Search Results (12)

Kiwifruits are highly valued for their nutritional and health-related benefits as well as for their economic importance, since they significantly contribute to the economy of many countries that cultivate them. However, kiwifruits are very sensitive to diseases that may substantially impact their final quantity and quality. Computer vision (CV) has been extensively employed for disease recognition in the agricultural sector within the last decade; yet there are limited works dealing with kiwifruit disease recognition, and there is an obvious lack of open datasets to promote relevant research, especially when compared to research on other cultivations, e.g., grapes. To this end, this study introduces the first-reported open dataset for kiwifruit leaf disease recognition, including Alternaria, Nematodes and Phytophthora, while image datasets of Nematodes have not been previously reported. The proposed dataset, named AgriVision-Kiwi Dataset, has been used first for leaf detection with You Only Look Once version 11 (YOLOv11), reporting a bounding box loss of 0.053, and then to train various deep learning models for kiwifruit diseases recognition, reporting accuracies of 98.80% ± 0.5, e.g., 98.30% to 99.30%, after 10-fold cross-validation. The introduced dataset aims to encourage the development of CV applications towards the timely prevention of diseases’ spreading. Full article

Composite crosses result from the mating of two or more distinct cattle breeds. Breeding performance may improve rapidly using a well-organized composite breeding system and a clear selection index. The KiwiCross^® is a popular composite cross in New Zealand, combining Holstein-Friesian (high milk production) and Jersey (high milk fat). Production efficiency (PR), a key selection index, is calculated by dividing milk solids produced by mature live weight. Over decades of genetic improvement, KiwiCross^® increased milk production significantly. We hypothesized that certain genomic regions from Holstein-Friesian or Jersey breeds were preserved due to artificial selection based on PR. Analysis of genomic regions using XP-EHH, hapFLK, and ROH haplotype statistics revealed selection signatures on BTA 7 and 20 in both high- and low-performance animals, with distinct regions linked to Holstein-Friesian and Jersey ancestry. Our findings suggest that selection acted on different genomic regions across generations and that preserving key ancestry-specific haplotypes is crucial for maintaining performance in composite breeds. Breeders must recognize that selection for specific traits can alter allele frequencies and lead to the loss of beneficial breed-specific haplotypes over time. Full article

Background/Objectives: Large language models (LLMs) show promise in healthcare but face challenges with hallucinations, particularly in rapidly evolving fields like diabetes management. Traditional LLM updating methods are resource-intensive, necessitating new approaches for delivering reliable, current medical information. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a novel retrieval system to enhance LLM reliability in diabetes management across different languages and guidelines. Methods: We developed a dual retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) system integrating both Korean Diabetes Association and American Diabetes Association 2023 guidelines. The system employed dense retrieval with 11 embedding models (including OpenAI, Upstage, and multilingual models) and sparse retrieval using BM25 algorithm with language-specific tokenizers. Performance was evaluated across different top-k values, leading to optimized ensemble retrievers for each guideline. Results: For dense retrievers, Upstage’s Solar Embedding-1-large and OpenAI’s text-embedding-3-large showed superior performance for Korean and English guidelines, respectively. Multilingual models outperformed language-specific models in both cases. For sparse retrievers, the ko_kiwi tokenizer demonstrated superior performance for Korean text, while both ko_kiwi and porter_stemmer showed comparable effectiveness for English text. The ensemble retrievers, combining optimal dense and sparse configurations, demonstrated enhanced coverage while maintaining precision. Conclusions: This study presents an effective dual RAG system that enhances LLM reliability in diabetes management across different languages. The successful implementation with both Korean and American guidelines demonstrates the system’s cross-regional capability, laying a foundation for more trustworthy AI-assisted healthcare applications. Full article

The Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Water Electrolyser (PEMWE) has gained significant interest among various electrolysis methods due to its ability to produce highly purified, compressed hydrogen. The spatial configuration of bipolar plates and their flow channel patterns play a critical role in the efficiency and longevity of the PEM water electrolyser. Optimally designed flow channels ensure uniform pressure and velocity distribution across the stack, enabling high-pressure operation and facilitating high current densities. This study uses flow channel geometry inspired by authentic vine leaf patterns found in biomass, based on various plant leaves, including Soybean, Victoria Amazonica, Water Lily, Nelumbo Nucifera, Kiwi, and Acalypha Hispida leaves, as a novel channel pattern to design a PEM bipolar plate with a circular cross-section area of 13.85 ${\mathrm{c}\mathrm{m}}^2$. The proposed bipolar design is further analysed with COMSOL Multiphysics to integrate the conservation of mass and momentum, molecular diffusion (Maxwell–Stefan), charge transfer equations, and other fabrication factors into a cohesive single-domain model. The simulation results showed that the novel designs have the most uniform velocity profile, lower pressure drop, superior pressure distribution, and heightened mixture homogeneity compared to the traditional serpentine models. Full article

This study investigated the relationship of the length of time spent grazing and ruminating with the performance parameters of spring-calved grazing dairy cows (n = 162) over the lactation period for three lactation seasons (n = 54 per season). The cows were Holstein Friesian (HFR), Jersey (JE), and a crossbreed of Holstein Friesian/Jersey (KiwiCross), with 18 cows from each breed. The cows were either in their 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th lactation year, and had different breeding worth (BW) index values (103 < BW > 151). The cows were managed through a rotational grazing scheme with once-a-day milking in the morning at 05:00 h. The cows were mainly fed on grazed pastures consisting of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne), red clover (Trifolium pretense), and white clover (Trifolium repens), and received additional feeds on various days in the summer and autumn seasons. This study used an automated AfiCollar device to continuously record the grazing time and rumination time (min/h) of the individual cows throughout the lactation period (~270 days) for three consecutive years (Year-1, Year-2, and Year-3). The milk yield, milk fat, milk protein, milk solids, liveweight, and body condition score data of the individual animals for the study years were provided by the farm. PROC CORR was used in SAS to determine the correlation coefficients (r) between the behaviour and production parameters. A general linear model fitted with breed × lactation year, individual cows, seasons, feed within the season, grazing time, rumination time, as well as their interactions, was assessed to test the differences in milk yield, milk fat, milk protein, milk solids, liveweight, and body condition score. The type I sum of squares values were used to quantify the magnitude of variance explained by each of the study factors and their interactions in the study variables. Grazing time exhibited positive associations with MY (r = 0.34), MF (r = 0.43), MP (r = 0.22), MS (r = 0.39), LW (r = −0.47), and BCS (r = −0.24) throughout the study years. Rumination time was associated with MY (r = 0.64), MF (r = 0.57), MP (r = 0.52), and MS (r = 0.57) in all study years, while there were no effects of rumination time on LW (r = 0.26) and BCS (r = −0.26). Grazing time explained up to 0.32%, 0.49%, 0.17%, 0.31%, 0.2%, and 0.02%, and rumination time explained up to 0.39%, 6.73%, 4.63%, 6.53%, 0.44%, and 0.17% of the variance in MY, MF, MP, MS, LW, and BCS, respectively. Full article

Allergies related to kiwi consumption have become a growing health concern, with their prevalence on the rise. Many of these allergic reactions are attributed to cross-reactivity, particularly with the major allergen found in birch pollen. This cross-reactivity is associated with proteins belonging to the pathogenesis-related class 10 (PR-10) protein family. In our study, we determined the three-dimensional structures of the two PR-10 proteins in gold and green kiwi fruits, Act c 8 and Act d 8, using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The structures of both kiwi proteins closely resemble the major birch pollen allergen, Bet v 1, providing a molecular explanation for the observed immunological cross-reactivity between kiwi and birch pollen. Compared to Act d 11, however, a kiwi allergen that shares the same architecture as PR-10 proteins, structural differences are apparent. Moreover, despite both Act c 8 and Act d 8 containing multiple cysteine residues, no disulfide bridges are present within their structures. Instead, all the cysteines are accessible on the protein’s surface and exposed to the surrounding solvent, where they are available for reactions with components of the natural food matrix. This structural characteristic sets Act c 8 and Act d 8 apart from other kiwi proteins with a high cysteine content. Furthermore, we demonstrate that pyrogallol, the most abundant phenolic compound found in kiwi, binds into the internal cavities of these two proteins, albeit with low affinity. Our research offers a foundation for further studies aimed at understanding allergic reactions associated with this fruit and exploring how interactions with the natural food matrix might be employed to enhance food safety. Full article

Kiwifruit allergy is an emerging pathological condition in both general and pediatric populations with a wide range of symptoms linked to variable molecular patterns, justifying systemic and cross-reactions with other allergens (i.e., latex, pollen, and fruit). Skin prick test (SPT), specific serum IgE (Act d 1, Act d 2, Act d 5, Act d 8, and Act d 10) directed against five out of thirteen molecular allergens described in the literature, and oral test challenge with kiwifruit are available for defining diagnosis. The management is similar to that of other food allergies, mostly based on an elimination diet. Although kiwi allergy has been on the rise in recent years, few studies have evaluated the clinical characteristics and methods of investigating this form of allergy. Data collected so far show severe allergic reaction to be more frequent in children compared to adults. Therefore, the aim of this review is to collect the reported clinical features and the available association with specific molecular patterns of recognition to better understand how to manage these patients and improve daily clinical practice. Full article

Fibre-based dietary interventions are at the forefront of gut microbiome modulation research, with a wealth of 16S rRNA information to demonstrate the prebiotic effects of isolated fibres. However, there is a distinct lack of data relating to the effect of a combination of soluble and insoluble fibres in a convenient-to-consume fruit juice food matrix on gut microbiota structure, diversity, and function. Here, we aimed to determine the impact of the MOJU Prebiotic Shot, an apple, lemon, ginger, and raspberry fruit juice drink blend containing chicory inulin, baobab, golden kiwi, and green banana powders, on gut microbiota structure and function. Healthy adults (n = 20) were included in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study, receiving 60 mL MOJU Prebiotic Shot or placebo (without the fibre mix) for 3 weeks with a 3-week washout period between interventions. Shotgun metagenomics revealed significant between-group differences in alpha and beta diversity. In addition, the relative abundance of the phyla Actinobacteria and Desulfobacteria was significantly increased as a result of the prebiotic intervention. Nine species were observed to be differentially abundant (uncorrected p-value of <0.05) as a result of the prebiotic treatment. Of these, Bifidobacterium adolescentis and CAG-81 sp900066785 (Lachnospiraceae) were present at increased abundance relative to baseline. Additionally, KEGG analysis showed an increased abundance in pathways associated with arginine biosynthesis and phenylacetate degradation during the prebiotic treatment. Our results show the effects of the daily consumption of 60 mL MOJU Prebiotic Shot for 3 weeks and provide insight into the functional potential of B. adolescentis. Full article

This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of cross-reactivity and co-allergy to other plant foods among adult patients with IgE-mediated banana allergy in Thailand. A structured questionnaire was used to assess clinical reactivity, and cross-reactivity diagnoses were based on reactions occurring within 2 years of banana allergy onset, within 3 h of intake, and confirmed by allergists. Among the 133 participants, the most commonly associated plant foods with clinical reactions were kiwi (83.5%), avocado (71.1%), persimmon (58.8%), grapes (44.0%), and durian (43.6%). Notably, 26.5% of the reported reactions to other plant foods were classified as severe. These findings highlight the common occurrence of cross-reactivity/co-allergy to other plant foods in banana-allergic patients, with a significant proportion experiencing severe reactions. Travelers to tropical regions should be aware of this risk and advised to avoid specific banana cultivars and plant foods with reported high cross-reactivity. The inclusion of self-injectable epinephrine in the management plan for patients with primary banana allergy should be considered due to the substantial proportion of reported severe reactions and the wide range of clinical cross-reactivity and co-allergy observed. Full article

This study investigated the variation in daily time spent grazing and rumination in spring-calved grazing dairy cows (n = 162) of three breeds, Holstein-Friesian (HFR), Jersey (JE), and KiwiCross (KC) with different breeding worth index, and in different years of lactation (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th). The cows were managed through a rotational grazing system and milked once a day at 05:00 a.m. The cows grazed mainly pasture and received supplementary feeds depending on the season. Automated AfiCollar device continuously monitored and recorded grazing time and rumination time of the individual cows throughout the lactation period for three study years (Year-1, Year-2, Year-3) with 54 cows per year. A general linear mixed model fitted with breed × lactation year with days in milk (DIM), breeding worth (BW) index value, individual cow, season, and feed, and their interactions was performed in SAS. Variance partitioning was used to quantify the effect size of study factors and their interactions. Individual cows, DIM, and BW (except Year-3) had effects on grazing and rumination times throughout the study years. Grazing time and rumination time were different for different seasons due to varying supplementary feeds. Grazing time varied among breeds in Year-2 and Year-3, and among lactation years only in Year-1. Although rumination time differed among breeds in Year-3, it remained the same within different lactation years. Grazing time and rumination time had a negative relationship with each other, and their regression lines varied for different seasons. The total variance explained by the model in grazing time was 36–39%, mainly contributed by the individual cow (12–20%), season (5–12%), supplementary feed (2–6%), breed (1–5%), and lactation year (1–6%). The total variance explained in rumination was 40–41%, mainly contributed by the individual cow (16–24%), season (2–17%), supplementary feed (1–2%), breed (2–8%), and lactation year (~1%). These findings could contribute to improving the measures for feed resource management during different seasons over the lactation period for a mixed herd comprising JE, HFR and KC breeds in different years of lactation. Full article

The extant diversity of the avian clade Palaeognathae is composed of the iconic flightless ratites (ostriches, rheas, kiwi, emus, and cassowaries), and the volant tinamous of Central and South America. Palaeognaths were once considered a classic illustration of diversification driven by Gondwanan vicariance, but this paradigm has been rejected in light of molecular phylogenetic and divergence time results from the last two decades that indicate that palaeognaths underwent multiple relatively recent transitions to flightlessness and large body size, reinvigorating research into their evolutionary origins and historical biogeography. This revised perspective on palaeognath macroevolution has highlighted lingering gaps in our understanding of how, when, and where extant palaeognath diversity arose. Towards resolving those questions, we aim to comprehensively review the known fossil record of palaeognath skeletal remains, and to summarize the current state of knowledge of their evolutionary history. Total clade palaeognaths appear to be one of a small handful of crown bird lineages that crossed the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary, but gaps in their Paleogene fossil record and a lack of Cretaceous fossils preclude a detailed understanding of their multiple transitions to flightlessness and large body size, and recognizable members of extant subclades generally do not appear until the Neogene. Despite these knowledge gaps, we combine what is known from the fossil record of palaeognaths with plausible divergence time estimates, suggesting a relatively rapid pace of diversification and phenotypic evolution in the early Cenozoic. In line with some recent authors, we surmise that the most recent common ancestor of palaeognaths was likely a relatively small-bodied, ground-feeding bird, features that may have facilitated total-clade palaeognath survivorship through the K-Pg mass extinction, and which may bear on the ecological habits of the ancestral crown bird. Full article

In any membrane filtration, the prediction of permeate flux is critical to calculate the membrane surface required, which is an essential parameter for scaling-up, equipment sizing, and cost determination. For this reason, several models based on phenomenological or theoretical derivation (such as gel-polarization, osmotic pressure, resistance-in-series, and fouling models) and non-phenomenological models have been developed and widely used to describe the limiting phenomena as well as to predict the permeate flux. In general, the development of models or their modifications is done for a particular synthetic model solution and membrane system that shows a good capacity of prediction. However, in more complex matrices, such as fruit juices, those models might not have the same performance. In this context, the present work shows a review of different phenomenological and non-phenomenological models for permeate flux prediction in UF, and a comparison, between selected models, of the permeate flux predictive capacity. Selected models were tested with data from our previous work reported for three fruit juices (bergamot, kiwi, and pomegranate) processed in a cross-flow system for 10 h. The validation of each selected model’s capacity of prediction was performed through a robust statistical examination, including a residual analysis. The results obtained, within the statistically validated models, showed that phenomenological models present a high variability of prediction (values of R-square in the range of 75.91–99.78%), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) in the range of 3.14–51.69, and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) in the range of 0.22–2.01 among the investigated juices. The non-phenomenological models showed a great capacity to predict permeate flux with R-squares higher than 97% and lower MAPE (0.25–2.03) and RMSE (3.74–28.91). Even though the estimated parameters have no physical meaning and do not shed light into the fundamental mechanistic principles that govern these processes, these results suggest that non-phenomenological models are a useful tool from a practical point of view to predict the permeate flux, under defined operating conditions, in membrane separation processes. However, the phenomenological models are still a proper tool for scaling-up and for an understanding the UF process. Full article