and target domain. Our approach is trained end to end, and experiments on two challenging benchmarks demonstrate the effectiveness of our method, which yields 41% relative improvement compared to baseline on the benchmark dataset Foggy Cityscapes, in particular.
Health State Estimation of On-Board Lithium-Ion Batteries Based on GMM-BID Model
Authors: Feng Shirui , Wang Anchen , Cai Jing , Zuo Hongfu , Zhang Ying
Published: December 2022

As a single feature parameter cannot comprehensively evaluate the health status of a battery, a multi-source information fusion method based on the Gaussian mixture model and Bayesian inference distance is proposed for the health assessment of vehicle batteries. The missing and abnormal data from real-life vehicle operations are preprocessed to extract the sensitive characteristic parameters which determine the battery performance. The normal state Gaussian mixture model is established using the fault-free state data, whereas the Bayesian inference distance is constructed as an index to quantitatively evaluate the battery performance state. In order to solve the problem that abnormal data may exist in the measured data and introduce errors into evaluation results, the determination rules of abnormal data are formulated. The verification of real-life vehicle operation data reveals that the proposed method can accurately evaluate the onboard battery state and reduce safety hazards of electric vehicles during the normal operation process.