bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Uptake and effectiveness of a mobile application for real-time reporting and quality assurance of decentralized SARS-CoV-2 testing in Uganda
Authors: Nansumba Hellen , Nambuya Proscovia , Wafula Jackson , Laiton Namutebi , Kadam Rigveda , Akinwusi Olukunle , Suleiman Khairunisa , Akugizibwe Paula , Ssewanyana Isaac
Published: June 2023

Background

Effective management of the COVID-19 pandemic required rapid expansion of diagnosis. The introduction of antigen tests presented an opportunity to decentralize testing, but raised challenges with ensuring accurate and timely reporting of testing data, which is essential to guide the response. Digital solutions can help address this challenge and provide more efficient means of monitoring and quality assurance.

Methods

Uganda’s existing laboratory investigation form was digitized in the form of an Android-based application, eLIF, which was developed by the Central Public Health Laboratory and implemented in 11 high-volume facilities between December 2021 and May 2022. The app enabled healthcare workers to report testing data via mobile phone or tablet. Uptake of the tool was monitored through a dashboard that enabled real-time visibility into data being transmitted from sites, as well as qualitative insights from site visits and online questionnaires.

Results and discussion

A total of 15,351 tests were conducted at the 11 health facilities during the study period. Of these, 65% were reported through eLIF, while 12% were reported through preexisting Excel-based tools. However, 23% of tests were only captured in paper registers and not transmitted to the national database, illustrating the need for increased uptake of digital tools to ensure real-time data reporting. While data captured through eLIF were transmitted to the national database within 0–3 days (min, max), data transmitted through Excel were transmitted in within 0–37 days (min, max), and data for paper-based reporting took up to 3 months. The majority of healthcare workers interviewed in an endpoint questionnaire responded that eLIF improved timeliness of patient management, and reduced reporting time. However, some functions of the app were not successfully implemented, such as providing random selections of samples for external quality assurance and enabling seamless linkage of these data. Challenges arose from broader operational complexities, such as staff workload, frequent task-shifting and unexpected changes to facility workflows, which limited adherence to the envisioned study procedures. Ongoing improvements are needed to adjust to these realities, to strengthen the technology and support to healthcare workers using it, to optimize the impact of this digital intervention.
“Something very taboo”: a qualitative exploration of beliefs, barriers, and recommendations for improving mental health care and access for Hispanic adults in the Paso del Norte U.S.-Mexico border region
Authors: Mallonee Jason , Escalante Rosa , Robles Eden Hernandez , Tucker Christal
Published: June 2023

Background

Hispanic adults with mental health conditions in the United States experience disproportionate access to and utilization of professional mental health treatment. This is believed to be in part due to systemic barriers and challenges, difficulty accessing care, cultural factors, and stigma. Studies to date have failed to examine these specific factors within the unique context of the Paso del Norte U.S.-Mexico border region.

Methods

For this study, 25 Hispanic adults identifying primarily of Mexican descent participated in four focus groups exploring these topics. Three groups were facilitated in Spanish and one group in both English and Spanish. Focus groups followed a semi-structured format eliciting perspectives on mental health and mental illness, help-seeking, barriers and facilitators of help-seeking and treatment access, and recommendations for mental health agencies and providers.

Results

Qualitative data analysis yielded the following themes: understanding of mental health and help-seeking; barriers to accessing care; mental health treatment facilitators; and recommendations for agencies, providers, and researchers.

Conclusion

Findings from this study support the need for innovative mental health engagement strategies to reduce stigma, increase understanding of mental health, foster support systems, reduce individual and systemic barriers to seeking and accessing care, and to continue to engage communities in mental health outreach and research.
Analysis of 13-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine among children born in Hangzhou from 2017 to 2021
Authors: Che Xinren , Chen Qinghua , Liu Yan , Gu Lintao , Lu Zhaojun , Gu Wenwen , Wang Jun , Jiang Wei , Du Jian , Zhang Xiaoping , Xu Yuyang , Zhang Xuechao , Wang Jing , Xie Qixin , Yang Yingying
Published: June 2023

Background

13-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine (PCV13) has been introduced in Hangzhou since 2017, whereas its current immunization state in children is not clear. Therefore, this study aims to describe the PCV13 vaccination distribution among children born in Hangzhou from 2017 to 2021 to provide data for reducing vaccination differences among different populations.

Methods

Descriptive epidemiology was used for data analysis and PCV13 vaccination related information of children was collected from children vaccination management system of Zhejiang Province (ZJCVMS).

Results

Among the 649,949 children born in Hangzhou from 2017 to 2021, 169,230 were vaccinated with an average full course vaccination rate of 26.0%. The full course vaccination rates in 5 years were different (P = 0.000) with an increasing trend (Pfortrend < 0.01). The first dose vaccination rates were different in 5 years (P = 0.000) with an increasing trend (Pfortrend < 0.01). The distribution of age when first dose PCV13 was administered varied, most people at 2 months and least people at 5 months. The full course vaccination rate varied by areas, highest in central urban areas and lowest in remote areas respectively (all P-value < 0.05). Overall, the full course vaccination rate of PCV13 was higher in the registered residence population than the non-registered residence population, which was 136,693 (31.4%) and 32,537 (15.1%) respectively (P = 0.000). The full course vaccination rates were the same between men and women (P = 0.502), which was 87,844 for men (26.0%) and 81,386 for women (26.1%).

Conclusion

Although the number of people who received PCV13 full course vaccination and received the first dose vaccination showed yearly increasing trends in Hangzhou, the full course vaccination rate for the whole population was relatively low. In addition, the PCV13 vaccination rates also differed by geography and household registration status. Measures such as expanding vaccination publicity or including national immunization should be taken to increase vaccination rates and reduce the differences in vaccination among groups with different characteristics.
Neurotrophic effects of intermittent fasting, calorie restriction and exercise: a review and annotated bibliography
Authors: Mayor Eric
Published: June 2023

In the last decades, important progress has been achieved in the understanding of the neurotrophic effects of intermittent fasting (IF), calorie restriction (CR) and exercise. Improved neuroprotection, synaptic plasticity and adult neurogenesis (NSPAN) are essential examples of these neurotrophic effects. The importance in this respect of the metabolic switch from glucose to ketone bodies as cellular fuel has been highlighted. More recently, calorie restriction mimetics (CRMs; resveratrol and other polyphenols in particular) have been investigated thoroughly in relation to NSPAN. In the narrative review sections of this manuscript, recent findings on these essential functions are synthesized and the most important molecules involved are presented. The most researched signaling pathways (PI3K, Akt, mTOR, AMPK, GSK3β, ULK, MAPK, PGC-1α, NF-κB, sirtuins, Notch, Sonic hedgehog and Wnt) and processes (e.g., anti-inflammation, autophagy, apoptosis) that support or thwart neuroprotection, synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis are then briefly presented. This provides an accessible entry point to the literature. In the annotated bibliography section of this contribution, brief summaries are provided of about 30 literature reviews relating to the neurotrophic effects of interest in relation to IF, CR, CRMs and exercise. Most of the selected reviews address these essential functions from the perspective of healthier aging (sometimes discussing epigenetic factors) and the reduction of the risk for neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease) and depression or the improvement of cognitive function.
Development of an American and Australian co-designed youth mental health literacy program
Authors: Grové Christine , Marinucci Alexandra , Riebschleger Joanne
Published: June 2023

Adolescence is marked by a high prevalence of mental health concerns, with approximately 14% of young individuals receiving a diagnosis of a mental illness disorder. This figure is projected to rise in the future. However, barriers such as limited access to mental health services, a shortage of mental health professionals, and the enduring stigma surrounding mental health prevent many adolescents from seeking help, potentially resulting in long-term negative outcomes. To address these challenges, an evidence-based mental health literacy program implemented within schools offers a promising avenue for imparting knowledge and improving adolescents' mental well-being. This paper presents a mental health literacy and action program specifically tailored for adolescents, developed in collaboration with professionals, teachers, parents, and adolescents themselves. Lessons learned from program development and implementation in Australia and the United States are shared, providing insights into the process of designing and executing such programs. By enhancing mental health literacy and promoting help-seeking behaviors, this program has the potential to facilitate positive changes in adolescents' mental health outcomes.
Enhancers are genes that express organizational RNAs
Authors: Mattick John S.
Published: June 2023

A longstanding enigma in molecular biology is the lack of scaling of protein-coding genes with developmental complexity, referred to as the g-value paradox. On the other hand, a feature of the evolution of multicellular organisms is the emergence of genetic loci termed “enhancers,” which control the spatiotemporal patterns of gene expression during development. Enhancer action has been widely interpreted in terms of an early model that postulated that transcription factors bound at enhancers are brought into juxtaposition with the promoters of target genes. This model tacitly assumed that there is no trans-acting gene product of enhancers, but subsequent studies have shown that enhancers are transcribed in the cells in which they are active. Like protein-coding genes, enhancers produce short bidirectional transcripts and long alternatively spliced RNAs, albeit at lower levels due to their transitory and cell-specific regulatory functions. The evidence indicates that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) expressed from enhancers (elncRNAs) guide the formation of phase-separated transcriptional hubs and the epigenetic modifications to direct cell fate decisions during animal and plant ontogeny. Many, and likely most, lncRNAs are elncRNAs, which should be recognized as a bona fide class of gene products alongside mRNAs, rRNAs, tRNAs, snoRNAs, miRNAs and others of established function, with sequences specifying elncRNAs comprising an increasing fraction of genomic information as developmental complexity increases.
Short Report: Barriers and facilitators to parents' implementation of a transdiagnostic eHealth sleep intervention for children with neurodevelopmental disorders
Authors: Jemcov Anastasija , Rosenberg Lindsay , Tan-MacNeill Kim , Smith Isabel M. , Weiss Shelly K. , Corkum Penny
Published: June 2023

Background

Insomnia is highly prevalent in children diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) and has negative effects on physical and mental health and wellbeing. Lack of evidence-based intervention programs and barriers to treatment (e.g., time/cost) reduce treatment access. To address these problems, the possibility was explored of modifying the Better Nights, Better Days intervention for typically developing (TD) children (BNBD-TD) to make it appropriate for children with NDD.

Aims

The current study's aim was to examine qualitative data from exit interviews conducted during a usability study. Parents of children with NDD used BNBD-TD and reported on barriers and facilitators experienced while implementing the intervention.

Methods/procedures

Participants were 15 Canadian parents of children aged 4 to 10 years who were formally diagnosed with an NDD. Parents implemented the BNBD-TD intervention with their children and participated in a semi-structured exit interview to provide perspectives on their user experience.

Results

Based on an inductive thematic analysis, key facilitators included increased self-efficacy, positive outcomes for the family (e.g., improved sleep problems, parent validation), improved sleep related beliefs/attitudes, and increased motivation. Key barriers included time challenges, struggles when trying to improve sleep problems, and psychosocial factors with negative effects on implementation (e.g., burnout, stress, and/or exhaustion).

Conclusions/implications

Barriers and facilitators identified resulted in recommendations to include more program supports, including helping parents to plan for implementation success.
“Beyond being analysts of doom”: scientists on the frontlines of climate action
Authors: Artico Daniele , Durham Sarah , Horn Laura , Mezzenzana Francesca , Morrison Malik , Norberg Anna
Published: June 2023

What happens when scientists become activists? In this paper, we discuss the principles, commitments and experiences of Scientist Rebellion (SR), a movement of scientists, academics, and researchers committed to activism, advocacy and non-violent civil disobedience against the (in)actions of governments, corporations and other institutions, including academic ones. In sharing experiences from the frontlines of direct actions with SR along with the perspectives from individual scientists, coming from a variety of geographical locations, and a range of academic levels and disciplines, we reflect on the need to transgress the boundaries of a system of knowledge production and education that is effectively reproducing the very structures that have led us into climate and ecological crises. This article provides a reflective and critical engagement with Scientist Rebellion, drawing on a range of interviews with activists, as well as material from and about Scientist Rebellion. We conclude with a reflection on the relation between scientists and their institutions, as well as a mobilizing plea to the scientific community to take action.
The water pivot: transforming unsustainable consumption to valuing water as a resource for life
Authors: Bowman Bryony M. , Abbott-Donnelly Ian , Barsoum Jean-François , Williams Peter , Hunt Dexter V. L. , Rogers Chris D. F.
Published: June 2023

Water is a resource essential for all life and on which society depends but undervalues. This paper presents theories on methods to pivot from linear, extractive uses of water to considering water as a high value, circular resource. Analysis of the literature, which is primarily focused at the abstractor scale, has highlighted the prioritization of human water rights over environmental needs without incorporating the ramifications of environmental degradation and the complexities of applying a market-driven approach to a heterogeneous resource particularly at the domestic consumer level. A discussion of the relationship between society and water, in particular mechanisms that have been used to reduce water consumption, highlights the complexity of this issue and the need to consider fairness and equity at the global and local scales. A comparison of global, urban water supply and sanitation costs shows the extensive variation in the amounts of water consumed and the prices paid at the domestic consumer scale. Finally, a series of hypotheses are presented that, with local development, testing and refinement, are posited to bring about change in the value society places on water.
High-resolution mapping of snow cover in montane meadows and forests using Planet imagery and machine learning
Authors: Yang Kehan , John Aji , Shean David , Lundquist Jessica D. , Sun Ziheng , Yao Fangfang , Todoran Stefan , Cristea Nicoleta
Published: June 2023

Mountain snowpack provides critical water resources for forest and meadow ecosystems that are experiencing rapid change due to global warming. An accurate characterization of snowpack heterogeneity in these ecosystems requires snow cover observations at high spatial resolutions, yet most existing snow cover datasets have a coarse resolution. To advance our observation capabilities of snow cover in meadows and forests, we developed a machine learning model to generate snow-covered area (SCA) maps from PlanetScope imagery at about 3-m spatial resolution. The model achieves a median F1 score of 0.75 for 103 cloud-free images across four different sites in the Western United States and Switzerland. It is more accurate (F1 score = 0.82) when forest areas are excluded from the evaluation. We further tested the model performance across 7,741 mountain meadows at the two study sites in the Sierra Nevada, California. It achieved a median F1 score of 0.83, with higher accuracy for larger and simpler geometry meadows than for smaller and more complexly shaped meadows. While mapping SCA in regions close to or under forest canopy is still challenging, the model can accurately identify SCA for relatively large forest gaps (i.e., 15m < DCE < 27m), with a median F1 score of 0.87 across the four study sites, and shows promising accuracy for areas very close (>10m) to forest edges. Our study highlights the potential of high-resolution satellite imagery for mapping mountain snow cover in forested areas and meadows, with implications for advancing ecohydrological research in a world expecting significant changes in snow.
Research for development approaches in mixed crop-livestock systems of the Ethiopian highlands
Authors: Mekonnen Kindu , Thorne Peter , Gebreyes Million , Hammond James , Bezabih Melkamu , Kemal Seid Ahmed , Tamene Lulseged , Agegnehu Getachew , Yahaya Rabe , Gebrekirstos Aster , Thai Minh , Sharma Kalpana , Adie Aberra , Whitbread Anthony
Published: June 2023

This study presents processes and success stories that emerged from Africa RISING's Research for Development project in the Ethiopian Highlands. The project has tested a combination of participatory tools at multiple levels, with systems thinking and concern for sustainable and diversified livelihoods. Bottom-up approaches guided the selection of technological interventions that could address the priority farming system challenges of the communities, leading to higher uptake levels and increased impact. Joint learning, appropriate technology selection, and the creation of an enabling environment such as the formation of farmer research groups, the establishment of innovation platforms, and capacity development for institutional and technical innovations were key to this study. The study concludes by identifying key lessons that focus more on matching innovations to community needs and geographies, systems orientation/integration of innovations, stepwise approaches to enhance the adoption of innovations, documenting farmers' capacity to modify innovations, building successful partnerships, and facilitating wider scaling of innovations for future implementation of agricultural research for development projects.
Effects of antibiotics (enrofloxacin) on microbial community of water and sediment in an aquatic ecological model
Authors: Dai Yue , Peng Jin-Ju , Zhang Teng-Yue , Xie Xing-Peng , Luo Shuai-Shuai , Liu Wen-Chao , Ma Yi
Published: June 2023

In order to explore the impact of antibiotics (enrofloxacin) on microbial community in aquatic environment, an indoor aquatic ecological model was built, and different concentrations of enrofloxacin (0.05, 0.5, 5, and 50 mg/L) were added in the aquatic ecological model. In addition, the water and sediment samples were collected on the 0, 7, 30, and 60 days, and the changes in microbial community were studied through 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. The results showed that when the concentration of enrofloxacin was 50 mg/L, the relative abundance of Actinomycetes was increased. In the water, the bacterial richness and diversity communities first decreased and then gradually recovered with the passage of time; On the 7th day, the diversity and richness index of species in the treatment groups with enrofloxacin at 5 and 50 mg/L decreased to the lowest; On the 30th day, the diversity and richness index of species began to rise; On the 60th day, the diversity index and richness index of water species began to increase, while the diversity index and richness index of sediment species decreased. In conclusion, the addition of enrofloxacin negatively affected the microbial community structure in an indoor aquatic ecological model, 50 mg/L enrofloxacin could increase the relative abundance of Actinomycetes, and decrease the diversity and richness index of water and sediment.
Oxford nanopore technologies—a valuable tool to generate whole-genome sequencing data for in silico serotyping and the detection of genetic markers in Salmonella
Authors: Thomas Christine , Methner Ulrich , Marz Manja , Linde Jörg
Published: June 2023

Bacteria of the genus Salmonella pose a major risk to livestock, the food economy, and public health. Salmonella infections are one of the leading causes of food poisoning. The identification of serovars of Salmonella achieved by their diverse surface antigens is essential to gain information on their epidemiological context. Traditionally, slide agglutination has been used for serotyping. In recent years, whole-genome sequencing (WGS) followed by in silico serotyping has been established as an alternative method for serotyping and the detection of genetic markers for Salmonella. Until now, WGS data generated with Illumina sequencing are used to validate in silico serotyping methods. Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) opens the possibility to sequence ultra-long reads and has frequently been used for bacterial sequencing. In this study, ONT sequencing data of 28 Salmonella strains of different serovars with epidemiological relevance in humans, food, and animals were taken to investigate the performance of the in silico serotyping tools SISTR and SeqSero2 compared to traditional slide agglutination tests. Moreover, the detection of genetic markers for resistance against antimicrobial agents, virulence, and plasmids was studied by comparing WGS data based on ONT with WGS data based on Illumina. Based on the ONT data from flow cell version R9.4.1, in silico serotyping achieved an accuracy of 96.4 and 92% for the tools SISTR and SeqSero2, respectively. Highly similar sets of genetic markers comparing both sequencing technologies were identified. Taking the ongoing improvement of basecalling and flow cells into account, ONT data can be used for Salmonella in silico serotyping and genetic marker detection.
Folding Every Point on a Polygon Boundary to a Point
Authors: Phetmak Nattawut , Fakcharoenphol Jittat
Published: June 2023

We consider a problem in computational origami. Given a piece of paper as a convex polygon P and a point f located within, we fold every point on a boundary of P to f and compute a region that is safe from folding, i.e., the region with no creases. This problem is an extended version of a problem by Akitaya, Ballinger, Demaine, Hull, and Schmidt that only folds corners of the polygon. To find the region, we prove structural properties of intersections of parabola-bounded regions and use them to devise a linear-time algorithm. We also prove a structural result regarding the complexity of the safe region as a variable of the location of point f, i.e., the number of arcs of the safe region can be determined using the straight skeleton of the polygon P.
The Porcupine Measure for Comparing the Performance of Multi-Objective Optimization Algorithms
Authors: Scheepers Christiaan , Engelbrecht Andries
Published: June 2023

In spite of being introduced over twenty-five years ago, Fonseca and Fleming’s attainment surfaces have not been widely used. This article investigates some of the shortcomings that may have led to the lack of adoption of this performance measure. The quantitative measure based on attainment surfaces, introduced by Knowles and Corne, is analyzed. The analysis shows that the results obtained by the Knowles and Corne approach are influenced (biased) by the shape of the attainment surface. Improvements to the Knowles and Corne approach for bi-objective Pareto-optimal front (POF) comparisons are proposed. Furthermore, assuming M objective functions, an M-dimensional attainment-surface-based quantitative measure, named the porcupine measure, is proposed for comparing the performance of multi-objective optimization algorithms. A computationally optimized version of the porcupine measure is presented and empirically analyzed.
Aerodynamic Analysis of an Orthogonal Octorotor UAV Considering Horizontal Wind Disturbance
Authors: Lei Yao , Li Yazhou , Wang Jie
Published: June 2023

In this paper, the aerodynamic performance of an orthogonal octorotor UAV considering horizontal wind disturbances is investigated with numerical simulations and experiments. To obtian the effect of horizontal wind on the flight efficiency of the orthogonal octorotor UAV, the power consumption and thrust with different wind speeds (0–4 m/s) and rotational speeds (1500–2300 RPM) are measured in a low-speed wind tunnel. Also, the velocity distribution of downwash flow, blade tip vortex distribution, streamline distribution and rotor blade tip pressure distribution of the orthogonal octorotor UAV were simulated by the computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The test results show that the thrust is increased at lower wind speed compared with 0 m/s. Specifically, it increased by 8.1% at 2 m/s and 8.8% at 4 m/s, respectively. It is interesting to note that the increased power consumption caused by the interference of horizontal wind at a higher rotor speed leads to a decrease in power loading (PL). Additionally, the thrust increased with a higher PL at low speed, where the PL achieved the maximum for the wind of 2.5 m/s and obtained a better aerodynamic performance. Compared with traditional octorotor UAVs and eight equivalent isolated rotors, the orthogonal octorotor UAV has also been proven to obtain good wind resistance. Simulation results show that the increase in wind speed and rotor speed will make the flow field more complex and the airflow interference between rotors more intense, which leads to changes in rotor thrust and power consumption.
Influence of Biofungicides Containing Microorganisms Such as Pythium oligandrum and Bacillus subtilis on Yield, Morphological Parameters, and Pathogen Suppression in Six Winter Pea Cultivars
Authors: Klimek-Kopyra Agnieszka , Dłużniewska Joanna , Sikora Adrian
Published: June 2023

Field peas (Pisum sativum L.) are a valuable source of protein and help to support crop biodiversity in a sustainable agriculture system. To maintain varied crop rotation in sustainable production, it is advisable to include the winter form of pea, which is an excellent alternative to the spring form. However, the prolonged development of winter peas when weather patterns are unfavorable can adversely affect the morphological features and the health of the plants. The literature lacks studies on this issue. The objective of this study was to evaluate the morphological characteristics, yield, and canopy health of selected cultivars of winter peas. The study was conducted at the Prusy Experimental Station of the University of Agriculture in Krakow, located near Krakow, Poland (50°07′28″ N, 20°05′34″ E), during two growing seasons. The study evaluated six cultivars of winter peas and two means of protecting the canopy, with biological products containing Pythium oligandrum (Polyversum WP) or Bacillus subtilis (Serenade ASO). The yield, yield structure, efficiency of N uptake, and health of the plants were assessed. Crop protection treatments using Polyversum WP and Serenade ASO were shown to effectively protect winter peas against Fusarium wilt, which occurred only in the Specter and Arkta cultivars sprayed with Serenade. Polyversum WP increased the productivity of winter peas on average by 0.5 t ha−1 and increased the efficiency of nitrogen uptake on average by 10 kg ha−1 in comparison to the control. The Aviron and Arkta cultivars are recommended for cultivation in the conditions of Central Europe due to their high yield potential, high efficiency of nitrogen uptake, and good canopy health.
Impact of Urbanization on Cropping Structure: Empirical Evidence from China
Authors: Gao Yanlei , Tian Yuan , Tan Guangwan , Wang Xiudong
Published: June 2023

Food security is a national priority and a cornerstone for maintaining national and regional stability. Focusing on cropping structure directly related to food security, this paper estimates the causal effect of urbanization on cropping restructuring in China. We use provincial panel data between 2000 and 2019 and threshold regression models to identify potential structural mutation characteristics. This study is an attempt to fill the cognitive gap for the nonlinear relationship between urbanization and cropping restructure. Urbanization formed agricultural labor supply constraints that significantly increased the share of sown area of grain crops, but with obvious threshold characteristics, and the effect of urbanization on cropping structure was no longer significant after crossing the threshold. Urbanization in the main grain-producing regions and main grain-selling regions promoted the adjustment of cropping structure in the direction of grain but was not significant in balanced production and marketing regions. Short-distance urbanization did not bring significant effects on cropping restructuring. We propose several suggestions for cultivated land planting structure, urbanization, and food security.
Exploring the Hype of Blockchain Adoption in Agri-Food Supply Chain: A Systematic Literature Review
Authors: Yogarajan Lovina , Masukujjaman Mohammad , Ali Mohd Helmi , Khalid Norlin , Osman Lokhman Hakim , Alam Syed Shah
Published: June 2023

This study examines the effect of blockchain adoption on the agri-food supply chain. A systematic literature review approach was used to analyze and synthesize the findings from the existing literature, focusing on fundamental research themes, research gaps, and the direction of future research on the impact of blockchain adoption in the agri-food supply chain. Twenty-seven full-length articles were considered and thematically analyzed in this study. The authors identified eight themes from the literature, including factors responsible for blockchain adoption and new research areas such as digitalization and the impact after adoption. These themes shed light on the agri-food supply chain practices following the adoption of blockchain technology. Moreover, this study provides a foundation for strategic and policy initiatives in the agri-food industry involving blockchain technology. The findings indicate that critical factors driving blockchain technology adoption in the agri-food industry include ensuring food traceability and transparency, food safety and security, food supply and logistics, food integrity, environmental awareness, and reducing food waste. Additionally, this study highlights the importance of guidelines and policy-level involvement after adopting blockchain technology, particularly in facilitating accurate quantification and promoting digitalization to address challenges and streamline processes. The study concludes by suggesting future research avenues for blockchain technology in the supply chain domain.
Technological Capabilities for the Adoption of New Technologies in the Agri-Food Sector of Mexico
Authors: Vargas-Canales Juan Manuel
Published: June 2023

Agriculture 4.0 and 5.0 generate good expectations of satisfying the growing demand for food in a sustainable way. However, in order to make effective use of scientific and technological developments, infrastructure, knowledge, experience and skills are required. In this sense, the objective of this research was to analyze the technological capacity of the Mexican agri-food sector for the adoption of new technologies. The documentary research method was used, and the information was obtained from the Encuesta Nacional Agropecuaria, the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía and the Instituto Mexicano para la Competitividad. A cluster analysis was performed to generate a typology of states, in addition to an analysis of variance with the Kruskal–Wallis H Test for independent samples, for which the IBM® SPSS Statistics program was used. The variables analyzed presented very low values, indicating low technological capabilities. Three clusters of states with different technological capabilities were identified. The first was formed of four states in the north of the country with high technological capabilities, for which it was expected that they would have higher adoption rates. Next, there was a group made up of ten states in the north and center of the country with intermediate technological capabilities. Finally, there was a group of 18 states of the country made up of states from the center and south of the country, which present the lowest levels. The results indicate that the technological capacities for the adoption of new technologies in the Mexican agri-food sector are low in general, and are concentrated in some highly specialized regions linked to international markets.
Ascophyllum nodosum (L.) Le Jolis, a Pivotal Biostimulant toward Sustainable Agriculture: A Comprehensive Review
Authors: Kumari Sangeeta , Sehrawat Krishan D. , Phogat Deepak , Sehrawat Anita R. , Chaudhary Ravish , Sushkova Svetlana N. , Voloshina Marina S. , Rajput Vishnu D. , Shmaraeva Antonina N. , Marc Romina Alina , Shende Sudhir S.
Published: June 2023

Algae are existing macroscopic materials with substantial benefits, including as important growth regulators and macronutrients and micronutrients for the growth of healthy crop plants. Biofertilizers obtained from algae are identified as novel production fertilizers or innovative biofertilizers without the detrimental impacts of chemicals. Seaweeds contain many water-soluble minerals and nutrients that plants can easily absorb and that are valuable for crop plants’ growth. At present, Ascophyllum nodosum (L.) Le Jolis extract outperforms chemical fertilizers in terms of increasing seed germination, plant development, and yield, as well as protecting plants from severe biotic and abiotic stresses. A. nodosum contains bioactive compounds that exhibit an array of biological activities such as antibiotic, anti-microbial, antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-obesity, and anti-diabetic activities. A. nodosum extract (AnE) contains alginic acid and poly-uronides that improve soil’s water-carrying ability, morsel structure, aeration, and capillary action, stimulating root systems in plants, increasing microbial activity in soil, and improving mineral absorption and availability. The scientific literature has comprehensively reviewed these factors, providing information about the different functions of A. nodosum in plant growth, yield, and quality, the alleviation of biotic and abiotic stresses in plants, and their effects on the interactions of plant root systems and microbes. The application of AnE significantly improved the germination rate, increased the growth of lateral roots, enhanced water and nutrient use efficiencies, increased antioxidant activity, increased phenolic and flavonoid contents, increased chlorophyll and nutrient contents, alleviated the effects of abiotic and biotic stresses in different crop plants, and even improved the postharvest quality of different fruits.
Nutrient Cycling and Nitrogen Management Impact of Sowing Method and Soil Water Consumption on Yield Nitrogen Utilization in Dryland Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)
Authors: Ding Pengcheng , Noor Hafeez , Shah Anis Ali , Yan Zhouzuo , Sun Peijie , Zhang Limin , Li Linghong , Jun Xian , Sun Min , Elansary Hosam O. , Gao Zhiqiang
Published: June 2023

The current study was designed to investigate the best sowing method that encourages dry matter accumulation to increase dryland wheat yield, grain quality, and protein content. Three different seeding methods were applied: (I) wide-space sowing (WSS), (II) furrow sowing, and (III) drill sowing. Two nitrogen levels, namely low nitrogen (N1) and high nitrogen (N2), were also applied, and the pure nitrogen was 150 kg ha−1 and 210 kg ha−1, respectively. Wide-space sowing significantly increased the ears and yield production, the maximum, and average grain-filling rate while furrow sowing delayed the disappearance of the population after anthesis, increased the duration of grain filling, and then significantly increased the number of spikes and the 1000-grain weight increased, respectively. Drill sowing compared to wide-space sowing significantly increased the content of nitrogen in the grain of the nitrogen harvest index, and it increased the content of protein and the yield of protein, respectively. In addition, the grain yield and protein yield of wide-precision sowing were significantly higher than that of trench sowing. Our findings suggest that wide-space sowing was beneficial for increasing water consumption during the growth period, increasing the tiller dynamics, improving the plant dry matter quality, and increasing the grain protein.
An Improved Craig–Gordon Isotopic Model: Accounting for Transpiration Effects on the Isotopic Composition of Residual Water during Evapotranspiration
Authors: Lu Yanwei , Wen Mingyi , Li Peiyue , Liang Jiaping , Wei Haoyan , Li Min
Published: June 2023

Evapotranspiration (ET) is a crucial process in the terrestrial water cycle, and understanding its stable isotopic evolution is essential for comprehending hydrological processes. The Craig–Gordon (C-G) model is widely used to describe isotopic fractionation during pure evaporation. However, in natural environments, ET involves both transpiration (T) and evaporation (E), and the traditional C-G model does not account for the effect of transpiration on isotopic fractionation. To address this gap, we propose the evapotranspiration-unified C-G (ET-UCG) model, which extends the C-G model by incorporating transpiration’s effect on water isotopes. We verified the validity of the ET-UCG model by comparing its simulation results with the traditional C-G model’s discrete results for a special scenario that simulated the isotopic evolution of residual water after daily transpiration consumption. Further, we simulated two different ET process scenarios using the ET-UCG model to investigate transpiration’s effect on the residual water’s isotopic composition. Our numerical experiments show that transpiration indirectly affects the degree of water isotope fractionation by reducing the true evaporation ratio, even though it does not directly produce isotope fractionation. Therefore, the isotopic composition of residual water estimated by the ET-UCG model is consistently lighter than that estimated using the traditional C-G model in the simulation of ET. Despite different T/ET conditions, the isotopic evolution process follows the same evaporation line. These results highlight the importance of considering transpiration effects when using the C-G model and provide valuable insights into ET processes with potential applications in the field.
Biochar Addition with Water and Fertilization Reduction Increases Soil Aggregate Stability of 0–60 cm Soil Layer on Greenhouse Eggplant in Mollisols
Authors: Xu Sisi , Zhou Meng , Chen Yimin , Sui Yueyu , Jiao Xiaoguang
Published: June 2023

Biochar application affects the soil organic carbon (SOC) content and distribution, which is relevant to facility agriculture and soil aggregates. However, how the fertilization management of facility agriculture affects the SOC content and aggregate stability at different soil depths in Mollisols is unclear. Intended to provide a basis for developing a reasonable fertilizer amount when adding biochar, the facility vegetable eggplant in Northeast China was used to explore the effects of biochar addition on the distribution and SOC content of whole soils and the organic carbon (OC) content of aggregates of each size in the profile (0–100 cm) of Mollisols. Three treatments were set up: WF (conventional application amounts of water and fertilizer), WFB (conventional application amounts of water and fertilizer and added biochar), and 80%W80%FB (20% water reduction and 20% fertilizer reduction and added biochar). The results demonstrated that the 80%W80%FB treatment significantly increased the SOC content by 56.1% and 34.0% in whole soils at a 0–20 cm soil depth compared to WF and WFB treatments, respectively. Simultaneously, compared with WF and WFB treatments, the significant increase in the OC content of 1–0.25 mm sized aggregates of 81.4–130.2% and 4.3–10.1% and the enhanced proportion of >2 mm sized aggregates of 0.22–16.15- and 0.33–0.83-fold both improved aggregate stability in the 0–20 cm soil layer under the 80%W80%FB treatment, which was proven to result in 32.6% and 30.6% increments in the weight diameter (MWD) value. Therefore, biochar addition with water and fertilizer reductions increases surface soil aggregate stability for greenhouse eggplants in Mollisols.
A Machine Vision-Based Method for Tea Buds Segmentation and Picking Point Location Used on a Cloud Platform
Authors: Lu Jinzhu , Yang Zhiming , Sun Qianqian , Gao Zongmei , Ma Wei
Published: June 2023

The segmentation and positioning of tea buds are the basis for intelligent picking robots to pick tea buds accurately. Tea images were collected in a complex environment, and median filtering was carried out to obtain tea bud images with smooth edges. Four semantic segmentation algorithms, U-Net, high-resolution network (HRNet_W18), fast semantic segmentation network (Fast-SCNN), and Deeplabv3+, were selected for processing images. The centroid of the tea buds and the image center of the minimum external rectangle were calculated. The farthest point from the centroid was extracted from the tea stalk orientation, which was the final picking point for tea buds. The experimental results showed that the mean intersection over union (mIoU) of HRNet_W18 was 0.81, and for a kernel with a median filter size of 3 × 3, the proportion of abnormal tea buds was only 11.6%. The average prediction accuracy of picking points with different tea stalk orientations was 57%. This study proposed a fresh tea bud segmentation and picking point location method based on a high-resolution network model. In addition, the cloud platform can be used for data sharing and real-time calculation of tea bud coordinates, reducing the computational burden of picking robots.
Spectral Response of Camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz) to Different Nitrogen Fertilization Regimes under Mediterranean Conditions
Authors: Clemente Clarissa , Ercolini Leonardo , Rossi Alessandro , Foschi Lara , Grossi Nicola , Angelini Luciana G. , Tavarini Silvia , Silvestri Nicola
Published: June 2023

Knowledge about the spectral response of camelina under different regimes of nitrogen (N) fertilization is very scarce. Therefore, 2-year open-field trials were carried out in the 2021 and 2022 growing seasons with the aim of evaluating the spectral response of spring camelina to four different N fertilization regimes by using remote (UAV) and proximal (leaf-clip Dualex) sensing techniques. The tested treatments were: (i) control: no N application (T0); (ii) top dressing: 60 kg N ha−1 before stem elongation (T1); basal dressing: 60 kg N ha−1 at sowing (T2); basal + top dressing combination: 60 kg N ha−1 at sowing + 60 kg N ha−1 before stem elongation (T3). Camelina seed yield and N use efficiency were strongly affected by fertilization regimes, with the best results obtained at T2. A reduction in plant development and seed yield was detected in 2022, probably due to the rise in air temperatures. A significant effect of both growing season and N fertilization was observed on the photosynthetic pigments content with the T1 highest values in 2022. The highest seed oil content was achieved at T1, while the protein content increased with increasing N, with the best values at T3. Positive and significant correlations were observed among several vegetation indices obtained through UAV flights (NDVI, MRS705, FGCC) and seed yield, as well as between FGCC and leaf N concentration. Overall, these findings demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing remote sensing techniques from UAVs for predicting seed yield in camelina.
LSR-YOLO: A High-Precision, Lightweight Model for Sheep Face Recognition on the Mobile End
Authors: Zhang Xiwen , Xuan Chuanzhong , Xue Jing , Chen Boyuan , Ma Yanhua
Published: June 2023

The accurate identification of sheep is crucial for breeding, behavioral research, food quality tracking, and disease prevention on modern farms. As a result of the time-consuming, expensive, and unreliable problems of traditional sheep-identification methods, relevant studies have built sheep face recognition models to recognize sheep through facial images. However, the existing sheep face recognition models face problems such as high computational costs, large model sizes, and weak practicality. In response to the above issues, this study proposes a lightweight sheep face recognition model named LSR-YOLO. Specifically, the ShuffleNetv2 module and Ghost module were used to replace the feature extraction module in the backbone and neck of YOLOv5s to reduce floating-point operations per second (FLOPs) and parameters. In addition, the coordinated attention (CA) module was introduced into the backbone to suppress non-critical information and improve the feature extraction ability of the recognition model. We collected facial images of 63 small-tailed Han sheep to construct a sheep face dataset and further evaluate the proposed method. Compared to YOLOv5s, the FLOPs and parameters of LSR-YOLO decreased by 25.5% and 33.4%, respectively. LSR-YOLO achieved the best performance on the sheep face dataset, and the mAP@0.5 reached 97.8% when the model size was only 9.5 MB. The experimental results show that LSR-YOLO has significant advantages in recognition accuracy and model size. Finally, we integrated LSR-YOLO into mobile devices and further developed a recognition system to achieve real-time recognition. The results show that LSR-YOLO is an effective method for identifying sheep. The method has high recognition accuracy and fast recognition speed, which gives it a high application value in mobile recognition and welfare breeding.