Search Results (36)

Penicillium astrolabium is a primary pathogenic fungus that causes grape blue mold during postharvest, leading to substantial losses in the grape industry. Nevertheless, hypovirulence-associated mycoviruses can attenuate the virulence of postharvest grape-rot pathogens, thereby offering a promising biocontrol tool. Characterizing the mycovirus repertoire of P. astrolabium is imperative for grape protection, yet remains largely unexplored. Here, we screened six strains harboring viruses in 13 P. astrolabium isolates from rotted grapes. Using high-throughput sequencing, four novel dsRNA viruses and two +ssRNA viruses were identified from the six P. astrolabium strains. The dsRNA viruses belonged to two families—Chrysoviridae and Partitiviridae—and were designated to Penicillium astrolabium chrysovirus 1 (PaCV1), Penicillum astrolabium partitivirus 1′ (PaPV1′), Penicillum astrolabium partitivirus 2 (PaPV2), and Penicillum astrolabium partitivirus 3 (PaPV3). For the +ssRNA viruses, one was clustered into the Alphaflexiviridae family, while the other one was clustered into the Narnaviridae family. The two +ssRNA viruses were named Penicillium astrolabium alphaflexivirus 1 (PaAFV1) and Penicillium astrolabium narnavirus 1 (PaNV1), respectively. Moreover, several viral genomic contigs with non-overlapping and discontinuous sequences were identified in this study, which were probably representatives of five viruses from four families, including Discoviridae, Peribunyaviridae, Botourmiaviridae, and Picobirnaviridae. Taken together, our findings could expand the diversity of mycoviruses, advance the understanding of mycovirus evolution in P. astrolabium, and provide both potential biocontrol resources and a research system for dissecting virus–fungus–plant interactions. Full article

Background/Objectives: Pregnancies complicated by idiopathic polyhydramnios are linked to a heightened risk of numerous maternal and perinatal complications. We aim to study the implications of polyhydramnios in term pregnancies complicated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods: A prospective cohort study including 340 GDM cases was conducted. An ultrasound scan was conducted at term between 37 and 40 weeks and amniotic fluid volume (AFV) was assessed by measuring the amniotic fluid index (AFI) and the single deepest pocket (SDP). Maternal demographics and obstetric and perinatal outcomes were evaluated after delivery. We performed comparisons between groups with normal AFV and polyhydramnios (AFI ≥ 24 cm or SDP ≥ 8 cm), and between groups with normal and increased AFV (AFI or SDP ≥ 75th centile). A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to study association between AVF measurements and adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. Results: We found that women with GDM and polyhydramnios at term had a higher risk of maternal (54.3 vs. 27.5%, p < 0.001) and perinatal adverse outcomes (65.7% vs. 46.5%, p < 0.03). The increased AFV group showed a higher risk of fetal overgrowth (LGA: 21.4% vs. 8.2%, p < 0.001 and macrosomia: 19.8% vs. 5.4%, p < 0.001, respectively) and a lesser risk of delivering an SGA fetus (6.3% vs. 13.6%, respectively). Both AFI and SDP showed a significant correlation with newborn weight (r = 0.27; p < 0.001 and r = 0.28; p < 0.001, respectively) and newborn centile (r = 0.26; p < 0.001 and r = 0.26 for both). Subsequent to conducting a multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for pregestational BMI, nulliparity, and insulin treatment, both AFI and SDP were significantly associated with perinatal complications, but AFI showed a stronger association with fetal overgrowth (aOR 1.11; p = 0.004 for a LGA fetus and aOR 1.12; p = 0.002 for macrosomia) and with lower risk of delivering an SGA fetus (aOR 0.89; p = 0.009) or IUGR fetus (aOR 0.86; p = 0.03). ROC analysis showed a poor diagnostic performance of both AFI and SDP for identifying macrosomia (AUC 0.68 for AFI, and 0.65 for SDP). Conclusions: Detection of polyhydramnios at term, whether using AFI or SDP, identifies a subgroup of women with gestational diabetes with higher risks of obstetric and perinatal complications. Cases with increased AFV (AFI ≥ 18 cm or SDP ≥ 6.5 cm) are also associated with an increased risk of fetal overgrowth and may require more intensive monitoring for management and optimal delivery timing, with the aim of improve perinatal outcomes. Full article

Alternative Fuel Vehicle (AFV) rebate programs incentivize the transition from fossil fuels to alternative fuels. Unfortunately, research on the people who are rebate program recipients is more evident than research on the places where the programs distribute rebates. To that end, this study retrospectively analyzes rebates in a statewide, AFV rebate program known as the California Vehicle Rebate Program (CVRP), from 2011 to 2022, to explore the statewide distribution of rebates. The specification of novel multilevel models nests rebates within different levels of analysis to control for programmatic income eligibility changes for rebate recipients as well as infrastructural, racial, transactional, environmental, and demographic differences between census tracts. The different levels of analysis include spatial attributes of the CVRP as well as temporal attributes of the CVRP to control for implicit heterogeneity in the outcomes of interest. Results suggest that the CVRP does not distribute rebates to places where infrastructure is accessible, but the CVRP does distribute rebates to places where pollution is burdensome and people are socioeconomically vulnerable. Full article

The automatic flushing valve (AFV) enables automatic flushing of drip irrigation systems, improving their anti-clogging performance. This study focuses on a subsurface drip irrigation system (SDI) for alfalfa, selecting T20 and T70 AFVs (with designed flushing durations of 20 and 70 s, respectively) installed at the end of the dripline and a buried dripline without an AFV as a control. The aim of this study was to explore the variations in AFV hydraulic performance over two years of operation and the impact on the irrigation uniformity of SDI systems. The results revealed that the flushing duration (FD) and flushing water volume (FQ) of both T20 and T70 fluctuated over time, with an average coefficient of variation (CV) of 13.2%. The FD and FQ of the two types of AFVs are affected by the daily average temperature (T), and when T increases from 20.1 °C to 25.7 °C, the FD and FQ increased by an average of 22.6%. After 2 years of operation, the average relative flow rate (Dra) and irrigation uniformity (Cu) of the T20 and T70 SDI emitters were 93.7% and 96.8%. Both the Dra and Cu were significantly influenced by FD (p < 0.05). Compared with CK and T20, T70 significantly increased the Dra and Cu by 6.3% and 4.6%, respectively. The order of degree of clogging at different positions in the dripline was rear > middle > front for the CK and T20 treatments, whereas for T70, it was middle > front > rear. With the installation of the T70 AFV, the time required for the SDI system to reach moderate clogging (Dra = 50~80%) was extended from 3~7 years to 8~20 years, resulting in a 180% increase in operation time. The T70 AFV is recommended for use in the alfalfa SDI of this study. Full article

This study introduces an explainable framework for Automated Fact Verification (AFV) systems, integrating a novel Context-Aware Retrieval and Explanation Generation (CARAG) methodology. CARAG enhances evidence retrieval by leveraging thematic embeddings derived from a Subset of Interest (SOI, a focused subset of the fact-verification dataset) to integrate local and global perspectives. The retrieval process combines these thematic embeddings with claim-specific vectors to refine evidence selection. Retrieved evidence is integrated into an explanation-generation pipeline employing a Large Language Model (LLM) in a zero-shot paradigm, ensuring alignment with topic-based thematic contexts. The SOI and its derived thematic embeddings, supported by a visualized SOI graph, provide transparency into the retrieval process and promote explainability in AI by outlining evidence-selection rationale. CARAG is evaluated using FactVer, a novel explanation-focused dataset curated to enhance AFV transparency. Comparative analysis with standard Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) demonstrates CARAG’s effectiveness in generating contextually aligned explanations, underscoring its potential to advance explainable AFV frameworks. Full article

The design and multi-objective optimization of auxetic sandwich panels (ASPs) are performed to enhance the blastworthiness of armored fighting vehicles (AFVs). Various metastructures in the form of four auxetic geometries are proposed as the sandwich core: re-entrant honeycomb (REH), double-arrow honeycomb (DAH), star honeycomb (SH), and tetra-chiral honeycomb (CH). This paper employs a combination of finite element and machine learning methodologies to evaluate blastworthiness performance. Optimization is carried out using the nondominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) method. The optimization results show significant improvements in blastworthiness performance, with notable reductions in permanent displacement and enhancements in specific energy absorption (SEA). Global sensitivity analysis using SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) reveals that cell thickness is the most critical factor affecting blastworthiness performance, followed by the number of cells and corner angle or radius for CH. The application of optimized ASP on AFVs shows promising results, with no failure occurring in the occupant floor. Furthermore, AFVs equipped with the optimized ASP DAH significantly reduce maximum displacement and acceleration by 39.00% and 43.56%, respectively, and enhance SEA by 48.30% compared to optimized aluminum foam sandwich panels. This study concludes that ASPs have potential applications in broader engineering fields. Full article

The use of alternative fuels is a crucial element in achieving global sustainability, as it plays a pivotal role in reducing the environmental impact of the transport sector. This study aims to provide a comprehensive and systematic review of the literature on consumer knowledge and awareness of alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines and bibliometric analysis. The findings indicate that electric vehicles represent the dominant focus of AFV research, while other technologies receive minimal attention. The study underscores the necessity for targeted information strategies to address consumer misconceptions and overcome market barriers, thereby facilitating the growth of AFV market share. This research offers insights that can inform future studies, policy decisions, and industry stakeholders in promoting sustainable transport choices. Full article

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is emerging as an attractive large-scale polymer due to its superior properties. The dominant static culture for BC fermentation by bacteria or microbial consortium results in low productivity. Agitated culture, as an industrially projected technique, has been widely investigated but exclusively for cellulose-producing bacterial strains. Addressing this concern and evaluating the potential of residues as feedstock, this study highlights the utilization of microbial consortium BA2 and seven agro-industrial wastes including cocoa husks, sugarcane bagasse and others. Remarkably, rice bran (RB) appears as a promising substrate, achieving 2.14 g/L (dry basis) and outperforming the traditional HS medium, evident from a 15-day fermentation. A complex interplay between oxygen availability, glucose consumption and BC yield was revealed; while orbital and magnetic stirring with forced air ventilation (AFV) showed low BC yields and early biomass saturation, 4.07 g/L (dry basis) was targeted by magnetic stirring at 100 rpm from the start using only headspace air. However, beyond controlled operating conditions, mechanical agitation and favorable cellulose adhesion to metal in the stirred tank bioreactor negatively affect BC yield. This pattern uncovers the need for a further approach to the design of bioreactors when the microbial consortium is considered. Full article

Objective: The purpose of this review is to examine the evidence that defines normal and abnormal amniotic fluid volumes (AFVs) and current recommendations on the management of abnormalities of AFV. Methods: The studies establishing normal actual AFVs and the ultrasound estimates used to identify normal and abnormal AFVs were evaluated. Recommendations from national and international organizations were reviewed for guidance on the definitions and management of abnormal AFVs. Results: A timeline of the development of the thresholds that define abnormal AFVs was created. Recommendations from 13 national and international guidelines were identified, but the definitions and management recommendations for abnormal AFVs varied considerably between groups. An algorithm for the management of oligohydramnios and polyhydramnios was developed. Knowledge gaps and the structure of future studies were examined. Conclusions: Assessment of AFV is performed multiple times per day in antenatal clinics and hospitals. Current recommendations on defining and managing abnormal AFVs differ between national and international organizations. We have proposed algorithms to assist in the management of abnormal AFVs until further studies can be undertaken. Full article

Intraocular inflammations (IOIs) have been reported to occur after intravitreal injections of brolucizumab, and one of their causes has been suggested to be drug-specific features. We evaluated the anterior chamber by the aqueous flare value (AFV) and the retina by flicker electroretinography (ERG) after the initial intravitreal injection of aflibercept (IVA), brolucizumab (IVBr), or faricimab (IVF) for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). The AFV and flicker ERGs were determined before, 2 weeks after, and 4 weeks after the injections in 14 eyes of 14 patients for each drug. After the injections, none of the patients had an IOI, but the AFV increased significantly in the IVA and IVF groups. The increase in the IVF group was +4.6 photon count/ms, which was significantly greater than in the other groups, but was not clinically significant. The implicit time was significantly prolonged in the IVBr group but unchanged in the IVA and IVF groups. These results suggest that brolucizumab, administered at high molar doses, may cause transient retinal disturbances that are not detectable by general ophthalmologic examinations but affect the implicit ERG times. Full article

The rapid growth in Artificial Intelligence (AI) has led to considerable progress in Automated Fact Verification (AFV). This process involves collecting evidence for a statement, assessing its relevance, and predicting its accuracy. Recently, research has begun to explore automatic explanations as an integral part of the accuracy analysis process. However, the explainability within AFV is lagging compared to the wider field of explainable AI (XAI), which aims at making AI decisions more transparent. This study looks at the notion of explainability as a topic in the field of XAI, with a focus on how it applies to the specific task of Automated Fact Verification. It examines the explainability of AFV, taking into account architectural, methodological, and dataset-related elements, with the aim of making AI more comprehensible and acceptable to general society. Although there is a general consensus on the need for AI systems to be explainable, there a dearth of systems and processes to achieve it. This research investigates the concept of explainable AI in general and demonstrates its various aspects through the particular task of Automated Fact Verification. This study explores the topic of faithfulness in the context of local and global explainability. This paper concludes by highlighting the gaps and limitations in current data science practices and possible recommendations for modifications to architectural and data curation processes, contributing to the broader goals of explainability in Automated Fact Verification. Full article

The National Household Travel Survey (NHTS), conducted by the Federal Highway Administration, has historically been used for documenting personal mobility trends. Current techniques using surveys to collect this data are labor-intensive and difficult to scale. Emerging connected vehicle (CV) data can provide an alternative data source to potentially provide a more scalable method to measure the temporal and spatial usage of passenger vehicles in near real-time. With an impending shift in the automobile industry towards alternative fuel vehicles (AFV), agile monitoring of trip trends is important to help guide state and national investments in AFV infrastructure. This study presents methodologies and visualizations summarizing observed trip characteristics using a sample of more than 500 billion CV records and nearly 1 billion CV trips for December 2022 in the United States. The analysis found very close agreement between trip lengths for internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEV) for CVs and those reported by the 2017 NHTS. Mean trip lengths and trip durations from CVs and NHTS for ICEVs are within 7.8% and 6.6% of each other. The 85th percentile comparison was similarly close, within 0.7% and 8.3%. A comparison of trip trends among states for ICEVs and AFVs as well as US census places and temporal trends for a selection of states, including Indiana, Texas, Wyoming, and California, is provided. The paper concludes that CV data is an important source to monitor trip characteristics across ICEVs and AFVs in near real-time, which will be particularly important to track during the anticipated change to AFVs. Full article

Amniotic Fluid Volume (AFV) is a crucial fetal biomarker when diagnosing specific fetal abnormalities. This study proposes a novel Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model, AFNet, for segmenting amniotic fluid (AF) to facilitate clinical AFV evaluation. AFNet was trained and tested on a manually segmented and radiologist-validated AF dataset. AFNet outperforms ResUNet++ by using efficient feature mapping in the attention block and transposing convolutions in the decoder. Our experimental results show that AFNet achieved a mean Intersection over Union (mIoU) of 93.38% on our dataset, thereby outperforming other state-of-the-art models. While AFNet achieves performance scores similar to those of the UNet++ model, it does so while utilizing merely less than half the number of parameters. By creating a detailed AF dataset with an improved CNN architecture, we enable the quantification of AFV in clinical practice, which can aid in diagnosing AF disorders during gestation. Full article

Laparoscopic ventral and dorsal segmentectomies 8 are an option for parenchymal-sparing liver resection. However, laparoscopic anatomic posterosuperior liver segment resection is technically demanding because of its deep location and the many variations in the segment 8 Glissonean pedicle (G8). In this study, we describe a hepatic vein-guided approach (HVGA) to overcome these limitations. For ventral segmentectomy 8, liver parenchymal transection was initiated at the ventral side of the middle hepatic vein (MHV) and continued exposing it toward the periphery. The G8 ventral branch (G8vent) was identified on the right side of the MHV. Following G8vent dissection, liver parenchymal transection was completed by connecting the demarcation line and G8vent stump. For dorsal segmentectomy 8, the anterior fissure vein (AFV) was exposed peripherally. The G8 dorsal branch (G8dor) was identified on the right side of the AFV. Following G8dor dissection, the right hepatic vein (RHV) was exposed from the root. Liver parenchymal transection was completed by connecting the demarcation line and RHV. Between April 2016 and December 2022, we performed laparoscopic ventral and dorsal segmentectomy 8 in fourteen patients. No complications (Clavien–Dindo classification, Grade ≥ IIIa) were observed. An HVGA is feasible and useful for standardizing safe laparoscopic ventral and dorsal segmentectomies 8. Full article

Rheumatic diseases lead to postural problems, which increase the risk of falls and lead to greater disability. The aim of the present work is to evaluate posture disorders in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as well as to evaluate the influence of other factors. A total of 71 subjects were enrolled in this study. Joint position sense (JPS) and the functional assessment of proprioception on a balance platform for both lower limbs were examined. The Average Trace Error (ATE), test time (t), and Average Platform Force Variation (AFV) were calculated. Additionally, an equilibrium test was carried out in the one-legged standing position (Single Leg Stance—SLS). The results were compared in several ways and revealed the following: (1) A JPS of 10° plantar flexion in RA obtained significantly worse results when repeating the movement than OA; the ATEs were significantly lower in RA; and RA needed more support during SLS assessment. (2) RA patients with higher DAS28 had statistically significantly higher values in JPS, with 5° plantar flexion and 10° dorsal flexion, SLS assessment, and stabilometric rates. A statistically significant correlation between DAS28 and RA was found in a JPS of 10° plantar flexion. The VAS ruler demonstrated a significant moderate correlation with t. (3) Patients who experienced at least one fall demonstrated higher JPS and t. Our study shows that proprioception is the most influenced by the nature of the disease and the level of disease activity. We can see that the stability and balance functions are also greatly influenced by the patient’s falling experience and the level of pain. These findings may be useful in designing an optimal proprioception-enhancing movement training plan. Full article