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Although there are different theories about the adoption and implementation of technological innovation by companies, they have an organization/individual-centered approach. The aim of this study is to propose the Technology–Organization–External–Sustainability (TOES) framework, a technology adoption theory, an extension of the Technology-Organization-(business) Environment (TOE) framework, to assist companies in adopting and implementing technology through a holistic approach. Design Science Research was used to structure the TOES framework and the Delphi method for its evaluation and improvement. To examine the potential of the TOES framework, 40 maturity and readiness models found in the literature were examined, which were created to assist in Industry 4.0 implementation projects, according to their common element of analysis—their dimensions. An important finding was that the TOES framework allowed us to identify that most of these models focused predominantly on technology; therefore, they do not always allow for a general analysis of the company, nor do they consider the external competitive scenario or sustainability as relevant contexts for analysis. The theoretical and practical contribution lies in the presentation of the TOES framework that incorporates sustainability as a relevant context for analysis, expanding the theory of the adoption of technological innovation. Another theoretical contribution is to alert researchers that maturity and readiness models for Industry 4.0 implementation projects should take a more holistic approach. It is suggested to use the TOES framework in other areas of knowledge, such as medicine, engineering, technology, and science, among others, to test its potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coffee leaf rust (CLR), caused by the biotrophic fungus Hemileia vastatrix, has greatly impacted coffee production worldwide due to reductions in yield. This study investigated the potential use of Re‐leaf® (salicylates [0.69%], copper [0.5%] and zinc [6%]) to reduce CLR severity by boosting host defence reactions. A 2 × 2 factorial experiment was arranged with plants sprayed with water (control) or Re‐leaf (induced resistance [IR] stimulus) and noninoculated or inoculated with H. vastatrix. In vitro assays showed germ tubes were not formed on urediniospores exposed to IR stimulus at 5–12.5 mL/L and urediniospore germination was significantly lower as rates increased. CLR severity was also significantly reduced compared to the control, with the area under CLR progress curve and intensity of fungal sporulation significantly lower by 96% and 92%, respectively, and incubation period higher by 54% compared to control. The IR stimulus‐sprayed and infected plants showed better photosynthetic performance, preservation of photosynthetic pigments, greater activity of defence‐related enzymes and a more robust antioxidative metabolism compared to water‐sprayed and infected ones. The higher concentration of superoxide anion radical for IR stimulus‐sprayed and infected leaves may intensify cell defence reactions besides having a fungistatic effect. These results strongly support the potential use of IR stimulus to boost defences in coffee tissues and hamper the infection process of H. vastatrix. Its fungistatic effect against germination of fungal urediniospores should also be considered as a strategy to reduce the amount of inoculum required to start a CLR epidemic under field conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Ciência & Saúde Coletiva is the property of Associacao Brasileira de Pos-Graduacao em Saude Coletiva and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Context: Estimating chloroplast pigment content by using chlorophyll meters is faster and cheaper than by using traditional pigment-extraction protocols. However, the reliability of chlorophyll meters requires a preliminary test of the relationship between the estimated and actual concentrations. Aims: To establish an optimized protocol for extracting leaf chloroplast pigments from Eucalyptus urophylla and Khaya senegalensis seedlings. Moreover, we evaluated the relationship between chlorophyll-content estimation by using chlorophyll meters with the SPAD index by using SPAD-502 and with Falker chlorophyll index (FCI) by using ClorofiLOG, and that by using the optimal chloroplast pigment-extraction protocol. Methods: The effectiveness of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) saturated with CaCO3 at 25°C and 65°C and 80% acetone (v/v) was assessed as extractors, by using different incubation times. Chlorophyll-content estimation was assessed using chlorophyll meters with the SPAD index by using SPAD-502 and with Falker chlorophyll index (FCI) by using ClorofiLOG. Key results: For both Eucalyptus urophylla and Khaya senegalensis seedlings, the optimal protocol for extracting pigments from chloroplasts was incubation for 4 h by using DMSO saturated with CaCO3 at 65°C. Chlorophyll-content estimation using SPAD-502 and ClorofiLOG showed a strong positive correlation with measurements from the optimized pigment-extraction protocol. Furthermore, the regression equations of the chlorophyll-content estimation with chlorophyll meters allowed predicting the real content, because the values were very close to those measured using traditional extraction protocols. Conclusions: The SPAD index and the FCI were reliable methods for estimating chlorophyll content in seedlings of both species. This could make measuring the chloroplast pigments faster and cheaper, especially regarding experimentation under field conditions. The protocol to estimate photosynthetic-pigment content was optimized in Eucalyptus urophylla and Khaya senegalensis seedlings by using different extraction methods to evaluate its relationship with values estimated using chlorophyll meters. In both species, a strong positive correlation was observed between estimated values and the values from extraction that used DMSO saturated with CaCO3 at 65°C. Photograph by the authors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leishmaniases comprise a set of neglected diseases, afflicting over one million people worldwide and frequently leading to fatal outcomes, mainly in their visceral form. The current treatment often comes with severe side effects and limitations regarding its effectiveness. It is imperative to explore novel therapeutic avenues that are more potent and less toxic. In this study, we successfully synthesized α-acyloxycarboxamides (also known as depsipeptides). These compounds underwent rigorous evaluation through a combination of molecular docking, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, and in vitro assessments against both promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis. Notably, most of the α-acyloxycarboxamides showed substantially low cytotoxicity in peritoneal macrophages with a CC50 above 400 μM, whereas amphotericin B (positive control) showed a CC50 value greater than 50 μM. This effect is reflected in the selectivity index (SI), where compounds 7a1 and 7db1 showed more favorable results (SI >14.66 and 10.44) when compared to the positive control (SI > 10.36). In vitro experiments demonstrated that the α-acyloxycarboxamides effectively inhibited the growth of axenic promastigote forms of L. amazonensis. Particularly, compounds 7a1 (IC50 = 31.83 μM) and 7db1 (IC50 = 33.88 μM) stood out, displaying significant activity in reducing intracellular parasites as well (IC50 = 27.28 and 38.31 μM, respectively). To gain insights into the potential pathway of activity for compound 7a1, we conducted in silico studies targeting predictive pharmacokinetic parameters and the application of reverse molecular docking utilizing critical biological targets, followed by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Among 59 Leishmania targets, the reverse approach suggested that compound 7a1 targets the N-myristoyltransferase enzyme by establishing only hydrophobic interactions with four amino acid residues at the binding site, with an affinity energy of −8.98 kcal mol−1. Subsequently, MD simulations were performed to obtain further information on its binding modes and complex stability under physiological conditions, in which it was observed that the macromolecule presented great stability in the presence of compound 7a1 (<1.0 Å), suggesting a stable ligand–target complex formation. Regarding ADMET studies, a-acyloxycarboxamides demonstrated promising properties, with no violations of the Lipinski rule. This study underscores the promise of α-acyloxycarboxamides as potential therapeutic candidates targeting leishmaniasis. Developing these compounds could lead to more effective and less toxic treatments, addressing a critical need in the fight against this neglected disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Histopathological analysis is an essential exam for detecting various types of cancer. The process is traditionally time-consuming and laborious. Taking advantage of deep learning models, assisting the pathologist in the diagnosis process is possible. In this work, a study was carried out based on the DenseNet neural network. It consisted of changing its architecture through combinations of Transformer and MBConv blocks to investigate its impact on classifying histopathological images of penile cancer. Due to the limited number of samples in this dataset, pre-training is performed on another larger lung and colon cancer histopathological image dataset. Various combinations of these architectural components were systematically evaluated to compare their performance. The results indicate significant improvements in feature representation, demonstrating the effectiveness of these combined elements resulting in an F1-Score of up to 95.78%. Its diagnostic performance confirms the importance of deep learning techniques in men's health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) is one of the most profitable crops among the legumes grown worldwide. The occurrence of rust epidemics, caused by Phakopsora pachyrhizi, has greatly contributed to yield losses and an abusive use of fungicides. Within this context, this study investigated the potential of using a phosphite of nickel (Ni) and potassium (K) [referred to as induced resistance (IR) stimulus] to induce soybean resistance against infection by P. pachyrhizi. Plants were sprayed with water (control) or with IR stimulus and non-inoculated or inoculated with P. pachyrhizi. The germination of urediniospores was greatly reduced in vitro by 99% using IR stimulus rates ranging from 2 to 15 mL/L. Rust severity was significantly reduced from 68 to 78% from 7 to 15 days after inoculation (dai). The area under the disease progress curve significantly decreased by 74% for IR stimulus-sprayed plants compared to water-sprayed plants. For inoculated plants, foliar concentrations of K and Ni were significantly higher for IR stimulus treatment than for the control treatment. Infected and IR stimulus-sprayed plants had their photosynthetic apparatus (a great pool of photosynthetic pigments, and lower values for some chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters) preserved, associated with less cellular damage (lower concentrations of malondialdehyde, hydrogen peroxide, and anion superoxide) and a greater production of phenolics and lignin than plants from the control treatment. In response to infection by P. pachyrhizi, defense-related genes (PAL2.1, PAL3.1, CHIB1, LOX7, PR-1A, PR10, ICS1, ICS2, JAR, ETR1, ACS, ACO, and OPR3) were up-regulated from 7 to 15 dai for IR stimulus-sprayed plants in contrast to plants from the control treatment. Collectively, these findings provide a global picture of the enhanced capacity of IR stimulus-sprayed plants to efficiently cope with fungal infection at both biochemical and physiological levels. The direct effect of this IR stimulus against urediniospores' germination over the leaf surface needs to be considered with the aim of reducing rust severity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among soybean diseases, rust, caused by Phakopsora pachyrhizi, stands out as one of the most destructive. Resistance inducers may be a great alternative to reduce the yield losses caused by this disease from the perspective of more sustainable agriculture. In this study, soybean plants were sprayed with water (control) or with Cautha [referred to as induced resistance (IR) stimulus after that] and inoculated or non‐inoculated with P. pachyrhizi. The germination of urediniospores was significantly reduced by 22%, 26%, 19%, and 25% for the IR stimulus rates of 2.5, 5, 10, and 20 mL/L, respectively. Rust severity was significantly reduced by 27%, 19%, 23%, 25%, and 41% at 7, 9, 11, 13, and 15 days after inoculation, respectively, and the area under the disease progress curve significantly decreased by 27% for IR stimulus‐sprayed plants compared to water‐sprayed plants. For infected plants, foliar concentrations of Ca, N, chlorophyll a + b, and carotenoids were higher for IR‐stimulus sprayed plants than for water‐sprayed plants. Lower concentrations of malondialdehyde (less cellular damage) and reactive oxygen species (hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion radical) along with great activities of antioxidative enzymes (ascorbate peroxidase, catalase, glutathione reductase, and superoxide dismutase) helped to reduce rust symptoms for IR‐stimulus sprayed plants. On top of that, these plants also showed greater foliar concentrations of total soluble phenols and lignin as well as increased activities of defence‐related enzymes (chitinase, β‐1,3‐glucanase, phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase, peroxidase, polyphenoloxidase, and lipoxygenase). These results strongly support the potential of using this IR stimulus to increase soybean resistance against infection by P. pachyrhizi and, at the same time, to act directly against the germination of the urediniospores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Frogeye leaf spot on soybeans is traditionally considered as a southern disease in the United States but its impact in North Central USA has been rising in recent years. In this study, we investigated the population structure and mating type distribution in the C. sojina population from Indiana, USA. Based on 27 single nucleotide polymorphism markers, 49 multi-locus genotypes (MLGs) were identified in 234 isolates collected from 29 counties in Indiana in 2020. Bayesian analysis grouped the 49 MLGs into three clusters. This grouping was supported by principal coordinate analysis and, in large part, by the unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean and minimal spanning tree. Only one mating-type idiomorph was found in each isolate and in each MLG. The MAT1-1 idiomorph was found in 22 MLGs and the MAT1-2 idiomorph was found in 27 MLGs. Based on clone-corrected data, the distribution of mating-type idiomorphs did not deviate significantly from 1:1 ratio in Indiana as a whole and in 22 out of 24 counties where two or more MLGs were found. Thirty MLGs contained QoI-resistant isolates and 22 MLGs contained QoI-sensitive isolates, with three MLGs containing both types of isolates. MLG1, the most common MLG with 90 isolates, contained mostly QoI-resistant isolates. Interestingly, MLG1 was also the dominant genotype in the Tennessee population collected in 2015, suggesting that MLG1 has been a dominant genotype in a wider region for many years. Based on the standard index of association ( r ¯ d), the Indiana population as a whole was in significant linkage disequilibrium. However, in five out of 16 counties where three or more MLGs were found, the null hypothesis of linkage equilibrium was not rejected. Tests of linkage disequilibrium between locus pairs showed that 33.3% of locus pairs on the same contigs were in significant disequilibrium and 17.7% of locus pairs on different contigs were in significant disequilibrium. The possibility of a cryptic sexual stage was discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to develop and validate a standard area diagram set (SADs) to estimate the severity of angular leaf spot (ALS), caused by the fungus Pseudocercospora griseola, in the leaflets of common bean plants. For the elaboration of SADs, the minimum and maximum disease severity limits in the leaflets were considered, along with the intermediate levels following linear increments. The SADs had 10 levels of severity as follows: 0.5%, 2.2%, 4.5%, 9.6%, 20.1%, 30.8%, 41.2%, 52.1%, 67.4%, and 77.3%. The validation was performed by 20 raters, 10 inexperienced and 10 experienced in quantifying severities of foliar diseases. The severity estimates were obtained in 150 leaflets displaying different levels of severity without and using the proposed SADs. Accuracy, precision and reliability of the estimates were improved using SADs. The SADs obtained in the present study proved to be adequate to estimate the severity of ALS in the leaflets of common bean plants with the potential of use in any study in which it is crucial to quantify the severity of this foliar disease to discriminate treatments with precision and accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recognition of dominantly inherited micro-satellite instable (MSI) cancers caused by pathogenic variants in one of the four mismatch repair (MMR) genes MSH2, MLH1, MSH6 and PMS2 has modified our understanding of carcinogenesis. Inherited loss of function variants in each of these MMR genes cause four dominantly inherited cancer syndromes with different penetrance and expressivities: the four Lynch syndromes. No person has an 'average sex 'or a pathogenic variant in an 'average Lynch syndrome gene' and results that are not stratified by gene and sex will be valid for no one. Carcinogenesis may be a linear process from increased cellular division to localized cancer to metastasis. In addition, in the Lynch syndromes (LS) we now recognize a dynamic balance between two stochastic processes: MSI producing abnormal cells, and the host's adaptive immune system's ability to remove them. The latter may explain why colonoscopy surveillance does not reduce the incidence of colorectal cancer in LS, while it may improve the prognosis. Most early onset colon, endometrial and ovarian cancers in LS are now cured and most cancer related deaths are after subsequent cancers in other organs. Aspirin reduces the incidence of colorectal and other cancers in LS. Immunotherapy increases the host immune system's capability to destroy MSI cancers. Colonoscopy surveillance, aspirin prevention and immunotherapy represent major steps forward in personalized precision medicine to prevent and cure inherited MSI cancer., Author(s): Pal Maller[sup.1], Toni T. Seppälä[sup.2,3,4], Aysel Ahadova[sup.5,6,7], Emma J. Crosbie[sup.8,9], Elke Holinski-Feder[sup.10,11], Rodney Scott[sup.12], Saskia Haupt[sup.13,14], Gabriela Möslein[sup.15], Ingrid Winship[sup.16,17], Sanne W. Bajwa-ten Broeke[sup.18], Kelly E. Kohut[sup.19], Neil Ryan[sup.20,21], [...]