Search Results (3,657)

Addressing the challenges of insufficient reserve capacity allocation and wind power uncertainty-induced security and economic concerns under high wind power penetration, this paper develops an integrated energy–reserve market clearing model for regional electricity markets. Firstly, a comprehensive day-ahead market clearing mechanism is designed, encompassing market participant bidding, security-constrained unit commitment (SCUC), security-constrained economic dispatch (SCED), nodal marginal price calculation, and market settlement. Secondly, a SCUC model targeting the minimization of total system operating costs and a SCED model targeting the minimization of energy and reserve procurement costs are established, comprehensively incorporating constraints, such as power balance, unit output and ramping limits, reserve requirements, and network power flows, with nodal marginal prices calculated using the Lagrangian multiplier method. Finally, simulation verification is conducted using a modified IEEE 30-bus system as a case study. Results demonstrate that the proposed model effectively coordinates wind power integration with system reserve requirements, achieving economically optimal dispatch while ensuring grid security and stability. Thermal units obtain substantial market revenues by providing reserve ancillary services, while wind units achieve high revenues through zero marginal cost advantages, fully validating the model’s effectiveness and economic efficiency under high wind power penetration conditions. The research findings provide theoretical foundations and practical guidance for constructing electricity spot market mechanisms adapted to large-scale renewable energy integration. Full article

Background: Treating depression and anxiety in adolescents can be challenging due to interindividual variability in medication response. With current trial-and-error prescribing practices, adolescents may undergo multiple medication changes over months or years before an effective and tolerated drug and dose are identified. Pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing can identify interindividual differences in drug metabolism, and evidence supporting PGx-guided prescribing in adults with mental disorders is growing. However, its impact on pediatric psychotropic prescribing remains underexplored. Methods: This is a protocol for a parallel-arm, multicentre, randomized controlled trial. Canadian adolescents aged 12–17 years who are initiating or switching a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) for depression and/or an anxiety disorder under physician care are eligible. A total of 452 participants will be randomized 1:1 to PGx-guided SSRI prescribing (experimental) or SSRI prescribing based on current practice guidelines (control). Participants, caregivers, prescribing clinicians, outcome assessors, and investigators will be blinded to treatment allocation. Dual primary outcomes are symptom remission at 12 weeks, measured with the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology–Adolescent (QIDS-A17-SR) and the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders (SCARED). Secondary outcomes, assessed at 4, 8, and 12 weeks, include participant- and physician-rated changes in depressive and anxiety symptoms, role functioning, health-related quality of life, health care utilization, cost-effectiveness, side-effect burden, medication burden, and adherence. Multiple testing will be addressed using the Hochberg method, and a parallel gated analysis will account for non-actionable genotypes. Secondary analysis will estimate minimal clinically important differences for symptom and role-functioning change with PGx-guided therapy. Discussion: At the time of writing, 36 participants have consented and been randomized to an intervention. This trial will evaluate whether PGx-guided prescribing improves symptom remission in adolescents treated with SSRIs. If efficacious, results should be interpreted with existing pediatric pharmacokinetic, observational, and adult trial data to inform PGx use in managing pediatric anxiety and depressive disorders. Full article

Owing to their high flexibility, autonomous operation, and rapid deployment capability, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) serve as effective aerial platforms for sensing and communication in remote and time-critical scenarios. However, their limited onboard energy budget poses a significant bottleneck for sustained operations. This paper investigates an energy-efficient UAV-assisted integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) system, aiming to maximize the sensing energy efficiency (SEE), defined as the ratio of the total radar estimation rate to the total energy consumption. Unlike prior works focused solely on rate maximization or fairness, our design jointly optimizes the UAV’s 3D trajectory, task scheduling, and power allocation under kinematic and coverage constraints to maximize the SEE. To solve the formulated non-convex fractional programming problem, we propose an efficient iterative algorithm based on the Dinkelbach method and block coordinate descent (BCD). Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme achieves a superior trade-off between sensing performance and energy consumption. Full article

(1) Background: The objective of this study was to investigate the modulatory effects of thiamine on BHBA metabolism, milk yield, and the rumen microbial ecosystem. (2) Methods: A total of 24 SCK dairy cows with similar body conditions were selected and randomly allocated to SCK (SCK) or SCK with thiamine supplement (SCKT) treatment. Twelve healthy dairy cows served as the control (CON) treatment. Milk yield, milk quality, ruminal fermentability parameters, rumen and fecal microbial communities were further measured. (3) Results: Thiamine significantly decreased BHBA content, milk CFUs, and somatic cells, while significantly increasing milk yield, milk fat, acetate, and the A/P ratio (p < 0.05). Thiamine-treated cows exhibited significantly increased ruminal and fecal Proteobacteria but significantly decreased ruminal Firmicutes (p < 0.05) as well as fecal Spirochaetes and Cyanobacteria (p < 0.05), compared with SCK cows. Functional analysis showed that differential rumen bacteria exhibited high energy metabolism, nucleotide metabolism, and glycan biosynthesis and metabolism, while the metabolism of terpenoids and polyketides were the primary functional pathways of differential fecal microbiota. (4) Conclusions: Thiamine supplementation in SCK cows effectively alleviated subclinical ketosis by reducing BHBA content, enhancing ruminal fermentability, and proliferating rumen microbial communities, leading to improved milk yield in the early-lactation period. Full article

This study assessed the impact of the dietary inclusion of Prosopis laevigata pods (PLPs) on growth performance, carcass traits, and the metabolomic profiles of liver and meat in finishing lambs. A total of 28 crossbred lambs (38 ± 5 kg body weight) were allocated to one of two treatments: a control diet (0 g PLP/kg dry matter, n = 14; CONT) and a diet supplemented with 300 g PLP/kg dry matter (DM) (n = 14; PS). Growth performance was monitored over 25 days. Animals were assigned to a randomized design, and data were analyzed using the General Linear Model (GLM) procedure. Compared with the control diet, PLP inclusion (300 g/kg DM) reduced total body weight gain (p = 0.04) and worsened feed conversion efficiency. Lambs on the control diet also displayed a significantly greater (p = 0.02) rump perimeter. In contrast, lambs fed the 300 g PLP/kg DM diet showed a marked increase (p < 0.05) in the longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL) muscle area. Principal component analysis revealed a distinct separation between treatment groups based on the identified metabolites. Liver metabolomic data accounted for 30.6% of the total variability, while meat samples accounted for 45.7%. A total of 21 and 23 metabolites exhibited positive correlations in liver and meat, respectively. Notably, PLP supplementation influenced several metabolic pathways (p < 0.05), including the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, fatty acid biosynthesis, and sulfur metabolism in both liver and meat. Additionally, phenylalanine metabolism was specifically affected (p < 0.05) in the liver, while steroid biosynthesis was altered (p < 0.05) in meat. Overall, the inclusion of PLPs in the diet of finishing lambs resulted in notable changes to the liver and meat metabolomes, particularly in pathways associated with fatty acid biosynthesis. Although PLP supplementation reduced overall growth performance, it did not negatively impact carcass quality traits; hence, we recommend the inclusion of 300 g PLP/kg DM in finishing lamb diets. Full article

Introduction: Distal intracapsular minimally invasive osteotomies (DICMOs) for central metatarsals are described as intracapsular procedures; however, neither their intracapsular location throughout the entire cut nor the optimal anatomical position for their execution have been fully validated. The aim of this study was to assess the geometric position of the DICMO osteotomy in the central metatarsals (third and fourth) and quantify associated anatomical damage when performed under three different guidance modalities: anatomical palpation, fluoroscopic control, and ultrasound guidance. Material and methods: An experimental cadaveric study was conducted using 29 fresh specimens (11 males, 18 females), contributing a total of 58 central metatarsals (third and fourth). All specimens underwent a DICMO-type metatarsal osteotomy. Osteotomies were randomly allocated to three intervention groups: (1) ultrasound (n = 20), (2) fluoroscopy (n = 19), and (3) anatomical guidance (n = 19). Metatarsal length, the distance between the osteotomy line and the articular surface, and post-dissection soft-tissue damage were recorded. Results: After dissection, all osteotomies were confirmed to be intracapsular. A constant proportional relationship was identified between osteotomy location and metatarsal length: distance to the joint line = 0.239 × metatarsal length. This relationship was independent of the guidance technique used. Only one iatrogenic lesion was observed: an articular cartilage injury of a third metatarsal in the anatomical-guidance group. Conclusions: The optimal position for DICMO osteotomy placement is approximately 24% of the total distal metatarsal length. This ensures an intracapsular trajectory and may contribute to intrinsic osteotomy stability. Image guidance—either fluoroscopy or ultrasound—appears essential to optimize outcomes and prevent avoidable anatomical damage. Full article

Background/Objectives: Hip fractures in older adults are associated with substantial morbidity, functional decline, and high in-hospital mortality. Early identification of patients at increased risk of death may improve clinical decision-making and resource allocation. This study aimed to develop and internally validate supervised machine learning models to predict in-hospital mortality among older adults hospitalized for hip fracture using nationwide administrative data from Chile. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using anonymized hospital discharge records from the Chilean National Health Fund (FONASA), covering admissions between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2024, across 72 public hospitals. Demographic, clinical, and care-related variables were included as predictors. Multiple supervised machine learning algorithms were trained and evaluated using stratified train–test partitioning. Model performance was assessed using AUC-ROC, precision, recall, and F1-score. Model interpretability was explored using SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP). Results: A total of 40,253 hospitalization episodes were analyzed. The Gradient Boosting model achieved the best overall performance, with an AUC-ROC of 0.885 and a favorable balance between precision and recall. SHAP analysis identified age, comorbidity burden, and surgical treatment as the most influential predictors, revealing nonlinear and clinically meaningful contributions to mortality risk. Conclusions: Supervised machine learning models based on routinely collected administrative data demonstrated strong predictive performance for in-hospital mortality after hip fracture. Interpretable models may support early risk stratification and clinical decision-making at a national healthcare level. Full article

Background/Objectives: Non-carious cervical lesions (NCCLs) are common defects in adults that can lead to dentin hypersensitivity and aesthetic concerns, for which composite resin restorations currently represent the gold standard of care. However, evidence regarding the long-term clinical superiority of high-filled injectable composites and Er,Cr:YSGG laser-based cavity preparation remains limited. The present study aimed to compare the 1-year clinical performance of two different surface preparation protocols (Er,Cr:YSGG laser vs. conventional bur preparation with phosphoric acid etching) and two composite resin types (high-filled injectable vs. conventional paste-type) in the restoration of NCCLs. Methods: In this prospective, split-mouth, randomized controlled clinical trial, a total of 168 NCCLs in 27 patients were restored. Lesions were randomly allocated to four groups according to the combination of surface preparation (Er,Cr:YSGG laser or phosphoric acid etching) and high-filled injectable composite (G-ænial Universal Injectable) or paste-type composite (G-ænial Anterior). The same universal adhesive system was used in all cases. Clinical evaluations were performed by a blinded examiner at 1 week, 6 months, and 12 months, using the FDI World Dental Federation criteria. Results: At the 1-year follow-up, 25 patients and 150 restorations were available for evaluation, corresponding to a recall rate of 98.22%. High clinical acceptability was observed in all groups with respect to aesthetic, functional, and biological parameters. Retention was 100% in the acid-etched paste-type composite group and ranged from 94.7% to 97.4% in the remaining groups, with no statistically significant differences among groups (p > 0.05). A transient increase in postoperative sensitivity was detected in the laser groups at the 1-week evaluation (p = 0.026); however, sensitivity scores declined to zero in all groups at 6 months and 1 year. Conclusions: High-filled injectable composites demonstrated 1-year clinical performance comparable to that of conventional paste-type composites in the restoration of NCCLs. Er,Cr: YSGG laser-based cavity conditioning produced outcomes similar to conventional phosphoric acid etching with respect to retention, marginal adaptation, and biological compatibility. The early increase in laser-related postoperative sensitivity was transient and did not compromise long-term clinical success. Taken together, the ease of application and favorable clinical performance of injectable composites indicate that these materials constitute a reliable alternative for the restoration of non-carious cervical lesions. Full article

Zearalenone (ZEA) is a prevalent non-steroidal estrogenic mycotoxin in feed and feedstuffs. This study investigated the effects of graded dietary purified ZEA standard (0, 0.2, 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 mg/kg) on growth performance, blood biochemistry, oxidative stress, immune response, intestinal morphology, histopathology, and gut microbiota in broilers. The use of purified ZEA standard eliminates confounding effects from co-occurring contaminants and the reduced nutritional quality of naturally contaminated feed, allowing an accurate assessment of ZEA-specific effects. A total of 216 one-day-old Arbor Acres male broilers were randomly allocated into six treatment groups, each with six replicates of six birds, for a 42-day trial. At the regulatory limit (0.5 mg/kg) and below, no overt toxic effects were observed on growth performance, hematology, or serum biochemistry. Although alterations in oxidative stress markers, specifically decreased liver superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and reduced ileal glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and in immune markers, including increased interleukin-2 (IL-2) levels in the jejunum and ileum and decreased ileal interleukin-10 (IL-10) levels, were observed at 0.2–0.5 mg/kg, these changes did not cause tissue damage or functional impairment. Toxicological alterations emerged only at higher doses (1–4 mg/kg), comprising impaired jejunal morphology and moderate lung secretory cell metaplasia. The highest dose (4 mg/kg) further induced severe renal tubular degeneration and necrosis, accompanied by significant disruption of the jejunal microbiota. In conclusion, these findings indicate that purified ZEA at the regulatory limit exhibits no overt toxicity in broilers, although higher contamination levels pose clear risks to intestinal, pulmonary, and renal health. Full article

Background: Natural disasters can trigger hazardous material (Hazmat) releases and damage valuable assets, increasing human, environmental, and economic losses. Effective pre-disaster relocation planning is therefore critical but operationally challenging. Methods: This study develops a mixed-integer programming model for the pre-disaster relocation of Hazmat and valuable assets (HVAs). The model jointly optimizes safe-location activation, fleet allocation, and trip scheduling within a limited warning period, subject to vehicle availability, storage and capacity limits. The objective minimizes total cost, including facility activation, transportation, and penalties for unrelocated inventories. The model is solved using the Gurobi Optimizer. A base scenario and sensitivity analyses on fleet size and safe-location capacity are conducted using data from a cyclone-prone region in Oman. Results: In the base scenario, 73.4% of HVAs are relocated by activating 10 safe locations. Sensitivity analysis shows rapid gains at small fleet sizes, followed by diminishing returns beyond a threshold. Over 95% of HVAs are relocated by doubling safe-location capacities with 80 vehicles or tripling capacities with 65 vehicles. Conclusions: Total vehicle capacity, time-window, and safe-location capacity constraints become binding at different thresholds, highlighting the need for balanced investments. The proposed model provides an analytics-driven decision-support tool for risk-aware, time-bounded disaster relocation planning. Full article

The electrification of long-haul freight transport introduces significant challenges in fleet planning, charging decisions, and reliability management under uncertainty. This study proposed a Stochastic Electric Freight Operations Planning Problem on Predefined Routes with Partial Recharging and Heterogeneous Fleets (SEFOP-PR-HF), to support corridor-based electric truck operations under uncertain demand. The model represents real-world interregional logistics, where vehicles operate on fixed long-haul routes and may perform partial recharging at fast-charging stations. Freight demand is modeled as a normally distributed random variable, and Chance-Constrained Programming (CCP) is employed to ensure probabilistic feasibility of vehicle capacity and battery constraints. The objective is to minimize total long-term system cost, including fleet acquisition and charging expenditures, while maintaining operational reliability. A Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) formulation is applied for multiple corridor instances using real heavy-duty electric truck data. Computational results show that incorporating demand uncertainty improves robustness but raises total cost by 6–33% compared to deterministic solutions. Sensitivity analyses further reveal how reliability levels and demand variability influence fleet allocation and charging strategies. Full article

Maritime dynamic observation missions, such as environmental monitoring, marine ranching inspection, and emergency response, typically require large-scale and high-efficiency operations in complex and variable maritime environments. Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) offer complementary advantages in such missions: USVs provide long endurance and stable platform support, while UAVs enable rapid, high-coverage aerial perception. However, limited UAV battery capacity and dynamic task environments pose significant challenges to autonomous collaborative operations. This study proposes a collaborative operation and energy replenishment strategy for USV–UAV systems in maritime dynamic observation missions. Under a unified framework, task allocation, collaborative path planning, and energy replenishment are jointly optimized, where the USV serves as a mobile replenishment platform to provide energy support for the UAV. The proposed method incorporates dynamic task updates, environmental disturbances, and energy constraints, achieving real-time adaptive collaboration between heterogeneous agents. Validation through both simulations and actual sea trials demonstrates that the proposed strategy significantly outperforms four baseline methods (greedy strategy, static planning, multi-objective genetic algorithm, and reinforcement learning scheduler) across five core metrics: task completion rate (91.74% in simulation/90.85% in sea trials), total energy consumption (1284.66 kJ/1298.42 kJ), mission completion time (40.28 min/41.12 min), average response time (10.21 s/10.35 s), and path redundancy (13.79%/14.03%). Furthermore, ablation experiments verify that the energy replenishment strategy enhances the task completion rate in both simulation and field tests. This method provides a feasible and scalable collaborative solution for autonomous multi-agent systems, offering significant guidance for the practical deployment of future maritime observation and monitoring missions. Full article

This study evaluated the effects of different provisional luting cement removal methods on the shear bond strength (SBS) of resin cement to dentin following immediate dentin sealing (IDS) performed with two adhesive systems. A total of 168 extracted, caries-free human third molars were used, of which 144 were allocated for SBS testing and 24 for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. Specimens were assigned according to the IDS protocol (no IDS, IDS with OptiBond FL, or IDS with G2-Bond), followed by provisional cementation using an eugenol-free temporary cement. Contaminated surfaces were subsequently cleaned with a hand scaler, aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) air abrasion, or Katana Cleaner prior to final bonding with a dual-cure resin cement. SBS was measured after 24 h of water storage, and surface morphology was evaluated by SEM at 2500× magnification. IDS significantly increased SBS under uncontaminated conditions, with G2-Bond-based IDS exhibiting higher bond strength values than specimens without IDS. However, provisional cement contamination significantly reduced SBS regardless of the cleaning method applied, and none of the tested protocols fully restored the bond strength observed in uncontaminated IDS-treated dentin. SEM analysis revealed residual cement remnants and surface alterations after cleaning, even in specimens that appeared macroscopically clean. Within the limitations of this in vitro study, IDS enhances resin–dentin bonding when contamination is avoided; however, current mechanical and chemical cleaning methods are insufficient to completely recover bond strength compromised by provisional cement contamination, highlighting the importance of preventing contamination and preserving IDS layer integrity during indirect restorative procedures. Full article

The market for remanufactured products made from marine plastic waste is expanding rapidly, but the recycling rate of this waste remains strikingly low. This disconnect forces conventional plastic recycling firms to make a consequential strategic choice: enter the marine plastic recycling supply segment by expanding to build market power or enter by competing as a specialized supplier. To examine this trade-off, this paper develops a two-period game-theoretic model that contrasts entry strategies and performance under monopolistic and competitive market structures. We derive and compare equilibrium pricing, quantities, and profits for the relevant supply chain participants in both settings and then characterize the conditions under which one entry mode dominates the other. The results indicate that neither the preferred entry strategy nor the profitability that follows is driven by a single parameter. Instead, outcomes are shaped by the joint effects of consumer tastes, remanufacturing costs, and the scale of capacity investment cost required for entry. When consumers show a stronger preference for conventional remanufactured products, a supplier pursuing monopolistic expansion can earn higher profits by offering a more flexible product portfolio. By contrast, when the cost of remanufacturing marine plastics and the associated capacity investment cost are relatively low, the environment favors a specialized, competitively oriented entry strategy. Profit allocation within the supply chain is also closely tied to remanufacturer costs: as these costs fall, suppliers are able to appropriate a larger share of total profits. Overall, the analysis provides a theoretical basis for entry decisions in the emerging marine plastic recycling industry and offers actionable guidance for firms facing different demand and cost conditions across market structures. Full article

Rapid industrialization and urbanization have significantly accelerated carbon dioxide emissions, intensifying climate mitigation challenges. Accurate micro-scale assessment of urban carbon emissions is imperative for formulating effective reduction policies in China; however, current efforts are often constrained by a lack of high-resolution data, limiting the ability to capture fine-grained spatial heterogeneity. To address this gap, this study integrates the 1 m resolution national land cover product (SinoLC-1) with OpenStreetMap (OSM) networks and point of interest (POI) data to delineate urban functional zones in Beijing. We subsequently developed a method to estimate and spatially allocate carbon emissions at a 1 m resolution across these zones, categorized by industrial sector. Results for 2020 indicate that carbon sequestration by forests, water bodies, and grasslands totaled approximately 624,900 tons, while total emissions from cultivated land and energy consumption in built-up areas reached 107,692,300 tons. Built-up land was identified as the primary carbon source, whereas forestland and water bodies functioned as key sinks. Notably, the tertiary industry accounted for the largest share of energy-related emissions (41.80%), driven primarily by electricity and kerosene consumption. Spatially, emissions exhibited pronounced heterogeneity, with high-value clusters concentrated in the central urban core and specific suburban hubs. Cross-validation demonstrates that this functional-zone-based spatial allocation method significantly outperforms traditional nighttime light-based approaches in resolving micro-scale emission patterns. This high-resolution analysis improves the characterization of spatial variability in urban carbon cycles, offering robust data support for precision low-carbon planning and energy management. Full article