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LncRNA Survival Associated Mitochondrial Melanoma Specific Oncogenic Non‐coding RNA (SAMMSON) is located on human chromosome 3p13, and its expression is upregulated in several tumours, including melanoma, breast cancer, glioblastoma and liver cancer and has an oncogenic role in malignancy disorders. It has been reported that SAMMSON impacts metabolic regulation, cell proliferation, apoptosis, EMT, drug resistance, invasion and migration. Also, SAMMSON is involved in regulating several pathways such as Wnt, MAPK, PI3K, Akt, ERK and p53. SAMMSON is considered a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in several types of cancer and a suitable therapeutic target. In addition, the highly expressed SAMMSON is closely associated with clinicopathological features of various cancers. SAMMSON has a significant role in regulating epigenetic processes by regulating histone protein or the status of DNA methylation. Herein for the first time, we comprehensively summarized the currently available SAMMSON, molecular regulatory pathways, and clinical significance. We believe that clarifying all the molecular aspects of this lncRNA can be a good guide for cancer studies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Breast cancer is a leading cause of incidence and mortality in women globally. Identifying new molecular markers can aid in cancer diagnosis, targeted therapy, and treatment monitoring. This study aimed to measure the expression of the X‐box binding protein 1 (XBP1) gene, an index of the unfolded protein response (UPR), and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), including Nuclear Enriched Abundant Transcript 1 (NEAT1), Cancer Susceptibility Candidate 2 (CASC2), and Long Intergenic Nonprotein Coding RNA 299 (LINC00299), as possible regulators of the UPR pathway. Methods: Total RNA was extracted from 40 samples of breast tumor tissues and their respective controls. The expression level of lncRNAs CASC2, NEAT1, and LINC00299 was quantified using reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR). The ratio of the spliced form of XBP1 to its unspliced form (XBP1u) was determined by PCR and electrophoresis. Results: The results showed a 2.8‐fold increase in the ratio of XBP1s/u in breast cancer tissues compared to adjacent nonmalignant samples (p < 0.05). Additionally, the level of lncRNAs NEAT1, CASC2, and LINC00299 in breast tumor tissues increased significantly by twofold, 1.5‐fold, and 2.3‐fold, respectively, compared to adjacent nonmalignant samples (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Based on the association between the expression of lncRNAs CASC2, LINC00299, and NEAT1 and the XBP1s/u ratio, these lncRNAs could be potential regulators of the UPR pathway. Also, CASC2 and NEAT1 genes could be suggested as suitable biomarkers to distinguish cancerous tissue from noncancerous breast tissue due to their significant increase in expression in cancerous samples compared to adjacent noncancerous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This paper investigates a scalable recursive state estimation method for nonlinear two‐dimensional (2‐D) stochastic complex networks. In these networks, the switching topology is modelled by random variables generated by the Bernoulli distribution. Considering the Extended Kalman Filter structure, we employ the Taylor series expansion to handle the nonlinear functions in the model. Hence, high‐order terms emerging in the linearization process are modelled by norm‐bounded parameter uncertainties. Due to the uncertainty of such a system, we obtain an upper bound for the estimation error covariance. Furthermore, we obtain an upper bound for the cross covariance to reduce the proposed filter's computational complexity and improve scalability. Within the established setting, next, the proposed filter is designed in such a way that the presented upper bounds are minimized. Finally, a numerical example is provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed state estimation algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the vertical and lateral distribution of soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil organic carbon density (SOCD) is indispensable for soil use and environmental management because of their vital role in soil quality assessments. Primarily, they are needed in calculating soil organic carbon storage (SOCS). The objective of this research was to provide digital maps of SOC and SOCD variation as well as their uncertainties at multiple standardized depths (H1: 0–5, H2: 5–15, H3: 15–30, H4: 30–60 and H5: 60–100 cm) using a parsimonious model with optimized terrain‐related attributes and satellite‐derived data. SOCS were evaluated at soil subgroup levels. An area of about 808 km2 with varying elevation, plant cover and lithology from the Miandoab region, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran was selected as a case study area. A total of 386 soil samples were collected from 104 profiles comprising various soil genetic horizons. A continuous spline function was then fitted to the target properties in advance of creating a dataset at five standard depth intervals (following the GlobalSoilMap project). These were then grouped into three classes including top (H1), middle (H2, H3 and H4) and bottom (H5) depths to ease interpretation. Static and dynamic covariates (30‐m resolution) were derived from a digital elevation model (DEM) and a suite of Landsat‐8 spectral imageries, respectively. Four candidate models including stepwise multiple linear regression (SMLR), random forest (RF), cubist (CU) and extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) Tree were tested in this study. Finally, the digital maps at 30‐m resolution of SOC and SOCD and their uncertainties were prepared using the best‐fit model and the bootstrapping method, respectively. Four soil subgroups (Gypsic Haploxerepts, Typic Calcixerepts, Typic Haploxerepts and Xeric Haplocalcids) were identified across the study area. The covariates had variable contributions on the evaluated models. The XGBoost Tree model generally outperformed other models for prediction of SOC and SOCD (R2 = 0.60, on average). Regardless of soil subgroups, the uncertainty analysis showed that the SOCD map had a low prediction interval range value indicating high accuracy. Additionally, the highest SOCS and SOCD was observed at the top followed by middle and bottom depths in the study area. All subgroups exhibited a decreasing trend of SOCD with increasing depth. A similar trend was also observed for SOCS. The highest SOCD (on average) was observed in Gypsic Haploxerepts (4.71 kg C/m2) followed by Typic Calcixerepts (4.46 kg C/m2), Typic Haploxerepts (4.45 kg C/m2) and Xeric Haplocalcids (4.40 kg C/m2). Overall, the SOCS normalized by area within soil order boundaries was greater in Inceptisols than Aridisols across the study area. The findings of this study provide critical information for sustainable management of soil resources in the area for agricultural production and environmental health in the Miandoab region of Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During high‐humidity hot air impingement blanching (HHAIB) of fruits and vegetables, the process effect on the product and subsequent process depends on the operating fluid parameters. In this regard, heat transfer phenomenon during applying the pretreatment is not well known. In this study, the mechanisms of heat transfer during the HHAIB of grape berries were investigated via developing an appropriate mathematical model. Numerical simulation of the model was performed using COMSOL software at temperature of 110°C, fluid velocities of 2, 6, and 10 m s−1, and relative humidities of 20%, 40%, 60%, and 80%. The heat transfer caused by the impinging jet and condensation on the grape surface were considered. The center and surface temperature of the grape berries were predicted. Taking the appropriate heat transfer rate and uniformity of temperature distribution in grape berries into account, the relative humidity range of 40%–60% and the velocity of 10 m s−1 were selected for the process. Comparison of the predicted and measured values for the center temperature of the grape berry statistically validated the simulation task with a determination coefficient (R2) of 0.993 and root mean square error of 1.347. Practical Applications: Nowadays, the demand for organic foods has increased. The high‐humidity hot air impingement blanching (HHAIB) is a safe, effective, and controllable nonchemical method that can be used instead of chemical pretreatment in raisin production. In terms of applying the HHAIB pretreatment for grape drying, little research has been done. Thus, there is still no complete understanding of the heat transfer during its application. Numerical simulations are beneficial tools for accurate designing and optimization of thermal processes. Thus, it is necessary to use mathematical modeling to understand HHAIB mechanisms for industrialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endothelin‐1 (ET‐1) is implicated in the development of atherosclerosis and mediates glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chain hyperelongation on proteoglycans. Our aim was to identify the ET‐1‐mediated signalling pathway involving NADPH oxidase (NOX), p38 MAP kinsae and Smad2 linker region phosphorylation (phospho‐Smad2L) regulate GAG synthesising enzymes mRNA expression (C4ST‐1 and ChSy1) involved in GAG chains hyperelongation in human vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Signalling intermediates were detected and quantified by Western blotting and the mRNA levels of GAG synthesising enzymes were assessed by quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR). ET‐1 treatment of human VSMCs resulted in an increase in phospho‐Smad2L level. The TGF‐β receptor antagonist, SB431542 and the mixed ETA and ETB receptor antagonist bosentan, inhibited ET‐1‐mediated phospho‐Smad2L level. In the presence of apocynin and diphenyleneiodonium chloride (DPI) (NOX inhibitors) and SB239063 (p38 inhibitor) ET‐1‐mediated phospho‐Smad2L levels were inhibited. The gene expression levels of GAG synthesising enzymes post‐ET‐1 treatment were increased compared to untreated controls (p < 0.01). The ET‐mediated the mRNA levels of these enzymes were blocked by the bosentan, SB431542, SB239063, DPI, apocynin and antioxidant N‐acetyl‐L‐cysteine (NAC). ET‐1‐mediated signalling to GAG synthesising enzymes gene expression occurs via transactivation‐dependent pathway involving NOX, p38 MAP kinsae and Smad2 linker region phosphorylation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the event‐triggered resilient recursive distributed state estimation problem for discrete‐time nonlinear systems over sensor networks. An event‐triggered mechanism is employed to save the limited computation resource and network bandwidth while maintaining the desired performance. A resilient Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) with consensus on estimations is developed, and consensus is first achieved with respect to the prediction estimation. The accuracy of the computed estimation is then improved via two recursive equations. By adopting the structure of the EKF, the filter gains are determined in each sensor node via utilization of an upper bound for the cross‐covariance, thereby resulting in a lower computational burden. The boundedness of the estimation errors is analyzed. Simulation results are reported to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed distributed filter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This study investigates the problem of event‐triggered distributed state estimation for discrete‐time, nonlinear systems with state saturation. A Kalman‐like filter is developed, and consensus is first achieved with respect to the prediction estimation. The accuracy of the computed estimation is then improved via two recursive equations. The filter gains are determined in each sensor node via utilization of only an upper bound for the common error covariance, thereby resulting in a lower computational burden. Finally, the boundedness of the estimation errors is analyzed, and a comparison of the simulation results demonstrates that the proposed filtering method outperforms a recent rival method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High impedance grounding systems offer great service continuity by limitation of fault currents during single line to ground faults. Recently, a new power electronic based grounding system has been presented, in which an adjustable current was injected into the neutral point. This active grounding system operates as a high impedance grounding system to reduce fault currents, as well as induced over-voltages. Identification of faulted feeder in a substation with some outgoing feeders from point of common coupling is a general issue in high impedance grounded networks. As a solution to this problem, this study proposes a new approach, to utilise the current injection capability of active grounding systems for detecting the faulted feeder while limiting the fault currents to an acceptable range. The proposed approach does not require any additional devices for faulted feeder detection. Moreover, it is able to identify the ground faults on the main bus. The proposed method is tested on two systems with different capacitive charging currents. Simulation results approve the high efficiency of the proposed method in faulted feeder identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the problem of robust filtering for networked linear time‐varying systems with norm‐bounded modelling uncertainties. Delay and dropout of measurement data in the transmission from sensor to filter are both modelled by a Bernoulli distributed random sequence. Finite‐horizon two‐stage Kalman filters are introduced whether or not the data packets in the network are time stamped. The parameters of robust Kalman filters are determined such that the covariances of the estimation errors are bounded and these upper bounds are guaranteed to be minimal. Novel augmented state vectors are used to extract procedures for computation of filters' parameters. Lastly, simulation results are presented to demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed approach compared the existing methods in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peptidyl-prolyl cis/ trans isomerases ( PPIases) are a conserved group of enzymes that catalyse the conversion between cis and trans conformations of proline imidic peptide bonds. These enzymes play critical roles in regulatory mechanisms of cellular function and pathophysiology of disease. There are three different classes of PPIases and increasing interest in the development of specific PPIase inhibitors. Cyclosporine A, FK506, rapamycin and juglone are known PPIase inhibitors. Herein, we review recent advances in elucidating the role and regulation of the PPIase family in vascular disease. We focus on peptidyl-prolyl cis/ trans isomerase NIMA-interacting 1 (Pin1), an important member of the PPIase family that plays a role in cell cycle progression, gene expression, cell signalling and cell proliferation. In addition, Pin1 may be involved in atherosclerosis. The unique role of Pin1 as a molecular switch that impacts on multiple downstream pathways necessitates the evaluation of a highly specific Pin1 inhibitor to aid in potential therapeutic drug discovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. The transforming growth factor (TGF)-β superfamily of ligands regulates a diverse set of cellular functions. Transforming growth factor-β induces its biological effects through Type I and Type II transmembrane receptors that have serine/threonine kinase activities and weak tyrosine kinase activity. In vascular smooth muscle, TGF-β binds to the TGF-β Type II receptor (TβRII) at the cell surface, recruiting the Type I receptor (TβRI) to form a heterocomplex. Consequently, after phosphorylation and activation of TβRI, the transcription factors receptor activated (R-) Smad2 and Smad3 are recruited and activated through phosphorylation of C terminal residues. Overall, Smad2/3 and co-Smad4 have similar structures consisting of three regions an N-terminal MH1 domain, a C-terminal MH2 domain and a central linker region. 2. Phosphorylation of the Smad linker region appears to have an important role in the regulation of Smad activity and function. The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family, CDK2, CDK4 and calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase are the main kinases that phosphorylate sites in the linker region. The role of the linker region includes enabling the formation of Smad homo-oligomers and provision of phosphorylation sites for MAPK and other kinases. In some instances, linker region phosphorylation regulates the inhibition of the nuclear translocation of Smads. 3. In the present review, we describe TGF-β signalling through Smad2/3 and the importance of the linker region in the regulation and expression of genes induced by TGF-β superfamily ligands in the context of vascular smooth muscle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]