Body size estimation and weight management practices in urban poor communities in Ghana: A cross-sectional study by Grace Agyemang FREMPONG, John K. ANARFI, Delali Margaret BADASU, Samuel Nii Ardey CODJOE

“…Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to collect data among a sample of 395 adults aged 18-70 years. A semi-structured questionnaire was designed for collection of data on socio-demographic characteristics, weight perceptions, and weight management strategies. …”
Get full text

Genomic variation responding to artificial selection on different lines of Pekin duck by Xinye Zhang, Fangxi Yang, Jinxin Zhang, Tao Zhu, Xiurong Zhao, Yuchen Liu, Junhui Wen, Hongchang Gu, Gang Wang, Xufang Ren, Anqi Chen, Lujiang Qu

“…Here, the genomic changes in Pekin duck were analyzed by using the genome resequencing data from 96 individual samples, including 2 conservation populations and 4 breeding populations with different breeding backgrounds. The population structure, runs of homozygosity (ROH), effective population number (Ne), and other genetic parameters were analyzed. …”
Get full text

Characterization of an IncR Plasmid with Two Copies of ISCR-Linked qnrB6 from ST968 Klebsiella pneumoniae by Changrui Qian, Xinyi Zhu, Junwan Lu, Kai Shen, Qianqian Chen, Wangxiao Zhou, Hongmao Liu, Wei Lu, Danying Zhou, Zhewei Sun, Xi Lin, Kewei Li, Qiyu Bao, Teng Xu, Shunfei Lu

“…To characterize the molecular structure of IncR plasmid-related sequences, comparative genomic analysis was conducted using 261 IncR plasmid backbone-related sequences. …”
Get full text

DeepGolf: A fine-grained perception framework for golf course distribution in the real world based on multi-source remote sensing data by Ning Li, Yingchao Feng, Wenhui Diao, Xian Sun, Liang Cheng, Kun Fu

“…This paper presents DeepGolf, an advanced framework that integrates geographic information with deep neural features to accurately extract golf course distributions in real-world scenarios. DeepGolf is structured into three main modules: geographic query, detection, and fine extraction. …”
Get full text

Rebuilding Soil Ecosystems for Improved Productivity in Biosolarized Soils by Laura Ney, Dorcas Franklin, Kishan Mahmud, Miguel Cabrera, Dennis Hancock, Mussie Habteselassie, Quint Newcomer, Brendan Fatzinger

“…The objective of this study was to determine the ability of fertilization source, N fertilization rate, and/or inoculate to rebuild an active soil ecosystem in biosolarized soils by measuring nematode community structure, microbial biomass, and C and N mineralization in soil as well as kale yield and quality. …”
Get full text

Associations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein with neuropsychological outcomes and cerebral white matter hyperintensities in older adults at risk of dementia by Rachael Yu, Shawn D. Kong, Catriona Ireland, Genevieve Z. Steiner-Lim, Kimberley Bassett, Hannes Almgren, Dongang Wang, Chenyu Wang, Johannes C. Michaelian, Sharon L. Naismith

“…Fasting serum hs-CRP concentrations were grouped into low (<1.0 mg/L), moderate (1.0–3.0 mg/L), and high (>3.0–10.0 mg/L). Structural MRI scans were used to estimate WMH lesion volumes in the whole brain, as well as periventricular, deep white matter, and frontal regions. …”
Get full text

Transitioning to a virtual post-intensive care rehabilitation service in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: results of multidisciplinary focus-groups by Fiona Howroyd, Fiona Howroyd, Natacha Earle, Jonathan Weblin, David McWilliams, Mark Raven, Niharika A. Duggal, Zubair Ahmed, Zubair Ahmed, Tonny Veenith

“…Focus groups were held after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic with key stakeholders from the physiotherapy and critical care departments of a large tertiary hospital in the United Kingdom. Semi-structured questions were used to guide discussions, led by a facilitator and scribe. …”
Get full text

Earthworm inspired lubricant self-pumping hydrogel with sustained lubricity at high loading by Shuanhong Ma, Lunkun Liu, Weiyi Zhao, Renjie Li, Xiaoduo Zhao, Yunlei Zhang, Bo Yu, Ying Liu, Feng Zhou

“…In this work, inspired by the durable lubricity feature of the earthworm epidermis, a multilevel structural super-lubrication hydrogel (MS-SLH) system, the so-called lubricant self-pumping hydrogel, is developed. …”
Get full text

Pre-Season Precipitation and Temperature Have a Larger Influence on Vegetation Productivity than That of the Growing Season in the Agro-Pastoral Ecotone in Northern China by Yuanyuan Zhang, Qingtao Wang, Xueyuan Zhang, Zecheng Guo, Xiaonan Guo, Changhui Ma, Baocheng Wei, Lei He

“…Climate change and human activities are reshaping the structure and function of terrestrial ecosystems, particularly in vulnerable regions such as agro-pastoral ecotones. …”
Get full text

Relationship between Myopia Progression and School Entrance Age: A 2.5-Year Longitudinal Study by Linjie Liu, Dandan Jiang, Chunchun Li, Yaoyao Lin, Wenzhe Zhou, Haishao Xiao, Yanyan Chen

“…Significant statistical differences were observed in ocular biological structure parameters, except for corneal radius of curvature (CRC) or anterior chamber depth (ACD), among children with the same age in different grades during this study. …”
Get full text

A Preliminary Study to Evaluate Recovery in Environmental Microplastic Analysis by İrem Öztürk, Dilara Cinci, Fatma Nur Eraslan, Mansoor Ahmad Bhat, Eftade O. Gaga, Kadir Gedik

“…Microplastics (MPs) have attracted attention as a global concern due to their physicochemical properties, structural components, role as vectors for pollutants and potential health impacts. …”
Get full text

LiDAR point cloud denoising for individual tree extraction based on the Noise4Denoise by Xiangfei Lu, Zongyu Ye, Liyong Fu, Huaiyi Wang, Kaiyu Wang, Yaquan Dou, Dongbo Xie, Xiaodi Zhao

“…The processing of LiDAR point cloud data is of critical importance in the context of forest resource surveys, as well as representing a pivotal element in the realm of forest physiological and ecological studies.Nonetheless, conventional denoising algorithms frequently exhibit deficiencies with regard to adaptability and denoising efficacy, particularly when employed in relation to disparate datasets.To address these issues, this study introduces DEN4, an unsupervised, deep learning-based point cloud denoising algorithm designed to improve the accuracy of single tree segmentation in LiDAR point clouds.DEN4 introduces a multilevel noise separation module that effectively distinguishes between signal and noise, thereby improving the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and reducing the error.The experimental results demonstrate that DEN4 significantly outperforms traditional denoising methods in several key metrics, including mean square error (MSE), SNR, Hausdorff distance, and structural similarity index (SSIM).In the 60 sample dataset, DEN4 achieved the best mean and standard deviation on all metrics: Specifically, the MSE mean was found to be 0.0094, with a standard deviation of 0.0008, the SNR mean was 149.1570, with a standard deviation of 0.5628, the Hausdorff mean was 0.8503, with a standard deviation of 0.0947, and the SSIM mean was 0.8399, with a standard deviation of 0.0054. …”
Get full text

Geotechnical investigations of lead-silver ore processing residues at the Auzelles site, Auvergne (France) by Diaka Sidibé, Mamadou Diallo, Ahmed Amara Konaté, Muhammad Zaheer

“…Proactive management, based on these results, requires the implementation of appropriate rehabilitation techniques, such as drainage optimization and incorporation of vegetation covers, to minimize environmental impacts and ensure the long-term sustainability of mining waste structures.…”
Get full text

Identification of candidate genes involved in Zika virus-induced reversible paralysis of mice by John D. Morrey, Venkatraman Siddharthan, Hong Wang, Alexandre L. R. Oliveira, Keiichiro Susuki, Rakesh Kaundal, Sara M. Freeman, Aaron J. Thomas, Naveen Duhan, Nathan G. Corry

“…Ank3, Sptbn1, and Epb41l3 affecting the structures at and near the nodes of Ranvier were significantly downregulated during ZIKV-induced paralysis. …”
Get full text

Microstructural transformation of GO to rGO by ascorbate acid green-agent enhanced using sonication method by Masruroh, Freygieon Ogiek Rizal Sukma, Kormil Saputra, Nandang Mufti, Kusumandari, Anton Prasetyo, Rachmat T Tjahjanto, Dionysius J D H Santjojo

“…The increase in the intensity of the D band in the Raman spectrum indicated an increase in structural defects due to the reduction of oxygen groups. …”
Get full text

Neuroprotective Potential of <i>Origanum majorana</i> L. Essential Oil Against Scopolamine-Induced Memory Deficits and Oxidative Stress in a Zebrafish Model by Ion Brinza, Razvan Stefan Boiangiu, Iasmina Honceriu, Ahmed M. Abd-Alkhalek, Samir M. Osman, Omayma A. Eldahshan, Elena Todirascu-Ciornea, Gabriela Dumitru, Lucian Hritcu

“…In this research, we focused on the effects of <i>O. majorana</i> essential oil (OmEO, at concentrations of 25, 150, and 300 μL/L), evaluating chemical structure as well as its impact on cognitive performance and oxidative stress, in both naive zebrafish (<i>Danio rerio</i>), as well as in a scopolamine-induced amnesic model (SCOP, 100 μM). …”
Get full text

Disentangling the effects of eutrophication and natural variability on macrobenthic communities across French coastal lagoons by Jones, Auriane G., Schaal, Gauthier, Boyé, Aurélien, Creemers, Marie, Derolez, Valérie, Desroy, Nicolas, Fiandrino, Annie, Mouton, Théophile L., Simier, Monique, Smith, Niamh, Ouisse, Vincent

“…Here, we analyze a dataset composed of macrobenthic invertebrate abundances and environmental variables (hydro-morphology, water, sediment and macrophytes) gathered across 29 Mediterranean coastal lagoons located in France, to characterize the main drivers of community composition and structure. Using correlograms, linear models and variance partitioning, we found that lagoon hydro-morphology (connection to the sea and lagoon surface), which affects the level of environmental variability (salinity and temperature), as well as lagoon-scale benthic habitat diversity (using macrophyte morphotypes) seemed to regulate macrofauna distribution, while eutrophication and associated stressors like low dissolved oxygen, acted upon the existing communities, mainly by reducing species richness and diversity. …”
Get full text

Perceptions, practices, and experiences of asthma patients and community pharmacists on short-acting beta-2 agonists inhaler use: A qualitative study by Rabia Hussain, Zhe Chi Loh, Bayan Faisal Ababneh, Jaya Muneswarao, Siew Chin Ong, Bandana Saini, Anees ur-Rehman, Vibhu Paudyal

“…This study aimed to explore the perceptions, practices, and experiences of asthma patients and community pharmacists toward using SABA inhalers in Malaysia.Methods A qualitative study was conducted among eleven asthma patients and twelve community pharmacists using semi-structured individual interviews. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim and then analyzed by thematic analysis. …”
Get full text

Antifungal Activity of Genistein Against Phytopathogenic Fungi <i>Valsa mali</i> Through ROS-Mediated Lipid Peroxidation by Fangjie Li, Chen Yang, Maoye Li, Su Liu, Kuo Xu, Xianjun Fu

“…Scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that genistein caused significant changes in the structure of <i>V. mali</i>, including mycelial contraction, distortion, deformity, collapse, and irregular protrusions. …”
Get full text

A psychometric appraisal of a revised preparedness for medication administration questionnaire in final-year undergraduate nursing students: a secondary analysis by Susan Irvine, Sharon Andrew, Christina Aggar, Nicola Whiteing, Anecita Gigi Lim, Brett Williams

“…The questionnaire has been revised to align with updated medication competencies. The factor structure or dimensionality of the questionnaires has not been examined. …”
Get full text