Search Results (140,839)

Wharton’s jelly mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-SCs) are a promising source for regenerative medicine due to their multipotency, low immunogenicity, and ethical acceptability. Epigenetic regulation plays a crucial role in modulating their proliferation, differentiation, and therapeutic potential. Key mechanisms, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNAs (e.g., miRNAs and lncRNAs), influence WJ-SC behavior by dynamically altering gene expression without changing the DNA sequence. DNA methylation often silences genes involved in differentiation, while histone acetylation/methylation can activate or repress lineage-specific pathways. Non-coding RNAs further fine-tune these processes by post-transcriptional regulation. Understanding these mechanisms could optimize WJ-SC-based therapies for tissue repair and immune modulation. This review summarizes current insights into epigenetic regulation in WJ-SCs and its implications for regenerative applications. Full article

In this study, we propose a novel wideband aperture-coupled magneto-electric (ME) dipole antenna that achieves enhanced bandwidth by simultaneously leveraging ME resonance and aperture-coupled excitation. Building upon the conventional ME dipole architecture, the antenna integrates a pair of horizontal metal patches forming the electric dipole and a pair of vertical metal patches forming the magnetic dipole. A key innovation is the aperture-coupled feeding mechanism, where electromagnetic energy is transferred from a tapered microstrip line to the dipole structure through a slot etched in the ground plane. This design not only excites the characteristic ME resonances effectively but also significantly improves impedance matching, delivering a markedly broader impedance bandwidth. To validate the proposed concept, a prototype antenna was fabricated and experimentally characterized. Measurements show an impedance bandwidth of 84.48% (3.61–8.89 GHz) for $S_{11}$ ≤ −10 dB and a maximum in-band gain of 7.88 dBi. The antenna also maintains a stable, unidirectional radiation pattern across the operating band, confirming its potential for wideband applications such as 5G wireless communications. Full article

Interfacial solar evaporation has emerged as a promising strategy for freshwater production, where 3D evaporators offer distinct advantages in heat management and salt rejection. Freeze–thaw cycling is a widely adopted fabrication method for 3D hydrogel evaporators, yet the impact of preparation conditions (e.g., freezing temperature) on their evaporation performance remains poorly understood, hindering rational optimization of fabrication protocols. Herein, we report the fabrication of chitosan-based hydrogel evaporators via freeze–thaw cycles at different freezing temperatures (−20 °C, −40 °C, and −80 °C), leveraging its low cost and environmental friendliness. Characterizations of crosslinking density and microstructure reveal a direct correlation between freezing temperature and network porosity, which significantly influences evaporation rate, photothermal conversion efficiency, and anti-salt performance. It is noteworthy that the chitosan hydrogel prepared at −80 °C demonstrates an excellent evaporation rate in high-salinity environments and exhibits superior salt resistance during continuous evaporation testing. Long-term cyclic experiments indicate that there was an average evaporation rate of 3.76 kg m⁻² h⁻¹ over 10 cycles, with only a 2.5% decrease observed in the 10th cycle. This work not only elucidates the structure–property relationship of freeze–thaw fabricated hydrogels but also provides a strategic guideline for tailoring evaporator architectures to different salinity conditions, bridging the gap between material design and practical seawater desalination. Full article

The salinization of agricultural soils is a serious threat to farming and ecological balance in arid and semi-arid regions. Accurate estimation of soil water-soluble ions (calcium, carbonate, magnesium, and sulfate) is necessary for correct monitoring of soil salinization and sustainable land management. Hyperspectral ground-based data are valuable in soil salinization monitoring, but the acquisition cost is high, and the coverage is small. Therefore, this study proposes a two-stage deep learning framework with multispectral remote-sensing images. First, the wavelet transform is used to enhance the Transformer and extract fine-grained spectral features to reconstruct the ground-based hyperspectral data. A comparison of ground-based hyperspectral data shows that the reconstructed spectra match the measured data in the 450–998 nm range, with R² up to 0.98 and MSE = 0.31. This high similarity compensates for the low spectral resolution and weak feature expression of multispectral remote-sensing data. Subsequently, this enhanced spectral information was integrated and fed into a novel multiscale self-attentive Transformer model (MSATransformer) to invert four water-soluble ions. Compared with BPANN, MLP, and the standard Transformer model, our model remains robust across different spectra, achieving an R² of up to 0.95 and reducing the average relative error by more than 30%. Among them, for the strongly responsive ions magnesium and sulfate, R² reaches 0.92 and 0.95 (with RMSE of 0.13 and 0.29 g/kg, respectively). For the weakly responsive ions calcium and carbonate, R² stays above 0.80 (RMSE is below 0.40 g/kg). The MSATransformer framework provides a low-cost and high-accuracy solution to monitor soil salinization at large scales and supports precision farmland management. Full article

False cleavers (Galium spurium L.) is a broadleaf weed species that affects wheat productivity because of its strong competition for resources. It has developed resistance to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors, such as sulfonylureas and triazolopyrimidines, which are herbicides widely used in durum wheat. Integrated weed management programs can contribute to the control of this species and delay the evolution of herbicide resistance. Thus, a two-year field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of sowing time, variety, and herbicides on crop yield, density, and dry weight of a false cleavers population with resistance to ALS inhibitors. In both growing seasons, a split-split-plot design was used with three replicates. The sowing date was chosen as the main plot factor, durum wheat varieties as the subplot factor, and herbicides as the sub-subplot factor. The herbicide treatments were: (1) metsulfuron-methyl/bensulfuron-methyl (4/50 g a.i. ha⁻¹), (2) aminopyralid/florasulam (9.9/4.95 g a.i. ha⁻¹), (3) pyroxsulam and florasulam/2,4-D (18.75 + 4.725/225 g a.i. ha⁻¹), (4) 2,4-D/bromoxynil (633.15/601.2 g a.i. ha⁻¹), non-treated control, and hand-weeded control for the first season, while in the second season one more herbicide treatment (halauxifen-methyl/florasulam, 5.6/5.15 g a.i. ha⁻¹) was added. Herbicide application was performed on 10 March 2021 and 28 March 2022, when the crop was at the end of tillering and the beginning of stem elongation. The results showed that the density of false cleavers was not affected by the variety or sowing time. However, its dry weight was 17.3–23.4% higher in early sowing (16 November in 2020 and 8 November 2021) than in late sowing (24 December 2020 and 2 December 2021). Among the herbicides tested, 2,4-D/bromoxynil and halauxifen-methyl/florasulam effectively controlled false cleavers, showing greater efficacy in late sowing (>88%), which ultimately led to a higher yield. In conclusion, our two-year findings demonstrate that delayed sowing as part of an integrated weed management strategy can contribute to controlling resistant populations of false cleavers to ALS-inhibiting herbicides without affecting the quantity and quality of durum wheat yield in areas with a Mediterranean climate. Full article

A Digital Elevation Model (DEM) provides accurate topographic data for planetary exploration (e.g., Moon and Mars), essential for tasks like lander navigation and path planning. This study proposes the first latent diffusion-based algorithm for DEM generation, leveraging a conditional decoder to enhance reconstruction accuracy from RGB satellite images. The algorithm performs the diffusion process in the latent space and uses a conditional decoder module to enhance the decoding accuracy of the DEM latent vectors. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the baseline algorithm in terms of reconstruction accuracy, providing a new technical approach to efficiently reconstruct DEMs for extraterrestrial planets. Full article

Let us consider the finite commutative ring R, whose unity is $1\ne 0.$ Its weakly zero-divisor graph, represented as $W\Gamma \left(R\right)$, is a basic undirected graph with two distinct vertices, $c_1$ and $c_2$, that are adjacent if and only if there exist $r\in$ ann$\left(c_1\right)$ and $s\in$ ann$\left(c_2\right)$ that satisfy the condition $rs=0$. Let $D\left(G\right)$ be the distance matrix and $Tr\left(G\right)$ be the diagonal matrix of the vertex transmissions in basic undirected connected graph G. The $D_{\alpha }$ matrix of graph G is defined as $D_{\alpha }\left(G\right)=\alpha Tr\left(G\right)+(1-\alpha )D\left(G\right)$ for $\alpha \in [0,1]$. This article finds the $D_{\alpha }$ spectrum for the graph $W\Gamma \left({\mathbb{Z}}_n\right)$ for various values of n and also shows that $W\Gamma \left({\mathbb{Z}}_n\right)$ for $n={\vartheta }_1{\vartheta }_2{\vartheta }_3\cdots {\vartheta }_t{\eta }_1^{d_1}{\eta }_2^{d_2}\cdots {\eta }_s^{d_s}(d_i\ge 2,t\ge 1,s\ge 0)$, where ${\vartheta }_i$’s and ${\eta }_i$’s are the distinct primes, is $D_{\alpha }$ integral. Full article

This paper reviews the variability of passenger service time (PST) at the platform–train interface (PTI), a critical performance indicator in metro systems shaped by the infrastructure design, affecting passenger behavior and accessibility. Despite its operational importance, PST remains underexplored in relation to crowd management strategies. This review synthesizes findings from empirical and experimental research to clarify the main factors influencing PST and their implications for platform-level interventions. Key contributors to PST variability include door width, gap dimensions, crowd density, and user characteristics such as mobility impairments. Design elements—such as platform edge doors, yellow safety lines, and vertical handrails—affect flow efficiency and spatial dynamics during boarding and alighting. Advanced tracking and simulation tools (e.g., PeTrack and YOLO-based systems) are identified as essential for evaluating pedestrian behavior and supporting Level of Service (LOS) analysis. To complement traditional LOS metrics, the paper introduces Level of Interaction (LOI) and a multidimensional LOS framework that captures spatial conflicts and user interaction zones. Control strategies such as platform signage, seating arrangements, and visual cues are also reviewed, with experimental evidence showing that targeted design interventions can reduce PST by up to 35%. The review highlights a persistent gap between academic knowledge and practical implementation. It calls for greater integration of empirical evidence into policy, infrastructure standards, and operational contracts. Ultimately, it advocates for human-centered, data-informed approaches to PTI planning that enhance efficiency, inclusivity, and resilience in high-demand transit environments. Full article

A comparative analysis of testicular tumors in dogs and humans highlights notable similarities in cancer behavior, particularly regarding environmental influences. The ubiquitous distribution of endocrine disruptors in industrialized countries and their effects are strongly linked to the development of testicular cancers. This study examined 221 and 174 cases of testicular tumor in dogs and humans, respectively, from the Campania Animal Cancer Registry and the database of the National Cancer Institute “Fondazione G. Pascale-IRCCS”, between 2020 and 2023. These data were integrated with environmental data from the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security website and the Campania Regional Agency for Environmental Protection (ARPAC). The areas with the highest frequency of testicular tumors in both species were the municipalities of Napoli, Salerno, and Caserta, and their corresponding provinces. The same locations experienced severe contamination of soil and water by environmental pollutants, probably correlated to testicular tumors. Although the molecular mechanisms are not yet fully understood, our data suggest a strong link between the frequency of testicular tumors in humans and dogs and high concentrations of environmental pollutants in the reported locations. These findings emphasize the value of dogs as a potential animal model for studying human health and the effect of environmental factors on cancer development. Full article

Calendula officinalis L. is a widely used medicinal plant whose secondary metabolism and morphology are influenced by light. This study evaluated the effects of 2 and 4 h end-of-day (EOD) red/far-red (R:FR) and green (G) light on the growth, physiology, and phytochemical profile of hydroponically grown C. officinalis under a constant red/blue light background, compared with a red/blue control without EOD treatment. Morphological, physiological (gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence), biochemical (chlorophyll, anthocyanin), and chemical composition (attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS)) were evaluated. EOD G 2h enhanced photosynthetic pigments, anthocyanins, and biomass, while control plants showed higher phenolic content. EOD R:FR induced stem elongation but reduced pigment and metabolite accumulation. GC-MS revealed organ-specific metabolic specialization, with flowers displaying greater chemical diversity than leaves. EOD G favored sesquiterpene diversity in flowers, while EOD R:FR increased nitrogen-containing compounds and unsaturated fatty acids. Vibrational data supported these shifts, with spectral signatures of esters, phenolics, and lipid-related structures. Bioactive compounds, including α-cadinol and carboxylic acids, were identified across treatments. These findings demonstrate that EOD light modulates physiological and metabolic traits in C. officinalis, highlighting EOD G as an enhancer of biomass and phytochemical richness for pharmaceutical applications under controlled conditions. Full article

The rapid expansion of 5G-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) devices in smart homes has heightened the need for robust, privacy-preserving, and real-time cybersecurity mechanisms. Traditional cloud-based security systems often face latency and privacy bottlenecks, making them unsuitable for edge-constrained environments. In this work, we propose Edge-FLGuard+, a federated and lightweight anomaly detection framework specifically designed for 5G-enabled smart home ecosystems. The framework integrates edge AI with federated learning to detect network and device anomalies while preserving user privacy and reducing cloud dependency. A lightweight autoencoder-based model is trained across distributed edge nodes using privacy-preserving federated averaging. We evaluate our framework using the TON_IoT and CIC-IDS2018 datasets under realistic smart home attack scenarios. Experimental results show that Edge-FLGuard+ achieves high detection accuracy (≥95%) with minimal communication and computational overhead, outperforming traditional centralized and local-only baselines. Our results demonstrate the viability of federated AI models for real-time security in next-generation smart home networks. Full article

Background: Infectious proctitis remains an underrecognized entity, although sexually transmitted diseases, especially bacterial infections, exhibit a marked increase in their incidence. Methods: Here, we report a case of a 44-year-old man who presented to the emergency department with lower abdominal and rectal pain, tenesmus, fever and night sweats for the past 6 days. Results: The computed tomography initially revealed a high suspicion of metastatic rectal cancer. The endoscopic findings showed a 5 cm rectal mass, suggestive of malignancy. The histologic examination showed, however, no signs of malignancy and lacked the classical features of an inflammatory bowel disease, so an infectious proctitis was further suspected. The patient reported to have had unprotected receptive anal intercourse, was tested positive for Treponema pallidum serology and received three doses of intramuscular benzathine penicillin G. A control rectosigmoidoscopy, imaging at 3 months and histological evaluation after antibiotic treatment showed a complete resolution of inflammation. Conclusions: Syphilitic proctitis may mimic various conditions such as rectal cancer or inflammatory bowel disease and requires a high degree of suspicion. Clinicians need to be aware of infectious proctitis in high-risk populations, while an appropriate thorough medical history may guide the initial diagnostic steps. Full article

The cytokinin response regulator (ARR) gene is essential for cytokinin signal transduction, which plays a crucial role in plant growth and development. However, the functional mechanism of ARR genes in cotton leaf abscission remains incompletely understood. In this study, a total of 86 ARR genes were identified within the genome of Gossypium hirsutum. These genes were categorized into four distinct groups based on their phylogenetic characteristics, supported by analyses of gene structures and conserved protein motifs. The GhARR genes exhibited an uneven distribution across 25 chromosomes, with three pairs of tandem duplication events observed. Both segmental and tandem duplication events significantly contributed to the expansion of the ARR gene family. Furthermore, numerous putative cis-elements were identified in the promoter regions, with hormone and stress-related elements being common among all 86 GhARRs. Transcriptome expression profiling screening results demonstrated that GhARRs may play a mediating role in cotton’s response to TDZ (thidiazuron). The functional validation of GhARR16, GhARR43, and GhARR85 using virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) technology demonstrated that the silencing of these genes led to pronounced leaf wilting and chlorosis in plants, accompanied by a substantial decrease in petiole fracture force. Overall, our study represents a comprehensive analysis of the G. hirsutum ARR gene family, revealing their potential roles in leaf abscission regulation. Full article

In familial Alzheimer’s disease (FAD), presenilin 1 (PSEN1) E280A cholinergic-like neurons (ChLNs) induce aberrant secretion of extracellular amyloid beta (eAβ). How PSEN1 E280A ChLNs-eAβ affects microglial activity is still unknown. We obtained induced microglia-like cells (iMG) from human peripheral blood cells (hPBCs) in a 15-day differentiation process to investigate the effect of bolus addition of Aβ42, PSEN1 E280A cholinergic-like neuron (ChLN)-derived culture supernatants, and PSEN1 E280A ChLNs on wild type (WT) iMG, PSEN1 E280A iMG, and sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (SAD) iMG. We found that WT iMG cells, when challenged with non-cellular (e.g., lipopolysaccharide, LPS) or cellular (e.g., Aβ42, PSEN1 E280A ChLN-derived culture supernatants) microenvironments, closely resemble primary human microglia in terms of morphology (resembling an “amoeboid-like phenotype”), expression of surface markers (Ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1, IBA-1; transmembrane protein 119, TMEM119), phagocytic ability (high pHrodo™ Red E. coli BioParticles™ phagocytic activity), immune metabolism (i.e., high generation of reactive oxygen species, ROS), increase in mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), response to ATP-induced transient intracellular Ca²⁺ influx, cell polarization (cluster of differentiation 68 (CD68)/CD206 ratio: M1 phenotype), cell migration activity according to the scratch wound assay, and especially in their inflammatory response (secretion of cytokine interleukin-6, IL-6; Tumor necrosis factor alpha, TNF-α). We also found that PSEN1 E280A and SAD iMG are physiologically unresponsive to ATP-induced Ca²⁺ influx, have reduced phagocytic activity, and diminished expression of Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cells 2 (TREM2) protein, but when co-cultured with PSEN1 E280A ChLNs, iMG shows an increase in pro-inflammatory phenotype (M1) and secretes high levels of cytokines IL-6 and TNF-α. As a result, PSEN1 E280A and SAD iMG induce apoptosis in PSEN1 E280A ChLNs as evidenced by abnormal phosphorylation of protein TAU at residue T205 and cleaved caspase 3 (CC3). Taken together, these results suggest that PSEN1 E280A ChLNs initiate a vicious cycle between damaged neurons and M1 phenotype microglia, resulting in excessive ChLN death. Our findings provide a suitable platform for the exploration of novel therapeutic approaches for the fight against FAD. Full article

Pancreatic cancer is among the deadliest malignancies, with limited treatment options and poor prognosis. Novel strategies are therefore urgently needed. Sotorasib, a KRAS G12C-specific inhibitor, offers targeted treatment for a small subset of patients with this mutation. Electrochemotherapy (ECT), which enhances the cytotoxicity of chemotherapeutic agents through electroporation-induced membrane permeabilization, has shown promise in various tumor types, including deep-seated malignancies such as pancreatic cancer. Combining ECT with sotorasib may potentiate antitumor effects in KRAS G12C-mutated pancreatic cancer; however, preclinical data on such combinations are lacking. This proof-of-concept study evaluated the cytotoxic effects of ECT using bleomycin (BLM) or cisplatin (CDDP) in combination with sotorasib in KRAS G12C-mutated MIA PaCa-2 and KRAS G12D-mutated PANC-1 pancreatic cancer cell lines. ECT alone significantly reduced cell viability, particularly in MIA PaCa-2 cells, where electric pulses induced approximately 75% cell death. Combining ECT with sotorasib resulted in an additive effect on KRAS G12C-mutated MIA PaCa-2 cells, though no synergy was observed, likely due to the high intrinsic sensitivity to electric pulses. These results support the potential of combining physical and molecular therapies in a subset of pancreatic cancer patients and lay the groundwork for further in vivo studies to optimize treatment parameters and explore clinical translatability. Full article