A space–air–ground–sea integrated network (SAGSIN) is a promising heterogeneous network framework for the next generation mobile communications. Moreover, federated learning (FL), as a widely used distributed intelligence approach, can improve advanced network performance. In view of the combination and cooperation of SAGSINs and FL, an FL-based SAGSIN framework faces a number of unprecedented challenges, not only from the communication aspect but also on the security and privacy side. Motivated by these observations, in this article, we first give a detailed state-of-the-art review of recent progress and ongoing research works on FL-based SAGSINs. Then, the challenges of FL-based SAGSINs are discussed. After that, for different service demands, basic applications are introduced with their benefits and functions. In addition, two case studies are proposed, in order to improve SAGSINs’ communication efficiency under a significant communication latency difference and to protect user-level privacy for SAGSIN participants, respectively. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms. Moreover, future trends of FL-based SAGSINs are discussed. Full article

A series of novel amine triphenolate iron complexes were synthesized and characterized using UV, IR, elemental analysis, and high-resolution mass spectrometry. These complexes were applied to the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of cyclohexene oxide (CHO), demonstrating excellent activity (TOF > 11050 h⁻¹) in the absence of a co-catalyst. In addition, complex C1 maintained the dimer in the presence of the reaction substrate CHO, catalyzing the ring-opening polymerization of CHO to PCHO through bimetallic synergy. Furthermore, a two-component system consisting of iron complexes and TBAB displayed the ability to catalyze the reaction of CHO with CO₂, resulting in the formation of cis-cyclic carbonate with high selectivity. Complex C4 exhibited the highest catalytic activity, achieving 80% conversion of CHO at a CHO/C4/TBAB molar ratio of 2000/1/8 and a CO₂ pressure of 3 MPa for 16 h at 100 °C, while maintaining >99% selectivity of cis-cyclic carbonates, which demonstrated good conversion and selectivity. Full article

In this paper an efficient, compact, and cheap power source design for an off-grid PV water pumping system is investigated. The proposed system consists of a PV array, battery, three-port converter (TPC), three-phase voltage source inverter, and induction motor pump. Power is extracted from PV sources during the daytime and used to charge batteries through the three-port converter, then used later to supply load during the nighttime. An intelligent MPPT method is used to obtain PV maximum power; a jellyfish optimization technique with different control algorithms is used to optimize and tune controllers’ parameters among the system. Different modes for the TPC are discussed depending on PV power availability. The proposed system is simulated to assess system performance under different conditions; also the system is efficient with reduced number of components than conventional converters. A complete unified power management over PV input port, battery port, and load port has occurred for all operation modes. At all operation modes, the system has been feeding load without any unmet loads. A real case study in Al-Kharijah oasis is studied and simulation results are listed; for the Dom case DC bus ripple factor voltage percentage equals 0.8%, in the Dim case equals 3%, and in the Siso mode equals 9%. Full article

The rest-breaking agent, hydrogen cyanamide (HC), can substitute insufficient chill unit accumulation in Vitis vinifera and induce uniform bud-break; however, due to its toxicity it is being banned. In South Africa, red seedless grapes, including V. vinifera Crimson Seedless (CS), are the largest table grape export group; therefore, replacing HC in V. vinifera CS is crucial. This study aimed to confirm the molecular triggers induced by HC and assess the bud-break-enhancing abilities of commercial plant biostimulants. Forced bud-break assay experiments using V. vinifera CS single-node cuttings and a small-scale field trial were performed. Results demonstrated that increased chill unit accumulation (CUA) reduced HC efficacy. Bud-break started between 10 and 20 days after treatment, irrespective of final CUA. The small-scale field trial found that HC 3% and biostimulants were similar to the negative control. The treatment of dormant grapevine compound buds with nitric oxide (NO), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), and hypoxia trigger dormancy release to a certain extent, supporting the molecular models proposed for HC action. NO, H₂O₂, and hypoxia, in combination with PBs, may potentially replace HC; however, this needs to be confirmed in future experiments. Full article

Background: Rejection, injustice, and exclusion from meaningful interpersonal relationships are often extremely painful and stress-generating experiences. This study aimed to define the role of explicit and implicit self-esteem in pain perception as a component of the physiological–psychological system that regulates the body’s response to stress associated with the threat of social rejection. Methods: In total, 360 individuals participated in this study. The measurement of cortisol in saliva, the assessment of pain thresholds using thermal stimuli, the IAT to assess implicit self-esteem, and a questionnaire on global self-esteem and social pain were used. The study included three measurements: baseline and 15 and 45 min after the application of a laboratory socially threatening stimulus (the Trier Social Stress Test). Results: People experiencing chronic social pain (CSP) are more likely to have fragile self-esteem, higher pain thresholds, and tend to experience reduced pain tolerance in situations of acute social threat than people without CSP experience. In people with CSP and fragile self-esteem, after the introduction of a social threat, an increase in pain tolerance was observed along with a longer-lasting increase in cortisol levels. Conclusions: Fragile self-esteem, along with feelings of chronic exclusion, injustice, and rejection, may prolong stress reactions and produce a hypoalgesic effect. Full article

Melanoma is the most severe and fatal form of skin cancer, resulting from multiple gene mutations with high intra-tumor and inter-tumor molecular heterogeneity. Treatment options for patients whose disease has progressed beyond the ability for surgical resection rely on currently accepted standard therapies, notably immune checkpoint inhibitors and targeted therapies. Acquired resistance to these therapies and treatment-associated toxicity necessitate exploring novel strategies, especially those that can be personalized for specific patients and/or populations. Here, we review the current landscape and progress of standard therapies and explore what personalized oncology techniques may entail in the scope of melanoma. Our purpose is to provide an up-to-date summary of the tools at our disposal that work to circumvent the common barriers faced when battling melanoma. Full article

This study introduces a deep neural network approach that utilizes radial basis functions (RBFs) to solve forward and inverse problems in the process of diffusion. The input layer incorporates multiquadric (MQ) RBFs, symbolizing the radial distance between the boundary points on the spacetime boundary and the source points positioned outside the spacetime boundary. The output layer is the initial and boundary data given by analytical solutions of the diffusion equation. Utilizing the concept of the spacetime coordinates, the approximations for forward and backward diffusion problems involve assigning initial data on the bottom or top spacetime boundaries, respectively. As the need for discretization of the governing equation is eliminated, our straightforward approach uses only the provided boundary data and MQ RBFs. To validate the proposed method, various diffusion scenarios, including forward, backward, and inverse problems with noise, are examined. Results indicate that the method can achieve high-precision numerical solutions for solving diffusion problems. Notably, only 1/4 of the initial and boundary conditions are known, yet the method still yields precise results. Full article

Numerous studies derived from medicinal herbs have been conducted to explore bioactive compounds as potential alternatives to synthetic drugs, aiming to mitigate harmful side effects and alleviate economic burdens. In this study, we assessed the safety and potential biological activities of extracts from Fomes fomentarius L. (FFL). The FFL extracts were obtained through various ethanol concentrations, as follows: 0%, 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100%, respectively. All extracts did not induce mutagenicity even up to 5 mg/plate concentration. In the assessment of antioxidant activity, only the hot water extract exhibited weaker antioxidant activity than the other ethanol extracts. Notably, all extracts exhibited significant antimutagenetic effects only with a metabolically active enzyme system (S9 mix). The condition of 70% ethanol extract displayed the most robust antimutagenic activity; thus, the extract was sequentially fractionated with solvents of varying polarities to isolate inhibitory components. After the fractionization, the diethyl ether and butanol fractions effectively suppressed the growth of mutated colonies, suggesting that those such as essential oils, vitamins, alkaloids, and flavonoids can be considered major active compounds. Overall, our study demonstrated that FFL extracts induce potent antioxidant and antimutagenic effects. Further investigations are warranted to verify specific active compounds which induce an antimutagenic effect. Our findings provide valuable insights into FFL as a promising source for potential functional food development. Full article

Biopolymers are biodegradable and renewable and can significantly reduce environmental impacts. For this reason, biocomposites based on a plasticized starch and cross-linker matrix and with a microfibrillated OCC cardboard cellulose reinforcement were developed. Biocomposites were prepared by suspension casting with varied amounts of microfibrillated cellulose: 0, 4, 8, and 12 wt%. Polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) was used as a cross-linking, water-soluble, and non-toxic agent. Microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) from OCC cardboard showed appropriate properties and potential for good performance as a reinforcement. In general, microfiber incorporation and matrix cross-linking increased crystallization, reduced water adsorption, and improved the physical and tensile properties of the plasticized starch. Biocomposites cross-linked with PEGDE and reinforced with 12 wt% MFC showed the best properties. The chemical and structural changes induced by the cross-linking of starch chains and MFC reinforcement were confirmed by FTIR, NMR, and XRD. Biodegradation higher than 80% was achieved for most biocomposites in 15 days of laboratory compost. Full article

The anisotropic flow of photons produced in relativistic nuclear collisions is known as a promising observable for studying the initial state and the subsequent evolution of the hot and dense medium formed in such collisions. The investigation of photon anisotropic flow coefficients, $v_n$, has attracted high interest over the last decade, involving both theory and experiment. The thermal emission of photons and their anisotropic flow are found to be highly sensitive to the initial state of the fireball, where even slight modifications can lead to significant variations in the final state results. In contrast, the ratio of photon anisotropic flow stands out as a robust observable, exhibiting minimal sensitivity to the initial conditions. Here, we briefly review the studies of the individual elliptic and triangular flow parameters of photons as well as their ratios and how these parameters serve as valuable probes for investigating the intricacies of the initial state and addressing the challenges posed by the direct photon puzzle. Full article

Background: Cerebrovascular hemodynamic impairment has been reported in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate changes in cerebral blood flow (CBF) in AD patients. Methods: Data were obtained by searching MEDLINE and Scopus for all investigations published between 1 January 2011 and 1 November 2021, comparing the cerebrovascular hemodynamic between AD patients and cognately healthy age-matched controls, using transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound. Results: Twelve studies, based on 685 patients [395 with AD and 290 age-matched cognitively healthy controls, with a mean age of 71.5 and 72.1 years, respectively] were included in the analysis. A random effect model revealed that AD patients, in the proximal segments of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), have a significantly lower CBF velocity, compared to controls (MD: −7.80 cm/s, 95%CI: −10.78 to −5.13, p < 0.0001, I² = 71.0%). Due to a significant Egger’s test (t = 3.12, p = 0.008), a trim-and-fill analysis was performed, confirming the difference (MD: −11.05 cm/s, 95%CI: –12.28 to −9.82, p < 0.0001). Meta-regression analysis demonstrated that the mean CBF at the proximal MCA was directly correlated with arterial hypertension (p = 0.03) and MMSE score (p < 0.001), but inversely correlated with age (p = 0.01). In AD patients, the pulsatility index was significantly higher compared to controls (MD: 0.16, 95%CI: 0.07 to 0.25, p < 0.0001, I²: 84.5%), while the breath-holding index test results were significant lower (MD: −1.72, 95%CI: −2.53 to −0.91, p < 0.001, I²: 85.4%). Conclusions: AD patients have a significant impairment in relation to their cerebrovascular perfusion, suggesting that cerebrovascular hemodynamic deterioration, evaluated using TCD, may be a useful diagnostic tool. Full article

Preparing submicron and nanoscale phosphors with good optical properties for practical applications is a challenging task for current inorganic long afterglow luminescent materials. This study utilized commercialized SrAl₂O₄:Eu²⁺, Dy³⁺ phosphors (SAOED) as raw materials and employed solvents with lower polarity or non-polar solvents for dynamic solvothermal treatment. The commercialized phosphor’s overall average particle size was reduced from 42.3 μm to 23.6 μm while maintaining the fluorescence intensity at 91.39% of the original sample. Additionally, the study demonstrated the applicability of the dynamic solvothermal method to most other commercialized inorganic phosphors. The experiment produced a high-brightness nano-sized phosphor with a yield of 5.64%. The average diameter of the phosphor was 85 nm, with an average thickness of 16 nm. The quantum efficiency of the phosphor was 74.46% of the original sample. The fingerprint imaging results suggest that the nano-sized phosphors have potential for practical applications. Full article

Ulnar dimelia, also known as “mirror hand disorder”, is a rare developmental disorder affecting the upper limb. Primarily, it involves the duplication of fingers, carpal bones, metacarpals, or ulna along the sagittal axis, and is often accompanied by the absence of the radius or thumb. The anomaly presents challenges in both bone and soft tissue development, impacting limb functionality and affecting a child’s quality of life. We present the case of a one-year-old girl with unilateral ulnar dimelia. Surgical intervention was considered to address functional and aesthetic concerns. The surgery involved creating an opposable thumb from preaxial fingers through a carefully tailored approach. Post surgical therapy included physiotherapy and psychotherapy to ensure both physical functionality and psychological adjustment. The surgical procedure successfully provided an adequate grip pattern, and the patient demonstrated age-appropriate use of the modified hand at the six-month follow-up. Comparison with similar cases highlights the diversity in ulnar dimelia presentations and the need for customised surgical solutions. The timing of surgery is typically recommended between one and two years, considering both anatomical readiness and the advantages of cerebral plasticity in young patients. Full article

To compare the environmental space of four Anastrepha species in different ENSO episodes (El Niño, El Neutro and La Niña), we built ecological niche models with NicheA software. We analysed the fundamental niche and the combined establishment risk maps of these species developed with the ArcGisPro combine geoprocess. A comparison of the ellipsoids that represent the fundamental niche existing for the species showed changes in the El Niño, El Neutro and La Niña episodes. For A. grandis in the El Niño vs. El Neutro episodes, there was a Jaccard index of 0.3841, while the comparison between the La Niña vs. El Neutro episodes presented a Jaccard index of 0.6192. A. serpentina in the El Niño vs. El Neutro and La Niña vs. El Neutro episodes presented Jaccard indices of 0.3281 and 0.6328, respectively. For A. obliqua, the comparison between the El Niño vs. El Neutro and La Niña vs. El Neutro episodes presented Jaccard indices of 0.3518 and 0.7472, respectively. For A. striata, comparisons between the episodes of El Niño vs. El Neutro and La Niña vs. El Neutro presented Jaccard indices of 0.3325 and 0.6022, respectively. When studying the comparison between Anastrepha species and the different ENSO climatic episodes, we found that in the El Niño episode, the comparisons with the best environmental similarity were A. obliqua vs. A. striata and A. obliqua vs. A. serpentina, with higher Jaccard indices (0.6064 and 0.6316, respectively). In the El Neutro episode, the comparisons with the best environmental similarity were A. serpentina vs. A. striata and A. obliqua vs. A. striata, which presented higher Jaccard indices (0.4616 and 0.6411, respectively). In the La Niña episode, the comparisons that presented the best environmental similarity were A. obliqua vs. A. serpentina and A. obliqua vs. A. striata, with higher Jaccard indices (0.5982 and 0.6228, respectively). Likewise, our results present the risk maps for the establishment of these species throughout the Neotropics, allowing us to predict the level of risk in order to develop integrated pest management plans. Full article

Wind power systems, which are currently being constructed for the electricity worldwide market, are mostly based on Doubly Fed Induction Generators (DFIGs). To control such systems, multilevel converters are increasingly preferred due to the well-known benefits they provide. This paper deals with the control of a standalone DFIG-based Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) by using a three-level Neutral-Point-Clamped (NPC) converter. The frequency and magnitude of the stator output voltage of the DFIG are controlled and fixed at nominal values despite the variable rotor speed, ensuring a continuous AC supply for three-phase loads. This task is achieved by controlling the DFIG rotor currents via a PI controller combined with a new Simplified Direct Space Vector Modulation strategy (SDSVM), which is applied to the three-level NPC converter. This strategy is based on the use of a line-to-line three-level converter space vector diagram without using Park transformation and then simplifying it to that of a two-level converter. The performance of the proposed SDSVM technique in terms of controlling the three-level NPC-converter-based standalone WECS is demonstrated through simulation results. The whole WECS control and the SDSVM strategy are implemented on a dSPACE DS 1104 board that drives a DFIG-based wind system test bench. The obtained experimental results confirm the validity and performance in terms of control. Full article

Fruits and vegetables are an important part of the human diet, but during transportation and storage, microbial pathogens attack and spoil fruits and vegetables, causing huge economic losses to agriculture. Traditionally used chemical fungicides leave chemical residues, leading to environmental pollution and health risks. With the emphasis on food safety, biocontrol agents are attracting more and more attention due to their environmental friendliness. Endophytic fungi are present in plant tissues and do not cause host disease. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) they produce are used to control postharvest diseases due to their significant antifungal activity, as well as their volatility, safety and environmental protection characteristics. This review provides the concept and characterization of endophytic fungal VOCs, concludes the types of endophytic fungi that release antifungal VOCs and their biological control mechanisms, as well as focuses on the practical applications and the challenges of applying VOCs as fumigants. Endophytic fungal VOCs can be used as emerging biocontrol resources to control postharvest diseases that affect fruits and vegetables. Full article

In this study, terbium-doped ZnO-SiO₂-B₂O₃-Na₂O glasses were fabricated with the conventional melt-quenching method. The effect of altering the concentration of the host matrix on luminescence performance was investigated in terms of different ZnO/B₂O₃ and ZnO/SiO₂ ratios. FT-IR results indicate that bridging oxygens (Bos) were converted to non-bridging oxygens (NBOs) with increments of ZnO. Furthermore, the emission intensity and luminescence lifetime of samples were influenced by the amount of ZnO; this was proven with photoluminescence spectra results. The maximum emission intensity was observed at a 1.1 ZnO/B₂O₃ ratio and a 0.8 ZnO/SiO₂ ratio; however, the highest luminescence lifetime was observed at a 1.1 ZnO/SiO₂ ratio. The emission intensity and luminescence lifetime of glass samples were improved by heat treatment as a result of the formation of willemite and zinc oxide phases. An increase in the ZnO/SiO₂ ratio facilitated the formation of willemite and zinc oxide phases; therefore, crystallinity was directly related to the luminescence behavior of glass samples. Full article

The gradual formation of hard tissue along the root canal walls is a natural process associated with aging, typically progressing slowly over time. In reaction to tooth wear, operative procedures, vital pulp treatments, or regenerative endodontic procedures, hard tissue may also accumulate within the pulp canal space at a slow rate. In certain cases, such as dental trauma, autotransplantation, or orthodontic treatment, this deposition of hard tissue can accelerate unexpectedly, resulting in rapid narrowing or complete closure of the root canal space. This situation is called calcific metamorphosis (CM), root canal calcification, or pulp canal obliteration (PCO). Performing conventional endodontic therapy on severely calcified canals presents significant challenges and increases the risk of procedural accidents. Calcified canals introduce such complexity that dedicated negotiation concepts and specially designed instruments have been developed to deal with the challenge. This article seeks to review the existing methods for effectively navigating calcified canals and to introduce the buckling resistance activation test (BRAT) technique. Full article

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) severely affects central vision due to progressive macular degeneration and its staggering prevalence is rising globally, especially in the elderly population above 55 years. Increased oxidative stress with aging is considered an important contributor to AMD pathogenesis despite multifaceted risk factors including genetic predisposition and environmental agents. Wet AMD can be managed with routine intra-vitreal injection of angiogenesis inhibitors, but no satisfactory medicine has been approved for the successful management of the dry form. The toxic carbonyls due to photo-oxidative degradation of accumulated bisretinoids within lysosomes initiate a series of events including protein adduct formation, impaired autophagy flux, complement activation, and chronic inflammation, which is implicated in dry AMD. Therapy based on antioxidants has been extensively studied for its promising effect in reducing the impact of oxidative stress. This paper reviews the dry AMD pathogenesis, delineates the effectiveness of dietary and nutrition supplements in clinical studies, and explores pre-clinical studies of antioxidant molecules, extracts, and formulations with their mechanistic insights. Full article

In a standard binary supervised classification task, the existence of both negative and positive samples in the training dataset are required to construct a classification model. However, this condition is not met in certain applications where only one class of samples is obtainable. To overcome this problem, a different classification method, which learns from positive and unlabeled (PU) data, must be incorporated. In this study, a novel method is presented: neighborhood-based positive unlabeled learning using decision tree (NPULUD). First, NPULUD uses the nearest neighborhood approach for the PU strategy and then employs a decision tree algorithm for the classification task by utilizing the entropy measure. Entropy played a pivotal role in assessing the level of uncertainty in the training dataset, as a decision tree was developed with the purpose of classification. Through experiments, we validated our method over 24 real-world datasets. The proposed method attained an average accuracy of 87.24%, while the traditional supervised learning approach obtained an average accuracy of 83.99% on the datasets. Additionally, it is also demonstrated that our method obtained a statistically notable enhancement (7.74%), with respect to state-of-the-art peers, on average. Full article

Chelon labrosus represents a promising species for current aquaculture to lean towards a more sustainable model. The control of reproduction in captivity is essential to develop the industrial production of new species. This work adds to the knowledge of the reproductive aspects of males and females of this species. We aim to (1) develop a methodology for sex identification of reproductive and prereproductive specimens of the studied species based on the plasma levels of steroid hormones—estradiol (E2) and 11-ketotestosterone (11-KT); (2) determine the maturity evolution of the females throughout the spawning season by gonadal biopsy; and (3) describe sperm quality throughout the breeding season (volume, motility, density). The results show that an 11-KT/E2 ratio > 0.4 is 100% effective in distinguishing males from females, provided that individuals present a size greater than that of first sexual maturity. A double trend was observed in the development of oocytes, with an increase in the initial diameter until the middle of the spawning season, followed by a divergence of the group, with some females continuing the maturation process and others going into regression. Sperm data show stable quality at the beginning and in the middle of the spawning season and a significant loss of quality at the end of the reproductive period. The present study also shows that, between the beginning and the middle of the reproductive season, males of this species can recover sperm volume removed by stripping. Full article

This work reports the development of an efficient and precise indoor positioning system utilizing two-dimensional (2D) light detection and ranging (LiDAR) technology, aiming to address the challenging sensing and positioning requirements of the beyond fifth-generation (B5G) mobile networks. The core of this work is the implementation of a 2D-LiDAR system enhanced by an artificial neural network (ANN), chosen due to its robustness against electromagnetic interference and higher accuracy over traditional radiofrequency signal-based methods. The proposed system uses 2D-LiDAR sensors for data acquisition and digital filters for signal improvement. Moreover, a camera and an image-processing algorithm are used to automate the labeling of samples that will be used to train the ANN by means of indicating the regions where the pedestrians are positioned. This accurate positioning information is essential for the optimization of B5G network operation, including the control of antenna arrays and reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS). The experimental validation demonstrates the efficiency of mapping pedestrian locations with a precision of up to 98.787%, accuracy of 95.25%, recall of 98.537%, and an F1 score of 98.571%. These results show that the proposed system has the potential to solve the problem of sensing and positioning in indoor environments with high reliability and accuracy. Full article