Search Results (269)

Marasmius neooreades sp. nov. from Japan is described. This species produces fleshy, medium-sized basidiomata that are macromorphologically similar to M. oreades, with a pileus ranging from wheat-colored to dark brown and a tough stipe covered with brownish tomentose squamules. The gill edges bear cheilocystidia that are clavate to diverticulate. The pileipellis is hymeniform and composed of Globulares-type elements containing brown pigments. The species typically occurs gregariously in grasslands and occasionally forms fairy rings. Phylogenetic analyses based on ITS and LSU sequences indicated that M. neooreades forms a well-supported, independent clade distinct from previously described species of Marasmius. In addition, a combination of morphological characters clearly differentiates this species from all described taxa. An illustrated description and the phylogenetic placement of the new species are provided. Full article

Halogens, particularly fluorine, chlorine, and bromine, play a pivotal role in modern drug discovery and development. Their incorporation into drug molecules significantly influences physicochemical properties, including lipophilicity, metabolic stability, and target binding affinity. Fluorine, the most commonly used halogen, enhances bioavailability and receptor interactions, as seen in several blockbuster drugs. Chlorine and bromine contribute to hydrophobic interactions and modulate pharmacokinetics, while iodine is less frequently utilized due to its larger atomic size and reactivity. The strategic placement of halogens in drug scaffolds has led to the success of numerous FDA-approved pharmaceuticals across therapeutic areas, including oncology, infectious diseases, and central nervous system disorders. This review explores the structure–activity relationships (SAR) of halogen-containing drugs, highlighting recent approvals (2025), their synthesis (with yields, when available), therapeutic use, and, when experimentally available, the interaction with their biological target macromolecules. Full article

The generic delimitation of the two closely related Rosaceae genera, Eriobotrya and Rhaphiolepis, has not yet been investigated by a detailed study of their pollen morphology using scanning electron microscopy. To provide novel diagnostic features and insights into their relationships, we examined the pollen grains of thirty-one species of Eriobotrya and Rhaphiolepis, analyzing five quantitative and two qualitative morphological variables. The findings revealed that Eriobotrya and Rhaphiolepis pollen grains are tricolpate monads that are small to medium in size and vary in shape from prolate to perprolate, predominantly featuring striate ornamentation. Notably, striate-perforate and psilate exine sculptures were found only in Eriobotrya species, while scabrate ornamentation was unique to Rhaphiolepis. The rugulate pattern appeared in both genera. Eriobotrya (E. malipoensis K.C.Kuan) had the smallest pollen grains and the shortest distance between the apices of two ectocolpi, while Rhaphiolepis (R. integerrima Hook. & Arn.) had the largest. Multivariate cluster analysis separated all species from both genera into two distinct clusters. Cluster I contained all Eriobotrya species, whereas Cluster II included all Rhaphiolepis species, demonstrating their morphological distinctness and alignment with recent micro-morphological and molecular evidence. Furthermore, the pollen profile of E. seguinii Cardot ex Guillaumin affirms its taxonomic placement within Eriobotrya. We conclude that pollen morphology offers diagnostic information for delimiting these genera. The observed ornamentation pattern of a shared striate background, with distinct derived ornamentation in each genus, provides a clear morphological foundation for evolutionary investigations within the Maleae tribe. To further clarify generic boundaries and evolutionary processes, future research should integrate these palynological data with micromorphological analyses of other plant parts and genomic information. Full article

Continuous plantar-pressure monitoring is important for objective gait analysis and early detection of abnormal loading; however, many existing solutions remain laboratory-bound (force plates and instrumented walkways) or rely on costly in-shoe multilayer sensor arrays. Here, we developed and optimized a fully screen-printed pressure-sensing insole based on carbon–polymer nanocomposite layers, with an emphasis on manufacturability and process control to bridge the gap between proof-of-concept force-sensitive resistor (FSR)-based insoles and scalable printed-electronics manufacturing workflows. Composite pastes containing carbon fillers (graphene nanoplatelets, carbon black, and graphite) were formulated to improve sensor repeatability and sensitivity. Sensors were characterized under compression loads from 100 N to 1300 N, showing a sensitivity of 10.5 ± 2.8 Ω per 100 N and a sheet-to-sheet coefficient of variation of 22.1% in resistance response. The effects of paste composition, screen mesh density, electrode layout, and lamination on sensitivity and repeatability were systematically evaluated. In addition, correlation analysis of resistance values from integrated quality-control meanders proved useful for monitoring screen-printing process stability. The final insole integrates printed carbon sensing pads and contacts, a dielectric spacer, and an adhesive layer in a thin, flexible format suitable for integration with wearable electronics. In practical static-load tests, repeated manual placement of weights yielded coefficients of variation as low as 4% at 500 g and a detection limit of ~0.1 N, comparable to a very light finger touch. These results demonstrate that low-cost screen-printed electronics can provide robust pressure sensing for wearable plantar-pressure monitoring. Full article

Early wildfire smoke detection is critical for preventing small ignitions from escalating into large-scale fires, yet early-stage smoke plumes are often faint, low-contrast, and spatially small. When full-resolution frames are resized to satisfy fixed-input detector architectures and enable efficient batched GPU inference, these subtle cues are further diminished, leading to missed detections and unreliable scores near deployment thresholds. Existing remedies such as multi-scale inference, slicing/tiling, or super-resolution could improve sensitivity, but typically incur substantial overhead from multiple forward passes or added network components, limiting real-time use on resource-constrained platforms. To mitigate these challenges, we propose a composite multi-resolution detection framework that improves sensitivity to small smoke regions while maintaining single-pass inference. Motivated by the fact that most operational wildfire monitoring systems rely on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) platforms and mountain-top Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) systems surveillance, their wide-field imagery typically contains a large sky region above the horizon where early smoke is most likely to first become visible. Accordingly, crop placement is guided by a skyline prior that prioritizes this high-probability sky band while retaining the remaining scene for global context. A dynamic compositing stage stacks a global view with a high-resolution, sky-aligned band into a standard square detector input, preserving context with minimal added cost. Detections from the two views are reconciled via coordinate restoration and non-maximum suppression. For deployment, a lightweight second-stage classifier selectively re-evaluates low-confidence detections to stabilize decisions near a fixed operating threshold without retraining the detector. Compared to the baseline detector, our approach improves detection performance on the Early Smoke dataset, achieving gains of +4.6 percentage points in AP @0.5:0.95, +3.4 percentage points in AP @0.5, +2.9 percentage points in precision, +5.3 percentage points in recall, and +4.3 percentage points in F1-score. Full article

Background: Skipper butterflies (Hesperiidae) are a morphologically distinctive lineage within Papilionoidea, yet relationships among many groups remain difficult to resolve, and mitochondrial genomic resources remain limited for some tribes, including Celaenorrhinini. Methods: We sequenced and characterized the complete mitochondrial genome of Celaenorrhinus victor using Illumina short-read sequencing. Gene content and organization were annotated, codon-usage patterns were assessed across Celaenorrhinus using relative synonymous codon usage and multiple compositional/selection tests (ENC–GC3s, neutrality, and PR2 analyses), selective constraints were evaluated using Ka/Ks for 13 protein-coding genes, and phylogenetic relationships were inferred with a partitioned maximum-likelihood analysis of 66 complete hesperiid mitogenomes. Results: The circular mitogenome of C. victor is 15,180 bp and contains the typical 37 genes (13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNAs, and two rRNAs) plus an A + T-rich control region, with an overall A + T content of 79.64%. Gene order and orientation match those of other Celaenorrhinus and hesperiid mitogenomes. All protein-coding genes use standard invertebrate mitochondrial start codons (with cox1 initiating with TTG) and terminate with complete TAA stop codons. Codon usage is strongly biased toward A/U-ending codons and is broadly similar among five sampled Celaenorrhinus mitogenomes; ENC–GC3s, neutrality, and PR2 analyses indicate a predominant influence of A + T-directed mutational pressure with additional effects beyond base composition. Ka/Ks values for all 13 protein-coding genes were <1, consistent with pervasive purifying selection; cox genes were the most conserved, whereas several NADH dehydrogenase subunit genes evolved comparatively faster. The phylogeny recovered monophyletic Celaenorrhinini and a well-supported Celaenorrhinus clade, placing C. victor as sister to Celaenorrhinus consanguineus, while deeper nodes among major hesperiid lineages showed only moderate support in parts of the tree. Conclusions: This study provides a new mitogenomic resource for Celaenorrhinini and a comparative reference for codon usage and selective constraints within Celaenorrhinus, supporting the placement of C. victor within Hesperiidae while highlighting remaining uncertainty at deeper hesperiid divergences. Full article

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) based on optically pumped magnetometers (OPMs) offers the flexibility to position sensors closer to the scalp, which improves the signal-to-noise ratio compared to conventional superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) systems. However, the spatial resolution of OPM-MEG critically depends on sensor placement, especially when the number of sensors is limited. In this study, we present a methodology for optimizing OPM-MEG sensor layouts using each subject’s anatomical information derived from individual magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We generated realistic forward models from reconstructed head surfaces and simulated magnetic fields produced by equivalent current dipoles (ECDs). We compared multiple simulation strategies, including ECDs randomly distributed across the cortical surface and ECDs constrained to regions of interest. For each simulated magnetic field map (MFM) database, we applied the sequential selection algorithm (SSA) to identify sensor positions that maximized information capture. Unlike previous approaches relying on large measurement databases, this simulation-driven strategy eliminates the need for extensive pre-existing recordings. We benchmarked the performance of the personalized layouts using OPM-MEG datasets of auditory evoked fields (AEFs) derived from real whole-head SQUID-MEG measurements. Our results show that simulation-based SSA optimization improves the coverage of cortical regions of interest, reduces the number of sensors required for accurate source reconstruction, and yields sensor configurations that perform comparably to layouts optimized using measured data. To evaluate the quality of estimated MFMs, we applied metrics such as the correlation coefficient (CC), root-mean-square error, and relative error. Our results show that the first 15 to 20 optimally selected sensors (CC > 0.95) capture most of the information contained in full-head MFMs. Additionally, we performed source localization for the highest auditory response (M100) by fitting equivalent current dipoles and found that localization errors were < 5 mm. The results further indicate that SSA performance is insensitive to individualized head geometry, supporting the feasibility of using representative anatomical models and highlighting the potential of this approach for clinical OPM-MEG applications. Full article

In many IIoT-based yard operations, accurately identifying the spatial position of containers is becoming increasingly relevant as operators try to automate stacking and retrieval processes by technologies like Container Spatial Localization (CSL). Despite this automation in IIoT, RTK-GPS–based container stacker positioning frequently lacks precision, which causes disruptions in stacking and reduces efficiency in space utilisation. Though it offers placement precision accurately up to 3 cm, this is still insufficient in high-volume Yard Management Systems (YMS). Consequently, this yields to variable container orientation, waste of usable space, increased man input is required in handling goods, and potential automated system failures. This research proposes a novel methodology that combines conventional RTK-GPS measurements with angular information captured from a BHI-260AP–based spreader sensor, allowing the system to correct container placement errors arising from orientation rather than only from positioning. In addition to the spatial positioning problem, we found that continuous IIoT operation raises concerns regarding energy use, particularly when micro-controllers remain active throughout the task cycle. As a solution, this integrates a dynamic task scheduling approach that puts the device in sleep modes whenever computation is not required. In our experiments, this strategy improved overall power efficiency by 34.44%, which makes long automated operation more practical. Full article

Background/Objectives: Safe placement of sacral vertebra 1 (S1) screws is essential in lumbosacral instrumentation and iliosacral fixation. Existing anatomical safe zones are largely based on averaged geometry and do not provide quantitative probability estimates for permissible deviations from an ideal entry point. This study aims to develop a probabilistic, computed tomography–based (CT-based) safe zone model for S1 screw placement. Methods: This retrospective imaging-based anatomical modeling study will analyze 1000 anonymized lumbosacral CT scans. A reproducible reference entry point will be defined on the lateral S1 projection, and bilateral offset-based virtual screw trajectories will be evaluated. Two independent raters will classify each trajectory as intraosseous or extraosseous. Probabilistic safety maps will be generated by aggregating binary classifications across offsets and directions. Interobserver reliability will be assessed using Cohen’s kappa, and anatomical influences will be analyzed using multivariable regression models. Results: The study is expected to generate continuous probabilistic safety maps illustrating the likelihood of intraosseous S1 screw placement across predefined offset distances and directions from the reference entry point. These maps are anticipated to demonstrate a gradual transition from high to low safety probabilities rather than a binary safe–unsafe boundary, and to identify anatomical factors influencing screw containment. Conclusions: This protocol describes a CT-based probabilistic modeling approach to S1 screw placement that aims to provide a more nuanced and quantitative definition of anatomical safe zones. If successful, the proposed method may improve preoperative planning and intraoperative decision-making by moving beyond averaged geometric constraints toward probability-informed screw placement. Full article

Background: Autogenous tooth-derived grafts have been proposed as an alternative to xenografts for alveolar ridge preservation, offering biological similarity to bone and potentially more favorable remodeling. This study compared the healing outcomes of a collagenated xenograft, and a tooth-derived graft prepared with an automated processing device. Methods: Six Beagle dogs underwent bilateral extraction of the third and fourth mandibular premolars. Each animal contributed two sockets grafted with root-derived particulate prepared using an automated device for tooth cleaning, grinding, and demineralization, and two sockets grafted with a collagenated xenograft, all covered by a collagen membrane. After 3 months, histological sections were analyzed to assess crestal dimensions and the relative proportions of mature (lamellar) and immature bone (woven/parallel fibered), residual graft material, and soft tissues. Results: Lingual crest height did not differ between groups, whereas the buccal crest was slightly higher at xenograft sites compared with the tooth-graft sites. The tooth-graft group exhibited significantly fewer residual particles (0.5 ± 1.1%) and a higher proportion of total bone (65.6 ± 9.1%) compared with the xenograft group, which showed 19.7 ± 16.0% graft remnants (p = 0.032). Corticalization at the socket entrance was observed predominantly in the tooth-graft sites. No inflammatory infiltrates were detected in the examined section. Conclusions: Tooth-derived grafts promoted an almost complete replacement by vital bone with minimal residual material, whereas xenografts provided slightly better buccal contour preservation but resulted in regenerated tissues containing persistent graft particles. The biological differences observed may have implications for subsequent implant placement. Full article

Container-based cloud platforms enable flexible and lightweight application deployment, yet container scheduling remains challenged by resource fragmentation, load imbalance, excessive energy consumption, and service-level agreement (SLA) violations. To address these issues, this paper proposes a hybrid multi-objective optimization approach, termed HHO-GWO, which combines Harris Hawks Optimization (HHO) with the Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO) for container initial placement in cloud environments. A unified fitness function is designed to jointly consider resource utilization, load balancing, resource fragmentation, energy consumption, and SLA violation rate. In addition, a dynamic weight adjustment mechanism and Lévy flight perturbation are incorporated to improve search adaptability and prevent premature convergence. The proposed method is evaluated through extensive simulations under different workload scales and compared with several representative metaheuristic algorithms. The results show that HHO-GWO achieves improved convergence behavior, solution quality, and stability, particularly in large-scale container deployment scenarios. These findings suggest that the proposed approach provides a practical and energy-aware solution for multi-objective container scheduling in cloud data centers. Full article

Ergot alkaloids derived from lysergic acid have impacted humankind significantly as toxins in agriculture and as the foundations of several pharmaceuticals. Few fungi capable of producing lysergic acid derivatives have been found outside the family Clavicipitaceae. Based on its phylogenetic placement, we hypothesized the recently described fungus Aspergillus aspearensis (Aspergillaceae) would synthesize lysergic acid amides. Cultures of A. aspearensis produced abundant lysergic acid α-hydroxyethylamide (LAH) and lesser amounts of other lysergic acid derivatives. Conidia contained high concentrations of ergot alkaloids, whereas sclerotia contained significantly less. Approximately half of the ergot alkaloids produced were secreted into the culture medium. When spores of A. aspearensis were injected into larvae of the model insect Galleria mellonella, larvae died at a significantly faster rate than control larvae. The fungus produced ergot alkaloids during insect pathogenesis and later produced conidia and sclerotia on cadavers, indicating it can complete its life cycle in an insect. The genome of A. aspearensis contained two complete ergot alkaloid synthesis gene clusters, similar to those of A. leporis; however, unlike its sister species, none of the ergot cluster genes were pseudogenized. Aspergillus aspearensis is a newly discovered source of ergot alkaloids and may be useful for studying and producing these important chemicals. Full article

This paper presents a numerical study on the deployment of Overfire Air (OFA) technology in coal-fired thermal power plants in Kazakhstan to reduce harmful emissions. The simulation utilized a digital model of the combustion chamber of the BKZ-75 boiler at Shakhtinsk thermal power plant, which utilizes high-ash Karaganda coal containing 35.10% ash. During the development of two-stage combustion technology, different methods of supplying extra air via OFA injectors were examined. Various positions within the combustion chamber were evaluated for their placement: at heights of h = 0.165 m; 0.75 m; 1.375 m; 2.25 m; 2.5 m; 8 m; 9.4 m; 10 m; 11 m; and 12 m. The baseline combustion mode (OFA = 0%) and several additional air injector settings were analyzed, including OFA levels of 5%, 10%, 15%, 18%, 20%, 25%, and 30% of the total air volume. Numerical simulations generated temperature distributions along with carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen (NO) concentration fields, both inside and outside the combustion chamber outlet. Research indicates that the most effective reduction in pollutant emissions happens when OFA injectors are positioned at 9.4 m and supply supplementary air at an OFA rate of 18%. Under these settings, the carbon monoxide concentration at the combustion chamber outlet decreases by approximately 36%, while nitrogen oxide levels drop by 25%, compared to the baseline condition (OFA = 0%). These insights can be utilized to upgrade boiler units, promoting cleaner fuel combustion in coal-fired thermal power plants. Full article

Background/Objectives: Soroseris hookeriana, a Tibetan medicinal plant endemic to the high-altitude Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, possesses significant pharmacological value but lacks fundamental genomic characterization. This study aims to generate and comparatively analyse its complete chloroplast genome. Methods: Total DNA was sequenced, assembled with GetOrganelle, annotated with CPGAVAS2, and compared with eight Asteraceae species; phylogenetic placement was inferred with IQ-TREE from 21 complete plastomes. Results: The circular chloroplast genome is 152,514 bp with a typical quadripartite structure (LSC 84,168 bp, SSC 18,528 bp, two IRs 24,909 bp each). It contains 132 unique genes (87 protein-coding, 37 tRNA, 8 rRNA; 18 duplicated in IRs yield 150 total copies). Twenty-three genes harbour introns; clpP and ycf3 have two. Overall GC content is 37.73%, elevated in IRs (43.12%). Codon usage shows strong A/U bias at the third position; 172 SSRs and 39 long repeats are detected. IR-SC boundaries exhibit the greatest inter-specific variation, notably in ycf1 and ndhF. Conclusions: The complete plastome robustly supports S. hookeriana and Stebbinsia umbrella as sister species (100% bootstrap) and provides essential genomic resources for species identification, population genetics, and studies of high-altitude adaptation. Full article

Objective: This study aimed to assess the association between the histopathological characteristics of thrombi extracted during endovascular thrombectomy and clinical factors, including the location of the occlusion, comorbid conditions, and treatment effectiveness, in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Materials and Methods: A total of 57 patients with acute ischemic stroke who underwent endovascular thrombectomy between 1 January 2022 and 31 December 2024 were included in the study. Thrombi were analyzed histopathologically and classified into categories based on their composition (RBC-dominant, fibrin-dominant, RBC = fibrin, organized fibrin) and phase (early or late stage). CD34 staining was used to assess organized fibrin. Results: The mean age of the patients was 65.2 ± 15.3 years, 52.6% were female, and 47.4% were male. The majority of thrombi were retrieved from the MCA M1 segment (64.9%). Histopathological analysis revealed that 49.1% of thrombi were RBC-dominant, 21.1% RBC = fibrin, 19.3% fibrin-dominant, and 10.5% contained organized fibrin. Early-stage thrombi accounted for 70.2% of cases, while late-stage thrombi comprised 29.8%. Thrombus composition was significantly associated with anatomical location, with RBC-dominant thrombi being most prevalent in the proximal ICA (88.2%; p < 0.001). CD34 staining identified organized fibrin in 10.5% of thrombi, exclusively in patients who underwent stent placement. However, no statistically significant correlation was identified between CD34 positivity and thrombus composition (p > 0.05). Additionally, no notable associations were found between thrombus composition and chronic comorbidities. Conclusions: Thrombus composition and stage exhibit variability depending on anatomical location, particularly in the proximal ICA, where RBC-dominant thrombi are more frequent. Although CD34 positivity indicates organized fibrin, it does not show a significant relationship with thrombus characteristics or patient comorbidities. These findings underscore the complex interplay between thrombus histopathology, anatomical location, and procedural outcomes, highlighting the need for further investigation. Full article