Search Results (332)

It has long been hypothesized that some arthropod lineages transitioned to land by following an interstitial pathway through the spaces between sand grains. In recent years, various molecular phylogenetic analyses suggest a greater number of terrestrialization events within Arthropoda than previously hypothesized. The relative importance of an interstitial route to land is likely to have been underestimated because of biases in the fossil record and the choice of techniques used for collecting extant arthropods from sands and other types of mineral regolith (sediment with low organic content). A number of early-branching taxa are microarthropods that are common in mineral regolith, providing phyloecological evidence for an interstitial pathway onto land. Following interstitial terrestrialization, hexapods and early-branching arachnids may have remained minute and soft-bodied within mineral regolith until the Early Devonian, when organically rich soils developed on much of the land surface, resulting in increased food resources but also increased rates of predation. This led to defensive modifications and increases in surface abundance and body size, which would have all elevated the probability of fossilization. Full article

Background: Generative artificial intelligence (AI) can produce realistic human faces that are shared on social media, from where younger generations often derive body image norms. Aesthetic bias in these systems may promote unrealistic standards of beauty. This study examines whether generative AI produces facial images that are perceived by humans as more attractive than real human faces. Thus, we examine AI-generated facial imagery as a contemporary site of consumer culture, where beauty may become biased, unrealistic, and commodified: generating an algorithmically optimized product circulating through social media and digital platforms without proper regulation. Methods: Fifty AI-generated female faces were prospectively compared with 50 photographs of female models from a model agency. Facial attractiveness was rated by plastic surgeons, using a Likert scale and Mann–Whitney U for analysis. Results: AI-generated images received higher mean aesthetic scores than real photographs (7.79 vs. 6.88, p < 0.05), despite prompts requesting unattractive features. Conclusions: The AI model showed a small but consistent bias toward enhanced facial attractiveness. As AI-generated imagery increasingly shapes visual culture, this bias may contribute to unrealistic beauty standards, highlighting the need for AI literacy, responsible use of AI, and ethical oversight, especially when shared on social media. Full article

In this article, a low-power low-intermediate-frequency (Low-IF) receiver front-end is presented for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) body area network (BAN) applications. The receiver employs an input matching network, an inductorless self-biased inverter-based low-noise transconductance amplifier (LNTA), a single-balanced passive mixer, a common-gate transimpedance amplifier (TIA), and a Gm-C complex filter for image suppression. Native MOS devices are adopted to support low-voltage operation and reduce static power consumption. The interstage on-chip coupling capacitor between the RF front-end and the TIA is removed by aligning the DC operating points of the two stages. The receiver front-end is implemented in a 55 nm standard CMOS process and occupies an active area of 0.081 ${\mathrm{mm}}^2$, excluding bonding pads. Post-layout simulations show that the proposed design achieves 45.2 dB gain, 7.2 dB noise figure, and 28.1 dB image rejection ratio over the 2.4–2.48 GHz band, while consuming 537 $\mathsf{\mu }$W. The proposed front-end is suitable for low-power BLE BAN sensor nodes. Full article

Aim: Conventional free-fall kinematic models applied to plyometric push-up assessment treat the upper body as a vertically translating point mass, ignoring the curvilinear trajectory imposed by the ankle pivot and systematically biasing flight-time and height estimates. Methods: A planar rigid-body pendulum pivoting about the ankle axis was formulated via two independent derivation pathways (static moment equilibrium and a gravitational-torque coordinate approach), yielding effective pendulum length L = (M_W/M) × L_OS. Closed-form expressions for flight time, arc displacement, maximum height, and mean mechanical power were derived analytically from energy conservation and compared against free-fall predictions across seven pendulum arm lengths (L_OW = 0.50–2.00 m) and 500 initial hand velocities per length, using adaptive Gauss–Kronrod quadrature (relative tolerance 10⁻¹⁰) with ODE cross-validation (maximum discrepancy < 2.5 × 10⁻⁷ s). Results: Flight time equivalence (t^H = t^G) was formally established. The free-fall model overestimated flight time by up to 18.82% (Δt = 0.096 s; L_OW = 0.50 m, V_H,0 = 2.50 m/s) and maximum height by up to 28.43% (Δh = 0.087 m; L_OW = 0.50 m, t_flight = 0.50 s), with both errors growing nonlinearly with initial velocity. Overestimation in height was proportionally larger at shorter pendulum arm lengths (18.18% at t_flight = 0.30 s for L_OW = 0.50 m vs. 10.91% for L_OW = 1.00 m). Conclusions: The pendulum model provides a physically consistent, analytically tractable framework for geometry-adjusted upper-body power assessment from four field-obtainable anthropometric inputs. These results reflect computational self-consistency; prospective experimental validation against force-plate kinematics is required before applied deployment. Prospective empirical validation against dual force-plate and motion-capture reference data is required to establish the model’s accuracy boundaries under real push-up kinematics. Full article

Background/Objectives: Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a major public health concern primarily caused by human enterovirus A71 (EV-A71), coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16), coxsackievirus A6 (CVA6), and certain coxsackievirus B serotypes. Currently available EV-A71 vaccines lack cross-protective efficacy against other serotypes, highlighting the urgent need for multivalent and broadly effective enterovirus vaccines. Methods: Immunoinformatics approaches were used to predict highly immunogenic B-cell and T-cell epitopes, which were assembled to construct a novel multivalent epitope vaccine, rCV-A3V, followed by in silico validation. Recombinant protein expression was confirmed by Western blotting and immunofluorescence assays. The immunogenicity was evaluated in Balb/c mice following intranasal immunization. Results: A preliminary safety evaluation demonstrated that the rCV-A3V vaccine was well tolerated in the mouse model, with no abnormal changes in body weight observed after immunization. In addition, the target protein was successfully expressed. Intranasal immunization induced a strong Th1-biased immune response, robust serum neutralizing and IgG antibody responses, and pronounced mucosal immunity, including elevated sIgA and IgG levels in nasal lavage fluid, sIgA in feces, and substantial sIgA responses in milk. Dominant epitope peptides were also identified. Conclusions: The intranasal live attenuated rCV-A3V vaccine successfully induced humoral, mucosal, and cellular immune responses against EV-A71, CVA16, CVA6, and CVB3, demonstrating broad immunogenicity. These findings provide experimental evidence supporting its potential as a candidate vaccine for HFMD. Full article

Background: Plant-based milk and dairy alternatives (PBMDAs) are increasingly consumed in Europe, yet evidence from Central Europe remains limited. This study investigated PBMDA consumption habits and perceptions among adults in Slovenia. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in June 2024 using a nationally stratified consumer panel (N = 1500). The questionnaire assessed socio-demographics, lifestyle, selected self-reported psychological indicators, dietary pattern, PBMDAs-related beliefs, and interpretation of nutrition and ingredient information. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were complemented by multinomial logistic regression and Bayesian analyses. Results: Most participants followed an omnivorous diet, while vegetarians and vegans constituted a minority. Compared with omnivores, vegetarians expressed more favorable perceptions of PBMDAs (health, sustainability, safety), whereas omnivores expressed greater trust in dairy’s nutritional adequacy and stronger concerns about processing and additives. PBMDA perceptions varied by socio-demographics: younger participants and women expressed positive views, and vegetarian/vegan diets were more common among women and higher-educated consumers. Vegetarians/vegans reported more anxiety and body dysmorphic concerns than omnivores. When nutrition information was anonymised, both groups tended to rate dairy as healthier, indicating persistent biases in product evaluation. Conclusions: PBMDA perceptions in Slovenia are strongly segmented by dietary pattern and socio-demographics, supporting the need for clearer nutrition communication. Full article

Scoliidae are fossorial aculeate wasps (Hymenoptera: Apocrita) whose larvae develop as parasitoids of beetle grubs, mainly from the family Scarabaeidae. Despite their distinctive appearance and economic importance, the taxonomy and biology of Scoliidae are less well understood compared to other Hymenoptera. Recently, a new species of Scoliidae, Dielis tejensis Szafr., was described based on about a dozen male specimens from Texas (Nearctic realm). This article reports on mtDNA-verified discovery of the female D. tejensis. As in the case of other members of the tribe Campsomerini, D. tejensis exhibits strong sexual dimorphism in body structure and color pattern. Females of D. tejensis most closely resemble Dielis plumipes (Drury) and were previously confused with D. plumipes fossulana (Fabr.), with which D. tejensis is partially sympatric. D. tejensis has more than one generation per year, characterized by a male-biased sex ratio, perhaps resulting from the female immature stages entering a state of aestivation. The multi-generational developmental cycle of D. tejensis correlates with the existence of a partial seasonal polyphenism in this species. The data presented also shows a similarity in the distribution ranges of D. tejensis and one of its main nectaring plants, Hymenopappus artemisiifolius DC (Asteraceae), that may suggest similarity in the environmental requirements of both organisms or specialized trophic relationship between the still-unknown beetle host of the wasp larvae and H. artemisiifolius or another plant with a similar range. D. tejensis has been included in the accordingly modified key to the Nearctic species of Dielis Sauss. & Sichel, which is also presented here. Full article

Background and aim: Traditional marker-based optical motion capture systems are costly, time-consuming to operate, and constrained by laboratory environments, limiting their broader adoption in clinical practice and naturalistic settings. Markerless motion capture based on a sums-of-Gaussians (SoG) body model is a potential alternative; however, its metrological properties for kinematic assessment during walking and slow running remain insufficiently validated. Using a conventional marker-based Vicon system as the reference, this study evaluated the reliability and concurrent validity of an SoG-based markerless system (MocapGS) for bilateral lower-limb joint range of motion (ROM) during gait. Methods: Thirty-six healthy adults completed self-selected-pace speed walking and slow running tasks while both systems synchronously acquired bilateral lower-limb kinematics. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM), SEM percentage (SEM%), minimal detectable change (MDC), MDC percentage (MDC%), and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to assess reliability. Concurrent validity was evaluated using the Pearson correlation coefficient, paired-sample t-tests, and the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) to compare the ROM. Results: Vicon showed moderate-to-high reliability for ROM in most joints across both tasks. By contrast, the MocapGS achieved acceptable ICC values mainly for the sagittal-plane ROM at the hip and knee. The CCC analysis showed no significant agreement between the two systems. Bland–Altman plots showed systematic biases with spatially heterogeneous random errors. During walking, MocapGS systematically overestimated ROM relative to Vicon at several joint axes; the widest limits of agreement (LOA) occurred at the left knee X-axis and right hip Z-axis. During running, overestimation was consistent across all bilateral joints at the X-axis and the right hip at the Y-axis, while the widest LOA were found at the bilateral hip X-axes. These specific discrepancies highlighted the joint–axis combinations with the greatest measurement variance. In walking, the test–retest reliability of the knee flexion–extension ROM measured by the MocapGS approached that of Vicon; however, the SEM% and MDC% were generally larger for MocapGS than for Vicon. The RMSE exceeded 5 degrees for ROM in most joint planes, especially in the frontal and transverse planes and at distal joints; errors increased further during slow running. Conclusions: MocapGS may be used for coarse monitoring of large-magnitude changes in sagittal-plane kinematics during gait; however, it is currently unlikely to replace Vicon for clinical decision-making or detecting subtle gait changes, and its outputs should be interpreted with caution, particularly for ankle kinematics and non-sagittal-plane motion. Full article

Muslims are the fastest growing religious minority in Canada. In Ontario, Muslim students account for over 20% of the total student body in some school boards. Research suggests that widespread anti-Muslim racism has been perpetrated by teachers in Ontario schools. Though numerous studies have examined the experiences of Muslim students and educators in public schools across Canada, little research has explored the experiences of students enrolled in teacher education programs (i.e., preservice teachers) and their preparedness for challenging anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian racism in Ontario schools. This study explores challenges, biases, and prejudices that Muslim students, Muslim educators, as well as students and teachers that sympathize with Palestinian solidarity face within Ontario public schools from the perspectives of preservice teachers who are in the process of beginning their careers as educators. Through a critical ethnographic approach, this study engaged in 32 semi-structured interviews with preservice teachers across 5 university teacher training programs in Southern Ontario. Participants in this study discussed Islamophobic experiences centred on archetypal perceptions of Muslim male students being discursively constructed as sexist and misogynistic and the policing and surveillance of Muslim prayer spaces and rituals. Anti-Palestinian racism manifested when students and educators’ solidarity with Palestinian rights were policed and silenced, as well as when students and educators felt compelled to self-censor their sympathies for Palestine. This study provides timely and critical insights related to the challenges faced by Ontario teacher training programs in light of growing religious and ethnic plurality in public schools and suggests approaches and strategies to address these obstacles. Full article

Background/Objectives: The ketogenic diet (KD) induces profound metabolic shifts, yet the sex-specific long-term effects on skeletal muscle metabolism and sterol homeostasis across tissues remain insufficiently characterized. This study tested the hypothesis that a prolonged KD would elicit distinct, sex-dependent metabolic and sterol adaptations in mice. Methods: We examined how a 12-week KD, compared with a standard diet, affected body mass, the skeletal muscle metabolome, hepatic lipid and collagen content, and sterol profiles in the skeletal muscle, liver, spleen, and serum in male and female C57BL/6J mice. Three-month-old mice of both sexes were randomized to a KD or standard diet and evaluated using the histological quantification of hepatic steatosis and collagen deposition, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF IMS) of skeletal muscle, and LC-MS/MS-based sterol profiling. Results: The KD induced rapid body mass gain in males and delayed weight gain in females, promoted hepatic steatosis in both sexes, and generated clearly segregated, sex- and diet-specific skeletal muscle metabolomic signatures. These signatures included reduced tricarboxylic acid cycle precursors and a marked decrease in S-adenosylmethionine in KD-fed females. Across tissues, the KD consistently suppressed precursor sterols, including 7-dehydrocholesterol and desmosterol in the skeletal muscle, liver, and spleen, while elevating serum cholesterol and desmosterol (male-biased), with changes generally more pronounced in males. Conclusions: Collectively, these findings demonstrate that a long-term KD drives sex- and organ-specific metabolic remodeling, with evidence of greater metabolic flexibility but a shared risk of hepatic steatosis in females. These results underscore the importance of personalized, sex-stratified approaches when considering long-term ketogenic interventions. Full article

Body size is a key trait influencing life history and ecological adaptation, and sexual size dimorphism (SSD) reflects divergent selective pressures acting on males and females. In morphologically conserved insect groups such as Cassidinae leaf beetles, the external similarity between sexes often impedes accurate dimorphism assessment. To address this, we conducted a systematic morphometric study of ten Cassidinae species from the Nanling Mountains—the largest east–west mountain system in southern China—where we definitively assigned sex via genital dissection. We measured body weight, body length, body width, length–width ratio, and corresponding wing traits. Across all species, SSD was consistently female biased, with statistically significant but subtle differences in most traits; body weight exhibited the greatest relative disparity. While this pattern aligns with the fecundity advantage hypothesis, direct fecundity data were not collected. Crucially, interspecific allometric analyses revealed that the scaling of male and female body sizes was statistically indistinguishable from that of isometry, providing no significant support for Rensch’s rule in this female-biased system. Our findings offer foundational insights into SSD evolution in cryptically dimorphic, herbivorous beetles and highlight the need for phylogenetically informed studies across broader geographic and taxonomic scales. Full article

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) remains a major etiologic agent of acute lower respiratory tract infection (ALRTI). Currently licensed RSV vaccines are administered by intramuscular injection and induce limited immunity at the respiratory mucosal interface, underscoring the need for effective mucosal vaccination strategies. Methods: To enhance mucosal immune responses, we used prefusion F protein (Pre-F) as the antigen and performed intranasal immunization in BALB/c mice. Four mucosal adjuvants (CpG-ODN, CTA1-DD, IFN-α, and PEI) were systematically compared across different dose levels to evaluate their immunological and protective efficacy. Results: Both adjuvant type and dose helped shape the magnitude and quality of the immune response and the level of protection. CpG-ODN showed a dose-restricted immunopotentiating effect: an intermediate dose (10 µg) significantly increased neutralizing antibody titers and nasal mucosal IgA responses, improved post-challenge body weight recovery, and reduced lung viral load, whereas higher doses provided no additional benefit and were associated with aggravated lung pathology. PEI and IFN-α exhibited dose-dependency within a certain range, but increasing doses did not result in further improvements in immune responses or protection; an intermediate dose (10 µg) was sufficient to elicit robust systemic and mucosal immunity. CTA1-DD improved selected immune parameters at appropriate doses, yet its overall immunopotentiating effects remained modest. Direct comparative analysis using the representative doses selected from the three dose levels for each adjuvant indicated that 10 µg CpG-ODN or PEI provided superior immunogenicity and protection, whereas PEI induced a Th2-biased immune profile at both humoral and cellular levels. Conclusions: These findings highlight that favorable immunogenicity and protection are achieved within defined dose windows rather than at maximal doses. Among the adjuvants studied, low-to-intermediate doses of CpG-ODN, particularly 10 µg, show strong potential for intranasal mucosal immunization with recombinant RSV Pre-F protein. By systematically comparing dose–effect profiles across multiple mucosal adjuvants, this study offers comparative insights into adjuvant selection and dose selection for intranasal RSV vaccine development. Full article

Chinese tongue sole (Cynoglossus semilaevis) is an important mariculture product in northern China, exhibiting significant sexual dimorphism: females grow 2–4 times faster than males and ultimately attain much greater body weights. As a well-known transcription factor crucial for regulating sex differentiation, foxl2 has been characterized in various mammals. Herein, we identified and characterized three foxl genes, foxl1, foxl2a and foxl2l. Three foxl genes exhibited a gonad-biased expression pattern, where foxl2a showed higher expression in ovary than in testis, while foxl1 and foxl2l exhibited higher expression in testis. All foxl genes were detected in testes and ovaries by ISH; foxl1/foxl2l were expressed in oocytes and sperm, and foxl2a in granulosa cells and sperm. Overexpression of foxl in testicular cells led to KEGG enrichment in DNA repair, MAPK, FOXO and progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation pathways. In tongue sole testicular cell line, knockdown of foxl1 and foxl2l resulted in upregulation of multiple male-related genes. In contrast, knockdown of foxl2a led to decreased expression of aromatase genes and increased expression of ctnnb1, indicating that foxl2a is more closely associated with female differentiation and maintenance. Our study investigated the functions of the foxl gene family in teleosts and offers valuable insights into their role in sex differentiation and gonadal maintenance in teleost fish. Full article

Early environmental conditions play a critical role in shaping fish physiology and behaviour, with tank colour emerging as a relevant yet often overlooked factor in aquaculture and experimental research. This study investigated how rearing tank colour affects larval performance in the cichlid fish Cichlasoma dimerus. Larvae were reared in white, light-blue, or grey tanks, and survival, growth, pigmentation, sex ratio, skeletal development, and the endocrine responses of somatolactin (Sl) and growth hormone (Gh) were evaluated. Survival was significantly lower in white tanks. Conversely, larvae reared in white tanks reached a higher final body weight, while total length showed a similar but non-significant trend. Gh-immunoreactive cells exhibited significantly larger nuclear areas in larvae reared in white tanks and a tendency toward smaller cytoplasmic areas compared with those from light-blue tanks. Melanophore number did not differ among treatments, whereas larvae from grey tanks showed a higher number of Sl-immunoreactive cells. Sex ratios tended to be female-biased in white tanks. Skeletal development did not differ among tank colours and followed the expected chondrogenesis and ossification sequence. Overall, tank colour influenced multiple aspects of larval development, particularly survival, growth, and endocrine responses, underscoring its relevance in fish rearing and experimental design. Full article

Believed by many to be the “silver bullet” that will bring an end to educational inequality, AI technologies continue to proliferate within schools and classrooms, promising to bolster academic achievement, spark student engagement, and ensure campus safety while lessening the burden of overworked and systemically underpaid teachers. Despite this hype, a growing body of critical research is revealing that many of the AI technologies used in schools are rife with algorithmic biases that exacerbate, rather than remediate, educational inequity for historically marginalized students. We extend the work of scholars who have called attention to the rise of tech-mediated racism and the New Jim Code to consider how the proliferation of AI technologies into K-12 schools has worked to hide, speed up, and automate educational inequities for Black students, giving rise to a techno-educational carceral apparatus. To do so, we analyze youth interviews, youth-generated video blogs, and weekly journal reflections of 46 Black students that participated in a critical technology summer course. Full article