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The mitochondria-targeted antioxidant MitoQ has been regarded as an effective antioxidant agent against cryo-induced oxidative cellular damage. This study aimed to evaluate the use of different doses of MitoQ combined with trehalose to minimize mitochondrial impairment and oxidative stress during sperm cryopreservation of Markhoz goat. For this, semen samples (n = 50) were collected by electroejaculation every 5 days from 5 bucks in 10 replicates. On each collection day, 5 ejaculates (one ejaculate for each buck) were pooled and then diluted in eight different Tris-based extenders as follows: no additives (control), 20, 200, 2000 nM of MitoQ (MT20, MT200, MT 2000, respectively), 150 mM of trehalose (Tr), MT20+Tr, MT200+Tr, MT2000+Tr. The semen samples were frozen using a standard protocol, and sperm function and oxidative stress were evaluated after thawing. The semen extender supplemented with MT200+Tr had higher (P < 0.05) total and progressive motility, acrosome and membrane integrity, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, total antioxidant capacity, and lower (P < 0.05) DNA fragmentation, malondialdehyde and intracellular hydrogen peroxide levels than the all other groups except MT200; meanwhile, MT200 was also improved (P < 0.05) in these parameters than in the control group. Furthermore, MT200 and MT200+Tr showed higher (P < 0.05) percentages of live cryopreserved sperm with high mitochondrial activity than other groups. However, abnormality percentage and catalase activity of frozen-thawed sperm were not affected by treatments (P > 0.05). To conclude, we have found that supplementation of 200 nM MitoQ alone or in combination with 150 mM trehalose to semen extender improved the quality of cryopreserved sperm in goats, which is associated with enhanced antioxidant enzymatic defense and mitochondrial activity and reduced DNA fragmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The depletion of fossil energy reserves and the environmental pollution caused by these sources highlight the need to harness renewable energy sources from the oceans, such as waves and tides, due to their high potential. On the other hand, the large-scale deployment of ocean energy converters to meet future energy needs requires the use of large farms of these converters, which may have negative environmental impacts on the ocean ecosystem. In the meantime, a very important point is the volume of data produced by different methods of collecting data from the ocean for their analysis, which makes the use of advanced tools such as different machine learning algorithms even more colorful. In this article, some environmental impacts of ocean energy devices have been analyzed using machine learning and quantum machine learning. The results show that quantum machine learning performs better than its classical counterpart in terms of calculation accuracy. This approach offers a promising new method for environmental impact assessment, especially in a complex environment such as the ocean. • Investigating the environmental impacts of ocean renewable energy. • Using AI and machine learning for marine environmental impacts analysis. • Introducing quantum computing to assess and analysis marine environmental impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bitter melon is a medicinal plant for treating many diseases, such as diabetes. However, this plant has a bitter taste, and encapsulation is an appropriate method for its use in food formulations. In this study, bitter melon extract-loaded nanoliposomes were prepared at different concentrations of extract (0.5 and 1%) and lecithin (1, 3, and 5%), and then added to the prepared yogurt. Physicochemical properties and sensory evaluation of yogurt samples were investigated. The results showed that adding encapsulated extract did not affect the pH and acidity of yogurt samples, but it significantly reduced syneresis and increased viscosity. With increasing lecithin concentration, the index L * and b * decreased, and the index a* increased. Sensory evaluation of yogurt samples demonstrated that the samples containing nanoliposomes scored higher in odor, texture, taste, color, and overall acceptability than those containing free extract. Examining charantin release from the nanoliposomes in yogurt in simulated gastrointestinal conditions showed a slow and controlled release. The best model for the release of nanoencapsulated compounds was the first-order equation. The results of this study proved the high efficiency of nanoliposomes for loading the bioactive compounds of bitter melon extract and the possibility of using it in food formulations. • Bitter melon-loaded liposomes had no effect on the pH and acidity of yogurt samples. • Samples containing liposomes had the highest viscosity and the lowest syneresis. • Samples containing liposomes had more b* and a* and less L* than the control sample. • The first-order equation was the best model for the encapsulated compound release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Steel slag is a by-product of steelmaking which has emerged as a potential CO 2 sequestration material due to its high reactivity and abundance. This research investigates the use of steel slag waste for the direct capture of carbon from air and its storage through mineral carbonation. Two abundant wastes, blast-furnace slag (BFS) and ladle slag (LS), were tested for their carbon sequestration potential, and the effects of operational parameters such as reaction time between CO 2 and slag waste, temperature, liquid-solid ratio, and pressure on CO 2 sequestration were determined. Quantitative and qualitative results reveal that much higher CO 2 sequestration was achieved using LS compared to BFS after exposure to CO 2 for 1 day at room temperature. By increasing the exposure time to four days, levels of CO 2 sequestration increased gradually from 2.71% to 4.19% and 23.46%–28.21% for BFS and LS respectively. Increasing the temperature from 20 ± 2 °C to 90 ± 2 °C positively influenced CO 2 sequestration in BFS, resulting in an enhancement from 3.45% to 13.21%. However, the impact on LS was insignificant, with sequestration levels rising from 27.72% to 29.90%. Moreover, better CO 2 sequestration was observed for BFS than LS when the liquid-to-solid ratio increased from 3:1 to 4:1, whereupon the sequestration potential reached approximately 15% for BFS and 30% for LS at 90 ± 2 °C. Meanwhile, higher pressure reduced the sequestration potential of slag. The results of this study suggest that there is potential for scaling up the process to industrial applications and contributing to the reduction of CO 2 emissions in the steelmaking industry. [Display omitted] • The use of BFS and LS as potential waste materials for carbon capture and storage. • Effect of time, temperature, liquid-solid ratio, and pressure on steel-slags' carbonation. • Increasing time and temperature improved CO 2 sequestration, particularly for BFS. • The negative impact of a higher liquid-solid ratio and pressure on CO 2 uptake. • LS achieved twice as much CO 2 sequestration as BFS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sol–gel chemistry is a unique method for constructing high-performance flexible sensors. Sol-gel silica matrices doped with a controlled amount of sensing agent (dopant) lead to the fabrication of suitable sensors. According to this knowledge , we decided to describe the development and performance characteristics of the sol-gel glasses with a nanoporous structure as the novel naked eye sensor for fast detection of oxalate based on the incorporation of indole inside pores of the silica matrix obtained by sol–gel technology. Several sols were made with different water: alkoxide ratios and pHs to design a highly sensitive and selective thin film without dopant leaching. The Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) technique was employed to evaluate the surface morphology and porosity growth. Also, the sol–gel films were characterized by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The optimum performance in terms of sensitivity, leaching, and response time was achieved using water: alkoxide ratio of 4:1, water acidity (HCl concentration) of 0.01 M, and ethanolic solution of Indole 0.01 mol L-1. The calibration plot was obtained within 0.01–6.00 μg mL−1 of oxalate with a detection limit value of 0.005 μg mL−1. Meanwhile, the prepared sensor exhibited excellent and acceptable RSDs for both inter-day and intra-day precision. The present sensor was used to measure oxalate in various samples and investigate the effects of the celeryʼs cooking time and the brewing duration of tea on oxalate content. [Display omitted] • Well-ordered porous silica aerogel was used to product oxalate sensor. • Sensor is based on incorporation of indole inside the nanopores of silica. • Oxalate can be measured in the range of 0.01 – 6.0 µg mL-1. • The proposed sensor as a very promising device was tested in several edible plants. • Effect of boiling on oxalate content of selected vegetable were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Histomorphometry is not standardized, making it difficult to compare study results. • Many different sampled and automated techniques have been published. • These techniques yield different results versus full manual analysis (gold standard). • Our data suggest sampled manual analysis is more reliable than automated. • Regardless, standard, transparent methods are essential to allow for collaboration. Histomorphometry quantitatively evaluates nerve regeneration. Total myelinated fiber count (TMFC) is most accurately obtained manually across full nerve cross-sections, but most researchers opt for automated, sampled analysis. Few of the numerous techniques available have been validated. The goal of this study was to compare common histomorphometric methods (full manual [FM], sampled manual [SM], and sampled automatic [SA]) to determine their reliability and consistency. Twenty-four rats underwent sciatic nerve (SN) repair with 20mm isografts; SNs distal to the graft were analyzed. TMFC was manually determined in each full cross-section. Counts were also extrapolated from sampled fields, both manually and automatically with ImageJ software. Myelinated fiber diameter, axon diameter, and myelin sheath thickness were measured manually in full and sampled fields; G-ratio was calculated. Repeated-measures MANOVA, Spearman correlation, and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were performed. A systematic review of histomorphometry in rat SN repair was performed to analyze the variability of techniques in the literature. FM TMFC was 13,506 ± 4,217. Both sampled methods yielded significantly different TMFCs (SM:14.4 ± 13.4%, P < 0.001; SA:21.8 ± 44.7%, P = 0.037). All three methods strongly correlated with each other, especially FM and SM (r s = 0.912, P < 0.001). FM fiber diameter, axon diameter, and myelin sheath thickness did not differ from SM (P = 0.493, 0.209, and 0.331, respectively). 65% of papers used sampling; 78% utilized automated or semi-automated analysis. Software, sampling, and histomorphometric parameters varied widely. SM and SA analysis are reliable with standardized, systematic sampling. Transparency is essential to allow comparison of data; meanwhile, researchers must be cognizant of the wide variety of methodologies in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow-induced vibration energy harvesting is one of the promising approaches for realizing self-powered wireless sensor networks. Incorporation of metasurfaces or surface protrusions on the bluff bodies is an emerging way of enhancing energy harvesting performance. This paper experimentally and numerically investigates the coupled effect of implementing different aspect ratios and leeward protrusion lengths on the performance of vortex-induced vibration (VIV)-galloping energy harvesters. A total of sixteen protruded bluff bodies with four different aspect ratios and four protrusion lengths are proposed for comparative studies. A comprehensive mathematical model is established based on the extended Hamilton's principle and Tamura's aerodynamic force model. Both the wind tunnel experiments and numerical simulations manifest a different development trend for the bluff bodies with aspect ratios greater or lower than the unity. For most of the bluff bodies, increasing the protrusion length can lead to an increase in both the VIV-galloping cut-in speed and output power at higher wind speeds. Wind tunnel computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are also performed to investigate the underlying aerodynamic reasons for the observed phenomena. Based on the classic Den Hartog's criterion and Hu's findings, it can be found that there is a consistency among the wind tunnel CFD simulation results and the experimental and numerical findings. Furthermore, the wind speed ratio of quasi-steady galloping to Kármán-vortex resonance is selected as an index to evaluate the interaction extent of VIV and galloping oscillations. It is revealed that strongly conjoint VIV-galloping oscillations can be more easily observed when the ratio approaches unity, while no interaction can be detected when the ratio is higher than a value between 11.91 to 23.27 in this study. Further, impedance matching tests and forward wind sweep experiments show that the maximum output power measured among all the studied cases is 0.992 mW, which occurs at the test speed of 5.1 m/s and an optimal load resistance of 200 k Ω , for the bluff body with an aspect ratio of 3:2 and a leeward protrusion length of 10 mm. This outperforms the optimal case of our previous study by 31.04%. Moreover, using the optimization theory, this bluff body is proved to be the global optimal solution of this study, which can well balance the cut-in speed and output power for the applications in the natural gentle breeze. • A VIV-galloping piezoelectric energy harvester is proposed for low wind speed scenarios. • A coupled aero-electro-mechanical mathematical model is extracted. • Wind tunnel experiments and CFD simulations are conducted to validate the proposed model. • Wind speed ratio is found to be a good index for evaluating the interaction of VIV and galloping. • An optimal pair of aspect ratio and protrusion length is determined using optimization analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overexpression of voltage dependent anion channels (VDACs), particularly VDAC1, in cancer cells compared to normal cells, plays a crucial role in cancer cell metabolism, apoptosis regulation, and energy homeostasis. In this study, we used molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to investigate the effect of a low level of VDAC1 oxidation (induced e.g., by cold atmospheric plasma (CAP)) on the pyruvate (Pyr) uptake by VDAC1. Inhibiting Pyr uptake through VDAC1 can suppress cancer cell proliferation. Our primary target was to study the translocation of Pyr across the native and oxidized forms of hVDAC1, the human VDAC1. Specifically, we employed MD simulations to analyze the hVDAC1 structure by modifying certain cysteine residues to cysteic acids and methionine residues to methionine sulfoxides, which allowed us to investigate the effect of oxidation. Our results showed that the free energy barrier for Pyr translocation through the native and oxidized channel was approximately 4.3 ± 0.7 kJ mol−1 and 10.8 ± 1.8 kJ mol−1, respectively. An increase in barrier results in a decrease in rate of Pyr permeation through the oxidized channel. Thus, our results indicate that low levels of CAP oxidation reduce Pyr translocation, resulting in decreased cancer cell proliferation. Therefore, low levels of oxidation are likely sufficient to treat cancer cells given the inhibition of Pyr uptake. [Display omitted] • Pyruvate. • VDAC1 channel. • Molecular dynamics simulation. • Cysteine and methionine oxidation. • Cold atmospheric plasma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxidative stress is believed to be an important cause of sperm damage during freezing. l -Carnitine (LC) may have the potential to improve sperm quality after frozen-thawed process. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of LC supplementation in cryoprotectant media of mouse epididymal sperm on post-thaw sperm quality and expression of apoptosis-related genes. Male BALB/cJ mice spermatozoa were cryopreserved in a cryoprotectant medium containing 2.5 or 5 mM LC. The untreated group was cryopreserved with the cryoprotectant medium only. Six months following cryopreservation, the samples were thawed and sperm quality parameters, chromatin and acrosome integrity, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and glutathione (GSH) levels, mitochondrial activity, and mRNA expression of Bax and Bcl-2 were assessed. The results demonstrated that the concentration of 5 mM LC in cryoprotectant media exhibited higher values for the sperm quality parameters and integrity of chromatin and acrosome in post-thaw spermatozoa than those of the untreated group. Furthermore, sperm ROS levels decreased while GSH and mitochondrial activity levels increased in 5 mM LC group compared to those in the untreated group (P < 0.01). In 5 mM LC-treated group, Bax was down-regulated (P < 0.05) while Bcl-2 was up-regulated (P < 0.001) compared to the untreated group. Collectively, LC supplementation of cryoprotectant medium improved the quality of frozen-thawed mouse epididymal spermatozoa, as showed reduced ROS level and Bax expression as well as increased GSH, mitochondrial activity, and Bcl-2 expression. • l -Carnitine could ameliorate the sperm quality after long-term cryopreservation. • Supplementation of cryoprotectant medium with l-carnitine reduced ROS and increased GSH levels. • l -Carnitine supplementation significantly decreased Bax and increased Bcl- 2 mRNA levels in frozen-thawed sperm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Sodium ions inside biomolecular condensates experience heterogeneous dynamics. • An integrative 23Na NMR relaxation-based approach is developed. • This approach allows separating contribution of various sodium ion populations. • Three populations of sodium ions with distinct dynamics detected in agarose gels. Metal ions, including biologically prevalent sodium ions, can modulate electrostatic interactions frequently involved in the stability of condensed compartments in cells. Quantitative characterization of heterogeneous ion dynamics inside biomolecular condensates demands new experimental approaches. Here we develop a 23Na NMR relaxation-based integrative approach to probe dynamics of sodium ions inside agarose gels as a model system. We exploit the electric quadrupole moment of spin-3/2 23Na nuclei and, through combination of single-quantum and triple-quantum-filtered 23Na NMR relaxation methods, disentangle the relaxation contribution of different populations of sodium ions inside gels. Three populations of sodium ions are identified: a population with bi-exponential relaxation representing ions within the slow motion regime and two populations with mono-exponential relaxation but at different rates. Our study demonstrates the dynamical heterogeneity of sodium ions inside agarose gels and presents a new experimental approach for monitoring dynamics of sodium and other spin-3/2 ions (e.g. chloride) in condensed environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reports a new strategy to fabricate a thermally super-insulative and flexible hybrid silica aerogel. A new generation of polymeric precursors was first synthesized for hybrid organic/inorganic silica aerogels from an epoxide ring containing a silica precursor. Ring opening polymerization (ROP) was used so as to insert flexible ether groups into the main chain. It has been demonstrated that the particulate structure of the polyether-based silica aerogel could be changed to a novel non-particulate and continuous one, by meticulous control of the thermodynamics, namely, through variations of the molecular weight of the polymeric precursor, the amount of the non-solvent, and the temperature. The study presents a new strategy to manufacture a polyether-based hybrid silica aerogel, which is fast and scalable, and also eliminates the aging process while accelerating the gelation time. This new strategy reduces the wet gel preparation time, including gelation, aging and solvent exchange, from several days to just a few seconds. However, this structure suffers from a low void fraction and wide pore size distribution. These drawbacks are then removed by chemically incorporating pre-polymerized vinyl trimethoxysilane chains. The resultant aerogels exhibit thermal superinsulation (λ = 15.9 mW·m−1·K−1) while providing good mechanical properties and flexibility. The polyether-based aerogels also demonstrated good performance as adsorbent material to remove organic solvents from water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The freeze-thaw procedure causes irreversible structural and functional changes in human spermatozoa. In order to decrease the detrimental effects of cryopreservation and improve the quality of post-thawed spermatozoa, the constituents of the freezing solution attracted considerable attention. In this study, for the first time, we evaluated the efficacy of knockout serum replacement (KSR) as a substitute for human serum albumin (HSA) for cryopreservation of human spermatozoa. Twenty semen samples were collected from normozoospermic men and divided them into five equal groups. One of the aliquots was diluted with glycerol-based medium as a control group (CON). The other four aliquots were diluted with the sucrose solution containing 5% HSA (H5), 10% HSA (H10), 5% KSR (K5), and 10% KSR (K10). The diluted samples were frozen and preserved in liquid nitrogen. Post thawed sperm parameters including motion characteristics, viability, membrane integrity, mitochondrial activity, acrosome integrity and DNA intactness in all of the sucrose-based groups were comparable with glycerol-based medium. The replacement of HSA by 10% KSR in the freezing medium resulted in significantly higher post-thawed viability, acrosome integrity and DNA intactness compared with other sucrose-based groups. In conclusion, the addition of 10% KSR to the sucrose-based freezing solution improves the quality of post-thawed human spermatozoa and may have potential to develop chemically defined freezing medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhanced understanding of bio-nano interaction requires recognition of hidden factors such as protein corona, a layer of adsorbed protein around nano-systems. This study compares the biological identity and fingerprint profile of adsorbed proteins on PLGA-based nanoparticles through nano-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The total proteins identified in the corona of nanoparticles (NPs) with different in size, charge and compositions were classified based on molecular mass, isoelectric point and protein function. A higher abundance of complement proteins was observed in modified NPs with an increased size, while NPs with a positive surface charge exhibited the minimum adsorption for immunoglobulin proteins. A correlation of dysopsonin/opsonin ratio was found with cellular uptake of NPs exposed to two positive and negative Fc receptor cell lines. Although the higher abundance of dysopsonins such as apolipoproteins may cover the active sites of opsonins causing a lower uptake, the correlation of adsorbed dysopsonin/opsonin proteins on the NPs surface has an opposite trend with the intensity of cell uptake. Despite the reduced uptake of corona-coated NPs in comparison with pristine NPs, the dysopsonin/opsonin ratio controlled by the physicochemistry properties of NPs could potentially be used to tune up the cellular delivery of polymeric NPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laccase mediated bio-delignification has shown promising results for the removal of lignin from bio-wastes and for providing a sustainable future for using of lignocellulosic materials in different industries. This study reports an extracellular laccase from Lentinus tigrinus with delignification capability. The production of laccase was enhanced through a solid-state fermentation on the pistachio shell bio-waste to 172.0 U mg−1 (8.2-fold) by one-factor-at-a-time optimizing of fermentation conditions. Laccase was purified using a new synthetic affinity resin yielding a specific activity of 543.6 U mg−1 and a 23.9-fold purification. The purified laccase was then immobilized covalently on the large pore magnetic SBA-15. Compared to free enzyme, immobilized enzyme maintained more stable at pH 2.0–11.0 and 25–55 °C, and against organic solvents, surfactants, metal ions, and inhibitors. The activity of both forms of the enzyme was increased with Cu2+, Ca+2, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, and ethyl acetate. A 0.72 V redox potential caused enzyme specificity to various substrates. 80% of lignin content of the bio-waste was removed by 50 U mL−1 of immobilized enzyme after 8 h fermentation and delignification efficiency was greatly increased by applying higher enzyme dosages, surfactants, and organic solvents. In addition, residual activity was more than 50% after 20 cycles of delignification. The results of delignification were confirmed by GC-MS, SEM, and composition analysis of pistachio shells. This study illustrated the notable promise of the enzyme for biotechnological and environmental applications. Image 1 • Lentinus tigrinus was isolated to produce laccase through SSF on pistachio shell. • Combined nutrients and conditions enhanced enzyme production to 172.0 U mg−1. • The high redox potential enzyme was purified with a new synthetic affinity resin. • The enzyme yielded 80% lignin degradation from the bio-waste within 8 h. • Delignification greatly increased with immobilized laccase in extreme conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease that can be transmitted from animals to humans. Brucellosis is caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella , which are typically transmitted through contact with infected animals, unpasteurized dairy products, or airborne pathogens. Tetracyclines (tetracycline and doxycycline) are antibiotics commonly used to treat brucellosis; however, antibiotic resistance has become a major concern. This study assessed the worldwide prevalence of tetracycline-resistant Brucella isolates. A systematic search was conducted in Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and EMBASE using relevant keywords and Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms until August 13, 2022, to identify relevant studies for meta-analysis. A random effects model was used to estimate the proportion of resistance. Meta-regression analysis, subgroup analysis, and examination of outliers and influential studies were also performed. The prevalence rates of resistance to tetracycline and doxycycline were estimated to be 0.017 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.009–0.035) and 0.017 (95%CI, 0.011–0.026), respectively, based on 51 studies conducted from 1983 to 2020. Both drugs showed increasing resistance over time (tetracycline: r = 0.077, P = 0.012; doxycycline: r = 0.059, P = 0.026). The prevalence of tetracycline and doxycycline resistance in Brucella was low (1.7%) but increased over time. This increase in tetracycline and doxycycline resistance highlights the need for further research to understand resistance mechanisms and develop more effective treatments. • The average rates of tetracycline and doxycycline resistance were 1.7%. • Brucella samples from sources other than the joint fluid or blood showed stronger resistance. • Resistance varies considerably by country and is more prevalent in some places. • The resistance to tetracycline and doxycycline increased over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, miRNAs have been regarded as potential candidates for mediating therapeutic functions by targeting genes related to drug response. In this study, we suggested that plasma miRNAs may be correlated with response to trastuzumab in HER2-positive breast cancer patients. To determine whether miR-195, miR-23b-3p, miR-1246, and miR-34c-3p are involved in trastuzumab resistance, we screened their expressions in the BT-474 cell line, which was followed by plasma analysis from 20 trastuzumab-resistant HER2-positive breast cancer patients and 20 nonresistance subjects. Then, TargetScan, Pictar, and miRDB were applied to find the possible targets of the selected miRNAs. In addition, the expression status of admitted targets was evaluated. Our results showed that in resistant BT-474 cells, miR-1246, and miR-23b-3p were significantly upregulated, and miR-195-5p and miR-34c-3p were downregulated. In plasma analysis, we found miR-195-5p, miR-34c-3p, and miR-1246 meaningfully diminished in the resistant group, while the expression of miR-23b-3p was not statistically different. The expression levels of confirmed targets by qRT-PCR showed that the expression of RAF1, AKT3, c-MET, CCND1, PHLPP2, MYB, MAP2K1, and PTEN was significantly upregulated, while the expression of CCNG2 was significantly downregulated. The networks of miRNAs with their confirmed targets improved comprehension of miRNA-mediated therapeutic responses to trastuzumab and might be proposed for more characterization of miRNA functions. Moreover, these data indicated that miR-195-5p, miR-34c-3p, and miR-1246 could be possible biomarkers for prognosis and early detection of the trastuzumab-resistant group from the sensitive group of HER2-positive breast cancer patients. • Resistance to trastuzumab is a major issue for HER2-positive breast cancer treatment. • miRNAs could be biomarkers for disease diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. • Altered miRNA expression may help detect trastuzumab-resistant patients quickly. • miR-195, −34c, and − 1246 dysregulation might be biomarkers for trastuzumab resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerogels derived from pre-polymerized vinyl trimethoxy silane (VTMS) precursor with nano-size particles are known to exhibit outstanding mechanical and insulation properties. However, the density reduction has been limited by the poor connectivity. This paper presents an innovative technology to generate a new class of VTMS-based hybrid silica aerogels that possess outstanding non-particulate, reticulated structure and superior properties. This technology relies on spinodal decomposition instead of conventionally exploited binodal decomposition, which leads to a particulate structure. This new aerogel technology has significantly increased the void fraction of the pre-polymerized VTMS-based aerogel, which could not be achieved previously using binodal decomposition. The increased void fraction in the form of nano-pores with an average pore size of 21.75 nm nullifies the gas thermal conductivity effectively. Another consequence of the non-particulate structure is decreased processing time by removing the aging step. These improvements are due to the non-particulate structure's increased connectivity produced by spinodal decomposition. This novel structure was then compared to a particulate counterpart aerogel of the same material derived from the conventional binodal decomposition of the pre-polymerized VTMS precursor. To further decrease the processing cost, a lower molecular-weight polymeric precursor was synthesized under milder polymerization conditions. The effects of the polymeric precursor's molecular weight on the mechanical and thermal properties of the aerogel created via spinodal decomposition were also investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The azimuthal correlation belongs to a class of polarization observables which vanishes at the Born term level in the standard model for the semileptonic rest frame decay of a polarized top quark t (↑) → b W + → b ℓ + υ ℓ. In this frame, the azimuthal correlation is defined between the planes formed by the vectors ( p → ℓ , p → X b ) and ( p → ℓ , P → t). We calculate the azimuthal correlation function of polarized top quark in the framework of the noncommutative standard model for the first time. We find that this observable is nonzero in the leading order of noncommutative space–time. Further the appearance of the oscillatory azimuthal distribution of decay rate provides a practical possibility to test the noncommutativity in particle colliders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction of reducing sugars with proteins leads to the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGE) and reactive oxidative species (ROS). ROS peroxidise free or membrane included unsaturated fatty acids, leading to generate reactive aldehydes as advanced lipid peroxidation end products (ALE). Aldehydes from lipid peroxidation (LPO) react with proteins to cause alteration of protein structure to exacerbate complication of diseases. Here we studied serum albumin glycation in the presence and absence of liposomes as a bio-membrane model to investigate protein structural changes using various techniques including intrinsic and extrinsic fluorescence spectroscopies and electron microscopy analysis. Accordingly, serum albumin glycation and fibrillation were accelerated and intensified in the presence of liposomes through a hypothesized glycation-peroxidation loop (GPL). Together, our results shed light on the necessity of reconsidering diabetic protein glycation to make it close to physiological conditions mimicry, more importantly, proteins structural change due to diabetic glycation is intensified in the proximity of cell membranes which probably potentiates programmed cell death distinct from apoptosis. Image 1 • Lipid peroxidation (LPO) of liposomes produces reactive carbonyl compounds that induce fibrillogenesis in serum albumin. • Glycation of serum albumin induces generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). • The generated ROSs induce LPO in the presence of liposome that accelerates fibrillation of the glycated serum albumin. • The synergistic effect of protein glycation and LPO on fibrillogenesis was explained by a glycation peroxidation loop (GPL). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Full-adders are basic devices used widely in many computational circuits. In this paper, by utilizing the tuning capability of graphene-dielectric-metal waveguides, an efficient electro-optical full-adder with compact size is presented. In our structure, surface plasmon polaritons are stimulated at the graphene-dielectric interface by a TM mode incident wave with a wavelength of 13.8 μ m. Addition operation is performed on electrical signals as inputs and results are obtained optically at output ports. The extinction ratios for Sum and Carry bits are calculated as 25.95 dB and 22.92 dB, respectively. The footprint of the structure is 1.3 μ m2 which is considerably smaller than other reported full-adder structures. This ultra-compact footprint denotes high potentiality of the structure for using in integrated photonic circuits. Highlights • Using graphene-dielectric-metal structure to stimulate the surface plasmon polaritons. • Having an ultra-compact footprint compared to the working wavelength. • Obtaining high extinction ratios and modulation depths for both Sum and Carry bits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Integrated pest management (IPM) has been promoted as an environmentally friendly pest control approach, but its adoption by farmers, particularly in developing countries, is low. The main purpose of the current study was to examine factors affecting the intention of farmers to use IPM practices in Iran. The research model was developed using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and the Norm Activation Model (NAM) and was empirically tested using data obtained from structured interviews with 327 tomato producers in Zanjan Province in northwestern Iran. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis indicated that all three components of attitude, perceived behavioral control (PBC), and subjective norm significantly influenced intention in the original TPB, while subjective norm had no statistically significant effect on intention in the integrative TPB-NAM. Despite this fact, subjective norm significantly impacted attitude, PBC, and personal norm in the integrative model. The study also supported the significant effect of awareness of consequences (AC) on personal norm, ascription of responsibility (AR), attitude, and subjective norm as well as the significant effect of AR on personal norm. Overall, personal norm was the most salient determinant of farmers' intention to use IPM practices in the integrative model. Most notably, integrating the constructs of TPB and NAM and particularly adding the interrelationships among the volitional, moral, and cognitive dimensions of the two models significantly enhanced the predictive power, utility, and comprehensiveness of the proposed framework for explaining farmers' intention to use IPM practices. The findings of this research provide a clearer understanding of factors driving the promotion of IPM among farming community and can be a basis for developing IPM policy interventions in Iran and other developing countries. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Drivers of farmers' intention to use IPM practices in Iran were studied. • The research model used the Theory of Planned Behavior and Norm Activation Model. • Personal norm, attitude and behavioral control predicted well farmers' intention. • Instead of having direct effect, subjective norm may affect intention indirectly. • Explanatory ability of integrative model of TPB-NAM was superior to original TPB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cytosine methylation alterations play key roles in gene regulation in plants interacting with biotrophic pathogens. For resistant and susceptible interactions of cucumber with the powdery mildew pathogen, Podosphaera xanthii , methylation of DNA cytosines were monitored by methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP) analysis from immediately prior to 96 h post inoculation (hpi). In both resistant and susceptible interactions, methylation levels significantly changed over time, but a significant association was observed for decreasing number of loci with demethylated CCGG motif in the susceptible cultivar compared to increasing numbers in the resistant cultivar. Sequencing of six demethylated MSAP fragments from the resistant cultivar and one from susceptible cultivar showed that all contained promoter and cis-acting regulatory elements (CAREs). For the resistant cultivar, three of these were in possible regulatory regions located within or near tRNA coding genes, and those three plus two others contained CAREs associated with response to biotic stress and defense hormones SA, MeJA, ABA and ET. One possible reason for demethylation in the resistant genomic tRNA genes may be that demethylation can de-suppress gene expression resulting in increasing the availability of certain amino acids for defense proteins. • Methyl-sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP) was used to study resistant and susceptible interaction of cucumber with Podosphaera xanthii. • In both resistant and susceptible interactions, methylation levels significantly changed over time post infection. • Number of demethylated loci were significantly lower than the susceptible cultivar. • Sequences of the MSAP fragments contained cis-acting regulatory elements mostly associated with response to biotic stress and defense hormones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Application of an appropriate freezing carrier is crucial for improving post-thaw recovery of oligozoospermic samples. In this study, our purpose is developing a user-friendly, easy handling and close micro-quantity (MQ) straw along with different freezing media, for cryopreservation of oligozoospermic samples. Twenty oligozoospermic semen samples were collected and mixed with glycerol egg yolk citrate (GEYC) or Spermfreeze® (SPF) medium. The mixture was loaded into MQ straws, sealed and stored in liquid nitrogen (LN) vapor. After freezing, the straws were transferred into cryotube and plunged into LN. Post-thawed sperm parameters including motion characteristics, viability, membrane and DNA integrity were evaluated one and three months after cryopreservation. The post-thawed sperm parameters were significantly reduced in GEYC and SPF medium compared to fresh samples. No statistically significant differences were seen in sperm characteristics between the two storage times (i.e. month 1 vs. month 3). Furthermore, GEYC medium yielded higher motility, viability and membrane integrity compared to SPF at both storage time-points. Sperm DNA integrity was also improved in GEYC group compared to SPF after 1 month of storage. The findings of our study showed that application of MQ straw along with GEYC, as the cryoprotectant, was beneficial for cryopreservation of low count semen samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Nitrogen (N) bioavailability is one of the main limiting factors for microbial activity and vegetation establishment in bauxite-processing residue sand (BRS). Although beneficial effects of biochar on reducing N loss in the early stages of BRS rehabilitation have been observed previously, the underlying mechanisms of this complicated process, particularly the interactions between applied biochar and the plant rhizosphere is largely unknown. This glasshouse study (116 days), investigated the coupled effects of biochar and water stress on N bioavailability in the rhizosphere of ryegrass (Lolium rigidum) grown in BRS amended with di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertiliser (at rates of 0 or 2.7 t ha−1) with and without biochar amendment. The applied biochar was characterised as either aged acidic (AC) or alkaline pine (PC) and was mixed with BRS at a rate of 5% v/v under four moisture regimes (50%, 40%, 20% and 7.5% water holding capacity). Amending BRS with AC and PC biochars increased NH 4 + retention and decreased cumulative NH 3 volatilization within both the rhizosphere and root-free zones compared with fertiliser only treatment. These effects were more pronounced for the AC than PC biochar, suggesting that aged acidic biochar has the great potential for use in rapid establishment of vegetation in BRS disposal areas. The biochar amendment increased cumulative nitrous oxide emissions compared with DAP only treatment, with no significant differences among different moisture regimes. The Control and 20% water holding capacity (WHC) treatment showed the highest dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations compared with other treatments and moisture regimes in the ryegrass rhizosphere, while the highest dissolved organic N concentration were observed in the DAP + AC treatment. Reducing moisture levels below 20% WHC generally decreased microbial biomass carbon (MBC) concentrations and activity in both the rhizosphere and root-free zones of all treatments, while total N generally decreased as moisture levels decreased from 50% to 7.5% WHC. Plant took up more N in the DAP + AC treatment compared with DAP + PC and DAP only treatments, while increasing water stress generally resulted in decreased aboveground biomass. Highlights • Effects of biochar and water stress studied on nitrogen budgets in bauxite residue. • Applied biochar decreased ammonia volatilization but increased nitrous oxide emission. • Reduction in bauxite residue moisture decreased plant biomass and total nitrogen. • Applied acidic biochar had highest ryegrass nitrogen uptake in water stress condition. • Interaction between plant rhizosphere and applied biochar increased nitrogen turnover. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract At present, there is not any available accepted vaccine for prevention of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) in human and animals. We conducted literature search through English (Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, EBSCO, ISI Web of Science) scientific paper databases to find the best vaccine candidates against toxoplasmosis among T. gondii antigens. Articles with information on infective stage, pathogenicity, immunogenicity and characterization of antigens were selected. We considered that the ideal and significant vaccines should include different antigens and been expressed in all infective stages of the parasite with a high pathogenicity and immunogenicity. Evaluation within this systematic review indicates that MIC 3, 4, 13, ROP 2, RON 5, GRA 1, 6, 8, 14 are expressed in all three infective stages and have pathogenicity and immunogenicity. MIC 5, ROM 4, GRA 2, 4, 15, ROP 5, 16, 17, 38, RON 4, MIC 1, GRA 10, 12, 16, SAG 3 are expressed in only tachyzoites and bradyzoites stages of T. gondii with pathogenicity/immunogenicity. Some antigens appeared to be expressed in a single stage (tachyzoites) but have high pathogenicity and induce immune response. They include enolase2 (ENO2), SAG 1, SAG5D, HSP 70, ROM 1, ROM 5, AMA 1, ROP 18, RON2 and GRA 24. In conclusion, current vaccination against T. gondii infection is not satisfactory, and with the increasing number of high-risk individuals, the development of an effective and safe specific vaccine is greatly valuable for toxoplasmosis prevention. This systematic review reveals prepare candidates for immunization studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The aim of this paper is to advance electroencephalography (EEG) source analysis using finite element method (FEM) head volume conductor models that go beyond the standard three compartment (skin, skull, brain) approach and take brain tissue inhomogeneity (gray and white matter and cerebrospinal fluid) into account. The new approach should enable accurate EEG forward modeling in the thin human cortical structures and, more specifically, in the especially thin cortices in children brain research or in pathological applications. The source model should thus be focal enough to be usable in the thin cortices, but should on the other side be more realistic than the current standard mathematical point dipole. Furthermore, it should be numerically accurate and computationally fast. We propose to achieve the best balance between these demands with a current preserving (divergence conforming) dipolar source model. We develop and investigate a varying number of current preserving source basis elements n (n = 1 , ... , n = 5). For validation, we conducted numerical experiments within a multi-layered spherical domain, where an analytical solution exists. We show that the accuracy increases along with the number of basis elements, while focality decreases. The results suggest that the best balance between accuracy and focality in thin cortices is achieved with n = 4 (or in extreme cases even n = 3) basis functions, while in thicker cortices n = 5 is recommended to obtain the highest accuracy. We also compare the current preserving approach to two further FEM source modeling techniques, namely partial integration and St. Venant, and show that the best current preserving source model outperforms the competing methods with regard to overall balance. For all tested approaches, FEM transfer matrices enable high computational speed. We implemented the new EEG forward modeling approaches into the open source duneuro library for forward modeling in bioelectromagnetism to enable its broader use by the brain research community. This library is build upon the DUNE framework for parallel finite elements simulations and integrates with high-level toolboxes like FieldTrip. Additionally, an inversion test has been implemented using the realistic head model to demonstrate and compare the differences between the aforementioned source models. Highlights • Current preserving H(div) source model was found to perform well near surfaces. • The performance compare to Partial Integration and St.Venant using a spherical model. • A realistic head model was used in an inversion test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study investigated the effects of different particle sizes of sterilized wheat bran (100–200, 200–300 and 300–400 μm), their replacement levels at 5, 10, and 15% (based on flour w/w) and also their fermentation by Saccharomyces cerevisiae PTCC 5052 on the qualities of Tafton bread. Measurements indicated how these parameters affected pH, TTA, phytic acid, protein, ash, fat, soluble and insoluble dietary fiber contents in sterilized wheat bran samples. The volume of dough samples and the sensory properties of Tafton bread samples were examined. The lowest amount of phytic acid (2.0 ± 0.12%) was observed in fermented sterilized wheat bran (FSWB) which had particle sizes of 100–200 μm (p<0.05). Also, the highest amount of soluble dietary fiber (6.7 ± 0.4%) was observed in FSWB which had particle sizes of 200–300 μm (p<0.05). The largest increase in dough volume (284.0 ± 4.9%) was observed in dough sample containing the FSWB which had particle sizes of 100–200 μm at the 15% replacement level (p<0.05). The Tafton bread sample that had been prepared with FSWB (200–300 μm and 15% replacement level (7.50 ± 0.54), tasted fresher according to sensory attributes after 24 h, compared to the control sample (5.80 ± 0.79) which had no sterilized wheat bran. Highlights • Yeast fermentation has a significant effect on changing the bran composition. • The fermentation of bran reduces the phytic acid content. • Fine sizes of fermented bran improve the dough volume at high substitution. • Physicochemical properties and replacement levels of bran affect bread acceptance. • Medium-size particles of fermented bran in bread can improve bread freshness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract External fields effects on hole energies and effective g -factor of an infinite confining potential quantum ring are theoretically investigated. Based on envelope-function approach within the cylindrical polar coordinates, four band k ⋅ p method was used. We then derive the effective holes Hamiltonian and because of the ring geometry, we solve the problem as a 2-D grid (ρ , z) set of equations and finally valence band (VB) energy eigenvalues and g -factor of the system are estimated by using the finite difference method (FDM). Numerical results for different values of applied fields as well as various geometrical dimensions are presented. We find that our results are in good agreement with the results reported in experimental works. Our results highlight the role of external fields and the ring size for an accurate description of these two dimensional systems. Highlights • Kohn-Luttinger Hamiltonian for holes is derived within the cylindrical polar coordinates. • Fields effect on hole energy spectrum and g-factor confined in a QR are investigated. • Magnetic field has a great influence on hole energy spectrum and g-factor. • Energy eigenvalues are increased and effective g-factor remains almost constant with electric field. • Also the ring size considerably changes hole energy eigenvalues and g-factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the increased flexibility of modern multi-megawatt wind turbine structures, more advanced analyses are needed to investigate the effects of geometric nonlinearities originating from large blade deformations under operational loads. The main objective of this paper is to study the related dynamics and the aeroelastic effects of these nonlinearities by using a multi-flexible-body aeroelastic model of an entire three-bladed wind turbine assembly instead of a more conventional single-blade model. A geometrically-exact beam formulation is employed to model the rotating blades connected to the wind turbine tower tip via hub and nacelle components; and the revolute joint constraint is applied to model the rotor rotation. The derived governing equations are analyzed by applying a reduced-order approach based on the Galerkin method. After verifying the model by comparing it with an FEM model, it is used in several aeroelastic and dynamic studies. All the performed simulations are based on the specifications of the state-of-the-art 5 MW-NREL wind turbine. Moreover, the time-invariant forms of the governing equations are derived by applying the multi-blade coordinate transformation method. The obtained equations are used to study the whirling characteristics of wind turbine rotor by different models including the model of unloaded blades as well as the linear and nonlinear aeroelastic models. The eigenfrequencies indicate the splitting characteristics according to the gyroscopic effects that originate from the whirling motion in the forward and backward directions. The simulation results reveal that single-blade models are helpful in demonstrating the overall trends of rotor aeroelasticity. However, because single-blade models overestimate the instability limits, an analysis based on a full wind turbine model is crucial. Besides, the geometric nonlinearities significantly alter the eigenfrequency results (especially for the modes dominantly incorporated into flutter instability) as well as the dynamic responses of the system, notably around the flutter speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel series of acridine linked to thioacetamides 9a–o were synthesized and evaluated for their α-glucosidase inhibitory and cytotoxic activities. All the synthesized compounds exhibited excellent α-glucosidase inhibitory activity in the range of IC 50  = 80.0 ± 2.0–383.1 ± 2.0 µM against yeast α-glucosidase, when compared to the standard drug acarbose (IC 50  = 750.0 ± 1.5 µM). Among the synthesized compounds, 2-((6-chloro-2-methoxyacridin-9-yl)thio)- N -(p-tolyl) acetamide 9b displayed the highest α-glucosidase inhibitory activity (IC 50  = 80.0 ± 2.0 μM). The in vitro cytotoxic assay of compounds 9a–o against MCF-7 cell line revealed that only the compounds 9d , 9c , and 9n exhibited cytotoxic activity. Cytotoxic compounds 9d , 9c , and 9n did not show cytotoxic activity against the normal human cell lines HDF. Kinetic study revealed that the most potent compound 9b is a competitive inhibitor with a K i of 85 μM. Furthermore, the interaction modes of the most potent compounds 9b and 9f with α-glucosidase were evaluated through the molecular docking studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amyloid fibrils are polymers formed by proteins under specific conditions and in many cases they are related to pathogenesis, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. Their hallmark is the presence of a β-sheet structure. High resolution structural data on these systems as well as information gathered from multiple complementary analytical techniques is needed, from both a fundamental and a pharmaceutical perspective. Here, a previously reported de novo designed, pH-switchable coiled coil-based peptide that undergoes structural transitions resulting in fibril formation under physiological conditions has been exhaustively characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), cryo-TEM, atomic force microscopy (AFM), wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) and solid-state NMR (ssNMR). Overall, a unique 2-dimensional carpet-like assembly composed of large coexisiting ribbon-like, tubular and funnel-like structures with a clearly resolved protofilament substructure is observed. Whereas electron microscopy and scattering data point somewhat more to a hairpin model of β-fibrils, ssNMR data obtained from samples with selectively labelled peptides are in agreement with both, hairpin structures and linear arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous and infectious parasite that multiplies in any nucleated cell of warm-blooded animals and humans worldwide. This parasite has intricate mechanisms to reciprocate host-cell apoptosis to exist in the host cell. So far, the details of the parasite interactions with host cells are not well known. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are one of the small noncoding RNAs that are now considered as a key mechanism of gene regulation. They are important in physiological and pathological processes such as apoptosis. In this study a Real Time quantitative PCR technique was used to evaluate the levels of miR-20a of miRNAs family in human macrophage during T. gondii infection to determine the role of miR-20a in apoptosis. Then, the inhibition of miR-20a function through interaction with transfection of Locked Nucleic Acid (LNA) antisense oligomer was studied. Furthermore, it was examined whether miR-20a is involved in apoptosis of human macrophages with T. gondii infected cells using flow cytometry. We found that miR-20a expression is up-regulated in human macrophages following T. gondii infection. After LNA anti miR-20a oligomer transfection, miR-20a inhibition was evaluated by quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Flow cytometry results showed that LNA anti-miR20a oligomer increased apoptosis. In agreement with this result, we found that specific LNA oligonucleotides prevent the functional activity of miR-20a and promotion of human macrophages apoptosis with T. gondii infection by inhibition of this miRNAs gene. Also, the results support the concept that LNA oligomer antisense may be used as a therapeutic implement for blocking detrimental miRNAs overexpressed in infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, antimicrobial packaging materials is attracting remarkable attention as one of the preferred emerging technologies to prevent the development and spread of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms via food foodstuffs. The aim of the present study was to incorporate Ziziphora clinopodioides essential oil (ZEO; 0 and 0.5%), apple peel extract (APE; 0 and 1%) and zinc oxide nanoparticle (ZnO; 0 and 0.5%) into sauced silver carp fillet using three techniques including direct addition, edible coating and composite film based on sodium alginate-carboxymethylcellulose (SA-CMC) to increase the shelf life (microbial, chemical and sensory properties) and inhibit the growth of Listeria monocytogenes during refrigerated storage over a period of two weeks. The fillet coated with ZEO 0.5% + APE 1% + ZnO 0.5% significantly exhibited the lowest bacterial population for the entire of storage period ( P < 0.05). All treated samples tended to retard the increases in total volatile base nitrogen, trimethyl-amine nitrogen, pH and peroxide value. ZEO 0.5% + APE 1% + ZnO 0.5% and ZEO 0.5% + APE 1% showed the best sensory attributes (odor, color and overall acceptability). It can be concluded that the SA-CMC coatings or films enriched with ZEO 0.5% + APE 1% + ZnO 0.5% and ZEO 0.5% + APE 1% can be used as appropriate active packaging materials to preserve sauced silver carp fillets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Complexity and scale of next generation HPC systems pose significant challenges in fault resilience methods such that contemporary checkpoint/restart (C/R) methods that address fail-stop behavior may be insufficient. Redundant computing has been proposed as an alternative at extreme scale. Triple redundancy has an advantage over C/R in that it can also detect silent data corruption (SDC) and then correct results via voting. However, current redundant computing approaches do not repair failed or corrupted replicas. Consequently, SDCs can no longer be detected after a replica failure since the system has been degraded to dual redundancy without voting capability. Hence, a job may have to be aborted if voting uncovers mismatching results between the remaining two replicas. And while replicas are logically equivalent, they may have divergent runtime states during job execution, which presents a challenge to simply creating new replicas dynamically. This problem is addressed by, DIvergent NOde cloning (DINO), a redundant execution environment that quickly recovers from hard failures. DINO consists of a novel node cloning service integrated into the MPI runtime system that solves the problem of consolidating divergent states among replicas on-the-fly. With DINO, after degradation to dual redundancy, a good replica can be quickly cloned so that triple redundancy is restored. We present experimental results over 9 NAS Parallel Benchmarks (NPB), Sweep3D and LULESH. Results confirm the applicability of the approach and the correctness of the recovery process and indicate that DINO can recover from failures nearly instantly. The cloning overhead depends on the process image size that needs to be transferred between source and destination of the clone operation and varies between 5.60 to 90.48 s. Simulation results with our model show that dual redundancy with DINO recovery always outperforms 2x and surpasses 3x redundancy on up to 1 million nodes. To the best of our knowledge, the design and implementation for repairing failed replicas in redundant MPI computing is unprecedented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present theoretical results concerning the electron Raman scattering process related to the longitudinal optical (LO) phonon modes in a two - dimensional quantum pseudo - dot, under the influence of a uniform magnetic field. The Fröhlich electron - phonon interaction for resonance Raman scattering is considered. External magnetic field, the geometrical size of the pseudo - dot and the electron - phonon interaction effects on the differential cross - section of the Raman scattering are investigated. Our Results reveal that the geometrical parameters of the pseudo - dot as well as the external magnetic field and electron - phonon interaction have a great influence on the position and the magnitude of the peaks of the emission spectra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biological control systems regulate the behavior of biological systems in a constantly changing environment. Homeostasis is the most widely studied outcome of biological control systems. Homeostatic systems maintain the system in its desired state despite variations in system parameters or the externally-determined input rates of their constituents, i.e. they have zero or near zero steady state error. On the other hand, allostatic systems are not resistant against environmental changes and the steady state level of their controlled variables responds positively to the changes in their input rates. Little is known, however, on the existence and frequency of reverse allostatic systems, where the steady state value of the controlled variable correlates negatively with the input rate of that variable. In the present study, we derive the minimal conditions for the existence and local stability of reverse allostatic systems, and demonstrate in examples of metabolic, pharmacological, pathophysiological and ecological systems that the reverse allostasis requirements are relatively non-stringent and may be satisfied in biological systems more commonly than usually thought. The possible existence of reverse allostatic systems in nature and their counter-intuitive implications in physiological systems, drug treatment, ecosystem management, and biological control are explored and testable predictions are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Simultaneous Energy harvesting and vibration suppression by a TMD is investigated • Electromechanical model is developed to capture shaker force drop off at resonances • Constant voltage sweep is proposed to investigate the absorber performance • The proposed coupled model of structure-shaker is validated by experiments • Simulations and experiments reveal the advantages of exploiting the proposed model • The TMD is efficient and applicable in reducing vibration and harvesting energy This paper analytically and experimentally investigates the potential of a tuned mass damper (TMD) with an integrated piezoelectric layer for simultaneous energy harvesting and vibration suppression. The system investigated is composed of a main beam that is excited by a shaker. A TMD comprising a unimorph piezoelectric beam is attached to the main beam. The shaker force drops at the system resonance frequencies means that a constant force sine sweep is difficult in practice, and does not allow model validation and empirical assessment of the TMD. Also, the force drop off phenomenon and an accurate validated shaker model are vital for the modelling, analysis and validation of nonlinear dynamic systems. This paper validates and analyses a linear model, in preparation for future studies of a nonlinear vibration absorber and energy harvester. Therefore, the force drop off phenomenon is examined comprehensively, and a constant shaker input voltage sweep is proposed instead of a constant force sweep. The continuous electromechanical equations governing the coupled system of the main beam-TMD-shaker are developed. The proposed model is then utilized to examine the shaker force drop off, TMD efficiency, and shaker electrical characteristics. The results show that the constant voltage sweep works well to investigate the performance of the TMD and capture the shaker force drop off phenomenon. The TMD suppresses the host structure vibration and harvests energy efficiently, and is demonstrated by extensive experimental investigations. The model is validated by the experiments, including the force drop off. The system parameters have significant effects on the dynamical response of the coupled system and the energy harvested; the effects on the harvested power, reduced vibration, applied force, and force drop off frequencies are demonstrated. Overall, the TMD is shown to be efficient and applicable in reducing vibration and harvesting energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Leptin gene polymorphisms increase the susceptibility of individuals to Behçet's disease. • Adiponectin gene polymorphisms don't affect the susceptibility of individuals to BD. • Elevated serum levels of adiponectin might promote BD pathogenesis. Behçet's Disease (BD) is a chronic autoimmune disease with unknown etiology. Adipokines due to their roles in the regulation of immune responses might be important in the induction and progression of BD. This case-control study included 340 patients with BD and 310 healthy controls. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in adiponectin (rs266729 and rs1501299) and leptin (rs7799039 and rs2167270) genes were determined using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and serum levels of adipokines were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A higher frequency of leptin rs7799039 GG, AG, and AG +GG genotypes and G allele was revealed in patients. Besides, patients had more leptin rs2167270 AG and AG +AA genotypes and A allele. Furthermore, rs2167270 AA genotype and A allele were more frequently seen in total and female patients who had genital aphthous. Patients had significantly more serum levels of adiponectin while those with genital aphthous had significantly more leptin levels. No significant association was observed between genotypes and alleles of adiponectin SNPs and BD. Our findings indicated that leptin gene polymorphisms might predispose Iranian individuals to BD. Besides, elevated serum levels of adiponectin might facilitate BD pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, electronic structure of a two dimensional elliptic quantum dot under the influence of external electric and magnetic fields are studied in the presence of Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interactions. This investigation is done computationally and to do this, at first, the effective Hamiltonian of the system by considering the spin-orbit coupling is demonstrated in the presence of applied electric and magnetic fields and afterwards the Schrödinger equation is solved using the finite difference approach. Utilizing finite element method, eigenvalues and eigenstates of the system are calculated and the effect of the external fields, the size of the dot as well as the strength of Rashba spin-orbit interaction are studied. Our results indicate that, Spin-orbit interactions, external fields and the dot size have a great influence on the electronic structure of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new bounded force feedback control law is proposed to guarantee position and force tracking in nonlinear teleoperation systems in the presence of passive and nonpassive input interaction forces, time varying delay in their communication channels and sandwich linearity in their actuators. The proposed control is a nonlinear-proportional plus nonlinear damping (nP+nD ) controller with the addition of a nonlinear function of the environment force on the slave side and nonlinear function of the human force and force error on the master side, the transparency of the proposed scheme will be improved. The controller prevents the inputs from reaching their usual actuator bounds. Using a novel Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional, the asymptotic stability and tracking performance of the teleoperation system are established under some conditions on the controller parameters, actuator saturation characteristics and maximum allowable time delays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the impact of the spin-orbit coupling due to both structure and crystal inversion asymmetry and external magnetic field on the level structure in a two-dimensional quantum pseudo-dot. It is demonstrated that, both the spin-orbit interactions and magnetic field strength have a great influence on energy eigenvalues of the system. Also, we found that an increase in magnetic field enhances the spin-orbit coupling strength. This phenomena leads to increase the energy eigenvalues and energy splitting due to the spin-orbit coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sol–gel chemistry is a very unique method for constructing high-performance flexible sensors. Sol-gel silica matrices doped with a controlled amount of sensing agent (dopant) lead to the fabrication of suitable sensors. According to this knowledge, we decided to describe the development and performance characteristics of the sol-gel glasses with a nanoporous structure as novel naked eye sensor for fast detection of vanadium (V) based on physical entrapment of 4-(2-pyridylazo) resorcinol inside pores of the silica matrix obtained by sol–gel technology. To design a highly sensitive and selective thin film without dopant leaching, several sols were made with different water: alkoxide ratios and pHs. In summary, this study revealed that the characteristics of porous matrix as well as its average pore size could play significant roles in almost all critical parameters affecting the sensor performance, including sensitivity, selectivity, and response time. The FE-SEM technique equipped with EDAX was also employed to evaluate the surface morphology, porosity growth, and elemental identification of the thin films. The calibration plot was obtained within 0.004–3.000 μg mL−1 of vanadium (V) with a detection limit value of 0.0014 μg mL−1. [Display omitted] • Well-ordered porous silica aerogel was used to product vanadium sensor. • Sensor is based on incorporation of PAR inside the nanopores of silica. • Vanadium can be measured in the range of 0.004–3.000 µg mL−1. • Proposed sensor as very promising device was tested in several beverage samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The infrared spectrum of the cross-shaped van der Waals complex CO 2 –CS 2 is observed in the region of the CO 2 ν 3 fundamental band (≈2350 cm −1 ) using a tuneable diode laser to probe a pulsed supersonic slit jet expansion. Two combination bands are assigned, corresponding to the intermolecular torsion and CO 2 bend modes, and their positions and rotational structure agree extremely well (<0.1 cm −1 ) with calculations based on a recent ab initio intermolecular potential. The b -type torsional band is well-behaved, but the a -type CO 2 bending band is highly unusual, with large shifts between the subband origins for K a = 0, 2, and 4. The shifts may be rationalized as due to tunnelling effects and K a -dependent perturbations from other intermolecular modes. But even though they are well predicted by our calculations, there is no simple qualitative explanation. The predicted low-lying planar slipped parallel isomer of CO 2 –CS 2 is not observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infrared spectra of Ar–C 2 D 2 are observed in the region of the ν 3 fundamental band (asymmetric C–D stretch, ≈2440 cm −1 ) using a tunable optical parametric oscillator to probe a pulsed supersonic slit jet expansion from a cooled nozzle. Transitions are assigned involving K = 0–2 in the ground vibrational state, and K = 0–4 in the excited state. The intermolecular bending combination band is also observed, giving a bending frequency of 4.798 cm −1 . Despite this low bending frequency, the Ar–C 2 D 2 spectrum qualitatively resembles that of a normal semi-rigid molecule, in contrast to He– and Ne–C 2 D 2 which are much closer to the limit of free internal rotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, effects of an on-center hydrogenic impurity, external electric and magnetic fields on the optical rectification coefficient (ORC), second and third harmonic generations (SHG and THG) of a multi-layer spherical quantum dot (MLSQD) are studied. Energy eigenvalues and eigenvectors are calculated using the direct matrix diagonalization method and optical properties are obtained using the compact density matrix approach. Our results reveal that the hydrogenic impurity and external fields have a great influence on these optical quantities. Hydrogenic impurity reduces the magnitude of the resonant peaks and shifts them to the higher energies. An increase in the magnetic (electric) field, leads to increase (decrease) the interval energies and the dipole moment matrix elements. Therefore, resonant peaks of these optical quantities find an obvious blue (red) shift and their magnitudes enhance (diminish) with increasing the external magnetic (electric) field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our current dependency on the oil and gas (O&G) industry for economic development and social activities necessitates research into the sustainability of the industry's supply chains. At present, studies on sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) practices in the industry do not include firm-internal factors that affect the sustainability strategies employed by different functional areas of its supply chains. Our study aims to address this gap by identifying the relevant internal factors and exploring their relationship with SSCM strategies. Specifically, we discuss the commitment to and preparedness for sustainable practices of companies that operate in upstream and downstream O&G supply chain. We study the impact of these factors on their sustainability strategies of four key supply chain functions: supplier management, production management, product stewardship and logistics management. The analyses of data collected through a survey among 81 companies show that management preparedness may enhance sustainable supply chain strategies in the O&G industry more than commitment does. Among the preparedness measures, management of supply chain operational risks is found to be vital to the sustainability of all supply chain functions except for production management practices. The findings also highlight the central importance of supplier and logistics management to the achievement of sustainable O&G supply chains. Companies must also develop an organizational culture that encourages, for example, team collaboration and proactive behaviour to finding innovative sustainability solutions in order to translate commitment to sustainable practices into actions that can produce actual difference to their SSCM practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alginate- grafted polyaniline (Alg- g -PANI) microparticles were synthesized through the grafting of aniline onto functionalized Alg followed by double crosslinking by glutaraldehyde and calcium chloride. The performance of the developed microparticles as adsorbent in simultaneous removal of malachite green (MG) and congo red (CR) dyes were examined by the batch method. Experimental parameters, including adsorbent amount, pH, initial dyes concentrations, and contact time were optimized. Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption models were employed to explore the equilibrium isotherm. As the Langmuir model results, the maximum adsorption capacities (Q m) of microparticles for the MG and CR dyes were obtained as 578.3 and 409.6 mgg−1, respectively. Adsorption kinetics for both dyes were well-fitted with the pseudo-second-order model that confirm the rate-limiting step might be the chemical adsorption. The adsorbent was regenerated via desorption process and was reusable five times without a substantial decrease in its adsorption efficacy in first three cycles. Adsorbent-dyes interactions were computationally evaluated using Gromacs package, and it was found that both MG and CR are able to interact strongly with the adsorbent. In accordance with experimental results, simulation data revealed that MG can be removed more efficiently than those of the CR. As the experimental results, we could conclude that the synthesized Alg- g -PANI microparticles can be used as a nature-inspired adsorbent for simultaneous removals of CR and MG dyes. [Display omitted] • Alg- g -PANI microparticles were synthesized through double crosslinking. • The microparticles were used as adsorbent in simultaneous removal of CR and MG dyes. • The adsorption experiments of both dyes were well-fitted with Langmuir model. • The Q m for CR and MG dyes were obtained as 409.6 and 578.3 mgg−1, respectively. • The adsorption kinetics were best-fitted with pseudo-second-order model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proteins possess a variety of nucleophiles, which can carry out different reactions in the functioning cells. Proteins endogenously and synthetically can be modified through their nucleophilic sites. The roles of these chemical modifications have not been completely revealed. These modifications can alter the protein folding process. Protein folding directly affects the function of proteins. If an error in protein folding occurs, it may cause protein malfunction leading to several neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. In this study, Hen Egg White Lysozyme (HEWL) and bovine insulin, as model proteins for studying the amyloid formation, were covalently attached with 5(6)-thiophenolfluorescein. The amyloid formation of the covalently labeled lysozyme and insulin were compared with the native proteins. Interestingly, the results indicated that the covalent attachment of fluorescein slowed down the amyloid formation of HEWL and insulin significantly. The amyloid formation was examined using Thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescence assay, circular dichroism, FTIR, and gel electrophoresis. Tandem mass spectrometry was employed to identify the sites of covalent modifications in HEWL. It turned out that two surface lysine residues (K97 and K 116) in HEWL were modified. Computational studies, including docking and molecular simulations, revealed that 5(6)-thiophenolfluorescein makes several non-covalent interactions with HEWL residues, including Lys 97, leading to the reduction of the β-sheet in the protein. Additionally, AFM analysis confirmed the amyloid fibril reduction of lysine-modified bovine insulin and HEWL. Altogether, our results expand mechanistic insights into preventing amyloid formation by providing an approach for reducing amyloid formation by modifying specific lysine residues in the proteins. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]