Search Results (115,549)

Digital transformation is portrayed both as a lever of territorial convergence and as a driver of polarisation between urban cores and peripheries, yet its effect on regional economic resilience has rarely been measured systematically. This study transposes the Economic Resilience Index framework from the national to the regional scale, building a Regional Resilience Index (R-ERI) for 236 NUTS2 regions of the EU-27 from Eurostat indicators, anchored in the capacities of absorption, recovery, and adaptation and measuring resilience as a capacity rather than as a realised shock trajectory. Two complementary models are estimated: a spatial Durbin panel with two-way fixed effects (2018–2023), spanning the COVID-19 pandemic and 2022 energy shocks, and an exploratory cross-sectional difference model exploiting regional artificial intelligence (AI) adoption data disaggregated by NACE branch (2023–2025). The results show that resilience is strongly spatially autocorrelated (Moran’s I between 0.66 and 0.74; p = 0.001); that digital connectivity generates a positive indirect effect on neighbouring regions despite a negative own-region effect; and that the synergy hypothesis—that digitalisation yields more resilience when combined with traditional sectors—does not hold robustly, the interaction being null in the panel and only marginally positive in the AI layer (p = 0.10). We conclude that digital connectivity is not, on its own, an automatic convergence mechanism, and that cohesion policy should account for each region’s sectoral structure and peripheral position. Full article

Traditional injectable vaccine adjuvants are limited by local granulomatous reactions, chronic inflammation, and reduced compliance, creating an urgent need for safe, host-directed strategies to enhance vaccine immunogenicity. Proanthocyanidins (PACs)—natural polyphenols abundant in grapes, cocoa, and tea—are food-derived bioactive compounds with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory activities, positioning them as attractive candidates for oral immunostimulants. Using classical swine fever virus (CSFV), a Pestivirus within the Flaviviridae that shares conserved genomic and immunological features with human pathogens such as hepatitis C and dengue virus, we systematically evaluated oral PACs (15, 30, and 60 mg/kg/d) combined with attenuated live or subunit CSFV vaccines in mice. PACs were well tolerated across the full dose range, with no impact on body weight or major organs, while selectively increasing the splenic index—suggesting spleen-targeted immune activation without systemic inflammation. Compared with vaccine alone, the moderate dose (30 mg/kg/d) produced the strongest immunostimulation, particularly with the subunit vaccine: peak antigen-specific IgG titer reached 1:409,600, a 4-fold increase versus 1:102,400 for subunit alone and exceeding the 3.4-fold gain observed with the attenuated vaccine. IgG2a and IgG2b rose by 199.4% and 269.1%, respectively, alongside coordinated elevations of Th1 (IL-2 +160.6%, IFN-γ +91.9%) and Th2 (IL-4, IL-10) cytokines, enhanced B- and T-lymphocyte proliferation, and expansion of CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ subsets, establishing a balanced and durable Th1/Th2 response. These findings provide preclinical evidence that food-derived PACs can serve as safe oral immunostimulants for low-immunogenicity subunit vaccines, supporting their further development in human and veterinary vaccinology. Full article

Smallholder farmers in South Africa face increasing climate variability, yet their agronomic decision-making depends on timely and reliable climate information. Although digital ICT platforms are expanding, limited evidence exists on how their effectiveness compares to human-based advisory systems. The study addresses this gap by examining the determinants of ICT-based climate information adoption using logistic regression and assessing its influence on agronomic decisions through propensity score matching (PSM). A cross-sectional survey and multistage sampling were used to collect data from 217 smallholder crop farmers in the Eastern Cape. The results indicate that 65% of farmers accessed climate information through ICT platforms, while 35% relied on human-based sources. The adoption of ICT-based information is driven by education, digital literacy, mobile network reliability, the perceived value of real-time updates, and smartphone ownership, whereas habitual dependence on traditional channels hinders digital uptake. PSM estimates show that ICT-based climate information is 10–15% less effective than human-based sources in shaping planting decisions, input use, and the timing of farm operations, likely due to digital literacy and infrastructure constraints. The study demonstrates that access to digital tools does not automatically translate into effective use and recommends a hybrid information model integrating digital platforms with trusted human intermediaries to strengthen climate resilience and agronomic decision-making. Full article

Breast cancer treatment still faces challenges including local recurrence, systemic toxicity, tumor heterogeneity, drug resistance, and immunosuppression. Conventional systemic administration provides limited exposure at the tumor site and exhibits significant toxicity. Injectable hydrogels, combining the properties of minimally invasive administration, in situ gelation, local retention, and sustained release, have become a key platform for local precision drug delivery. Compared with nanomedicines or free drugs, hydrogels can both prolong drug retention time and achieve on-demand release through the modulation of crosslinking density, degradation rate, and responsive chemical bonds. This review is organized around the material logic of such systems. Injectable hydrogels are first classified into natural, synthetic, hybrid, supramolecular, nanocomposite, and self-healing systems, the in situ gelation chemistries available to each are compared, and network parameters such as crosslinking density, mesh size, swelling, porosity, modulus, and rheology are related to release kinetics and intratumoral retention. Current research is primarily advancing along two directions: one is the construction of pH-, enzyme-, redox/ROS-, hypoxia-, ATP-, glucose-or thermo-responsive hydrogels; the other is achieving active targeting by integrating functionalized hydrogels with targets such as CD44, folate receptor, integrins, EGFR, transferrin receptor, and HER2 or with biomimetic cell-membrane coatings. On this basis, hydrogels have been extended to cancer vaccines, immune checkpoint modulation, local delivery of CAR-T/CAR-NK, as well as combination therapies involving chemotherapy, photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, chemodynamic therapy, sonodynamic therapy, radiosensitization, gene therapy, and theranostics. The constraints imposed on hydrogel design by different payload classes, including small molecules, natural products, proteins and peptides, nucleic acids, antibodies, exosomes, and gene-editing machinery, are further examined, and imaging-integrated theranostic gels are discussed together with the emerging role of machine learning and digital fabrication in hydrogel optimization. Based on the biological foundations of breast cancer, this review summarizes advances in the material design, microenvironment-responsive release, targeting strategies, immunomodulation, and combination therapy of hydrogels, critically evaluates the limitations of each strategy, and aims to provide a reference for the design of mechanistically well-defined and translatable hydrogel delivery systems for breast cancer. Full article

This study addresses the limitations of traditional chemical flooding in low-permeability reservoirs by developing a nanofluid–surfactant binary flooding system (Has5/iNanoW1.0 binary flooding system) and investigating its microscopic mechanisms and enhanced oil recovery performance. The size of the nanofluid–surfactant binary flooding system reduces from 250 nm to 72 nm compared with pure surfactant; therefore it can enhance the ability to inject smaller pores. Core adsorption tests reveal that the addition of nanofluid can decrease surfactant adsorption by over 30%. The nanoscale synergistic effect of nanofluid (iNanoW1.0) and surfactant (Has5) and lower adsorption of surfactant allows more surfactant (Has5) to enter smaller pores for oil washing, significantly increasing oil recovery performance. Low-field nuclear magnetic resonance displacement experiments show that the binary system can significantly expand microscopic sweep efficiency (up to 14.9%) compared to pure surfactant or nanofluid flooding. Core flooding tests confirm that the binary system exhibits lower injection pressure (0.377 MPa), achieving 13.12% incremental oil recovery during post-water flooding, which is significantly better than the pure surfactant system (5.11%). The results demonstrate strong laboratory-scale potential and permit further pilot-scale evaluation. Full article

Team-based learning (TBL) is increasingly being implemented in health sciences education to promote active learning and higher-order cognitive skills. However, the long-term effects of TBL on student performance and perceptions remain unclear. This study evaluated the impact of TBL on veterinary anatomy practical sessions over four academic years (2022/2023–2025/2026) using a longitudinal, mixed-methods design. Quantitative measures included performance across TBL components such as individual and team readiness tests, application exercises, formative assessments, and final scores. Cognitive level analysis was based on Bloom’s taxonomy. Student perceptions were collected through Likert-scale surveys, and qualitative responses were analyzed thematically. The results showed consistently low individual readiness scores, indicating persistent challenges in pre-class preparation. However, team performance improved over time, highlighting the benefits of collaborative learning. Application exercise scores and overall performance increased over time, with notable improvements in higher-order cognitive skills compared to a traditional cohort. Students’ perceptions evolved from initial resistance and perceived difficulty to more positive evaluations, with significant reductions in negative comparisons and metacognitive miscalibration, as well as increased positive perceptions. Overall, TBL supported progressive improvements in academic performance and cognitive development. Collaboration mitigated limitations in individual preparation, and student adaptation enhanced the effectiveness of this pedagogical approach in veterinary education. Full article

Nomadism and the tent tradition constitute foundational pillars of Anatolia’s vernacular building culture, yet the spatial continuity between nomadic dwelling practices and their urban coastal adaptations remains underexplored in the literature. This study examines how nomadic spatial strategies were reproduced in Antalya’s coastal oba settlements, evaluating them as architectural expressions of indigenous material culture and collective building knowledge rather than provisional structures. Employing a qualitative approach, the research synthesizes data from literature reviews, archival analysis, and semi-structured interviews with former residents, utilizing Lefebvre’s Rhythmanalysis as an analytic framework to examine how seasonal cycles, recurring daily rituals, and patterns of collective occupation shaped the spatial logic of these now-vanished settlements. Findings reveal three distinct oba typologies with traceable morphological continuities to the nomadic tent tradition, particularly in semi-open spatial configurations, modular organization, and the flexible adaptation of indigenous materials to coastal conditions. Interpreted through the lens of cultural landscape, the oba emerges as a site where tangible building practice and intangible cultural heritage converge. The study concludes that Antalya’s coastal obas represent a significant yet under documented chapter of vernacular architectural heritage, one whose physical erasure under post-1980 tourism-driven development has rendered its preservation in collective and embodied memory all the more urgent. By transitioning from physical fabric to intangible heritage, these settlements persist as a critical representational field for cultural and social sustainability discourse. Full article

Traditional inhibitors of cyclin-dependent kinases 4 and 6 (CDK4/6) have long been characterized as classical antiproliferative agents that induce G1 cell cycle arrest by blocking the phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma protein (Rb). However, recent studies in lung cancer have expanded this paradigm, revealing a functional transition from exclusive tumor suppression to the profound remodeling of the tumor microenvironment (TME) to enhance antitumor immunity. This review systematically outlines the genomic aberrations of the CDK4/6-Rb axis across lung cancer subtypes and dissects its immunomodulatory networks. These encompass the activation of effector T cells, the alleviation of immunosuppression mediated by regulatory T cells (Tregs), and the enhancement of antigen presentation via the Cyclic GMP-AMP synthase-stimulator of interferon genes (cGAS-STING) pathway. Furthermore, we analyze acquired resistance mechanisms, primarily focusing on p21-CDK2 bypass activation mediated by Cyclin E1 gene (CCNE1) amplification and tumor protein 53 gene (TP53) mutations. We also review clinical investigations combining CDK4/6 inhibitors with targeted therapies against driver genes, as well as immune checkpoint inhibitors in lung cancer. Notably, in the context of lung cancer, these combinatorial strategies have been primarily investigated in the second-line or subsequent settings following progression on standard platinum-based chemotherapy or immunotherapy. Finally, we propose individualized, stratified treatment strategies based on genomic and immunological biomarkers, providing a translational framework for overcoming multidrug resistance and optimizing next-generation combinatorial regimens in lung cancer. Full article

Rising demand for functional dairy products has stimulated interest in incorporating traditional fermented ingredients into modern food systems. This study investigated the use of traditional Greek trahanas as a functional ingredient in yogurt and evaluated its effects on physicochemical, microbiological, antioxidant-related, and sensory characteristics. Five formulations were produced: a control yogurt inoculated with a commercial yogurt starter culture, two starter-inoculated yogurts supplemented with 2% and 4% (w/w) trahanas, and two starter-free fermented dairy formulations supplemented with 2% and 4% (w/w) trahanas. All products were evaluated over 30 days of refrigerated storage (4 °C) in terms of pH evolution, lactose consumption, lactic acid production, protein content, total solids, syneresis, antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, microbial stability, and sensory properties. The trahanas-enriched yogurts inoculated with a starter culture exhibited enhanced acidification, higher protein and total solid contents, reduced syneresis, and increased antioxidant activity and phenolic content compared with the control and starter-free formulations. In particular, the 4% trahanas formulation inoculated with a commercial starter culture exhibited the highest DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities, suggesting a synergistic effect between trahanas-derived bioactive compounds and fermentation-associated lactic acid bacteria. Microbiological analyses confirmed the maintenance of high lactic acid bacterial populations throughout storage, particularly in the 4% trahanas formulation, which exhibited the highest Streptococcus thermophilus counts during refrigerated storage. The detected lactic acid bacterial populations originated both from the commercial yogurt starter culture and from the traditional preparation of trahanas itself, which involves fermentation with sour sheep’s milk and traditional yogurt. In addition, coliforms, Enterobacteriaceae, and Staphylococci remained undetectable in all formulations, while only limited yeast and mold growth was observed during the later stages of storage, mainly in starter-free samples. Sensory evaluation indicated good overall acceptability of trahanas-enriched formulations, particularly at 4% (w/w). Overall, the incorporation of traditional Greek trahanas into yogurt systems represents a promising approach for the development of fermented dairy products with improved technological, antioxidant-related, and functional properties. Full article

This paper presents a novel approach to 3D semantic occupancy prediction that leverages the integration of 2D and 3D features. Traditional 3D voxel representations, while detailed, are computationally intensive. Our method addresses this challenge by encoding 3D voxel features into a Bird’s-Eye View (BEV) representation, then decoding them back into voxels using a multi-layer perceptron (MLP). This fusion approach reduces computational resources compared to voxel-only methods while maintaining state-of-the-art accuracy. By leveraging multi-scale features and deformable attention mechanisms, our network achieves a mean intersection-over-union (mIoU) of 41.26% on the Occ3D-nuScenes dataset, outperforming recent methods. By introducing a 3D backbone and multi-scale voxel-to-BEV-to-voxel feature transformation, the model achieves improved mIoU with moderate computational overhead. Our results demonstrate the effectiveness of integrating 2D and 3D information for accurate 3D semantic occupancy prediction, providing a potentially useful scene representation for downstream autonomous driving tasks. Full article

This study proposes a targeted sound-absorption design strategy to address the challenge of broadband and low-frequency transformer noise. Based on field measurements, transformer noise is identified as being characterized by a dominant 100 Hz fundamental component, pronounced low-order harmonics in the range of 200–500 Hz, and an overall broadband distribution within 100–1000 Hz. To meet these noise-control requirements, a composite acoustic metamaterial based on a traditional Helmholtz resonator and a side-slit Helmholtz resonator (HRSS-HR) is proposed. An electro-acoustic analogy model is established to predict its acoustic performance and is validated through finite element simulation and impedance tube experiments, thereby revealing the underlying sound-absorption mechanisms. The proposed composite unit cell exhibits four characteristic absorption peaks over a broad frequency range, among which the peaks within 100–1000 Hz are directly relevant to transformer noise control. We systematically investigate the evolution of sound absorption from a single unit to coupled parallel structures and then to a 4 × 4 array, leveraging the tunability of the HRSS-HR structure. Parallel coupling broadens the effective absorption bandwidth but weakens the original impedance matching condition, whereas increasing the slit width and decreasing the neck height can effectively recover the low- and middle-frequency absorption performance. Finally, a 4 × 4 HRSS-HR composite metamaterial array is developed. Both simulation and experiment confirm that the optimized array maintains relatively high absorption levels near 100 Hz and the major harmonic bands of 200–500 Hz, while preserving good broadband absorption capability over 100–1000 Hz. This work validates the strong application potential of the proposed HRSS-HR design in transformer broadband noise control and offers a practical solution for low-frequency harmonic noise mitigation in transformers and similar power equipment. Full article

Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) from traditional fermented foods serve as a promising source of novel exopolysaccharides (EPSs) with desirable techno-functional properties. In this study, the EPS production ability of LAB strains from traditional pickles was tested and a strong slimy isolate grown in a sucrose-rich environment was further selected. The isolate was identified as Leuconostoc mesenteroides VB113 and its EPS production characteristics were determined. HPLC analysis revealed that glucose was the only monomer in the EPS repeating structure, whereas ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy analysis demonstrated a branched dextran structure with 20% (1 → 3)-linked α-D-glucose units. Dextran VB113 showed a molecular weight of 2.4 × 10⁶ Da tested by GPC analysis. The functional groups within dextran VB113 were determined by FTIR analysis, and XRD analysis demonstrated its amorphous physical status. TGA and DSC analysis were applied for thermal characterization and a degradation temperature of 272.25 °C was observed for dextran VB113, suggesting its high thermal resistance. The micro-structural features of dextran VB113 were tested by SEM and AFM analysis that revealed spherical and fibrillary properties, respectively. These findings revealed the importance of testing different niches to obtain novel EPS-producing LAB strains that can be further evaluated to enhance the techno-functional properties of food systems. The branched nature of dextran VB113, together with its molecular weight and thermal characteristics, offers practical advantages for its potential usage as a thermal-stable thickening agent, emulsion stabilizer, and fat replacer in high-temperature food processing applications, such as bakery products, processed dairy, and plant-based meat analogs. Full article

The Stress-Repressive Zinc Finger (SRZ) family is a class of zinc finger proteins in plants that has been closely associated with plant growth, development, and stress responses. In this study, we conducted a genome-wide identification of the SRZ family members and identified 14 and 10 members in rice and Arabidopsis, respectively. We further characterized their phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, conserved motifs, promoter cis-elements, synteny, and spatiotemporal expression patterns. To investigate the functional role of this family in rice, we generated targeted mutants of OsSRZ1 using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. Phenotypic analysis revealed that srz1 knockout mutants exhibited significantly reduced plant height. Notably, the homozygous mutant srz1 completely failed in panicle exsertion from the flag leaf sheath, resulting in complete enclosure, whereas the heterozygous mutant srz1(h) exhibited only partial panicle exsertion. Further cytological observations revealed abnormal floral organ development and premature anther senescence in srz1, accompanied by a significant reduction in seed setting rate—srz1(h) set significantly fewer seeds, whereas srz1 exhibited complete sterility with a seed setting rate of 0%. Collectively, these findings suggest that members of the SRZ family may play important roles in rice growth and development. Our results demonstrate that OsSRZ1 is a critical regulator of plant height and panicle exsertion by regulating internode elongation, and that its disruption leads to premature anther programmed cell death (PCD) and consequent seed setting failure. Full article

Traditional liquid-resistive mounts are widely used in vehicle powertrain vibration isolation because of their favorable low-frequency damping characteristics. However, they usually suffer from pronounced high-frequency dynamic stiffening, which significantly degrades their vibration-isolation performance in the high-frequency range and remains a critical limitation in passive mount design. To address this problem, this study presents the systematic modeling, comparative analysis, and structural optimization of liquid-resistive mounts with different internal configurations. Three representative mount structures, namely the decoupler-membrane type, the conventional bell-plate type, and a novel bell-plate configuration, are first described in terms of their structural characteristics and working mechanisms. Based on the lumped-parameter method, mathematical models of the three mounts are established, and their low- and high-frequency dynamic characteristics are comparatively investigated. The vibration isolation performance of the mounts is further evaluated under various excitation conditions to clarify the influence of structural modifications on the dynamic response and transmitted force. In addition, sensitivity analysis is performed using the ISIGHT software platform (ISIGHT 5.6 Design Gateway) to identify the key parameters governing high-frequency performance. Subsequently, structural optimization is conducted using nonlinear programming under the quadratic Lagrangian algorithm and the Six Sigma method. The results indicate that the introduction of a bell plate has little influence on the low-frequency dynamic characteristics, while it effectively suppresses high-frequency hardening and improves high-frequency vibration isolation. Moreover, the Six Sigma optimization method achieves better performance improvement than the NLPQL approach, providing a useful reference for the design and optimization of passive liquid-resistive mounts. Full article

This paper examines the results of in-situ U-value measurements across 36 traditional uninsulated solid walls and early mass concrete construction in Ireland. As the retrofit of poorly performing buildings becomes increasingly important, establishing an accurate thermal performance baseline for common solid wall types is essential. Existing assumptions in Ireland are based on default U-values used for Energy Performance Certificates or on calculated values derived using BR443 or ISO 6946 with reference thermal conductivities, while no large-scale dataset of in-situ U-values for Irish solid wall construction currently exists. This paper introduces a new dataset for such walls and compares it to the associated default and calculated U-values. Brick walls < 325 mm performed on average 36.8% better than default assumptions, while brick walls ≥ 325 mm aligned on average reasonably well with the defaults. However, the results ranged from −18.7 to +33.1% of the defaults. Stone walls performed on average 7.2% better than the defaults but with substantial variability at −54.8 to +40.8%. In contrast, mass concrete walls performed significantly worse than assumed (+37.2%), while an earthen wall exceeded expectations by 21.5%. The findings demonstrate that in-situ U-value measurements provide a valuable, non-invasive means of improving the accuracy of thermal performance assessments for traditional solid walls. Full article