Search

In the engineering practice of performing robotic measurements with a 2D scanner, a major difficulty is to accurately determine the tool center point (TCP) quickly and easily since it does not exist as a physical object. The article proposes an algorithm for determining the coordinates of the TCP point. It relies on the possibility of using a conical element, such as a milling cutter of unknown geometry. So far, the algorithms found in the literature were based on a sphere of known size. The presented solution was simulated in RobotStudio 2019 software, while calculations were performed in Maple 14 software. In addition, the correctness of the presented solutions was verified on a real object, an IRB 2400 robot equipped with a Keyence 2D scanner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents an unprecedented resolution for the lack of harmony between wired network TCP, which transacts with stationary routers, and the Ad-hoc, which appoints mobile hosts as routers, causing failure. This is done by modifying the TCP's queue via fuzzy logic as a controller (FLC). The novelty is that when the mobile router changes location, leading to failure, the controller keeps tracking error signals, which become a behavior prediction base for the next error before occurring. The transfer function is designed with respect to the I/O parameters to optimize the system, leading to the steady with free of fluctuation and overshoot. Other than previous techniques, which depend on fixed criteria or proactive strategies such as AQM, the proposed system is distinguished by dynamic adaptation with continuous changes like mobility and signal power. Using FLC, the system response is improved by reducing time delay, packet loss, and enhancing stability and spectral efficiency. A simulation is designed to continuously monitor these parameters' results, represented by the metrics rise time, undershoot, overshoot, and steady time. For comparison purposes, the PID controller is applied, and the results show surpassing this system where the metrics rise time, undershoot, overshoot, and steady time values are for FLC 0.55, 0.017, 0, and 2.5, respectively, with fluctuation-free, while for PID 0.6, 0.526, 9.341, and 3.6533, respectively, with fluctuation. Furthermore, by dealing the FLC with the challenges of high mobility and the signal power changes, it exceeds the traditional PID controller, as the simulation results show that in terms of reducing the delay time by 28.6%, packet loss by 50%. Besides, there is a remarkable increase in the throughput by 20% and spectral efficiency by 16.7%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves deeply into exploring the artistic value of traditional Chinese painting (TCP) and aims to bridge the gap between its fundamental characteristics and the realm of human emotions. To achieve this, a novel convolutional neural network (CNN)-based classification model for TCP emotions is proposed. By thoroughly analyzing the distinct emotional mapping relationships inherent in TCP, a comprehensive framework is developed. Notably, emotional feature regions are accurately extracted using image saliency, and a multi-layer aggregation recalibrated emotional feature module is seamlessly integrated into the CNN network structure. This integration strengthens the activation of features that significantly influence TCP emotions. Moreover, a method of multi-category weighted activation localization is skillfully employed to classify Chinese painting emotions within the CMYK (cyan magenta yellow black) color space. The empirical results convincingly demonstrate that our algorithm surpasses existing approaches such as VGG-19, GoogLeNet, ResNet-50, and WSCNet in the task of TCP emotion recognition, achieving an impressive accuracy of 92.36%, the largest error is 0.191. This improvement signifies the advancements made by our model in accurately capturing and understanding the emotional nuances within TCP. By outperforming previous methods, our research contributes to the convergence of multimedia technology and cultural education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Plant tendrils are specialized organs that can twine around other structures to facilitate climbing. They occur in a variety of plant families and have diverse ontogenic origins. In cucurbits, tendrils originate from lateral shoots. Fine mapping verified that the tendril-less ctl mutation of the melon Cucumis melo corresponds to a frameshift mutation in the CmTCP1 gene, which encodes a TCP transcription factor. A yeast two-hybrid screen for CmTCP1/CTL-interacting proteins identified a member of the plant-specific YABBY transcription factor family, which was named CmYAB1. Each of the N- and C-terminal regions of CmTCP1 interacted with CmYAB1. The ctl mutation impaired the interaction between CmTCP1 and CmYAB1. Both proteins interacted in vitro and were localized to the nucleus in plant cells. In situ expression analysis revealed the coexistence of the CmTCP1 and CmYAB1 mRNAs in the abaxial domains of developing tendrils. An RNA-seq analysis of the seven YABBY genes in the melon genome revealed relatively high expression ratios of CmYAB1 in tendrils compared with those in leaves. These results suggest a novel function of the YABBY protein through its interaction with a TCP protein in the development of cucurbit tendrils.

A straightforward method for the synthesis of difluoroalkylated bicyclopentanes (BCPs) from [1.1.1]propellane (TCP) through a stepwise procedure has been developed. This process involves nucleophilic addition of organozinc or ArMgBr reagents to TCP, followed by reaction with difluorocarbene to generate BCP substituted difluoroalkylzinc species, which subsequently couple with electrophiles, including allyl/propargyl bromides, (hetero)aryl disulfides, and proton, to provide a wide range of difluoroalkylated BCPs that otherwise are difficult to access through conventional methods. The transformations of the resulting products demonstrate the synthetic utility of this modular synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This study simulated the potential of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) to improve the effectiveness of radiation therapy in pancreatic cancer cases. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of GNPs on tumor control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) in pancreatic cancer cases undergoing radiation therapy. The work aimed to compare treatment plans generated with a novel 2.5 MV beam using GNPs to conventional 6 MV plans and evaluate the dose-volume histogram (DVH), TCP, and NTCP. Approach. Treatment planning for five pancreatic computed tomography (CT) images was performed using the open-source MATLAB-based treatment planning program matRad. MATLAB codes were developed to calculate the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) of GNPs and apply the corresponding dose and RBE values to each voxel. TCP and NTCP were calculated based on the applied RBE values. Main results. Adding GNPs to the 2.5 MV treatment plan resulted in a significant increase in TCP, from around 59% to 93.5%, indicating that the inclusion of GNPs improved the effectiveness of the radiation treatment. The range in NTCP without GNPs was relatively larger compared to that with GNPs. Significance. The results indicated that the addition of GNPs to a 2.5 MV plan can increase TCP while maintaining a relatively low NTCP value (<1%). The use of GNPs may also reduce NTCP values by decreasing the dose to normal tissues while maintaining the same prescribed dose to the tumor. Hence, the addition of GNPs can improve the balance between TCP and NTCP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, there are two main clustering perforation methods: coiled tubing-conveyed perforation (TCP) and cable-conveyed perforation (CCP). To improve the efficiency of CCP strings in wellbore pass-through capacity problems, considering wellbore geometry constraints, pipe string variable cross-section, flexible tool deformation, and other factors, the pass-through capacity analysis model of the perforating tool string was established and solved by geometric analysis and beam-column theory. Aiming at the running depth problem of a TCP string, considering the influence of the buckling effect, a model of coiled tubing running depth was established by the infinitesimal method. The field test data were used to verify the effectiveness of the two models. The effects of well trajectory, perforating string size, casing inner diameter, and coiled tubing size on the pass-through capacity of the CCP string and running depth of the TCP string were explored. The results indicate that with the increase of perforation string size or the reduction of casing inner diameter, the pass-through capacity of CCP string decreases; with the increase of coiled tubing specification, the running capacity of TCP string is improved. The work presented in this paper provides an effective analysis method and theoretical guidance for clustering perforation jobs in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The objective was to evaluate the remineralization effects of fluoride varnish (Clinpro White varnish), self-assembling peptide (Curodont™ Repair) and their combined use on WSL after orthodontic treatment. Materials and methods: Thirty-two subjects, aged of 10–18 (mean age 13.91 ± 2.92) with 107 post-orthodontic WSL were included in the study. Subjects were divided into four groups as control, tricalcium phosphate (TCP) containing fluoride varnish (Clinpro White varnish) group, self-assembling P11-4 peptides (Curodont™ Repair) group and combined application of the two products. At the beginning, each subjects’ caries risk profile was assessed by evaluating diet cariogenicity, plaque index, gingival bleeding index and stimulated salivary flow rate. Before the application of the remineralization agents, WSL baseline demineralization values were determined with QLF Inspektor™ Pro, laser fluorescence using DIAGNOdent and color values were measured by Vita EasyShade. Remineralization data were obtained by measuring ΔF, ΔQ, and lesion area with QLF. The aesthetic improvement after the remineralization process was evaluated with a spectrophotometer at six weeks, three and six months. Results: No statistically significant differences were found between the groups in terms of criteria determining patients’ caries risk profiles, DIAGNOdent data, and plaque index scores (p > 0.05). Intra-group evaluation following remineralization revealed statistically significant increases in ΔF and ΔQ with a decrease in lesion area for the fluoride varnish group at six months, for the peptide group at three months, and for the combined application group at three and six months (p < 0.05). In inter-group comparisons, ΔF and ΔQ values were found to be statistically significant only in the fluoride group at six months compared to the other groups (p < 0.05). While the L* value decreased significantly in all groups at six months, a statistically significant difference in ΔE* values was observed only in the control group between three and six months. Conclusion: Fluoride varnish with TCP showed highest remineralization at 6 months, and the remineralization was positively affected in the short term (three months) after the use of self-assembling P11-4 peptides and their combined application. Clinical relevance: Remineralization obtained after single application of agents tested in six months in-vivo showed parallel results. In an attempt to trigger subsurface remineralization, the combined use of fluoride with self-assembling peptides as biomimetic remineralization agent needs further evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE In this study, different fraction sizes in prostate cancer will be examined using a radiobiological model. METHODS Fifty patients diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancer who were treated between 2009 and 2021 were identified retrospectively. Conventional (CF) and ultra-hypofractionated (HF) volume-adjusted arc plans were calculated for selected prostate patients. Mathematical formulations were created for radiobiological modeling of tumor control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) in the Matlab program. Dose-volume histogram (DVH) data of the plans were examined in the Matlab program. RESULTS Bladder and rectum NTCP values were significantly lower in the HF technique compared to the CF technique (p<0.05). For femoral heads, NTCP was similar (p=0.317). For the planned target volume, TCP values obtained with the HF technique are significantly higher compared to the CF technique (p=0.000). CONCLUSION Higher TCP values were obtained with the HF technique. It has been observed that normal tissues receive lower doses. This may be associated with high local control rates while providing similar toxicity. HF treatment may be preferred in prostate cancer because the total treatment duration is shorter and the dose applied to critical organs is lower. Radiobiological models are very instructive for comparing treatment schemes in radiotherapy plans. The Matlab program we created is a very helpful tool for the radiation oncologist and medical physicist to evaluate their plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two types of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks: high-rate DDoS (HRDDoS) attacks and low-rate DDoS (LRDDoS) attacks. A shrew attack is an LRDDoS attack that can prove to be more harmful than an HRDDoS attack since it is not easily noticeable and is stealthy. It can cause TCP flows to attain near-zero throughput by sending attack pulses of short bursts synchronized with the TCP retransmission timeout (RTO) value. As a result, each time it attempts to retransmit after the timeout, it forces the TCP packets to be dropped. Thus, if it is not detected for a long time, it may endanger the victim systems and reduce the overall quality of services. In this paper, we conduct a statistical analysis of network traffic, where we analyze the deviations in flow behavior based on packets sent under normal and attack conditions. In order to achieve this, we use a priority determiner D to determine the participation of a flow in congestion and its adherence to legitimate TCP compliance under attack conditions. Shrew attack flows exhibit higher values of D as they do not adhere to TCP compliance and tend to contribute to more congestion to disrupt a server. This nature of attack flows enables us to filter them based on the values of D and mitigate them by blocking these flows. The experimental results on various scenarios demonstrated high accuracy to substantiate the efficacy of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the exploding number of IoT devices generating vast data volumes, there is a growing risk of significant performance degradation without efficient congestion management. To tackle this challenge, efficient regulation and supervision are essential for managing congestion in IoT networks. This research work introduces a One-Way-Delay (OWD)-based congestion control (CC) method that estimates data transmission delays of the communication path and adjusts network traffic accordingly. The proposed method enhances IoT device performance by continuously monitoring OWD along the transmission path to identify and mitigate congestion. Comparative analysis with existing methods demonstrates that the proposed approach more effectively utilizes network resources, reduces congestion, and improves throughput while ensuring fairness and reliability within the IoT infrastructure. The experimental simulations show that the proposed OWD-based method outperforms well-established TCP variants such as BBR, TCP Cubic, HTCP, and New Reno, achieving average throughput improvements ranging from 4.1 % to 22.7 %. The proposed method also maintains fairness in mixed-traffic environments and effectively manages congestion in complex network topologies.

This study delves deeply into exploring the artistic value of traditional Chinese painting (TCP) and aims to bridge the gap between its fundamental characteristics and the realm of human emotions. To achieve this, a novel convolutional neural network (CNN)-based classification model for TCP emotions is proposed. By thoroughly analyzing the distinct emotional mapping relationships inherent in TCP, a comprehensive framework is developed. Notably, emotional feature regions are accurately extracted using image saliency, and a multi-layer aggregation recalibrated emotional feature module is seamlessly integrated into the CNN network structure. This integration strengthens the activation of features that significantly influence TCP emotions. Moreover, a method of multi-category weighted activation localization is skillfully employed to classify Chinese painting emotions within the CMYK (cyan magenta yellow black) color space. The empirical results convincingly demonstrate that our algorithm surpasses existing approaches such as VGG-19, GoogLeNet, ResNet-50, and WSCNet in the task of TCP emotion recognition, achieving an impressive accuracy of 92.36%, the largest error is 0.191. This improvement signifies the advancements made by our model in accurately capturing and understanding the emotional nuances within TCP. By outperforming previous methods, our research contributes to the convergence of multimedia technology and cultural education.

The Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) serves as a cornerstone mechanism for implementing Congestion Control (CC) across the Internet. Designing a solution that provides high bandwidth utilization and mitigates the phenomenon of bufferbloat across a spectrum of diverse scenarios poses a considerable challenge. The introduction of Bottleneck Bandwidth and Round Trip propagation time (BBR) in 2016 marked a significant shift in congestion control methodology. Its improved performance and adaptability contributed to the initial acclaim and widespread interest that it received.. Unlike most currently used CCs, it operates around Kleinrock's optimal point, thus offering high throughput even in lossy networks while preventing buffer saturation. Unfortunately, it quickly became evident that BBR was unable to fairly share bandwidth with flows characterized by different path delays, as well as loss-based CCs. In response, Google recently introduced a third iteration to address these shortcomings. This study explores the performance of BBRv3 across a wide range of scenarios, thereby considering different buffer sizes and paths with varying Round Trip Times (RTTs), and it evaluates its superiority over its predecessors. Through extensive simulations, this work assesses whether BBRv3 can finally play fair with other bandwidth contenders, which is a critical consideration given the widespread deployment of BBR. The framework is publicly available to facilitate additional validation and ensure the reproducibility of the study's findings. The results indicate that while BBRv3 demonstrates enhanced fairness towards loss-based CC algorithms, it struggles when competing against other BBR flows, especially in multi-RTT networks, thus falling short even when compared to the initial version. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing movement from rural areas to urban areas, along with the widening gap in population, has resulted in metropolitan areas becoming extremely overpopulated. As a result of the high volume of traffic that occurs in these areas, traffic monitoring is an extremely important activity. According to the findings of this study, an improved authentication and communication protocol that is based on clusters could be implemented for Intelligent Transportation Systems in Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs). Our number one objective is to enhance the sharing of resources amongst vehicles through improved communication. Cluster-based routing protocols allowed us to increase the scalability, stability, and dependability of fast-moving VANETs. This was accomplished in the context of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications. To easing concerns regarding privacy and safety, we arranged for the vehicles to be certified by an independent contractor. Through the utilization of Graph Neural Networks (GNNs), we can reduce the number of instances in which links fail, as well as minimize end-to-end (E2E) delays and route requests. Our approach has resulted in several important benefits, including enhancements to throughput, reductions in the amount of time required for TCP socket initialization, acceleration of TCP handshake response, and DNS lookup. Shortrange peer-to-peer wireless communication is the focus of the protocols that are used within a cluster that is 400 meters in radius. Utilizing new peer-to-peer wireless communications over VANET is what is meant by the term resource-conserving in this context. Within the framework of the suggested protocol secure authentication method, a certifying authority is responsible for the generation of a secure authentication key for the vehicle, which is subsequently provided to the vehicle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of cloud services in several areas has led to the growth of data-intensive applications. It is necessary to find ways to enhance the efficiency of communications within the networks of data centers to improve the performance of cloud environments. Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) is used by Data Center TCP (DCTCP) to enhance congestion control in data center networks. The DCTCP uses ECN to assess the amount of congestion, whereas normal TCP congestion management can simply detect its presence. This paper examines DCTCP using the Random Early Detection (RED) queue management strategy. The evaluation reveals that employing Random Early Detection incurs certain costs. The RED is criticized on the one hand for both short- and medium-term connections due to longer completion time delays compared to typical DCTCP techniques. Because of ECN, DCTCP may maintain small queue sizes. However, because RED uses the average queue size, it penalizes short-lived traffic because it does not reach the bottleneck quickly. An intelligent queue management mechanism with ECN is believed to enhance DCTCP's performance in a cloud-computing environment by predicting sending rates and providing fast feedback on queue length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most important developments in the energy industry is the evolution of smart grids, which record minute details of voltage levels, energy usage, and other critical electrical variables through General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)-enabled meters. This phenomenon creates an extensive dataset for the optimization of the grid system. However, the minute-by-minute energy details recorded by GPRS meters are challenging to store and manage in physical storage resources (old techniques lead to a memory shortage). This study investigates using the distributed file system, replicated Gluster, as a reliable storage option for handling and protecting the enormous volumes of data produced by smart grid components. This study performs two essential tasks. (1) The storage of virtual data received from GPRS meters and load flow analysis of SynerGee Electric 4.0 software from the smart grid (we have extracted electrical data from 16 outgoing feeders, distributed lines, in this manuscript). (2) Tele-trafficking is performed to check the performance of replicated Gluster (RG) for virtual data (electrical data received from the smart grid) storage in terms of User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), data flow, and jitter delays. This storage technique provides more opportuni11ty to analyze and perform smart techniques efficiently for future requirement, analysis, and load estimation in smart grids compared to traditional storage methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The TCP gene family members play multiple functions in plant growth and development and were named after the first three family members found in this family, TB1 (TEOSINTE BRANCHED 1), CYCLOIDEA (CYC), and Proliferating Cell Factor 1/2 (PCF1/2). Nitrogen (N) is a crucial element for forage yield; however, over-application of N fertilizer can increase agricultural production costs and environmental stress. Therefore, the discovery of low N tolerance genes is essential for the genetic improvement of superior oat germplasm and ecological protection. Oat (Avena sativa L.), is one of the world's staple grass forages, but no genome-wide analysis of TCP genes and their roles in lownitrogen stress has been performed. This study identified the oat TCP gene family members using bioinformatics techniques. It analyzed their phylogeny, gene structure analysis, and expression patterns. The results showed that the AsTCP gene family includes 49 members, and most of the AsTCP-encoded proteins are neutral or acidic proteins; the phylogenetic tree classified the AsTCP gene family members into three subfamilies, and each subfamily has different conserved structural domains and functions. In addition, multiple cis-acting elements were detected in the promoter of the AsTCP genes, which were associated with abiotic stress, light response, and hormone response. The 49 AsTCP genes identified from oat were unevenly distributed on 18 oat chromosomes. The results of realtime quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) showed that the AsTCP genes had different expression levels in various tissues under low nitrogen stress, which indicated that these genes (such as AsTCP01, AsTCP03, AsTCP22, and AsTCP38) played multiple roles in the growth and development of oat. In conclusion, this study analyzed the AsTCP gene family and their potential functions in low nitrogen stress at the genome-wide level, which lays a foundation for further analysis of the functions of AsTCP genes in oat and provides a theoretical basis for the exploration of excellent stress tolerance genes in oat. This study provides an essential basis for future in-depth studies of the TCP gene family in other oat genera and reveals new research ideas to improve gene utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Equivalent uniform aerobic dose (EUAD) is proposed for comparison of integrated cell survival in tumors with different distributions of hypoxia and radiation dose. Approach. The EUAD assumes that for any non-uniform distributions of radiation dose and oxygen enhancement ratio (OER) within a tumor, there is a uniform distribution of radiation dose under hypothetical aerobic conditions with OER = 1 that produces equal integrated survival of clonogenic cells. This definition of EUAD has several advantages. First, the EUAD allows one to compare survival of clonogenic cells in tumors with intra-tumor and inter-tumor variation of radio sensitivity due to hypoxia because the cell survival is recomputed under the same benchmark oxygen level (OER = 1). Second, the EUAD for homogeneously oxygenated tumors is equal to the concept of equivalent uniform dose. Main results. We computed the EUAD using radiotherapy dose and the OER derived from the 18F-Fluoromisonidazole PET (18F-FMISO PET) images of hypoxia in patients with glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive type of primary malignant brain tumor. The 18F-FMISO PET images include a distribution of SUV (Standardized Uptake Value); therefore, the SUV is converted to partial oxygen pressure (pO2) and then to the OER. The prognostic value of EUAD in radiotherapy for hypoxic tumors is demonstrated using correlation between EUAD and overall survival (OS) in radiotherapy for glioblastoma. The correction to the EUAD for the absolute hypoxic volume that traceable to the tumor control probability improves the correlation with OS. Significance. While the analysis proposed in this research is based on the 18F-FMISO PET images for glioblastoma, the EUAD is a universal radiobiological concept and is not associated with any specific cancer or any specific PET or MRI biomarker of hypoxia. Therefore, this research can be generalized to other cancers, for example stage III lung cancer, and to other hypoxia biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copper (Cu), being an essential mineral, plays a crucial role in maintaining physiological homeostasis across multiple bodily systems, notably the cardiovascular system. However, an increased Cu level in the body may cause blood vessel dysfunction and oxidative stress, which is unfavorable for the cardiovascular system. Middle-aged (7–8 months old) male Wistar rats (n/group = 12) received a diet supplemented with 6.45 mg Cu/kg (100% of the recommended daily dietary quantity of copper) for 8 weeks (Group A). The experimental group received 12.9 mg Cu/kg of diet (200%—Group B). An ex vivo study revealed that supplementation with 200% Cu decreased the contraction of isolated aortic rings to noradrenaline (0.7-fold) through FP receptor modulation. Vasodilation to sodium nitroprusside (1.10-fold) and acetylcholine (1.13-fold) was potentiated due to the increased net effect of prostacyclin derived from cyclooxygenase-1. Nitric oxide (NO, 2.08-fold), superoxide anion (O2•−, 1.5-fold), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2, 2.33-fold) measured in the aortic rings increased. Blood serum antioxidant status (TAS, 1.6-fold), Cu (1.2-fold), Zn (1.1-fold), and the Cu/Zn ratio (1.4-fold) increased. An increase in Cu (1.12-fold) and the Cu/Zn ratio (1.09-fold) was also seen in the rats' livers. Meanwhile, cyclooxygenase-1 (0.7-fold), cyclooxygenase-2 (0.4-fold) and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (0.5-fold) decreased. Moreover, a negative correlation between Cu and Zn was found (r = −0.80) in rat serum. Supplementation with 200% Cu did not modify the isolated heart functioning. No significant difference was found in the body weight, fat/lean body ratio, and organ weight for either the heart or liver, spleen, kidney, and brain. Neither Fe nor Se, the Cu/Se ratio, the Se/Zn ratio (in serum and liver), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), or intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (iCAM-1) (in serum) were modified. Supplementation with 200% of Cu potentiated pro-oxidant status and modified vascular contractility in middle-aged rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) is a promising material in regenerative traumatology for the creation of bone implants. Previously, it was established that doping the structure with certain cations can reduce the growth of bacterial activity. Recently, much attention has been paid to co-doped β-TCP, that is explained by their ability, on the one hand, to reduce cytotoxicity for cells of the human organism, on the other hand, to achieve a successful antibacterial effect. Sr, Cu-co-doped solid solutions of the composition Ca9.5–xSrxCu(PO4)7 was obtained by the method of solid-phase reactions. The Rietveld method of structural refinement revealed the presence of Sr2+ ions in four crystal sites: M1, M2, M3, and M4. The M5 site is completely occupied by Cu2+. Isomorphic substitution of Ca2+ → (Sr2+and Cu2+) expands the concentration limits of the existence of the solid solution with the β-TCP structure. No additional phases were formed up to x = 4.5 in Ca9.5–xSrxCu(PO4)7. Biocompatibility tests were performed on cell lines of human bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSC), human fibroblasts (MRC-5) and osteoblasts (U-2OS). It was demonstrated that cytotoxicity exhibited a concentration dependence, along with an increase in osteogenesis and cell proliferation. Ca9.5–xSrxCu(PO4)7 powders showed significant inhibitory activity against pathogenic strains Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Piezoelectric properties of Ca9.5–xSrxCu(PO4)7 were investigated. Possible ways to achieve high piezoelectric response are discussed. The combination of bioactive properties of Ca9.5–xSrxCu(PO4)7 renders them multifunctional materials suitable for bone substitutes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fractionated radiotherapy was established in the 1920s based upon two principles: (1) delivering daily treatments of equal quantity, unless the clinical situation requires adjustment, and (2) defining a specific treatment period to deliver a total dosage. Modern fractionated radiotherapy continues to adhere to these century-old principles, despite significant advancements in our understanding of radiobiology. At UT Southwestern, we are exploring a novel treatment approach called PULSAR (Personalized Ultra-Fractionated Stereotactic Adaptive Radiotherapy). This method involves administering tumoricidal doses in a pulse mode with extended intervals, typically spanning weeks or even a month. Extended intervals permit substantial recovery of normal tissues and afford the tumor and tumor microenvironment ample time to undergo significant changes, enabling more meaningful adaptation in response to the evolving characteristics of the tumor. The notion of dose painting in the realm of radiation therapy has long been a subject of contention. The debate primarily revolves around its clinical effectiveness and optimal methods of implementation. In this perspective, we discuss two facets concerning the potential integration of dose painting with PULSAR, along with several practical considerations. If successful, the combination of the two may not only provide another level of personal adaptation ("adaptive dose painting"), but also contribute to the establishment of a timely feedback loop throughout the treatment process. To substantiate our perspective, we conducted a fundamental modeling study focusing on PET-guided dose painting, incorporating tumor heterogeneity and tumor control probability (TCP). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To compare the dosimetric advantages and disadvantages between hybrid intensity-modulated radiation therapy (h-IMRT) and the volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) technique in hypofractionated whole-breast irradiation (HF-WBI) for early-stage breast cancer (BC). Methods: The dose distribution of h-IMRT and VMAT plans was compared in 20 breast cancer patients. This comparison included evaluation of dosimetric parameters using dose volume histograms (DVHs) for the planning target volume (PTV) and organs-at-risk (OARs). Additionally, the study examined the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP), the second cancer complication probability (SCCP) and the tumor control probability (TCP) based on different models. Results: Significant differences were detected between the two plans, in terms of Machine units (MUs), the control points, 95 % volume (V95 %), dose homogeneity index (DHI) and conformity index (CI). The endpoint of grade II radiation pneumonitis and cardiac death due to ischemic heart disease were assessed. In h-IMRT plan, the NTCP values were marginally lower for radiation pneumonitis and slightly higher for cardiac death compared to VMAT plan, as determined by the Lyman–Kutcher–Burman model. The Schneider model was employed to predict the SCCP for both the bilateral lungs and contralateral breast, the results demonstrate that the h-IMRT plan outperforms the VMAT plan, with statistical significance. Additionally, the LQ-Poisson model was employed to forecast the TCP of the PTV, showing that the h-IMRT plan outperformed the VMAT plan (P > 0.05). Conclusion: The h-IMRT technique, offering superior dose coverage and better therapeutic efficacy with fewer side effects as calculated by models, is more suitable for HF-WBI compared to the VMAT technique.

In this paper we derive mathematical description of TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) retransmission probability based on Jacobson’s smoothing algorithm that belongs to EWMA (Exponentially Weighted Moving Average) category. This description is parametrized on the probability density function (pdf) of RTT (Round Trip Time) samples and α, β – two primary parameters of Jacobson’s algorithm. Although it is not a close form expression, it is formulated as an effective algorithm that let us to explicitly calculate the values of RTO (Retransmission Time Out) probability as a function of α, β and the pdf of RTT samples. We achieve the effectiveness of this approach by applying smart discretization of the state space and replacement of continuous functions with discrete approximate equivalents. In this way, we mitigate the cardinality of discrete distributions we deal with that results in linear (n+m) instead of multiplicative (n⋅m) growth of computational complexity. We provide the evaluation of RTO probability for a wide set of α, β parameter values and differently shaped Normal and Laplace pdfs the RTT samples are taken from. The obtained numerical results let us to draw some conclusions regarding the choice of optimal values of α, β parameters as well as the impact of pdf the RTT samples are taken from.

Abstract Background The brown planthopper (BPH) is a kind of piercing-sucking insect specific to rice, with the damage tops the list of pathogens and insects in recent years. microRNAs (miRNAs) are pivotal regulators of plant–environment interactions, while the mechanism underlying their function against insects is largely unknown. Results Here, we confirmed that OsmiR319, an ancient and conserved miRNA, negatively regulated resistance to BPHs, with overexpression of OsmiR319 susceptible to BPH, while suppression of OsmiR319 resistant to BPH in comparison with wild type. Meanwhile, we identified several targets of OsmiR319 that may mediate BPH resistance. Among them, OsPCF5 was the most obviously induced by BPH feeding, and over expression of OsPCF5 was resistance to BPH. In addition, various biochemical assays verified that OsPCF5 interacted with several MYB proteins, such as OsMYB22, OsMYB30, and OsMYB30C.Genetically, we revealed that both OsMYB22 and OsMYB30C positively regulated BPH resistance. Genetic interaction analyses confirmed that OsMYB22 and OsMYB30C both function in the same genetic pathway with OsmiR319b to mediate BPH resistance. Conclusions Altogether, we revealed that OsPCF5 regulates BPH resistance via association with several MYB proteins downstream of OsmiR319, these MYB proteins might function as regulators of BPH resistance through regulating the phenylpropane synthesis.

Introduction:This study aims to investigate the Normal Tissue Complication Probability (NTCP) and Tumor Control Probability (TCP) of cervical cancer from Niemierko radiobiological model and compared with Lyman-Kutcher-Butcher (LKB) model’s effective volume parameter in three different planning techniques such as 3-Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy (3D-CRT), Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT) and Volumetric Arc Therapy (VMAT).Material and Methods:Twenty patients were selected with Grade II and Grade III and the treatment plan was initially generated for 3D-CRT, IMRT and VMAT. The physical dose from each voxel in radiotherapy treatment planning was extracted through a dose volume histogram (DVH) text file from in-built software developed using python program. Software was developed by freely available python integration with an integrated Oracle database to store the outcome results with user-friendly graphical user interface for editing the radiological parameter values and viewing the DVH graph. The dosimetricconformalities parameters such as homogeneity index (HI) and conformity index (CI) along with radiobiological parameters such as TCP, NTCP and effective volume (Veff) were compared with three different planning techniques.Results:The IMRT and VMAT dose delivery techniques improve the efficiency of the treatment of cervical cancer with good coverage of target volume as well as low irradiation of Organ at Risk (OARs) compared with 3D-CRT.Conclusion: There is no significant difference in effective volume for IMRT and VMAT, which proportionally increases with the advanced planning techniques, causes insignificant complication probability to normal tissues. Other conformalities parameters were showing good agreement for all the three techniques.

The size and shape of rice grains influence their yield and commercial value. We investigated the role of OsDA1, a rice homolog of the Arabidopsis DA1 gene, in regulating grain size and shape. OsDA1 was highly expressed in young spikelets and glumes. Its overexpression led to enlarged seeds with increased width and decreased length/width ratio (LWR) and knocking out OsDA1 reduced grain width and increased grain length and LWR. A R310K point mutation in the DA1-like domain is a potential target for breeding for increased grain width and length. OsDA1 interacted with TCP gene-family proteins to regulate grain size and shape. Our findings deepen our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying grain size regulation and provide useful information for improving grain yield.

Congestion and resulting packet loss in TCP connections can lead to performance degradation and reduce the Quality of Experience (QoE) for end users. Many common TCP congestion control algorithms therefore adjust their sending rate proactively, using heuristics based on measured delay and/or throughput. We have investigated whether it would be possible to replace such heuristics with Machine Learning (ML), such that Internet hosts could meaningfully react when a packet loss is predicted to happen. For example, such a reaction could involve the use of Forward Erasure Correction (FEC) to protect against the loss, or to dynamically tune parameters of TCP. We present two ML models that were trained for Reno and Cubic flows, respectively, and show that they can be beneficially applied in real time. We do this by informing a TCP sender to reduce its rate via a local, artificially generated Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) signal at the sender before packet loss would have happened.

This paper focuses on congestion control in the particular context of wireless networks. It summarizes basic concepts and key performance metrics pertaining to congestion control and surveys relevant and recent congestion control schemes that are currently used by most popular applications and services on the Internet. The paper also identifies the unique challenges brought to the congestion control problem when running on wireless environments. It then presents an in-depth and exhaustive performance evaluation and comparison of five of the most widely used congestion control schemes when running on wireless networks for different scenarios with low and high interference. The outcome of the conducted evaluation clearly shows the different performances incurred by the studied congestion control schemes and the impact of the characteristics of wireless environments on the key performance metrics. It also provides some insights on which congestion control scheme should be used depending on the application’s requirements. The paper concludes by highlighting the open research directions to advance congestion control schemes to bitter fit the challenges faced in wireless networks and emergent applications.

This paper describes the possibility of applying heuristic methods for parameter optimization in the TCP protocol. The proposed concept provides for a TCP protocol adjusting its parameters for greater efficiency through testing the network state and adapting accordingly. This can be achieved through careful analysis of the network state both before and during data transfer connections. The proposed solution introduces an innovative approach, incorporating the possibility of self-learning and self-adjusting capabilities. This sophisticated algorithm should define the next parameter values in terms of finding optimal parameter settings. Each TCP connection plays a crucial role as iteration in the process of finding the optimal solution. The concept focuses on calculating TCP parameter values at the network ends in order to optimize network traffic and to maximize the use of network resources. The approach has been tested on a dedicated test platform, validating its potential for verifying the network protocols functionality and for optimizing their parameters. The proposed solution, here referred to as the modified TCP, showed better performance compared to other versions of the TCP protocol. Notably, even under heavy traffic loads on links, the results for the modified TCP consistently outperform the standard TCP, delivering results that are several times better.

To compare treatment planning and dosimetric outcomes for hippocampal sparing whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) with the simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) in brain metastasis (BM) patients using tumour control probability (TCP) and normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) formalism between IMRT, VMAT, and HT techniques. In this retrospective study, the treatment data of 20 BM patients who typically received whole brain radiation with SIB treatment were used. Prescription doses of 30 Gy and 36 Gy was delivered in 10 fractions for WBRT and SIB, respectively. Niemierko and LKB models were applied for calculating TCP and NTCP. All the plans were evaluated for the RTOG 0933 protocol criteria and found acceptable. Additionally, the homogeneity of the PTV boost is 0.07 ± 0.01, 0.1 ± 0.04, and 0.08 ± 0.02 for IMRT, VMAT, and HT, respectively (P < 0.05). The percentage of TCP for the PTV boost was 99.99 ± 0.003, 99.98 ± 0.004, and 99.99 ± 0.002 of IMRT, VMAT, and HT, respectively, (P < 0.005). The NTCP value of the lenses was higher with the VMAT plan as compared to IMRT and HT Plans. The hippocampal NTCP values are equal in all three planning proficiencies. The techniques like IMRT, VMAT, and HT can reduce the dose received by hippocampus to the dosimetric threshold during the delivery of WBRT with hippocampal sparing and can simultaneously boost multiple metastases. Overall, the high-quality dose distribution, TCP, and NTCP comparison between all three planning techniques show that the HT technique has better results when compared to the VMAT and IMRT techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bone tissue is one of the most transplanted tissues. The ageing population and bone diseases are the main causes of the growing need for novel treatments offered by bone tissue engineering. Three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds, as artificial structures that fulfil certain characteristics, can be used as a temporary matrix for bone regeneration. In this study, we aimed to fabricate 3D porous polymer scaffolds functionalized with tricalcium phosphate (TCP) particles for applications in bone tissue regeneration. Different combinations of poly(lactic acid) (PLA), poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG with molecular weight of 600 or 2000 Da) and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) with TCP were blended by a gel-casting method combined with rapid heating. Porous composite scaffolds with pore sizes from 100 to 1500 µm were obtained. ATR-FTIR, DSC, and wettability tests were performed to study scaffold composition, thermal properties, and hydrophilicity, respectively. The samples were observed with the use of optical and scanning electron microscopes. The addition of PCL to PLA increased the hydrophobicity of the composite scaffolds and reduced their susceptibility to degradation, whereas the addition of PEG increased the hydrophilicity and degradation rates but concomitantly resulted in enhanced creation of rounded mineral deposits. The scaffolds were not cytotoxic according to an indirect test in L929 fibroblasts, and they supported adhesion and growth of MG-63 cells when cultured in direct contact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A class I PCF type protein, TCP4, was identified as a transcription factor associated with both grain size and tillering through a DNA pull-down-MS assay combined with a genome-wide association study. This transcription factor was found to have a significant role in the variations among the 533 rice accessions, dividing them into two main subspecies. A Tourist -like miniature inverted-repeat transposable element (MITE) was discovered in the promoter of TCP4 in japonica/geng accessions (TCP4 M+), which was found to suppress the expression of TCP4 at the transcriptional level. The MITE-deleted haplotype (TCP4 M-) was mainly found in indica/xian accessions. ChIP-qPCR and EMSA demonstrated the binding of TCP4 to promoters of grain reservoir genes such as SSIIa and Amy3D in vivo and in vitro , respectively. The introduction of the genomic sequence of TCP4 M+ into different TCP4 M- cultivars was found to affect the expression of TCP4 in the transgenic rice, resulting in decreased expression of its downstream target gene SSIIa , increased tiller number, and decreased seed length. This study revealed that a Tourist -like MITE contributes to subspecies divergence by regulating the expression of TCP4 in response to environmental pressure, thus influencing source-sink balance by regulating starch biosynthesis in rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An accurate and reliable estimation of the transformation matrix between an optical sensor and a robot is a key aspect of the hand–eye system calibration process in vision-guided robotic applications. This paper presents a novel approach to markerless hand–eye calibration that achieves streamlined, flexible, and highly accurate results, even without error compensation. The calibration procedure is mainly based on using the robot's tool center point (TCP) as the reference point. The TCP coordinate estimation is based on the robot's flange point cloud, considering its geometrical features. A mathematical model streamlining the conventional marker-based hand–eye calibration is derived. Furthermore, a novel algorithm for the automatic estimation of the flange's geometric features from its point cloud, based on a 3D circle fitting, the least square method, and a nearest neighbor (NN) approach, is proposed. The accuracy of the proposed algorithm is validated using a calibration setting ring as the ground truth. Furthermore, to establish the minimal required number and configuration of calibration points, the impact of the number and the selection of the unique robot's flange positions on the calibration accuracy is investigated and validated by real-world experiments. Our experimental findings strongly indicate that our hand–eye system, employing the proposed algorithm, enables the estimation of the transformation between the robot and the 3D scanner with submillimeter accuracy, even when using the minimum of four non-coplanar points for calibration. Our approach improves the calibration accuracy by approximately four times compared to the state of the art, while eliminating the need for error compensation. Moreover, our calibration approach reduces the required number of the robot's flange positions by approximately 40%, and even more if the calibration procedure utilizes just four properly selected flange positions. The presented findings introduce a more efficient hand–eye calibration procedure, offering a superior simplicity of implementation and increased precision in various robotic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transmission control protocol (TCP) ensures that data are safely and accurately transported over the network for applications that use the transport protocol to allow reliable information delivery. Nowadays, internet usage in the network is growing and has been developing many protocols in the network layer. Congestion leads to packet loss, the high time required for data transmission in the TCP protocol transport layer for end-to-end connections is one of the biggest issues with the internet. An optimized random forest algorithm (RFA) with improved random early detection (IRED) for congestion prediction and avoidance in transport layer is proposed to overcome the drawbacks. Data are initially gathered and sent through data pre-processing to improve the data quality. For data pre-processing, KNN-based missing value imputation is applied to replace the values that are missing in raw data and z-score normalization is utilized to scale the data in a certain range. Following that, congestion is predicted using an optimized RFA and whale optimization algorithm (WOA) is used to set the learning rate as efficiently as possible in order to reduce error and improve forecast accuracy. To avoid congestion, IRED method is utilized for a congestion-free network in the transport layer. Performance metrics are evaluated and compared with the existing techniques with respect to accuracy, precision, recall, specificity, and error, whose values that occur for the proposed model are 98%, 98%, 99%, 98%, and 1%. Throughput and latency are also evaluated in the proposed method to determine the performance of the network. Finally, the proposed method performs better when compared to the existing techniques and prediction, and avoidance of congestion is identified accurately in the network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The Arabidopsis thaliana transcription factor BRANCHED1 (BRC1) plays a pivotal role in the control of shoot branching as it integrates environmental and endogenous signals that influence axillary bud growth. Despite its remarkable activity as a growth inhibitor, the mechanisms by which BRC1 promotes bud dormancy are largely unknown.We determined the genome‐wide BRC1 binding sites in vivo and combined these with transcriptomic data and gene co‐expression analyses to identify bona fide BRC1 direct targets. Next, we integrated multi‐omics data to infer the BRC1 gene regulatory network (GRN) and used graph theory techniques to find network motifs that control the GRN dynamics. We generated an open online tool to interrogate this network. A group of BRC1 target genes encoding transcription factors (BTFs) orchestrate this intricate transcriptional network enriched in abscisic acid‐related components.Promoter::β‐GLUCURONIDASE transgenic lines confirmed that BTFs are expressed in axillary buds. Transient co‐expression assays and studies in planta using mutant lines validated the role of BTFs in modulating the GRN and promoting bud dormancy.This knowledge provides access to the developmental mechanisms that regulate shoot branching and helps identify candidate genes to use as tools to adapt plant architecture and crop production to ever‐changing environmental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chlorpyrifos (CP) is a globally used pesticide with acute toxicity. This work studied the photocatalytic degradation of CP using TiO2, ZnO nanoparticles, and nanocomposites of TiO2 and ZnO supported on SPIONs (SPION@SiO2@TiO2 and SPION@SiO2@ZnO). The nanocomposites were synthesized by multi-step incipient wetness impregnation. The effects of the initial pH, catalyst type, and dose were evaluated. The nanocomposites of SPION@SiO2@TiO2 and SPION@SiO2@ZnO showed higher CP photodegradation levels than free nanoparticles, reaching 95.6% and 82.3%, respectively, at pH 7. The findings indicate that iron oxide, as a support material for TiO2 and ZnO, extended absorption edges and delayed the electron–hole recombination of the nanocomposites, improving their photocatalytic efficiency. At the same time, these nanocomposites, especially SPION@SiO2@TiO2, showed efficient degradation of 3,5,6-trichloropyridinol (TCP), one of the final metabolites of CP. The stability and reuse of this nanocomposite were also evaluated, with 74.6% efficiency found after six cycles. Therefore, this nanomaterial represents an eco-friendly, reusable, and effective alternative for the degradation of chlorpyrifos in wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β-Tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) is widely used as bone implant material. It has been observed that doping the β-TCP structure with certain cations can help in combating bacteria and pathogenic microorganisms. Previous literature investigations have focused on tricalcium phosphate structures with silver, copper, zinc, and iron cations. However, there are limited studies available on the biological properties of β-TCP containing nickel and cobalt ions. In this work, Ca10.5−xNix(PO4)7 and Ca10.5−xCox(PO4)7 solid solutions with the β-Ca3(PO4)2 structure were synthesized by a high-temperature solid-state reaction. Structural studies revealed the β-TCP structure becomes saturated at 9.5 mol/% for Co2+ or Ni2+ ions. Beyond this saturation point, Ni2+ and Co2+ ions form impurity phases after complete occupying of the octahedral M5 site. The incorporation of these ions into the β-TCP crystal structure delays the phase transition to the α-TCP phase and stabilizes the structure as the temperature increases. Biocompatibility tests conducted on adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (aMSC) using the (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) (MTT) assay showed that all prepared samples did not exhibit cytotoxic effects. Furthermore, there was no inhibition of cell differentiation into the osteogenic lineage. Antibacterial properties were studied on the C. albicans fungus and on E. coli, E. faecalis, S. aureus, and P. aeruginosa bacteria strains. The Ni- and Co-doped β-TCP series exhibited varying degrees of bacterial growth inhibition depending on the doping ion concentration and the specific bacteria strain or fungus. The combination of antibacterial activity and cell-friendly properties makes these phosphates promising candidates for anti-infection bone substitute materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]