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Genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors that detect changes in ATP levels in live cells have enabled the discovery of novel roles for ATP in cellular processes and signaling. Many of these available ATP biosensors have a limited dynamic range, or have ATP affinities that are not suitable for sensing the physiological concentrations of ATP in mammalian cells. To address these limitations, we developed a FRET-based ATP biosensor with enhanced dynamic range and signal to noise ratio, eATeam. Using eATeam, we uncovered distinct spatiotemporal dynamics of ATP changes upon inhibition of cellular energy production. We also developed dimerization-dependent GFP and RFP-based ATP biosensors with enhanced dynamic ranges compared to the current standard in the field. Using the single-color ATP biosensors, we visualized the complex interplay between AMPK activity, ATP, lactate, and calcium by multiplexed imaging in single cells. This palette of ATP sensors expands the toolbox for interrogating subcellular ATP regulation and metabolic signaling in living cells.

The operational safety of Automated Driving System (ADS)-Operated Vehicles (AVs) are a rising concern with the deployment of AVs as prototypes being tested and also in commercial deployment. The robustness of safety evaluation systems is essential in determining the operational safety of AVs as they interact with human-driven vehicles. Extending upon earlier works of the Institute of Automated Mobility (IAM) that have explored the Operational Safety Assessment (OSA) metrics and infrastructure-based safety monitoring systems, in this work, we compare the performance of an infrastructure-based Light Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) system to an onboard vehicle-based LIDAR system in testing at the Maricopa County Department of Transportation SMARTDrive testbed in Anthem, Arizona. The sensor modalities are located in infrastructure and onboard the test vehicles, including LIDAR, cameras, a real-time differential GPS, and a drone with a camera. Bespoke localization and tracking algorithms are created for the LIDAR and cameras. In total, there are 26 different scenarios of the test vehicles navigating the testbed intersection; for this work, we are only considering car following scenarios. The LIDAR data collected from the infrastructure-based and onboard vehicle-based sensors system are used to perform object detection and multi-target tracking to estimate the velocity and position information of the test vehicles and use these values to compute OSA metrics. The comparison of the performance of the two systems involves the localization and tracking errors in calculating the position and the velocity of the subject vehicle, with the real-time differential GPS data serving as ground truth for velocity comparison and tracking results from the drone for OSA metrics comparison.

The paper compares quantum and classical error correction scheme with the aim for a pathway to 5G beyond networks where there will be a notion of quantum computation in the current classical communication architecture.

Background/Aims: Conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs have been trialed in osteoarthritis (OA). Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), which has shown its effectiveness in rheumatoid arthritis, has been trialed for the treatment of OA; however, its efficacy and safety remain unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluate efficacy and safety of HCQ for the treatment of OA.Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central were searched from inception through June 2020. Two reviewers independently screened for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing HCQ with placebo or other active-comparators for the treatment of knee, hand, or hip OA, extracted data, and performed Cochrane risk of bias assessments.Results: Six RCTs, four in hand OA, two in knee OA, consisting of 842 patients (436 in HCQ arm, 406 in control arm) were included. RCTs were conducted between 2012 and 2020, one each at UK, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Iran, and Egypt; follow-up period ranged 24 to 52 weeks. High-quality evidence showed no clinically important pain reduction with HCQ compared to placebo/active-control in hand OA (standardized mean difference [SMD], 0.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], –0.20 to 0.48). Effect on pain reduction in knee and hand OA was small and non-significant (SMD, –0.09; 95% CI, –0.44 to 0.25). High-quality evidence showed no improvement in dysfunction with HCQ compared to placebo in hand OA patients (SMD, 0.08; 95% CI, –0.23 to 0.40). Effect on dysfunction improvement in knee and hand OA was modest and statistically non-significant (SMD, –0.20; 95% CI,–0.57 to 0.18). No improvement in quality of life was observed in hand OA.Conclusions: HCQ has no benefit in reducing pain and improving physical function in hand or knee OA patients.

Lung cancer is one of the most lethal forms of cancer, with a very high mortality rate. The precise pathophysiology of lung cancer is not well understood, and pertinent information regarding the initiation and progression of lung cancer is currently a crucial area of scientific investigation. Enhanced knowledge about the disease will lead to the development of potent therapeutic interventions. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-bound heterogeneous populations of cellular entities that are abundantly produced by all cells in the human body, including the tumor cells. A defined class of EVs called small Extracellular Vesicles (sEVs or exosomes) carries key biomolecules such as RNA, DNA, Proteins and Lipids. Exosomes, therefore, mediate physiological activities and intracellular communication between various cells, including constituent cells of the tumor microenvironment, namely stromal cells, immunological cells, and tumor cells. In recent years, a surge in studying tumor-associated non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) has been observed. Subsequently, studies have also reported that exosomes abundantly carry different species of ncRNAs and these exosomal ncRNAs are functionally involved in cancer initiation and progression. Here, we discuss the function of exosomal ncRNAs, such as miRNAs and long non-coding RNAs, in the pathophysiology of lung tumors. Further, the future application of exosomal-ncRNAs in clinics as biomarkers and therapeutic targets in lung cancer is also discussed due to the multifaceted influence of exosomes on cellular physiology.

It is a well-known fact that perception of road (lane) plays a vital role in assisting drivers by using software that can convey them the possible risks in their surroundings. Lane lines are a significant factor of signaling traffic flow. The strategy of this work is to prevent car accidents on highways mainly due to rash driving that consists of sudden lane departure or not keeping up with the lane in case of curved roads. Hence, we propose a method to reduce these crashes by mounting a calibrated camera on the vehicle which will continuously keep track of the view in front of vehicle and deliver certain relevant warnings to the driver in case of any rash driving or fatal situations. Also, it can be helpful for self-driving cars by providing a wide range of possibilities to learn by software and move vehicle on its own in the lane. We employ image processing techniques to detect and solve some of the most prevalent roadway concerns. The problem statement is broken down into basic building blocks to better understand the comprehensive list of potential techniques within this framework. It comes with a decision model that will provide the driver the required cautions.

Finding appropriate pharmacological options to treat osteoarthritis (OA) remain challenging. We aimed to determine the efficacy and safety of all types of turmeric extracts for the management of knee OA. Sixteen RCTs of up to 16 weeks duration including 1810 adults with knee OA were included. Eleven RCTs compared the efficacy of turmeric extracts with placebo and five with active comparators (NSAIDs). The overall risk bias of included RCTs was moderate. Turmeric extracts significantly reduced knee pain (SMD − 0.82, 95% CI − 1.17 to − 0.47, I2 = 86.23%) and improved physical function (SMD − 0.75, 95% CI − 1.18 to − 0.33, I2 = 90.05%) compared to placebo but had similar effects compared to NSAIDs. BMI was the major contributor to heterogeneity in the placebo-controlled studies (explained 37.68% and 67.24%, respectively, in the models) and modified the effects of the turmeric on pain and physical function with less improvement with higher BMI (SMD 0.26 95% CI 0.04 to 0.48; SMD 0.48 95% CI 0.21 to 0.74). No significant between-group differences were reported for either biochemical markers or imaging outcomes. Turmeric extracts had 12% fewer adverse events than NSAIDs and similar rates to placebo. Turmeric extract is a safe and effective option for the symptomatic management of knee OA, compared to placebo or NSAIDs. However, current evidence from short-term studies is heterogeneous and has moderate risk of bias leading to some uncertainty about the true effect.

Finding appropriate pharmacological options to treat osteoarthritis (OA) remain challenging. We aimed to determine the efficacy and safety of all types of turmeric extracts for the management of knee OA.Sixteen RCTs of up to 16 weeks duration including 1810 adults with knee OA were included. Eleven RCTs compared the efficacy of turmeric extracts with placebo and five with active comparators (NSAIDs). The overall risk bias of included RCTs was moderate. Turmeric extracts significantly reduced knee pain (SMD - 0.82, 95% CI - 1.17 to - 0.47, I

Notice boards are of primary importance in any organization and in places such as bus and railway stations, when a need of for circulating notices arises it becomes tedious job. Thus an electronic notice board is an extremely efficient method of providing messages. It is difficult to update the messages at once. Thus this project focuses on development of a wireless board. This apparatus has the capability of displaying the latest messages using an Android application from a smart phone. This help susintransmitting any message with in a fraction of a second eliminating any delay by simply sending a command which is much efficient compared to any other traditional method of transmitting the message. Thus the proposed technology can be of great utility in many public places such as malls or commercial buildings to enhance the security system and also increase the awareness regarding emergency situations and avoid any possible dangers.

Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is currently a growing area of research and NIST PQC Round 2 schemes are being actively analyzed and optimized for both security and efficiency. In this work, we repurpose the cryptographic accelerators in an energy-efficient pre-quantum TLS crypto-processor to implement post-quantum key encapsulation schemes SIKE, Frodo and ThreeBears and signature scheme SPHINCS + . We utilize the modular arithmetic unit inside the elliptic curve cryptography accelerator to implement SIKE, while we use the AES-256 and SHA2-256 hardware primitives to substitute SHA3-256 and SHAKE-256 computations and accelerate the other three protocols. We accelerate the most computationally expensive components of these PQC protocols in hardware, thereby achieving up to an order of magnitude improvement in energy-efficiency over software implementations.

Objectives Given their established role in hepatic function and insulin resistance for adults, early screening of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the pediatric population may potentially be improved by the assessment of elevated liver enzymes. Methods Our study enrolled 151 nondiabetic children aged 10–14 years. Patients were assessed for demographics and five risk factors for T2DM. The levels of γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels were determined in serum samples. The effects of demographics and risk factors on abnormal liver enzyme levels were assessed with univariate chi-square analyses and also with multivariate logistic regression analyses, which were controlled for gender. Results Frequencies for abnormal liver enzyme values were as follows: 13 (9%) for GGT, 5 (3%) for ALT, and 20 (13%) for ALP. Across analyses, two results were consistently statistically significant. Females were more likely to have abnormal ALP levels, and patients with BMI percentile ≥95% and with acanthosis nigricans were more likely to have abnormal GGT levels. Conclusions Our study suggests GGT as potential marker for T2DM discovery in children. Subsequent long-term longitudinal studies would help to more clearly delineate GGT’s association with T2DM. Additionally, future studies that elucidate the molecular contribution of GGT elevation to T2DM pathogenesis are needed.

Environmental pollution has become the booming issue for this generation. The decrease in oxygen levels, due to the degradation of plant health, has become the pivot to this problem. We need sustainable development for healing this situation. Sustainability of plants can be enhanced by monitoring the plant health, monitoring the external factors that affect the environment surrounding the plantation, and regularly checking plant. Therefore, health monitoring plays a vital role in enhancing the sustainability of a plant. Looking at this alarming situation, we have thought of an idea, to design and develop a plant sustainability enhancement system, wherein an automated and non-contact system for plants to monitor their growth and health condition will be developed. This proposed system will work in any remote area using wireless technology, the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence. The aim of the system is to reduce human efforts and responsibilities for taking care of the plant, as well as to reduce the number of untimely death of the young planted saplings. The given implementation has a drone controlled through a remote server, a cloud database, an android based device along with some electronic circuitry for tracking, locating and monitoring the health of the planted saplings which will help the people as well as the concerned department (forest department) to monitor the existing/newly planted saplings. The system uses basic growth parameters of the plant like leaf color, temperature, the moisture level of soil, humidity and concentration of Carbon Dioxide for continuous health and growth monitoring.

Vegetable crop production is the rudimentary process for the sustainability of mankind on this planet. Technological advancements have been shaping the crop production in a commendable way nonetheless, weeds play a deleterious role for the growth of the crops. Weed management has hence become the alarming solution for increasing the yield. Even though manual weeding is being practiced by many nonetheless, labor costs, time and tedium have become the major constraints for the crop production. The introduction of the chemical methods of weed control has affected the growth of crops. However, the continuous use of herbicide-resistant weedicides has a serious impact on crops and the environment. So an increasing demand for chemical-free food has led to the investigation of alternative methods of weed control. Most of the methods of mechanical weeding doesn't produce the accurate result and moreover, existing intra-row weeders have limitations. This paper proposes the construction and working of an autonomous mechanical weeder. It consists of an actuator which is developed to mechanically remove intra-row weeds. The mechanically weeding actuator consists of an integrated servo motor which is combined with the computer vision assisted system for detecting the crop plant locations and guiding the weeding actuator to execute mechanical weeding operations without damaging the crops. The image extraction is based on a novel algorithm which effectively works with the encoding system of the robot movement with a precision of plus or minus 1cm. The accuracy of the system is found to be 96.3% using haar cascade classifier using Open-CV open source framework.

Unit commitment (UC) is an optimization problem used to determine the operation schedule of the generating units at every hour interval with varying loads under different constraints and environments. Many algorithms have been invented in the past five decades for optimization of the UC problem, but still researchers are working in this field to find new hybrid algorithms to make the problem more realistic. The importance of UC is increasing with the constantly varying demands. Therefore, there is an urgent need in the power sector to keep track of the latest methodologies to further optimize the working criterions of the generating units. This paper focuses on providing a clear review of the latest techniques employed in optimizing UC problems for both stochastic and deterministic loads, which has been acquired from many peer reviewed published papers. It has been divided into many sections which include various constraints based on profit, security, emission and time. It emphasizes not only on deregulated and regulated environments but also on renewable energy and distributed generating systems. In terms of contributions, the detailed analysis of all the UC algorithms has been discussed for the benefit of new researchers interested in working in this field.

Background: Infection with hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute viral hepatitis in several developing countries. Although usually self-limiting and benign, the disease is particularly severe among pregnant women, with mortality rates reaching 15–20%. Methods: Immune parameters among pregnant women with acute hepatitis E (P-HEV) were investigated and compared with those in non-pregnant patients with hepatitis E (N-HEV), and healthy pregnant (PC) and non-pregnant (NPC) women. Results: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from P-HEV patients had lower lymphocyte proliferation response to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) than those in the PC and NPC groups. A positive lymphocyte proliferation response to HEV antigen (HEVAg), a mixture of eight peptides derived from HEV proteins, was observed in 7/19 (37%) P-HEV patients, 3/9 (33%) N-HEV patients and only 2/21 (10%) PC and 2/14 (14%) NPC subjects; the stimulation indices in the P-HEV group were similar to the N-HEV group and higher than the PC group. Measurement of cytokine production by PBMC in response to PHA and HEVAg showed a reduction in production of T-helper 1 (Th1) cytokines and an increase in that of Th2 cytokines in the P-HEV group. Cytokine mRNA levels showed similar changes. Conclusion: These results show the existence of a Th2 bias in pregnant women with acute hepatitis E. The role of this Th2 bias in the greater severity of hepatitis E among pregnant women needs further investigation.

Infection with hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a major cause of acute viral hepatitis in several developing countries. Although usually self-limiting and benign, the disease is particularly severe among pregnant women, with mortality rates reaching 15-20%.Immune parameters among pregnant women with acute hepatitis E (P-HEV) were investigated and compared with those in non-pregnant patients with hepatitis E (N-HEV), and healthy pregnant (PC) and non-pregnant (NPC) women.Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from P-HEV patients had lower lymphocyte proliferation response to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) than those in the PC and NPC groups. A positive lymphocyte proliferation response to HEV antigen (HEVAg), a mixture of eight peptides derived from HEV proteins, was observed in 7/19 (37%) P-HEV patients, 3/9 (33%) N-HEV patients and only 2/21 (10%) PC and 2/14 (14%) NPC subjects; the stimulation indices in the P-HEV group were similar to the N-HEV group and higher than the PC group. Measurement of cytokine production by PBMC in response to PHA and HEVAg showed a reduction in production of T-helper 1 (Th1) cytokines and an increase in that of Th2 cytokines in the P-HEV group. Cytokine mRNA levels showed similar changes.These results show the existence of a Th2 bias in pregnant women with acute hepatitis E. The role of this Th2 bias in the greater severity of hepatitis E among pregnant women needs further investigation.