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The experimental study included the design and production of ultra-high performance steel fiber-reinforced concrete (UHPFRC). The physical and mechanical properties of UHPFRC were investigated in a laboratory setting. To investigate the properties of UHPFR concrete, three types of concrete and over 70 samples were used. Following that, samples were created to test the anchors' load-bearing performance. Six concrete slabs with a total of 108 pre-installed anchor samples and six concrete slabs with 108 post-installed chemical anchor samples were created. The analysis of the test findings comprised all individual results as well as the definition of the relationship between the anchor's tensile load capacity and other parameters. To accurately determine the individual influence of the investigated factors as well as their combined impact, a factorial experiment, and artificial neural networks were used in addition to normal statistical numerical studies. It was determined that both approaches offer advantages. The results obtained show matches in certain parts. Due to the way data is processed in different ways, there are also significant differences between them.

Introduction: Acute myocardial infarction due to left main coronary artery stenosis is a rare, but life-threatening event often accompanied by sudden cardiac death and/or cardiogenic shock. The optimal revascularization strategy for unprotected left main coronary artery disease is the subject of ongoing debate, especially in urgent settings, where immediate optimal acute angiographic result is required to ensure patient survival and improve prognosis. Aim: This study aims to investigate patient characteristics and procedural and clinical variables associated with favorable outcomes of percutaneous treatment. Material and methods: A number of 40 patients undergoing PCI with acute myocardial infarction due to left main coronary artery stenosis were reviewed retrospectively from 1st January 2019 to 21st December 2022. Results: There was a total of 40 patients with a mean age of 70.83 ± 11.415. Cardiogenic shock occurred in 20 (50%) patients. Two patients (5%) died in the catheterization laboratory and 16 (40%) died during hospitalization. Twenty-two patients survived to be discharged; five patients died during the follow-up period. The overall mortality rate was 23 (57.5%). Factors associated with increased mortality included female gender (p = 0.008), cardiogenic shock (p = 0.025) and inotropes (p = 0.000). Conclusion: Acute myocardial infarction caused by left main coronary artery stenosis is complicated by high incidence of cardiogenic shock and mortality. In univariate analysis, cardio-genic shock, female gender and usage of inotropes correlated with death. Emergency PCI provides an important treatment option in these high-risk patients, but mortality remains high.

Seeds of sweet acacia (Vachellia farnesiana (L.) Wight & Arn.) were mechanically scarified and treated with concentrated sulfuric acid in order to determine the permeability degree of the seed coat. The obtained results suggest a stronger form of seed coat dormancy that prevents potential invasiveness after introduction. The species is recommended for limited cultivation in outdoor conditions and unlimited use in interior spaces as full size or bonsai trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compressive strength is a property of significant importance for civil engineering; consequently, there have been strong need for developing method, which will estimate rise of concrete compressive strength in construction. According to Serbian legislation, assessment of compressive strength in construction relies on laboratory results obtained under constant conditions. This paper presents and compares results obtained in laboratory, results obtained by maturity method, which is based on correlation between concrete compressive strength, concrete age and ambient temperature, and the results obtained by ConReg 706 instrument, which also takes in consideration external environment and concrete temperature. Two approaches of maturity method, Nurse & Saul and Arrhenius have been applied. For this research, concrete class C30/37 was used, prepared as two different mix designs, MB35 and MB 40. Casting was performed in summer time in Ostruznica bridge near Belgrade. Elements that were casted are deck slab, pile cup and bearing beam.

The aim of this paper is to open an issue on concretization of relationship between Ivo Andrić and Grigorije Božović. It has mainly been written on the similarities of their narrative poetics so far, without concrete proofs of immediate influence of one writer on the other one. It is shown that such influence is observed in the field of essays by Andrić's quoting of Grigorije Božović's thought on Njegoš. This paper, at the same time, opens an issue on mystique of their mutual silence with an emphasis on the distance, which in our opinion, existed between Božović and Andrić.

The paper explores the motif of swift runner from the New Testament in Serbian 13th and 14th century hagiographies. The motif, which comes from the Saint Paul's Epistles, was used by the Serbian writers (Sava, Domentijan and Teodosije) in its sublimed variant. The term has been borrowed from The Life of Saint Sava by Domentijan as it represents poeticised theological thought of Saint Paul. The purpose of the motif is to present the Serbian heroes as winners in the race for salvation, and as such it contributes to the overall portrayal of their personalities.

Prestressing structural elements allows an increase in the spans of reinforced concrete structures. In the design and dimensioning of prestressed reinforced concrete structures it is necessary to know, that is to adopt a number of parameters which are empirically determined. Determining the level of the tension force of the cables is of primary importance for prestressed structures. The level of tensioning force, in addition to other parameters, greatly depends on the friction coefficient of cables and the imperfection coefficient of execution. These coefficients are defined by standards for the design or by the manufacturer of the prestressing system. The coefficients are defined in wide ranges, while for the design, the knowledge of the most accurate values is necessary in order to obtain a good design and cheaper structures. Through experimental work in-situ the range of the values of the coefficient of friction of cables is determined and compared with ranges defined by the standard.

Cement based materials in the agricultural and other industrial structures are exposed to acid attack. That is the reason why the service life of structure depends on the durability of mortar or concrete elements in aggressive environment. Resistance to corrosion caused by sulphate, nitrate, carbamide, lactic acid and acetic acid was presented. Optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the effect of aggressive solutions on the microstructure and mechanical properties of mortar. The chemical resistance of mortar prisms and two types of concrete were tested according to the Koch-Steinegger method. As the condition for resistance in aggressive solution is that flexural strength of mortar prisms is no less than 70 % compared to referent prisms cured in water it can be concluded that mortar and concrete made with CEM III/B in this investigation are resistant to all treated acids.

Estimation of concrete strength is an important issue in ready-mixed concrete industry, especially, in proportioning new mixtures and for the quality assurance of the concrete produced. In this article, on the basis of the existing experimental data of compressive strength of normal and recycled aggregate concrete and equation for compressive strength calculating given in Technical regulation are compared. The accuracies of prediction by experimental data obtained in laboratory as well as by EN 1992-1-1, ACI 209 and SRPS U.M1.048 are compared on the basis of the coefficient of determination. The determination of the compressive strengths by the equation described here relies on determination of type of cement and age of concrete with the constant curing temperature.

The investigation included concrete made by using recycled brick as aggregate. Experimental work included several types of concrete made with the same cement content (385 kg/m3), and same consistency (slump about 1 cm). Recycled brick and combination of natural river aggregate and recycled brick were used as aggregates. The influence of percentage and grain size of crushed brick aggregate on concrete compressive strength, water absorption and frost resistance were observed. On the basis of the results obtained during experimental research, a general conclusion can be drawn that the application of recycled concrete as aggregate can lead to new composites with satisfactory physical-mechanical properties.

Background/Aim. Recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis is relatively frequent condition, and may have serious health consequences, like chronic vulvovaginal pain syndrome. The aim of our study was to determine possible risk factors for recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis in non-pregnant females within the reproductive age. Methods. The design of our study was of a case-control type. Case and control patients were selected from the gynecological patients at six primary care facilities in Serbia and in Montenegro. The data on the patients' health condition, concomitant therapy and diseases were taken from their records, and the data on habits were obtained by unstructured interview. For potential risk factors crude odds ratios were calculated, and then adjusted by logistic regression. Results. A total of fifty-one patients had four or more episodes of vulvovaginal candidiasis during the last year (cases), and 132 patients with one to three episodes of vulvovaginal candidiasis were sampled as controls, matched by age. The only two significant associations were found between recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis and continual wearing of panty liners during the last year (Odds ratio - ORadjusted: 3.97; confidence interval - CI: 1.57-10.02; p = 0.004), and between recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis and predominant use of vaginal tampons during menstruation in the last year (ORadjusted: 4.25; CI: 1.11-16.27; p = 0.035). The synergistic effect was observed for the concurrent continual wearing of panty liners during the last year and selfmedication with antimycotics. Conclusions. Local factors, like wearing of panty liners or use of tampons during menstruation, may promote recurrence of vulvovaginal candidiasis, especially in patients who practice selfmedication with antimycotics.

Many scientific reports over the last two decades have focused on the discovery and development of novel nNOS inhibitors. The structural identity of isoforms, bioavailability, pharmacokinetic, and safety profile issues remain major obstacles in the discovery of more potent and selective nNOS inhibitors. This review aims to provide an in-depth overview of the molecular interaction patterns between nNOS active site and inhibitors containing structurally diverse nitrogen heterocyclic compounds and highlight the structural properties needed to develop selective nNOS inhibitors. Previously published data allowed the usage of the structure-driven approach in the designing of selective nNOS inhibitors, which relies on the specific structural features required to achieve isoform-selectivity towards nNOS. The incorporation of chiral pyrrolidine ring, two aminopyridine heads, or a specific amino tail group, along with the inhibitor's capacity to adopt the curled conformation in the nNOS environment significantly strengthens the molecular interaction between the inhibitor and nNOS residues by forming specific electrostatic interactions and non-bonded contacts that are vital for isoform selectivity. Additional structure-activity relationship investigations are necessary to elucidate more structural characteristics that will ultimately resolve the exact structural basis required for isoform-selective inhibition of nNOS., (© 2024 Wiley-VHCA AG, Zurich, Switzerland.)

Reindeer husbandry in the Arctic region is strongly affected by the local climate. Reindeer herders are used to coping with adverse weather, climate, and grazing conditions through autonomous adaptation. However, today's rapidly changing Arctic environment poses new challenges to the management of herding activities. Finding means for combining traditional and scientific knowledge without depriving any of the systems of its fundamental strengths is hence deemed necessary. In this work, we apply a transdisciplinary framework for knowledge co-production involving international researchers and reindeer herders from different cooperatives in northern Finland. Through 'climate change adaptation stories', we co-explore how climate predictions can inform herders' decision making during the herding season. Relevant decisions include the anticipation of summer harvest time, the inopportune periods of cold weather in spring, and insect harassment in summer. Despite their potential benefits for climate-sensitive decisions, climate predictions have seen limited uptake, mainly due to their probabilistic nature and lower quality compared with shorter-term weather forecasts. The analysis of two different adaptation stories shows that seasonal predictions of temperature for May and June can successfully advise about the likelihood of having an earlier than normal harvest. This information can be obtained up to three months in advance, helping herders to better arrange their time for other activities. Likewise, sub-seasonal predictions of temperature during April and May can be useful to anticipate the occurrence of backwinter episodes, which can support herders in deciding whether to feed reindeer in pens for longer, avoiding putting the survival of calves at risk. This study, which would benefit from co-evaluation in real world settings and consideration of additional adaptation stories, sets the basis for a successful co-production of climate services with Arctic reindeer herders. This research shows the potential to enhance the resilience of Polar regions, offering opportunities for adaptation while supporting the sustainability and culture of traditional practices of Arctic communities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Storylines are introduced in climate science to provide unity of discourse, integrate the physical and socioeconomic components of phenomena, and make climate evolution more tangible. The use of this concept by multiple scholar communities and the novelty of some of its applications renders the concept ambiguous nonetheless, because the term hides behind a wide range of purposes, understandings, and methodologies. This semi-systematic literature review identifies three approaches that use storylines as a keystone concept: scenarios-familiar for their use in IPCC reports-discourse-analytical approaches, and physical climate storylines. After screening peer-reviewed articles that mention climate and storylines, 270 articles are selected, with 158, 55, and 57 in each category. The results indicate that each scholarly community works with a finite and different set of methods and diverging understandings. Moreover, these approaches have received criticism in their assembly of storylines: either for lacking explicitness or for the homogeneity of expertise involved. This article proposes that cross-pollination among the approaches can improve the usefulness and usability of climate-related storylines. Among good practices are the involvement of a broader range of scientific disciplines and expertise, use of mixed-methods, assessment of storylines against a wider set of quality criteria, and targeted stakeholder participation in key stages of the process., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Global Challenges published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Predicting the variations in climate for the coming 1-10 years is of great interest for decision makers, as this time horizon coincides with the strategic planning of stakeholders from climate-vulnerable sectors such as agriculture. This study attempts to illustrate the potential value of decadal predictions in the development of climate services by establishing interactions and collaboration with stakeholders concerned with food production and security. Building on our experience from interacting with users and the increased understanding of their needs gathered over the years through our participation in various European activities and initiatives, we developed a decadal forecast product that provides tailored and user-friendly information about multi-year dry conditions for the coming five years over global wheat harvesting regions. This study revealed that the coproduction approach, where the interaction between the user and climate service provider is established at an early stage of forecast product development, is a fundamental step to successfully provide useful and ultimately actionable information to the interested stakeholders. The study also provides insights that shed light on the reasons for the delayed entry of decadal predictions in the climate services discourse and practice, obtained from surveying climate scientists and discussing with decadal prediction experts. Finally, it shows the key challenges that this new source of climate information still faces., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2022 The Authors.)

Significance: Neurovascular coupling (NVC) is the process that increases cerebral blood flow in response to neuronal activity. NVC is orchestrated by signaling between neurons, glia, and vascular cells. Elucidating the mechanisms underlying NVC at different vascular segments and in different brain regions is imperative for understanding of brain function and mechanisms of dysfunction. Aim : Our goal is to describe a protocol for concurrently monitoring stimulation-evoked neuronal activity and resultant vascular responses in acute brain slices. Approach: We describe a step-by-step protocol that allows the study of endogenous NVC mechanisms engaged by neuronal activity in a controlled, reduced preparation. Results : This ex vivo NVC assay allows researchers to disentangle the mechanisms regulating the contractile responses of different vascular segments in response to neuronal firing independent of flow and pressure mediated effects from connected vessels. It also enables easy pharmacological manipulations in a simplified, reduced system and can be combined with Ca 2 + imaging or broader electrophysiology techniques to obtain multimodal data during NVC. Conclusions : The ex vivo NVC assay will facilitate investigations of cellular and molecular mechanisms that give rise to NVC and should serve as a valuable complement to in vivo imaging methods., (© 2022 The Authors.)

Purpose: The use of antioxidants is common practice in the management of infertile patients. However, there are no established guidelines by professional societies on antioxidant use for male infertility., Materials and Methods: Using an online survey, this study aimed to evaluate the practice pattern of reproductive specialists to determine the clinical utility of oxidative stress (OS) testing and antioxidant prescriptions to treat male infertility., Results: Responses from 1,327 participants representing 6 continents, showed the largest participant representation being from Asia (46.8%). The majority of participants were attending physicians (59.6%), with 61.3% having more than 10 years of experience in the field of male infertility. Approximately two-thirds of clinicians (65.7%) participated in this survey did not order any diagnostic tests for OS. Sperm DNA fragmentation was the most common infertility test beyond a semen analysis that was prescribed to study oxidative stress-related dysfunctions (53.4%). OS was mainly tested in the presence of lifestyle risk factors (24.6%) or sperm abnormalities (16.3%). Interestingly, antioxidants were prescribed by 85.6% of clinicians, for a duration of 3 (43.7%) or 3-6 months (38.6%). A large variety of antioxidants and dietary supplements were prescribed, and scientific evidence were mostly considered to be modest to support their clinical use. Results were not influenced by the physician's age, geographic origin, experience or training in male infertility., Conclusions: This study is the largest online survey performed to date on this topic and demonstrates 1) a worldwide understanding of the importance of this therapeutic option, and 2) a widely prevalent use of antioxidants to treat male infertility. Finally, the necessity of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines from professional societies is highlighted., Competing Interests: The authors have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2021 Korean Society for Sexual Medicine and Andrology.)

Homocysteine (HCY), a redox-active metabolite of the methionine cycle, is of particular clinical interest because of its association with various neurodegenerative diseases including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It has been previously established that HCY exacerbates damage to motor neurons from reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as hydrogen peroxide. To assess the role of HCY at the mammalian neuromuscular junction, neurotransmission was monitored by electrophysiology at the mouse epitrochleoanconeus muscle. Preparations were preincubated in HCY before inducing ROS and recordings were taken before and after ROS treatment. In this study, HCY was observed to sensitize the neuromuscular junction to ROS-induced depression of spontaneous transmission frequency, an effect we found to be mediated by a N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and nitric oxide (NO). The NMDAR antagonist D, L-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid prevented the HCY-induced sensitization to oxidative stress. Disrupting NO activity with either the nitric oxide synthase I antagonist Nω-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride or the NO scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-imidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide potassium salt also prevented sensitization. Moreover, replacing HCY with the exogenous NO donor Diethylamine NONOate diethylammonium was sufficient to reconstitute the effects of HCY-induced sensitization to ROS. Interestingly, a novel secondary effect was observed where HCY itself depresses quantal content, an effect found to be mediated by NMDARs independently of nitric oxide and ROS. Collectively, these data present a novel model of two distinct pathways through which HCY alters neurotransmission at the neuromuscular junction. Characterizing HCY's mechanism of action is of particular clinical relevance as many treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are centered on mitigating HCY-induced pathologies.

Visually-guided action of tossing to a target allows examining coordination between mechanical information for maintaining posture while throwing and visual information for aiming. Previous research indicates that relationships between visual and mechanical information persist in tossing behavior long enough for mechanical cues to prompt recall of past visual impressions. Multifractal analysis might model the long-term coordinations among movement components as visual information changes. We asked 32 adult participants (6 female, 25 male, one not conforming to gender binary; aged M=19.77, SD=0.88) to complete an aimed-tossing task in three blocks of ten trials each. Block 1 oriented participants to the task. Participants wore right-shifting goggles in Block 2 and removed them for Block 3. Motion-capture suits collected movement data of the head, hips, and hands. According to regression modeling of tossing performance, multifractality at hand and at hips together supported use of visual information, and adaptation to wearing/removing of goggles depended on multifractality across the hips, head, and hands. Vector-autoregression modeling shows that hip multifractality promoted head multifractality but that hand fluctuations drew on head and hip multifractality. We propose that multifractality could be an information substrate whose spread across the movements systems supports the perceptual coordination for the development of dexterity., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Growth and development of plants largely depends on their adaptation ability in a changing climate. This is particularly true on heavy metal contaminated soils, but the interaction of heavy metal stress and climate on plant performance has not been intensively investigated. The aim of the present study was to elucidate if transgenic poplars (Populus tremula x P. alba) with enhanced glutathione content possess an enhanced tolerance to drought and lead (Pb) exposure (single and in combination) and if they are good candidates for phytoremediation of Pb contaminated soil. Lead exposure reduced growth and biomass accumulation only in above-ground tissue of wild type poplar, although most of lead accumulated in the roots. Drought caused a decline of the water content rather than reduced biomass production, while Pb counteracted this decline in the combined exposure. Apparently, metals such as Pb possess a protective function against drought, because they interact with abscisic acid dependent stomatal closure. Lead exposure decreased while drought increased glutathione content in leaves of both plant types. Lead accumulation was higher in the roots of transgenic plants, presumably as a result of chelation by glutathione. Water deprivation enhanced Pb accumulation in the roots, but Pb was subject to leakage out of the roots after re-watering. Transgenic plants showed better adaptation under mild drought plus Pb exposure partially due to improved glutathione synthesis. However, the transgenic plants cannot be considered as a good candidate for phytoremediation of Pb, due to its small translocation to the shoots and its leakage out of the roots upon re-watering., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The new EU strategy on adaptation to climate change suggests flexible and participatory approaches. Face-to-face contact, although it involves time-consuming procedures with a limited audience, has often been considered the most effective participatory approach. In recent years, however, there has been an increase in the visibility of different citizens' initiatives in the online world, which strengthens the possibility of greater citizen agency. This paper investigates whether the Internet can ensure efficient public participation with meaningful engagement in climate change adaptation. In elucidating issues regarding climate change adaptation, we developed an eParticipation framework to explore adaptation capacity of agriculture to climate change in Northern Italy. Farmers were mobilised using a pre-existing online network. First they took part in an online questionnaire for revealing their perceptions of and reactions to the impacts of ongoing changes in agriculture. We used these results to suggest a portfolio of policy measures and to set evaluation criteria. Farmers then evaluated these policy options, using a multi criteria analysis tool with a simple user-friendly interface. Our results showed that eParticipation is efficient: it supports a rapid data collection, while involving high number of participants. Moreover, we demonstrated that the digital divide is decreasingly an obstacle for using online spaces for public engagement. This research does not present eParticipation as a panacea. Rather, eParticipation was implemented with well-established participatory approaches to both validate the results and, consequently, communicate meaningful messages on local agricultural adaptation practices to regional decision-makers. Feedbacks from the regional decision-makers showed their interest in using eParticipation to improve communication with farmers in the future. We expect that, with further Internet proliferation, eParticipation may allow the inclusion of more representative samples, which would contribute to an informed and legitimate decision-making process., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Sideritis scardica Griseb. (ironwort, mountain tea), an endemic plant of the Balkan Peninsula, has been used in traditional medicine in the treatment of gastrointestinal complaints, inflammation, and rheumatic disorders. This study aimed to evaluate its gastroprotective and anti-inflammatory activities. Besides, continuously increasing interest in assessing the role of the plant active constituents preventing the risk of cancer was a reason to make a detailed examination of the investigated ethanol, diethyl ether, ethyl acetate, and N-butanol extracts regarding cytotoxicity. Oral administration of the investigated extracts caused a dose-dependent anti-inflammatory effect in a model of carrageenan-induced rat paw edema. Gastroprotective activity of the extracts was investigated using an ethanol-induced acute stress ulcer in rats. The cytotoxic activity of plant extracts was assessed on PBMC, B16, and HL-60 cells and compared to the cytotoxicity of phenolic compounds identified in extracts. Apoptotic and necrotic cell death were analyzed by double staining with fluoresceinisothiocyanate (FITC)-conjugated annexin V and PI. The developed HPLC method enabled qualitative fingerprint analysis of phenolic compounds in the investigated extracts. Compared to the effect of the positive control, the anti-inflammatory drug indomethacine (4 mg/kg), which produced a 50 % decrease in inflammation, diethyl ether and N-butanol extracts exhibited about the same effect in doses of 200 and 100 mg/kg (53.6 and 48.7 %; 48.4 and 49.9 %, respectively). All investigated extracts produced dose-dependent gastroprotective activity with the efficacy comparable to that of the reference drug ranitidine. The diethyl ether extract showed significant dose-dependent cytotoxicity on B16 cells and HL-60 cells, decreasing cell growth to 51.3 % and 77.5 % of control, respectively, when used at 100 µg/mL. It seems that phenolic compounds (apigenin, luteolin, and their corresponding glycosides) are responsible for the diethyl ether extract cytotoxic effect. It also appears that induction of oxidative stress might be involved in its cytotoxicity, since B16 and HL-60 cells increased their ROS production in response to treatment with diethyl ether extract. Neither of the tested extracts nor any phenolic compounds showed significant cytotoxic effect to human PBMC. These results demonstrated the potent anti-inflammatory and gastroprotective activities, as well as the promising cytotoxicity., (© Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)