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Rivulid killifishes are among the most threatened components of freshwater biodiversity in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, yet their biogeographic patterns remain poorly documented. This study provides the first comprehensive biogeographic assessment for rivulids across the Southeastern and Eastern Atlantic basins of Brazil. We compiled distribution records for 54 species, analyzing patterns of endemism, similarity between hydrographic regions, and sampling coverage. Our results reveal patterns of hyper-endemism, with 31 species (57.4%) restricted to single basins and a highly aggregated distribution. Faunal similarity between regions was negligible, indicating strong historical isolation, with only 3.7% of species shared between the Eastern and Southeastern Atlantic basins. Seventeen bioregions were delimited across the study area, with minimal faunal overlap. We identified that 50.0% of basins lack any rivulid records, despite the region having been extensively sampled for more than 150 years (including since the Thayer Expedition of 1865–1866). This study area contains the highest concentration of research institutions in Brazil, suggesting that the absence of records reflects genuine absence rather than a sampling artefact. Based on endemism values, we highlight 16 priority basins for urgent conservation management. These findings reveal that small coastal basins harbor a disproportionately high, imperiled, yet overlooked diversity. We argue that effective conservation of this unique evolutionary heritage requires targeted research in unsampled areas, basin-scale management, and expanded protected area mosaics to incorporate these high-endemism micro-basins. Our results provide the biogeographic foundation for evidence-based strategies to prevent the extinction of these fishes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Systematics and Conservation Concerns of Fishes in Continental Waters)

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26 pages, 8090 KB

Open AccessArticle

Eco-Socioeconomic Coordination and Driving Mechanisms in an Inland River Basin Under a Major Water Transfer Project: A Case Study of the Shiyang River Basin

by Mi Zhang, Zengchuan Dong, Daoli Wang, Yizhou Jiang, Jitao Zhang and Wenzhuo Wang

Water 2026, 18(11), 1293; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18111293 (registering DOI) - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Arid inland river basins are constrained by severe water scarcity and fragile ecosystems. Although large-scale water transfer projects are critical interventions, studies of their comprehensive impacts on eco-socioeconomic systems remain limited. To address this gap, this study proposes an integrated assessment framework. A global Remote Sensing Ecological Index (gRSEI) was developed by incorporating a salinity indicator, employing optimal indicator selection, and utilizing a full-period global normalization strategy. A Gridded Socioeconomic Index (GSEI) was constructed by integrating nighttime light (NTL), population (POP), and gross domestic product (GDP) data. The coupling coordination degree (CCD) model, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and the optimal parameters-based geographical detector (OPGD) were applied to analyze spatial patterns across subregions. Focusing on the Shiyang River Basin (SYRB), this study analyzed the spatiotemporal responses and coupling coordination of the eco-socioeconomic system to the 2001 Jingdian Phase II Water Transfer Project. Results indicate that ecological quality improved significantly after the water transfer, with gRSEI increasing from 0.225 to 0.334. Socioeconomic development also improved overall. The eco-socioeconomic system exhibited high coupling but moderate coordination. The coupling degree (C) and coordination degree (D) increased from 0.824 and 0.370 to 0.852 and 0.442, respectively, with clear regional heterogeneity. The water transfer project shifted the dominant driver of coordinated development from water-related factors to land cover. This study provides a practical framework for assessing ecological and socioeconomic dynamics and their interactions in arid basins under major water transfer project interventions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advancing Sustainable Hydrological Modelling and Smart Water Resource Management)

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12 pages, 733 KB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Hand Hygiene Technique in Uzbekistan: First Experience from Semmelweis Scanner-Based Digital Assessment in Educational Institutions

by Shavkat Azimov, Peter Szeremy, Sherzod Nematov, Jamoliddin Razzokov, Temurbek Daminov, Durdona Rasulova and Tamás Haidegger

Healthcare 2026, 14(11), 1474; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14111474 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Background: Hand Hygiene (HH) plays a crucial role in preventing Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs), yet compliance and technique often remain inadequate. To our knowledge, this study is among the first large-scale Semmelweis Scanner-based evaluations of hand hygiene technique among both medical and non-medical students in Uzbekistan and the wider Central Asian region. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between March 2024 and July 2025 at the Tashkent Medical Academy and the Tashkent State Technical University, resulting in 4191 data scans and 16,764 pictures analyzed. Hand surface coverage was evaluated using the Semmelweis digital monitoring system, which provides image-based feedback on insufficiently covered areas. Adequate performance was defined as achieving at least 95% hand surface coverage. Results: The findings showed that only 43.4% of hand hygiene measurements achieved the ≥95% hand coverage threshold, while 56.6% showed incomplete coverage. The sixth WHO-recommended step, i.e., rotational rubbing of the thumb and fingertips was identified as the most frequently missed moment. Significant variation was observed across faculties and departments, with bachelors achieving the highest success (n = 1012, 51.8%) and Ph.D. students reaching the lowest (18.4%). Conclusions: Hand hygiene technique among students in Uzbekistan is highly variable and frequently inadequate when evaluated using scanner-based digital assessment. The findings suggest that incomplete hand surface coverage, rather than the absence of sanitization attempts, is the principal challenge. Digital hand hygiene monitoring systems can provide an effective complementary tool for technique-focused education and can support infection prevention practices in both medical and non-medical training environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Public Health and Preventive Medicine)

18 pages, 468 KB

Open AccessArticle

Burn Injuries at Jordan University Hospital: A Five-Year Retrospective Study with Historical Comparison

by Bareqa Salah, Mohammad Al-Hanaktah, Ehab Alroud, Omar Awadallah, Mahmoud Shehabat and Ahmad AL-Qunbar

Healthcare 2026, 14(11), 1473; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14111473 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Background: Burn injuries remain a major health problem in low- and middle-income countries. Contemporary data from Jordan are scarce, and the last report from Jordan University Hospital (JUH) was published more than four decades ago. This study describes the epidemiology, characteristics, management, and outcomes of burn admissions to JUH during 2016–2020 and compares them with historical and regional data. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all consecutive patients admitted to the JUH burn unit with acute burn injury between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2020. Demographic and clinical variables were abstracted from electronic and paper records using a standardised case-report form. Descriptive statistics summarised injury patterns, while bivariate tests and multivariable linear regression were used to identify factors associated with hospital length of stay (LOS). Results: A total of 575 patients were included (50.3% male; median age 19 years). Children constituted 43.5% of admissions. Median TBSA was 7%, and partial-thickness burns predominated (73.9%). Scalds were the leading aetiology (60.7%), followed by flame burns (19.5%). Most injuries occurred at home (92.5%). The median LOS was 6 days, and 2.1% of patients died. Burn degree, aetiology, TBSA, surgical grafting, and adverse clinical events were independently associated with longer LOS, whereas escharectomy shortened hospitalisation. Conclusions: Domestic scald injuries in children remain the dominant burn pattern in Jordan, although mortality has fallen markedly compared with the 1980 JUH cohort. Prevention efforts should prioritise household safety and child supervision, while continued investment in specialised burn care is likely to further improve outcomes. Full article

17 pages, 2943 KB

Open AccessArticle

A Pediatric Case of Rapidly Progressing Disseminated Human Adenovirus C1 Infection with Multiorgan Failure and Evidence of Intra-Host Variation

by William Otto, Lindsey Rickerman, Maria Deza Leon, Felicia Scaggs Huang, Krithivasan Sankaranarayanan, Christopher Dandoy, Daryl M. Lamson and Adriana E. Kajon

Viruses 2026, 18(6), 607; https://doi.org/10.3390/v18060607 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

A strain of human adenovirus type C1 was isolated from multiple anatomical compartments in a pediatric patient with late-onset Pompe disease. Over a period of 23 days from the appearance of fever and respiratory symptoms until death, disease progression was rapid with severe disseminated disease and complications that included respiratory distress, liver failure, cardiac dysfunction, and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. Detected viral DNAemia peaked at log₁₀ 9.52 copies/mL on the last hospitalization day. Next-generation whole-genome sequencing with depth > 2700 reads/position identified the virus as closely related to the prototype strain Adenoid 71 isolated in the US in 1953, and to strains circulating worldwide in recent years. Sequence data analysis revealed the presence of intra-host single nucleotide variants (iSNV) at low frequency in the isolates recovered from a nasopharyngeal swab, blood, urine, and stool specimens obtained during the last three days of life and from lung, liver, and kidney tissue obtained at autopsy. Evidence of iSNVs was found in only three coding regions (E1A, DNA polymerase, and pVII). Different variant combinations were found in different anatomical compartments. The contribution of intrahost genetic diversity to HAdV-associated disease development and progression warrants investigation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Adenovirus (HAdV) Infection in Children)

18 pages, 1611 KB

Open AccessArticle

Study on the Objective Improvement of Optimal Threshold Selection Algorithm Based on ECMWF Ensemble Model Precipitation Forecasts

by Jin Li, Linfeng Zhang, Xiaoqian Ma, Hao Yang, Jiawen Zheng and Hongke Cai

Water 2026, 18(11), 1292; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18111292 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

To address the limitation where the traditional Optimal Threshold Selection (OTS) scheme achieves a high Threat Score (TS) at the expense of an increased False Alarm Rate (FAR), this study develops an Objective Improvement of Optimal Threshold Selection (OIOTS) scheme based on the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) ensemble precipitation forecasts. The correction performance is verified using high-resolution observations during the post-flood season in Guangdong Province. The results indicate that (1) optimal quantiles exhibit significant spatial heterogeneity and decrease sharply with increasing precipitation intensity, confirming the necessity of grid-specific correction over uniform provincial thresholds. (2) The Optimal Precipitation (OP) threshold remains stable across different lead times but shows distinct regional characteristics influenced by topography, whereas the corresponding Probability Threshold (PT) demonstrates a downward trend as the lead time extends. (3) Verification reveals that, compared with the OTS scheme, the OIOTS scheme effectively rectifies the high FAR inherent in the optimal quantile method while maintaining a comparable TS. By minimizing the absolute difference between TS and FAR, the OIOTS scheme achieves a superior balance between detection accuracy and error suppression, with its FAR showing a significant downward trend as precipitation magnitude and lead time increase. Given its high computational efficiency and robust performance, the proposed scheme offers a reliable solution for operational meteorological forecasting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Climate Change on Water Resources: Assessment and Modeling, 3rd Edition)

23 pages, 4881 KB

Open AccessArticle

Genetic Parameters and Weighted Single-Step Genome-Wide Association Studies of Fertility Traits in Chinese Holstein

by Shanshan Li, Ao Wang, Yao Chang, Qingxia Yan, Hailiang Zhang, Shiyu Hou, Gang Guo and Yachun Wang

Animals 2026, 16(11), 1622; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16111622 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Fertility traits are core functional traits in dairy cattle, yet their low heritability makes traditional phenotypic selection inefficient. Weighted single-step GWAS (WssGWAS) improves detection power by integrating pedigree, phenotype, and genotype data. This study aimed to estimate genetic parameters and identify genomic regions associated with eight fertility traits in Chinese Holstein cattle using pedigree, phenotype, and genotype data. Genetic parameters were estimated via pedigree-based BLUP (PBLUP) and ssGBLUP, and a WssGWAS was performed to detect QTL. A total of 23,771 cattle were genotyped using liquid-phase chips and 150 K chips; after imputation and quality control, 13,690 individuals and 103,262 SNPs were retained. The eight traits comprised heifer traits (AFS, AFC, NS_H, and IFL_H) and cow traits (ICF, CI, NS_C, and IFL_C). The findings indicate that while most fertility traits exhibit low heritability (ranging from 0.024 to 0.085), AFS displays high heritability (0.390). WssGWAS identified 162 QTL intervals and 645 candidate genes, including OVOS2, PMEPA1, TEPP, and the RAG family, which are closely associated with reproductive function. These findings provide a foundation for future research into the genetic mechanisms of fertility and support improved genomic predictions in Chinese Holstein cattle. Full article

(This article belongs to the Collection Advances in Cattle Breeding, Genetics and Genomics)

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21 pages, 8753 KB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Spatio-Temporal Assessment of Heavy Metal Contamination and Vegetation Condition at a Closed Municipal Solid Waste Landfill in Kokshetau (Kazakhstan)

by Zulfiya E. Bayazitova, Aigul S. Kurmanbayeva, Natalya M. Safronova, Sayagul B. Zhaparova, María-Elena Rodrigo-Clavero, Javier Rodrigo-Ilarri, Aida B. Akhmetova and Anar M. Ibrayeva

Environments 2026, 13(6), 294; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments13060294 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Municipal solid waste landfills may remain sources of environmental concern long after closure because heavy metals can persist in soils and affect ecosystem recovery. This study presents an integrated assessment of a closed municipal solid waste landfill in Kokshetau, Northern Kazakhstan, by combining field-based soil geochemical analysis with remote sensing monitoring of vegetation dynamics. A radial-gradient sampling design was used to characterize spatial patterns of contamination and to distinguish zones with different levels of anthropogenic impact. The results showed a clear concentration of heavy metals, particularly Zn and Pb, in the central part of the landfill, where integrated pollution and ecological risk indices indicated the highest levels of technogenic pressure. Time-series analysis of Landsat-derived vegetation indices for 2017–2025 revealed poorer vegetation condition in the most contaminated areas, with NDVI and EVI values increasing toward the landfill periphery. The observed negative association between vegetation indices and ecological risk suggests that remote sensing indicators can provide useful information on the ecological condition of closed landfill sites, although they should be interpreted together with field measurements. The novelty of this study lies in the combined use of geochemical contamination indices and long-term vegetation-index monitoring to assess post-closure landfill conditions in an arid continental region of Central Asia, where such integrated studies remain limited. The findings highlight the persistence of environmental risks after landfill closure and support the use of vegetation indices as non-invasive tools for monitoring rehabilitation and prioritizing further field investigations. Full article

25 pages, 7077 KB

Open AccessArticle

Integrated Assessment of Storm-Induced Seabed Morphodynamics and Liquefaction for Offshore Pipeline Burial Design in a Tropical Coastal Zone

by Honglin Niu, Chenghao Wang, Yabin Sun, Na Zhang and Zhangyi Zhao

Water 2026, 18(11), 1291; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18111291 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Offshore pipeline landfall sections in tropical coastal zones are often exposed to dynamic hydrodynamic forcing, which may induce seabed erosion and wave-driven liquefaction and thereby affect burial stability. This study presents an integrated assessment of seabed stability for an offshore gas pipeline along the Sarawak coast of the South China Sea, aiming to support burial-depth design in the nearshore surf zone. A multi-model framework was applied to simulate regional hydrodynamics, sediment transport, storm-induced seabed morphodynamics, and wave-induced liquefaction. Model performance was evaluated using field observations, bathymetric survey data, and laboratory experimental results. The results indicate that the seabed remains generally stable under normal environmental conditions, whereas extreme storm-wave forcing may induce localized surf-zone erosion and shallow seabed weakening. Under the 100-year storm-wave scenarios, the maximum simulated erosion depth reaches approximately 0.82 m, and the potential liquefaction response is mainly confined to the upper approximately 1.0 m of the seabed. These results suggest that storm-induced morphodynamic cover loss and wave-induced degradation of near-surface soil support should be evaluated jointly. Based on this integrated process envelope, a minimum burial depth of 2 m is recommended as a conservative engineering requirement for the examined landfall conditions. This process-integrated assessment workflow offers an applicable reference for the design and risk mitigation of analogous offshore pipeline projects in tropical coastal zones. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research on Marine Geology and Sedimentology, 2nd Edition)

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17 pages, 1378 KB

Open AccessArticle

Determining the Accuracy of Water Infiltration Models for Different Land Uses in the Dry–Hot Valley Region of China

by Xiushuang Li, Leimeng Wang, Jingru Ruan, Dongdong Hou and Yi Wang

Agriculture 2026, 16(11), 1170; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture16111170 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

In the dry–hot valley region of Southwest China, water infiltration exhibits temporal variations due to the combined effects of land use type and the dramatic seasonal dry–wet cycle. To accurately compare and predict the infiltration characteristics, soil water infiltration processes and cumulative infiltration were quantified for five typical land uses—traditional corn (TC), plum orchard (PO), pine forest (PF), grassland (GL), and abandoned cropland (AC)—in a dry–hot valley region during both the rainy (July) and dry (November) seasons using a Mini Disk Infiltrometer (MDI). These data were then statistically analyzed using the Kostiakov, Philip, and Horton models. The results showed that the mean infiltration rate and cumulative infiltration during the rainy season were 1.34 times and 1.31 times higher than in the dry season, respectively. The water infiltration rate and cumulative infiltration for the five land uses generally followed the order of PF > GL/TC > PO/AC during both rainy and dry seasons. The model parameters related to the initial infiltration capability (Kostiakov parameter, a) and the steady infiltration capability (Philip parameter, A; and the Horton parameter, f_c) during the rainy season were all greater than those in the dry season. Compared to the Kostiakov and Horton models, the Philip model achieved the highest mean Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) values in fitting soil water infiltration processes, the lowest mean relative error (MRE) values, and the highest determination coefficient values (R²) in predicting the cumulative infiltration, with relatively little difference between the two seasons. These results indicate that PF, GL, and TC exhibit superior soil water infiltration capabilities compared to other land uses during both the rainy and dry seasons. The Philip model is more suitable for estimating soil infiltration capacity in the dry–hot valley region during both seasons. Identification of the superior land use types and accuracy determination of the water infiltration model can help guide effective water conservation and vegetation restoration initiatives in the dry–hot valley region of Southwest China. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cropping and Tillage Systems Impacts on Soil Physical Quality)

16 pages, 1982 KB

Open AccessArticle

Personalized Estimates of Brain Cortical Structural Similarity in Major Depressive Disorder: Evidence from a Multi-Site Neuroimaging Dataset

by Xuetian Sun, Yuhao Shen, Jiajia Zhu and Yongqiang Yu

Diagnostics 2026, 16(11), 1632; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics16111632 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is increasingly recognized as a highly heterogeneous disorder. Although the person-based similarity index (PBSI) provides a useful framework for characterizing individualized brain structural similarity, existing studies in MDD remain limited by either small samples or a lack of integration across different morphological features. Methods: We used structural MRI data from 1442 patients with MDD and 1277 healthy controls to calculate PBSI scores of cortical morphology measures based on cortical thickness (CT), cortical volume (CV), cortical surface area (SA), and sulcal depth (SD). Group comparisons of whole-brain PBSI and regional contributions to PBSI scores were then performed, and a subgroup analysis in 243 first-episode, drug-naive (FEDN) patients with MDD was further conducted. Results: Patients with MDD showed significant alterations in PBSI. Specifically, PBSI scores were significantly reduced for CT, CV, and SD, whereas no significant group difference was observed for SA in the main analysis. Analyses of regional contributions to PBSI further revealed significant between-group differences across multiple cortical regions. These alterations were mainly distributed in the default mode, ventral attention, and visual networks for CT; in the default mode, ventral attention, sensorimotor, and visual networks for CV; and in the default mode, dorsal attention, frontoparietal, and sensorimotor networks for SD. Similar patterns were also observed in the FEDN MDD subgroup. Conclusions: These findings provide neurobiological evidence for the marked structural heterogeneity of MDD and highlight the potential of PBSI as an individualized neuroimaging marker for more precise diagnosis and personalized intervention. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence in Diagnostics)

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17 pages, 2729 KB

Open AccessArticle

MCM-UNet: A Hybrid Soft Computing Framework for Multi-Scale Polyp Segmentation via Enhanced Global Context and Adaptive Feature Fusion⁺⁺

by Jinmei Li, Ming Zhao, Quan Du, Song Lu and Shenglung Peng

Sensors 2026, 26(11), 3380; https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113380 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Colonoscopy polyp segmentation is important for colorectal cancer screening, yet it remains challenging because polyps exhibit large morphological variation, weak lesion–background contrast, blurred boundaries, and severe foreground–background imbalance. To address these issues, this paper presents MCM-UNet++, a hybrid U-Net++-based segmentation framework that combines three targeted enhancements. First, a Multi-Axis Transformer Block (MATransformerBlock) is incorporated into convolutional feature blocks to model long-range horizontal and vertical dependencies with lower complexity than dense global self-attention. Second, a Cross-Channel Mixing (CCM) module is used in nested skip fusion paths to recalibrate the channel and spatial responses and reduce redundant feature transmissions. Third, a Multi-Objective Adaptive Loss (MOALoss) combines focal, Dice, and boundary-aware terms with learnable weights to improve supervision for small regions and ambiguous boundaries. Experiments on four public polyp segmentation datasets (Kvasir-SEG, CVC-ClinicDB, CVC-ColonDB, and ETIS-Larib) show competitive performance against the selected baseline methods, with Dice/IoU scores of 0.9563/0.9278 on Kvasir-SEG and 0.8593/0.7896 on CVC-ColonDB. These results indicate that the proposed components can improve benchmark-level polyp segmentation performance, while broader validation is still required before clinical deployment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in the Acquisition and Processing of Biomedical Signals and Images—2nd Edition)

17 pages, 1676 KB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of Regional-Scale Freshwater Availability Towards Sustainable Management in the Context of Climate Change

by Alessia Flammini, Jacopo Dari, Francesco Leopardi, Arash Rahi, Giovanni Braca, Stefano Mariani, Renato Morbidelli and Carla Saltalippi

Water 2026, 18(11), 1290; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18111290 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Freshwater availability is a key indicator of climate change in areas like the Mediterranean with growing water crises. The Umbria region in central Italy, experiencing rising temperatures and declining rainfall, is a prime local case study for assessing the impact of climate change on freshwater. In this study, we exploit two well-established, spatially distributed datasets (BIGBANG v8 and ERA5-Land) to compute net freshwater (NF) available in the region as the difference between water input (precipitation) and consumption by evapotranspiration. Both datasets show a declining regional NF trend from 1951 to 2023, with −2.03 mm/year and −1.30 mm/year rates, respectively. The decline is more marked in areas with higher average NF such as mountainous areas. Despite differences in spatial resolution, spatially averaged magnitudes from the two datasets are highly correlated (r = 0.84). They both successfully capture major drought events observed in the region since the 2000s. In addition, the study compares amounts of freshwater potentially available against anthropogenic uses to develop sustainable water management policies. Information on different water uses and estimates from modelling platforms were collected in the region. This study aims to be a proof of concept for a reliable approach serving to develop policies for sustainable water use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impacts of Climate Change on Water Resources and Water Risks, 3rd Edition)

29 pages, 2370 KB

Open AccessArticle

Physics-Based Modeling of Sparse Single-Cell Hi-C Uncovers Structural and Epigenetic Variability

by Francesca Vercellone, Sumanta Kundu, Andrea Esposito, Andrea M. Chiariello, Mattia Conte, Alex Abraham, Andrea Fontana, Florinda Di Pierno, Sougata Guha, Ciro Di Carluccio, Matteo Olimpo, Mario Nicodemi, Francesco Paolo Casale and Simona Bianco

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2026, 27(11), 4803; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms27114803 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Chromatin conformation capture technologies have revealed the complex 3D organization of the genome and its key regulatory role. Single-cell Hi-C (scHi-C) maps this architecture at single-cell level, but its sparse nature makes data interpretation challenging, and tools for their analysis remain limited. Here, we present a physics-based framework that combines polymer modeling with computational methods to reconstruct full 3D genome structures from sparse scHi-C data. Using both artificial and experimental data, we show that our approach imputes missing contacts and recovers accurate structures validated against independent Hi-C and established polymer models. Applied to scHi-C from a 15 Mb region of human HeLa-S3 cells as a case study, the method uncovers distinct structural classes defined by the spatial distribution of chromatin binding domains. The reconstructed models enable robust downstream analyses, including the identification of single-cell topologically associated domains (TADs), which appear highly variable across cells yet tend to accumulate around those observed in bulk. Importantly, the inferred 3D polymer models capture diverse epigenetic signatures, with active chromatin domains exhibiting greater structural variability than repressive ones across single cells. Overall, our study provides a mechanistic and interpretable framework to analyze sparse scHi-C data, highlighting how polymer physics can be leveraged to uncover genome architecture and its functional variability at single-cell resolution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Modelling in Material Science)

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21 pages, 2693 KB

Open AccessArticle

Low-Level ²²²Rn-in-Water Measurement in Arid Aquifers: Method Optimization and a Transferable Monitoring Framework for Sustainable Water Management

by Al Mamun, Abdullah Al-Mamun, Maha Alruwaili, Aljawad Mohammed Alolaywi and Amira Salman Alazmi

Sustainability 2026, 18(11), 5365; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18115365 - 26 May 2026

Abstract

Reliable surveillance of dissolved ²²²Rn in arid-region aquifers is challenged by very low natural activity and method-dependent biases, especially humidity sensitivity in electrostatic detectors and air–water partitioning during closed-loop aeration, which can obscure true concentrations needed for defensible drinking-water baselines under preventive frameworks. This study aimed to optimize and field-validate a low-background RAD7 Big-Bottle (RAD H₂O) closed-loop protocol tailored for arid conditions and apply it in a regional survey of groundwater used for potable supply in northeastern Saudi Arabia. Groundwater from wells across the region (shallow and deep completions) was collected and analyzed using isotope-resolved alpha spectroscopy (Po-218 and Po-214 windows) with strict chamber humidity control (≤7% RH), background checks, systematic blanks, duplicates, drift control (±10%), and uncertainty propagation. Air-phase chamber counts were mandatorily converted to water-phase activity using the CAPTURE parameterized by measured loop volumes, temperature, salinity, and humidity, and agreement was evaluated using regression diagnostics and Bland–Altman analysis. The optimized method achieved sub-Bq·L⁻¹ performance, with MDL improving from ~0.1645 Bq·L⁻¹ (30 min) to ~0.0233 Bq·L⁻¹ (1500 min) and ~0.0165 Bq·L⁻¹ (3000 min), and LOQ decreasing from ~0.50 to ~0.0707 and ~0.050 Bq·L⁻¹, respectively. Raw air-phase readings systematically overestimated dissolved radon by ~26% (slope ≈1.26), a bias removed by the validated air → water conversion. Surveyed ²²²Rn concentrations were uniformly low (0.03–3.20 Bq·L⁻¹), far below commonly used reference values (e.g., ~11.1 and ~100 Bq·L⁻¹), with no persistent spatial hotspots and broadly overlapping shallow/deep distributions, indicating variability dominated by local lithology and fracture-controlled flow rather than depth. A tiered monitoring scheme is recommended: short screening, routine baselining at ~900–1500 min total counting, and ~3000 min for ultralow verification, providing a transferable template for sustainable baseline programs in arid aquifers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Sustainable Water Management)

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