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The focus of this study was to analyze the content, distribution, and comparative genome relationships of 996 chromosome bin-mapped expressed sequence tags (ESTs) accounting for 2266 restriction fragments (loci) on the homoeologous group 3 chromosomes of hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Of these loci, 634, 884, and 748 were mapped on chromosomes 3A, 3B, and 3D, respectively. The individual chromosome bin maps revealed bins with a high density of mapped ESTs in the distal region and bins of low density in the proximal region of the chromosome arms, with the exception of 3DS and 3DL. These distributions were more localized on the higher-resolution group 3 consensus map with intermediate regions of high-mapped-EST density on both chromosome arms. Gene ontology (GO) classification of mapped ESTs was not significantly different for homoeologous group 3 chromosomes compared to the other groups. A combined analysis of the individual bin maps using 537 of the mapped ESTs revealed rearrangements between the group 3 chromosomes. Approximately 232 (44%) of the consensus mapped ESTs matched sequences on rice chromosome 1 and revealed large- and small-scale differences in gene order. Of the group 3 mapped EST unigenes approximately 21 and 32% matched the Arabidopsis coding regions and proteins, respectively, but no chromosome-level gene order conservation was detected.

Because of the huge size of the common wheat (Triticum aestivum L., 2n = 6x = 42, AABBDD) genome of 17,300 Mb, sequencing and mapping of the expressed portion is a logical first step for gene discovery. Here we report mapping of 7104 expressed sequence tag (EST) unigenes by Southern hybridization into a chromosome bin map using a set of wheat aneuploids and deletion stocks. Each EST detected a mean of 4.8 restriction fragments and 2.8 loci. More loci were mapped in the B genome (5774) than in the A (5173) or D (5146) genomes. The EST density was significantly higher for the D genome than for the A or B. In general, EST density increased relative to the physical distance from the centromere. The majority of EST-dense regions are in the distal parts of chromosomes. Most of the agronomically important genes are located in EST-dense regions. The chromosome bin map of ESTs is a unique resource for SNP analysis, comparative mapping, structural and functional analysis, and polyploid evolution, as well as providing a framework for constructing a sequence-ready, BAC-contig map of the wheat genome.

A total of 1918 loci, detected by the hybridization of 938 expressed sequence tag unigenes (ESTs) from 26 Triticeae cDNA libraries, were mapped to wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) homoeologous group 4 chromosomes using a set of deletion, ditelosomic, and nulli-tetrasomic lines. The 1918 EST loci were not distributed uniformly among the three group 4 chromosomes; 41, 28, and 31% mapped to chromosomes 4A, 4B, and 4D, respectively. This pattern is in contrast to the cumulative results of EST mapping in all homoeologous groups, as reported elsewhere, that found the highest proportion of loci mapped to the B genome. Sixty-five percent of these 1918 loci mapped to the long arms of homoeologous group 4 chromosomes, while 35% mapped to the short arms. The distal regions of chromosome arms showed higher numbers of loci than the proximal regions, with the exception of 4DL. This study confirmed the complex structure of chromosome 4A that contains two reciprocal translocations and two inversions, previously identified. An additional inversion in the centromeric region of 4A was revealed. A consensus map for homoeologous group 4 was developed from 119 ESTs unique to group 4. Forty-nine percent of these ESTs were found to be homoeologous to sequences on rice chromosome 3, 12% had matches with sequences on other rice chromosomes, and 39% had no matches with rice sequences at all. Limited homology (only 26 of the 119 consensus ESTs) was found between wheat ESTs on homoeologous group 4 and the Arabidopsis genome. Forty-two percent of the homoeologous group 4 ESTs could be classified into functional categories on the basis of blastX searches against all protein databases.

This report describes the rationale, approaches, organization, and resource development leading to a large-scale deletion bin map of the hexaploid (2n = 6x = 42) wheat genome (Triticum aestivum L.). Accompanying reports in this issue detail results from chromosome bin-mapping of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) representing genes onto the seven homoeologous chromosome groups and a global analysis of the entire mapped wheat EST data set. Among the resources developed were the first extensive public wheat EST collection (113,220 ESTs). Described are protocols for sequencing, sequence processing, EST nomenclature, and the assembly of ESTs into contigs. These contigs plus singletons (unassembled ESTs) were used for selection of distinct sequence motif unigenes. Selected ESTs were rearrayed, validated by 5' and 3' sequencing, and amplified for probing a series of wheat aneuploid and deletion stocks. Images and data for all Southern hybridizations were deposited in databases and were used by the coordinators for each of the seven homoeologous chromosome groups to validate the mapping results. Results from this project have established the foundation for future developments in wheat genomics.

To localize wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) ESTs on chromosomes, 882 homoeologous group 6-specific ESTs were identified by physically mapping 7965 singletons from 37 cDNA libraries on 146 chromosome, arm, and sub-arm aneuploid and deletion stocks. The 882 ESTs were physically mapped to 25 regions (bins) flanked by 23 deletion breakpoints. Of the 5154 restriction fragments detected by 882 ESTs, 2043 (loci) were localized to group 6 chromosomes and 806 were mapped on other chromosome groups. The number of loci mapped was greatest on chromosome 6B and least on 6D. The 264 ESTs that detected orthologous loci on all three homoeologs using one restriction enzyme were used to construct a consensus physical map. The physical distribution of ESTs was uneven on chromosomes with a tendency toward higher densities in the distal halves of chromosome arms. About 43% of the wheat group 6 ESTs identified rice homologs upon comparisons of genome sequences. Fifty-eight percent of these ESTs were present on rice chromosome 2 and the remaining were on other rice chromosomes. Even within the group 6 bins, rice chromosomal blocks identified by 1-6 wheat ESTs were homologous to up to 11 rice chromosomes. These rice-block contigs were used to resolve the order of wheat ESTs within each bin.

We constructed high-density deletion bin maps of wheat chromosomes 5A, 5B, and 5D, including 2338 loci mapped with 1052 EST probes and 217 previously mapped loci (total 2555 loci). This information was combined to construct a consensus chromosome bin map of group 5 including 24 bins. A relatively higher number of loci were mapped on chromosome 5B (38%) compared to 5A (34%) and 5D (28%). Differences in the levels of polymorphism among the three chromosomes were partially responsible for these differences. A higher number of duplicated loci was found on chromosome 5B (42%). Three times more loci were mapped on the long arms than on the short arms, and a significantly higher number of probes, loci, and duplicated loci were mapped on the distal halves than on the proximal halves of the chromosome arms. Good overall colinearity was observed among the three homoeologous group 5 chromosomes, except for the previously known 5AL/4AL translocation and a putative small pericentric inversion in chromosome 5A. Statistically significant colinearity was observed between low-copy-number ESTs from wheat homoeologous group 5 and rice chromosomes 12 (88 ESTs), 9 (72 ESTs), and 3 (84 ESTs).

A total of 944 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) generated 2212 EST loci mapped to homoeologous group 1 chromosomes in hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). EST deletion maps and the consensus map of group 1 chromosomes were constructed to show EST distribution. EST loci were unevenly distributed among chromosomes 1A, 1B, and 1D with 660, 826, and 726, respectively. The number of EST loci was greater on the long arms than on the short arms for all three chromosomes. The distribution of ESTs along chromosome arms was nonrandom with EST clusters occurring in the distal regions of short arms and middle regions of long arms. Duplications of group 1 ESTs in other homoeologous groups occurred at a rate of 35.5%. Seventy-five percent of wheat chromosome 1 ESTs had significant matches with rice sequences (E < or = e(-10)), where large regions of conservation occurred between wheat consensus chromosome 1 and rice chromosome 5 and between the proximal portion of the long arm of wheat consensus chromosome 1 and rice chromosome 10. Only 9.5% of group 1 ESTs showed significant matches to Arabidopsis genome sequences. The results presented are useful for gene mapping and evolutionary and comparative genomics of grasses.

The objectives of this study were to develop a high-density chromosome bin map of homoeologous group 7 in hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), to identify gene distribution in these chromosomes, and to perform comparative studies of wheat with rice and barley. We mapped 2148 loci from 919 EST clones onto group 7 chromosomes of wheat. In the majority of cases the numbers of loci were significantly lower in the centromeric regions and tended to increase in the distal regions. The level of duplicated loci in this group was 24% with most of these loci being localized toward the distal regions. One hundred nineteen EST probes that hybridized to three fragments and mapped to the three group 7 chromosomes were designated landmark probes and were used to construct a consensus homoeologous group 7 map. An additional 49 probes that mapped to 7AS, 7DS, and the ancestral translocated segment involving 7BS also were designated landmarks. Landmark probe orders and comparative maps of wheat, rice, and barley were produced on the basis of corresponding rice BAC/PAC and genetic markers that mapped on chromosomes 6 and 8 of rice. Identification of landmark ESTs and development of consensus maps may provide a framework of conserved coding regions predating the evolution of wheat genomes.

The complex hexaploid wheat genome offers many challenges for genomics research. Expressed sequence tags facilitate the analysis of gene-coding regions and provide a rich source of molecular markers for mapping and comparison with model organisms. The objectives of this study were to construct a high-density EST chromosome bin map of wheat homoeologous group 2 chromosomes to determine the distribution of ESTs, construct a consensus map of group 2 ESTs, investigate synteny, examine patterns of duplication, and assess the colinearity with rice of ESTs assigned to the group 2 consensus bin map. A total of 2600 loci generated from 1110 ESTs were mapped to group 2 chromosomes by Southern hybridization onto wheat aneuploid chromosome and deletion stocks. A consensus map was constructed of 552 ESTs mapping to more than one group 2 chromosome. Regions of high gene density in distal bins and low gene density in proximal bins were found. Two interstitial gene-rich islands flanked by relatively gene-poor regions on both the short and long arms and having good synteny with rice were discovered. The map locations of two ESTs indicated the possible presence of a small pericentric inversion on chromosome 2B. Wheat chromosome group 2 was shown to share syntenous blocks with rice chromosomes 4 and 7.

High-altitude regions pose distinctive challenges for cardiovascular health because of decreased oxygen levels, reduced barometric pressure, and colder temperatures. Approximately 82 million people live above 2400 meters, while over 100 million people visit these heights annually. Individuals ascending rapidly or those with pre-existing cardiovascular conditions are particularly vulnerable to altitude-related illnesses, including Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) and Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS). The cardiovascular system struggles to adapt to hypoxic stress, which can lead to arrhythmias, systemic hypertension, and right ventricular failure. Pathophysiologically, high-altitude exposure triggers immediate increases in cardiac output and heart rate, often due to enhanced sympathetic activity. Over time, acclimatisation involves complex changes, such as reduced stroke volume and increased blood volume. The pulmonary vasculature also undergoes significant alterations, including hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction and vascular remodelling, contributing to conditions, like pulmonary hypertension and high-altitude pulmonary edema. Genetic adaptations in populations living at high altitudes, such as gene variations linked to hypoxia response, further influence these physiological processes. Regarding cardiovascular disease risk, stable coronary artery disease patients generally do not face significant adverse outcomes at altitudes up to 3500 meters. However, those with unstable angina or recent cardiac interventions should avoid high-altitude exposure to prevent exacerbation. Remarkably, high-altitude living correlates with reduced cardiovascular mortality rates, possibly due to improved air quality and hypoxia-induced adaptations. Additionally, there is a higher incidence of congenital heart disease among children born at high altitudes, highlighting the profound impact of hypoxia on heart development. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for managing risks and improving health outcomes in high-altitude environments., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

T follicular helper cells (Tfh) were initially identified nearly two decades ago as critically important in directing B-cell maturation and antibody generation in the germinal centers of secondary lymphoid tissues. Since then, Tfh cells have become the center of sustained investigation in oncology due to their unique, often paradoxical roles in tumour immunity. Specifically, Tfh cells in the tumour microenvironment can enhance anti-tumour immune response or promote, through the same mechanisms, tumour progression. These dual roles largely result from Tfh cells controlling unique cytokine secretions and, in turn, shifting the net effect of the Tfh-driven immune response (by directly and indirectly affecting the activities of other cytotoxic T cells and natural killer cells). The dual nature of the Tfh is the basis for our commentary, which highlights their simultaneous identity as a curse and a gift to oncology. Indeed, the curtain calls for a better understanding Tfh cell biology, so that their potential can be used to benefit oncology. We discuss how prevalent Tfh cells in tumors can be beneficial in directing potent anti-tumour immune responses. We also review how the characterization of Tfh cells in tumors has now led to their identification as candidate biomarkers of response to immunotherapy, and how they are now being evaluated as targets for new immunotherapies leading to new clinical trials. The study concludes by emphasizing how the unique biological properties of Tfh cells can be leveraged to advance cancer treatment, ultimately aiming to enhance the effectiveness of clinical oncology practices., 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., (© 2024 The Authors.)

In the realm of modern healthcare, Electronic Health Records EHR serve as invaluable assets, yet they also pose significant security challenges. The absence of EHR access auditing mechanisms, which includes the EHR audit trails, results in accountability gaps and magnifies security vulnerabilities. This situation effectively paves the way for unauthorized data alterations to occur without detection or consequences. Inadequate EHR compliance auditing procedures, particularly in verifying and validating access control policies, expose healthcare organizations to risks such as data breaches, and unauthorized data usage. These vulnerabilities result from unchecked unauthorized access activities. Additionally, the absence of EHR audit logs complicates investigations, weakens proactive security measures, and raises concerns to put healthcare institutions at risk. This study addresses the pressing need for robust EHR auditing systems designed to scrutinize access to EHR data, encompassing who accesses it, when, and for what purpose. Our research delves into the complex field of EHR auditing, which includes establishing an immutable audit trail to enhance data security through blockchain technology. We also integrate Purpose-Based Access Control ( PBAC ) alongside smart contracts to strengthen compliance auditing by validating access legitimacy and reducing unauthorized entries. Our contributions encompass the creation of audit trail of EHR access, compliance auditing via PBAC policy verification, the generation of audit logs, and the derivation of data-driven insights, fortifying EHR access security., 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., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

The metrological quality of a measurement is characterised by evaluating the uncertainty in the measurement. In this paper, uncertainty in personal dose measured using individual monitoring CaSO4:Dy-based thermoluminescence dosimeter badge is evaluated by application of the guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement method. The present dose reporting quantity, whole body dose (WBD) and the proposed quantity, personal dose equivalent, Hp(10) has been used as measurands. The influence of various input quantities on the measurement were analyzed through tests that conform to the requirements of the International Electrotechnical Commission IEC 62387. The study found that the expanded uncertainties for WBD and Hp(10) measurements were 63.4% and 41.4%, respectively, corresponding to a 95% coverage probability for workplace fields covering a wide photon energy range (33-1250 keV). However, the uncertainty estimates were quite lower for the type of workplaces that are identified using the dose evaluation algorithm. The input quantities, namely, the response to a mixture of photon beam qualities and photon energy and angular dependence contribute the most to the total uncertainty., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Intelligent agriculture heavily relies on the science of agricultural disease image recognition. India is also responsible for large production of French beans, accounting for 37.25% of total production. In India from south region of Maharashtra state this crop is cultivated thrice in year. Soyabean plant is planted between the months of June through July, during the months of October and September during the rabi season, as well as in February. In the Maharashtrian regions of Pune, Satara, Ahmednagar, Solapur, and Nashik, among others, Soyabean plant is a common crop. In Maharashtra, Soyabean plant is grown over an area of around 31,050 hectares. This research presents a dataset of leaves from soyabean plants that are both insect-damaged and healthy. Images were taken over the course of fewer than two to three seasons on several farms. There are 3363 photos altogether in the seven folders that make up the dataset. Six categories comprise the dataset: I) Healthy plants II) Vein Necrosis III) Dry leaf IV) Septoria brown spot V) Root images VI) Bacterial leaf blight. This study's goal is to give academics and students accessibility to our dataset so they may use it for their studies and to build machine learning models., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

Novel hardware architectures for dynamic reconfigurable implementation of 64-bit MISTY1 and KASUMI block ciphers are proposed to enhance the performance of cryptographic chips for secure IoT applications. The SRL32 primitive (Reconfigurable Look up Tables-RLUTs) and DPR (Dynamic Partial Reconfiguration) are employed to reconfigure single round MISTY1 / KASUMI algorithms on the run-time. The RLUT based architecture attains dynamic logic functionality without extra hardware resources by internally modifying the LUT contents. The proposed adaptive reconfiguration can be adopted as a productive countermeasure against malicious attacks with the added advantage of less reconfiguration time (RT). On the other hand, the block architecture reconfigures the core hardware by externally uploading the partial bit stream and has significant advantages in terms of low area implementation and power reduction. Implementation was carried out on FPGA, Xilinx Virtex 7. The results showed remarkable results with very low area of 668 / 514 CLB slices consuming 460 / 354 mW for RLUT and DPR architectures respectively. Moreover, the throughput obtained for RLUT architecture was found as 364 Mbps with very less RT of 445 nsec while DPR architecture achieved speed of 176 Mbps with RT of 1.1 msec. The novel architectures outperform the stand-alone existing hardware designs of MISTY1 and KASUMI implementations by adding the dynamic reconfigurability while at the same achieving high performance in terms of area and throughput. Design details of proposed unified architectures and comprehensive analysis is described., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Jiexian et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

The study presents a novel approach to analysing the thermoluminescence (TL) glow curves (GCs) of CaSO 4 :Dy-based personnel monitoring dosimeters using machine learning (ML). This study demonstrates the qualitative and quantitative impact of different types of anomalies on the TL signal and trains ML algorithms to estimate correction factors (CFs) to account for these anomalies. The results show a good degree of agreement between the predicted and actual CFs, with a coefficient of determination greater than 0.95, a root mean square error less than 0.025, and a mean absolute error less than 0.015. The use of ML algorithms leads to a significant two-fold reduction in the coefficient of variation of TL counts from anomalous GCs. This study proposes a promising approach to address anomalies caused by dosimeter, reader, and handling-related factors. Furthermore, it accounts for non-radiation-induced TL at low dose levels towards improving the dosimetric accuracy in personnel monitoring., (Creative Commons Attribution license.)

This manuscript examines the design principle and real-world validation of a new miniaturized high-performance flower-shaped radiator (FSR). The antenna prototype consists of an ultracompact square metallic patch of 0.116λ 0 × 0.116λ 0 (λ 0 is the free space wavelength at 3.67 GHz), a rectangular microstrip feed network, and a partial metal ground plane. A novel, effective, and efficient approach based on open circuit loaded stubs is employed to achieve the antenna's optimal performance features. Rectangular, triangular, and circular disc stubs were added to the simple structure of the square radiator, and hence, the FSR configuration was formed. The proposed antenna was imprinted on a low-cost F4B laminate with low profile thickness of 0.018λ 0 , relative permittivity ε r = 2.55, and dielectric loss tangent δ = 0.0018. The designed radiator has an overall small size of 0.256λ 0 × 0.354λ 0 . The parameter study of multiple variables and their influence on the performance results has been extensively studied. Moreover, the impact of different substrate materials, impedance bandwidths, resonance tuning, and impedance matching has also been analyzed. The proposed antenna model has been designed, simulated, and fabricated. The designed antenna exhibits a wide bandwidth of 5.33 GHz ranging from 3.67 to 9.0 GHz at 10 dB return loss, which resulted in an 83.6% fractional impedance bandwidth; a maximum gain of 7.3 dBi at 8.625 GHz; optimal radiation efficiency of 89% at 4.5 GHz; strong intensity current flow across the radiator; and stable monopole-like far-field radiation patterns. Finally, a comparison between the scientific results and newly published research has been provided. The antenna's high-performance simulated and measured results are in a good agreement; hence, they make the proposed antenna an excellent choice for modern smartphones' connectivity with the sub-6 GHz frequency spectrum of modern fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication application.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of solid-state sensor based computed tomography dose profiler (CTDP) probe for measurement of standard computed tomography dose metric CTDI 100 and free in air geometric efficiency for various beam widths available in a 128-slice CT scanner and also to estimate the efficiency of CTDI 100 metric. The response accuracy of CTDP probe was verified using a standard 100 mm long ionization chamber. The geometric efficiency measurements performed by the CTDP probe were validated using XR-QA2 radiochromic film measurements. The efficiency of CTDI 100 metric was assessed by calculating the ratio of CTDI 100 measured in the center hole position to CTDI ∞ measured in the same position of both head and body phantoms. The weighted CTDI values derived from CTDI 100 measured by the CTDP probe showed an average difference of 8% from ionization chamber measured values. The efficiency of CTDI 100 metric estimated using CTDP probe and 150 mm long phantoms was in the range of 82% to 86% and 76% to 80% for head and body phantom measurements respectively. The differences in the geometric efficiency values for various beam settings and tube voltages measured by the CTDP probe and films were within 7%. Taken together, the results of this study proved that unlike the 100 mm long ionization chamber, the CTDP probe can be efficiently used to determine CTDI for any length over which dose integration is desired and also measure geometric efficiency of MDCT scanners for various beam widths in helical mode of operation., (© 2022 IOP Publishing Ltd.)

Introduction: As per the recommendations of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine Task Group 43, Monte Carlo (MC) investigators should reproduce previously published dose distributions whenever new features of the code are explored. The purpose of the present study is to benchmark the TG-43 dosimetric parameters calculated using the new MC user-code egs&#95;brachy of EGSnrc code system for three different radionuclides 192 Ir, 169 Yb, and 125 I which represent high-, intermediate-, and low-energy sources, respectively., Materials and Methods: Brachytherapy sources investigated in this study are high-dose rate (HDR) 192 Ir VariSource (Model VS2000), 169 Yb HDR (Model 4140), and 125 I -low-dose-rate (LDR) (Model OcuProsta). The TG-43 dosimetric parameters such as air-kerma strength, S k , dose rate constant, Λ, radial dose function, g(r) and anisotropy function, F(r, θ ) and two-dimensional (2D) absorbed dose rate data (along-away table) are calculated in a cylindrical water phantom of mass density 0.998 g/cm 3 using the MC code egs&#95;brachy. Dimensions of phantom considered for 192 Ir VS2000 and 169 Yb sources are 80 cm diameter ×80 cm height, whereas for 125 I OcuProsta source, 30 cm diameter ×30 cm height cylindrical water phantom is considered for MC calculations., Results: The dosimetric parameters calculated using egs&#95;brachy are compared against the values published in the literature. The calculated values of dose rate constants from this study agree with the published values within statistical uncertainties for all investigated sources. Good agreement is found between the egs&#95;brachy calculated radial dose functions, g(r), anisotropy functions, and 2D dose rate data with the published values (within 2%) for the same phantom dimensions. For 192 Ir VS2000 source, difference of about 28% is observed in g(r) value at 18 cm from the source which is due to differences in the phantom dimensions., Conclusion: The study validates TG-43 dose parameters calculated using egs&#95;brachy for 192 Ir, 169 Yb, and 125 I brachytherapy sources with the values published in the literature., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2022 Journal of Medical Physics.)

With the recent development in network technology over a few years, digital works can be easily published online. One of the main issues in the field of digital technology is the infringement of digital works, which can seriously damage the data owners' rights and affects the enthusiasm of the owners to create original work. Thus, more attention is required for the protection of digital copyright as it has a great impact on the development of society. Many digital copyright protection techniques were developed in the past, but still, there are many loopholes in the protection systems to be covered. The protection means are still relatively weak, timeliness is poor, infringement is frequent, a right determination is cumbersome, and the results are not ideal. Aiming at the mentioned problems, this paper proposes a protection technique, which can realize the automatic management of the complete digital rights life cycle on the blockchain using fabric's smart contract technology. The proposed system is based on blockchain technology, which leverages the distributed, tamper-proof and traceable characteristics of blockchain. The system uses smart contracts to manage the full life cycle of digital copyright. The test results show that the proposed system provides effective protection of the digital copyright system and can efficiently confirm the rights of digital copyright., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2021 Liu et al.)

In this study, the Bayesian probabilistic approach is applied for the estimation of the actual dose using personnel monitoring dose records of occupational workers. To implement the Bayesian approach, the probability distribution of the uncertainty in the reported dose as a function of the actual dose is derived. Using the uncertainty distribution function of reported dose and prior knowledge of dose levels generally observed in a monitoring period, the posterior probability distribution of the actual dose is estimated. The posterior distributions of each monitoring period in a year are convoluted to arrive at actual annual dose distribution. The estimated actual doses distributions show a significant deviation from reported annual doses particularly for low annual doses., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

In the present study, machine learning (ML) methods for the identification of abnormal glow curves (GC) of CaSO4:Dy-based thermoluminescence dosimeters in individual monitoring are presented. The classifier algorithms, random forest (RF), artificial neural network (ANN) and support vector machine (SVM) are employed for identifying not only the abnormal glow curve but also the type of abnormality. For the first time, the simplest and computationally efficient algorithm based on RF is presented for GC classifications. About 4000 GCs are used for the training and validation of ML algorithms. The performance of all algorithms is compared by using various parameters. Results show a fairly good accuracy of 99.05% for the classification of GCs by RF algorithm. Whereas 96.7% and 96.1% accuracy is achieved using ANN and SVM, respectively. The RF-based classifier is recommended for GC classification as well as in assisting the fault determination of the TLD reader system., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The objective of this paper is to estimate the combined uncertainty in the measurement of dose equivalent at laboratory level using CaSO4:Dy-based thermoluminescent dosemeter badge system by including variations in the components of the system. The variability of performance of the system is analysed using random effects one way analysis of variance model. The model enables estimation of the overall variance of the performance of the sampled population. The population in the study comprises all possible indicated dose equivalents on irradiation of dosemeters to a specific dose equivalent and radiation quality. Coefficient of variation and combined uncertainty at 95% level of confidence in the measurement of Hp(10) due to S-Cs radiation quality are found to be 6.6 and 14.3%, respectively, at the dose level of 5.31 mSv. The above parameters in the measurement of in-use quantity, i.e. whole body dose or photon dose equivalent are found to be 7.4 and 16.4%, respectively. The performance of the monitoring system on relative response has been observed to be satisfactory. Various factors affecting the variability of performance of the system are identified for further improvement in coefficient of variation., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The objective of this paper is to study the effect of consecutive heating of TL elements of a thermoluminescence dosemeter (TLD) card in hot N2 gas-based TLD badge reader. The effect is studied by theoretical simulations of clamped heating profiles of the discs and resulting TL glow curves. The simulated temperature profile accounts for heat transfer to disc from hot gas as well as radiative and convective heat exchanges between the disc and the surrounding. The glow curves are simulated using 10 component glow peak model for CaSO4:Dy using the simulated temperature profile. The shape of the simulated glow curves and trend in total TL signal of the three discs were observed to match closely with the experimental observations when elevated surrounding temperature was considered for simulation. It is concluded that the readout (heating) of adjacent TLD disc affects the surrounding temperature leading to the changes in temperature profile of the next disc., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Purpose: To assess the clinical performance and survival of full-contour monolithic zirconia (MZ) crowns and enamel wear produced over a 1-year period., Materials and Methods: 60 patients requiring full-coverage restorations for endodontically treated posterior teeth opposed by healthy unrestored antagonistic teeth were selected. MZ crowns were fabricated. Vinyl polysiloxane impressions of the antagonist teeth were made, and the stone casts were digitized using a 3D laser scanner. Wear of the opposing natural teeth was evaluated at baseline (1 week), 6 months, and 1 year after crown cementation. Superimposition of the follow-up scans on the baseline scans were performed to evaluate wear. Survival and function of the restorations were evaluated by the modified USPHS rating criteria at the same timeframes., Results: Comparison of the baseline and the follow-up wear values was statistically tested using the paired t-test. Statistical significance was noted between the wear values at 6 months (15.5 μm) and at 12 months (16.3 μm) (p < 0.05). The Wilcoxon signed rank sum test was performed to evaluate each parameter of the modified USPHS criteria and to analyze the change in the follow-up scores of the restorations. The survival rate for the crowns was 100%. Results were classified as "excellent" over a 1-year follow up., Conclusions: MZ crowns showed promising results related to antagonist enamel wear and survival/clinical performance., (© 2018 by the American College of Prosthodontists.)

To gain insights into the structure and function of the wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genomes, we identified 278 ESTs related to abiotic stress (cold, heat, drought, salinity, and aluminum) from 7671 ESTs previously mapped to wheat chromosomes. Of the 278 abiotic stress related ESTs, 259 (811 loci) were assigned to chromosome deletion bins and analyzed for their distribution pattern among the 7 homoeologous chromosome groups. Distribution of abiotic stress related EST loci were not uniform throughout the different regions of the chromosomes of the 3 wheat genomes. Both the short and long arms of group 4 chromosomes showed a higher number of loci in their distal regions compared with proximal regions. Of the 811 loci, the number of mapped loci on the A, B, and D genomes were 258, 281, and 272, respectively. The highest number of abiotic stress related loci were found in homoeologous chromosome group 2 (142 loci) and the lowest number were found in group 6 (94 loci). When considering the genome-specific ESTs, the B genome showed the highest number of unique ESTs (7 loci), while none were found in the D genome. Similarly, considering homoeologous group-specific ESTs, group 2 showed the highest number with 16 unique ESTs (58 loci), followed by group 4 with 9 unique ESTs (33 loci). Many of the classified proteins fell into the biological process categories associated with metabolism, cell growth, and cell maintenance. Most of the mapped ESTs fell into the category of enzyme activity (28%), followed by binding activity (27%). Enzymes related to abiotic stress such as beta-galactosidase, peroxidase, glutathione reductase, and trehalose-6-phosphate synthase were identified. The comparison of stress-responsive ESTs with genomic sequences of rice (Oryza sativa L.) chromosomes revealed the complexities of colinearity. This bin map provides insight into the structural and functional details of wheat genomic regions in relation to abiotic stress.

Plants alter their gene expression patterns in response to drought. Sometimes these transcriptional changes are successful adaptations leading to tolerance, while in other instances the plant ultimately fails to adapt to the stress and is labeled as sensitive to that condition. We measured the expression of approximately half of the genes in rice ( approximately 21,000) in phenotypically divergent accessions and their transgressive segregants to associate stress-regulated gene expression changes with quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for osmotic adjustment (OA, a trait associated with drought tolerance). Among the parental lines, a total of 662 transcripts were differentially expressed. Only 12 genes were induced in the low OA parent, CT9993, at moderate dehydration stress levels while over 200 genes were induced in the high OA parent, IR62266. The high and low OA parents had almost entirely different transcriptional responses to dehydration stress suggesting a complete absence of an appropriate response rather than a slower response in CT9993. Sixty-nine genes were up-regulated in all the high OA lines and nine of those genes were not induced in any of the low OA lines. The annotation of four of those genes, sucrose synthase, a pore protein, a heat shock and an LEA protein, suggests a role in maintaining high OA and membrane stability. Of the 3,954-probe sets that correspond to the QTL intervals, very few had a differential expression pattern between the high OA and low OA lines that suggest a role leading to the phenotypic variation. However, several promising candidates were identified for each of the five QTL including a snRNP auxiliary factor, a LEA protein, a protein phosphatase 2C and a Sar1 homolog.

We have developed 85 new markers (50 RFLPs, 5 SSRs, 12 DD cDNAs, 9 ESTs, 8 HSP-encoding cDNAs and one BSA-derived AFLP marker) for saturation mapping of QTL regions for drought tolerance in rice, in our efforts to identify putative candidate genes. Thirteen of the markers were localized in the close vicinity of the targeted QTL regions. Fifteen of the additional markers mapped, respectively, inside one QTL region controlling osmotic adjustment on chromosome 3 ( oa3.1) and 14 regions that affect root traits on chromosomes 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12. Differential display was used to identify more putative candidate genes and to saturate the QTL regions of the genetic map. Eleven of the isolated cDNA clones were found to be derived from drought-inducible genes. Two of them were unique and did not match any genes in the GenBank, while nine were highly similar to cDNAs encoding known proteins, including a DnaJ-related protein, a zinc-finger protein, a protease inhibitor, a glutathione-S-transferase, a DNA recombinase, and a protease. Twelve new cDNA fragments were mapped onto the genetic linkage map; seven of these mapped inside, or in close proximity to, the targeted QTL regions determining root thickness and osmotic adjustment capacity. The gene I12A1, which codes for a UDP-glucose 4-epimerase homolog, was identified as a putative target gene within the prt7.1/brt7.1 QTL region, as it is involved in the cell wall biogenesis pathway and hence may be implicated in modulating the ability of rice roots to penetrate further into the substratum when exposed to drought conditions. RNAs encoding elongation factor 1beta, a DnaJ-related protein, and a homolog of wheat zinc-finger protein were more prominently induced in the leaves of IR62266 (the lowland rice parent of the mapping materials used) than in those of CT9993 (the upland rice parent) under drought conditions. Homologs of 18S ribosomal RNA, and mRNAs for a multiple-stress induced zinc-finger protein, a protease inhibitor, and a glutathione-S-transferase were expressed at significantly higher levels in CT9993 than in IR62266. Thus several genes involved in the regulation of DNA structure and mRNA translation were found to be drought-regulated, and may be implicated in drought resistance.

Osmotic adjustment is one of several characters putatively associated with drought tolerance in rice. Indica cultivars are known to have a greater capacity for osmotic adjustment than japonica cultivars. We developed an advanced back-cross population using an indica donor, IR62266-42-6-2, to introgress osmotic adjustment into an elite japonica cultivar, IR60080-46A. One hundred and fifty BC(3)F(3) families were genotyped using microsatellites and RFLP markers, and a few candidate genes. We evaluated osmotic adjustment in these lines under greenhouse conditions using the re-hydration technique. Using the composite interval mapping technique, we detected 14 QTLs located on chromosomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8 and 10 that together explained 58% of the phenotypic variability. Most, but not all, of the alleles with positive effects came from the donor parent. On chromosome 8, two QTLs were associated in repulsion. The QTL locations were in good agreement with previous studies on this trait on rice and in other cereals. Some BC(3)F(3) lines carried the favorable alleles at the two markers flanking up to four QTLs. Intercrossing these lines followed by marker-aided selection in their progenies will be necessary to recover lines with levels of osmotic adjustment equal to the donor parent. The advanced back-cross strategy appeared to be an appropriate method to accelerate the process of introgressing interesting traits into elite material.

Drought is the major abiotic stress limiting rice (Oryza sativa) production and yield stability in rainfed lowland and upland ecosystems. Root systems play an important role in drought resistance. Incorporation of root selection criteria in drought resistance improvement is difficult due to lack of reliable and efficient screening techniques. Using a wax-petrolatum layer system simulated to compacted soil layers, root traits were evaluated in a doubled haploid (DH) population derived from the cross between 'IR64' and 'Azucena'. Twelve putative QTLs (quantitative trait loci) were detected by interval mapping comprising four QTLs for root-penetration ability, four QTLs for root thickness, two QTLs for penetrated root number, and two QTLs for total root number. These QTLs individually explained 8.4% to 16.4% of the phenotypic variation. No QTL was detected for maximum penetrated root length by interval mapping. One QTL located between RG104 and RG348 was found to influence both root-penetration ability and root thickness. QTLs for root-penetration ability and root thickness were compared across two populations, 'IR64'-'Azucena' and 'CO39'-'Moroberekan', and different testing conditions. The identified consistent QTLs could be used for marker-assisted selection for deep and thick roots with high root-penetration ability in rice.