Browse Articles

In vivo toxicity study of Dittrichia viscosa (L.) greuter fractions: evidence of safety for oral and dermal applications

Assessment of cognitive performance and fatigability in elite athletes: Short and portable protocols for field monitoring under hypoxia

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate whether short (~15 min) cognitive protocols can detect fatigability in normoxia versus normobaric hypoxia in elite youth athletes, using tasks directly transferable to the field. Methods Elite youth mogul skiers (18 ± 2 y) completed two studies. In Study I, 17 athletes (7 women) performed a cognitive test after a repeated tuck-jump protocol designed to mimic mid-training physical demands under two conditions in fixed order: sham normoxia (simulated 200 m) and normobaric hypoxia (3500 m, blood saturation ~88%). In Study II, 16 athletes (6 women) performed the same cognitive test without the jump task, with conditions randomized. In both studies, response time and accuracy during a 10-min color Multisource Interference Task (cMSIT) were used to assess cognitive performance, and a 3-min Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) was administered before and after the cMSIT to quantify fatigability. Cognitive tests were performed on portable tablet devices. Results After adjusting for baseline cognitive performance, cMSIT response time was greater in hypoxia than in normoxia in both Study I (10 ± 2%, p = 0.004) and Study II (4 ± 1%, p < 0.001). Accuracy remained high and similar across conditions in both studies (Study I: 96 ± 3%; Study II: 96 ± 0.5%; p > 0.09). In Study I, PVT response time increased only in hypoxia, from 363 ± 74 ms to 375 ± 89 ms (p = 0.021), and lapses increased from 1 ± 0.5 to 3 ± 2.5 (p < 0.001), whereas lapses remained unchanged in normoxia and in Study II (p > 0.82). In Study I, jump task performance showed a condition×set interaction (p = 0.048), with lower performance in the third set in hypoxia (19806 ± 2464 N·s) than in normoxia (20130 ± 3016 N·s; p = 0.012). Conclusions In elite youth athletes, hypoxemia reduces cognitive performance and could lead to increased fatigability. Importantly, hypoxia-related impairments are detectable with short portable cognitive assessments, which are promising tools for field monitoring, particularly when tasks combines cognitive and physical demands.

Comparative performance of inoculation strategies for garden waste composting: implications for biodegradation, sanitization and compost quality

Sustainable development of protein-fortified Quince (Cydonia oblonga) fruit leather using almond powder: Nutritional quality, antioxidant capacity, and tensile strength

Fruit leathers are delicious, convenient and shelf-stable alternative of fresh fruits offering benefits of valuable sources of nutrients, dietary fiber and bioactive compounds. The novelty of almond-fortified quince fruit leather lies in combining quince’s natural antioxidants and dietary fiber with the protein and healthy nutrients of almonds to produce nutritionally enriched, plant-based snack. This fortification improves the nutritional and functional value compared to conventional carbohydrate-rich fruit leathers. This research was done to assess the impact of adding almond powder as a protein fortifier in the quince fruit leather. Fruit leather samples were prepared by hot air drying at 65 °C for 8–12 hours. There were five formulations (T 0 ; control; 100% quince pulp), T 1 (95% quince pulp + 5% almond powder), T 2 (90% quince pulp + 10% almond powder), T 3 (85% quince pulp + 15% almond powder) and T 4 (80% quince pulp + 20% almond powder). The moisture content and nitrogen-free extract (NFE) reduced significantly among treatments (T 0 -T 4 ) with values of 23.22% −11.24% and 66.96% −15.79%, respectively. While, fat, fiber, protein and ash contents were significantly increased all over the treatments, with values recorded at T 0 -T 4 (6.60%−33.32%), (17.30%−32.72%), (0.63%−9.18%), and (3.53%−13.19%), respectively. The total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and DPPH radical scavenging activity were also increased significantly and ranged between 164.75 to 170.32 mg GAE/g, 82.91 to 90.38 mg QE/g and 58.29 to 71.53 mg TE/g in T 0 and T 4 , respectively. Water and oil absorption rates were reduced (T 0 -T 4 ) from 2.17 to 2.12 mg/g and 2.20 to 0.60 mg/g, respectively. The amount of vitamin C dropped considerably in T 0 (17.43 mg/100g) to T 4 (7.67 mg/100g), respectively. The addition of almond powder significantly affected the texture of quince fruit leather, with tensile strength decreasing from 1.46 MPa (T 0 ) to 0.04 MPa (T 4 ), elongation from 15.66% to 1.07%, and rupture strength from 64.93 N to 22.88 N, reflecting disruption of the pectin network and increased porosity caused by dispersed almond particles. Browning index rose substantially when almond powder is added, and it varies between 33.12 and 51.19 among T 0 -T 4 samples. This study indicated that the T 2 showed the best results and demonstrated high nutritional and tensile strength. This fruit leather could potentially be regarded as a high-nutrient, healthy and convenient alternative snack food.

Improvement of an autoencoder network for jointly information transfer by RIS and transmitter

Integrative metagenomics and structural bioinformatics identify explainable gut microbial variants associated with Crohn’s disease

Metagenomics has revealed disease-associated shifts in microbial taxa and functions in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. However, the role of genomic variation in gut commensals remains poorly understood. Here, we integrated metagenomic profiling, variant calling, and structural bioinformatics to identify disease-associated variants in the gut microbes. Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) showed significant negative associations with Bacteroides uniformis , Bacteroides vulgatus , and Eubacterium rectale . These bacteria exhibited 190,712 single-nucleotide polymorphisms, including 479 CD-specific and 235 UC-specific variants. Variant prioritization identified a CD-specific Val170Leu substitution in the conserved starch-binding domain of the Starch Utilization System D (SusD) protein in B. uniformis . Structural modeling and cyclodextrin docking indicated reduced binding affinity in the mutant, while 200-ns molecular dynamics simulations showed stable ligand retention only in the wild type. These findings suggest that impaired starch metabolism driven by SusD variation may contribute to B. uniformis depletion in CD and demonstrate the value of integrating metagenomics with structural analyses to identify functionally relevant microbial variants.

Oxidative stress induces nucleus pulposus cell senescence and metabolic substrate depletion-driven reprogramming: a multi-omics study

Estimating SARS-CoV-2 exposure in asymptomatic hospitalized children with cancer in Western Kenya: A retrospective analysis of serological data

Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns emerged that hospital-based care could increase the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection among pediatric patients with cancer, especially in resource-limited settings where the capacity to isolate patients would be challenging. Yet, infection rates in this population remain poorly documented, and it is unclear whether prior common human coronavirus (HCoV) exposures influence SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses. Here, we used serology to estimate SARS-CoV-2 exposure in children with and without cancer from Western Kenya and evaluated responses to common HCoVs to explore cross-reactivity. Methods We performed multiplex antibody profiling to assess SARS-CoV-2 and HCoV-specific responses in plasma from children with and without cancer sampled between 2014 and 2022. Unsupervised clustering identified participants with elevated SARS-CoV-2 seroreactivity relative to pre-pandemic samples. Seropositivity was further defined using a multi-antigen approach based on IgG levels to nucleocapsid and receptor-binding domain antigens to improve specificity. Cross-reactivity and cross-boosting by common HCoVs were evaluated through correlation analyses and groupwise comparisons of antibody levels, respectively. Results Of 564 children, 474 were healthy (184 pre-pandemic; 290 post-pandemic) and 90 had cancer (16 pre-pandemic; 74 post-pandemic). Post-pandemic, 69% (200) of healthy controls exhibited elevated SARS-CoV-2 seroreactivity, with 51% (148) meeting the criteria for seropositivity. Children with cancer showed similar rates of seroreactivity (67%) and seropositivity (57%) after adjusting for sampling year, with incidence increasing annually from 2020 to 2022. Pre-pandemic samples exhibited weak cross-reactivity to HCoV-OC43 which increased following SARS-CoV-2 infection; however, no significant boosting of HCoV antibodies was observed. Conclusions These findings indicate widespread SARS-CoV-2 exposure among children in Western Kenya and provide no evidence that hospitalization heightened infection risk for pediatric patients with cancer.

Optimization and predictive measurement of compressive strength of iron ore slag modified concrete using data-driven supervised machine learning algorithms

Dual paths of information behavioral choice influenced by information and emotion: The moderating effect of user credibility

In public opinion events, social media is often used as an important channel for the public to collect, process, and share information, and the topics and information on social media stimulates people to behave in creating related contents. This study integrates the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) to examine how information topics (central cue) and emotional responses (peripheral cue) shape user information behavior (likes, comments, forwards), and how user credibility moderates these effects. 56,663 Weibo posts (August 22 to September 5, 2023) about “Japan’s announcement of nuclear contaminated water discharge” were used for empirical analysis. Topics were identified via Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), yielding four categories: Japanese aquatic products trade (Topic 1, 1.850%), seawater blackening (Topic 2, 8.822%), radioactivity exceedance (Topic 3, 13.286%), and global impact (Topic 4, 76.043%). Seven emotions were scored using the Dalian University of Technology affective lexicon. User credibility was coded from verification type. Baseline regression controlling for richness, mention, hashtags, URL, and text length showed that information topics significantly increased likes (β range: 0.164 to 0.333, p < 0.001), comments (β range: 0.063 to 0.138, p < 0.001), and forwards (β range: 0.083 to 0.156, p < 0.001), with the largest effects on likes. For emotions, anger, disgust, good and surprise positively influenced information behaviors (β range: 0.004 to 0.060, p < 0.01 to p < 0.001), while sadness, happy and fear showed negative or non‑significant effects. User credibility positively moderated all these relationships, with interaction β values ranging from 0.010 to 0.066 for topics and from 0.006 to 0.040 for emotions. Likes were the most influenced behavior, followed by forwards, then comments. The study demonstrates that information topics and emotions, moderated by user credibility, drive distinct information behaviors. Authorities should leverage high‑credibility users, highlight impactful topics, and monitor emotional tones, especially negative ones, to guide public opinion effectively.

Differential inhibition of bark endophytes and a wood-decay fungus by inner bark of Sorbus commixta

The effect of social media interaction on consumer engagement: The role of psychological ownership

Social media interaction plays a crucial role in shaping consumer–brand relationships and enhancing engagement behavior. Drawing on social exchange theory, this study investigates how social media interaction fosters psychological ownership, thereby strengthening consumer engagement. An online questionnaire survey is conducted among 590 social media users via the Wenjuanxing platform to collect empirical data, which is analysed using a structural equation model. The results show that consumer–consumer interaction and consumer–seller interaction are positively related to four dimensions of consumer engagement: purchases, referrals, influence, and knowledge. In addition, psychological ownership mediates the effects of consumer–consumer interaction and consumer–seller interaction on influence and knowledge. The study also shows that the professionalism of opinion leaders positively moderates the impact of consumer–seller interaction on psychological ownership. This study contributes to theory by clarifying the psychological mechanisms underlying social media interaction and providing actionable insights for companies seeking to enhance consumer engagement and improve marketing performance.

Dynamic urban land surface monitoring in developing countries using remote sensing and machine learning: real-time investigational approach

Clinico-epidemiological insights and treatment practices of bovine lumpy skin disease in Bangladesh

Background Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is an emerging viral disease of cattle in Bangladesh, first reported in 2019. Given the critical role of veterinarians in disease detection, management, and control, it is essential to evaluate their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding the clinical and epidemiological aspects of LSD and its treatment strategies. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among early-career veterinarians using a cluster random sampling technique to assess epidemiological insights and clinical practices regarding the LSD outbreak in the field. Results All veterinary practitioners were aware of LSD, and 83.67% had previously managed LSD cases. Approximately 92% of cases of LSD are diagnosed clinically, primarily by observing circumscribed skin nodules, either alone or with other characteristic lesions. Nearly 69% considered clinical signs alone sufficient for diagnosis, although 73.62% reported diagnostic confusion with other diseases, including cowpox (29%) and papillomatosis (21%). Various treatment strategies were reported, with 43.22% of veterinarians supporting the use of antibiotics, and 60.5% using antibiotics in combination with other drugs. Notably, 62.06% recognized the potential for antibiotic resistance due to frequent use during LSD treatment. While 55.78% observed no drug-related side effects, 81.16% acknowledged occasional adverse effects. Regarding epidemiological perceptions, 85.56% believed that LSD affects cattle of all ages, 94.67% associated it with both sexes, and 67.03% reported no breed predisposition. Most (75.28%) linked disease occurrence to the hot and humid season. Perceived modes of transmission included mechanical transmission by arthropod vectors (33.69%), direct contact (22.19%), and a combination of both (16.84%). Conclusion Bangladeshi veterinarians demonstrated sound knowledge, positive attitudes, and practical experience with LSD that aligns with current global scientific understanding. However, gaps remain in differential diagnosis and antimicrobial stewardship, warranting targeted training and policy interventions to address these needs.

Improved workflow for Single-Channel Seismic surveys in offshore wind farm site assessments: a case study from Fangchenggang, Guangxi

Editorial Note: Damage and failure of underground subway stations under different soil constraint conditions

Deep learning-based hybrid analysis for axonal regeneration and myelination in rat sciatic nerve

Joint modelling of PSA dynamics and prostate cancer risks: A population-based study in men without prior prostate cancer

While the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is a widely used prostate cancer screening tool, its application remains controversial. Opportunistic PSA testing generates complex data in which testing intensities, PSA levels, and prostate cancer diagnosis are interdependent. Conventional analyses rarely model these processes jointly. The objective of this study was to develop a population-based joint model to analyse PSA dynamics, retesting patterns, and prostate cancer risk. We used the Stockholm Prostate Cancer Diagnostics Register to identify 506,761 men with at least one PSA test between 2003 and 2020. We fitted a joint model linking three components: a linear mixed-effects submodel for PSA over age, and two proportional hazards submodels for time to next PSA test and time to prostate cancer diagnosis. PSA increased nonlinearly with age, with substantial between-person heterogeneity and increasing unexplained variation with increasing age. Estimates from models fitted to each time-to-event process separately were attenuated relative to the joint model: hazard ratios per doubling of PSA were 1.61 (95% CI: 1.59-1.62; P < .001) versus 2.01 (95% CI: 1.99-2.02; P < .001) for prostate cancer diagnosis, respectively, and 1.068 (95% CI: 1.066-1.070; P < .001) versus 1.163 (95% CI: 1.161-1.165; P < .001) for retesting, respectively. This pattern is consistent with informative observation bias: men with higher PSA values are tested more frequently, so that part of the association between PSA and the event is absorbed by the unmodelled observation mechanism when the processes are analysed separately. Jointly modelling PSA, testing intensity, and diagnosis through shared random effects accounts for this dependence. As a limitation, the study is primarily limited by its observational nature and a lack of data on non-cancer factors that can elevate PSA, such as urinary tract infections or lower urinary tract symptoms. In conclusion, jointly modelling PSA dynamics and testing behaviour corrects for the informative observation bias inherent in opportunistic testing. This approach yields more accurate population estimates compared to traditional isolated models. Our findings suggest that PSA dynamics may be clinically informative and that screening models should jointly incorporate testing history and PSA trajectories to improve precision.

Graphene-based flexible antenna for wearable and biomedical devices

Abstract Flexible antenna design is described in this study, prototyping of a flexible graphene-based antenna for data transmission from wearable arm and abdomen imaging equipment over a 5G network. The antenna uses an 18-μm-thick graphene thin sheet for the conductive and ground radiating patch. The proposed design operates in the from 25.2–40.2 GHz frequency band and it based on the radiation patch fractal structure which allowed for adequate antenna flexibility. The invention is appropriate for wearable applications because the patch was constructed on a flexible polyamide substrate that was 1.575 mm thick. In terms of the radiation pattern, gain, and antenna reflection coefficient, the proposed design is studied and analyzed. Additionally, a time-domain signal analysis between two antennas as transmitter and receiver was carried out to mimic wearable device real-time communication. A 3D modeling and analysis of a flexible 5G antenna for communication in the arm to assess its basic electromagnetic properties is introduced. Also the design was used with abdomen in order to replicate actual biological settings, detect and track tumor growth and dissemination throughout the body. The simulation results showed that the antenna shows simulated sensitivity to tumor-induced dielectric changes, particularly in its advanced stages.

Field evaluation of spring wheat genotypes reveals differential resistance to Zymoseptoria tritici in Ethiopia

Septoria tritici blotch (STB), caused by Zymoseptoria tritici , is a major disease of spring wheat in Ethiopia and worldwide. This study evaluated 45 spring wheat genotypes for adult plant resistance under natural infection at Holetta Agricultural Research Center during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. Disease was assessed using two methods: (i) visual estimation of disease severity (DS) as the percentage of leaf area with necrotic lesions bearing pycnidia; and (ii) pycnidial density within lesions scored on a 0–5 scale to classify resistance levels. Combined analysis of variance across years showed significant effects (P ≤ 0.01) of year, genotype, and genotype × year interaction. Genotype accounted for 42.81% of the total variance in mean disease severity (from early grain filling to 70% flag leaf infection with pycnidia-bearing necrosis) and 42.3% of the variance in AUDPC. Mean severity ranged from 46.46% to 73.49% in 2022 and 8.73% to 71.71% in 2023, while pycnidial density ranged from 2.23% to 35.7% and 1.21% to 45.47% in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Four reaction classes were identified: resistant (24.4% and 25.2%), moderately resistant (30.4% and 24.4%), moderately susceptible (22.2% and 20.7%), and susceptible (22.96% and 29.63%) in 2022 and 2023, respectively. ‘Catbird’ was the most susceptible cultivar, whereas ‘Gondo’ was the most resistant. Cluster analysis grouped the cultivars into eight clusters based on STB severity and AUDPC, including two clusters (six genotypes) with resistant responses. These clusters did not include the differential lines used to characterize Z. tritici races, suggesting that the underlying resistance genes require further molecular characterization. The resistant genotypes (Blouk #1, 6B662, Coulter, Erik, Gondo, and ETW17–115) were effective against pathotypes virulent to major Stb genes present in Veranopolis ( Stb2 , Stb6 ), Shafir ( Stb6 ), and Estanzuela Federal ( Stb7 ). Disease severity and AUDPC were negatively correlated with plant height, number of tillers per plant, spike length, number of seeds per spike, thousand kernel weights, and grain yield. Correspondence and principal component analyses identified three major groups among the 45 genotypes: resistant, high-yield potential, and susceptible. The resistant genotypes identified here provide valuable material for breeding programs targeting improved resistance to Z. tritici .