bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Physics-Based Differentiable Rendering for Efficient and Plausible Fluid Modeling from Monocular Video
Authors: Cen Yunchi , Zhang Qifan , Liang Xiaohui
Published: September 2023

Realistic fluid models play an important role in computer graphics applications. However, efficiently reconstructing volumetric fluid flows from monocular videos remains challenging. In this work, we present a novel approach for reconstructing 3D flows from monocular inputs through a physics-based differentiable renderer coupled with joint density and velocity estimation. Our primary contributions include the proposed efficient differentiable rendering framework and improved coupled density and velocity estimation strategy. Rather than relying on automatic differentiation, we derive the differential form of the radiance transfer equation under single scattering. This allows the direct computation of the radiance gradient with respect to density, yielding higher efficiency compared to prior works. To improve temporal coherence in the reconstructed flows, subsequent fluid densities are estimated via a coupled strategy that enables smooth and realistic fluid motions suitable for applications that require high efficiency. Experiments on synthetic and real-world data demonstrated our method’s capacity to reconstruct plausible volumetric flows with smooth dynamics efficiently. Comparisons to prior work on fluid motion reconstruction from monocular video revealed over 50–170x speedups across multiple resolutions.
It’s Time for Entropic Clocks: The Roles of Random Chain Protein Sequences in Timing Ion Channel Processes Underlying Action Potential Properties
Authors: Nsasra Esraa , Dahan Irit , Eichler Jerry , Yifrach Ofer
Published: September 2023

In recent years, it has become clear that intrinsically disordered protein segments play diverse functional roles in many cellular processes, thus leading to a reassessment of the classical structure–function paradigm. One class of intrinsically disordered protein segments is entropic clocks, corresponding to unstructured random protein chains involved in timing cellular processes. Such clocks were shown to modulate ion channel processes underlying action potential generation, propagation, and transmission. In this review, we survey the role of entropic clocks in timing intra- and inter-molecular binding events of voltage-activated potassium channels involved in gating and clustering processes, respectively, and where both are known to occur according to a similar ‘ball and chain’ mechanism. We begin by delineating the thermodynamic and timing signatures of a ‘ball and chain’-based binding mechanism involving entropic clocks, followed by a detailed analysis of the use of such a mechanism in the prototypical Shaker voltage-activated K+ channel model protein, with particular emphasis on ion channel clustering. We demonstrate how ‘chain’-level alternative splicing of the Kv channel gene modulates entropic clock-based ‘ball and chain’ inactivation and clustering channel functions. As such, the Kv channel model system exemplifies how linkage between alternative splicing and intrinsic disorder enables the functional diversity underlying changes in electrical signaling.
The Intricacies of Sprott-B System with Fractional-Order Derivatives: Dynamical Analysis, Synchronization, and Circuit Implementation
Authors: Lu Rending , Alexander Prasina , Natiq Hayder , Karthikeyan Anitha , Jafari Sajad , Petrzela Jiri
Published: September 2023

Studying simple chaotic systems with fractional-order derivatives improves modeling accuracy, increases complexity, and enhances control capabilities and robustness against noise. This paper investigates the dynamics of the simple Sprott-B chaotic system using fractional-order derivatives. This study involves a comprehensive dynamical analysis conducted through bifurcation diagrams, revealing the presence of coexisting attractors. Additionally, the synchronization behavior of the system is examined for various derivative orders. Finally, the integer-order and fractional-order electronic circuits are implemented to validate the theoretical findings. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the Sprott-B system and its fractional-order dynamics, with potential applications in diverse fields such as chaos-based secure communications and nonlinear control systems.
The Impact of Micro- and Nanoplastics on Aquatic Organisms: Mechanisms of Oxidative Stress and Implications for Human Health—A Review
Authors: Geremia Eugenio , Muscari Tomajoli Maria Teresa , Murano Carola , Petito Adriana , Fasciolo Gianluca
Published: September 2023

In recent years, interest in the impact of environmental pollutants on the ecosystem has increased significantly, with particular attention being paid to the relationship between climate change and the aquatic world. This is because increasing pollution is causing fundamental changes to the welfare of animals and the marine ecosystem. A primary focus is on the impact of microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs), as evidenced by our bibliometric network analysis (BNA). However, while research is focused on the accumulation of these pollutants in aquatic organisms, their effects on redox homeostasis are still seldom discussed despite the role played by reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial well-being in maintaining an optimal state of health. However, some scientific evidence suggests that the accumulation of MPs and NPs in organisms at the base of the trophic chain can cause a transfer of these substances towards more complex organisms, reaching humans through the consumption of aquatic fauna as food. Therefore, in this review, we have tried to discuss the effects of these substances on oxidative stress in aquatic organisms, even if studies in this regard are still scarce.
Silicon Uptake and Phytolith Morphology in Dendrocalamus brandisii Seedling Leaf from Different Rearing Methods
Authors: Dai Cefeng , Xu Rui , Yu Lixia , Zhu Fangwei , Li Maobiao , Li Juan , Wang Shuguang , Wang Changming , Zhan Hui
Published: September 2023

The moisture, ash, and silicon content, as well as the phytolith morphotype and concentration in the tissue-cultured, seed-cultured, and grafted seedling leaves of Dendrocalamus brandisii were determined to investigate the differences in silicon uptake and phytolith morphology in the leaves from different rearing methods. The results showed that ash, silicon content, and phytolith concentration were higher in the mature leaves. Tissue-cultured seedlings had a significantly higher moisture content than grafted seedlings. Ash and silicon demonstrated the same order of grafted seedlings > tissue-cultured seedlings > seed-cultured seedlings. The highest phytolith concentration was found in tissue-cultured seedlings. The phytolith morphotypes in D. brandisii seedling leaves raised by different methods were identical and grouped into eight morphotypes. The phytolith assemblage was characterized by a high frequency of bilobate and saddle, accounting for more than 60%, whereas the morphotypes of elongate, blocky, flabellate, and circular phytoliths accounted for the smallest proportion, normally all below 4.5%. The phytolith size demonstrated an increasing trend in the maturing leaves. The sizes of bilobate, saddle, and acute phytoliths expanded the fastest in tissue-cultured seedling leaves, implying rapid growth of the cell in tissue-cultured seedlings. Accordingly, the tissue-cultured seedlings contained more silicon and phytoliths of larger sizes, which could be a better choice of stock supply for establishing large-scale plantations. If the stock of the seed-cultured and grafted seedlings is to be used, silicon fertilizer application is an optimal option to boost seedling growth.
Effects of Water Control and Nitrogen Addition on Functional Traits and Rhizosphere Microbial Community Diversity of Haloxylon ammodendron Seedlings
Authors: Zhu Menghao , Jiang Lamei , Wu Deyan , Li Wenjing , Yang Huifang , He Xuemin
Published: September 2023

Water and nitrogen sources have always been the primary limiting factors for vegetation growth in arid and semi-arid regions and play an important role in the physiological ecology of vegetation. In this work, we studied the effects of water deficit and nitrogen addition on the physiological traits and rhizosphere bacterial microbial community of Haloxylon ammodendron seedlings in sterilized and non-sterilized soil habitats. A pot experiment was conducted to control the water and nitrogen sources of H. ammodendron seedlings. The water deficit treatment was divided into two groups based on gradient: a normal water group (CK, 70% field water holding capacity) and water deficit group (D, 30% field water holding capacity). The nitrogen addition treatment was divided into a no addition group (CK, 2.8 mg·kg−1) and addition group (N, 22.4 mg·kg−1). At the end of the growing season, the biochemical indexes of H. ammodendron seedlings were measured, and the rhizosphere soil was subjected to 16S rDNA-high-throughput sequencing to determine the rhizosphere bacterial community composition of H. ammodendron seedlings under different treatments. The results showed that the root-to-crown ratio of H. ammodendron seedlings increased significantly (p < 0.05) under the water deficit treatment compared to the control and nitrogen addition treatments, indicating that H. ammodendron seedlings preferred to allocate biological carbon to the lower part of the ground. In contrast, plant height and root length were significantly lower (p < 0.05) under water deficit treatment compared to the control, and no significant change was observed under water deficit and nitrogen addition compared to the control, indicating that water deficit inhibited the growth of H. ammodendron seedlings and nitrogen addition mitigated the effect of water deficit on the growth of H. ammodendron seedlings. Under sterilized soil conditions, both water deficit and nitrogen addition significantly increased the abundance and diversity of bacterial communities in H. ammodendron seedlings (p < 0.05). Conversely, under non-sterilized conditions, both inhibited the diversity of microbial bacterial communities, and the microbial characteristic species under different controls were different. Therefore, in the short-term experiment, H. ammodendron seedlings were affected by water deficit and allocated greater quantities of biomass to the underground part, especially in the non-sterile microbial environment; different initial soil conditions resulted in divergent responses of rhizosphere bacterial communities to water deficit and nitrogen addition. Under different initial soil conditions, the same water deficit and nitrogen addition treatment will lead to the development of distinct differences in rhizosphere bacterial community composition.
Land Cover Classification of Remote Sensing Images Based on Hierarchical Convolutional Recurrent Neural Network
Authors: Fan Xiangsuo , Chen Lin , Xu Xinggui , Yan Chuan , Fan Jinlong , Li Xuyang
Published: September 2023

Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and recurrent neural networks (RNNs) have gained improved results in remote sensing image data classification. Multispectral image classification can benefit from the rich spectral information extracted by these models for land cover classification. This paper proposes a classification model called a hierarchical convolutional recurrent neural network (HCRNN) to combine the CNN and RNN modules for pixel-level classification of multispectral remote sensing images. In the HCRNN model, the original 13-band information from Sentinel-2 is transformed into a 1D multispectral sequence using a fully connected layer. It is then reshaped into a 3D multispectral feature matrix. The 2D-CNN features are extracted and used as inputs to the corresponding hierarchical RNN. The feature information at each level is adapted to the same convolution size. This network structure fully leverages the advantages of CNNs and RNNs to extract temporal and spatial features from the spectral data, leading to high-precision pixel-level multispectral remote sensing image classification. The experimental results demonstrate that the overall accuracy of the HCRNN model on the Sentinel-2 dataset reaches 97.62%, which improves the performance by 1.78% compared to the RNN model. Furthermore, this study focused on the changes in forest cover in the study area of Laibin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which was 7997.1016 km2, 8990.4149 km2, and 8103.0020 km2 in 2017, 2019, and 2021, respectively, with an overall trend of a small increase in the area covered.
Evaluating the Impact of Long-Term Land Use Change and Age since Disturbance on Soil Faunal Diversity
Authors: Crotty Felicity Victoria , Demirer Umran Akkan , Norris Stuart Lee , Liu Wei , Murray Philip James
Published: September 2023

Soil organisms are the biological drivers of processes and functions that maintain soil properties and ecosystem services. Soil fauna contribute to nutrient turnover, decomposition and other important biogeochemical processes. This investigation assessed the diversity and abundance of soil arthropods (0.1–4 mm) along a chronosequence of land use types covering a relatively small geographical distance but with the same underlying soil type and climatic conditions. The compared habitats and the approximate ages since anthropogenic disturbance were ancient woodland (>200 y), old woodland (<200 y), unimproved semi-natural grassland (>50 y), willow/poplar coppice (>30 y), unimproved permanent pasture (<20 y), improved permanent pasture (<10 y), and recently grazed and reseeded grassland (>2 y), and the soil types of all habitats were the same within a 5 km radius. Land use type and age since anthropogenic disturbance significantly (p < 0.05) influenced the community composition of soil fauna, with richer arthropod communities found in woodlands compared with recently managed grassland. This study has confirmed a significant effect of land use type and age since disturbance on soil faunal diversity and community structure.
Trends in Research on Soil Organic Nitrogen over the Past 20 Years
Authors: Chen Shiyou , Jiang Chunqian , Wang Hui , Bai Yanfeng , Jiang Chunwu
Published: September 2023

Nitrogen (N), an indispensable mineral nutrient element for plant growth and development, is a major limiting source of productivity in many terrestrial ecosystems. Soil organic nitrogen (SON) is a crucial form of nitrogen (N) in the N cycle within terrestrial ecosystems, acting as either a “source” or a “sink” for environmental N release. In order to illustrate the research trends, evolution process and hotspots of SON, a bibliometric analysis was used to analyze 906 documents based on the ISI (Institute of Scientific Information) Web of Science (WoS) database. The results indicated that (1) the number of published papers on SON research showed a wavy growth from 2000 to 2022 and the research has entered a mature development period; China has been increasing its number of publications and has long been in the lead; (2) the most productive institutions and authors in this subject area are in the USA and China, with the Chinese Academy of Sciences being the key institution performing such research; (3) in the sample, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, Science of the Total Environment, and Biogeochemistry are the leading international journals that have played a key role in the evolution of the field and have laid a solid foundation for future research; (4) the characteristics and maintenance of SON in farmland and SON migration in small watersheds under forest conversion have become research hotspots. Through the in-depth analysis of SON research, this paper provides a better understanding of the development trends of SON over the past 20 years, which can also provide reference for future research.
Effects of Pine Wilt Disease on Rhizosphere Microbiota and Fine Root Fungi: Insights into Enzyme Activity, Ectomycorrhizal Infection and Microbial Composition
Authors: Jiao Ziwen , Gao Ziwen , Liao Yangchunzi , Liu Yi , Dong Lina , Sun Hui
Published: September 2023

Pine wilt disease (PWD), caused by the pine wood nematode (PWN) Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, poses a severe threat to pine forests worldwide. However, the understanding of the impact of PWD on the host microbiome remains limited. This study aimed to investigate the structure and function of the fungal community associated with Pinus thunbergii fine roots and the rhizosphere fungi and bacteria of the tree naturally infected by PWN and the healthy tree. We employed high-throughput sequencing in conjunction with functional prediction tools (Functional Annotation of Prokaryotic Taxa and Fungi Functional Guild) and soil enzyme activity measurements between the two treatments (disease vs. health). The results showed that PWD significantly decreased the activity of β-cellobiosidase (CEL) and β-glucosidase (GLS) enzymes involved in carbon cycling in the rhizosphere (p < 0.05). However, PWD did not alter the diversity of rhizosphere bacteria and fine root fungi, but it did cause a significant decrease in the richness of rhizosphere fungi (p < 0.05). Moreover, PWD significantly reduced the abundance of Actinobacteria and genus Gaiella (p < 0.05). Functionally, bacterial intracellular parasites exhibited a higher abundance in the rhizosphere after PWN infection, whereas ureolysis showed a lower abundance (p < 0.05). Fungal saprotroph–symbiotroph exhibited a higher abundance in the rhizosphere after PWN infection, whereas symbiotroph showed a lower abundance (p < 0.05). Additionally, it led to a significant reduction in the infection rate of ectomycorrhizal fungi (p < 0.05). Infected host fine root exhibited higher abundance of pathotroph–symbiotroph, whereas symbiotroph had a lower abundance (p < 0.05). These findings provided valuable insights into the interactions between pine wilt disease, plant microbial communities, and soil enzyme activity.
Nematode Community Characteristics Indicate Soil Restoration under Different Revegetation Approaches in the Semiarid Area of the Chinese Loess Plateau
Authors: Huang Jinghua , Huang Tianyuan , Chen Jing , Li Guoqing , Wang Zijun , Huo Na
Published: September 2023

Soil nematode communities can offer valuable indicators for monitoring the status of soil ecosystems. However, their potential for assessing soil restoration under revegetation has been neglected in temperate arid and semiarid areas. This study examined the characteristics of soil nematode communities and their relationships with soil physicochemical properties under five typical revegetation approaches in the semiarid Loess Plateau of China. The results showed that planting an artificial Caragana korshinskii forest led to the recovery of the soil food web, which significantly increased soil nematode abundance (138.10 ± 11.60 inds./100 g dry soil) and community diversity (Shannon-Wiener diversity: 2.48 ± 0.13; trophic diversity: 3.08 ± 0.02), associated with the high contents of SOC and NH4+-N. However, establishing an artificial Prunus sibirica forest improved neither soil properties nor nematode community characteristics, reflecting poor soil ecosystem restoration. After establishing an artificial Prunus davidiana forest (PD) and an artificial Medicago sativa grassland (MS), substantial increases in herbivorous and fungivorous nematodes were observed, respectively, likely due to the accumulation of particular genera that fed on roots (e.g., Pratylenchus) or their symbiotic fungi (e.g., Tylencholaimus), which might result in the deterioration (in MS) or restoration (in PD) of the soil food webs. Natural grassland restoration greatly improved soil properties (i.e., SOC, NH4+-N, microbial biomass carbon) but did not change the nematode community obviously, probably due to top-down predation in natural habitats. In conclusion, the characteristics of nematode communities can effectively indicate the restoration of soil food webs and identify their possible driving forces under revegetation, which have important implications for vegetation restoration in arid and semiarid regions.
FlameTransNet: Advancing Forest Flame Segmentation with Fusion and Augmentation Techniques
Authors: Chen Beiqi , Bai Di , Lin Haifeng , Jiao Wanguo
Published: September 2023

Forest fires pose severe risks, including habitat loss and air pollution. Accurate forest flame segmentation is vital for effective fire management and protection of ecosystems. It improves detection, response, and understanding of fire behavior. Due to the easy accessibility and rich information content of forest remote sensing images, remote sensing techniques are frequently applied in forest flame segmentation. With the advancement of deep learning, convolutional neural network (CNN) techniques have been widely adopted for forest flame segmentation and have achieved remarkable results. However, forest remote sensing images often have high resolutions, and relative to the entire image, forest flame regions are relatively small, resulting in class imbalance issues. Additionally, mainstream semantic segmentation methods are limited by the receptive field of CNNs, making it challenging to effectively extract global features from the images and leading to poor segmentation performance when relying solely on labeled datasets. To address these issues, we propose a method based on the deeplabV3+ model, incorporating the following design strategies: (1) an adaptive Copy-Paste data augmentation method is introduced to learn from challenging samples (Images that cannot be adequately learned due to class imbalance and other factors) effectively, (2) transformer modules are concatenated and parallelly integrated into the encoder, while a CBAM attention mechanism is added to the decoder to fully extract image features, and (3) a dice loss is introduced to mitigate the class imbalance problem. By conducting validation on our self-constructed dataset, our approach has demonstrated superior performance across multiple metrics compared to current state-of-the-art semantic segmentation methods. Specifically, in terms of IoU (Intersection over Union), Precision, and Recall metrics for the flame category, our method has exhibited notable enhancements of 4.09%, 3.48%, and 1.49%, respectively, when compared to the best-performing UNet model. Moreover, our approach has achieved advancements of 11.03%, 9.10%, and 4.77% in the same aforementioned metrics as compared to the baseline model.
Detection of Tree Species in Beijing Plain Afforestation Project Using Satellite Sensors and Machine Learning Algorithms
Authors: Zhang Xudong , Yu Linfeng , Zhou Quan , Wu Dewei , Ren Lili , Luo Youqing
Published: September 2023

Mapping tree species distributions in urban areas is significant for managing afforestation plans and pest infestations but can be challenging over large areas. This research compared the classification accuracy of three data sources and three machine learning algorithm combinations. It evaluated the cost benefit of various combinations by mapping the species distribution of the Beijing Plain Afforestation Project with a three-level hierarchical approach. First, vegetation and non-vegetation were mapped. Then, tree crowns were extracted from the vegetation mask. Finally, Decision Tree (DT), Support Vector Machines (SVM), and Random Forest (RF) were applied to the three data sources: Pléiades-1B, WorldView-2, and Sentinel-2. The tree species classification was based on the original bands and spectral and texture indices. Sentinel-2 performed well at the stand level, with an overall accuracy of 89.29%. WorldView-2 was significantly better than Pléiades-1 at the single-tree identification level. The combination of WorldView-2 and SVM achieved the best classification result, with an overall accuracy of 90.91%. This research concludes that the low-resolution Sentinel-2 sensor can accurately map tree areas while performing satisfactorily in classifying pure forests. For mixed forests, on the other hand, WorldView-2 and Pléiades-1, which have higher resolutions, are needed for single-tree scale classification. Compared to Pléiades-1, WorldView-2 produced higher classification accuracy. In addition, this study combines algorithm comparison to provide further reference and guidance for plantation forest classification.
The Different Factors Driving SOC Stability under Different N Addition Durations in a Phyllostachys edulis Forest
Authors: Wu Yue , Zeng Quanxin , Su Xianchu , Zheng Wei , Zhang Qiufang , Chen Yuehmin
Published: September 2023

As one of the most widespread driving forces in the world, atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can significantly alter the carbon cycling of ecosystems. In order to understand how N deposition regulates soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics and its underlying mechanisms, a 7-year N addition experiment was set in a Phyllostachys edulis forest with three N addition levels (+0, +20, and +80 kg N hm−2 year−1) to evaluate the effects of N addition on the concentration and stability of SOC fractions in the third, fifth, and seventh years. The results are as follows: (1) short-term (third year) N addition markedly increased SOC stability by decreasing the concentration of particulate organic carbon (POC) and increasing the mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC); longer duration of N addition (5 and 7 years) had an insignificant effect on SOC stability and fractions, suggesting that the effects of N deposition on the SOC stability varied under different duration regimes; (2) N addition did not significantly affect microbial community composition while increasing the ratio of fungi to bacteria (F:B) in the seventh year, and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and carbon use efficiency (CUE) were significantly increased in the short-term (third year) high N addition regime and enzyme activity was significantly increased in the seventh years’ high N addition regime; (3) variation partitioning analysis and multiple regression analysis showed that SOC fractions are mainly regulated by CUE and MBC under short-term N addition, while enzyme activity was mainly regulated under the longer duration of N addition. Our results show that SOC stability was more sensitive in the short term, and the role of microbial characteristics varied under different N addition durations in the P. edulis forests. Overall, our findings provide a new perspective for the responses of the SOC pool to N deposition and contribute to predicting SOC dynamics in terrestrial ecosystems under future climate change.
Current Achievements and Future Challenges of Genotype-Dependent Somatic Embryogenesis Techniques in Hevea brasiliensis
Authors: Wang Xiaoyi , Gu Xiaochuan , Xu Zhengwei , Yin Zhaochen , Yang Xianfeng , Lin Rong , Zhou Quannan , Huang Huasun , Huang Tiandai
Published: September 2023

The rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) is the most important commercial plant for producing natural rubber. Immature seed inner integument and anther-derived somatic embryogenesis techniques play a crucial role in the in vitro large-scale propagation and genetic transformation of the rubber tree. However, somatic embryogenesis is highly genotype-dependent, that is, only a limited number of H. brasiliensis genotypes, such as CATAS73397, CATAS917, and PB260, can be efficiently induced by somatic embryogenesis and used for large-scale propagation or transformation. The genotype dependence of the somatic embryogenesis technique is a conundrum for the application of Hevea biotechnology in most commercially important cultivars, such as Reken628 and CATAS879. Previous studies have shown that several somatic embryogenesis regulators can overcome genotype dependence and enhance the transformation and regeneration efficiency of recalcitrant plants and cultivars. In this review, we first describe the relevant successful applications of somatic embryogenesis technology in seedling production and genetic modification of H. brasiliensis. Second, we discuss the genotype dependence of somatic embryogenesis as the major challenge currently. Third, we summarize the recent significant advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying somatic embryogenesis in other plants. Finally, we suggest a roadmap for using somatic embryogenesis regulatory genes to facilitate genotype-dependent somatic embryogenesis technology in H. brasiliensis.
Influence of Urban-Road Green Space Plant Configurations on NO2 Concentrations in Nanjing City during Winter
Authors: Sheng Qianqian , Ji Yaou , Huang Zhengwei , Liu Congzhe , Dai Anqi , Zhu Zunling
Published: September 2023

The rapid urbanization and growing number of motor vehicles in China have led to a significant increase in NO2 emissions, posing a severe threat to the air quality in cities. Road traffic pollution has emerged as a significant environmental issue in China. Exploring the utilization of landscape plants for air pollutant mitigation and assessing the influence of various plant concentrations on reducing air pollution holds great significance in urban ecological environment protection and urban development. Through field surveys and data collection in January 2022, the objectives of this study are to explore the relationship between road meteorological factors and the reduction in air pollutant concentrations in Nanjing city’s road green spaces and to investigate the influence of plant configuration in road green spaces on pollutant concentration. The findings demonstrate a distinct positive correlation between road traffic volume during winter peak hours and the concentration of NO2 pollution gas. Furthermore, meteorological factors, including temperature and light intensity, strongly correlate with air pollutant concentrations. Open green spaces with ventilated structures and high tree planting density (deciduous trees are preferred) exhibit optimal purification effects. Excessive or insufficient planting density hinders the purifying function of green belts. In conclusion, our research on plant configurations and air pollutant concentrations in Nanjing City during the winter suggests that the recommended road green space plant configuration in Nanjing is a combination of arbor (deciduous tree), shrub, and grass.
Land Suitability Analysis for Forests in Lebanon as a Tool for Informing Reforestation under Climate Change Conditions
Authors: Jezzini Noura , Nassif Nadine , Mereu Valentina , Faour Ghaleb , Hassoun Georges , Mulas Maurizio
Published: September 2023

Along with the concept of improving reforestation efforts in Lebanon, this study aimed to provide a land suitability analysis for forest species in Lebanon while considering the effect of climate change. Herein, the soil evaluation criteria developed by FAO (The Food and Agriculture Organization) for land suitability classification were implemented through the weighted overlay method to produce suitability maps based on natural variables (soil, climate, and topography) influencing the presence of the species on the land. Cedrus libani, Quercus calliprinos, Ceratonia siliqua, Eucalyptus globulus, and Pinus halepensis are the species considered in this study. The results of this study provide useful information to inform reforestation activities in Lebanon, considering the expected climate change projections for medium- (2050) and long-term (2070) periods, according to two different scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) and three General Circulation Models: CCSM4, GFDL-CM3, and HadGEM2-ES. The suitability maps showed a generally critical situation for the spatial distribution of forest species under future climate change compared to the current situation (1970–2000). The distribution of thermophilic species, which tolerate high temperatures (over 20 °C), was projected to expand compared to the current situation. In contrast, the expansion of cold-adapted species may be limited by future climate change conditions. It is crucial to consider the expected effects of climate change to better select species for reforestation and, therefore, to maintain forest cover in Lebanon.
Computational Fluid and Particle Dynamics Analyses for Prediction of Airborne Infection/Spread Risks in Highway Buses: A Parametric Study
Authors: Yoo Sung-Jun , Yamauchi Shori , Park Hyungyu , Ito Kazuhide
Published: September 2023

Highway buses are used in a wide range of commuting services and in the tourist industry. The demand for highway bus transportation has dramatically increased in the recent post-pandemic world, and airborne transmission risks may increase alongside the demand for highway buses, owing to a higher passenger density in bus cabins. We developed a numerical prediction method for the spatial distribution of airborne transmission risks inside bus cabins. For a computational fluid dynamics analyses, targeting two types of bus cabins, sophisticated geometries of bus cabins with realistic heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning were reproduced. The passengers in bus cabins were reproduced using computer-simulated persons. Airflow, heat, and moisture transfer analysis were conducted based on computational fluid dynamics, to predict the microclimate around passengers and the interaction between the cabin climate and passengers. Finally, droplet dispersion analysis using the Eulerian–Lagrangian method and an investigation of the spatial distribution of infection/spread risks, assuming SARS-CoV-2 infection, were performed. Through parametric analyses of passive and individual countermeasures to reduce airborne infection risks, the effectiveness of countermeasures for airborne infection was discussed. Partition installation as a passive countermeasure had an impact on the human microclimate, which decreased infection risks. The individual countermeasure, mask-wearing, almost completely prevented airborne infection.
Involvement of Nucleotide Excision Repair and Rec-Dependent Pathway Genes for UV Radiation Resistance in Deinococcus irradiatisoli 17bor-2
Authors: Subramani Gayathri , Srinivasan Sathiyaraj
Published: September 2023

Strain Deinococcus irradiatisoli 17bor-2 was isolated from a soil sample exposed to γ radiation at Seoul Women’s University, Republic of Korea. The genus Deinococcus is a Gram-negative, coccus-shaped, and extremophilic bacterium, well renowned as being a radiation-resistant bacterium. Therefore, the mechanism behind the resistance to radiation and the gene responsible for the resistance could be helpful for detailed experimental studies with biotechnological applications. To study the involvement of genes in UV radiation resistance in strain 17bor-2, the genomic DNA of the strain was sequenced and constructed using the Pacific Biosciences RS II system. In addition, the complete genome sequence of strain 17bor-2 was annotated and interpreted using the Genomes–Expert Review (IMG-ER) system, along with Prodigal and JGI GenePRIMP analysis. The genome analysis of strain 17bor-2 revealed evidence of excinuclease UvrABC genes, which are key enzymes in the nucleotide excision repair (NER) mechanism, as well as genes from the recA-dependent and recQ pathways. The genome of strain Deinococcus irradiatisoli 17bor-2 was a circular chromosome comprising 3,052,043 bp with a GC content of 67.0%, including 2911 coding sequences (CDs), 49 tRNA genes, and 9 rRNA genes. In addition, their complete genome sequence annotation features provided evidence that radiation resistance genes play a central part in adaptation against extreme environmental conditions. In recent decades, excision repair genes have been indicated in considerable detail for both prokaryote and eukaryote resistance against UV-C radiation.
Sex Differences in Anderson–Fabry Cardiomyopathy: Clinical, Genetic, and Imaging Analysis in Women
Authors: Faro Denise Cristiana , Losi Valentina , Rodolico Margherita Stefania , Torrisi Elvira Mariateresa , Colomba Paolo , Duro Giovanni , Monte Ines Paola
Published: September 2023

Anderson–Fabry Disease (AFD) is a rare, systemic lysosomal storage disease triggered by mutations in the GLA gene, leading to α-galactosidase A (α-Gal A) deficiency. The disease’s X-linked inheritance leads to more severe, early-onset presentations in males, while females exhibit variable, often insidious, manifestations, notably impacting cardiac health. This study aims to examine gender-based AFD cardiac manifestations in correlation with the variant type: classical (CL), late-onset (LO), or variants of uncertain significance (VUS). We analyzed data from 72 AFD patients (53 females, 19 males) referred to the “G. Rodolico” University Hospital, employing enzyme activity measurements, genetic analysis, periodic lyso-Gb3 monitoring, comprehensive medical histories, and advanced cardiac imaging techniques. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 26. Our AFD cohort, with an average age of 45 ± 16.1 years, comprised 12 individuals with hypertrophy (AFD-LVH) and 60 without (AFD-N). Women, representing about 75% of the subjects, were generally older than men (47.2 ± 16.2 vs. 38.8 ± 14.6, p = 0.046). In the female group, 17% had CL variants, 43.3% LO, and 39.6% had VUS, compared to 21.1%, 36.8%, and 31.6% in the male group, respectively. Females exhibited significantly higher α-Gal A values (median 7.9 vs. 1.8 nmol/mL/h, p < 0.001) and lower lyso-Gb3 levels (1.5 [IQR 1.1–1.7] vs. 1.9 [1.5–17.3] nmol/L, p = 0.02). Regarding the NYHA class distribution, 70% of women were in class I and 28% in class II, compared to 84% and 16% of men, respectively. Among women, 7.5% exhibited ventricular arrhythmias (10.5% in men), and 9.4% had atrial fibrillation (10.5% in men). Cardiac MRIs revealed fibrosis in 57% of examined women, compared to 87% of men. Even among patients without LVH, significant differences persisted in α-Gal A and lyso-Gb3 levels (p = 0.003 and 0.04), as well as LVMi (61.5 vs. 77.5 g/sqm, p = 0.008) and GLS values (−20% vs. −17%, p = 0.01). The analysis underscored older age, decreased lyso-Gb3 deposition, reduced hypertrophy, and lesser GLS compromise in females, suggesting later disease onset. Severe cardiac patterns were associated with classic variants, while more nuanced manifestations were noted in those with VUS. Early GLS impairment in males, irrespective of hypertrophy, emphasized the role of subclinical damage in AFD.
Genes Involved in DNA Damage Cell Pathways and Health of the Oldest-Old (85+)
Authors: Šetinc Maja , Zajc Petranović Matea , Slivšek Goran , Mijač Sandra , Celinščak Željka , Stojanović Marković Anita , Bišof Vesna , Peričić Salihović Marijana , Škarić-Jurić Tatjana
Published: September 2023

Some sources report a connection of cellular senescence with chronic pathological conditions; however, the association between particular cellular processes and general health is rarely examined. This study aims to test the relationship of general health with DNA damage pathways that play a crucial role in senescence. The association of ten selected SNPs with subjective and objective general health and functional ability indicators has been tested in 314 oldest-old people from Croatia. Multivariate logistic regression was employed to simultaneously test the impact of variables potentially influencing targeted health and functional ability variables. The best model, explaining 37.1% of the variance, has six independent significant predictors of functional ability scores: rs16847897 in TERC, rs533984 in MRE11A, and rs4977756 in CDKN2B, chronic disease count, Mini-Mental State Examination scores, and age at surveying. In conclusion, the examined ten loci involved in DNA damage repair pathways showed a more significant association with self-rated health and functional ability than with the number of disease or prescribed medicaments. The more frequent, longevity-related homozygote (GG) in rs16847897 was associated with all three aspects of self-assessments—health, mobility, and independence—indicating that this TERC locus might have a true impact on the overall vitality of the oldest-old persons.
Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Genes as Prospective Actionable Targets in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Authors: Dancik Garrett M. , Varisli Lokman , Tolan Veysel , Vlahopoulos Spiros
Published: September 2023

It has been previously shown that the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) family member ALDH1A1 has a significant association with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patient risk group classification and that AML cells lacking ALDH1A1 expression can be readily killed via chemotherapy. In the past, however, a redundancy between the activities of subgroup members of the ALDH family has hampered the search for conclusive evidence to address the role of specific ALDH genes. Here, we describe the bioinformatics evaluation of all nineteen member genes of the ALDH family as prospective actionable targets for the development of methods aimed to improve AML treatment. We implicate ALDH1A1 in the development of recurrent AML, and we show that from the nineteen members of the ALDH family, ALDH1A1 and ALDH2 have the strongest association with AML patient risk group classification. Furthermore, we discover that the sum of the expression values for RNA from the genes, ALDH1A1 and ALDH2, has a stronger association with AML patient risk group classification and survival than either one gene alone does. In conclusion, we identify ALDH1A1 and ALDH2 as prospective actionable targets for the treatment of AML in high-risk patients. Substances that inhibit both enzymatic activities constitute potentially effective pharmaceutics.
Correlation between KRAS Mutation and CTLA-4 mRNA Expression in Circulating Tumour Cells: Clinical Implications in Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Aktar Sharmin , Islam Farhadul , Cheng Tracie , Gamage Sujani Madhurika Kodagoda , Choudhury Indra Neil , Islam Md Sajedul , Lu Cu Tai , Hamid Faysal Bin , Ishida Hirotaka , Abe Ichiro , Xie Nan , Gopalan Vinod , Lam Alfred K.
Published: September 2023

Combination strategies of KRAS inhibition with immunotherapy in treating advanced or recurrent colorectal carcinoma (CRC) may need to be assessed in circulating tumour cells (CTCs) to achieve better clinical outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the genomic variations of KRAS in CTCs and matched CRC tissues and compared mRNA expression of KRAS and CTLA-4 between wild-type and KRAS-mutated CTCs and CRC tissues. Clinicopathological correlations were also compared. Six known mutations of KRAS were identified at both codon 12 and codon 13 (c.35G>T/G12V, c.35G>A7/G12D, c.35G>C/G12A, c.34G>A/G12S, c.38G>C/G13A, and c.38G>A/G13D). Three CTC samples harboured the identified mutations (16.7%; 3/18), while fifteen matched primary tumour tissues (65.2%, 15/23) showed the mutations. CTCs harbouring the KRAS variant were different from matched CRC tissue. All the mutations were heterozygous. Though insignificant, CTLA-4 mRNA expression was higher in patients carrying KRAS mutations. Patients harbouring KRAS mutations in CTCs were more likely to have poorly differentiated tumours (p = 0.039) and with lymph node metastasis (p = 0.027) and perineural invasion (p = 0.014). KRAS mutations in CTCs were also significantly correlated with overall pathological stages (p = 0.027). These findings imply the genetic basis of KRAS with immunotherapeutic target molecules based on a real-time platform. This study also suggests the highly heterogeneous nature of cancer cells, which may facilitate the assessment of clonal dynamics across a single patient’s disease.
Factors Associated with Large Cup-to-Disc Ratio and Blindness in the Primary Open-Angle African American Glaucoma Genetics (POAAGG) Study
Authors: Mamidipaka Anusha , Di Rosa Isabel , Lee Roy , Zhu Yan , Chen Yineng , Salowe Rebecca , Addis Victoria , Sankar Prithvi , Daniel Ebenezer , Ying Gui-Shuang , O’Brien Joan M.
Published: September 2023

Background/Aims: Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) disproportionately affects individuals of African ancestry. In these patients’ eyes, a large cup-to-disc ratio (LCDR > 0.90) suggests greater retinal ganglion cell loss, though these patients often display varied visual ability. This study investigated the prevalence and risk factors associated with LCDR in African ancestry individuals with POAG and explored the differences between blind (>20/200) and not blind (≤20/200) LCDR eyes. Methods: A case–control methodology was used to investigate the demographic, optic disc, and genetic risk factors of subjects in the Primary Open-Angle African American Glaucoma Genetics Study. Risk factors were analyzed using univariable and multivariable logistic regression models with inter-eye correlation adjusted using generalized estimating equations. Results: Out of 5605 eyes with POAG, 1440 eyes (25.7%) had LCDR. In the multivariable analysis, LCDR was associated with previous glaucoma surgery (OR = 1.72), increased intraocular pressure (OR = 1.04), decreased mean deviation (OR = 1.08), increased pattern standard deviation (OR = 1.06), thinner retinal nerve fiber layer (OR = 1.05), nasalization of vessels (OR = 2.67), bayonetting of vessels (OR = 1.98), visible pores in the lamina cribrosa (OR = 1.68), and a bean-shaped cup (OR = 2.11). Of LCDR eyes, 30.1% were classified as blind (≤20/200). In the multivariable analysis, the statistically significant risk factors of blindness in LCDR eyes were previous glaucoma surgery (OR = 1.72), increased intraocular pressure (OR = 1.05), decreased mean deviation (OR = 1.04), and decreased pattern standard deviation (OR = 0.90). Conclusions: These findings underscore the importance of close monitoring of intraocular pressure and visual function in African ancestry POAG patients, particularly those with LCDR, to preserve visual function.
Genome-Wide Identification of BrCAX Genes and Functional Analysis of BrCAX1 Involved in Ca2+ Transport and Ca2+ Deficiency-Induced Tip-Burn in Chinese Cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis)
Authors: Cui Shuning , Liu Hong , Wu Yong , Zhang Lugang , Nie Shanshan
Published: September 2023

Calcium (Ca2+) plays essential roles in plant growth and development. Ca2+ deficiency causes a physiological disorder of tip-burn in Brassiceae crops and is involved in the regulation of cellular Ca2+ homeostasis. Although the functions of Ca2+/H+ exchanger antiporters (CAXs) in mediating transmembrane transport of Ca2+ have been extensively characterized in multiple plant species, the potential roles of BrCAX genes remain unclear in Chinese cabbage. In this study, eight genes of the BrCAX family were genome-widely identified in Chinese cabbage. These BrCAX proteins contained conserved Na_Ca_ex domain and belonged to five members of the CAX family. Molecular evolutionary analysis and sequence alignment revealed the evolutionary conservation of BrCAX family genes. Expression profiling demonstrated that eight BrCAX genes exhibited differential expression in different tissues and under heat stress. Furthermore, Ca2+ deficiency treatment induced the typical symptoms of tip-burn in Chinese cabbage seedlings and a significant decrease in total Ca2+ content in both roots and leaves. The expression changes in BrCAX genes were related to the response to Ca2+ deficiency-induced tip-burn of Chinese cabbage. Specially, BrCAX1-1 and BrCAX1-2 genes were highly expressed gene members of the BrCAX family in the leaves and were significantly differentially expressed under Ca2+ deficiency stress. Moreover, overexpression of BrCAX1-1 and BrCAX1-2 genes in yeast and Chinese cabbage cotyledons exhibited a higher Ca2+ tolerance, indicating the Ca2+ transport capacity of BrCAX1-1 and BrCAX1-2. In addition, suppression expression of BrCAX1-1 and BrCAX1-2 genes reduced cytosolic Ca2+ levels in the root tips of Chinese cabbage. These results provide references for functional studies of BrCAX genes and to investigate the regulatory mechanisms underlying Ca2+ deficiency disorder in Brassiceae vegetables.