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The Electron-Ion Collider (EIC), a state-of-the-art facility for studying the strong force, is expected to begin commissioning its first experiments in 2028. This is an opportune time for artificial intelligence (AI) to be included from the start at this facility and in all phases that lead up to the experiments. The second annual workshop organized by the AI4EIC working group, which recently took place, centered on exploring all current and prospective application areas of AI for the EIC. This workshop is not only beneficial for the EIC, but also provides valuable insights for the newly established ePIC collaboration at EIC. This paper summarizes the different activities and R&D projects covered across the sessions of the workshop and provides an overview of the goals, approaches and strategies regarding AI/ML in the EIC community, as well as cutting-edge techniques currently studied in other experiments.

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are hardly in need of an additional source of power other than the normally used batteries, to increase the lifetime considerably. In this paper, mathematical modeling of photovoltaic energy harvesting (PVEH) system for the WSN is presented. The system comprises of the solar PV panel, boost converter as maximum power point tracker with moving averaged incremental conductance (MAIC) maximum power point (MPP) algorithm, Ni-MH battery for energy storage, compensator, buck regulator and the mathematically modeled WSN mote. MAIC algorithm is proposed to avoid the effect of drastic variations in input irradiance, in locking the MPP point. WSN mote is modeled in both active and sleep state based on the power consumption. To maintain the voltage stability, proper compensator has been designed for the proposed system. The performance of the system is tested for dynamic variations of environmental conditions using MATLAB simulation. The proposed system has 50 to 60 percent improved conversion efficiency when compared to the conventional direct coupling method. The parameters of the photovoltaic panel model have been validated through experimentation. Also the practical verification of the operation of MPPT circuit has been performed.

The thymus, where T lymphocytes develop and mature, is sensitive to insults such as tissue ischemia or injury. The insults can cause thymic atrophy and compromise T-cell development, potentially impairing adaptive immunity. The objective of this study was to investigate whether myocardial infarction (MI) induces thymic injury to impair T lymphopoiesis and to uncover the underlying mechanisms. When compared with sham controls, MI mice at day 7 post-MI exhibited smaller thymus, lower cellularity, as well as less thymocytes at different developmental stages, indicative of T-lymphopoiesis impairment following MI. Accordingly, the spleen of MI mice has less T cells and recent thymic emigrants (RTEs), implying that the thymus of MI mice releases fewer mature thymocytes than sham controls. Interestingly, the secretory function of splenic T cells was not affected by MI. Further experiments showed that the reduction of thymocytes in MI mice was due to increased thymocyte apoptosis. Removal of adrenal glands by adrenalectomy (ADX) prevented MI-induced thymic injury and dysfunction, whereas corticosterone supplementation in ADX + MI mice reinduced thymic injury and dysfunction, indicating that glucocorticoids mediate thymic damage triggered by MI. Eosinophils play essential roles in thymic regeneration postirradiation, and eosinophil-deficient mice exhibit impaired thymic recovery after sublethal irradiation. Interestingly, the thymus was fully regenerated in both wild-type and eosinophil-deficient mice at day 14 post-MI, suggesting that eosinophils are not critical for thymus regeneration post-MI. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that MI-induced glucocorticoids trigger thymocyte apoptosis and impair T lymphopoiesis, resulting in less mature thymocyte release to the spleen. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The thymus is essential for maintaining whole body T-cell output. Thymic injury can adversely affect T lymphopoiesis and T-cell immune response. This study demonstrates that MI induces thymocyte apoptosis and compromises T lymphopoiesis, resulting in fewer releases of mature thymocytes to the spleen. This process is mediated by glucocorticoids secreted by adrenal glands. Therefore, targeting glucocorticoids represents a novel approach to attenuate post-MI thymic injury.

Camptothecin (CPT) is a vital monoterpene indole alkaloid used in anti-cancer therapeutics. It is primarily derived from Camptotheca acuminata and Nothapodytes nimmoniana plants that are indigenous to Southeast Asia. Plants have intricate metabolic networks and use them to produce secondary metabolites such as CPT, which is a prerequisite for rational metabolic engineering design to optimize their production. By reconstructing metabolic models, we can predict plant metabolic behavior, facilitating the selection of suitable approaches and saving time, cost, and energy, over traditional hit and trial experimental approaches. In this study, we reconstructed a genome-scale metabolic model for N. nimmoniana (NothaGEM i SM1809) and curated it using experimentally obtained biochemical data. We also used in silico tools to identify and rank suitable enzyme targets for overexpression and knockout to maximize camptothecin production. The predicted over-expression targets encompass enzymes involved in the camptothecin biosynthesis pathway, including strictosidine synthase and geraniol 10-hydroxylase, as well as targets related to plant metabolism, such as amino acid biosynthesis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. The top-ranked knockout targets included reactions responsible for the formation of folates and serine, as well as the conversion of acetyl CoA and oxaloacetate to malate and citrate. One of the top-ranked overexpression targets, strictosidine synthase, was chosen to generate metabolically engineered cell lines of N. nimmoniana using Agrobacterium tumefaciens- mediated transformation. The transformed cell line showed a 5-fold increase in camptothecin production, with a yield of up to 5 µg g -1 ., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Murali, Ibrahim, Rajendran, Shagun, Masakapalli, Raman and Srivastava.)

Mitral annulus calcification is a common incidental finding in echocardiography examination of predisposed populations. On the other hand, caseous calcification of the mitral annulus is a rare variant that challenges the physician to differentiate it from different causes of cardiac masses. We describe a case of incidentally discovered caseous calcification confirmed with CT cardiac and cardiac magnetic resonance., Learning Points: Caseous calcification of the mitral annulus is a rare condition.An important differential diagnosis is cardiac tumours and myocardial abscesses.Cardiac computed tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging are important in confirming the diagnosis, and assessing the extent and location of annular calcium., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interests: The Authors declare that there are no competing interests., (© EFIM 2023.)

Social groups often need to overcome differences in individual interests and knowledge to reach consensus decisions. Here, we combine experiments and modeling to study conflict resolution in emigrating ant colonies during binary nest selection. We find that cohesive emigration, without fragmentation, is achieved only by intermediate-sized colonies. We then impose a conflict regarding the desired emigration target between colony subgroups. This is achieved using an automated selective gate system that manipulates the information accessible to each ant. Under this conflict, we find that individuals concede their potential benefit to promote social consensus. In particular, colonies resolve the conflict imposed by a persistent minority through "majority concession," wherein a majority of ants that hold first-hand knowledge regarding the superior quality nest choose to reside in the inferior one. This outcome is unlikely in social groups of selfish individuals and emphasizes the importance of group cohesion in eusocial societies. VIDEO ABSTRACT., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Secure forensic mental health services treat patients with high rates of treatment-resistant psychoses. High rates of obesity and medical comorbidities are common. Population-based studies have identified high-risk groups in the event of SARS-CoV-2 infection, including those with problems such as obesity, lung disease and immune-compromising conditions. Structured assessment tools exist to ascertain the risk of adverse outcome in the event of SARS-CoV-2 infection., Aims: To assess risk of adverse outcome in the event of SARS-CoV-2 infection in a complete population of forensic psychiatry patients using structured assessment tools., Method: All patients of a national forensic mental health service (n = 141) were rated for risk of adverse outcome in the event of SARS-CoV-2 infection, using two structured tools, the COVID-Age tool and the COVID-Risk tool., Results: We found high rates of relevant physical comorbidities. Mean chronological age was 45.5 years (s.d. = 11.4, median 44.1), mean score on the COVID-Age tool was 59.1 years (s.d. = 19.4, median 58.0), mean difference was 13.6 years (s.d. = 15.6), paired t = 10.9, d.f. = 140, P < 0.001. Three patients (2.1%) were chronologically over 70 years of age, compared with 43 (30.5%) with a COVID-Age over 70 (χ2 = 6.99, d.f. = 1, P = 0.008, Fisher's exact test P = 0.027)., Conclusions: Patients in secure forensic psychiatric services represent a high-risk group for adverse outcomes in the event of SARS-COV-2 infection. Population-based guidance on self-isolation and other precautions based on chronological age may not be sufficient. There is an urgent need for better physical health research and treatment in this group.

Diatom frustules, with their hierarchical three-dimensional patterned silica structures at nano to micrometer dimensions, can be a paragon for the design of lightweight structural materials. However, the mechanical properties of frustules, especially the species with pennate symmetry, have not been studied systematically. A novel approach combining in situ micro-indentation and high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (XCT)-based finite element analysis (FEA) at the identical sample is developed and applied to Didymosphenia geminata frustule. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy investigations are conducted to obtain detailed information regarding the resolvable structures and the composition. During the in situ micro-indentation studies of Didymosphenia geminata frustule, a mainly elastic deformation behavior with displacement discontinuities/non-linearities is observed. To extract material properties from obtained load-displacement curves in the elastic region, elastic finite element method (FEM) simulations are conducted. Young's modulus is determined as 31.8 GPa. The method described in this paper allows understanding of the mechanical behavior of very complex structures.