Search Results (417)

Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) catalyzes the final step in lignin monomer biosynthesis and is crucial for plant cell-wall lignification. However, the CAD gene family and its role in watermelon rind lignification are poorly understood. In this study, we performed genome-wide bioinformatics analysis to identify the CAD gene family in watermelon. We identified predicted gene expression in two contrasting cultivars [WRH (hard rind, high lignin) and WRS (soft rind, low lignin)]. A total of seven CAD-like genes (ClCAD1–ClCAD7) were identified on three chromosomes (1, 2, and 5), all encoding full- or near-full-length proteins with CAD-related domains. Genomic collinearity revealed one segmental duplication (ClCAD3–ClCAD4) in watermelon; however, the comparative genomes of Arabidopsis and melon identified five and eight homologous gene pairs, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that ClCAD-like genes are more closely related to melon than to Arabidopsis. ClCAD3 and ClCAD4 proteins were grouped with AtCAD4 and AtCAD5 from Arabidopsis, which are important for lignin biosynthesis. Promoter analysis predicted elements responsive to jasmonic acid, abscisic acid, cytokinin, light, and stress. Subcellular localization analysis in the epidermal cells of Nicotiana benthamiana leaves was consistent with a cytosolic distribution for ClCAD3. STRING analysis predicted functional associations of ClCAD3 with proteins involved in aldehyde metabolism, branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis, and basal carbon metabolism, including ClALDH1/2, ClALS, Cl2HACL, and ClKBA1. qRT-PCR analysis of roots, stems, leaves, and fruit rind (21 days after pollination, DAP), as well as rind at 1, 14, and 28 DAP, indicated that ClCAD3, ClALS, and ClALDH2 are expressed at higher levels in WRH than in WRS. ClCAD3 transcript abundance in roots, leaves, and fruit rind was consistently higher in WRH. Together, these findings clarify the evolutionary features and organ-level expression of the CAD-like gene family in watermelon and identify ClCAD3 as a candidate gene associated with lignin biosynthesis. The results provide genetic insights into candidate genes potentially involved in lignification-associated rind hardness and a theoretical foundation for improving rind texture in watermelon fruit through modern molecular breeding approaches. Full article

The jujube tree fruit remains a primary fruit in northern China, yet its geographical distribution and yield are significantly constrained by freezing stress during winter. Numerous studies have highlighted the pivotal regulatory function of microRNAs (miRNAs) in plant responses to low-temperature stress. Nevertheless, the specific miRNAs involved in the response to low temperatures and their associated gene networks in Ziziphus jujuba Mill are not well understood. In this investigation, we utilized high-throughput sequencing to analyze small RNA libraries from branches subjected to temperatures of 4 °C and −30 °C. Our analysis identified a total of 342 miRNAs, comprising 123 known miRNAs and 219 novel miRNAs. The differential expression analysis revealed that under low-temperature conditions, 177 miRNAs underwent significant changes. Among them, specific upregulation of miR319 in the less cold-resistant variety and miR6483 in sensitive variety was observed. By employing degradome sequencing, we identified a total of 1551 target genes corresponding to 3059 unique miRNA target interaction pairs involving 299 miRNAs. Functional analysis using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways indicated that these target genes are primarily associated with transcriptional regulation, metabolic pathways, and genetic information processing. Through a comprehensive analysis, we pinpointed 11 genes corresponding to 9 miRNAs that are implicated in jujube tree cold stress, and 7 target genes of 7 miRNAs were confirmed by 5′-RACE analysis. These miRNAs are likely to exert crucial regulatory functions in the context of jujube tree cold stress. This study is the first to systematically identify miRNAs and their target genes in the response of Ziziphus jujuba Mill to low-temperature stress, which provides important resources for in-depth analysis of the molecular mechanism of jujube tree cold resistance and for cold-resistant breeding. Full article

Fatty acid desaturase (FAD) is a core catalytic enzyme in plants for the synthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, profoundly affecting plant growth, development, and adaptability to various environmental stresses. The walnut (Juglans regia L.) is an important woody oil tree species, and its kernel is rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Systematic identification of the walnut FAD gene family and analysis of its function are of great significance for revealing the molecular mechanisms underlying unsaturated fatty acid metabolism in the walnut. Based on walnut whole-genome data, this study used homology alignment and hidden Markov model search methods to identify the JrFAD gene family members. Subsequently, a variety of bioinformatics tools were used to systematically analyze their structural characteristics, evolutionary expansion mechanism, expression regulation, and function. A total of 21 JrFAD gene family members were identified and classified into five subfamilies. The family genes were unevenly distributed on nine chromosomes. WGD/segmental duplication was the main expansion method, and the duplicated gene pairs experienced strong purification selection. The family gene promoter sequence is rich in regulatory elements that respond to light, plant hormones, and various stresses. The expression pattern analysis showed that JrFAD3.1 and JrFAD2.3 showed high expression specifically during the rapid accumulation of walnut kernel oil. This study clarified the composition and evolutionary characteristics of the FAD gene family in the walnut, which provides useful information for in-depth analyses of its functional mechanism in the regulation of lipid metabolism, and also identified potential candidate gene resources for the genetic improvement of walnut varieties with high amounts of unsaturated fatty acids. Full article

Background/Objective: Bone is a mechanically responsive tissue whose trabecular microarchitecture adapts to local functional loading. Whether the presence of an unerupted, unilateral, vertically impacted mandibular third molar is associated with detectable local physiological remodeling of the adjacent trabecular bone has not been well characterized. This study compared the trabecular bone fractal dimension (FD) adjacent to unilateral vertically impacted mandibular third molars with the corresponding contralateral mandibular region, using standardized regions of interest (ROIs) on panoramic radiographs from an open-access dataset. Methods: Fifty panoramic radiographs meeting predefined inclusion criteria were retrieved from the publicly available m-TM (Mandibular Third Molar) dataset in a split-mouth design. Two standardized 64 × 64-pixel ROIs were placed adjacent to the impacted third molar and at the corresponding contralateral region. Image preprocessing and box-counting fractal analysis were performed in ImageJ (version 1.54g; National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA) with the FracLac plugin for ImageJ (version 2015Sep09; A. Karperien, Charles Sturt University, Australia). Normality was assessed with the Shapiro–Wilk test; paired comparisons used a paired-samples t-test. Results: Mean FD adjacent to the impacted side was 1.449 ± 0.144, compared with 1.447 ± 0.136 on the contralateral control side. Paired differences were normally distributed (W = 0.963, p = 0.113). No statistically significant difference was found between sides (mean difference = 0.0019, 95% CI: −0.021 to 0.025; t (49) = 0.168, p = 0.867). The narrow confidence interval argues against a measurable undetected difference, although no established clinical-meaningfulness threshold exists for fractal dimension and formal equivalence testing was not performed; as a secondary, standardized effect-size measure, Cohen’s d was negligible but imprecisely estimated (d = 0.024, 95% CI: −0.254 to 0.301). Conclusions: Within the resolution of two-dimensional panoramic fractal analysis, no detectable difference in fractal dimension was observed between the region adjacent to a unilateral vertically impacted mandibular third molar and the contralateral region. This finding is consistent with the possibility that an impacted, functionally unloaded tooth provides insufficient mechanical stimulus to elicit a radiographically detectable change by this method, an interpretation discussed in relation to Wolff’s law and mechanotransduction-based bone physiology but not directly tested in this study. Full article

Background/Objectives: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive breast cancer subtype with limited targeted therapeutic options. Although the anticancer and pro-apoptotic properties of boswellic acids have previously been reported, the interaction profile of chemically defined β-boswellic acid (BA) with doxorubicin (DOX) remains insufficiently characterised in the murine 4T1 TNBC-like model. This study quantitatively evaluated BA–DOX drug interactions using different reference models and characterised the cytotoxic and apoptosis-associated cellular phenotype accompanying combined exposure. Methods: Cytotoxicity was assessed using the MTT assay and BA–DOX interactions were evaluated using the Chou–Talalay combination index (CI), highest single-agent (HSA) and Bliss independence models. Apoptosis and cell-cycle distribution were analysed by flow cytometry and mitochondrial membrane potential was assessed by JC-1 staining. Caspase-3/7 activity, RT-qPCR, live/dead Calcein-AM/PI staining, 4′,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) nuclear staining, and cytokine measurements were also performed. Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), and STRING-based protein–protein interaction (PPI) analyses were used to explore putative molecular pathways associated with experimental findings. Results: The 48 h selectivity index of BA was 1.28, indicating only modest differential cytotoxicity between 4T1 cells and HaCaT keratinocytes under the experimental conditions rather than definitive cancer-cell selectivity. Drug-interaction analyses revealed concentration- and model-dependent effects, with the Chou–Talalay analysis indicating synergism in selected intermediate and higher concentration pairs. Under the selected phenotypic-characterisation condition, BA + DOX produced a greater apoptotic response than either single treatment, accompanied by increased G2/M and Sub-G1 fractions, mitochondrial membrane depolarisation, and increased caspase-3/7 activity. This treatment condition was not included in the drug-interaction analysis and was therefore not interpreted as a pharmacologically validated synergistic combination. RT-qPCR demonstrated increased mRNA expression of Bax, Casp3, and Casp9, decreased mRNA expression of Bcl2, and a marked increase in the Bax/Bcl2 mRNA ratio. Calcein-AM/PI and DAPI analyses further demonstrated increased cell death and apoptotic nuclear alterations. The measured concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 in culture supernatants were lower after BA + DOX treatment, whereas IL-10 remained unchanged; however, these cytokine measurements were not normalised to viable cell number and therefore require cautious interpretation. Exploratory bioinformatic analyses identified predicted associations with apoptosis-, mitochondrial-, and cell-cycle-related processes and pathways; however, these database-derived findings were considered hypothesis-generating and not evidence of BA-dependent target engagement or pathway activation. Conclusions: Combined BA and DOX exposure produced greater cytotoxic and apoptosis-associated responses than either single treatment in 4T1 cells, whereas formal drug-interaction classifications varied according to concentration and analytical model. The accompanying changes in mitochondrial membrane potential, caspase-3/7 activity, and apoptosis-related gene expression describe a treatment-associated cellular phenotype but do not identify a direct molecular target of BA or establish a causal molecular mechanism. The findings also do not demonstrate TNBC-specific selectivity. Further studies using additional breast cancer and tissue-matched non-malignant models, together with direct target-engagement and functional pathway-validation approaches, are required. Full article

The Ankyrin-repeat proteins (ANKs) play a key role in plant development and in response to abiotic stress. This research identified family members of the ANK genes in Sorghum bicolor at the whole-genome level, analyzed their sequence characteristics, evolutionary relationships, and expression patterns, and provided a scientific basis for elucidating the functionality of SbANK genes and for salt-tolerant breeding. Using bioinformatics methods, this study conducted a comprehensive identification of the SbANK gene family, analyzing its physicochemical properties, domain composition, chromosomal distribution, colinearity relationships, promoter cis-acting elements, and conserved protein motifs. Transcriptomic data and qRT-PCR were used to detect changes in their expression under salt stress. A total of 186 ANK family members were identified in the Sorghum bicolor genome, classified into 13 subfamilies and unevenly distributed across 10 chromosomes. Intra-species colinearity analysis revealed 7 pairs of duplicated genes, while inter-species colinearity analysis showed that S. bicolor and Oryza sativa share 88 pairs of orthologs, far exceeding the number found in Arabidopsis thaliana (11 pairs). Promoter analysis indicated that SbANK genes are enriched with cis-acting elements associated with hormone responses (particularly MeJA elements, accounting for 51.7%) and stress responses (particularly anaerobic-inducible elements, accounting for 60.9%). Transcriptomic expression analysis revealed that SbANK genes exhibit distinct tissue specificity, with the ANK-IQ subfamily highly expressed in leaves and the ANK-M subfamily showing the most widespread response under salt stress. Expression levels of the 10 candidate genes showing the most significant responses to salt stress were analyzed using qRT-PCR. The results indicated that SbANK91, SbANK135, and SbANK136 were significantly upregulated under 200 mmol/L NaCl treatment. The SbANK family is distinguished by a large number of member genes and structural diversity, with the ANK-M subfamily being the primary group responding to salt stress. SbANK91, SbANK135, and SbANK136 are identified as putative candidate genes for salt stress responses. Full article

The homeodomain–leucine zipper IV (HD-Zip IV) transcription factor subfamily plays essential roles in epidermal development, cuticle formation, lipid metabolism, and environmental adaptation in plants. Despite its biological importance, the HD-Zip IV family has not been systematically characterized in apple (Malus domestica). Here, we identified 17 apple HD-Zip IV genes and named them MdHDZIV1–MdHDZIV17 based on their locations on the chromosomes. The 17 genes showed a nonuniform distribution on eight chromosomes, while the occurrence of both tandem and segmental duplications indicated that family expansion involved more than one duplication mechanism. All MdHDZIV proteins contained the conserved HD, LZ, START, and SAD domains but lacked the MEKHLA domain, consistent with typical HD-Zip IV structural features. Phylogenetic analysis classified MdHDZIV proteins into five groups together with HD-Zip IV members from Arabidopsis thaliana and rice, indicating evolutionary conservation of this subfamily. Collinearity and Ka/Ks analyses revealed that duplicated MdHDZIV gene pairs were mainly subjected to purifying selection. Promoter scanning revealed diverse cis-regulatory motifs associated with hormonal signaling, environmental stress, light response, and epidermal regulation, including ABRE, ARE, W-box, MYC, G-box, and L1-box motifs. Integration of transcriptomic profiling with qRT-PCR validation revealed pronounced tissue-dependent differences in the expression of MdHDZIV genes in leaf, fruit skin, and branch bark. Under PEG₆₀₀₀-induced osmotic stress and NaCl-induced salt stress, 10 candidate MdHDZIV genes displayed gene-specific and stress type-specific expression patterns, with MdHDZIV3 showing strong induction under PEG₆₀₀₀ treatment. Functional validation in apple calli showed that MdHDZIV3 overexpression enhanced PEG tolerance, increased fresh weight, elevated SOD and POD activities, and reduced MDA accumulation under osmotic stress. These findings provide a genome-wide framework for understanding the apple HD-Zip IV gene family. Full article

Wearable electrocardiographic technologies have become increasingly important for continuous cardiac monitoring; however, most existing portable systems are limited by the number of recorded leads or provide only basic signal acquisition without advanced automated analysis. This study presents a third-generation wearable twelve-lead electrocardiographic platform developed for multilead ECG acquisition and automated spatial ECG analysis. Compared with the previous generation, the hardware modification primarily consists of architectural consolidation: functions previously distributed across an STM32 microcontroller and separate wireless communication modules are integrated into a single ESP32-S3-based architecture, while the ECG acquisition principle, ten-electrode configuration, and sampling rate remain unchanged. The main methodological contribution of the present work is the software pipeline for lead-specific ST₈₀ measurement and analysis of ST-segment deviations across anatomically contiguous leads. The system uses an ADS1298 analog front-end for synchronized multichannel ECG acquisition. The host software performs digital preprocessing, R-peak detection, ECG feature extraction, twelve-lead reconstruction, lead-specific ST₈₀ measurement, contiguous-lead analysis, and generation of a preliminary computer-assisted ECG report. The developed platform was clinically evaluated using sequential recordings acquired with the proposed system and a reference clinical electrocardiograph. Quantitative comparison of automated PR, QRS, QT, and QTc measurements in 30 paired recordings demonstrated positive correlations with the reference BTL Flexi 12 ECG (r = 0.756–0.820, all p < 0.001), with mean absolute errors ranging from 2.53 ms for QRS duration to 10.40 ms for the QT interval. The system successfully recorded diagnostically interpretable twelve-lead ECGs in all participants and produced stable signal quality suitable for clinical assessment. The software automatically identified ECG waves and intervals, reconstructed twelve-lead recordings, evaluated ST-segment deviations across individual leads, and localized ischemia-related changes according to standard anatomical lead groups. Integration of signal acquisition, processing, visualization, and automated interpretation into a single telemedicine-oriented platform reduced hardware complexity while maintaining reliable multichannel ECG monitoring. The proposed wearable platform demonstrates the feasibility of combining compact embedded hardware with automated multilead ECG analysis for remote cardiovascular monitoring. The presented architecture provides a practical foundation for telemedicine applications and may support earlier recognition of clinically significant electrocardiographic abnormalities during ambulatory monitoring. Full article

The Weibull distribution is one of the most versatile and widely applied continuous probability distributions in reliability engineering, survival analysis, wind-energy modelling, and extreme-value theory. Classical parameter estimation relies on maximum likelihood estimation or method-of-moments using integer-order moments, both of which may suffer from instability or high variance in small to moderate samples. This paper develops a rigorous framework for estimating Weibull parameters by combining the maximum-entropy principle with fractional-order moment constraints, i.e., constraints of the form $E\left[X^r\right]$ for non-integer $r>0$. A central theme of the paper is symmetry: we show that the maximum-entropy density subject to a finite set of fractional-moment constraints uniquely recovers the Weibull family, and that the underlying moment-matching system, while not symmetric in every sense considered in an earlier draft (see Remark 3), possesses a precisely characterised duality under joint rescaling and relabelling of the exponent pair, together with a log-moment map whose local curvature is strictly positive and increasing with exponent spacing rather than symmetric about a fixed midpoint. We derive closed-form expressions relating the Lagrange multipliers to the shape and scale parameters, establish new sound theoretical results on the symmetric behaviour of the moment-ratio function and its sensitivity, and propose a numerically stable algorithm for solving the resulting moment-matching system. Extensive Monte Carlo experiments demonstrate that the proposed maximum-entropy fractional-moment estimator achieves a bias and root-mean-square error that are comparable to, and for small-to-moderate samples somewhat better than, maximum likelihood estimation, with the size of the advantage depending on how closely the chosen exponent pair tracks the true shape parameter. Applications to real wind-speed data and composite-material fatigue life data illustrate the practical utility of the method. The paper contributes both to the information-theoretic foundations of distribution fitting and to applied statistical methodology, with symmetry serving as both a diagnostic tool and a unifying structural principle throughout. Full article

Background: Camel husbandry underpins food security in drylands, and dromedary (Camelus dromedarius) milk is valued as a functional food whose composition is thought to be shaped by the desert forage that camels browse. Dietary plant microRNAs (miRNAs) have been proposed as one molecular route linking diet to mammalian physiology, and two interactions are widely cited from experimental reports: rice miR168a repressing LDLRAP1 and plant miR159 repressing TCF7. The hypothesis remains contested, however, and it has not been tested for camel forage against camel transcripts. Methods: We generated de novo, hairpin-based miRNA repertoires for three arid-zone forage plants relevant to camel feeding (Moringa oleifera, Ziziphus jujuba, Medicago sativa) and screened the mature miRNAs against 48,746 reconstructed C. dromedarius 3′-UTRs under stringent thresholds, retaining one transcript per gene, weighting interactions by read abundance, normalising scores for 3′-UTR length, and testing over-representation against a matched background. The two previously reported cross-kingdom pairs served as internal positive controls and seed-level grouping as a sensitivity control. Results: The three forages yielded 170 hairpin-validated miRNA loci (81 M. sativa, 49 Z. jujuba, 40 M. oleifera) peaking at 21 nt, collapsing to 116 mature sequences and 104 seed groups. The pooled read set was strongly concentrated: five mature sequences shared by all three species carried 51% of reads, miR159 alone 31%, and 19 sequences assignable to conserved miRBase families carried 64%. The pipeline recovered the reported miR168a–LDLRAP1 pairing in the camel; the miR159–TCF7 pairing, by contrast, was not recovered, although TCF7 was among the genes targeted by other plant miRNAs. Genome-wide, predicted targeting was sparse (median 2 miRNAs per gene) and no GO, KEGG or Hallmark category was enriched at either threshold (best FDR 0.56); the nominal p-value distribution was approximately uniform, giving no evidence of systematic enrichment under the tested framework. Targeting multiplicity scaled with 3′-UTR length (Pearson r = 0.63; Spearman ρ = 0.58), so apparent “hub” genes are largely long-3′-UTR genes. Of 19, 12 curated milk-fat and lactation genes were among predicted targets, without over-representation (Fisher p = 0.36). Conclusions: A sensitive, species-matched analysis recovered a previously reported cross-kingdom pairing yet found no coordinated enrichment of dietary plant miRNAs on the dromedary transcriptome, and showed that an individual cross-kingdom pairing cannot be assumed to transfer between mammalian species. The work provides a first forage miRNA resource in the context of camel nutrition, sets out a reusable, species-matched analytical framework for cross-kingdom claims, and narrows future experimental work to five abundant forage-derived sequences and a short list of candidate genes (LDLRAP1, TCF7/TCF7L2, PRLR, INSR). Full article

Background: Autophagy plays a central role in maintaining cellular homeostasis, regulating growth and development, and responding to multiple stresses. Autophagy-related genes (ATGs) play critical roles in autophagy, yet their functional diversity in soybean (Glycine max) remains underexplored. Methods: Genome-wide identification of GmATG genes was performed using sequence similarity and domain-based searches against the Wm82.gnm4 reference genome, followed by characterization of physicochemical properties, chromosomal distribution, phylogenetic relationships, gene duplication, conserved motifs, gene structure, three-dimensional structural, and promoter cis-acting elements. Tissue-specific expression and multiple stresses response were examined using transcriptome data and profiled by RT-qPCR. Results: A total of 60 GmATG genes belonging to 20 subfamilies were identified in soybean. Gene family expansion was predominantly driven by fragment duplication (33 gene pairs), with the ATG8 family expanding to 12 members, and pan-genomic analysis uncovered prominent copy number variation (6–9 copies) in the ATG18 family. GmATG genes showed distinct expression patterns in response to multiple abiotic and biotic stresses. Specifically, GmATG18f was significantly induced by phosphorus deficiency in the low-phosphorus-tolerant soybean variety Nannong 94-156. GmATG8g, GmATG9d and GmATG13d showed a typical expression trend of initial increase followed by decrease, with expression levels peaking at 6–12 h after salt stress treatment. GmATG8g and GmATG9d were rapidly upregulated at the early drought stress stage, while GmATG13a maintained sustained upregulation. In response to Phomopsis stem rot, GmATG7a/8h/8i/11/13d/18e/18f displayed differential expression in resistant and susceptible soybean materials. Conclusions: This study systematically characterizes the composition, expansion and stress response patterns of the GmATG gene family, revealing functional differentiation among family members. The identified key candidate genes, including abiotic-stress-regulated GmATG8g/9d/13d/18f and biotic-stress-regulated GmATG7a/8h/8i/11/13d/18e/18f, provide valuable genetic resources for the molecular breeding of stress-tolerant soybean. Full article

Background: Impaired lumbopelvic control and inefficient bending mechanics are associated with low back pain and functional limitations. The Founder Exercise is a movement retraining strategy intended to promote hip-dominant movement, trunk control, and postural awareness during forward bending. However, empirical evidence examining movement performance following Founder Exercise instruction is limited. This study examined immediate pre-to-post differences in hip hinge kinematics and movement confidence surrounding a standardized Founder Exercise instructional session in healthy adults. Methods: A within-subject pretest-posttest design was used. Thirty-three healthy adults (72.7% female; mean age, 25.1 ± 2.9 years) completed assessments of foot orientation, sagittal-plane joint kinematics, and movement confidence before and after a single Founder Exercise instructional session. Joint kinematics were assessed using two-dimensional video analysis. Paired-samples t-tests or Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, as appropriate based on the distributions of the paired differences, were used to evaluate the kinematic outcomes. The exploratory summed confidence score and individual ordinal confidence items were evaluated using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Holm adjustments were applied separately to the 11 kinematic comparisons and the 10 individual-item comparisons. Results: Statistically significant immediate pre-to-post differences were observed in several kinematic variables. Hip flexion increased from 80.7° ± 18.1° at pretest to 104.6° ± 14.3° at posttest, shoulder flexion increased from 62.8° ± 23.9° to 145.3° ± 13.9°, and craniovertebral angle decreased from 25.7° ± 12.9° to 11.2° ± 10.0° (all p < 0.001). The summed score from the unvalidated, study-specific confidence scale was higher at posttest (median = 49.0, IQR = 40.0–50.0) than at pretest (median = 40.0, IQR = 36.0–50.0; p < 0.001). After Holm adjustment of the individual ordinal-item analyses, statistically significant differences remained for five of the 10 items; all confidence findings were considered exploratory. No statistically significant differences were observed in knee flexion or ankle motion after Holm adjustment. Conclusions: A brief Founder Exercise instructional session was followed by immediate differences in selected two-dimensional hip hinge angles and higher exploratory movement-confidence scores in healthy adults. These findings do not establish changes in lumbopelvic control, muscle activation, spinal loading, movement efficiency, or clinical outcomes. Controlled studies incorporating direct measures of lumbar and pelvic motion, muscle activity, external forces, and clinically relevant outcomes are needed before biomechanical or clinical conclusions can be drawn. Full article

In recent years, high penetrations of inverter-based resources are posing significant challenges to the medium-voltage networks, in which protection schemes based on high fault currents and unidirectional power flow may not perform as expected. This paper proposes a dynamic fault-detection and relay-coordination scheme for a medium-voltage network with high penetration of grid-forming inverter sources. A detailed 33 kV system model comprising six battery energy storage system (BESS) feeders and a four-distributed-load model was built in DIgSILENT Power Factory and tested under various grid-connected and islanded system conditions using the complete short-circuit method. Four simultaneous fault checks, including sequence component analysis, symmetrical voltage variation, superimposed current with voltage restraint, and current waveform analysis, are used to detect the fault in a specific part of the medium-voltage network. After-fault detection, dynamic pickup scaling and relay blocking are coordinated through IEC 61850 GOOSE and DNP3 so only the closest unblocked relay or relay pair trips. The dynamic pickup settings are adjusted considering the ratio of fault levels in the conventional system versus the inverter-based resources-fed medium-voltage system. Simulation results show successful overcurrent coordination retention even when inverter fault current limitation is set at 1.3 p.u. or lower with 10% generation margin. The proposed scheme allows traditional relays with existing infrastructure to function correctly in fully inverter-dominated medium-voltage systems without any synchronous backup. The novelty is the integration of fault confirmation, pickup scaling and a blocking scheme with retention of an independently operating local backup. Compared to fixed grid-connected settings, the proposed scheme recovers islanded-mode pickup values while maintaining primary–backup grading margin for the relay. Full article

Background/Objectives: Soybean (Glycine max) productivity is increasingly constrained by soil salinity. WIP transcription factors, a subfamily of C2H2-type zinc finger proteins, regulate cell division, differentiation, and tissue patterning in several plant species, but this gene family had not previously been systematically characterized in soybean or any other major legume crop. This study aimed to identify and characterize the GmWIP gene family genome-wide and evaluate its potential involvement in the soybean salt-stress response. Methods: Genome-wide identification of GmWIP genes was performed using sequence similarity and domain-based searches against the Wm82.gnm4.ann1 reference genome, followed by characterization of physicochemical properties, chromosomal distribution, phylogenetic relationships, gene duplication, conserved motifs, gene structure, and promoter cis-acting elements. Tissue-specific expression was examined using transcriptome data, and GmWIP responses to salt stress were profiled by RT-qPCR in roots, stems, and leaves of a salt-tolerant cultivar (HN531) and a salt-sensitive cultivar (HN563), alongside physiological measurements of oxidative stress and osmotic adjustment. Results: Thirty GmWIP genes were identified, with molecular weights from 26.90 to 57.52 kDa, distributed unevenly across 15 soybean chromosomes, with chromosomes 11, 12, and 13 forming a major hotspot (53.3% of the family). Duplication analysis detected 54 reconciled segmental duplicate gene pairs, all exhibiting Ka/Ks values < 1 (ranging from 0.0351 to 0.4471; mean 0.214), consistent with purifying selection acting on this gene set. GmWIP promoters were enriched for ABRE, MBS, and MeJA cis-acting elements. RT-qPCR showed genotype- and tissue-dependent differential expression under salt stress (e.g., up to 14.9-fold induction of GmWIP22 in HN531 stems), paralleled by superior proline accumulation (+45%), soluble sugars, and CAT activity (+38%) alongside reduced MDA accumulation in the tolerant cultivar. Conclusions: The GmWIP gene family has expanded substantially in soybean relative to previously characterized species and shows genotype-dependent transcriptional responses to salt stress, suggesting that specific GmWIP members are candidate regulators of salt tolerance and warrant further functional investigation. Full article

The FMD is an endangered species under first-class national protection in China. Comparative genomic investigation of microsatellite (SSR) in CDS may provide insights into adaptive evolutionary mechanisms and may inform conservation management strategies for captive populations. Here, we analyzed the FMD genome alongside five closely related ruminants: cattle (Bos taurus), red deer (Cervus elaphus), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), sheep (Ovis aries), and goat (Capra hircus). Through genome-wide bioinformatic identification, we systematically compared the abundance, density, structural categories, repeat motifs, chromosomal distribution, and pathway enrichment analysis of SSR-containing genes in CDS. Furthermore, we performed synteny analysis and evaluated population genetic diversity. A total of 2509 SSRs in CDS were identified in the FMD, with a relative density of 62.61 loci/Mb. Trinucleotide SSRs were overwhelmingly dominant (88.46%) in the FMD. Notably, the FMD exhibited the highest relative abundances of both tetranucleotide and pentanucleotide repeats among the six species (2.37 and 2.18 loci/Mb, respectively), with pentanucleotide abundance approximately 5.6- to 9.1-fold higher than that of the other species. Chromosomal mapping revealed the highest SSR density in CDS regions on chromosome 27, while SSR-containing genes exhibited a heterogeneous pattern characterized by localized clustering. Synteny analysis demonstrated relatively conserved syntenic relationships between the FMD and goat, sheep, and cattle, with moderate conservation also observed with red deer and white-tailed deer, suggesting that SSR-containing genes in ruminants may remain highly conserved during chromosomal rearrangements. GO and KEGG analyses indicated that SSR-containing genes across all species were predominantly enriched in transcriptional regulation, RNA processing, and signal transduction pathways. Specifically, the FMD showed enrichment patterns associated with hypoxia response, mRNA processing, and epigenetic regulation, which may reflect lineage-specific transcriptional patterns, though the functional involvement of these SSRs remains to be experimentally validated. In addition, the five primer pairs screened in this study exhibited high polymorphism, with a mean polymorphism information content (PIC) of 0.93. The observed heterozygosity (Ho) was significantly lower than the expected heterozygosity (He), and the mean inbreeding coefficient (FIS) was 0.57, indicating heterozygote deficiency and an elevated risk of inbreeding in this captive FMD population. Collectively, our findings provide preliminary insights into the conserved patterns of microsatellite evolution and lineage-specific divergence in ruminants, offering a reference framework for comparative genomics and adaptive evolution research, as well as practical molecular markers for genetic management of captive populations. Full article