Search Results (112,382)

Graviera Naxos, a renowned cheese with Protected Designation of Origin status, is crafted from a blend of cow, goat, and sheep milk. This study focused on assessing the Sr isotopic and multi-elemental composition of both the processed cheese and its ingredients, as well as the environmental context of Naxos Island, including samples of milk, water, soil, and feed. The objective was to delineate the geochemical signature of Graviera Naxos cheese and to explore the utility of Sr isotopes as indicators of geographic origin. The ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values for Graviera Naxos samples ranged from 0.70891 to 0.70952, indicating a relatively narrow range. However, the Sr isotopic signature of milk, heavily influenced by the feed, which originates from geologically distinct areas, does not always accurately reflect the local breeding environment. Multi-elemental analysis revealed variations in milk composition based on type and season; yet, no notable differences were found between raw and pasteurized milk. A mixing model evaluating the contributions of milk, sea salt, and rennet to the cheese’s Sr isotopic signature suggested a significant average contribution of 73.1% from sea salt. This study highlights the complexities of linking dairy products with their geographical origins and emphasizes the need for sophisticated geochemical authentication methods. Full article

Currently, the lack of physical activity can lead to health problems, with the increase in obesity in children between 8 and 18 years old being of particular interest because it is a formative stage. One of the aspects of trying to solve this problem is the need for a standardized, less subjective, and more efficient method of evaluating physical condition in these children compared to traditional approaches. Objective: Develop a multiplatform based on computer vision technology that allows the evaluation of the physical fitness of schoolchildren using smartphones. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on schoolchildren aged 8 to 18 years of both sexes. The sample was 228 schoolchildren (128 boys and 108 girls). Anthropometric measurements of weight, height, and waist circumference were evaluated. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Four physical tests were evaluated: flexibility (sit and reach), horizontal jump (explosive strength), biceps curl (right arm strength resistance), and sit-ups (abdominal muscle resistance). With the information collected traditionally and by filming the physical tests, a computer vision system was developed to evaluate physical fitness in schoolchildren. Results: The implemented system obtained an acceptable level of precision, reaching 94% precision in field evaluations and a percentage greater than 95% in laboratory evaluations for testing. The developed mobile application also obtained a high accuracy percentage, greater than 95% in two tests and close to 85% in the remaining two. Finally, the Systematic Software Quality Model was used to determine user satisfaction with the presented prototype. Regarding usability, a satisfaction level of 97% and a reliability level of 100% was obtained. Conclusion: Compared to traditional evaluation and computer vision, the proposal was satisfactorily validated. These results were obtained using the Expanded Systematic Software Quality Model, which reached an “advanced” quality level, satisfying functionality, usability, and reliability characteristics. This advance demonstrates that the integration of computer vision is feasible, highly effective in the educational context, and applicable in the evaluations of physical education classes. Full article

Treatment of fatty acid oxidation disorders is based on dietary, pharmacological and metabolic decompensation measures. It is essential to provide the patient with sufficient glucose to prevent lipolysis and to avoid the use of fatty acids as fuel as far as possible. Dietary management consists of preventing periods of fasting and restricting fat intake by increasing carbohydrate intake, while maintaining an adequate and uninterrupted caloric intake. In long-chain deficits, long-chain triglyceride restriction should be 10% of total energy, with linoleic acid and linolenic acid intake of 3–4% and 0.5–1% (5/1–10/1 ratio), with medium-chain triglyceride supplementation at 10–25% of total energy (total MCT+LCT ratio = 20–35%). Trihepatnoin is a new therapeutic option with a good safety and efficacy profile. Patients at risk of rhabdomyolysis should ingest MCT or carbohydrates or a combination of both 20 min before exercise. In medium- and short-chain deficits, dietary modifications are not advised (except during exacerbations), with MCT contraindicated and slow sugars recommended 20 min before any significant physical exertion. Parents should be alerted to the need to increase the amount and frequency of carbohydrate intake in stressful situations. The main measure in emergency hospital treatment is the administration of IV glucose. The use of carnitine remains controversial and new therapeutic options are under investigation. Full article

Some olive cultivars grown in southeastern Italy are characterized by the production of olives with a reduced level of bitterness. They are known as sweet olive cultivars and fruits are usually consumed directly or cooked without any debittering process, offering either health benefits to consumers, thanks to the high content of antioxidants, or an economic benefit to farmers for their higher price with respect to both table and oil olives. This study evaluates and compares the organoleptic, pomological, chemical, and physical parameters of seven sweet olive cultivars at different ripening degrees in the Puglia region over 8 weeks of maturity stage for two consecutive seasons (2022 and 2023). The organoleptic evaluation was performed by a restricted panel of usual consumers/experts of sweet olives. The results showed a higher preference for the olive cultivars locally named Triggiano Dolce, Cerasella, and Mele. Significant differences in weight, length, and width of the fruits were observed based on both cultivar and year. The phenolic composition of olive cultivars was significantly affected by both cultivar and harvest year, with Cazzinicchio and Cellina di Nardò having the highest total polyphenols. The analysis of water fraction extracted from olive samples by liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry led to the identification of eleven compounds belonging to the secoiroids, phenylpropanoids, phenylethanolids, and flavonoids classes. The comparison of these compounds among the studied cultivars highlighted significant differences. Full article

Congenital or acquired hand differences, including unilateral below-elbow deficiencies, present complex challenges in pediatric rehabilitation. Surgical management and prosthetic provision represent a big challenge to find a good balance for guaranteeing optimal hand function. There is no specific assessment tool for measuring these aspects in the Italian context. The present study investigates the psychometric properties of the ABILHAND-Kids in children with congenital unilateral below-elbow deficiencies and acquired amputation of the upper limb. We measure internal consistency using Cronbach coefficient alpha and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for measuring test-retest reliability. Differences in hand function in both children with acquired or congenital diseases were also investigated. Participants to the study were 107 (49 F and 58 M) children, with a mean (SD) age of 8.88 (4.25). For test retest reliability, conducted on a sub-sample of 58 children, the ICC was 0.92, while for internal consistency, the Cronbach coefficient alpha was 0.90. We did not find statistically significant differences in scoring (p = 0.33) in the use (mean 29.25 SD 6.58) or non-use of a prosthetic device (mean 30.74 SD 7.43), while statistically significant differences were found in hand function (p < 0.01) for children who had a congenital impairment (mean 31.87 SD 6.49) and children who had an acquired amputation (mean 27.77 SD 6.60). In conclusion, the ABILHAND-Kids showed good internal consistency and reliability and can capture differences in hand function in children with both congenital and acquired hand disorders. Full article

Transitioning from childhood into adolescence is an extraordinary time of life, associated with major physical, emotional, cognitive, and social changes and characterized by dynamic development in which interaction with the environment modulates the individual resources responsible for well-being and health. This sensitive period is the time when, in addition to hormonal, metabolic, and neural changes, certain behavioral strategies begin to take shape that will shortly go on to define the emotional, social, and cultural identity of the individual. This narrative review aimed to uncover the crucial processes underlying the transition by identifying processes that are responsible for cognitive, psychosocial, and emotional development, in the absence of disease. For this aim, we highlight (1) the physical, psychological, and social determinants during the transition from childhood to adolescence; (2) the role of health-related variables in resilience or vulnerability mechanisms; and (3) recent school-based strategies to promote health and well-being. Recognizing that health and well-being are the result of the interaction of many biological, psychological, social, cultural, and physical factors will lead to comprehensive health promotion involving all actors joining the growth process, from health professionals and the educational community to parents and community. Furthermore, it is important that psychosocial dimensions are strengthened already during childhood to prevent the onset of frailty and illness in adolescence. Full article

Due to the material properties of current ski face masks for adolescents, moisture in exhaled air can become trapped within the material fibers and freeze, leading to potential issues such as breathing difficulties and increased risk of facial frostbite after prolonged skiing. This paper proposes a research approach combining computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and ergonomics to address these issues and enhance the comfort of adolescent skiers. We developed head and face mask models based on the head dimensions of 15–17-year-old males. For enclosed cavities, ensuring the smooth expulsion of exhaled air to prevent re-inhalation is the primary challenge. Through fluid simulation of airflow characteristics within the cavity, we evaluated three different inlet configurations. The results indicate that the location of the air inlets significantly affects the airflow characteristics within the cavity. The side inlet design (type II) showed an average face temperature of 35.35 °C, a 38.5% reduction in average CO₂ concentration within the cavity, and a smaller vortex area compared to the other two inlet configurations. Although the difference in airflow velocity within the cavity among the three configurations was minimal, the average exit velocity differed by up to 0.11 m/s. Thus, we conclude that the side inlet configuration offers minimal obstruction to airflow circulation and better thermal insulation when used in the design of fully enclosed helmets. This enhances the safety and comfort of adolescent wearers during physical activities in cold environments. Through this study, we aim to further promote the development of skiing education, enhance the overall quality of adolescents’ skiing, and thus provide them with more opportunities for the future. Full article

Nebivolol hydrochloride (NEB), a 3^rd-generation beta-blocker, was recently explored in managing open-angle glaucoma due to its mechanism of action involving nitric oxide release for the vasodilation. To overcome the issue of low ocular bioavailability and the systemic side effects associated with conventional ocular formulation (aqueous suspension), we designed and optimized polycaprolactone polymeric nanoparticles (NEB-PNPs) by applying design of experiments (DoE). The particle size and drug loading of the optimized NEB-PNPs were 270.9 ± 6.3 nm and 28.8 ± 2.4%, respectively. The optimized NEB-PNPs were suspended in a dual-sensitive in situ gel prepared using a mixture of P407 + P188 (as a thermo-sensitive polymer) and κCRG (as an ion-sensitive polymer), reported previously by our group. The NEB-PNPs-loaded in situ gel (NEB-PNPs-ISG) formulation was characterized for its rheological behavior, physical and chemical stability, in vitro drug release, and in vivo efficacy. The NEB-PNPs-loaded in situ gel, in ocular pharmacokinetic studies, achieved higher aqueous humor exposure (AUC_0–t = 329.2 ng × h/mL) and for longer duration (mean residence time = 9.7 h) than compared to the aqueous suspension of plain NEB (AUC_0–t = 189 ng × h/mL and mean residence time = 6.1 h) reported from our previous work. The pharmacokinetic performance of NEB-PNPs-loaded in situ gel translated into a pharmacodynamic response with 5-fold increase in the overall percent reduction in intraocular pressure by the formulation compared to the aqueous suspension of plain NEB reported from our previous work. Further, the mean response time of NEB-PNPs-loaded in situ gel (12.4 ± 0.6 h) was three times higher than aqueous suspension of plain NEB (4.06 ± 0.3 h). Full article

High-resolution three-dimensional (3D) variations in ocean temperature and salinity fields are of great significance for ocean environment monitoring. Currently, AI-based 3D temperature and salinity field predictions rely on expensive 3D data, and as the prediction period increases, the stacking of high-resolution 3D data greatly increases the difficulty of model training. This paper transforms the prediction of 3D temperature and salinity into the prediction of sea surface elements and the inversion of subsurface temperature and salinity using sea surface elements, by leveraging the relationship between sea surface factors and subsurface temperature and salinity. This method comprehensively utilizes multi-source ocean data to avoid the issue of data volume caused by stacking high-resolution historical data. Specifically, the model first utilizes 1/4° low-resolution satellite remote sensing data to construct prediction models for sea surface temperature (SST) and sea level anomaly (SLA), and then uses 1/12° high-resolution temperature and salinity data as labels to build an inversion model of subsurface temperature and salinity based on SST and SLA. The prediction model and inversion model are integrated to obtain the final high-resolution 3D temperature and salinity prediction model. Experimental results show that the 20-day prediction results in the two sea areas of the coastal waters of China and the Northwest Pacific show good performance, accurately predicting ocean temperature and salinity in the vast majority of layers, and demonstrate higher resource utilization efficiency. Full article

Trustworthiness assessment is an essential step to assure that interdependent systems perform critical functions as anticipated, even under adverse conditions. In this paper, a holistic trustworthiness assessment framework for ultra-wideband self-localization is proposed, including the attributes of reliability, security, privacy, and resilience. Our goal is to provide guidance for evaluating a system’s trustworthiness based on objective evidence, i.e., so-called trustworthiness indicators. These indicators are carefully selected through the threat analysis of the particular system under evaluation. Our approach guarantees that the resulting trustworthiness indicators correspond to chosen real-world threats. Moreover, experimental evaluations are conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. While the framework is tailored for this specific use case, the process itself serves as a versatile template, which can be used in other applications in the domains of the Internet of Things or cyber–physical systems. Full article

Downscaling seasonal climate forecasts using regional climate models (RCMs) became an emerging area during the last decade owing to RCMs’ more comprehensive representation of the important physical processes at a finer resolution. However, it is crucial to test RCMs for the most appropriate model setup for a particular purpose over a given region through numerical experiments. Thus, this sensitivity study was aimed at identifying an optimum configuration in the Weather, Research, and Forecasting (WRF) model over Ethiopia. A total of 35 WRF simulations with different combinations of parameterization schemes for cumulus (CU), planetary boundary layer (PBL), cloud microphysics (MP), longwave (LW), and shortwave (SW) radiation were tested during the summer (June to August, JJA) season of 2002. The WRF simulations used a two-domain configuration with a 12 km nested domain covering Ethiopia. The initial and boundary forcing data for WRF were from the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR). The simulations were compared with station and gridded observations to evaluate their ability to reproduce different aspects of JJA rainfall. An objective ranking method using an aggregate score of several statistics was used to select the best-performing model configuration. The JJA rainfall was found to be most sensitive to the choice of cumulus parameterization and least sensitive to cloud microphysics. All the simulations captured the spatial distribution of JJA rainfall with the pattern correlation coefficient (PCC) ranging from 0.89 to 0.94. However, all the simulations overestimated the JJA rainfall amount and the number of rainy days. Out of the 35 simulations, one that used the Grell CU, ACM2 PBL, LIN MP, RRTM LW, and Dudhia SW schemes performed the best in reproducing the amount and spatio-temporal distribution of JJA rainfall and was selected for downscaling the CFSv2 operational forecast. Full article

A review of the landscape of CPT symmetry tests is presented, centered around the Standard-Model Extension and focusing on tests in the neutral meson system. A discussion of the relevant theories summarizes original ideas. It is followed by a short transition into phenomenology. A more detailed parameterization is presented. Various experiments are used to deliver an overview of testing CPT from every angle that the theory suggested and that the neutral meson (NM) system could accommodate. Full article

Crohn’s disease (CD) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affecting the gastrointestinal tract that can also cause extra-intestinal complications. Following exposure to the mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) encoding the SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein, some patients experienced a lack of response to the biological drug Adalimumab and a recrudescence of the disease. In CD patients in progression, resistant to considered biological therapy, an abnormal increase in intestinal permeability was observed, more often with a modulated expression of different proteins such as Aquaporin 8 (AQP8) and in tight junctions (e.g., ZO-1, Claudin1, Claudin2, Occludin), especially during disease flares. The aim of this study is to investigate how the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine could interfere with IBD therapy and contribute to disease exacerbation. We investigated the role of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein, transported by extracellular vesicles (EVs), and the impact of various EVs components, namely, exosomes (EXOs) and microvesicles (MVs), in modulating the expression of molecules involved in the exacerbation of CD, which remains unknown. Full article

The older adult population in Thailand has been steadily increasing in recent years, and urbanization has resulted in many older adults living independently, leaving many at nutritional risk. The purpose of this research is to explore food security among Thai older adults using a simple screening tool, the DETERMINE tool, as well as from three surveys which reflect seniors’ health and ultimately food security including the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), the self-efficacy for physical activity scale (SEPAS), and the health literacy questionnaire. The DETERMINE tool was used in Thailand for the first time in this study. The findings revealed a moderate risk of food insecurity amongst participants, as most of them claimed to have underlying diseases, eat alone, eat a few nutrient-rich foods, and take medication. The MMSE, SEPAS, and health literacy questionnaire results suggested that food security was found to be negatively correlated with higher cognitive ability, higher physical activity, self-efficacy, and higher health literacy. In conclusion, there appears to be a high risk for malnutrition among older adults in Thailand, particularly in those with low income and underlying diseases. Full article

This study focuses on the promising use of biospeckle technology to detect water stress in plants, a complex physiological mechanism. This involves monitoring the temporal activity of biospeckle pattern to study the occurrence of stress within the leaf. The effects of water stress in plants can involve physical and biochemical changes. Some of these changes may alter the optical scattering properties of leaves. The present study therefore proposes to test the potential of a biospeckle measurement to observe the temporal evolution in different varieties of sunflower plants under water stress. An experiment applying controlled water stress with osmotic shock using polyethylene glycol 6000 (PEG) was conducted on two sunflower varieties: one sensitive, and the other more tolerant to water stress. Temporal monitoring of biospeckle activity in these plants was performed using the average value of difference (AVD) indicator. Results indicate that AVD highlights the difference in biospeckle activity between day and night, with lower activity at night for both varieties. The addition of PEG entailed a gradual decrease in values throughout the experiment, particularly for the sensitive variety. The results obtained are consistent with the behaviour of the varieties submitted to water stress. Indeed, a few days after the introduction of PEG, a stronger decrease in AVD indicator values was observed for the sensitive variety than for the resistant variety. This study highlights the dynamics of biospeckle activity for different sunflower varieties undergoing water stress and can be considered as a promising phenotyping tool. Full article