Search Results (3,909)

This study investigates the hot deformation behaviour and microstructural evolution of two AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel variants: 0A (basic) and 1C (modified). These variants primarily differ in chemical composition, with 0A containing higher austenite-stabilizing elements (C, N) compared to 1C, which features lower interstitial content and slightly higher Si and Cr. This research aimed to optimize hot rolling conditions for enhanced forming properties. Uniaxial hot compression tests were conducted using a Gleeble thermo-mechanical system between 850 and 990 ${}^{\circ }$C at a strain rate of 3.3 s${}^{-1}$, simulating industrial finishing mill conditions. Analysis of flow curves, coupled with detailed microstructural characterization using electron backscatter diffraction, revealed distinct dynamic restoration mechanisms influencing each material’s response. Thermodynamic simulations confirmed significant austenite formation in both materials within the tested temperature range, notably affecting their deformation behaviour despite their initial ferritic state. Material 0A consistently exhibited a strong tendency towards dynamic recrystallization (DRX) across a wider temperature range, particularly at 850 ${}^{\circ }$C. DRX led to a microstructure with a high concentration of low-angle grain boundaries and sharp deformation textures, actively reorienting grains towards energetically favourable configurations. However, under this condition, DRX did not fully complete the recrystallization process. In contrast, material 1C showed greater activity of both dynamic recovery and DRX, leading to a much more advanced state of grain refinement and recrystallization compared to 0A. This indicates that the composition of 1C helps mitigate the strong influence of the deformation temperature on the crystallographic texture, leading to a weaker texture overall than 0A. Full article

Concurrent cognitive tasks, such as avoiding visual, auditory, chemical, and electrical hazards, and concurrent motor tasks, such as load carriage, are prevalent in ergonomic settings. Trips are extremely common in the workplace, leading to fatal and non-fatal fall-related injuries. Intrinsic factors, such as attention, fatigue, and anticipation, as well as extrinsic factors, including tasks at hand, affect trip recovery responses. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the ankle joint kinematics in unexpected and expected trip responses during single-tasking (ST), dual-tasking (DT), and triple-tasking (TT), before and after a physically fatiguing protocol among young, healthy adults. Methods: Twenty volunteers’ (10 females, one left leg dominant, age 20.35 ± 1.04 years, height 174.83 ± 9.03 cm, mass 73.88 ± 15.55 kg) ankle joint kinematics were assessed using 3D motion capture system during unperturbed gait (NG), unexpected trip (UT), and expected trip (ET), during single-tasking (ST), cognitive dual-tasking (CDT), motor dual-tasking (MDT), and triple-tasking (TT), under both PRE and POST fatigue conditions. Results: Greater dorsiflexion angles were observed during UT compared to NG, MDT compared to ST, and TT compared to ST. Significantly greater plantar flexion angles were observed during ET compared to NG and during POST compared to PRE. Conclusions: Greater dorsiflexion angles during dual- and triple-tasking suggest that divided attention affects trip recovery. Greater plantar flexion angles following fatigue are likely an anticipatory mechanism due to altered muscle activity and increased postural control demands. Full article

The rhythm of epileptiform activity occurs in various brain injuries (ischemia, stroke, concussion, mechanical damage, AD, PD). The epileptiform rhythm is accompanied by periodic Ca²⁺ pulses, which are necessary for the neurotransmitter release, the repair of damaged connections between neurons, and the growth of new projections. The duration and amplitude of these pulses depend on intracellular calcium-binding proteins. The effect of the synthetic fast calcium buffer BAPTA on the epileptiform activity of neurons induced by the GABA(A)-receptor inhibitor, bicuculline, was investigated in a 14-DIV rat hippocampal culture. In the epileptiform activity mode, neurons periodically synchronously generate action potential (AP) bursts in the form of paroxysmal depolarization shift (PDS) clusters and their corresponding high-amplitude Ca²⁺ pulses. Changes in the paroxysmal activity and Ca²⁺ pulses were recorded continuously for 10–11 min as BAPTA accumulated. It was shown that during BAPTA accumulation, transformation of neuronal patch activity occurs. Moreover, GABAergic and glutamatergic neurons respond differently to the presence of calcium buffer. Experiments were performed on two populations of neurons: a population of GABAergic neurons that responded selectively to ATPA, a calcium-permeable GluK1 kainate receptor agonist, and a population of glutamatergic neurons with a large amplitude of cluster depolarization (greater than −20 mV). These neurons made up the majority of neurons. In the population of GABAergic neurons, during BAPTA accumulation, the amplitude of PDS clusters decreases, which leads to a switch from the PDS mode to the classical burst mode with an increase in the electrical activity of the neuron. In glutamatergic neurons, the duration of PDS clusters decreased during BAPTA accumulation. However, the amplitude changed little. The data obtained showed that endogenous calcium-binding proteins play a significant role in switching the epileptiform rhythm to the recovery rhythm and perform a neuroprotective function by reducing the duration of impulses in excitatory neurons and the amplitude of impulses in inhibitory neurons. Full article

Stroke is a significant global health concern characterized by the abrupt disruption of cerebral blood flow, leading to neurological impairment. Accurate and timely diagnosis—enabled by imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)—is essential for differentiating stroke types and initiating interventions like thrombolysis, thrombectomy, or surgical management. In parallel, recent advancements in wearable technology, particularly smart clothing, offer new opportunities for stroke prevention, real-time monitoring, and rehabilitation. These garments integrate various sensors, including electrocardiogram (ECG) electrodes, electroencephalography (EEG) caps, electromyography (EMG) sensors, and motion or pressure sensors, to continuously track physiological and functional parameters. For example, ECG shirts monitor cardiac rhythm to detect atrial fibrillation, smart socks assess gait asymmetry for early mobility decline, and EEG caps provide data on neurocognitive recovery during rehabilitation. These technologies support personalized care across the stroke continuum, from early risk detection and acute event monitoring to long-term recovery. Integration with AI-driven analytics further enhances diagnostic accuracy and therapy optimization. This narrative review explores the application of smart clothing in conjunction with traditional imaging to improve stroke management and patient outcomes through a more proactive, connected, and patient-centered approach. Full article

Background: Fear of falling (FOF) is a significant concern among older adults, especially after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). FOF can limit daily activities, reduce quality of life, and hinder recovery. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence, severity, and impacts of FOF in patients undergoing TKA and identify factors contributing to increased FOF. Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted at King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from April 2024 to December 2024. This study included 52 participants aged 20 to 75 years who had undergone primary TKA. Data were collected at two time points: after TKA and at three months post-surgery. The Short Falls Efficacy Scale-International (SFES-I) was used to assess the severity of FOF, and the Short Form 36 (SF-36) was used to measure the quality of life. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, and logistic regression were used for analysis. Results: This study included 52 participants (mean age: 63.77 ± 6.65 years; 82.7% female). Post-TKA, all participants exhibited high FOF (mean SFES-I score: 56.75 ± 8.30). After three months, the mean SFES-I score decreased significantly to 49.04 ± 12.45 (t = 4.408, p < 0.05). Post-TKA, SF-36 showed significant improvements in the physical function, role of physical limitations, bodily pain, vitality, social function, role of emotional limitations, and mental health subdomains. Bilateral total knee arthroplasty, body mass index, and some SF-36 subcomponents—such as general health, vitality, and role of emotional limitations—were identified as factors leading to increased FOF. Conclusions: FOF remains prevalent and severe in TKA patients, even at three months post-surgery, affecting rehabilitation outcomes. Early identification and tailored interventions for FOF should be considered essential components of comprehensive TKA recovery programs. Full article

Background/Objectives: COVID-19 is a systemic viral infection that may lead to serious complications including acute kidney injury that requires kidney replacement therapy. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate urinary SerpinA3 (uSerpinA3) excretion as a biomarker of kidney recovery at 90 days, and the mortality in patients with critical COVID-19 and AKI requiring kidney replacement therapy (KRT). Methods: The study included patients with critical COVID-19 on invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) requiring KRT. Blood and urine samples were obtained when KRT was initiated (day zero), and thereafter on days 1, 3, 7, and 14 post-replacement. uSerpinA3, kidney injury molecule-1 (uKIM-1), and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) were measured in urine, and interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) in peripheral blood. In addition, metabolomics in sample days zero and 3, and in the survivors on sample day 90 was performed by employing gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Results: A total of 60 patients were recruited, of whom 29 (48%) survived hospitalization and recovered kidney function by day 90. In the survivors, 79% presented complete recovery (CRR) and the remaining (21%) recovered partially (PRR). In terms of uSerpinA3, levels on days 7 and 14 predicted CRR, with AUC values of 0.68 (p = 0.041) and 0.71 (p = 0.030), respectively, as well as mortality, with AUC values of 0.75 (p = 0.007) and 0.76 (p = 0.015), respectively. Among the other biomarkers, the excretion of uKIM-1 on day zero of KRT had a superior performance as a CRR predictor [(AUC, 0.71 (p = 0.017)], and as a mortality predictor [AUC, 0.68 (p = 0.028)]. In the metabolomics analysis, we identified four distinct profiles; the metabolite that maintained statistical significance in predicting mortality was p-cresol glucuronide. Conclusions: This study strongly suggests that uSerpinA3 and uKIM-1 can predict CRR and mortality in patients with critical COVID-19 and AKI requiring KRT. Metabolic analysis appears promising for identifying affected pathways and their clinical impact in this population. Full article

Background: Severe damage to one side of the brain often leads to adverse consequences and can also cause widespread changes throughout the brain, especially in the contralateral area. Studying molecular changes in the contralateral cerebral hemisphere, especially with regard to genetic regulation, can help discover potential treatment strategies to promote recovery after severe brain trauma on one side. Methods: In our study, the right motor cortex was surgically removed to simulate severe unilateral brain injury, and changes in glial cells and synaptic structure in the contralateral cortex were subsequently assessed through immunohistological, morphological, and Western blot analyses. We conducted transcriptomic studies to explore changes in gene expression levels associated with the inflammatory response. Results: Seven days after corticotomy, levels of reactive astrocytes and hypertrophic microglia increased significantly in the experimental group, while synapsin-1 and PSD-95 levels in the contralateral motor cortex increased. These molecular changes are associated with structural changes, including destruction of dendritic structures and the encapsulation of astrocytes by synapses. Genome-wide transcriptome analysis showed a significant increase in gene pathways involved in inflammatory responses, synaptic activity, and nerve fiber regeneration in the contralateral cortex after corticorectomy. Key transcription factors such as NF-κB1, Rela, STAT3 and Jun were identified as potential regulators of these contralateral changes. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) confirmed that the mRNA expression levels of Cacna1c, Tgfb1 and Slc2a1 genes related to STAT3, JUN, and NF-κB regulation significantly increased in the contralateral cortex of the experimental group. Conclusions: After unilateral brain damage occurs, changes in the contralateral cerebral hemisphere are closely related to processes involving inflammation and synaptic function. Full article

Due to post-cementing hydraulic fracturing and other operational stresses, inadequate mechanical properties or suboptimal design of the cement sheath can lead to tensile failure and microcrack development, compromising both hydrocarbon recovery and well integrity. In this study, three field-deployed cement slurry systems were compared on the basis of their basic mechanical properties such as compressive and tensile strength. Laboratory-scale physical simulations of hydraulic fracturing during shale oil production were conducted, using dynamic permeability as a quantitative indicator of integrity loss. The experimental results show that evaluating only basic mechanical properties is insufficient for cement slurry system design. A more comprehensive mechanical assessment is re-quired. Incorporation of an expansive agent into the cement slurry system can alleviate the damage caused by the microannulus to the interfacial sealing performance of the cement sheath, while adding a toughening agent can alleviate the damage caused by tensile cracks to the sealing performance of the cement sheath matrix. Through this research, a microexpansive and toughened cement slurry system, modified with both expansive and toughening agents, was optimized. The expansive agent and toughening agent can significantly enhance the shear strength, the flexural strength, and the interfacial hydraulic isolation strength of cement stone. Moreover, the expansion agents mitigate the detrimental effects of microannulus generation on the interfacial sealing, while the toughening agents alleviate the damage caused by tensile cracking to the bulk sealing performance of the cement sheath matrix. This system has been successfully implemented in over 100 wells in the GL block of Daqing Oilfield. Field application results show that the proportion of high-quality well sections in the horizontal section reached 88.63%, indicating the system’s high performance in enhancing zonal isolation and cementing quality. Full article

UAV-based inspections are an effective way to ensure railway safety and have gained significant attention. However, images captured during complex weather conditions, such as rain, snow, or fog, often suffer from severe degradation, affecting image recognition accuracy. Existing algorithms for removing rain, snow, and fog have two main limitations: they do not adaptively learn features under varying weather complexities and struggle with managing complex noise patterns in drone inspections, leading to incomplete noise removal. To address these challenges, this study proposes a novel framework for removing rain, snow, and fog from drone images, called WeatherClean. This framework introduces a Weather Complexity Adjustment Factor (WCAF) in a parameterized adjustable network architecture to process weather degradation of varying degrees adaptively. It also employs a hierarchical multi-scale cropping strategy to enhance the recovery of fine noise and edge structures. Additionally, it incorporates a degradation synthesis method based on atmospheric scattering physical models to generate training samples that align with real-world weather patterns, thereby mitigating data scarcity issues. Experimental results show that WeatherClean outperforms existing methods by effectively removing noise particles while preserving image details. This advancement provides more reliable high-definition visual references for drone-based railway inspections, significantly enhancing inspection capabilities under complex weather conditions and ensuring the safety of railway operations. Full article

The treatment of chronic wounds is one of the most complex therapeutic problems of modern medicine. It leads to patients’ protracted recovery, generating high treatment costs. Herbal products may be useful in the treatment of chronic wounds via a wide range of pharmacological properties and multidirectional effects on the wound healing phases. The study aims to determine the ability of selected plant extracts to modulate the processes involved in wound healing. The antimicrobial (MIC, MBC, MFC) and antioxidant (ABTS, DPPH) activities, cytotoxicity (MTT test), scratch wound test, and collagen assay were tested. R. canina (MBC 0.39 mg/mL) and V. venifera (MBC 3.13 mg/mL) extracts had bactericidal activities against P. aeruginosa and S. aureus, respectively. The V. vinifera extract showed the highest antioxidant activity in both ABTS (EC50 0.078 mg/mL) and DPPH (EC50 0.005 mg/mL) methods. The percentage of wound closure observed for C. cardunculus, R. rosea, and R. canina extracts with HaCaT, and V. vinifera extract with Hs27 cells was set as 100%. V. vinifera extract (50 μg/mL) stimulated collagen synthesis 5.16 times more strongly than ascorbic acid. Our preliminary study showed that some plant extracts may be promising modulators of the wound healing process, although further in-depth studies are necessary to determine their effectiveness in the in vivo model. Full article

Upon reaching stabilized production in waterflooded reservoirs, waterflood performance curves are conventionally used to predict technically recoverable reserves (TRRs). However, as reservoirs enter high water-cut stages, the relationship between the relative permeability ratio and saturation becomes nonlinear, causing deflection in waterflood performance curves. This leads to systematic overestimation of both predicted TRR and ultimate recovery factors. To overcome these limitations in conventional TRR prediction methods, this study establishes a novel relative permeability ratio-saturation relationship based on characteristic relative permeability curve behaviors. The proposed model is validated for three distinct fluid-rock interaction types. We further develop a permeability-driven forecasting model for oil production rates and water cuts. Comparative analyses with a conventional waterflood curve methodology demonstrate significant accuracy improvements. The results show that while traditional methods predict TRR ranging from 78.40 to 92.29 million tons, our model yields 70.73 million tons—effectively resolving overestimation issues caused by curve deflection during high water-cut phases. This approach establishes a robust framework for determining critical development parameters, including economic field lifespan, strategy adjustments, and ultimate recovery factor. Full article

Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is a common progressive hair loss disorder driven by elevated dihydrotestosterone (DHT) levels, leading to follicular miniaturization. This study investigated sulforaphane-rich broccoli sprout extract (BSE) as a potential oral therapy for AGA. BSE exhibited dose-dependent proliferative and migratory effects on keratinocytes, dermal fibroblasts, and dermal papilla cells, showing greater in vitro activity than sulforaphane (SFN) and minoxidil under the tested conditions, while maintaining low cytotoxicity. In a testosterone-induced AGA mouse model, oral BSE significantly accelerated hair regrowth, with 20 mg/kg achieving 99% recovery by day 15, alongside increased follicle length, density, and hair weight. Mechanistically, BSE upregulated hepatic and dermal DHT-metabolizing enzymes (Akr1c21, Dhrs9) and activated Wnt/β-catenin signaling in the skin, suggesting dual actions via androgen metabolism modulation and follicular regeneration. Pharmacokinetic analysis revealed prolonged SFN plasma exposure following BSE administration, and in silico docking showed strong binding affinities of key BSE constituents to Akr1c2 and β-catenin. No systemic toxicity was observed in liver histology. These findings indicate that BSE may serve as a safe, effective, and multitargeted natural therapy for AGA. Further clinical studies are needed to validate its efficacy in human populations. Full article

Remote sensing images are often degraded by atmospheric haze, which not only reduces image quality but also complicates information extraction, particularly in high-level visual analysis tasks such as object detection and scene classification. State-space models (SSMs) have recently emerged as a powerful paradigm for vision tasks, showing great promise due to their computational efficiency and robust capacity to model global dependencies. However, most existing learning-based dehazing methods lack physical interpretability, leading to weak generalization. Furthermore, they typically rely on spatial features while neglecting crucial frequency domain information, resulting in incomplete feature representation. To address these challenges, we propose ScaleViM-PDD, a novel network that enhances an SSM backbone with two key innovations: a Multi-scale EfficientViM with Physical Decoupling (ScaleViM-P) module and a Dual-Domain Fusion (DD Fusion) module. The ScaleViM-P module synergistically integrates a Physical Decoupling block within a Multi-scale EfficientViM architecture. This design enables the network to mitigate haze interference in a physically grounded manner at each representational scale while simultaneously capturing global contextual information to adaptively handle complex haze distributions. To further address detail loss, the DD Fusion module replaces conventional skip connections by incorporating a novel Frequency Domain Module (FDM) alongside channel and position attention. This allows for a more effective fusion of spatial and frequency features, significantly improving the recovery of fine-grained details, including color and texture information. Extensive experiments on nine publicly available remote sensing datasets demonstrate that ScaleViM-PDD consistently surpasses state-of-the-art baselines in both qualitative and quantitative evaluations, highlighting its strong generalization ability. Full article

The cement sheath is critical for ensuring the long-term safety and operational efficiency of oil and gas wells. However, complex geological conditions and operational stresses during production can induce cement sheath deterioration and cracking, leading to reduced zonal isolation, diminished hydrocarbon recovery, and elevated operational expenditures. This study investigates the development of a novel microbial self-healing well cement slurry system, employing fly ash as microbial carriers and sustained-release microcapsules encapsulating calcium sources and nutrients. Systematic evaluations were conducted, encompassing microbial viability, cement slurry rheology, fluid loss control, anti-channeling capability, and the mechanical strength, permeability, and microstructural characteristics of set cement stones. Results demonstrated that fly ash outperformed blast furnace slag and nano-silica as a carrier, exhibiting superior microbial loading capacity and viability. Optimal performance was observed with additions of 3% microorganisms and 3% microcapsules to the cement slurry. Microscopic analysis further revealed effective calcium carbonate precipitation within and around micro-pores, indicating a self-healing mechanism. These findings highlight the significant potential of the proposed system to enhance cement sheath integrity through localized self-healing, offering valuable insights for the development of advanced, durable well-cementing materials tailored for challenging downhole environments. Full article

An ultrasonic-enhanced hydrogen peroxide water-washing process was developed to recover lead from raw flue dust (RFD) under neutral conditions. At optimal parameters (40 °C, 30 min, 4 mL H₂O₂, liquid-to-solid ratio 2:1, 240 W ultrasound), the Pb mass fraction in the solid residue increased from 41.68% in the RFD to 68.11%, accompanied by a Pb recovery rate of 97.1%. These values are significantly higher than those obtained under identical conditions without ultrasound (64.07% and 95.93%, respectively). Ultrasound promotes de-agglomeration and generates •OH radicals that accelerate the oxidation of PbSO₃ to insoluble PbSO₄ while concurrently removing impurity cadmium. This research offers a green and efficient alternative to traditional lead recovery methods, fostering sustainable development in the metallurgical industry. Full article